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The Skeptics' Guide To The Universe - Podcast 357 - 5/19/2012
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The Skeptics' Guide To The Universe

The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is produced by SGU Productions, LLC - dedicated to promoting critical thinking, reason, and the public understanding of science through online and other media. The first episode of the SGU podcast went online on May 4th, 2005. It soon became a popular science/skeptical podcast, and remains one of the most popular science podcasts on iTunes.

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Podcast 357 - May 19, 2012

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Interview with Chris Lewicki
Guest Rogue: Phil Plait
This day in Skepticism: Head Cabinet
News Items: Ghost Box, Mayan Calendar, Electricity from Viruses, UK LIbel Law Update
Who's That Noisy
Your Questions and E-mails: Corrections, Supermoon
Science or Fiction



Segment:   This Day in Skepticism     
May 19, 1987     A patent was issued for this device, a cabinet for keeping a head alive: http://www.google.com/patents/US4666425

Segment:   News Items     
Ghost Box     http://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/ghost-box/
Mayan Calendar     http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18018343
Electricity from Viruses     http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18018343
UK Libel Law Update     http://skepchick.org/2012/05/uk-parliament-will-tackle-libel-reform/

Segment:   Who's That Noisy     
Who's That Noisy     Answer to last week: a Wilsford flute, sounding as if it were played within the walls of Stonehenge http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-17080299

Segment:   Questions and Emails     
Question #1 - Corrections     Rosalind Franklin and Jocelyn Bell Bernell
Question #2 - SuperMoon     The "BBC News" thread had this on it "'Supermoon' graces the night sky" A "supermoon", bigger and brighter than usual, is seen in the night sky as it comes closer to the Earth - bringing with it the chance of higher tides. I commented "nonsense, it's an optical illusion when the moon is near other objects we associate as big, the moon does not have an elliptical orbit, it never gets bigger or get's closer." was I right? this is my understanding, that the moon can look small when it's way up in the sky with nothing but stars to look at it next to, but when it's right next to a massive silo our brain says "this is now much more massive the normal" if I'm wrong please correct me, it's the only way I learn. Kieren, from australia

Segment:   Interview     
Interview with Chris Lewicki     http://spacegrant.arizona.edu/node/438 http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2012/04/24/breaking-private-company-does-indeed-plan-to-mine-asteroids-and-i-think-they-can-do-it/

Segment:   Science or Fiction     [ Click Here to Show the Answers ]
Item #1     In 1860 Florence Nightingale founded the first secular nursing school, essentially establishing the modern nursing profession. http://protomag.com/assets/florence-nightingale-nursing-a-profession
Item #2     An early believer in the benefits of sanitation, Nightingale's policies during the Crimean war quickly dropped the death rate in British Army hospitals from a high of 42% to as low as 2.2%. http://www.victorianweb.org/history/crimea/florrie.html
Item #3     Nightingale suffered from a mystery chronic illness and lived as an invalid from 1857 to the end of her life in 1910 at the age of 90. http://www.victorianweb.org/history/crimea/florrie.html

Segment:   Skeptical Quote of the Week     
Skeptical Quote of the Week     "You are neither right nor wrong because the crowd disagrees with you. You are right because your data and reasoning are right." -Benjamin Graham.
 
 
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