Science Faction Podcast: Recent Episodes
Devon Craft and Steven Domingues
A science and science fiction based podcast hosted by two high school friends, and two college friends. Listen and learn and geek out. In this podcast, science meets fact, meets fiction.
This week the crew dives into everything from the enduring appeal of Star Trek and classic science fiction to Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, Saturday morning superheroes, and the ever-growing spoiler problem surrounding the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Then it's on to the Future or Now segment, where Linux experiments with collaborative computing, the Large Hadron Collider may have stumbled onto an unexpected clue about dark matter, and the hosts speculate about what Spider-Man: Brand New Day means for the future of Marvel.
Real Life Ben kicks things off with a reminder that, in his opinion, all Trek is good Trek. That naturally leads into a discussion about the six Star Trek movies featuring the crew of the USS Enterprise and why the franchise continues to find new fans across generations. He also revisits Carl Sagan's Contact, arguing that both the novel and the Jodie Foster film remain some of the finest examples of thoughtful hard science fiction ever created.
Devon brings a dose of nostalgia with the return of Blockbuster Game and Movie Quotes, revisiting the classic video rental era and the memorable quotes that defined countless movie nights.
Steven reviews The Odyssey, sharing spoiler-filled thoughts on the film's strengths, historical accuracy, and breathtaking presentation. His recommendation is simple: if you have the opportunity, see it in IMAX. One unexpected highlight was the Cyclops sequence, whose visual style reminded him of surreal 1990s rock music videos, channeling the atmosphere of bands like Pearl Jam and Nine Inch Nails. Steven also revisits X-Men '92, X-Men '96, and X-Men '97, praising how well the original animated series portrayed its female characters. Better yet, his kids were immediately hooked after watching the iconic two-part opener, Night of the Sentinels.
Future or Now Ben explores the surprisingly underdeveloped world of multi-seat computing on Linux after reading an excellent write-up on the subject at https://blinry.org/multi-seat-wayland/. While the Wayland protocol already supports multiple users sharing a single computer remarkably well, many surrounding applications and libraries still lag behind. The project demonstrates exciting possibilities for collaborative gaming, pair programming, classrooms, and other shared computing experiences. He also highlights the cooperative physics game Heavenly Bodies (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1138850/Heavenly_Bodies/), whose unique gameplay feels like the perfect showcase for this kind of multi-user setup.
Devon heads underground—literally—to CERN, where researchers continue investigating mysterious "unidentified falling objects" inside the Large Hadron Collider. According to a recent article from ScienceAlert (https://www.sciencealert.com/ufos-in-the-large-hadron-collider-may-be-hints-of-dark-matter), tiny dust particles unexpectedly drift into the proton beam, disrupting experiments. The bigger mystery isn't the dust itself, but what causes it to move in one of the cleanest scientific instruments ever built. Some physicists now wonder whether these events could be indirect hints of dark matter interacting with the detector in ways nobody anticipated.
Steven wraps things up with thoughts on Spider-Man: Brand New Day, using it as a springboard to discuss the modern spoiler culture surrounding the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With audiences dissecting every trailer, casting announcement, and leaked set photos months before release, the hosts debate whether the excitement of surprise has largely disappeared. Along the way, Ben poses one of the episode's more important questions: If it's a gray movie... should Hulk be gray too?
This week on Science Faction, life milestones collide with pop culture as Ben celebrates finally paying off over two decades of student loans while Devon contemplates a lifetime of payments. The crew also dives into Star Trek, Mothership, San Diego Comic-Con reveals, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Cowboy Bebop, and an unexpectedly deep rabbit hole exploring the technology behind the original Jurassic Park. As always, it's a mix of real life, science fiction, and everything wonderfully nerdy in between.
Real Life Ben reached a major milestone this week by finally paying off his student loans after 21 years. It's the kind of accomplishment that deserves a celebration, especially considering how many people are still carrying student debt decades after graduating. Devon balanced out the optimism by joking that he's probably never going to finish paying his off.
Steven has been spending time with Mothership: Wages of Sin, another adventure for the acclaimed sci-fi horror RPG. If you're interested in checking it out, you can find it here: https://www.tuesdayknightgames.com/collections/mothership
Ben also finds himself in an unfamiliar situation: waiting on absolutely nothing. Instead, he talked about his latest favorite gadget, the Clicks Keyboard for smartphones: https://www.clicks.tech/powerkeyboard
The Star Trek discussion continued with Star Trek: Axanar – The Gathering Storm, where Faran Tahir's appearance was a welcome surprise. You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFpTiIHNTJ0&pp=ygUGYXhhbmFy
That naturally led into Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4's episode Valles Marineris, which managed to answer the timeless question: What if Star Trek had dinosaurs? The crew discusses whether that's exactly what Trek needed—or never knew it needed. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Valles_Marineris_(episode)
Future or Now San Diego Comic-Con brought plenty of announcements to unpack, including new reveals surrounding Avengers: Doomsday, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Jean-Pool, and the surprise pairing of Ghost Rider and Starfighter. Ryan Reynolds continues to find creative ways to keep Deadpool in the spotlight. https://entertainmentnow.com/marvel-studios-movies-comics/ryan-reynolds-sdcc-deadpool/
Ben also rounds up several pieces of Avatar: The Last Airbender news, including the upcoming animated Aang film and the newly announced sequel series, Avatar: Seven Havens. https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/avatar-aang-the-last-airbender-in-theaters
https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/avatar-seven-havens-release-date-revealed
After finally finishing the original Cowboy Bebop anime and its movie, Ben shares his thoughts on why the series has remained such a classic for nearly three decades.
The conversation then shifts into one of the nerdiest rabbit holes imaginable: a painstaking technical breakdown of every computer seen in the original Jurassic Park. It's a fascinating look at how the filmmakers blended real hardware with Hollywood magic. https://fabiensanglard.net/jurrasic_park_computers/index.html
That naturally prompts Devon to shout, "SAM NEILL DIED! LET'S TALK ABOUT IT!" before everyone remembers they're actually talking about his characters. The discussion quickly turns into a debate over Sam Neill's best science fiction performance. Is it the cosmic horror masterpiece Event Horizon (1997), or the vampire thriller Daybreakers (2009)?
To wrap things up, the crew also highlights Jurassic Systems, a fan project dedicated to faithfully recreating the iconic computer interfaces from Jurassic Park. https://www.jurassicsystems.com/
As always, expect plenty of tangents, questionable opinions, and passionate debates about dinosaurs, spaceships, anime, and why fictional operating systems from 1993 still look cooler than the ones we use today.
This week on Science Faction, summer is in full swing as the hosts swap stories about kids, water parks, drama camp, and surviving the relentless heat. From AI writing Firefox extensions and Apple's latest legal battle with OpenAI to why horror suddenly clicks for one of the hosts, the conversation bounces between technology, entertainment, and the strange ways artificial intelligence can make us more confident while making us less correct.
Real Life Steven's household traded the Renaissance Faire for a visit from his nephew, which led to the realization that "boy energy" really is its own force of nature. While the kids spent the week at drama camp, thoughts turned to Shakespeare, with the conclusion that Romeo + Juliet would be vastly improved if Dream Theater handled the soundtrack. Book club is also gearing up for Macbeth, because apparently there's never a bad time for a little murder and prophecy.
Ben has been embracing peak summer with trips to the water park, while Devon is trying to survive the brutal Texas heat. His family's solution? Buying an old-school lawn sprinkler so the kids could cool off the classic way. Once again, the phrase "boy energy" proves to be an unexpectedly recurring theme.
Technology also found its way into everyday life. Ben explained how AI helped him build a Firefox extension that converts webcomics into CBZ files, explored locally running language models with OpenCode, and used AI to determine which models would best fit his hardware. In one particularly fitting moment, he asked an AI how to repair some aging Python code, only for it to recommend an existing Firefox extension that solved the problem entirely. The hosts also wondered who keeps naming Google's AI products after notebooks before discussing https://notebooklm.google.com/.
The conversation then shifted to Apple's lawsuit against OpenAI over allegations of trade secret theft involving former employees. You can read more about the case here: https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/apple-sues-openai-alleging-misappropriation-trade-secrets-court-records-show-2026-07-10/
Entertainment wrapped up the segment with Steven declaring that all five episodes of X-Men '97 Season 2 are absolute bangers, along with praise for Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced and a reminder that Assassin's Creed Origins includes one of gaming's coolest educational features: an interactive museum tour through ancient Egypt. Ben also celebrated the release of Heave Ho 2, while everyone wondered whether it's destined to become a terrible influence on Devon's kids. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2802740/Heave_Ho_2/
Future or Now The hosts somehow found themselves discussing more Game Changer chaos before moving into horror.
Devon admitted that he may finally be developing a taste for the genre after watching Backrooms and Obsession, both of which started life as YouTube shorts before becoming full productions. He praised Backrooms for its eerie liminal-space atmosphere, while describing Obsession as a more traditional "be careful what you wish for" horror story. If you've been horror-curious but never quite crossed over, these might be good starting points.
Ben then highlighted a fascinating study showing one of AI's biggest hidden dangers. Researchers found that people using AI assistance became three times less accurate while also becoming twice as confident in their answers. Even more striking, the willingness to simply admit "I don't know" dropped from 44% to just 3% when AI was available. It's a reminder that AI works best when treated as a helpful assistant—not an unquestionable authority. https://thenextweb.com/news/ai-advice-suppresses-critical-thinking-wrong-answers-study
Finally, the crew couldn't resist talking about the newly revealed Star Trek crossover sets coming to Magic: The Gathering. Whether you're a Trek fan, a Magic player, or just someone whose wallet is already crying, the crossover looks like another ambitious mashup worth checking out. https://trekmovie.com/2026/07/18/magic-the-gathering-star-trek-sets-revealed-preorders-open-now/
Steven rounded out the week by admitting that, for once, he didn't have a specific science story to bring—which may have been the most surprising revelation of the episode.
This week the crew covers everything from beach vacations and superhero movies to fascinating new discoveries about the human brain and the future of artificial intelligence. Devon reports back from a family-filled Mississippi beach trip, Steven shares his thoughts on Supergirl, Ben highlights listener feedback and celebrates a birthday, and the science discussion dives into how anesthetized brains may be doing far more than we ever imagined. Then the conversation shifts into the strange world of AI's "latent space" and why it may become one of humanity's most important creative tools.
Real Life Ben starts things off by wishing a very happy birthday to longtime listener Hank before sharing some thoughtful listener feedback from Episode 615. We always appreciate hearing what everyone thinks, so keep those comments coming!
You can read the feedback here: https://sciencefactionpodcast.com/2026/07/01/episode-615-spreading-the-word-of-totally-local-ai/#comment-151
Devon returns from a family vacation in Long Beach, Mississippi. Between the huge gathering of relatives, plenty of kids running around, and an incredibly shallow beach stretching nearly a mile into the Gulf, it was the perfect destination for a laid-back family getaway.
Steven finally catches Supergirl and discovers a movie that lands squarely in the middle of the review spectrum. While online opinions seemed split between "masterpiece" and "disaster," the film ended up being... fine. The crew discusses its themes surrounding human trafficking and the metaphor of women having their power stripped away, while also pointing out that the constant switching of powers eventually became distracting. Despite its flaws, everyone agrees the performances, visual effects, and sound design were excellent, with Ben giving special praise to the imaginative creature designs.
Future or Now Devon brings a study that challenges what we thought we knew about consciousness.
Researchers discovered that people under general anesthesia may continue processing language at a surprisingly sophisticated level. Even while completely unconscious, patients could distinguish different types of words and showed neural activity suggesting they were predicting upcoming words before hearing them. The findings raise fascinating questions about what consciousness really is and could eventually influence both anesthesia research and future brain-computer interfaces.
Read more: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/06/260624025514.htm
Ben explores Kevin Kelly's idea that latent space is becoming an entirely new creative medium.
Rather than acting as giant databases that memorize information, modern AI models compress enormous amounts of human knowledge into abstract mathematical relationships. This "latent space" becomes something people can navigate—moving between concepts, artistic styles, scientific ideas, or even alternate histories. Kelly argues that this shared conceptual landscape could become a platform for scientific discovery, personalized AI systems, and entirely new ways of thinking, where generating ideas and thinking become nearly the same process.
Read Kevin Kelly's article here: https://kevinkelly.substack.com/p/latent-space-as-a-new-medium
Steven wraps up the discussion with a practical example of AI in everyday life, explaining how it helped troubleshoot and update his Raspberry Pi Pi-hole installation. What could have been a frustrating afternoon of terminal commands and Linux troubleshooting turned into a quick collaborative problem-solving session, highlighting how AI can be just as useful for practical technical tasks as it is for creative ones.
Thanks for listening! If you enjoy the show, be sure to subscribe, leave us a review, and share the podcast with a friend. Your support helps us keep exploring the latest science, technology, and the wonderfully weird stories that make Science Faction what it is.
This week, Steven is away, leaving Ben and Devon to hold down the fort. That means plenty of movie reviews, travel plans, museum science, unexpected tsunami discoveries, and, naturally, a healthy dose of Star Trek discussion.
Real Life Devon is getting ready for a family vacation to Long Beach, Mississippi, where a whole group of friends will be joining in on the fun. Their last trip didn't exactly provide ideal beach weather, so everyone is hoping for sunnier skies this time around. Ben, however, refuses to acknowledge any alternative naming conventions—it will always be the Gulf of Mexico.
The movie marathon continues this week. Ben checked out Young Washington and came away feeling... lukewarm. While it wasn't terrible, he felt it leaned far too heavily into its religious themes for his tastes.
Devon's household has been busy catching up on family movies. Minions and Monsters earned mixed marks, mostly because the title promises far more monsters than it actually delivers. Devon joked that it should have been called "Minions Do Hollywood" instead. With kids currently obsessed with both Super Mario and the Minions, though, it was still a hit at home, and the Rabbids look like they'll be another favorite before long.
Ben also saw Masters of the Universe and had a much stronger recommendation. Fans who grew up with the franchise will apparently find plenty to appreciate, echoing comments from Red Letter Media that longtime viewers will get the most out of it.
Devon rounded out the week with Toy Story 5. Surprisingly, he couldn't remember much about the third or fourth films, but still found himself enjoying the newest installment. As always, Pixar somehow manages to package deeply unsettling existential questions—like the horror of being a sentient toy—into a heartfelt family film.
Future or Now Ben brought one of the stranger scientific discoveries of the week: museums may soon have a new employee... superworms.
Researchers have found that the larvae commonly sold as pet food may actually outperform the flesh-eating beetles traditionally used to clean skeletons for museums and forensic research. Superworms efficiently strip away soft tissue without damaging delicate bones, while also being much easier to contain than dermestid beetles, which have a nasty habit of escaping and infesting museum collections. With the proper number of larvae, scientists can produce clean, display-ready skeletons while avoiding many of the downsides of chemical treatments or boiling.
Read more here: Ars Technica – Museums could use ravenous superworms to clean skeletons
Devon followed up with an incredible story about tsunamis and satellites. After a massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake off the Kamchatka Peninsula, a NASA satellite captured one of the most detailed observations ever made of a giant tsunami crossing the Pacific Ocean.
The data revealed something scientists didn't expect. Large tsunamis have traditionally been considered "non-dispersive," meaning they should largely maintain their shape as they travel across the ocean. Instead, researchers observed dispersion, where different portions of the wave traveled at slightly different speeds, causing the tsunami to spread into a leading wave followed by several trailing waves. Even more impressively, these observations suggest the original earthquake rupture was larger than early models indicated.
Learn more here: ScienceDaily – A NASA satellite caught a giant tsunami doing something no one expected
Of course, no Ben and Devon episode would be complete without a Star Trek update. Strange New Worlds Season 4 is on the horizon, and Ben has been enjoying The Last Starship, calling it well worth the read for Trek fans looking for more spacefaring adventures.
That conversation naturally led to Prelude to Axanar and Axanar: The Gathering, two impressive fan productions that continue to spark discussion among Star Trek enthusiasts.
Watch them here:
- Prelude to Axanar
- Axanar: The Gathering
Finally, Devon has also been watching Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed. While he's enjoying it overall, he admitted it hasn't quite lived up to his expectations. It's a tense, stressful watch that keeps him engaged, even if it hasn't completely won him over yet.
This week's episode is a celebration of birthdays, geeky gifts, local AI experimentation, and some genuinely fascinating science. We dive into everything from Pride Month festivities and House of the Dragon's return to California's new law against obnoxiously loud streaming ads, before wrapping up with a beautiful cosmic mystery finally solved by the James Webb Space Telescope.
Real Life Ben kicked things off by talking about his birthday, which was unfortunately followed almost immediately by a weekend spent working rather than relaxing. His wife was busy running a table during local Pride Month festivities while Ben provided backup support, proving once again that birthdays don't always get to stay birthdays. Somewhere along the way, however, one important truth emerged: POWER TO THE BIDET!
The conversation quickly shifted into one of Ben's favorite topics—local AI. He talked about spreading the word of Totally Local AI, explaining why running models on your own hardware can be a compelling alternative to relying entirely on corporate AI services. The discussion covered the difference between simply using AI-powered tools versus depending on large cloud providers, along with some of the software making local AI increasingly accessible. Ben has been experimenting with NotebookLM alongside Ollama and Opencode, currently running a model delightfully named Big Pickle.
Steven's household has officially survived another June birthday season. With multiple celebrations packed into an already busy month, his youngest daughter's birthday required not one but two birthday parties, reinforcing the long-held belief that June birthdays are a scheduling nightmare.
Of course, no birthday is complete without memorable gifts. Highlights included The String from Frozen Fever, which immediately became a favorite, along with the impressive LEGO Hogwarts Castle & Grounds set. Steven also argued that, in many cases, smaller LEGO display models actually hit the sweet spot better than their gigantic counterparts—less overwhelming to build, easier to display, and somehow even more satisfying.
Finally, House of the Dragon returned, and Steven shared his thoughts on the Season 3 premiere, discussing where the series appears to be heading and whether the opening episode successfully sets the stage for another season of political intrigue, dragons, and inevitable tragedy.
Future or Now California viewers may have noticed something different starting July 1: streaming service advertisements are no longer allowed to blast your ears during commercial breaks. A new California law extends loudness regulations to streaming platforms, similar to legislation previously passed in Illinois. If you've ever scrambled for the remote because a commercial suddenly doubled in volume, this change is specifically aimed at solving that problem.
Ben breaks down the new legislation, why it matters, and whether streaming services will finally stop using volume as their favorite attention-grabbing tactic. You can read the original Ars Technica article here: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/06/streaming-services-obnoxiously-loud-ads-become-illegal-on-july-1-in-california/
Steven then traveled 57 light-years from Earth to discuss one of astronomy's most colorful mysteries.
Astronomers have finally solved the puzzle of the famous "Pink Planet" using observations from the James Webb Space Telescope. Scientists discovered that the strange world's atmosphere contains water vapor, methane, carbon dioxide, ammonia, and—perhaps most surprisingly—clouds made from salt particles. It's the first direct confirmation of salty clouds in an object like this and helps explain why the planet has displayed such unusual colors and atmospheric behavior for years.
Beyond simply solving a long-standing mystery, the discovery provides another glimpse into the incredible diversity of planets that exist beyond our own solar system, reminding us just how strange—and beautiful—the universe can be. You can read more about the discovery here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/06/260623014009.htm
This week we talk Father's Day, lightsaber obsessions, swimming pools, Gravity Falls, cyberpunk light bulbs, Spider-Man, Star Trek, and the sci-fi shows and movies our families can't stop watching.
