SGU Episode 895

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SGU Episode 895
September 3rd 2022
Solar panels on roof
SGU 894                      SGU 896
Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella
B: Bob Novella
C: Cara Santa Maria
J: Jay Novella
E: Evan Bernstein
Guest
SY: Dr. Seema Yasmin, British writer & science communicator
Quote of the Week
If you have an effect that nobody can replicate, then your phenomenon fades away. So if you want to have a legacy, then you jolly well better have an effect that replicates.
Susan Fiske, American social psychologist
Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion

Introduction, Steve's COVID, Cara in FL

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

Announcements (8:40)

• 6-hour live stream

News Items

S:

B:

C:

J:

E:

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

Hot Summer (11:24)

• This Hot Summer Is One of the Coolest of the Rest of Our Lives

Tear Down This Paywall (21:04)

• No more paywalls for public research, says White House

Volcano Catastrophe (30:09)

• Risk of volcano catastrophe 'a roll of the dice'

Solar Energy Update (44:19)

• Organic Solar Cells and Other Solar Advances

Interview with Dr. Seema Yasmin (1:07:53)

• What The Fact?: Finding The Truth In All The Noise

Who's That Noisy? (1:26:50)

Answer to previous Noisy:

Puzzle solved sound from The Legend of Zelda

New Noisy (1:30:50)

[male voice? shushing in perhaps an Asian language]

J: ... what is that that we're hearing.

Science or Fiction (1:33:24)

Theme: Common Myths Item #1: The notion that humans have as many hair follicles as chimpanzees, on average, is false, with our closest cousins having 2-3 times as many as humans. Item #2: Bagpipes do not have their origin in Scotland, but are rather an ancient instrument. In fact, Nero was more likely to have played the bagpipes than the fiddle while Rome burned (although that is also a myth). Item #3: Contrary to common lore, the QWERTY keyboard layout was not created to limit jamming but rather was designed for convenience.

Answer	Item
Fiction	Chimps: 2-3x more follicles
Science	Bagpipes not Scottish in origin
Science	Qwerty made for convenience

Host	Result
Steve	win

Rogue	Guess
Evan	Qwerty made for convenience
Bob	Chimps: 2-3x more follicles
Cara	Chimps: 2-3x more follicles
Jay	Chimps: 2-3x more follicles

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

Skeptical Quote of the Week (1:46:35)

If you have an effect that nobody can replicate, then your phenomenon fades away. So if you want to have a legacy, then you jolly well better have an effect that replicates.
– Susan Fiske, American social psychologist

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.

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Today I Learned

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

References

Vocabulary