Tag: dogs

• The Butterfly Effect and Teen Dogs

  Sure, the butterfly effect is a popular notion in sci-fi, not to mention a staple of the Kutcher oeuvre, but could a small change in time travel result in huge problems? Physicists now have reason to believe in a quantum landscape, and think tweaking history in this way shouldn't be a major issue. Anthony and Jeff discuss going back to the future with 12 monkeys to take on baby Hitler, and decide whether this study should make things easier. Then, is your dog a teenager? It turns out dogs go through an angsty teen period just like humans. Jeff and Anthony take a look at the study that bears this out, and decipher what it means for pet owners. [more]

  August 7, 2020Episodes

• Measuring a Cute Angle (W/ Mica Burton)

  PATRONS GET A BONUS EPISODE WITH MICA. LISTEN TO IT HERE: https://www.patreon.com/posts/19007770/ There are roughly (or, if you prefer, ruffly) a billion dogs on the planet. Although dogs and humans have been existing alongside one another for tens of thousands of years, experts say 85 percent of the world’s dogs are feral. When pups are between two and three months old, their mothers will abandon them for any number of reasons. Without mothers, how are these abandoned pups supposed to survive? Science says that if they’re cute enough, puppies can make it by tricking humans into adopting them. Jeff and Anthony consider adopting one billion dogs. [more]

  June 1, 2018Episodes

• Working Like a Dog

  If you're a dog lover, just being with your pet feels good. So it's no surprise that therapy dogs are healing companions for people with health conditions. Research confirms that the benefits of pet therapy are real—but what do dogs think about helping humans? Science has considered this question too, and the results are reassuring. Jeff and Anthony discuss whether or not these findings apply to Anthony's perfect prince. [more]

  May 23, 2018Episodes

• Doggie Data Care

  What can artificial intelligence learn from dogs? Quite a lot, say researchers from the University of Washington and Allen Institute for AI. They recently trained neural networks to interpret and predict the behavior of canines. Their results, they say, show that animals could provide a new source of training data for AI systems — including those used to control robots. Jeff and Anthony learn that you can teach a new bot an old dog's tricks. [more]

  April 27, 2018Episodes

• Passing the Sniff Test

  A dog searching for a lost child is typically given an item of clothing to smell. But what does that scent “look” like? To find out, scientists tested 48 dogs, half of which had special police or rescue training. Jeff and Anthony discuss whether or not this study stinks. [more]

  March 16, 2018Episodes

• Can a Peacock Fly?

  Any animal could feasibly provide a human with emotional support, but it doesn't mean that they all should. According to a report by the BBC, the concept artist Ventiko offered to buy a seat for her peacock, Dexter, but was denied by United Airlines because of the bird's large size and weight. It was imperative he be on the flight because, she claimed, he's her emotional support animal. Jeff and Anthony discuss the abuse of support animal laws and ruffle each other's feathers. [more]

  February 7, 2018Episodes