Real Life Father's Day was in the air this week, and Devon assumes his son was probably excited about it, though kids have a funny way of keeping those things mysterious right up until the last minute. Meanwhile, Steven has found himself completely obsessed with lightsabers lately and thinks he may have finally figured out why these glowing space swords continue to have such a grip on his imagination decades later.
Ben's family adventures continue as his son returned from a school trip to Washington D.C. and New York City. Despite photographic evidence suggesting he spent the entire trip looking mildly inconvenienced, his teachers insist he had a fantastic time. Ben also recently visited the incredible MOTHERSHIP restaurant in San Diego, a themed dining experience designed to look like a crashed spaceship hidden inside a cave. The food was delicious, the atmosphere was unforgettable, and highlights included a "Kylo Ren" inspired bathroom with a mirrored ceiling and an astronaut radio transmission looping over NASA-style beeps. Meanwhile, Ben's son has become obsessed with space, watching Apollo 13 and spending hours playing Kerbal Space Program, which Ben wholeheartedly approves of.
Devon reports that his son has learned the theme from Gravity Falls on piano and now plays it constantly. If you know the theme, you already understand exactly what Devon's household sounds like right now.
Ben brings a fascinating indie game to the table with CASCADER, a Portal-inspired puzzle game set in a mysterious supernatural forest that constantly shifts and changes around you. If you enjoy environmental puzzles and weird atmospheric settings, this one might deserve a spot on your wishlist.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4766800/CASCADER/?curator_clanid=45973849
Steven highlights Star Trek: Outposts Unknown, an upcoming strategy title set in the Star Trek universe. We discuss the appeal of building and managing a frontier outpost while trying to survive the dangers of deep space.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3469910/Star_Trek_Outposts_Unknown/
Summer has clearly arrived for everyone involved. Steven's kids have practically moved into the swimming pool, while Devon's children are also spending as much time in the water as possible between rainstorms.
Ben has been playing Detroit: Become Human, which naturally leads to a discussion about Quantic Dream, Star Wars: Eclipse, and whether that game actually exists or is simply an elaborate collective hallucination.
https://www.ign.com/articles/detroit-become-human-dev-quantic-dream-kills-live-service-game-3-months-after-early-access-launch-insists-star-wars-eclipse-continues-as-planned
We also dive into the surprisingly complicated world of chess set consolidation. How many chess sets does one family really need? The answer is apparently fewer than Ben owns.
https://www.chessplus.com/
https://www.amazon.com/John-N-Hansen-Chess-4/dp/B000BNLVBS
Future or Now Devon wraps up a few television reviews, including Hulu's Paradise, which has completed its second season and is already confirmed for a third. He also talks about the finale of Widows Bay, which somehow feels like Parks and Recreation wandered into a Stephen King novel. We also get a brief review of For All Mankind Season 5. Devon's verdict: "I didn't mind it."
Ben shares one of the most delightfully cyberpunk projects we've seen in a while: someone converted a cheap WiFi-enabled smart light bulb into a tiny hidden server that hosts digital copies of banned books. The result is part embedded systems engineering project, part hacker art installation, and entirely fascinating.
https://www.richardosgood.com/posts/banned-book-library/
Steven checks out the trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day and discusses what Marvel appears to be setting up next for everyone's favorite wall-crawler.
https://youtu.be/62bIsvRcPv0?si=oIvm7MXpc7GFX9RW
Finally, Devon reports that his kids are fully locked into movie hype mode. Toy Story 5 is on the radar, and they're especially excited for Minions & Monsters, which recently made headlines by casting George Lucas after the Star Wars creator revealed he was apparently a huge fan of the franchise.
https://www.ign.com/articles/george-lucas-cast-minions-monsters-movie
Whether it's crashed spaceships serving vegetarian food, cyberpunk light bulbs distributing banned literature, or kids turning swimming pools into second homes, this week's episode has a little bit of everything.
This week it's just Steven and Devon holding down the fort while Ben is away, which means the conversation somehow manages to jump from guitar maintenance to Star Wars collectibles to post-apocalyptic murder mysteries without missing a beat.
Real Life Devon spent part of the week giving some attention to an old Kelly-style guitar that had been fighting him for years. After wrestling with the floating tremolo system, he explains the joys and frustrations of guitar intonation and why getting everything properly adjusted can feel more like engineering than music. With the guitar finally behaving itself, he's been spending time learning Vivaldi's Summer, proving once again that classical music can be every bit as metal as heavy metal.
Meanwhile, Steven returned from a Disney trip with a collection of souvenirs that may or may not require their own dedicated shelf. The haul includes a Spira gift card, a BB-series droid, a C-series droid head popcorn bucket, a Grand Holocron, a new Star Wars font hat, and nearly every Kyber crystal available. Unfortunately, despite collecting the entire rainbow, none of the elusive secret crystals made their way home. Such is the way of the Force.
Future or Now Devon dives into Paradise on Hulu, starring Sterling K. Brown. What initially appears to be a political thriller quickly reveals itself to be something much stranger. Without spoiling too much, the series combines a whodunit mystery with a post-apocalyptic setting and some surprisingly deep character development. The show's vision of "The American Dream Underground" becomes one of the most fascinating aspects of the story, and Devon argues that the character work is what truly elevates the series above similar mystery shows.
The conversation also briefly touches on Hoppers, now available on Disney+. The verdict? It's definitely strange. Whether that strangeness is good or bad may depend entirely on your tolerance for Pixar-style weirdness. There may also be connections to the Pixar Theory, but there simply isn't enough time to open that particular can of worms.
Steven brings an interesting study examining the real-world effects of popular GLP-1 weight-loss medications like Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound. Researchers analyzing Fitbit data discovered that while patients successfully lost weight after starting the medications, many also became less physically active. Daily step counts and exercise levels declined, raising concerns because these drugs can reduce muscle mass alongside fat loss. The findings highlight an important reminder: losing weight and maintaining physical fitness aren't necessarily the same thing, and preserving strength remains a critical part of long-term health.
Links Paradise (IMDb): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27444205
Weight-loss medication activity study: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/06/260614011841.htm
This episode covers everything from guitar maintenance and Disney loot to dystopian mysteries and the surprising relationship between weight loss and physical activity. Just another normal week on Science Faction.
This week was a little lighter on the host count, as Devon was trapped in the endless gravitational pull of legal work, but Ben and Steven still managed to cover everything from adopted kittens to the future of humanity in space.
Real Life Ben started things off with an apology for being a little checked out during the last episode. He was physically present, but mentally running on fumes. Fortunately, life is looking up. The foster kittens are beginning to find homes, which is both exciting and bittersweet. He also took a moment to congratulate all the recent graduates out there before diving into family TV time. The household continues its journey through Star City, and after episode two, Nicole is already predicting where the story is headed. While the series has proven compelling, some mature content, light torture, and strong language have made it a slightly awkward fit for younger viewers.
Devon wasn't able to join us this week thanks to an overwhelming amount of lawyering. We assume he is somewhere buried beneath paperwork and legal precedent, emerging only occasionally for coffee.
Steven reminisced about a Disney trip he took with Ben years ago before jumping into a discussion of the For All Mankind season finale and what season six might bring. We unpack the strengths and weaknesses of the latest season, revisit the complicated Baldwin and Stevens family connections, and discuss why the Stevens kid is definitely not the mysterious Mars Peacekeeper. The conversation also explores the implications of the show's latest time jump and what it could mean for the future of the series.
Steven also finished Gravity Falls with his kids, watching the final five episodes of season two in a single marathon session. Even when the show edged close to becoming a little too intense for younger audiences, it always managed to pull back and deliver an emotional, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful conclusion. Years after it first aired, it remains one of the best family animated series ever produced.
Future or Now Ben kicked off the science segment with an ongoing issue aboard the International Space Station. Astronauts were temporarily instructed to shelter while engineers continued monitoring a long-running air leak in the Russian section of the station. The culprit is a small connecting tunnel that has developed microscopic structural cracks over time. Despite years of repairs and investigation, the leak remains one of the ISS's most persistent engineering headaches. The story naturally led into a broader discussion about the future of orbital habitats, including new commercial space stations currently under development and what might eventually replace the aging ISS.
Steven brought a much more optimistic story to the table. Researchers at the University of Birmingham have developed a new perovskite-based catalyst that dramatically lowers the temperature required to produce hydrogen from water. The breakthrough could allow industrial facilities to use waste heat that would otherwise be discarded, turning it into a valuable source of clean hydrogen fuel. If the technology scales successfully, it could reduce production costs, improve efficiency, and help make hydrogen a more practical energy source for industries ranging from steel manufacturing to renewable power generation. It's the kind of breakthrough that could quietly reshape entire sectors without most people realizing it until years later.
From leaky space stations to cleaner energy, adopted kittens to animated mysteries, this week's episode covers a surprisingly wide range of topics—even with one host missing in action.
Welcome back to Science Faction, where this week we cover everything from Disney trips and dying handheld consoles to exploding rockets, prestige television, and one of the most unsettling science fiction stories ever written.
Steven is preparing for an upcoming Disney adventure and is especially excited to introduce his nephew to Galaxy's Edge. The kid's current obsessions are droids and starships, which means Disney has essentially engineered an entire section of the park specifically to drain Steven's wallet. Devon wrestles with the chaos that comes with family trips, navigating in-law logistics and the impossible task of fitting too many events into a single day. He also takes a moment to recommend comedian Josh Adam Meyers, whose visit to Devon's hometown left quite an impression. Meanwhile, Ben says goodbye to his foster kittens, affectionately known as "the captains," and reflects on their departure. To distract himself from the sadness, he gives us a fascinating history lesson on the WonderSwan, Bandai's handheld gaming system that briefly challenged Nintendo's dominance in Japan.
In Future or Now, Ben dives into the recent failure of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket and why industry experts view the incident as potentially catastrophic for the company. Beyond the loss of a vehicle, concerns center around damage to launch infrastructure and the enormous delays that can follow major launch pad failures. We also spend time discussing For All Mankind, with Ben currently watching the first season alongside his child while also keeping up with the latest season. The conversation turns to the show's increasingly tense alternate-history storytelling, particularly its depiction of Star City. Ben also highlights Becky Chambers' upcoming novella, As You Wake, Break the Shell, which immediately caught the attention of science fiction fans.
Devon joins the For All Mankind discussion and branches out into several other shows. We talk about the gleeful brutality of The Boys and the unusual premise of Widow's Bay on Apple TV+, which Devon describes as feeling like Parks and Recreation collided headfirst with a Stephen King novel. Steven mostly enjoys the ride this week, contributing commentary while the conversation bounces between exploding rockets, television recommendations, and speculative fiction.
For Book Club, we begin by announcing next week's story, The Stars Look Away From This Vessel by Dave Ring. The story opens with a wonderfully strange description of how to draw a spaceship, setting the tone for what promises to be a memorable piece of science fiction.
This week's discussion focuses on The Things by Peter Watts, a modern classic that retells the events of John Carpenter's The Thing from the perspective of the alien itself. The story radically reframes the film's events, transforming what appeared to be a horrifying monster into something far more complicated and tragic. We discuss the unforgettable line, "I am being Blair. I escape out the back as the world comes in through the front," and examine how Watts uses the alien's perspective to challenge assumptions about identity, communication, and survival. Naturally, comparisons to The Thing (1982) dominate the discussion, while we mostly leave the 2011 prequel out in the cold where it belongs.
Thanks for listening to another episode of Science Faction! If you'd like even more content, including bonus episodes, exclusive posts, Discord access, AI-generated artwork, and direct interaction with the hosts, be sure to check out our Patreon. You can also subscribe on YouTube, leave us a review wherever you listen, and join us next week as we discuss The Stars Look Away From This Vessel.
This week on the podcast, we dive into a galaxy far, far away, a dangerously beautiful state park, the surprising success of four-day work weeks, and why people are wildly confused about the environmental impact of the food they eat. Then we wrap things up in the Book Club with a poetic AI encounter that left us intrigued, confused, and maybe slightly emotionally mugged in a dark alley behind a fusion restaurant.
Real Life Steven and Ben both checked out The Mandalorian & Grogu together… sort of. One of us managed to participate in the review despite not fully seeing the movie, which honestly may be the most authentic Star Wars fan experience possible at this point. We talk about the surprisingly fantastic stop-motion effects, some genuinely cool CG creature work, and whether Hutts should really be speaking Basic. Steven remains unconvinced. Ben argues the movie wisely avoids dragging along the baggage from season 3 of The Mandalorian and feels more focused because of it.
Meanwhile, Devon took a trip to Cossatot River State Park-Natural Area where the scenery was beautiful and the children were apparently training for a career in extreme sports. Watching kids play near dangerous rapids is apparently one of the most effective ways to discover new forms of parental anxiety. Fortunately, nobody was swept away into the wilderness, and everyone had a great time risking life and limb in nature.
Future or Now Ben brings us a story about 15 Australian companies that switched to a four-day work week and found that things went… suspiciously well. Productivity held steady, employee happiness improved, and workers generally seemed less miserable. We discuss whether shorter work weeks are the inevitable future or whether society is too psychologically dependent on pretending exhaustion equals virtue.
Devon covers a study showing that most people completely misunderstand the environmental impact of food. A lot of folks assume "processed" automatically means environmentally terrible, while massively underestimating the impact of beef production. Even foods people often think of as universally eco-friendly can have surprisingly high environmental costs depending on water usage, transport, and production methods. It turns into a conversation about how humans love oversimplified categories, even when reality stubbornly refuses to cooperate.
Steven, meanwhile, contributes absolutely nothing this week, which honestly may have reduced the overall chaos level of the episode by at least 12%.
"Book Club" This week we read Narcissus Meets the Ghost of AI in a Dark Alley Behind a Fusion Restaurant by Lesley Hart Gunn, and the title alone probably tells you this was not going to be a straightforward experience.
The poem opens with the line:
"I suppose you want my wallet. No? My body then."
…and from there things only become more surreal, philosophical, and emotionally slippery. We spend a good chunk of time trying to unpack what the poem is actually saying about identity, technology, desire, performance, and the strange relationship humans are developing with artificial intelligence. It's dense, layered, and definitely one of those works that demands active engagement instead of passively washing over you.
In other words: the exact kind of thing that makes for a great podcast discussion and an exhausting homework assignment.
Next Week's Book Club Next week we'll be reading The Things by Peter Watts.
"I am being Blair. I escape out the back as the world comes in through the front."
If you enjoy horrifying perspective shifts, existential dread, and science fiction that actively stares into your soul, you may want to read ahead before the episode drops.
This week the crew deals with sick kids, travel chaos, and kitten catastrophes before diving into ancient supervolcanoes, bizarre retro coding experiments, and a deeply unsettling sci-fi moral dilemma inspired by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Real Life Steven's week turned into a strange mix of California road trips, tactical miniatures combat, and disease management. Devon came out for a visit, which meant plenty of hanging out, board games, and attempts to squeeze hobby time into an already overloaded week. Steven got to play some Robo Rally with Greg and Robert, along with trying out Let's Dig for Treasure, a game whose title sounds wholesome but absolutely invites goblin behavior.
Meanwhile, Steven continued the noble quest of teaching Star Wars: Shatterpoint to Devon while Ben allegedly "rested," which is apparently code for strategically avoiding rules explanations and measuring tools. Steven also spent another week in solo dad mode, which became significantly harder once kid sickness entered the arena and started critting morale checks.
Ben, meanwhile, remains trapped in the ongoing kitten saga. The kittens continue producing biological surprises at an industrial pace, while Ben contemplates the eternal debate between older gaming hardware and modern VR technology. Specifically: the Wii may have looked ridiculous, but at least it wasn't trying to strangle your family with cords every time somebody turned around. According to Ben, the Wii was "for moms," which honestly may have been Nintendo's most successful market strategy ever.
Devon was not present for this segment because he was likely somewhere over the western United States eating airport pretzels and regretting flight delays.
Future or Now Ben descended into the strange and fascinating world of the demoscene with "Wake Up, Neo," a tiny 16-byte x86 program capable of turning cascading Matrix-style code into sound. Yes: sixteen bytes. Not sixteen kilobytes. Sixteen actual bytes. The conversation spiraled into appreciation for the demoscene itself — a long-running culture of programmers creating absurdly impressive audiovisual experiments under ridiculous technical limitations.
- "Wake Up, Neo" writeup: Wake Up, Neo
- Demoscene overview: Demoscene Wikipedia Page
Steven brought humanity to the brink of extinction with the story of the Toba supereruption. Scientists believe the eruption may have darkened skies and cooled the planet so severely that early human populations nearly collapsed. But newer archaeological evidence suggests humans may have been far more adaptable than previously believed.
Instead of folding under pressure, ancient communities appear to have shifted strategies, developed new tools, and survived conditions that should have wiped them out. In other words: humanity's greatest evolutionary trait may not be intelligence, strength, or speed — it may simply be the stubborn refusal to quit.
- ScienceDaily article: Toba Supereruption Research
Devon once again contributed by existing somewhere inside the airline system.
"Big Question" This week's Big Question was deeply uncomfortable in exactly the way a good science fiction premise should be:
Would you rather have actually killed someone and have absolutely no memory of it… or have vivid memories of killing someone when it never actually happened and could never be proven true?
Ben immediately pointed out the horrifying lack of control involved in the first option. Somewhere out there, a terrible thing happened, and you were responsible for it without even knowing. That uncertainty alone could eat someone alive.
Steven argued the second option might actually be worse for him personally. Even if the memory were false, the emotional weight would still feel real. Guilt doesn't necessarily care whether something objectively happened. If your brain fully believes you murdered someone, your nervous system probably isn't going to politely wait for evidence before spiraling.
The conversation naturally drifted into Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and the famous episode Hard Time, where Chief O'Brien receives implanted prison memories so traumatic they permanently alter him psychologically.
- Episode reference: Hard Time (DS9)
It turns out fake trauma may still just be… trauma. Which is a pretty bleak realization for a podcast episode that also contained kitten poop discussions.
Thanks for listening to another episode of The Science Faction Podcast! If you enjoy weird science, existential sci-fi questions, retro tech rabbit holes, and hearing exhausted dads attempt coherent conversation, consider supporting the show on Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access, AI art, unedited recordings, and more. You can also subscribe on YouTube and help spread the word to fellow science-fiction weirdos.
Another week, another episode where we somehow go from broccoli discourse to self-driving cars to limb regeneration technology and then cap it all off with rogue timestreams on a college campus. Just a normal day for The Science Faction Podcast.
Real Life Ben opens the show with an important culinary clarification: broccoli is the green one. Not the other green one. Also maybe "broccolini" exists? Science remains divided.
Meanwhile, Ben's household has become a temporary kitten sanctuary. Tiny baby cats are everywhere, and while Ben is trying his best, he freely admits his wife appears to be significantly more qualified in the art of keeping tiny creatures alive. On top of that, his son has started developing an actual social life, which Ben correctly identifies as a direct threat to traditional family hanging-out time.
The family also continues debating the orbital mechanics of For All Mankind, with Ben's 12-year-old officially unconvinced by the show's space logistics.
Devon reports back from a Dallas anniversary trip with his wife celebrating ten years of marriage. The trip included visits to the Perot Natural History Museum, multiple Waymo sightings, an improv show with front-row seats, and a self-driving Uber ride that still included a human technician nervously supervising the robot future.
