SGU Episode 382

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SGU Episode 382
10th November 2012
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 381                      SGU 383
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
R: Rebecca Watson
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
P: Perry DeAngelis
Quote of the Week
[Space exploration] is in financial trouble. Yet by many standards, such missions are inexpensive. Mariner Jupiter/Saturn costs about the same as the American aircraft shot down in Vietnam in the week in which I am writing these words (Christmas 1972). The Viking mission itself costs about a fortnight of the Vietnam war. I find these comparisons particularly poignant: life versus death, hope versus fear. Space exploration and the highly mechanized destruction of people use similar technology and manufacturers, and similar human qualities of organization and daring. Can we not make the transition from automated aerospace killing to automated aerospace exploration of the solar system in which we live?
Carl Sagan
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Introduction

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

This Day in Skepticism (2:24)

• November 10, 1793 A Goddess of Reason is proclaimed by the French Convention at the suggestion of Chaumette.

News Items

Life in the Universe (6:27)

• How Common Is Life in the Universe

UFOlogy Dying (17:07)

• UFO enthusiasts admit the truth may not be out there after all

Chelation Therapy (24:14)

• The result of the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT): As underwhelming as expected

Psychic Medium Fail (32:17)

• Two professional mediums fail test to demonstrate their psychic powers under laboratory conditions

Who's That Noisy? (43:23)

• Answer to Last Week: Crow T Robot

Questions and Emails

Universe Rotating (46:59)

Simple question so a simple answer, (I hope.) Why does everything go round, rotate I mean and not just when your drunk! Planets, Stars, Galaxies, and maybe the whole Universe? Why, how did they get going. And, how come when I take off the front wheel of my bike and hold the axle on one side doesn't it fall down when it's spinning. Bending gravity? I know about precession but I'm still confused. Thanks Guys and remember take care out there. - Ian. Redmond, Zimbabwe

Science or Fiction (53:01)

Item number one. Curiosity's atmospheric analyzer has confirmed the presence of methane in the Martian atmosphere, keeping hope of Martian life alive. Item number two. A new computer model supports the grandmother hypothesis - that grandmothers provide a fertility advantage to their daughters, thereby driving the evolution of longevity. And item number three. Physicists have created a device with a refractive index of zero, meaning that the phase velocity of light within the device is effectively infinite.

In Memorium - Mike LaCelle (1:04:33)

• The Rogues remember Mike LaCelle - the 7th Rogue, who died on November 6th

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:15:10)

[Space exploration] is in financial trouble. Yet by many standards, such missions are inexpensive. Mariner Jupiter/Saturn costs about the same as the American aircraft shot down in Vietnam in the week in which I am writing these words (Christmas 1972). The Viking mission itself costs about a fortnight of the Vietnam war. I find these comparisons particularly poignant: life versus death, hope versus fear. Space exploration and the highly mechanized destruction of people use similar technology and manufacturers, and similar human qualities of organization and daring. Can we not make the transition from automated aerospace killing to automated aerospace exploration of the solar system in which we live?

J: Carl Sagan.

References