SGU Episode 878

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SGU Episode 878
May 7th 2022
(brief caption for the episode icon)
SGU 877                      SGU 879
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
C: Cara Santa Maria
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Quote of the Week
You know the very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common. They don’t alter their views to fit the facts; they alter the facts to fit their views.
1977 Doctor Who, fictional British TV Time Lord
Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion

Introduction, SGU turns 17, Favorite Memories

Voice-over: You're listening to the Skeptics' Guide to the Universe, your escape to reality.

E: So this is the day when we're reminded that "sand is coarse and it gets everywhere."

Jay's receives Critical Thinking Award (8:50)

• 2022 Critical Thinker Award

Quickie with Bob (13:12)

• Solar Gravitational Lens update

B: ... If you watched Episode 812 from early 2021, I entertainingly discussed the possibility of using the Sun as a solar gravitational lens.

News Items

S:

B:

C:

J:

E:

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

Sustainable Jet Fuel (17:41)

• Sustainable Jet Fuels

Dog Personality (29:14)

• Massive study of pet dogs shows breed does not predict behaviour

COVID and Cognitive Aging (44:19)

• Cognitive Impairment From Severe COVID-19 Equivalent to 20 Years of Aging

Fertilizer Shortage (54:42)

• Can the World Feed Itself? Historic Fertilizer Crunch Threatens Food Security

Cosmic Expansion (1:04:13)

• The universe could stop expanding 'remarkably soon', study suggests

Who's That Noisy? (1:13:12)

Answer to previous Noisy:

Yellow-cheeked gibbons

New Noisy (1:18:12)

[machinery sounds, as of a jet engine or train rolling]

J: ... So if you think you know what this Noisy is, or if you heard something cool this week, email me at WTN@theskepticsguide.org.

Announcements (1:18:51)

J: Steve, a few things to talk about.

Questions/Emails/Corrections/Follow-ups (1:21:32)

Email #1: Lemuria

_consider_using_block_quotes_for_emails_read_aloud_in_this_segment_
with_reduced_spacing_for_long_chunks –

Science or Fiction (1:27:10)

Hearmepurr: check out the cool "tooltip" link (hover mouse and pause when you see the ?) I made that links to the follow-up discussion in 879

Theme: Critical Thinking Item #1: A recent systematic review of belief in the paranormal finds a robust correlation with intuitive thinking, increased confirmation bias, and reduced conditional reasoning. Item #2: A recent study finds that the more certain subjects were about the future course of the pandemic the more likely they were to follow recommended preventive protocols. Item #3: Research consistently finds that people have an action bias check out the follow up discussion in episode 879! – they will favor doing something over doing nothing even if it worsens outcomes.

Answer	Item
Fiction	More certain, more likely
Science	Paranormal beliefs
Science	people have an action bias check out the follow up discussion in episode 879!

Host	Result
Steve	win

Rogue	Guess
Bob	People have an action bias
Evan	More certain, more likely
Jay	More certain, more likely
Cara	More certain, more likely

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

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:42:34)

You know the very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common.
They don’t alter their views to fit the facts; they alter the facts to fit their views.
– 1977 Doctor Who, fictional British TV Time Lord

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