Steven survived a busy week while his wife was out of town and also got some bonus hangout time with Devon during the visit. Naturally, this somehow led to new miniatures for Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone entering the house.
The crew also stumbles into Texas voter registration statistics, discovering that as of August 2025 there were reportedly more registered Democrats than Republicans in Texas, which sparks discussion about perception versus raw registration numbers. According to reporting from Independent Voter News, Democrats accounted for approximately 46.52% of registered voters compared to 37.75% registered Republicans.
Future or Now (~10 min ea) Devon brings in one of the wildest science stories of the week: researchers may have identified a key genetic pathway involved in limb regeneration.
Scientists studying axolotls, zebrafish, and mice uncovered a family of "SP genes" connected to regeneration. By disabling these genes, proper bone regrowth stopped entirely. Researchers then used zebrafish-inspired gene therapy techniques to partially restore regeneration in mice. The long-term dream? Moving beyond prosthetics and eventually regrowing living tissue and limbs in humans. Tiny salamanders may once again be carrying the future of medicine on their weird smiling backs.
Read more from ScienceDaily.
Ben follows that up with a double nostalgia feature.
First up is The Thirteenth Floor, the underrated 1999 sci-fi film that had the misfortune of arriving alongside The Matrix. Decades later, removed from direct comparisons, Ben argues the movie absolutely holds up and deserves a second look.
Then comes a glowing recommendation for Mixtape, a coming-of-age game centered around three teenage friends spending one final night together before life changes forever. Ben describes it as emotionally sincere, genuinely hilarious, visually stunning, and powered by an incredible soundtrack. The animation style apparently evokes Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse energy, while the tone lands somewhere between Dazed and Confused, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and High Fidelity.
Ben strongly recommends it even for non-gamers, suggesting that simply watching a playthrough could still deliver a great experience.
Check it out at Mixtape Official Site.
Steven unfortunately runs out of time this week, proving once again that reality remains the greatest enemy of podcast scheduling.
Book Club Next Week's Story Next week the crew will be reading:
Narcissus Meets the Ghost of AI in a Dark Alley Behind a Fusion Restaurant by Lesley Hart Gunn
"I suppose you want my wallet. No? My body then."
This Week's Story This week's discussion focused on:
Update on Rules for the Spatiotemporal Use of Campus Spaces by Andrea Kriz
The story presents a university campus slowly unraveling under the pressure of a rogue timestream, delivered through increasingly absurd administrative announcements and policy updates.
"Dear Members of the Community, As we begin yet another fall semester in the throes of the rogue timestream unleashed on our campus…"
The crew spends a lot of time trying to piece together exactly what catastrophic event caused the university to devolve into bureaucratic temporal chaos. Everyone agreed the story was fantastic, weird in exactly the right ways, and surprisingly effective at balancing humor with unsettling implications.
Read it here:
Lightspeed Magazine – Update on Rules for the Spatiotemporal Use of Campus Spaces
Thanks for listening to the show! If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, share it around, and check out the Patreon for bonus episodes, Discord access, behind-the-scenes content, and more sci-fi chaos.
The latest episode of The Science Faction spirals from Star Wars spoilers and obsolete gaming hardware to AI-powered paper interfaces, billionaire airline schemes, and a surprisingly heartfelt sci-fi short story discussion. Also: Devon's mom makes a guest appearance.
Real Life
Steven kicks things off with the finale of Maul: Shadow Lord, which somehow managed to exceed expectations and leave him wanting even more animated Star Wars content. That naturally led into random Star Wars news, toy leaks, and the growing suspicion that The Mandalorian and Grogu may already be accidentally spoiling itself through merchandise. Nothing says "carefully guarded cinematic surprise" like a plastic action figure showing up six months early.
Ben dives deep into the glory of the New Steam Controller — the strange, awkward, beloved device whos first version maybe arrived too early for the world to appreciate. Thumbpads, gyroscopes, weird ergonomics, customization rabbit holes… the gang discusses why the controller still has devoted fans years later, and why scalpers continue to treat new tech like buried treasure.
That somehow mutates into a discussion about AI infrastructure and whether we're entering a full-blown "Rampocalypse." Is AI consuming all available RAM on Earth? Why do hardware prices keep fluctuating like cursed crypto charts? Nobody has all the answers, but everyone agrees the future smells faintly of overheated GPUs.
Ben also brings up the world of HFY ("Humans Eff Yeah") sci-fi stories — tales where humanity survives, thrives, or weaponizes sheer stubbornness against impossible odds. If you've ever wanted science fiction powered by caffeine, duct tape, and irrational confidence, HFY may be your genre.
Meanwhile, Devon's mom came to visit. Hi mom!
Steven also revisits Cyberpunk: Combat Zone from Monster Fight Club: https://monsterfightclub.com/collections/cyberpunk-red-combat-zone
The crew talks miniatures, skirmish combat, and the appeal of tactical cyberpunk warfare. This naturally evolves into a completely different question: how does Hackers still have such a low Rotten Tomatoes score? Some crimes cannot be forgiven.
Future or Now Steven and Devon discover the incredible website:
https://letsbuyspiritair.com/
The dream? Take ownership away from billionaires and let the people run an airline. The concerns? Literally everything else. Devon immediately begins asking practical questions like: "What happens if people pledge money and then don't pay?" This turns into an unexpectedly entertaining conversation about collective ownership, internet chaos, and the terrifying logistics of buying an airline like it's a Kickstarter for a board game.
Ben brings in a fascinating essay by James Somers:
https://jsomers.net/blog/the-paper-computer
Somers proposes the idea of a "paper computer," where AI bridges the gap between tactile physical objects and digital systems. Instead of staring at glowing rectangles all day, users could interact with notebooks, index cards, sketches, and handwritten notes while AI quietly handles transcription, synchronization, and organization in the background.
The discussion drifts into concepts similar to Dynamicland — a future where computing becomes ambient, physical, and less psychologically exhausting. Less clicking. More touching grass. Possibly literally.
Book Club (~20 min) This Week: Saint Zero of the Hollows and the Eagle Knight by V. M. Ayala https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/saint-zero-of-the-hollows-and-the-eagle-knight/
"The only sound Zero heard in their helmet was their own hyperventilating and the gentle pings from their pegasus."
The crew unanimously loved this one.
The story blends sci-fi, mysticism, military imagery, and desperate emotional momentum into something that strongly reminded everyone of Red Rising. Giant-scale emotional stakes, rigid systems, brutal conflict, and characters struggling under impossible expectations — it hit a lot of the same notes in the best way.
That comparison leads naturally into discussion of The Will of the Many, which Devon recently listened to during a road trip. The gang talks about recurring themes in modern science fiction: empire, hierarchy, sacrifice, rebellion, and the terrifying pressure of being "special" in worlds designed to consume people.
This week's story earned a rare unanimous recommendation from the hosts.
Next Week: Update on Rules for the Spatiotemporal Use of Campus Spaces by Andrea Kriz
https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/update-on-rules-for-the-spatiotemporal-use-of-campus-spaces/
"Dear Members of the Community, As we begin yet another fall semester in the throes of the rogue timestream unleashed on our campus…"
Time distortions. Academic bureaucracy. Campus memos. Reality collapsing under administrative language.
This already feels extremely promising.
Whether it's crowdfunded airlines, AI-powered paper notebooks, ancient Sith conspiracies, or sci-fi knights hyperventilating on robotic pegasi, this episode somehow manages to connect all of it into one giant conversation about technology, humanity, and the weird systems we build around ourselves. It's one of those episodes where the tangents get dangerously powerful, the recommendations stack up fast, and everyone leaves wanting to immediately consume more science fiction.
If you enjoyed the episode, consider supporting the show over at Patreon for bonus episodes, unedited recordings, Discord access, AI art drops, playlists, behind-the-scenes chaos, and more:
https://www.patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast
You can also subscribe to the YouTube channel for clips, uploads, and future content:
https://www.youtube.com/@TheScienceFactionPodcast
Thanks for listening, and remember: if the internet successfully crowdfunds an airline before affordable housing, we may already be living in cyberpunk.
This week's episode has a little bit of everything—local politics, a suspicious number of Star Trek–named kittens, some genuinely cool green tech, and a short story that hits you with an existential haymaker.
Real Life Devon's in a "life is… fine" zone, which is either stability or the calm before chaos—we'll let you decide. That leads into a surprisingly interesting question: does a mayor's party affiliation actually matter at the local level? Texas elections are happening right now, and it sparks a broader conversation about how much politics really trickles down into day-to-day governance. Also on the home front: kids' birthday parties, which are somehow both joyful and mildly exhausting.
Ben has fully entered his foster-dad era—but for kittens. A whole crew of them: Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway, Archer, and their mom Majel. He claims he didn't name them, which statistically feels unlikely. Either way, it's a Starfleet-grade lineup. Meanwhile, Devon's household remains firmly anti-new-pet, so don't expect a crossover episode there.
We also touch on For All Mankind, and then pivot into the upcoming Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender film—specifically the leaks, early reactions, and what happens when studios lose control of the narrative before release. There's some real-world legal tension brewing there.
Steven… well, Steven exists this week. (You'll hear it.)
Future or Now Devon brings in a heavy one: reports that the independent board overseeing the National Science Foundation has been abruptly dismissed, raising serious concerns about political interference in scientific research and long-term innovation. You can read more here:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/28/trump-fires-national-science-foundation-board
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-fired-national-science-foundation-board-b2965242.html
This isn't just bureaucratic reshuffling—it could have real downstream effects on funding, research priorities, and scientific independence.
Ben tries to balance things out with something genuinely cool: Mosscrete.
https://gorespyre.com/
It's a bioreceptive concrete designed to grow moss directly on buildings using nothing but rain and humidity. No irrigation, no maintenance-heavy systems—just passive, living architecture. It's one of those ideas that feels obvious in hindsight but actually takes some clever engineering to pull off.
This whole topic also dredges up a deep memory: Bill Nye's moss-and-milk experiment. If you know, you know. If you don't, you probably just learned something slightly unsettling about childhood science videos.
Steven is present in this segment as well. Technically.
Book Club Next Week: Saint Zero of the Hollows and the Eagle Knight by V.M. Ayala
https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/saint-zero-of-the-hollows-and-the-eagle-knight/
"The only sound Zero heard in their helmet was their own hyperventilating and the gentle pings from their pegasus."
That line alone is doing a lot of work. We're excited for this one.
This Week: Learning To Be Me by Greg Egan
http://thetafiction.com/story/learning-to-be-me/
"I was six years old when my parents told me that there was a small, dark jewel inside my skull, learning to be me."
This story landed hard for all of us. It follows a life from childhood to adulthood in a way that feels deceptively simple—until it isn't. The structure does a ton of heavy lifting, and the twist is the kind that makes you immediately want to reread it.
We get into some big ideas here, especially panpsychism—the notion that consciousness might be a fundamental property of the universe rather than something that just "emerges." It's one of those discussions that starts philosophical and ends slightly unsettling.
If you like episodes that bounce between grounded real life, big-picture science, and brain-bending fiction, this one's for you.
This week's episode leans a little more literary than usual—less breaking news, more storytelling, and a surprisingly thoughtful mix of sci-fi, horror, and real-world weirdness.
Real Life Ben kicks things off by consciously shifting gears—less doomscrolling, more reading. A noble goal, and honestly, one that might save his sanity. That theme carries through the episode more than expected.
Steven brings in the tabletop energy with Cyberpunk Red Combat Zone, diving into a recent session with Greg. Not only did he get some solid playtime in, he actually won—a rare enough event to deserve celebration. He breaks down how the game feels on the table, what works, and why it scratches that tactical cyberpunk itch without bogging players down.
Ben circles back with The Orville, speculating about a possible season 4 and reflecting on season 3's pacing issues. Longer episodes aren't always better, and the conversation drifts into something more interesting: can "pop culture" even exist in something like Star Trek? Or does referencing it break the illusion of the future? It's a surprisingly deep rabbit hole for a show that also features goo aliens and karaoke.
Devon wraps the segment with a mini review of Dust Bunny, which sounds like it refuses to sit cleanly in any genre—magical realism, horror, maybe assassins? It's got strong #Benergy. He's also been bouncing between shows lately and not finding anything that sticks, which is a feeling a lot of people are quietly having right now.
Future or Now Ben taps out this week and lets the science crew cook.
Steven brings in a genuinely useful study: a clinical trial showing that specially designed music with auditory beat stimulation can significantly reduce anxiety. The standout detail? A 24-minute session hit the sweet spot—long enough to have a measurable effect, short enough to be practical. That idea of a "dosage" for music is interesting, especially if you're someone trying to manage stress without adding another hour-long routine to your day.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/03/260315225133.htm
Devon follows with something more unsettling. Modern food systems are increasingly dependent on digital approval layers—databases, logistics software, automated verification. The result? Perfectly good food can sit unused or be thrown away simply because a system won't recognize it. Not spoiled. Not unsafe. Just… digitally invisible. It's a quiet kind of fragility that doesn't show up until it really, really matters.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/04/260403224505.htm
Book Club Next week, the crew is reading Learning to Be Me by Greg Egan, which opens with one of those classic sci-fi hooks that immediately rewires your brain: a child learning there's something inside their skull learning to become them. If you know Egan, you know this is going to get existential fast.
This week's discussion centers on Morning Shed by Namita Krishnamurthy, and it lands somewhere between horror and speculative fiction. The premise is visceral and unsettling, and the reactions reflect that. Steven really connects with the writing style—there's something about the way it unfolds that sticks. Devon appreciates it but keeps a bit of distance. Ben, as usual, digs into the meaning, questioning how literal or metaphorical the story's elements are.
It's one of those discussions where nobody's wrong, but nobody fully agrees either—which is exactly where the best conversations tend to live.
If this episode has a throughline, it's this: systems—whether they're games, shows, bodies, or entire food networks—only work as well as the assumptions behind them. And when those assumptions get weird, everything else follows.
And yeah, Steven finally got a win. That might be the biggest sci-fi moment of all.
This week's episode drifts from real-life chaos into full-on simulation theory territory—because apparently that's just how things go now.
Real Life Ben's week kicks off with a perfect storm: his mom's in town, the power steering pump dies, and suddenly he's asking the very real question—is it finally time to go electric? In the middle of all that, he stumbles across 1D Chess (https://rowan441.github.io/1dchess/chess.html), which somehow takes chess, removes a dimension, and still manages to be confusing.
Devon spent the week getting absolutely wrecked by a mystery illness that took out the whole family. Not COVID, not the flu—just one of those "you're not in control" reminders from the universe.
Steven brings the nerd balance: Star Wars: Shatterpoint with Greg, continued love for Project Hail Mary, and early buzz that Avengers: Doomsday might actually land with that Infinity War-level impact. He also highlights Vantage (https://vantage.rulepop.com/#), a sci-fi card game that plays like a choose-your-own-adventure.
Future or Now Ben highlights Phyphox (https://phyphox.org/), an app that turns your phone into a portable science lab. It's one of those tools that quietly reminds you how powerful your everyday tech really is—especially when people are using it for real experiments (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47737376).
Steven brings the heavy hitter this week: scientists have successfully mapped and simulated the brain of a fruit fly—Drosophila melanogaster—and used it to control a virtual version of it. Not full human emulation, but it's a serious step in that direction. If you want to go down the rabbit hole, check out the coverage (https://www.profolus.com/topics/scientists-copied-fruit-fly-brain-put-inside-computer/, https://futurism.com/science-energy/research-fly-brain-matrix) and the demo itself (https://youtu.be/e21OUXPlnhk?si=GdB3dY-aY_12SIt9).
Devon wisely sits this one out before things get too existential.
Book Club This week's story is "Terms of Enlightenment" by Patrick Hurley (https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/default/terms-of-enlightenment/), and the discussion goes deep.
We get into the "matrix-ness" of the story—what it means to live in a constructed reality and whether enlightenment is about escaping it or understanding it. There's a strong thread of Eastern philosophy throughout, especially when Ben dives into Zen koans and the idea that truth isn't something you're told—it's something you experience by breaking your own thinking patterns.
The conversation circles around illusion, perception, and whether "hacking reality" is just metaphor… or something closer than we think.
Next Week's Book Club We're reading "Morning Shed" by Namita Krishnamurthy (https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/morning-shed/).
Every few years, the narrator's face erupts in eyes.
So… yeah. That's where we're headed next.
If nothing else, this episode makes a pretty strong case that the line between science fiction and reality is getting thinner by the week—and we're all just trying to keep up.
Special Note: This episode fought us. Hard. There was some extreme editing required, and yeah—you might notice a slight dip in quality. We hear it too. But we're owning it, learning from it, and making sure it doesn't happen again. Appreciate you sticking with us through the chaos.
Real Life
Ben kicks things off with a classic combo: in-laws, tacos, and just enough drama to keep things interesting. Somewhere in the middle of that, he also put together a wild Spider-Man 3 edit with a Twilight Zone twist—honestly, it's worth your time: https://youtu.be/YDzSjRKUXuA
Steven's house has officially entered a Gravity Falls era, and it's pulling him in too. The cyphers, the hidden messages—it's that perfect blend of kid-friendly and secretly brilliant that makes you feel like you're solving puzzles alongside the show.
From there, things spiral (as they do) into TV talk. Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 is hitting right, but it raises a bigger question—are shows getting too dark for TV? We bounce through The Mandalorian and Grogu, try to remember what even happened in Season 3, and land hard on one standout: Maul: Shadow Lord. It's peak Star Wars animation and feels like a true evolution of what Clone Wars started. Also, For All Mankind gets some love in the mix.
Future or Now
Ben brings in a strong recommendation this week: more animated feature films—specifically Your Name. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xU47nhruN-Q&pp=ygUReW91ciBuYW1lIHRyYWlsZXI%3D
He walks us through the premise, the emotional weight, and why this one stands out. If you've been sleeping on animated films outside the usual Western stuff, this might be the one that pulls you in.
Steven… had something planned. But we talked too much Star Wars.
So… NOT THIS TIME.
Book Club
Next week: We're reading Terms of Enlightenment by Patrick Hurley: https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/default/terms-of-enlightenment/
If you want to read ahead and join us, now's your chance.
This week: We dive into The O'Neill Cylinder in Geostationary Orbit Above Earth's Equator by Katlina Sommerberg: https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/poetry/the-oneill-cylinder-in-geostationary-orbit-above-earths-equator/
This one's a little different—it's sci-fi poetry, and we go line by line trying to unpack it. What does it mean? What's it saying about humanity, space, and perspective? We don't pretend to have all the answers, but that's kind of the fun of it. It turns into a thoughtful, slightly chaotic, and genuinely interesting conversation.
If you made it this far—seriously, thank you. And if you want more of the show (bonus episodes, Discord access, behind-the-scenes chaos), you know where to find us.
This week's episode kicks off exactly how you'd expect: a mix of chaos, parenting wins (and losses), and just enough sci-fi to keep things on-brand.
Real Life Devon's been deep in the thick of family life—birthday parties, Easter egg hunts, and a firm stance on "No Kings in Texas," which is either a political statement or just a man trying to maintain order in a house full of sugar-fueled children. Either way, it's survival mode with style.
