SGU Episode 389

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SGU Episode 389
29th December 2012
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 388                      SGU 390
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
R: Rebecca Watson
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
It has become my conviction that things mean pretty much what we want them to mean. We’ll pluck significance from the least consequential happenstance if it suits us and happily ignore the most flagrantly obvious symmetry between separate aspects of our lives if it threatens some cherished prejudice or cosily comforting belief; we are blindest to precisely whatever might be most illuminating.
Iain Banks
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Introduction

You're listening to the Skeptics' Guide to the Universe, your escape to reality.

This Day in Skepticism (1:46)

• December 29, 1790: Thomas Fuller dies.

Best and Worst of 2012 (6:04)

• The Rogues review the last year of the SGU, science, and skepticism

Tim Farley (54:20)

E: Tim Farley did some really excellent work this year, in regards to his reporting and keeping us all up to date on what was happening with "Mabus," also known as Dennis Markuze, who was arrested multiple times in Montreal, and they were able to finally sort of piece together all the parts with great help of the skeptical community and great work by Tim, the police were able to track this guy down. Markuze has been inundating all of us - Rebecca, Steve, all of us - we've received the emails for years now. It's been as long as we've been doing the show I think. Finally it got to a point where something had to be done about it and they did arrest him, not once but twice, and Tim deserves a lot of credit for that work.

S: Yeah, absolutely.

J: Tim does a lot of stuff like that. He's definitely not a one trick pony, he's got a lot of things going on. He's one hell of a skeptic.

S: He is. I also think he's one of the underrated skeptics, you know, who does a lot of good work, and maybe he's not in a position that gets him a lot of attention, but he deserves more attention than he gets in my opinion.

In Memoriam (55:26)

• The Rogues remember those we lost over the last year

Who's That Noisy? (57:53)

• Answer to last week: Tetris theme

Science or Fiction (1:00:03)

Item #1. Biologists have discovered a species of small jellyfish that can float briefly above the surface of the water to evade predators. Item #2. Scientists have discovered a cyanobacterium that creates calcified structures inside its cell. Item #3. An entomologist discovered a new species of lacewing fly from a picture posted on Flickr. And item #4. A new species of primate was discovered - cute and cuddly looking, but with two tongues and highly venomous.

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:16:48)

It has become my conviction that things mean pretty much what we want them to mean. We’ll pluck significance from the least consequential happenstance if it suits us and happily ignore the most flagrantly obvious symmetry between separate aspects of our lives if it threatens some cherished prejudice or cosily comforting belief; we are blindest to precisely whatever might be most illuminating.

Iain Banks.

References