April 21, 2008: The Open-Source Boob Project Grosses Us Out

April 21, 2008: The Open-Source Boob Project Grosses Us Out

From This Week In Fandom History by V. Arrow, Emily Jaye

April 19, 2026 · 54 min · Season 4 · Episode 160

About this episode

V and Emily discuss the controversial Open-Source Boob Project and its implications for convention culture.

Gross! This week, V and Emily are balls of white-hot rage as they discuss the very 2008 debacle that was the Open-Source Boob Project at Penguicon '08. The originator of the project -- the same dude who created the Purity Test that everyone in the late aughts took in college, because of course he was -- tried to defend his lechery with a veneer of "social science experiment," and as usual, it did not work and just remained totally gross. The bright side of this requested episode? It really highlights a positive culture shift that has occurred in con spaces, and in wider culture (kind of), since 2008. Do you feel safe and supported at conventions? Let us know in the comments where you're listening or on our Tumblr! Sources Fanlore Wikipedia Promo Check out our new pod-friends Normal Curves ! If you've ever seen a study headline and thought, "wait . . . is that actually true?" then you might like Normal Curves. It's a podcast where two statisticians – Regina Nuzzo and Kristin Sainani – take big claims about things like sex, health, and human behavior and figure out what the research actually shows . . . and where it gets a little shaky. That can mean digging into messy data…

People in this episode

Hosts: V. Arrow, Emily Jaye

Topics covered

  • Open-Source Boob Project
  • convention culture
  • social science experiments
  • gender issues
  • cultural shifts

Keywords

  • Open-Source Boob Project
  • Penguicon
  • conventions
  • social science
  • cultural shift

Sponsors

Normal Curves

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Open-Source Boob Project, Penguicon '08

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