Ben's living that logistical nightmare we all eventually face: coordinating kids' events, managing shifting social zones, and navigating the emotional weirdness of realizing your kid doesn't need you quite as much anymore. It's a mix of pride and quiet existential dread. Naturally, he copes the way any rational adult would—by getting wrecked in a Steam sale. Casualties include Speed Demons 2 (https://store.steampowered.com/app/2851640/Speed_Demons_2/) and Q-UP (https://store.steampowered.com/app/3730790/QUP/). No regrets. Probably.
Steven's been volunteering at a "Kids Night Out," which sounds wholesome until you remember he also ran a Pirate Borg session where the players stripped their former captain completely bare. So yeah—community service on one hand, absolute pirate degeneracy on the other. Balance.
Future or Now Ben brings in something surprisingly grounded this week: the science of purpose. Pulling from research and articles like Dan Harris' piece (https://www.danharris.com/p/if-you-care-about-longevity-you-need?publication_id=2723534&post_id=192338785), the conversation digs into how having a sense of purpose isn't just feel-good advice—it's statistically tied to longer life and better emotional resilience. Studies show it can predict mortality rates (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24815612/) and even how quickly you bounce back from negative experiences (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24236176/).
It's one of those moments where the show briefly brushes up against self-improvement… before inevitably spiraling back into nonsense.
Devon shifts gears with This Week in Space, highlighting NASA's Artemis II mission (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nasa-artemis-ii-moon-launch-astronauts-flight-plan/). We're talking a real-deal crewed flight looping around the moon—something that still feels unreal decades after Apollo. It's a reminder that while we argue about Steam sales and parenting, humanity is quietly gearing up to head back into deep space.
That leads naturally into For All Mankind talk—specifically the upcoming Season 5 and the teased "Star City" arc from a Russian perspective. If you're not watching the pre-season news reports, you're missing half the fun. The show continues to be one of the best "what if we actually committed to space?" thought experiments out there.
Book Club This week's reading, Through the Machine by P.A. Cornell (https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/through-the-machine/), starts as a discussion about the story itself… and quickly mutates into something much bigger.
What begins as a review turns into a full-on conversation about AI art—how it's made, how people consume it, and whether we're all just collectively deciding not to ask uncomfortable questions. The discussion pulls in real-world context, including coverage like Ars Technica's piece on AI-generated storytelling (https://arstechnica.com/features/2026/02/why-darren-aronofsky-thought-an-ai-generated-historical-docudrama-was-a-good-idea/), and asks the question nobody really has a clean answer to: what are we supposed to do with this?
Next week's reading shifts tone a bit with The O'Neill Cylinder in Geostationary Orbit Above Earth's Equator by Katlina Sommerberg (https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/poetry/the-oneill-cylinder-in-geostationary-orbit-above-earths-equator/). Expect big ideas, space habitats, and probably at least one tangent that derails everything.
This episode is a good snapshot of what the show does best: start grounded in real life, drift into science, and end somewhere in the middle of a philosophical argument about the future—while occasionally mentioning pirates stripping a man naked.
Pretty standard week, honestly.
This week we bounce from toy-filled offices and pirate obsessions into brain-powered computers and philosophical robot chaos—before wrapping things up with a very French film discussion and next week's Book Club pick.
Real Life Devon kicks things off by giving some Texans a tour of his office—which, unsurprisingly, is packed with what can only be described as adult toys. Naturally, this spirals into a broader conversation about how we're all just kids with slightly more expensive hobbies. No shame there.
Ben brings us into the world of VR with Walkabout Mini Golf's Hollywood course (check it out here: https://www.mightycoconut.com/hollywood). But it's not all smooth putting—there's some concern about rising course prices, less frequent releases, layoffs, and reduced iOS support. The vibe is shifting a bit, and not necessarily in a good way.
Devon also caught Project Hail Mary in IMAX and came away seriously impressed—calling it one of the best book adaptations he's seen. High praise. That leads into some appreciation for Andy Weir's writing style and a detour into the Cheshire Crossing webcomic, because apparently we're doing high-concept sci-fi and surreal fairy tale mashups in the same breath now.
Meanwhile, Steven has fully committed to pirates. A Pirates of the Caribbean rewatch has set the tone, but instead of just watching, he's gearing up to run a full-on Pirate Borg game (https://www.limithron.com/pirateborg). There's also a shoutout to Land of Eem, a muppet-inspired TTRPG being run by Christina's husband—which sounds delightfully weird—but yeah… pirates won this week.
Future or Now Devon brings in something that sounds like it's straight out of a dystopian sci-fi script: data centers powered by human brain cells. Yes, actual biological neurons.
- https://futurism.com/robots-and-machines/staff-brain-data-center-spine-fluid
- https://futurism.com/new-computer-neural-network-human-brain-cells
These systems require daily maintenance—including swapping out cerebrospinal fluid—which is not a sentence you expect to hear in a tech discussion. What started as experiments where neurons learned to play Pong (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/10/14/1128875298/brain-cells-neurons-learn-video-game-pong) has now escalated to… potentially running DOOM.
Because of course it has.
If you want to go deeper into the company behind it, check out https://corticallabs.com/. But the real question is: at what point does this stop being "cool innovation" and start being "ethically complicated nightmare fuel"?
Ben counters with some technophilosophy, specifically the Three Inverse Laws of Robotics (https://susam.net/inverse-laws-of-robotics.html). It's a fun twist on Asimov's classic rules—basically flipping the script to highlight how things could go very wrong. If Devon's segment is about can we do this?, Ben's is asking should we?
Book Club Next week's read: Through the Machine by P.A. Cornell https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/through-the-machine/
This week, the crew dives into Arco!—which you can find here: https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/arco/umc.cmc.16jgcgmdg48xptfayroel0yvy
Ben gives a full rundown of the film, clearly coming in as the biggest fan of the group. Steven jumps in with context on the cast and sums up the experience as "very French," which tells you a lot if you've ever watched… well, anything French. Devon lands somewhere in the middle—appreciating a lot of what the movie does, even if it doesn't fully sweep him away.
If you're into sci-fi that edges a little too close to reality, pirate RPG chaos, or just three guys trying to figure out where the line is between "cool tech" and "we've gone too far," this episode's got you covered.
And if you want more—bonus episodes, unedited chaos, Discord access, and all the weird extras—head over to patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast and join us there.
This week we bounce from the eternal debate over pie superiority (and some truly questionable anti-pie opinions) into sci-fi revivals, strange travel stories, and the art of a good ending—before closing things out with a genuinely unsettling short story that may or may not leave you side-eyeing your bathroom forever.
Real Life We kick things off with the most important topic we've ever covered: pie. Favorites, non-favorites, and a few takes that might genuinely damage friendships. No spoilers—but some of us have very strong opinions.
Ben brings a little sci-fi hope (and caution) with talk of a possible return to the world of Firefly. Between comics and expanded universe material—like the recent developments covered over at SYFY Wire (https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/firefly-brand-new-verse-comic-boom-studios) there's clearly still life in the 'verse. But as always, the question is: should it come back, or is it better left alone? Meanwhile, the planned Buffy reboot/sequel has officially stalled out at Hulu, which… honestly might be for the best. [bad opinion AI]
Devon takes us on a trip to Eureka Springs, a town built on the idea that its waters had healing properties. It's got that old-world charm mixed with just enough weird to make it interesting—complete with a glass-and-wood beam church, ziplining adventures, and a full-on St. Patrick's Day parade. A little history, a little adrenaline, a little chaos.
Steven celebrates Pie Day the right way, follows it up with an all-day beach trip, and then pivots straight into Pirate Borg prep. There's a game on the horizon, and the hype is real.
Future or Now Ben takes the wheel with a surprisingly thoughtful discussion about endings—what makes them work, why they matter, and how often they completely fall apart. This leads into Babylon 5 (with a shoutout to Josh), and if you want a refresher or a reason to revisit it, check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z54XNJivHOs
From there, it's all about what's next in Star Trek. Starfleet Academy Season 1 has people talking, and the future lineup is stacked: Strange New Worlds Season 4 is on the way this summer, with Season 5 already lining up some heavy hitters—including Thomas Jane stepping in as Dr. McCoy and Kai Murakami as Sulu.
And then there's the truly baffling situation: Star Trek: Prodigy just won an Emmy… and is basically impossible to watch. If you want to feel equal parts excited and frustrated, here's the breakdown: https://trekmovie.com/2026/03/04/star-trek-prodigy-wins-emmy-for-animation/
Steven dives into some fun (and slightly chaotic) tech territory with green screen experimentation. Corridor Crew breaks it down here: https://youtu.be/3Ploi723hg4?si=Mu_9whhpY_gvJldY and if you want to mess with it yourself, the open-source tool Corridor Key is here: https://github.com/nikopueringer/CorridorKey
Book Club Next week, we're checking out Arco!—you can find it on Apple TV right here: https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/arco/umc.cmc.16jgcgmdg48xptfayroel0yvy
We'll report back on whether it's worth your time (and money).
This week, we read What We Mean When We Talk About the Hole in the Bathroom by Angela Liu: https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/what-we-mean-when-we-talk-about-the-hole-in-the-bathroom/
And look—this one sparked some debate.
Ben tries to walk Steven through it… because it didn't quite click at first. But Devon cuts straight through the noise and nails it: this is a horror story. Not loud, not obvious—but deeply, quietly unsettling in a way that sticks with you longer than you'd like.
One More Thing Ben's got boots on the ground this weekend at the Beacon Art Show Ekphrastic Poetry Reading, happening Saturday (3/21) at 2pm at the SLO United Methodist Church. If you're local, go check it out—support some art, hear some poetry, and maybe report back.
If you've got strong pie opinions, thoughts on whether Firefly should come back, or theories about that bathroom story, we want to hear them. And if you haven't yet—subscribe, follow, and share the show with someone who enjoys a good mix of chaos, sci-fi, and questionable food takes.
Real Life This week's episode begins the way many of our weeks began: confused, slightly annoyed, and one hour short on sleep thanks to the time change. Ben kicks things off by voicing what everyone is feeling — daylight saving time is rough. Losing an hour never gets easier, and the collective fog hangs over the whole episode like a mild but persistent headache.
Devon isn't exactly escaping the chaos either. Between a hockey game down in Louisiana and spring break activities with the kids, his schedule is all over the place. Add the time shift on top of that and it's a miracle anyone is awake enough to record.
Ben quickly pivots into defending Starfleet Academy, which he insists is a "tremendously good show." According to him, the loudest critics clearly aren't watching it. During the conversation Steven realizes he somehow made it this far in life without fully understanding what the Omega Particle is, which becomes a small but hilarious rabbit hole. Meanwhile the group grumbles about the Voyager game releasing day-one DLC — a move that feels more than a little gross.
Steven brings a literary palate cleanser to the table. After wrestling with the famously labyrinthine House of Leaves, he recommends another unsettling architectural mystery: Strange Houses by Uketsu. If eerie homes and unsettling mysteries are your thing, it might be worth checking out here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/strange-houses-uketsu/1146276773
Ben contributes a strange internet gem called Pricemaster, a bizarre and hypnotic video that quickly becomes one of those "you just have to see it" moments during the episode. If you want to experience the same confusion we did, you can watch it here: https://youtu.be/CUmmxW7Ksc8?si=6s1IRr2FuGy72Zo8
Devon then unveils the real headline of the Real Life segment: a brand-new guitar amp. He picked up a Fender Mustang GTX 100, and the excitement level is off the charts. The amp includes digital modeling, built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth connectivity, and an accompanying app that lets him endlessly tweak tones. Devon is talking about it so much that it raises a bigger question — he actually sold a guitar to buy the amp. If you know Devon, that's a shocking development.
Future or Now Ben kicks off this segment with a fascinating animated project called Arco, produced by Natalie Portman. The story follows a ten-year-old boy from the year 2932 who isn't supposed to time travel yet. Naturally, he steals a time-travel cape and gemstone, aiming for the age of dinosaurs… and instead crash-lands in the year 2075. There he meets a girl named Iris and her robot nanny, and the unlikely trio may be the only ones who can prevent a global catastrophe. You can read more about the project here: https://collider.com/arco-streaming-online-natalie-portman/
Devon brings a science question that sounds simple but gets weird fast: why aren't mammals as colorful as reptiles, birds, or fish? If you look around the animal kingdom, mammals mostly stick to browns, blacks, and muted tones. The explanation has a lot to do with fur structure and evolutionary pressures — bright pigments are much easier to display in feathers, scales, and bare skin than in thick mammalian fur. The article that sparked the discussion is here: https://www.livescience.com/animals/why-arent-mammals-as-colorful-as-reptiles-birds-or-fish
Steven rounds out the segment with something even stranger — humans secretly have stripes. Not visible stripes, unfortunately, but real biological patterns called Blaschko's lines. These lines emerge from the way skin cells divide and migrate during development. Under certain lighting conditions or medical circumstances, these patterns can actually appear, meaning everyone is walking around with hidden tiger stripes or cow-like patterns built into their skin. You can read more about that discovery here: https://www.sciencealert.com/humans-actually-have-secret-stripes-and-other-strange-markings
Book Club Next week's reading is "What We Mean When We Talk About the Hole in the Bathroom" by Angela Liu, a title that raises several questions before you even start the story. If you want to read ahead with us, you can find it here: https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/what-we-mean-when-we-talk-about-the-hole-in-the-bathroom/
This week the group dives into "Presence" by Ken Liu, which you can read here: https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/presence/
The story centers on an elderly parent living abroad and the adult children trying to care for them remotely through telepresence technology. The discussion quickly expands beyond the story itself.
The hosts talk about the stark contrast between elder care in America and in other countries where multi-generational households are more common. That leads into a broader conversation about American individualism — the cultural idea that success means leaving home, chasing opportunity, and building an independent life. While that independence can open doors, it also creates distance and sometimes loneliness.
The technology in the story doesn't feel like science fiction for long. Telepresence robots and remote caregiving systems are already approaching the level shown in the story. The real question isn't whether the technology works — it's whether it can truly replace the sense of community and presence that people lose when families scatter across the world.
It's a thoughtful and surprisingly emotional conversation that leaves everyone wondering what responsibility looks like in a world where being physically present isn't always possible.
This week we bounce from weddings with questionable video evidence to universal vaccines, rogue dubstep artists named after shingles shots, and a time-loop story that left us… conflicted.
Let's get into it.
Real Life Ben officiated a wedding. It was beautiful. It was meaningful. It was legally binding. There may or may not be video proof. Somewhere, there's a phone with 3% battery and a shaky clip of vows. Or maybe not. Either way, two people are married and that's what counts. If you're going to officiate a wedding, here's the lesson: double-check the recording situation. Memory is not a backup drive.
Ben also discovered that in newer versions of iOS, you can type to Siri. This is huge for anyone who has ever whispered a text into their phone in public and immediately regretted it. We are slowly evolving into silent thumb-typers talking to machines. The future is polite and awkward.
Devon talked about how he uses ChatGPT — not casually, but intentionally. He uses it for work. He uses it to rewrite drafts, fix spelling, tighten arguments. Think of it as a second-pass editor that doesn't get tired. He went deeper into why he chose to pay for it and what "professional analysis" even means in an AI context. If you're billing by the hour, clarity matters.
He also raised the question: does LexisNexis have AI baked in now? (Short answer: of course they do. Long answer: it depends how you define AI, which is half the battle in 2026.)
Ben uses "AI" differently — mostly for data sifting. Large piles of information. Pattern spotting. Less magic robot, more extremely fast intern.
Steven admitted he uses ChatGPT to help generate episode notes and images. If you're creating consistently, tools matter. The question isn't "Is this cheating?" The question is: "Are you using the tool to think better or to think less?" Big difference.
We also watched The First Minute of Demi Adejuyigbe Is Going To Do One (1) Backflip — and yes, he does the backflip. Watch the full clip on YouTube and the full special on Dropout. Demi Adejuyigbe (pronounced DEM-ee ə-DIJ-oo-EE-bay) is sharp, chaotic, and there's a killer Marge Simpson joke in the full show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kveA4wgIhI
Speaking of Marge — Marge Simpson is not dead. The French voice actress passed away. RIP. The character remains immortal yellow.
Ben also plugged his ekphrastic poetry workshop — Write Poems with Me — happening Saturday 3/7 at the Beacon Art Show or online. If you've been waiting for a sign to try poetry, this is it. Show up. Make weird art.
https://buttondown.com/penciledin/archive/write-poems-with-me-saturday-37-at-the-beacon-art/
Future or Now Steven brought in a wild one: a possible "universal" vaccine from researchers at Stanford Medicine.
Instead of targeting a specific virus, this nasal spray supercharges the lungs' immune defenses. In mice, it reduced viral load, prevented severe illness, and even blocked allergic reactions. COVID. Flu. Pneumonia. Allergens.
If this holds up in humans, that's not incremental. That's foundational.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/02/260222092258.htm
Ben followed with research suggesting shingles vaccines might lower dementia risk. Studies around the shingles vaccines Zostavax and Shingrix have shown reduced dementia incidence in vaccinated older adults. There's also data suggesting the vaccine may slow biological aging markers, including inflammation.
https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/02/could-a-vaccine-prevent-dementia-shingles-shot-data-only-getting-stronger/
This is where Steven held his jokes until the very end.
Zostavax and Shingrix are dubstep artists. "Twenty Year Window" is their debut collaboration. "Dementia" is their first single.
Sometimes you need the bit.
But seriously — if preventing viral reactivation reduces neuroinflammation and long-term cognitive decline, that's massive. It's early. It's correlation-heavy. But it's promising.
Pay attention to this space.
Book Club This week: All You Zombies by Robert A. Heinlein (1958).
https://lecturia.org/en/short-stories/robert-a-heinlein-all-you-zombies/19420/
Time travel. Identity loops. Paradoxes stacked on paradoxes.
There are also… problems.
Ben had major issues with the problematic elements. And they're not small issues. The story reflects the era it was written in, and not in a flattering way.
Devon didn't love the no-stakes feeling. When a story collapses into inevitability, tension can evaporate. If everything always already happened, what are we gripping onto?
Steven's take: the story is valuable as a historical artifact. It shows where science fiction was. You can see the mechanics. The ambition. The blind spots. You don't have to endorse it to learn from it.
That's maturity in reading: understanding context without pretending flaws don't exist.
Next week, we're reading Presence by Ken Liu, published in Uncanny Magazine. Ken Liu tends to blend emotional precision with speculative ideas, so expect something thoughtful.
https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/presence/
Read it. Come ready.
Final Thought This episode circled one big theme whether we meant to or not:
Tools. AI tools. Medical tools. Narrative tools. Historical tools. The question isn't whether tools change the world. They do. The question is whether we're using them deliberately.
So here's your small challenge this week: Pick one tool you're already using — AI, writing software, research databases, even your phone — and ask yourself:
Am I using this to sharpen my thinking? Or to avoid it?
Be honest.
We'll see you next week.
]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-(--header-height)" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "a5f5ff52-5256-4ce6-b880-55860250bba9" data-testid= "conversation-turn-3" data-scroll-anchor="false" data-turn="user"> This week we jump from stand-up comedy, missing co-hosts, and fallen plant heroes in Real Life into pre-life genes, ancient genetic risks, and cosmic-scale evolution in Future or Now — before closing out with Predator: Badlands, franchise nostalgia, and a deep appreciation for Yautja lore. ]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id= "request-WEB:a536e4cd-3b99-4c7d-806a-66eb28bad4a9-1" data-testid= "conversation-turn-4" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn= "assistant"> Real Life
Ben was not present this week. The official explanation given: he's out marrying his sister. We chose not to ask follow-up questions for legal and emotional reasons, and instead moved forward with cautious respect and mild concern.
