SGU Episode 784

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SGU Episode 784
July 18th 2020
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 783                      SGU 785
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
C: Cara Santa Maria
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Guest
SA: Stephon Alexander
Quote of the Week
Hopefully, the 27th time’s the charm.
Grant Imahara
Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion

Introduction

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

News Items

S:

B:

C:

J:

E:

(laughs) (laughter) (applause) [inaudible]

"Dog Years" Myth ()

• Today: Forget 'dog years' - Scientists say we've been calculating our pups' ages wrong

Fighting Climate Change with Rock Dust ()

• Ars Technica: Spreading rock dust on farms could be a major climate action

Visual Perception and Filtering ()

• Neurologica: Imagining vs. Seeing
• Neurologica: The Brain's Filter

Underused Terahertz Radiation ()

• Phys.org: Underused part of the electromagnetic spectrum gets optics boost from metamaterial

Interview with Stephon Alexander ()

• The Jazz of Physics: The Secret Link Between Music and the Structure of the Universe

Science or Fiction ()

Voiceover: It's time for Science or Fiction.

Item #1: Scientists have developed an organic solvent that can dissolve any source of cellulose at room temperature, tripling the efficiency of producing biofuel from plant waste.
Item #2: Scientists have demonstrated a solar energy converter with 85% efficiency and project a cost of 3 cents per kilowatt hour.
Item #3: Researchers have developed a catalyst that can be used in the conversion of sea water to fuel and calculate that it will function at industrial scale.

Steve Explains [Item #]

Answer	Item
Fiction	Organic solvent
Science	{{{science1}}}

Host	Result
Steve	sweep

Rogue	Guess

Who's That Noisy? ()

• Answer to last week’s Noisy: Drill Cleaner

New Noisy ()

[brief, vague description of Noisy]

Skeptical Quote of the Week ()

Hopefully, the 27th time's the charm.
– Grant Imahara, American electrical engineer, roboticist, television host, and actor.

Signoff/Announcements ()

S: —and until next week, this is your Skeptics' Guide to the Universe.

S: Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is produced by SGU Productions, dedicated to promoting science and critical thinking. For more information, visit us at theskepticsguide.org. Send your questions to info@theskepticsguide.org. And, if you would like to support the show and all the work that we do, go to patreon.com/SkepticsGuide and consider becoming a patron and becoming part of the SGU community. Our listeners and supporters are what make SGU possible.

Today I Learned

• Fact/Description, possibly with an article reference
• Fact/Description
• Fact/Description

References

Vocabulary