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The Skeptics' Guide To The Universe - Podcast 99 - 6/13/2007
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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.
SGU Podcasting Awards: SGU on XM: You can listen to the SGU on America's Talk XM 166 every Saturday night from 8-9pm Eastern.
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Podcast
99
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June 13, 2007
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Interview with Phil Plait - The Bad Astronomer; News Items: Creationism Poll, Academic Freedom, Mercury-Autism Controversy in Court, Mr. Wizard Dies at 89; Your E-mails and Questions: Rods, Zero Point Energy; Science or Fiction; Skeptical Puzzle
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Segment: News Items
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Segment: Questions and E-mails
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Rods
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Steve,
I would love for skeptics guide to cover "rods". Some people believe they are a flying creature as yet unknown to most of science. A Los Angeles news program can be viewed here:
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4569858645044577004&q=rods&hl=en
Of course the immediate idea is that these are artifacts of video cameras. I was frustrated that the crew didn't just film the phenomenon with two cameras and sync the footage. From that you could pretty quickly and imply determine if the event was in the camera or in the world. If it's in the world, you could determine size and speed from triangulating the two signals if you just recorded how far the cameras were from each other. It doesn't take much to really narrow down this kind of thing, and it's frustrating to see people
miss easy opportunities.
Anyway, if you guys could discuss it, that could be a fun topic.
As always, you do great podcasts.
Regards,
Matt Dick
Wikipedia rods entry: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_(cryptozoology)
Debunking site reproducing "rod" pictures: http://www.opendb.com/sol/bugs.htm
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Zero Point Energy
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I was watching a show on the Science channel on cable, and they seemed to give some support to John Hutchinson & zero point energy, Jim Ventura and lifter research and anti gravity, Joseph Newman energy machine, Thomas Townsend Brown and anti gravity. Surprised they were taken quite seriously on a science channel. I don't know much about them, any science behind their claims?
Thanks
Frank Auer
USA
Credulous ZPE theories: http://www.soulsofdistortion.nl/SODA_chapter4.html
Hutchinson article: http://www.sciencepunk.com/v5/2006/10/john-hutchison/
Thomas Townsend Brown:
http://www.antigravitytechnology.net/thomas_townsend_brown.html
Skeptical article on Joseph Newman
http://www.phact.org/e/skeptic/newman.htm
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Segment: Interview
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Interview with Phil Plait
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Phil Plait is the Bad Astronomer
http://www.badastronomy.com/
Article on Expanding Universe
news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/06/070604-universe.html
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Segment: Science or Fiction [ Click Here to Show the Answers ]
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Question #1  Science
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A newly published study shows that spontaneously recovered memories of childhood abuse are almost as accurate as continuous memories.
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Question #2  Fiction
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Among the many new species recently discovered in the deep Antarctic ocean is a shrimp species the size of dolphin.
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Question #3 Science
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Physicians report a case of a man who bled green blood during a surgical procedure.
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Segment: Skeptical Puzzle
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Puzzle
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This Week's Puzzle
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Mark Twain
Herbert Hoover
J. Paul Getty
Napoleon Bonaparte
Rudolph Giuliani
What un-skeptical trait do all of these famous people have in common?
Last Week's Puzzle
Name the former world leader that used to laugh at UFO believers, but later became a believer himself when he himself witnessed one.
Answer: Former US President Jimmy Carter
Winner: Talus
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Segment: Quote of the Week
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Quote
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"Education has failed in a very serious way to convey the most important lesson science can teach: skepticism"
- David Suzuki (Canadian environmentalist, scientist and broadcaster b.1936)
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