Devon had a far more socially acceptable outing, hitting a comedy show and discovering a cool new cocktail bar right next to the venue — which is objectively the correct pairing for live comedy. He caught sets from Heather Shaw (https://www.instagram.com/heathershawiskidding/) and Tyler Elliott (https://www.instagram.com/tylerelliottcomedy/), both of whom absolutely delivered. Tight pacing, sharp jokes, and the kind of live energy that reminds you comedy hits different when you're in the room instead of watching clips online.
Steven, meanwhile, has been locked into A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and is fully endorsing it. Strong characters, grounded storytelling, and that classic slow-burn worldbuilding that rewards patience. On the tabletop side, his MCC game took a brutal turn when a player character died — goodbye Plank the Plantient. A true legend. A photosynthetic casualty. The kind of loss that only high-lethality RPG systems can deliver with a straight face.
Future or Now
Devon brought in a genuinely mind-bending scientific development: researchers are finding duplicated genes that appear to have existed before the last universal common ancestor of all life on Earth. In other words, parts of the genetic toolkit may predate what we traditionally define as "life" itself. By tracking these rare, ancient gene duplications, scientists can reconstruct how early cells may have functioned and what biological features emerged first. It pushes the origin story of life further back than expected and turns evolution into less of a starting point and more of a long prologue.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/02/260210082913.htm
This spiraled naturally into broader science discussion, including a Veritasium breakdown of complex scientific ideas and some internet discourse around aliens and political commentary, because no modern science conversation remains purely scientific for long.
Veritasium: https://youtu.be/XX7PdJIGiCw?si=dRNcQst0xU_XKcYE Brian Tyler Cohen (Aliens & Obama discussion): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0438rjwS7c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZP90ldOByo&t=134s
Steven followed with a topic that sounds mythological but is very real: the so-called "Celtic Curse," better known as hereditary hemochromatosis. Researchers have now mapped the genetic risk across the UK and Ireland, identifying major hotspots in north-west Ireland and the Outer Hebrides. In some regions, roughly one in 60 people carry the high-risk gene variant linked to iron overload. The dangerous part is how quietly it develops — symptoms can take decades to appear, yet untreated cases can lead to liver cancer, arthritis, and other serious complications. It's a reminder that genetics isn't just about ancestry curiosity; it's about long-term health awareness.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/02/260221000332.htm
Book Club
Next week's reading is All You Zombies by Robert Heinlein (1958), which means we are heading directly into time loops, identity paradoxes, and classic golden-age sci-fi mind-bending territory.
https://lecturia.org/en/short-stories/robert-a-heinlein-all-you-zombies/19420/
This week's discussion centered on Predator: Badlands and, naturally, the broader Predator franchise as a whole.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predator:_Badlands
We talked about our personal history with the series, how it evolved from pure action-horror into something closer to mythological sci-fi, and where Badlands lands within that spectrum. Devon was a bit mixed on some of the action beats but still enjoyed the overall experience, while Steven leaned much more positive — especially when it came to the expanding Yautja lore. The cultural codes, the hunting philosophy, and the deeper worldbuilding continue to be the franchise's strongest hook.
It's less about "monster shows up" now and more about an alien warrior culture with rules, hierarchy, and legacy, which makes revisiting the older films even more interesting in hindsight.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow the show, share it with a friend who loves sci-fi, genetics, and chaotic pop culture discussions, and check out our Patreon for bonus episodes, playlists, AI images, unedited recordings, and access to our Discord community. Come hang out, talk books, science news, and sci-fi with us — and don't forget to read All You Zombies before next week, because the timeline is about to get weird.
This week we bounce from haunted literary labyrinths and gonzo chaos in Real Life, into falling space junk, AI hype experiments, and surprisingly clever cows in Future or Now — before wrapping up with Isaac Asimov's Liar! and a discussion about robot ethics, emotional harm, and the danger of well-intentioned lies.
Real Life
Steven is deep into House of Leaves, and yeah — "trip" is the correct word. The book continues to be less of a story and more of a psychological maze that actively messes with your sense of reality while you read it. Not a casual bedtime book. More like a "stare at the page and question existence" book.
Meanwhile, Ben is reading Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, courtesy of Mom, which is a wildly different flavor of chaos. Where Steven is lost in haunted architecture and footnotes, Ben is cruising through drug-fueled journalism and American absurdity. Balanced intellectual diets all around.
Devon, however, is reading… nothing. Which raises several questions. Is he okay? Is he plotting? Has he transcended books? We don't know. We're monitoring the situation.
Ben also brought genuine excitement to the table with the upcoming Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown. It's got the theme song. That alone earns emotional bonus points. The real curiosity, though, is whether it leans into branching narrative choices like a Mass Effect-style experience. If it does, that opens up a ton of potential for alternate Voyager storylines, which is basically catnip for any Trek fan.
Future or Now
Steven covered a genuinely clever scientific development: researchers are now using earthquake sensors to detect falling space junk. Instead of building entirely new tracking systems, they're piggybacking on instruments already listening to the Earth's vibrations. When debris screams through the atmosphere and creates sonic booms, those sensors can track its path, breakup, and potential impact zones. It's one of those solutions that feels obvious in hindsight but brilliant in execution — and also a reminder that space debris is no longer a purely theoretical problem.
http://sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/01/260124003808.htm
Devon brought in a story that feels like it was engineered in a lab to trigger the phrase "AI hype cycle." A writer tested a platform where AI agents supposedly "rent grounded humans" to perform real-world tasks. The result? Almost no legitimate work, lots of promotional nonsense, intrusive automated follow-ups, and a general sense that the entire ecosystem is more marketing than function. It's less "future of labor" and more "future of weird startup experiments." The big takeaway: AI agents still struggle as real-world coordinators when things leave the digital sandbox.
https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-rent-human
https://www.wired.com/story/i-tried-rentahuman-ai-agents-hired-me-to-hype-their-ai-startups/
Ben, in what might be the most unexpectedly wholesome science story of the week, talked about a cow using a tool. Yes, a literal cow. Researchers observed a pet cow using a deck brush to scratch herself, even switching between the bristled end and the stick depending on the body area. That level of flexible tool use challenges the long-standing assumption that livestock lack cognitive complexity. In short: cows might be smarter (and more adaptable) than we've historically given them credit for, which is both fascinating and mildly humbling.
https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(25)01597-0?_returnURL=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0960982225015970?showall%3Dtrue
Book Club
For Book Club, we tackled Liar! by Isaac Asimov, and this one sparked a surprisingly philosophical discussion. Herbie the robot doesn't lie out of malice — he lies because of the First Law of Robotics: a robot may not harm a human, and emotional harm counts. So instead of telling painful truths, he tells comforting lies, which ultimately causes even more psychological damage. Classic Asimov move: take a simple rule and stress-test it until it breaks in morally uncomfortable ways.
We did agree the human characters feel a bit flat and two-dimensional, but the core sci-fi idea is doing the heavy lifting. The story still holds up because the ethical dilemma is timeless: is a comforting lie more harmful than a painful truth? Especially when the lie is delivered by something programmed to protect you?
YouTube link: https://youtu.be/jDXW9hEjxps
Next week, we're heading into a tonal shift with a watch and review of Predator: Badlands, which should move us from philosophical robots and lying logic loops straight into survival, spectacle, and probably some very questionable life choices by characters who ignore obvious danger signs. Should be fun.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow the show, share it with a friend who loves sci-fi and strange tech stories, and join our community for bonus content, playlists, AI images, and unedited episodes over on Patreon. You can also hop into the Discord to talk books, space news, and questionable future technology with us. And don't forget to tune in next week for our review of Predator: Badlands — because nothing says thoughtful sci-fi discussion like immediately pivoting into survival horror chaos.
This week's episode had everything: halftime show skepticism, aquatic conspiracy theories, holographic ethics, and a little too much time in the Wasteland. We may have skipped science again… but we made up for it with sharks and Starfleet.
Real Life Devon: Safe Bets and Stadium Spectacles Devon kicked things off with the Super Bowl halftime show — Green Day and Bad Bunny sharing the stage. The big question: was Green Day the safe choice?
Are legacy punk bands the NFL's version of comfort food? Reliable. Recognizable. Not too disruptive. Devon wrestles with whether the performance felt bold or carefully calculated — and what that says about the league's broader decision-making.
It's less about music and more about cultural positioning. When the biggest stage in America picks its soundtrack, what are they really trying to say?
Ben: Jaws, Mayors, and Weresharks Ben watched Jaws with his son, and instead of simply enjoying the terror of a seaside predator, he zeroed in on the real villain:
The mayor.
What exactly is going on with this guy?
Ben proposes several theories:
- Is the mayor the shark?
- Is the shark a metaphor?
- Is this some kind of Ice Nine Kills-style symbolic horror?
- Or… is the mayor secretly a wereshark?
The conversation spirals in the best way possible. Spoiler alert: they don't get a bigger boat.
Ben also makes a strong case that Starfleet Academy is not for everyone — but it is for him. That leads to a deep dive into holograms in Star Trek. Some holograms are "hard light" and physically interactive. The Doctor in Voyager was designed for short-term use… and then just kept going. What does that mean philosophically? Legally? Spiritually?
And somewhere in there, Ben cautiously circles around the fate of Captain Sisko.
Steven: Fallout Season 2 — A Love Letter or a Stall? Steven brings us back to the Wasteland with thoughts on the Fallout Season 2 finale.
Devon, generally, is not thrilled. The season lacked momentum. The pacing felt uneven. Something didn't quite land.
Steven counters with a structural theory: The three main characters represent different player archetypes. Different play styles. Different moral approaches to the same broken world.
He also notes something important: there were a lot of Easter eggs. A LOT. For longtime game veterans, it was a treasure hunt. For casual viewers? Probably noise.
Steven's bigger hypothesis:
- Season 1: Establish the world and characters.
- Season 2: The creators indulge in their favorite corners of the setting.
- Season 3: (Hopefully) we move into entirely new territory not tied to a specific game.
If that happens, the show might finally become its own thing.
Future or Now There was, once again, too much Fallout talk.
Science gets skipped.
Again.
We promise nothing for next week.
Book Club Next Week: "Liar!" by Isaac Asimov Read it here: https://lecturia.org/en/short-stories/isaac-asimov-liar/23933/
Classic Asimov. Robots. Logic. Emotional complications. You know the drill.
This Week: "The Orchard Village Catalog" by Parker Peevyhouse https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/the-orchard-village-catalog/
Reactions were mixed — but thoughtful.
Ben: Loved the realistic corporate nonsense. Found it creepy and fascinating. Devon: Felt it might be too open-ended, but still enjoyed it. Steven: Didn't fully "get it," but appreciated the quality of the writing.
Which, honestly, is sometimes the best kind of sci-fi discussion — confusion paired with admiration.
Between halftime show politics, aquatic conspiracies, holographic sentience, and post-apocalyptic pacing debates, this episode covered a lot of ground.
If you've got thoughts on safe Super Bowl picks, weresharks, or where Fallout should go next, we want to hear them.
And maybe next week… we'll finally talk about science.
This week's episode is a very real-life-heavy one, with winter storms, family travel chaos, sick kids, and a surprising amount of ice setting the tone. From a memorable Nashville trip and pop culture check-ins to a passionate Star Trek defense and thoughtful sci-fi discussion, we settle in for a conversational episode that leans into where everyone's headspace actually is this week.
REAL LIFE
Devon braved a winter storm while hosting family, with Nashville serving as the central meetup point. The group stayed in a four-story Airbnb packed with fun things to do, except for the roof, which was completely covered in ice. There was ice everywhere. This led to discussions about boil notices, what they actually mean, and whether a boil notice might have contributed to a house full of sick kids. Despite the chaos, Devon highlights the Grand Ole Opry and the Gaylord Resort, noting that it would be awesome to visit the resort someday without kids.
Steven revisits Cowboy Bebop, comparing the anime to the Netflix live-action adaptation and confirming once again that the live-action version was a huge miss. On the positive side, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms has been a solid and enjoyable watch.
Ben declares that Starfleet Academy episode 1x04 is peak Star Trek and insists that listeners should watch episode four and only episode four if nothing else. He recaps the episode, focusing on Federation and Klingon ethics around survival and why this episode delivers exactly what he wants from Star Trek. This Facebook post sparked part of the discussion: https://www.facebook.com/28601265/posts/pfbid02D298Wi45gN3cZd8S4GMS7ypkdj7ja5zsHSQKwahiZ2eVQzyV7sApm6Fu46Z8X9fFl/?app=fbl
Ben also continues praising the Star Trek comic The Last Starship, describing it as noir, heartbreaking, and packed with big ideas, including Earth seceding from the Federation, a clone of Kirk, and a Borg Queen engineer.
FUTURE OR NOW
None this week. Too much real life. Too much talky talky.
BOOK CLUB
This week's story: The Song of a Non-Human Intelligence By Mical Garcia (Jan 12, 2026) https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/the-song-of-a-non-human-intelligence/
The story explores communication between cetacean intelligences and the concept of hope, defined as waiting until home feels safe again. Ben and Devon both enjoyed the story, with Devon wanting more. Steven found it a bit dry but still appreciated the world-building.
Devon also discusses Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky, connecting its themes to the episode's discussion of non-human intelligence.
Next week's story: The Orchard Village Catalog By Parker Peevyhouse
https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/the-orchard-village-catalog/
Steven recommends this video by Joe Scott:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1FMViCd6I4
Thanks for listening, and be sure to check out the links in the show notes for this week's stories and videos—we'll be back next episode with a new book club read and, hopefully, a little less ice.
This week we cover a little bit of everything, including a brutal browser puzzle game, new tabletop RPG pickups, meditation meetups, comic books, and a short film with a great twist.
REAL LIFE
Ben kicks things off talking about the puzzle game that has completely taken over his brain, Enclose the Horse (https://enclose.horse/). The goal is simple but cruel: build the biggest possible enclosure using limited walls, while the horse avoids water, ignores diagonal movement, and sometimes teleports through portals. Steven shares some new tabletop RPG pickups including Orbital Blues from Soul Muppet Publishing and Star Borg by JP Coovert, plus updates from his latest Mutant Crawl Classics game where he's running as Judge. Ben also talks about attending a meditation Sangha he found through Reddit, sitting silently with about twenty people and ending the night with an unexpected cookie tailgate.
FUTURE OR NOW
In Future or Now, Ben brings up an issue of Absolute Batman where Batman fights white supremacists, leading Steven to attempt a recap that goes about as smoothly as you'd expect. The conversation shifts into Superman Smashes the Klan, a graphic novel Ben highly recommends for its powerful storytelling and accessibility. The discussion touches on why Superman works so well as a symbol against hate, along with how modern comics are tackling real-world themes more directly. A related video discussion can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ5ID_k_iBA.
BOOK CLUB
For Book Club, we talk about the short film Likewise, Olive from Omeleto (https://youtu.be/lwEssWpRrxg). Both Ben and Steven enjoyed it, even though Ben didn't see the twist coming while Steven guessed it halfway through knowing it was a time travel story. Either way, the film still lands emotionally and is well worth watching.
Next week's reading is The Song of a Non-Human Intelligence by Mical Garcia, published January 12, 2026, available at Strange Horizons: https://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/the-song-of-a-non-human-intelligence/. The story explores cetacean communication, memory, and hope carried across oceans and time.
That's it for this week. From fencing in digital horses to tabletop chaos, meditation cookies, thoughtful comics, and time travel feelings, it's a full episode.
We'll see you next week for whales, non-human intelligence, and a whole lot of hope.
Real Life Ben opens the show by talking about vertigo—both experiencing it firsthand and wondering if Devon might be dealing with it too. He shares that he was diagnosed with a mild case and offers genuinely useful advice: if you're experiencing vertigo, see a doctor, figure out what caused it, and which side it's affecting. In some cases, it can be an easy fix, which is reassuring for something that can feel pretty alarming.
Steven checks in with some family time, talking about Perils & Princesses and enjoying it as a group activity. https://perilsandprincesses.com/ Devon, meanwhile, is riding the simple but powerful high of a three-day weekend and sounding very content about it.
The conversation shifts into Starfleet Academy, with Ben admitting that the advertising did the show no favors—he didn't think it looked interesting at all. That said, once he actually watched it, he found it better than an average Star Trek episode, with compelling characters and a standout performance from Gina Yashere. There's even a nod to classic Star Trek: The Original Series vibes, including black-and-white alien aesthetics. Verdict: Starfleet Academy is "worth your time to watch."
This leads into one of Ben's most sarcastic self-aware rants yet, mockingly embodying the ultra-purist Trek fan: buying a DVD box set 13 years ago apparently grants lifelong authority to demand that all Star Trek content conform exactly to personal specifications—and to loudly complain about shows nobody is forcing him to watch. It's sharp, funny, and painfully recognizable.
Steven then takes on a challenge to talk about Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, which quickly detours into Disney's broader design philosophy and how intentional world-building shapes visitor experience. He also mentions re-listening to Dungeon Crawler Carl and enthusiastically reaffirms his recommendation, even as Devon sounds less convinced it's for him anymore.
Future or Now Ben brings a genuinely practical tool to the table: Just the Browser https://justthebrowser.com/ The project strips AI features, telemetry reporting, sponsored content, product integrations, and other annoyances out of desktop browsers using hidden enterprise-level settings. The goal is exactly what it says on the tin—just the browser, nothing else.
Steven dives into a major neuroscience breakthrough. Researchers have developed a protein that can detect faint chemical signals—specifically glutamate—received by neurons from other brain cells. For the first time, scientists can observe how neurons process incoming information before sending signals onward, revealing a previously invisible layer of brain communication. This could significantly reshape how we study learning, memory, and neurological disease. https://sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251225235950.htm
Book Club Next Week's Watch: Likewise, Olive | Omeleto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwEssWpRrxg
This Week's Read: Ted Chiang – What's Expected of Us (Nature, July 7, 2005) http://www.concatenation.org/futures/whatsexpected.pdf
All three hosts enjoyed the story, but Devon absolutely steals the segment by going on a full, passionate tear about free will versus determinism. It's one of those moments where the conversation locks in, the philosophy gets heavy, and the payoff is incredible.
Real Life We kick things off with a round of Real Life check-ins, because apparently none of us are allowed to simply exist quietly.
Ben opens with Bedroom Talk with Ben Lawless, which is exactly as awkward, candid, and vaguely alarming as it sounds. No further clarification is offered, nor requested.
Devon reports that snowboarding with his kids was actually great. No injuries, no disasters—just genuine fun on the mountain, which frankly feels suspicious but we'll allow it. He also shares that he's been practicing guitar for an hour a day, really locking in on technique. That means working through BPMs, tightening up tapping and sweeping, and grinding away at the Blackened solo like a man possessed. Progress is being made, fingers are suffering, and discipline is winning (for now).
Steven talks about Hawaii, which lands somewhere between "kinda cool" and "why did we do this to ourselves." The travel was awful, the resort was pretty great, and Moana… apparently isn't Moana anymore? We don't resolve this, but we are confident Disney has a lot to answer for.
