SGU Episode 470

This episode needs: transcription, time stamps, formatting, links, 'Today I Learned' list, categories, segment redirects. Please help out by contributing!

How to Contribute

SGU Episode 470
July 12th 2014
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 469                      SGU 471
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
R: Rebecca Watson
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would be no music.
Lewis Thomas
Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion

Introduction

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

This Day in Skepticism ()

• July 12, 1895: Happy birthday to Buckminster Fuller! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminster_Fuller

News Items

Solar Freakin' Rebuttal (4:58)

• http://www.solarroadways.com/clearingthefreakinair.shtml

S: Do you guys remember the Solar Freakin' Highways?

R: The ones we talked about? Didn't we talk about them?

E: Those hexagonal tiles that you put together?

S: Yeah, they use these little pavers with these embedded solar panels and they planned an indi go go campaign to replace all of our highways and roads with solar panels.

E: Yeah, a couple of trillion of those and we're good.

S: They wrote a rebuttal to all of the criticism that they've been getting online. Apparently they were a little stung by the fact that there's an Internet and people are going to discuss their ideas and maybe in unflattering tones.

E: How dare they?

B: Someone's wrong on the Internet!

S: First of all, their Indie Go Go campaign concluded and they reached 2.2 million dollars.

J: Wow

R: Wow

S: Raised 2.2 million dollars.

B: What were they shooting for.

S: One million, I think was their goal.

B: So, nice.

S: Good for them. But after reading their article called Clearing the Frickin' Air

B: haha, nice.

S: Now I despise them.

B: Oh, really?

S: Yeah, because it's...

B: Oh, I can't wait to hear this.

R: Oh, no.

S: It's the worst to respond to criticism. It is absolutely the worst. Let me just read you some bits of it.

B: Oh, yeah!

S: So they say:

"Most of the attention has been very positive, but as the campaign became more and more successful (and popular), the naysayers began coming out in force trying to grab some attention. They use non-scientific "facts", misquote and mislead, and sometimes flat out lie. They write unprofessional articles and create deceiving videos to lead people astray. We were told by the Indiegogo staff that this happens to every successful campaign, regardless of the invention.

"Haters are going to hate. Nothing we can do about that. One unscrupulous individual even took our viral Solar Freakin' Roadways video (by volunteer Michael Naphan) without our permission, and has used it to create another video, in which he has embedded deliberately misleading information."

S: And he just keeps going on like that. I mean, it's just like like are you new to the Internet?

R: Whining.

S: Yeah, the worst possible whining.

B: Wait, but he does address the major problems that people

Slower Light ()

• http://www.theskepticsguide.org/closest-supernova-may-prove-light-is-slower-than-we-think-or-something-else

Orion Capsule ()

• http://www.theskepticsguide.org/orion-capsule-gets-one-step-closer

UFO Sightings ()

• http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21605918-everything-you-need-know-about-ufos-0

Facebook Experiment ()

• http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-28051930http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/did-facebook-and-pnas-violate-human-research-protections-in-an-unethical-experiment/

Who's That Noisy ()

• Answer to last week: PC fan error

Questions and Emails

Question #1: TDDCS ()

Hi crew,DIY trans dermal direct current stimulation - what gives?It seems that there's a popular movement emerging - people are building their own DIY stim kits, and a few companies are marketing them. However, the way it's presented has multiple characteristics of pseudoscience. I understand there's some serious research underway... but is it really such a good idea to build an at-home kit to send currents through your own head? I feel the obvious answer is hell no. With a side of no, seriously.If only someone knew a neuroscientist who could comment...Love the show, etcGareth in Sydneyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcranial_direct-current_stimulationhttp://www.diytdcs.com/ 'Become a tDCS expert in only a few hours!' - wtf?http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/psychiatry/specialty_areas/brain_stimulation/tdcs.html

Science or Fiction ()

Item #1: Researchers find that a mutation in a skin protein not related to pigment has a greater effect on Vitamin D levels than does melanin. Item #2: A new study finds that cats and elephants, and all animals intermediate in size, empty their bladders in the same amount of time, regardless of volume. Item #3: A new study finds that cats and elephants, and all animals intermediate in size, empty their bladders in the same amount of time, regardless of volume.

Skeptical Quote of the Week ()

'The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would be no music.'— Lewis Thomas

S: The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is produced by SGU Productions, dedicated to promoting science and critical thinking. For more information on this and other episodes, please visit our website at theskepticsguide.org, where you will find the show notes as well as links to our blogs, videos, online forum, and other content. You can send us feedback or questions to info@theskepticsguide.org. Also, please consider supporting the SGU by visiting the store page on our website, where you will find merchandise, premium content, and subscription information. Our listeners are what make SGU possible.

References