SGU Episode 305

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SGU Episode 305
May 18th 2011
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 304                      SGU 306
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
R: Rebecca Watson
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
'I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.'
Stephen Hawking
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 ()

• May 21, 1916: Daylight Saving Time was introduced in Britain as a war-time measure to save fuel.

News Items ()

Rapture ()

• http://skepchick.org/2011/05/ai-its-the-end-of-the-world-again/

Another Cancer Cure ()

• http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/another-cure-for-cancer/

Gut Bacteria and Behavior ()

• http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517110315.htm

Habitable Exoplanet ()

• http://uk.news.yahoo.com/first-habitable-planet-discovered.html

Higgs False Alarm ()

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13424231

Who's That Noisy ()

• Answer to last week - Jumping Spider

Swindlers List ()

Swindlers ListBidsell.com

Interview with James Randi ()

• www.randi.org

Science or Fiction ()

Item #1: Imaging studies of ancient Egyptian mummies find an almost complete absence of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), even in the older individuals.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517121824.htm Item #2: Astronomers have detected a new class of planet - Jupiter-sized rogue planets wandering interstellar space, and estimate their number at 400 billion in the Milky Way.http://www.nature.com/news/2011/110518/full/news.2011.303.html Item #3: Researchers find that exposure to cockroach antigen is a significant contributor to childhood asthma.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110517151301.htm

Skeptical Quote of the Week ()

'I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.' — Stephen Hawking

Voice-over: 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 www.theskepticsguide.org. You can also check out our other podcast, The SGU 5x5, as well as find links to our blogs and the SGU forums. For questions, suggestions, and other feedback, please use the "Contact Us" form on the website or send an email to info@theskepticsguide.org. If you enjoyed this episode, then please help us spread the word by leaving us a review on iTunes, Zune, or your portal of choice.

References