Ben also brings in Blippo+, a surreal streaming service that feels like channel surfing through an alternate universe. If you're curious (or concerned), you can explore it directly at https://blippo.plus/ or read more context over at The A.V. Club: https://www.avclub.com/blippo-makes-art-out-of-channel-surfing.
Future or Now In Future or Now, Ben highlights a sobering study out of Japan linking poor oral health in older adults to higher mortality rates and increased need for long-term care. The research, conducted by Osaka Metropolitan University and the Institute of Science Tokyo, suggests brushing and dental care might matter more than we'd like to admit. You can read the full breakdown via The Japan Times: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/01/05/japan/science-health/elderly-dental-hygiene/
Devon follows up with This Week in Space, reacting to the news that the U.S. has effectively killed NASA's Mars Sample Return Mission. What happens now? Confusion, disappointment, and a lot of unanswered questions. The full story is covered here: https://www.iflscience.com/us-just-killed-nasas-mars-sample-return-mission-so-what-happens-now-82148
Book Club This week's Book Club pick is "The Janitor in Space" by Amber Sparks, a short story that sparked very different reactions around the table. Steven enjoyed it, Ben didn't care for it at all, and Devon—rather than choosing a side—asked ChatGPT to turn it into a song, which may be the most Devon response possible. You can read the story yourself here: https://americanshortfiction.org/janitor-space/
Looking ahead, next week's selection is Ted Chiang's "What's Expected of Us", originally published in Nature (July 7, 2005). We'll be digging into free will, determinism, and the uncomfortable feeling that the universe might already know what you're about to do.
As always, thanks for listening, reading, and continuing to question whether brushing your teeth might actually save your life.
Real Life
This week's episode starts where a lot of us have been living lately: sick, tired, and mainlining comfort food. Steven is still sick for Christmas and counting, while Ben also got hit, which pushed Christmas celebrations down the calendar a bit. The upside? More chili. More Fritos. No regrets.
Holiday illness also turned into a surprisingly serious soda tasting panel. Steven gives a strong thumbs-up to Sunset Sarsaparilla, while Nuka Cola Quantum lands squarely in the "fine, I guess" category. Ben, meanwhile, makes a passionate case for Canada Dry Fruit Splash Cherry Ginger Ale, which he insists is gooooood.
On the gaming front, Ben waves the bargain flag for Bang Bang Racing, currently just a dollar on Steam until January 5. It's tiny (about 200MB), has excellent controls, and punches way above its weight. She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts, kid. You can check the deal details here: https://isthereanydeal.com/game/bang-bang-racing/info/
Steven also dives deeper into Fallout Season 2, Episode 2, which naturally turns into more Fallout lore and nonsense. Possibly too much. Definitely too much. But that's the price of admission.
Future or Now
Ben brings some sobering science to the table this week. After the January 2025 LA wildfires, hospitals recorded a sharp rise in emergency visits for heart attacks, lung illness, and general sickness over the following three months. Researchers believe fine particles from wildfire smoke, combined with stress, played a major role. Blood tests even showed unusual changes that suggest health impacts lingered long after the fires were out. You can read more about the research here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/12/251220104619.htm
Steven talks about Plur1bus on Apple TV+, created by Vince Gilligan of Breaking Bad fame (and former X-Files writer). Ben keeps himself updated through Boars, Gore, and Swords: http://boarsgoreandswords.com/
Steven, meanwhile, supplements his viewing with YouTube deep dives on color theory and visual storytelling. The consensus? An amazing show — but be warned, we eventually wander into spoiler territory. Go watch it first, then come back.
Ben also shares a very cool Google Earth exploration centered on Albuquerque. If you want to follow along, here's the link: https://earth.google.com/web/search/Albuquerque/@35.16557795,-106.74593037,1672.53654999a,233.96919711d,35y,0h,0t,0r/data=Cj4iJgokCUSJAsPilUFAEUCfJ-B8lEFAGTzU80gBr1rAIWpgL9d9sFrAKhAIARIKMjAyNC0wOC0zMBgBQgIIAToDCgEwQgIIAEoNCP___________wEQAA?authuser=0
Book Club
No book club this week — we're waiting on Devon, who seemed very excited, which somehow makes the waiting worse.
Next week's story is "The Janitor in Space" by Amber Sparks, available through American Short Fiction: https://americanshortfiction.org/janitor-space/
Special Note
We're taking a week off. For shame.
But we'll be back on January 11th, refreshed, rehydrated, and hopefully no longer coughing into our microphones.
This week's episode is a little different—Steven is out sick, so it's just Devon and Ben holding down the fort. The result is a loose, thoughtful conversation that bounces from pop culture overload to philosophy, creativity, and the art of not trying so hard.
Real Life Devon kicks things off with a trip looming on the horizon, bringing equal parts snow, stress, and snowboarding. That spirals nicely into media consumption: thoughts on Switch 2, Mario Maker 2, and catching up on a new Wes Anderson film alongside a Knives Out rewatch. Cozy movies, big style, and just enough distraction to keep the anxiety at bay.
Ben's week leans cinematic and slightly exasperated. Avatar: Fire and Ash clocks in at over three hours, which raises some questions about restraint. We also talk about the newly dropped Avengers: Doomsday teaser—officially slated for December 18, 2026—and the ever-growing pile of what Ben dubs AI slop. The hype machine grinds on.
Future or Now Ben files this one firmly under Now, bringing in an essay titled "The Appropriate Amount of Effort Is Zero" from Expanding Awareness. You can read it here: https://expandingawareness.org/blog/the-appropriate-amount-of-effort-is-zero/
The conversation clicks immediately, especially when paired with that classic Star Wars line: "The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers." Devon connects this idea directly to music—specifically guitar playing—and how tension kills creativity. No clenched jaw. No face squinching. Relaxed hands, relaxed mind.
Ben takes it further, pulling in some Eastern philosophy and the idea that over-effort can actively work against you. Trying less, it turns out, might actually get you more.
Book Club No discussion this week, but we tee up next episode's reading: "The Janitor in Space" by Amber Sparks. If you want to read along, the story is available here: https://americanshortfiction.org/janitor-space/
It's short, strange, and very much in our wheelhouse—perfect fuel for next week's conversation.
Steven will be back soon, Devon will (hopefully) survive the snow, and Ben will continue his quest to consume culture without being crushed by it. Until then: loosen your grip.
Real Life We kick things off with Real Life, where Devon is suspiciously chipper and ahead on billing (don't worry, it doesn't last forever). Steven recounts The Great Lice Infestation of '25, a saga that will echo through the ages—or at least the household laundry room. Ben crowns Sektori as his game of the year, describing it as the best Dreamcast game that never existed and somehow got a remaster. If that sentence alone sells you, here's the deal-tracking rabbit hole via IsThereAnyDeal
. Bennnip.
Steven also recommends Arc Raiders, a loot-em-up that caught his attention, which leads to a discussion of an AI-related controversy surrounding the game. Ben had heard about it, and we dig into what's actually going on, pulling from this breakdown over at Game Rant: Arc Raiders Gen AI Voice Acting Controversy Explained
Back at the table, Steven ran a Mutant Crawl Classics game where a gravitational-lensing mutant plant man absolutely stole the show. As they do.
Future or Now Ben brings science to the table with a discussion on tea, coffee, and bone health. He walks us through a decade-long study of older women that found tea drinkers had slightly stronger bones, while moderate coffee consumption caused no harm. Heavy coffee intake—more than five cups a day—was associated with lower bone density, especially when paired with higher alcohol consumption. Tea's benefits may come from catechins that help support bone formation, and the researchers suggest that small daily habits can add up over time. Ben even ran the ScienceDaily article through Google LM to compare it against the original paper. You can read the summary here: Tea may strengthen bones in older women while heavy coffee weakens them
Devon tackles a much bigger question: why consciousness exists at all. The research suggests consciousness evolved in layers—starting with basic survival responses like pain and alarm, then expanding into focused awareness and self-reflection. These layers help organisms learn, avoid danger, and coordinate socially. Birds, interestingly, display many of these traits, implying that consciousness may be far older and more widespread than we once thought. The full write-up is worth your time: Why consciousness exists at all
Steven had nothing this week, which is honestly its own kind of achievement.
Book Club This week's discussion centers on "The Red Thread" by Sofia Samatar, published in Lightspeed Magazine. The story features strong prose, an evocative world, and a compelling narrative voice. Devon respected it but didn't fully connect, while Ben loved it and Steven greatly enjoyed the ride. You can read it here: "The Red Thread" by Sofia Samatar
Looking ahead, next week's pick is "The Janitor in Space" by Amber Sparks, which you can find at American Short Fiction: The Janitor in Space
—
As always, thanks for listening—and remember: drink some tea, question reality, and check your kids for lice.
Real Life We opened this week's episode with real-life updates, starting with Steven's full-on birthday blitz — his birthday, his kids' birthdays, all packed into the same window. There was dinner out, a rowdy round of Ransom Notes, and the proud report that his kid nailed a fully successful sleepover. Parenting achievement unlocked.
Devon, meanwhile, came in questioning reality: The Onion is still a newspaper? That somehow turned into a whole debate about debates (1 vs. 20 participants), which feels about right. And then his kid dropped the big question at home: how do we stop an asteroid from hitting Earth? Devon chose the only responsible answer: we "Armageddon" it.
Ben ended up on a binge of Home Alone and Hawkeye, which is a surprisingly coherent double feature when you think about it.
Future or Now Steven: Why '90s Brains Are Built Differently Steven brought a pair of articles that explore why '90s kids' brains diverged from Gen Z's: a piece from Psychology Zine (link) and a supporting breakdown from Newsweek (link).
If you grew up racing Rainbow Road in Mario Kart or discovering secrets in Pokémon Red without a guidebook, you remember when games came in chunky cartridges, had clear endings, and handed out failure like candy. You got better, or you started over. That era hard-coded a very different reward system.
Compare that to now: kids juggling Fortnite battle passes, chasing Roblox skins with real money, and fending off constant push notifications baiting FOMO. According to the experts in those articles, this shift isn't just technological — it's actually altering how developing brains handle challenge, reward, and attention.
Devon: Can We Finally Trust Quantum Computers? Devon dug into a fascinating breakthrough in quantum computing. Scientists have developed a method that can validate results from quantum computers in minutes instead of millennia. The report came from ScienceDaily (link) and the deeper technical writeup appeared in Quantum Science and Technology (IOP link).
Right now, quantum devices — especially GBS machines — are notoriously noisy, and verifying their answers is so computationally hard that we usually just trust whatever they spit out. This new technique already exposed errors in a major earlier experiment, which is both alarming and encouraging. If we want reliable quantum hardware, this is exactly the step we needed.
Ben: Giants on the Icelandic Landscape Ben found something visually stunning: a design project that turns routine electrical pylons into towering human-shaped sculptures across Iceland. They're eerie, monumental, and beautiful in a way infrastructure never gets to be. You can see the concept on the designer's site here: choishine.com (link).
These pylon-giants use only minor structural tweaks to standard tower design, but the transformation is dramatic. Instead of anonymous metal frames, the landscape gets colossal steel figures marching across the horizon.
Book Club This Week: "Dark Air" by Lincoln Michel We read "Dark Air" this week — a moody, unsettling story that mixes environmental dread with strange atmospheric phenomena. You can read it for free on Granta: granta.com/dark-air
Next Week: "The Red Thread" by Sofia Samatar Next up is Sofia Samatar's "The Red Thread" — intricate, mythic, and exactly the kind of story we love diving into. You can read it on Lightspeed Magazine: lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-red-thread
Thanksgiving came and went, and somehow all three of us survived… though some of us survived more deviled eggs than others. Let's jump in.
Real Life Steven kicked things off with the tale of a very boring Thanksgiving that was only made notable by the sheer volume of deviled eggs involved. When you commit to making 36 eggs—times two—you're basically catering your own side quest. After recovering, he cleansed his palate by watching Jurassic Park with his kid, which is exactly the kind of comfort cinema the holiday demands.
Ben had a more people-filled holiday: his mom visited (hi Martha!) and there were Thanksgiving dinners with Matt (hi Matt!). Somewhere in between all the leftovers he squeezed in a rewatch of The Fifth Element, because sometimes the only thing better than turkey is multi-pass nostalgia.
Devon reported the chillest Thanksgiving of the group—Friday, low-key, nothing dramatic. Except for a family friend making chicken parm the hard way, which is an important detail because Devon would absolutely like everyone to know there is an easier way. Also: the LEGO Enterprise-D has been purchased… and may or may not have arrived. We're waiting for the inaugural "swoosh test."
Steven also tossed in that Devon watched Zootopia 2, which, according to Steven, is "about WW2." Take that claim as seriously as you should.
Future or Now Ben brought a blast from the productivity past with the return of Freeter—a tool for organizing workflows, command line scripts, projects, and basically your entire work brain. It's cross-platform and designed to gather everything you need into one tidy dashboard. He's excited; we're cautiously optimistic this isn't the start of another "Ben reorganizes his life using eight apps" arc. https://freeter.io/
Devon had nothing this week, which somehow felt on-brand after his aggressively uneventful Thanksgiving.
Steven highlighted A Doggone Shame, a study looking at CBD use in over 47,000 dogs. The data shows it's mostly used on older pups with chronic conditions, and while long-term use seems linked to reduced aggression, it doesn't do much for other anxiety-related behaviors. Also interesting: owners in cannabis-friendly states were the most likely to try CBD with their dogs. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/11/251128050506.htm
"Book Club" Next Week We'll be reading "Dark Air" by Lincoln Michel — a speculative piece published in Granta. https://granta.com/dark-air/
This Week We dove into "Welcome to the Medical Clinic at the Interplanetary Relay Station" by Caroline M. Yoachim, a choose-your-own-adventure-style story where your choices matter… except they don't. The story reminds you that in the clinic—just like real life—your decisions, your path, your careful strategizing… often end up being meaningless in the grand scheme of things. But weirdly, it's fun! We all really enjoyed it. https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/welcome-to-the-medical-clinic-at-the-interplanetary-relay-station/
Stranger Things 5 bonus chat We wrapped with a quick chat about Stranger Things Season 5. Steven and Devon have watched a few episodes, and the question came up: Can a modern streaming show realistically handle actors aging when production takes years between seasons?
Do you lean into it? Write around it? Pretend nothing happened? Pretend it's Zootopia 2: The WW2 Years? Hard to say.
It's a big week over here, full of visiting parents, cosmic philosophy, and at least one host wrestling with the concept of leftovers. Let's get into it.
Real Life Ben is officially in pre-Thanksgiving hype mode because his mom is coming to visit (hi Martha!). There may or may not be a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on the table—Ben is thinking about it, which is basically the same as committing, right? He's also deep into a full-spectrum Percy Jackson immersion program: watching the movie, reading the books, and watching the new show. You can check out the show's current score here: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/percy_jackson_and_the_olympians
This leads into Ben's latest tech spiral: trying to explain Valve to explain Steam to explain their new announcements. Yes, we're talking Steam Machine, Steam Frame, Steam Controller… all the greatest hits of "Valve makes hardware for some reason."
Devon is dealing with some extended-family logistics involving his sister-in-law and also took a firm stance this week: he hates Thanksgiving atmosphere. The vibes? Bad. The leftovers? Worse. Respect the honesty.
Steven stayed indoors and educated himself by way of extremely good YouTube movie documentaries. First up: a look at how Jurassic Park pulled off its groundbreaking effects: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWtlIhVDl-M
And then a deep dive into the behind-the-scenes of Interstellar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH6qRaOr8YY
Not a bad way to spend a weekend.
Future or Now Devon brings us the most brain-melting story of the week: physicists have now mathematically proven that the Universe is not a simulation.
A team from UBC Okanagan used Gödel's incompleteness theorem to demonstrate that reality requires a form of "non-algorithmic understanding"—something that no computational system can replicate. In other words: if this is a simulation, it's not one any computer could run.
Read the research summary here: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/11/251110021052.htm
So the Universe might be fundamentally unsimulatable. Which is cool, unless you were really hoping to blame your life choices on a bored cosmic programmer.
Book Club Next Week We're jumping into a choose-your-own-adventure-style sci-fi story with "Welcome to the Medical Clinic at the Interplanetary Relay Station" by Caroline M. Yoachim. It's weird, funny, sharply written, and perfect for discussion. Read it here: https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/welcome-to-the-medical-clinic-at-the-interplanetary-relay-station/
This Week We're covering "City Grown From Seed" by Diana Dima. Content warning: domestic violence / domestic abuse.
This one is dense, metaphorical, unsettling, and beautifully written. It explores generational trauma, identity, and rebirth through surreal botanical imagery. Definitely one of those stories that sticks with you long after reading. Find it here: http://strangehorizons.com/wordpress/fiction/city-grown-from-seed/
This Week on the Pod: Rain, Parades, Hive Minds, and… Ben's Brain for Rent? This week's episode opens with a very rainy round of real-life updates. Ben has been slammed with work and declares—formally, officially, irrevocably—that poetry is better than parades. (He is fully prepared to defend this position.) Meanwhile, Steven reports that the local parade and festival still happened despite the rain, because sometimes community spirit just refuses to check the weather. And Devon? He keeps forgetting that he's technically a Texan now, which raises several questions about residency, identity, and barbecue obligations.
But the week wasn't all jokes—Ben also shared the sad news that Orion has passed. He was a very good boy, and the pod raises a collective toast. Ben's been spending time catching up on life, trying to relearn what "rest" even means, and also casually dropping the bomb that Affinity is now free. (Yes, really—go see for yourself at affinity.studio.) And while you're browsing, you can apparently rent Ben's actual mind at Penciledin.com, which sounds like a threat but is, in fact, a service.
Steven also let us know that the Fallout Season 2 trailer is out, so it's time to emotionally prepare for more post-apocalyptic chaos.
Future or Now: Tylenol, Autism, and the Psychology of Hive Minds Devon kicks off this segment with actual real science: new research shows no clear link between acetaminophen (Tylenol) and autism, which is a big deal considering how long that concern has been floating around. (Links to ScienceDaily and the BMJ included in the show notes for the skeptics and science nerds.)
Then we collectively decide: yes, we need to talk about Plur1bus. And we go deep.
This is a full-spoiler discussion, so skip ahead if you're still watching. We cover everything—from the protagonist who's also the antagonist, to the messy moral math of a hive mind, to Devon's incredibly passionate speech about wanting to understand hive-mind psychology. Steven brings up that Internet-as-proto-hivemind theory, and Ben drops several very good points as per tradition.
If you want episode breakdowns, the Wikipedia page has everything laid out neatly and also serves as a reminder that this show is way smarter than any of us expected when we hit "play."
Book Club (Sort Of) We skipped Book Club this week because there was simply too much Plur1bus to process.
Next week: We're reading City Grown From Seed by Diana Dima. Content warning: domestic violence / domestic abuse. You can read it for free on Strange Horizons.
Real Life It's another week of real life, questionable decisions, and sci-fi tangents.
Does Devon Even Like Being on the Show? We ask the question no one dared to before—and yes, Devon does like being here. Just… maybe not for the reasons you think.
Ben's Apology Tour Continues Ben kicks things off with an immediate apology for this podcast. Again. But he makes up for it by diving into Apple TV's The Big Door Prize (IMDb link)—a show full of mysteries, midlife crises, and a machine that tells you your true potential. He's also been watching Zen for Nothing and Piece by Piece, and we learn something shocking: Steven hates LEGO.
