SGU Episode 397

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SGU Episode 397
23rd February 2013
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 396                      SGU 398
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
R: Rebecca Watson
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.
Winston Churchill
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Introduction

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

This Day in Skepticism (0:57)

• February 23, 1927 - German theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg writes a letter to fellow physicist Wolfgang Pauli, in which he describes his uncertainty principle for the first time.

News Items

Russian Meteor (5:59)

• Dashboard cams capture Russian meteor

Spontaneous Human Combustion (17:25)

• Spontaneous combustion theory in man's death

Cosmos Unstable (24:05)

• Cosmos may be 'inherently unstable'

Bigfoot DNA Published (31:51)

• 'Bigfoot DNA' study seeks Yeti rights

Intellectually Lazy (36:37)

• We know when we’re being lazy thinkers

Who's That Noisy? (45:32)

• Puzzle: There are three switches downstairs. Each corresponds to one of the three light bulbs in the attic. You can not see the lights in the attic from where the switches are located. You can turn the switches on and off and leave them in any position. How would you identify which switch corresponds to which light bulb, if you are only allowed one trip upstairs?

Special Report: Retro Futurism (50:43)

• Walter Cronkite Demonstrates the Home of the Future in 1967

Science or Fiction (59:06)

Item number one. Researchers have demonstrated that the teeth of toothed whales are not related to other mammalian teeth but have a distinct embryological derivation. Item number two. A new study finds that a magnetic bracelet-like device was effective in reducing esophageal reflux. And item number three. New research finds that bilingual children have greater working memory and executive function than their monolingual counterparts.

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:14:53)

The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.

Winston Churchill

References