SGU Episode 876

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SGU Episode 876
April 23rd 2022
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 875                      SGU 877
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
C: Cara Santa Maria
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
Stupid entropy ruins everything.
Jennifer Ouellette, American writer
Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion

Introduction, Bermuda Vacation

Voice-over: 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]

Vaping and Brain Inflammation (10:55)

• Vaping Alters Inflammatory State of Brain, Heart, Lungs, and Colon

Projectile Fusion (25:20)

• Nuclear fusion breakthrough: 'Holy grail' of power production closer to reality after UK start-up develops new technique for accelerating fuel at 200 times the speed of sound

Facilitated Communication Still Pseudoscience (41:30)

• Facilitated Communication Is Still Pseudoscience

Gamma Rays and Gravitational Waves (58:56)

• Cosmic 'Lighthouses' That Beam Gamma Rays Could Reveal Gravitational Waves All Around Us

AI Emotion Detection (1:10:32)

• Reported AI-based emotion recognition by Zoom irks rights advocates

Who's That Noisy? (1:21:05)

Answer to previous Noisy:

The 'Telemetron' Is a Post-Earth Musical Instrument Designed for Zero Gravity

New Noisy (1:24:37)

[in and out puffing sounds similar to heavy breathing]

J: ... If you think you know what this week's Noisy is, or if you heard something cool like the sound that you just heard, then you should just email me very quietly and very sincerely to Who's That Noisy, WTN@theskepticsguide.org. That's all you have to do.

Questions/Emails/Corrections/Follow-ups (1:26:10)

Email #1: Communicating Skepticism

I work at a not-for-profit (https://www.digitalpublicsquare.org/) and one of things we try to create are interventions when it comes to things like public health. In terms of vaccine misinformation, we have a site that offers information in a quiz-like format (https://knowitornot.com/). Now, I know you all have discussed the efficacy of these types of interventions and wanted to know your thoughts. I've heard that sometimes these types of true/false paradigms might not be the best and don’t do well to "vaccinate" folks against mis/disinformation. Personally, I can see how such a paradigm talks down to someone who's deep in the hole, and it might not communicate the "skeptical" mindset. I'm wondering what the Skeptics think of strategies like these, and if there are any particular insights you could offer based on your experiences. Love the show, thanks!

– Wahid Shafique, Toronto

Science or Fiction (1:33:44)

Theme: Bermuda Item #1: There are no native mammals in Bermuda, only introduced species such as mice, rats, and feral cats. Item #2: There are more than 300 shipwrecks in the waters off Bermuda, making it the shipwreck capital of the world. Item #3: When Bermuda was first discovered in the 1500s and later settled by Europeans, it had no native or indigenous population.

Answer	Item
Fiction	No native mammals
Science	Shipwreck capital
Science	No native population

Host	Result
Steve	clever

Rogue	Guess
Evan	Shipwreck capital
Jay	No native population
Cara	No native mammals
Bob	No native mammals

Voice-over: It's time for Science or Fiction.

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:54:41)

Stupid entropy ruins everything.
– Jennifer Ouellette, American writer

Signoff

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.

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Today I Learned

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

References

Vocabulary