Steven's Space Drama Speaking of Steven, he's wrestling with another defeat in Shatterpoint (at the hands of Christina's husband, again), and somehow this leads to him buying a Camtono. Why does he have one? No one knows. But we do get a heated debate about the LEGO Enterprise and whether Ensign Ro or Tasha Yar had the raw deal in Star Trek.
Devon's Hive-Mind Obsession Devon's been watching Plur1bus on Apple TV and can't stop talking about how eerily well it captures collective consciousness. For a guy who insists he's an individual, he sure sounds like part of a hive.
Future or Now Ben actually brings good news this time. Seriously. His pick is a hopeful piece on how Solarpunk is already happening in Africa—how communities there are skipping the outdated infrastructure of the past and heading straight into a sustainable, decentralized future. Read it here: Why Solarpunk Is Already Happening in Africa
Meanwhile, Steven turns up the heat—literally—with a wild story out of Death Valley. Scientists studying Tidestromia oblongifolia found it doesn't just survive in brutal heat—it adapts on the fly, rearranging its cells and genes to keep photosynthesizing when everything else would fry. It's a real-life lesson in evolution under pressure. (ScienceDaily link)
Book Club This Week: In the Forests of Memory by E. Lily Yu (read here) – a haunting, quiet story about memory, commerce, and humanity told through the eyes of a trader and a stranger. It's as poetic as it is unsettling.
Next Week: City Grown From Seed by Diana Dima (read here) – content warning for domestic violence and abuse. It's an eerie, metaphorical story that we'll unpack next episode.
Between Ben's apologies, Devon's hive talk, and Steven's LEGO rage, it's another week of chaos, sci-fi, and accidental enlightenment.
You can listen to the full episode wherever you get your podcasts—or watch our faces slowly melt under studio lights on YouTube.
Real Life
Time changed again. Why? Didn't we, as a society, vote on not doing this anymore? Every clock reset feels like an act of collective gaslighting.
Ben spent his week teaching classes at the Art-a-thon, where he also led a chaotic round of Werewolves featuring the now-immortal line: "I am a delicious villager." The kids apparently took that declaration at face value.
Steven was also at the Art-a-thon, diving into unfamiliar crafts (the kind that require more glue than dignity). Between Halloween, Disney runs, and too much coffee, his week sounded like a montage of exhaustion set to "Hakuna Matata."
Meanwhile, Devon escaped into Weapons—a new dark comedy-horror streaming on HBO. It's clever, weird, and surprisingly funny for something that involves, well, weapons. IMDb link here. Steven immediately brought up Good Boy—another horror film with an entirely different kind of twist. That one's here. Ben closed his week out by jumping into the Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown demo, a roguelike that lets players reimagine Voyager's storylines with ship management and branching plots. It's on Steam. Boldly go, repeatedly die, try again.
Future or Now
Ben's been pondering the next phase of human-computer interaction. There are two paths, he says: cyborgs and rooms. The industry is obsessed with the former—wearables, implants, the dream of merging with our devices. But Ben argues the real frontier is communal computing: Dynamicland.
Dynamicland was a physical space in Oakland where people worked inside the computer. Tables, walls, and objects became part of a shared computational environment. Programs weren't hidden behind screens—they existed in the room with you. From 2017 until COVID, it was a place where anyone could walk in, code with their hands, and collaborate in the real world. It's computing as a public utility, like a library—but for imagination.
Meanwhile, Steven shared a video called "Giving a PC Program Control of My Muscles to Become the Fastest in the World," which feels like the opposite of communal computing. Instead of the room becoming the computer, you do. Devon called it cheating, but maybe it's just evolution—painful, electric evolution.
Book Club
This week's story was The Game of Smash and Recovery
by Kelly Link—an emotional, cryptic sci-fi tale that left the hosts divided.
Steven liked that the story existed at all, even if he couldn't quite parse it. Devon wasn't sure if he liked it—he wants narratives that make sense on the first read. Ben, meanwhile, appreciated how readable it was and actually liked the story, proving once again that literary comprehension may be inversely proportional to caffeine intake.
Next week's pick: In the Forests of Memory by E. Lily Yu.
Until then—reset your clocks, embrace communal computing, and remember: somewhere out there, a delicious villager is waiting.
Real Life:
This week's episode kicks off with Ben wondering what would happen if idioms were costumes. Imagine showing up to a party literally raining cats and dogs or dressed as the elephant in the room. (We're not sure if that's genius or horrifying.)
Steven reminds everyone to say it to our faces! — meaning, drop us a comment or suggestion. Seriously. We read them. Sometimes we even respond like civilized humans.
Devon went to a Halloween party with the Non-Religious Alliance of East Texas Facebook group (yes, that's a thing), rocking a DS9 uniform costume that probably had at least three pips too many.
Ben got a night off parenting duties for Kids Night Out and wants to shout out Butterchurn Visualizer for turning his playlist into a full-blown psychedelic light show.
Then Steven dives into a spoiler-filled review of Sinners — which Devon also saw. If you haven't watched it yet, consider this your warning: spoilers abound, and apparently so do opinions.
Future or Now
Devon takes us up to near space with the week's wildest headline: the object that struck a United Airlines plane wasn't space debris… it was a weather balloon. Turns out, flight 1093's busted front window was courtesy of one of humanity's oldest sky spies, not falling junk from orbit. 📰 Read more here: Ars Technica
Meanwhile, Ben is fed up with the internet's ad problem — you know, those "No Adblocker Detected" pop-ups that ruin your vibe. He found a fantastic rant about how ad-driven web economics are slowly melting the internet into a soulless sludge of clickbait and autoplay. Check it out here: Maurycyz.com on Internet Ads.
As for Steven, he contributed… absolutely nothing. His words, not ours.
📚 Book Club: "Planet Lion" by Catherynne M. Valente 📚
This week, the crew explored the lush and poetic alien world of Planet Lion by Catherynne M. Valente (read it here).
- Ben didn't love the poetic style but admits he might've shortchanged the story by listening instead of reading — multitasking strikes again.
- Devon really enjoyed it, especially the layered, lyrical tone.
- Steven appreciated how alien the alien perspective felt — not just in design, but in mindset.
Next week's story: "The Game of Smash and Recovery" by Kelly Link (available here).
As always — got thoughts, theories, or strong feelings about weather balloons or weird fiction? Say it to our faces! Drop a comment or join the discussion on our socials.
Real Life
Ben was out this week, which left Devon and Steven to hold court—and as Devon reminded us, there are no kings here anyway. He showed up fresh from an event that apparently involved an axolotl costume (details were scarce, which somehow made it funnier), and immediately launched into a whirlwind of thoughts about upcoming elections, funding cuts to science, and the strange, ongoing collision between South Park and real-world politics.
Meanwhile, Steven spent his weekend in the world of The Witcher: The Old World board game with Greg, slaying monsters, collecting trophies, and occasionally remembering to play the objective. Devon also caught up on Foundation Season 3, where he's decided Brother Day now fully channels The Dude—if The Dude had an empire and a god complex.
Future or Now
Devon took us on a deep dive into the evolving shape of human unhappiness. Once upon a time, midlife was the low point—a universal "unhappiness hump." But according to new global data, that hump is flattening out. Today, mental health is worst in youth and actually improves with age. The midlife crisis may be over, but something worse has taken its place: an age of early despair. Young people are struggling more than ever before, reshaping how we think about happiness across the lifespan. 👉 Read more
Steven followed that up with a warning: don't drink the Kool-Aid—or the soda. A massive new study of over 120,000 people found that both regular and diet soft drinks are hammering our liver health. The risk of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) jumps dramatically with more than one can a day—and "diet" drinks might actually be worse. Changes to gut bacteria and appetite regulation are the prime suspects. 👉 Check out the study
Book Club
No story discussion this week, but next time we're diving into Planet Lion by Catherynne M. Valente, a luminous piece of speculative fiction about faith, communication, and the limits of understanding alien minds.
👉 Read it on Uncanny Magazine
It's another week in real life for the gang — or at least for most of us. Devon's down sick, so it's a two-man show featuring Steven and Ben navigating the bizarre crossroads of tech, food, and VR golf.
🏌️ Real Life Ben's been tethered to the job, but he still managed to escape reality long enough to join a virtual round of Walkabout Mini Golf— specifically the new Tokyo DLC — alongside Steven, some friends, and one of our lovely patrons. Turns out, there's nothing quite like bonding over missed putts in low-poly Japan.
Meanwhile, Steven's week has been aggressively autumnal. Between a pumpkin painting and apple party (new listeners, it's a thing), setting up a a pi-hole on a Raspberry Pi 4, and cracking open the Hellboy board game, he's officially living his best nerd life.
Ben, on the other hand, declared war on Microsoft. With Windows 10 heading toward its end-of-life, he's switched to Bazzite Linux to avoid the sins of Windows 11. Cue righteous fury: "How dare you do what you do, Microsoft?" Also, the ROG Ally handheld PC is on the horizon — should we be excited or just emotionally prepared?
🍔 Future or Now Steven dives into a story that'll make you rethink that bag of chips: ultra-processed foods (UPFs) now dominate the American diet — and they're linked to chronic inflammation, heart disease, and cancer. According to Science Daily, people who eat the most UPFs show higher levels of hs-CRP, an inflammation marker. The takeaway? Maybe listen when Steven yells, "What's in your mouth?! DROP IT!"
Ben, ever the tech romantic, went down a rabbit hole about creating your own physical music formats — a nostalgic rebellion against the streaming void. Inspired by this Y Combinator post, he mourns the lost art of DropMix and Rock Band, both now relics of a time when music and play collided beautifully.
📚 Book Club This week we read "Wikihistory" by Desmond Warzel — a time-travel tale told entirely through wiki edit threads. It's short, it's clever, and it'll make you question what's really editable in history.
Next week: "Planet Lion" by Catherynne M. Valente — an elegant, surreal journey through alien communication and memory.
👾 Listen now for the perfect mix of VR golf, processed snacks, Linux rebellion, and speculative fiction. 🎧 Available wherever you get your podcasts.
Real Life
Ben’s decided that fall is… fine. Just okay. Leaves fall, pumpkin spice happens, and he moves on. His energy’s better spent testing out new hands-free necklace cameras—a totally normal sentence—and keeping Orion fed and happy.
Meanwhile, Steven dove headfirst into Shadow of the Demon Lord, playing Velmar the Archivist, a character with a flair for ancient lore and possibly poor life decisions. Five hours later, the table survived, the dice were appeased, and Steven was still buzzing from the chaos.
Devon, fresh from his cruise survival, gave us tales of ice skating, laser tag, and kid karaoke—the real high seas adventure. The boat did, however, dock somewhere that was apparently not Devon-approved. We didn’t ask for details. Some horrors are best left off-mic.
Ben’s also been deep-diving into retro TV, revisiting Police Squad! after catching the fourth Naked Gun movie. Add in Marvel Zombies—a wild, tragic, and completely zany series that gave him Batman Ninja flashbacks—and you’ve got Ben’s viewing habits perfectly summarized: somewhere between slapstick and existential decay.
Marvel Zombies on IMDb
Review on The Playlist
Steven’s been championing Peacemaker, wrapping up season 1 and binging through the first seven episodes of season 2. He gives it a full-hearted recommendation—especially if you enjoy Superman references, alternate realities, and 80s glam metal in your superhero chaos.
Devon, ever the connoisseur, dropped a bombshell: there’s a new Simpsons movie coming, and it might even be replacing a Marvel release slot. He’s cautiously thrilled. On the flip side, Alien: Earth got a collective “eh” from the group—though we all agreed its many storylines and editing quirks made for an interesting dissection.
Future or Now We didn’t make it here this week. Too many good tangents.
Book Club
This week’s read was “They’re Made Out of Meat” by Terry Bisson—short, weird, and surprisingly heartfelt. The crew praised its simple but sharp worldbuilding-through-dialogue, and Ben compared its absurd tone to Ren & Stimpy’s close-up madness. For a kid-friendlier vibe, he also recommended The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack.
Read “They’re Made Out of Meat”
Watch the short film adaptation
Flapjack on IMDb
Next week’s story: “Wikihistory” by Desmond Warzel, a time-travel tale told through forum posts. Read it here
Want more weird science, deep-cut book talk, and bonus chaos? Join us on Patreon for unedited episodes, exclusive content, and our private Discord full of bad jokes and good vibes. Your support keeps the mics hot and the fall season just a little less “okay.”
Real Life Devon’s not here this week—he ditched us for a cruise. Apparently, some doctors say cruises are floating petri dishes with barely any oversight on cleanliness. But not our Devon. He’s braving the high seas while Steven sits at home thinking, “You know what sounds better than hundreds of strangers sneezing near me? Literally anything else.”
Meanwhile, Ben went to the Gamer Festival at the Madonna Inn, which looked like an absolute blast. Arcade machines, board games, and maybe too many people in themed t-shirts. He even stumbled across a longplay video of Stargate (Arcade) on YouTube (22K views after three years!) and got into Broom Service, a trick-taking board game where witches zoom around delivering potions. Rules here if you’re curious.
Steven, instead of heading to Gamer Fest, ran a Mutant Crawl Classics session. Mutants, post-apocalyptic chaos, dice rolling—it was all there. When he wasn’t GMing, he was kit-bashing his own mini robot out of spare parts. Award-winning, five-star author and robot builder? Yeah, he’s got range.
Normally, this is where we’d slide into our Future or Now segment—but with Devon off the grid (and possibly fighting buffet lines instead of time-travel paradoxes), we skipped it this week. Don’t worry, it’ll be back once he’s done living the boat life.
We also touched on:
- A correction about Star Trek: Khan (there are 9 episodes, not 3—we messed that up).
- Parking Garage Rally Circuit, a Sega Saturn-inspired rally racer on Steam. It’s got ska, it’s got cars, and the holophonic audio makes you feel like you’re back in 1994. Check it out here.
- Rick and Morty Season 8, and the eternal question: which episode was the best?
Book Club This week: We read Robert Silverberg’s 1971 short story “Good News from the Vatican.” It’s all about the election of the first robot pope, and yes, it’s as wild as it sounds. You can find it in Universe 1 or snag it here on Kindle
Next week: We’re tackling Terry Bisson’s “They’re Made Out of Meat”—a classic piece of weird short fiction that asks: what if humans are just slabs of meat trying to talk? Read it here or watch this short adaptation.
This week’s episode covers everything from Metallica rumors to vehicular combat nostalgia, with some Star Trek overload and a short story about ants the size of Buicks.
Real Life First off: is Metallica doing a farewell tour? Nope. Despite the headlines , it’s not the end. Devon’s floating the idea of a Metallica Vegas residency though—because nothing says “hard rock” like the Strip buffet scene.
Speaking of trips, Devon cruised back to Cozumel and reported in with the most lukewarm Superman review ever: “It was okay.” Much more enthusiasm went to Twisted Metal, which Devon swears is actually good TV.
Ben’s week was a mash-up of retro and weird: revisiting the vehicular combat classic Vigilante 8 (alternate 1975, naturally) and driving headlong into Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom—a game best described as Super Mario 64 colliding with Crazy Taxi in an alleyway.
Steven had a great run in Shatterpoint, squaring off against Greg. Steven fielded Lord Maul and Count Dooku, Greg ran the entire Rogue One crew, and fun was had by all.
Also, Ben dog-sat and chicken-sat for Steven. His payment? Eggs. A true barter economy.
Future or Now Ben wasn’t going to let us off the hook without some Star Trek chatter. Two new official Trek series just dropped—including Star Trek: Scouts, a preschooler show that Ben insists counts. He’s also tossing out theories about Jack Ransom connections and reminding us that Khan is on the way too. That’s… a lot of Trek. Maybe too much Trek.
Steven meanwhile is hyped because Star Trek LEGO,
is now officially a thing. The USS Enterprise and a Type-15 Shuttlepod in brick form? Yes, please.
Devon had nothing this week. (Hey, he’s allowed a bye week.)
Book Club This week we dug into Edward Bryant’s 1979 short story giANTS, which dives into what happens when you ignore the square-cube law. Quick refresher: double the size of an insect, and its mass increases faster than its strength or breathing ability. Meaning giant ants would basically suffocate under their own bulk. Science ruins everything, but at least it makes for great fiction.
Next week we’re jumping back to 1971 with Robert Silverberg’s Good News from the Vatican (found in Universe 1). Grab it here, if you want to read along.
This week’s episode was a ride through everything from neighborhood drama to yogurt overlords, with plenty of science and sci-fi sprinkled along the way.
Real Life Ben kicked things off with Five Nights at Freddy’s—because apparently, jump scares are just how he likes to unwind. From there, he veered into a wild story involving a crossing guard, a flag man, and threats from a community member that had us questioning if this was real life or the start of a low-budget thriller.
Devon had politics on his mind (as he often does), and let’s just say it was… cathartic.
Steven closed his section with a review of Mickey 17 (yes, the Bong Joon-ho movie starring Robert Pattinson), finally finishing Rick & Morty, and then going deep into the concept of an Alien Earth.
Meanwhile, Ben reminded everyone to get your COVID booster while you still can. His advice? If you need to, just say you have asthma. “Who’s gonna check?” he asked. (Don’t tempt fate, Ben.)
Future or Now Ben brought us back to his favorite corner of the internet: The Weird Wide Web. This time he found:
- A Pigeon Hadron Collider (yes, it exists),
- Computer shoes (also real, somehow),
- And a store that generates anything you type (Hacker News link here)
Devon turned things more serious with some big Mars news. NASA’s Perseverance rover collected a sample called Sapphire Canyon from an ancient riverbed, and it could preserve evidence of ancient microbial life. NASA’s announcement and the coverage highlight the discovery’s potential—though, as Devon pointed out, politicians are already trying to spin credit in ways that don’t hold up.
Steven brought us back to Earth (sort of) with the rise of Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs. Harvard Health explains how they work, while a new RAND report, shows nearly 12% of Americans have already tried them. Effective? Yes. Side effects? Also yes.
Book Club This week we read “When the Yogurt Took Over” by John Scalzi (link here), which you may know from its animated adaptation in Love, Death & Robots. Short, weird, and oddly plausible—because if dairy products do overthrow humanity, it’s probably our fault.
Next week: we’re tackling Edward Bryant’s “giANTS” (1979), which you can find here. Prepare yourself for some very big bugs.
Devon also dropped some knowledge about Sean Carroll’s The Particle at the End of the Universe, tying our sci-fi chat back to real physics.
That’s the roundup! Between pigeons smashing atoms, yogurt world domination, and Mars microbes, it was one of those episodes where the line between real science and sci-fi got blurry—and we loved every minute of it.
Real Life This week’s episode is stacked—like a plate at Boar & Barley (Ben barely survived, oh God). Speaking of Milwaukee, Devon had some things to say, and Steven dove into Rick and Morty season 8 on HBO—has the quality shifted? Plus, Marvel’s Thunderbolts snuck its way into the convo.
Future or Now Devon brought us back to the Bob-verse world with Dennis E. Taylor’s Flybot. He called it “enjoyable” (which is Devon for a glowing review). Near-future tech, asteroid mining, eco-terrorists, and a scrappy AI robot pieced together from spare parts—this one’s a cozy puzzle-box of sci-fi. We also asked: is this “Casual Sci-Fi”? “Cozy Sci-Fi”? Someone trademark that.
Ben, meanwhile, shouted “Star Trek? Hell yeah, brother” and broke down Noah Hawley’s almost-made Star Trek film that would’ve tied directly into The Next Generation. Read more here.
