Hello everyone and welcome to talk nerdy.

Today is Monday, March 16th, 2026, and I'm the host of the show, Dr. Kara, Santa Maria.

And as always, I want to start this episode by thanking those of you who make talk nerdy possible.

We are on episode number 593.

I've been doing this since 2014, and I would not be able to keep making this show if it weren't for you, the amazing patrons.

Remember, this show is and will always be 100% free to download, and the way that I keep doing it week after week is by relying on the support of individuals just like you.

If you'd like to pledge your support on an

episodic basis, all you have to do is visit patreon.com slash talk nerdy to learn more. This week's

top patrons include Chuck Blell, David J.E. Smith, Daniel Lang, Mary Neva, Will Defrain,

David Compton, Brian Holden, Gabbo J, O'Rica Hagman, Pascuali

Jalati, and Joe Wilkinson. Thank you all so much. Okay, let's get into it. This week I had the

opportunity to chat with Dr. Caroline Tracy about her new book, Salt Lakes, an unnatural history.

She is a science and nature writer who's work focuses on the environment, migration, and

the arts in the American Southwest, Mexico, and their borderlands. She's written for all sorts of

outlooks like the New Yorker, High Country News, New York Review of Books, and elsewhere she's won a

bunch of awards, and this is her debut book. Again, it's called Salt Lakes and Unnatural History. So without any further ado,

here she is, Dr. Caroline Tracy. Well, Caroline, thank you so much for joining me today.

Thanks for having me. I'm excited to talk about your new book, Salt Lakes, an unnatural history.

But before we get into the book itself and some of the

interesting topics that you dive into, I'd love to learn a little bit more about you. So would you

call yourself a geographer? Like what is a person with a PhD in geography's title?

It is technically a geographer.

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