Tag: funny

• Swear Words and Boring People

  Words have power - and maybe swear words have the most power. Jeff and Anthony take a look at the data that suggest the best reasons and ways to curse your @$! off. Then, a group of researchers set out to find the most boring person in the world. What makes a person boring? Anthony and Jeff debate the dull. [more]

  April 10, 2022Episodes

• Moon Trees and Watching Memories Form

  One of the Apollo 14 astronauts took a bag of tree seeds to the moon. A few years after the astronauts returned home, some of the seeds were planted across the United States... and then forgotten. Anthony and Jeff discuss the effort to track down these Moon Trees, and if they really mean something. Then, researchers have directly observed what happens inside the brain of a zebra fish when it is being traumatized. Jeff and Anthony talk about what this breakthrough means, and how exactly the scientists traumatized those fish. [more]

  April 4, 2022Episodes

• The Hardest Wood and Hoarding Tendencies

  What is the hardest wood in the world? A simple question with a surprisingly complex answer. Jeff and Anthony take a look at all the factors. Then, is there a tie between ADHD diagnosis and a propensity to collect or horde objects? Anthony and Jeff review a new study that answers that very question. [more]

  March 26, 2022Episodes

• Houdini Birds and the Space Dagger

  Researchers in Australia have been trying to track magpies using tiny, featherweight transmitters, but the birds have banded together to escape the magnetic backpacks that house the signal. This kind of cooperation has never been observed among this species and it raises a whole bunch of new questions. Anthony and Jeff take a look at those wily birds, and what this could mean for their incessant pranks. Then, new analysis of a dagger found in King Tut's tomb reveal that it is made out of iron from a meteorite. Jeff and Anthony step through the incredible process used to make that discovery. [more]

  March 15, 2022Episodes

• The Sour Paradox and Memory Loss is Memory Gain

  Of the classic five categories of taste, sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami, only one of them has no discernible evolutionary purpose. Scientists do not understand why we even sense sour, let alone why it is so pervasive across species. Jeff and Anthony look at the evidence and consider the most prominent theories. Then, what if having a touch time remembering something isn't a bug, but a feature? Anthony and Jeff examine a new paper that suggests that out brain is optimizing for success when it limits recall. [more]

  February 26, 2022Episodes

• Spider Chef and Musical Webs

  Researchers recently witnessed a spider shuttling a droplet of water from a small pond up into its web. They suspect the spider was using the droplet to rehydrate its food, behavior they've never before seen in spiders. Jeff and Anthony discuss food prep in the animal kingdom and why this is so rare. Then, can the natural world be expressed in music? Scientists are applying tonal variations to naturally occurring data to listen to the music of nature. Anthony and Jeff sample the sounds and decide if this is a worthwhile pursuit. [more]

  February 17, 2022Episodes

• Exo Wombs and the Faint Young Sun Paradox

  To combat low population growth, some countries are looking into using artificial wombs to grow new humans. Anthony and Jeff examine this dystopian idea to see if it might actually make sense. Then, we know the sun - and all stars - get hotter and hotter until they die. But what we rarely consider if how a younger sun would have been dimmer and cooler. Jeff and Anthony take a look at the paradox of how life on Earth emerged when it would have been too cold for oceans to flow. [more]

  February 4, 2022Episodes

• Deadlines and the Do Nothing Rent-a-Man

  A new experiment tests the non-monotonic effect of deadline length on task completion. What does that mean? Anthony and Jeff will procrastinate to the absolute last minute, but is that the norm? How do deadlines impact getting things done? Then, as a "Do Nothing Rent-a-Man" 38-year old Shoji Morimoto might have the world's best job. Then again, maybe not! Jeff and Anthony dig into this very unique profession. [more]

  January 17, 2022Episodes

• Xenobots and Space Crime

  The US scientists who created the first living robots say the life forms, known as xenobots, can now reproduce in a way not seen in plants and animals. Anthony and Jeff step through this discovery and what it could mean for humanity. Then, it appears NASA is investigating first allegation of crime in space. Jeff and Anthony speculate on how this might play out, and what the future of intergalactic criminality could look like. [more]

  December 20, 2021Episodes

• Shock Therapy and Space Mummies

  Researchers claim, for the first time, to have used custom-fitted deep brain stimulation to substantially alleviate a patient’s decades-long bout with severe depression. Anthony and Jeff discuss the scientific and ethical ramifications of re-wiring the brain with actual wires. Then, what happens to dead bodies on Mars? If humans are gonna go there, then we better be thinking about it! Luckily, scientists are, and Jeff and Anthony might not like the conclusions. [more]

  October 8, 2021Episodes