Steven brought his A-game with Alien: Earth episode 5—he swears it’s the best Alien movie in a long time. High praise.
Book Club Patron Renee joined us! She told us about her latest comic-con adventures and stuck with us for the whole episode (you love to see it).
This week we read “Bears Discover Fire” by Terry Bisson—a story that scooped up basically all the awards back in the early ’90s (Hugo, Nebula, Sturgeon, Locus, Asimov’s Readers, you name it). It feels like something straight out of Haruki Murakami—quiet, strange, and deeply human. Oh, and yes, we did wonder aloud: what if it was Banthas Discover Fire?
📖 Read it here: Lightspeed Magazine 🎬 DUST adaptation: Watch on YouTube 🎧 Audiobook: Listen here
Next week: “When the Yogurt Took Over” by John Scalzi (which also got the Love, Death + Robots treatment). Check it out here.
This week’s episode had a slightly different vibe—Ben was buried under a mountain of work, so he wasn’t able to make it. But don’t worry, Steven and Devon had plenty to talk about.
Real Life Devon’s mom was visiting, and he took a trip out to Milwaukee for baseball. Turns out the city is super clean… but also a little seedy after dark. Naturally, breweries came up (because it’s Milwaukee), and he hit up Broken Bat Brewery—complete with darts, wiffle ball, and the echo of a chant we kept repeating: Miller Miller!
Meanwhile, Steven went full hobby mode. He finished painting Anakin, played Shatterpoint with Greg, and even reconnected with an old friend. On top of that, we dove into Alien: Earth with a quick mini recap and review.
What Devon’s Watching & Reading Devon’s keeping up with Foundation season 3, which is still going strong with some big, interesting ideas. He also talked about The Battle for the Big Bang—sadly not available on audio—and continued his personal project of reading through the Bible. He’s been trying to make sense of how religion developed, comparing the Old Testament to the New Testament, and even mentioned James Talarico. Lots of deep thought packed into his reading stack.
Future or Now Nothing in this segment this week.
Book Club (Coming Up) Next week, we’ll be reading Terry Bisson’s Bears Discover Fire—a short story that basically swept the awards back in the early ’90s. It won the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and a few others, and it even inspired Bisson’s later tongue-in-cheek story Bears Discover Smut. Bisson, who sadly passed away in January 2024, was a giant in short speculative fiction. He’s also the mind behind They’re Made Out of Meat—a must-read if you’ve never come across it.
If you want to check it out before we dive in:
- Read it here
- Watch the DUST adaptation
- Listen to the audiobook
So grab your copy of Bears Discover Fire in whichever format works best and get ready to talk talking bears, fire, and why this little story became such a classic.
California, what are you doing? Rain in the summer? Hail in Tahoe? Absolute chaos. At least Steven’s chickens are thriving in this strange new climate—they’ve started laying eggs. A LOT of eggs. So many, in fact, that we’re considering a new Patreon tier: Egg Delivery from Steven. Fresh, farm-to-door… assuming you live close enough for him to walk them over.
Gaming Corner: From Voyager to Vaults Ben dove deep into nostalgia this week with a first look at the Star Trek: Voyager – Across the Unknown game. It’s got exploration, it’s got starships, it’s got Janeway energy. Check it out for yourself: ▶ Trailer
🎮 Steam Page
Meanwhile, Steven is geeking out over the Fallout Season 2 trailer—and its direct nods to New Vegas. Naturally, that raised the question: What’s the canonical ending to the game? Opinions vary, but the lore debate is half the fun. Oh, and in case you missed it: Fallout 5 has officially entered production. Start hoarding bottle caps now.
Ben’s also still working on his short game in VR with Walkabout Mini Golf’s new Tokyo level. Neon lights, serene gardens, and… capybaras? Yep, you read that right. Meta has the details
And if you’ve got a taste for tabletop chaos, Steven recommends Pirate Borg, a salty spin-off of the grimdark cult classic Mörk Borg. If you’ve ever wanted to fight skeletons with black powder pistols and a parrot on your shoulder, this one’s for you: Pirate Borg
Future or Now: Quantum Weirdness & Alternate Universes Ben found a wild take this week: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds might not be in the Prime Universe. Interesting theory, problematic delivery—watch at your own discretion: Positronic Hypersonic Video.
Meanwhile, Steven went full science mode: Physicists have confirmed that angular momentum is conserved even when a single photon splits into two. It’s an experiment so precise, it’s basically like catching a needle in a quantum haystack. If you’re into photons behaving themselves, here’s the breakdown: ScienceDaily.
Book Club: Worlds Without Men, Bears With Fire This week’s read: “When It Changed” by Joanna Russ. A colony on Whileaway has survived for 30 generations without men—until a crew of them shows up and decides to “fix” things. Classic, award-winning, and razor-sharp social commentary. Read it here and join the discussion.
Next week, we’re tackling “Bears Discover Fire” by Terry Bisson—a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning short story where, well, bears discover fire. They start holding campfires on highway medians. It’s about aging, wilderness, and the strange comfort of community. Read it here and bring your s’mores.
What do you think—should we actually launch the Egg Delivery Tier, or is that just inviting chaos? Let us know in the comments!
Real Life Devon has been knee-deep in yard work, prepping and installing artificial grass and fixing up fences. But the real highlight was his trip to Milwaukee for some baseball—and of course, some Alice Cooper trivia because apparently Milwaukee and Alice Cooper are forever linked thanks to Wayne’s World.
Ben gave us an update on Orion. He’s starting to lose his appetite, which is always tough. What do you do when your dog doesn’t want to eat? It’s something a lot of pet owners face, and Ben’s in the thick of it. On a lighter note, he’s been living in a world of Clue. Playing the board game, rewatching Clue: The Movie, and even checking out Cal Poly’s recent stage production where the ending changes each night depending on which solution the cast performs. (Yes, that’s as fun as it sounds)—here’s a behind-the-scenes look
Steven has been getting some gaming in. He had a Shatterpoint rematch with Christina’s husband—this time Steven lost, but it was extremely close. He also got to dive into This Is Not A Test, a post-apocalyptic skirmish game from Worlds End Publishing.
Future or Now Devon started watching Dark on Netflix. It’s a time travel show, and while the subtitles/dubs can get a little weird, the slow-burn mystery is “pretty good.” Each character has a younger/older actor because of the show’s 33-year cycle, and by Season 3 it’s seriously complex. But the real question: is it a slow burn, or is it just a slog? Devon says it’s not hard to follow, but your memory has to do some heavy lifting.
Devon and Steven circled back to Alien Earth. Their verdict: just alright. Some weird editing choices, decent acting, solid effects. The first episode had promise, but the second one dragged. Jury’s still out.
Ben came in with a much happier update: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is back with “The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail.” Yes, Spock had a Sehlat—a giant bear-cat pet—and the episode absolutely nailed it. Even better, Star Trek finally won another Hugo Award for the first time since The Next Generation’s finale. (Lower Decks took home two Hugos!) Here’s the news
And because Ben can’t help himself, he also reminded us that Ryan North (yes, Dinosaur Comics Ryan North) had a hand in B to the F.
Book Club This week we read “2 B R 0 2 B” by Kurt Vonnegut. It’s a short satirical story set in a future where humanity has solved aging and disease—but keeps population at a strict 40 million. The catch? For every new baby, someone has to voluntarily die. Vonnegut being Vonnegut, it’s absurd, bleak, and a little too close to home. You can read it free on Project Gutenberg or even watch a short film adaptation
Next week we’ll be reading “When It Changed” by Joanna Russ. It’s the Nebula Award-winning 1972 short story about a colony called Whileaway where all the men died off 30 generations ago. When a ship of men finally arrives, they announce their intentions to “restore balance”—but the women of Whileaway have no interest in being “fixed.” It’s sharp, powerful, and still incredibly relevant. You can read it here or check out this reading on YouTube.
Real Life Ben’s having a bit of an “old man yells at cloud” week. Everything is changing, young people adapt, old people stretch (sometimes), and Orion—our good doggo—is in late-stage kidney failure. Can the universe just… not for five minutes?
Steven is counting the days until school starts again. When does he get his elusive “me time”?
Devon? Out in the yard, living the Yard Work Man life, which means he’s off the show this week.
The Domingues household is fully embracing lazy summer mode.
Ben’s been watching K-Pop Demon Hunters—thanks to field-adjacent reporter Matt. It’s PG, but is it okay for kids who are spooky-sensitive? Think “My Little Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Speaking of Buffy—she’s coming back, baby. The new Slayer? She was in Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. Ben wonders: how old was she when they filmed this? Because slayers start at 18, right? Just because it dropped this year doesn’t mean it wasn’t filmed in the Before Times™.
Steven’s deep in Star Wars: ShatterPoint. Played Christina’s husband again—this is a game about objectives, not just smashing plastic. Rematch today at 3pm.
Future or Now Ben: Eh? Oh Well! – AOL is officially shutting down dial-up on September 30, 2025, after 34 years. Yes, apparently it was still alive. Email will continue, so Grandpa’s chain forwards are safe.
Devon: Not here. So sad.
Steven: Yum or Yuck? – New research points out that ultraprocessed foods are bad (shocker) and are tied to chronic health issues, especially in lower-income groups. Experts want clearer guidelines and systemic change.
Book Club Next Week: 2 B R 0 2 B by Kurt Vonnegut – A short satirical look at population control in a future where disease and aging are gone, and the moral dilemmas of a society with strict population caps. Read here or watch here.
This Week: Transience by Arthur C. Clarke – A masterclass in telling hundreds of thousands of years of history in just a few pages, all set on a single beach at the edge of a forest.
Also: Foundation season 3, Wondla season 2, and how Star Trek: Strange New Worlds keeps poking the continuity bear.
Real Life
Devon Gone again, off doing what families do. Probably eating responsibly and not playing Magic with middle schoolers. We’ll get a full download when he returns from the wilds of familial bonding.
Steven Steven melted in Palm Springs last weekend. Like, cartoon puddle of clothes and glasses melted. It hit 112°F, and not in the fun "desert dry heat" way—it was more like a hairdryer set to regret. But he survived the heat and a surprise 65th birthday party for his mother-in-law. (Note: surprise party for a 65-year-old in 112-degree weather? Bold.)
To escape the heat and socializing, Steven brought along Timeline by Michael Crichton, tore through the whole thing, and now he won’t stop recommending it. According to him, it’s “a pleasant, rollicking adventure of death and destruction in the Middle Ages.” Classic beach read, if your beach has trebuchets.
Ben Ben relived his childhood glory this week by annihilating two 12-year-olds at Magic: The Gathering. Old deck, newer rules, zero mercy. He’s still basking in the smug warmth of that victory and considering building a commemorative statue of himself out of old booster packs.
In nerdier news, Ben continues to experiment with Bazzite OS, a Linux distro that somehow convinced Forza Horizon 5 to run smoothly. He also tried out Wheel World, a cell-shaded, bike-themed Zelda-like that nobody asked for, but he’s glad it exists.
Streaming from PC to handheld? He recommends:
- Install Sunshine on your PC
- Install Moonlight on your handheld device
- Plug in with Ethernet if you can
- Pray to the latency gods
It’s working so far. Maybe this is the future. Maybe this is now.
Future or Now
Ben brought in a fascinating bit of anti-AI-fakery this week. Researchers at Cornell have developed a way to embed invisible “codes” into light, which act as hidden watermarks in videos. Basically: lighting at press conferences, buildings, or even Zoom calls could carry encrypted signals that make it easy to verify video authenticity later.
It’s subtle, elegant, and extremely cyberpunk. The best part? You won’t notice the difference. But your editing software will. Check it out: 🔗 Cornell’s light watermarking research
Steven countered with some good ol’ fashioned outer space optimism. NASA’s Europa Clipper recently flew past Mars and successfully tested its radar system (REASON)—which can detect structures beneath planetary surfaces. On Earth, we use radar to find oil. On Europa, we might use it to find oceans... or something hiding in them.
More here: 🔗 NASA’s radar success en route to Europa
Book Club
This Week: We read All Summer in a Day by Ray Bradbury. If you want to feel joy, sorrow, cruelty, and loss in a tight 3-page gut punch, this one's for you. It’s a story about kids, Venus, and the cruelty of the sun—or lack thereof. Also, the 1982 educational film adaptation is still seared into our brains.
📖 Read the story 📺 Watch the adaptation 📚 Anthology source
Next Week: Transience by Arthur C. Clarke. We’re diving into one of his lesser-known works about change, memory, and humanity’s inevitable drift. Clarke has a way of making even the quietest stories feel cosmic.
📖 Read Transience 📚 Anthology source
If your air conditioner broke, if you crushed children in a card game, or if you accidentally invented a futuristic video authentication system this week—welcome. You’re one of us now.
See you next time. Stay weird. Stay cool. –The Team
Real Life
Ben spent the week playing nurse, but at least it was a summer cold—infinitely easier than juggling tissues and PTO requests during the school year. The only upside to a sick kid when the sun’s out? More cartoons, fewer emails. Hearing Ben wiping noses and handing out popsicles, Steven got nostalgic about Scrubs. Remember Scrubs? Wholesome chaos. Heartfelt weirdness. Probably due for a chaotic Gen Z reboot starring TikTok doctors and JD’s ghost AI.
Devon was out of town. No details, just gone. Like a Vulcan on shore leave or a cowboy riding off into a logical sunset. We assume he’s fine. Or at least reading a very dense novel.
Steven went full social butterfly with a jam-packed weekend featuring a wedding and a birthday party. Somehow in between the formal wear and paper plates, he managed to catch Fantastic Four: First Steps. And? He says it’s the best Fantastic Four movie he’s ever seen. Not necessarily the best Marvel movie, but undeniably its own thing: scientists-turned-superheroes faced with a moral conundrum, wrapped in bright tones and a vibe that says hope isn't dead, it's just been on vacation. Earth 828 (a sweet nod to Jack Kirby’s birthday) plays host to a story that takes a deliberate break from the usual “everything is pain” comic fare.
Also, there’s now a universe where Matt Shakman didn’t make Fantastic Four, but instead gifted us a cheerful, boldly optimistic fourth Kelvin Star Trek movie. It lives only in our dreams and this deeply bittersweet TrekMovie article. Sigh.
Future or Now
Ben, our resident Trekspert, has bucketload of Star Trek news from San Diego Comic-Con:
- Starfleet Academy got a first trailer, and introduced us to the U.S.S. Athena.
- George Takei and Tim Russ are teaming up in the Khan audio series, where we’ll get to hear Sulu and Tuvok in action. (We assume Tim Russ will sigh at Takei at least once.)
- Strange New Worlds Season 4 teased a bold new puppet frontier? Yep. Puppets.
And then there’s the Gwarm. What is a Gwarm, you ask? It’s a Star Wars thing, and before you know it, Ben and Steven are back in the Star Wars vs. Star Trek sandbox, flinging references like action figures. (We don’t stop them. It’s too entertaining.)
Meanwhile, Steven was also reading science headlines between existential sighs. The latest? Allegro-FM just pushed material science forward by enabling simulations 1,000 times larger than previous ones. That’s like going from Tinker Toys to a Dyson Sphere. Or from The Pedestrian to a full Black Mirror season. Link
Book Club
This week, we read The Pedestrian by Ray Bradbury. It’s eerie how much this story hits in 2025. A man simply walking at night in Los Angeles gets stopped by an automated police car because being outside is just too suspicious. It’s based on Bradbury’s real address, and it feels uncomfortably like reality. Mausoleum houses, ghostly TV glow, no sidewalks—just suburban stillness and surveillance. If All Summer in a Day is melancholy, this one’s… mournful.
Next week we’re sticking with Bradbury and reading All Summer in a Day. Rain, Venus, longing, and memory. If The Pedestrian feels like now, All Summer feels like childhood—brief, beautiful, and barely remembered.
You can read it here or watch this version that captures the heartbreak with just the right number of slow pans and sad violins.
That’s it for this week. Whether you’re dodging summer colds, traveling through alternate Marvels, or wondering if that sidewalk outside is still walkable, we’ll be here—talking Trek, reading Bradbury, and keeping the lights on.
Let us know what you thought of Fantastic Four: First Steps. And if you’ve ever been detained by a futuristic car for taking a stroll, uh… blink twice?
Real Life Ben showed up with a box of magic and a handful of links, and we spiraled from there.
We started off with Piecepack, the infinitely expandable system of tile-based board games. If you haven’t seen it, The Infinite Board Game is a great intro — it comes with a full Piecepack set and over 50 games: 👉 The Infinite Board Game
Two standouts we tried:
- Whirlpool Pond (Tube Wars) — hilariously chaotic and surprisingly strategic. Steven said it reminded him of playing little games at a picnic table on camping trips. 🎯 Whirlpool Pond
- Moto-X — a racing game with dexterity and movement rules that feel like they’re half-imagined and half-remembered, which is kind of perfect. 🏍️ Moto-X
Also, apparently 9-ball billiards now counts as a dexterity game when you’re a parent trying to entertain your kid for 20 minutes.
Then we switched gears into silly, cooperative (ish), multiplayer chaos on PC:
- Boomerang Fu – you're food. You throw boomerangs. You die. You laugh. boomerangfu.com
- Regular Human Basketball – pure absurdity, controlling giant robots one switch at a time. Regular Human Basketball
- Heave Ho – teamwork, trust, betrayal, and flailing limbs. heavehogame.com
We also checked out the very weird, very poetic, and very compelling little book Adieu Plane Snake: ✈️ Adieu Plane Snake on Amazon
Then it was time for ruffled shirts and tankards: The Central Coast Renaissance Faire is back! ccrenfaire.com
We are under strict orders not to talk about Greg, which means we definitely spent time discussing:
- Greg’s guild: The Free Men of the Brass Ring
- The benefits of being in a guild (tents, snacks, shade, and — let's be honest — drinks)
- Greg’s infamous “gutpuncher” tale, which should be written down for legal reasons
- How to put together your own costume (hint: check this guide)
Steven’s costume is about 80% “rogue” and 20% “man lost in an upholstery store.” It works.
And finally, we played two rounds of Arcs — a stunning galactic strategy game from Leder Games: 🌌 Arcs
- Ben crushed the first game with pure focused ambition
- Devon quietly outmaneuvered us in the second game
- Steven tried a blitzkrieg strategy and was immediately and thoroughly punished
Future or Now Quiet week on the horizon-gazing front. No robot uprisings or biotech breakthroughs... yet.
Book Club This Week: There Will Come Soft Rains by Ray Bradbury The house that keeps going after the people are gone. One of Bradbury’s best — eerie, poetic, and haunting.
- Read it here (PDF)
- Or here (text)
- Watch this reading
Next Week: The Pedestrian by Ray Bradbury Another quiet apocalypse — a world where going for a walk makes you suspicious.
- Read it (PDF)
- Listen to a narrated version
Real Life
This week, Steven finally found a superhero movie that didn’t make him want to throw his popcorn at the screen. Superman (2025) has arrived, and according to him, it’s the best take we’ve had on the character in years. No origin story nonsense, just straight into Supes doing good and being good. James Gunn gets it—Superman is an immigrant, a boy scout, and a damn firefighter (not a cop). The moral core is there, the cape looks good, and apparently, if you hate it, it’s because it’s “woke”? Whatever. Steven liked it. You probably will too.
Meanwhile, Devon has been dodging storms, not floods. He lives far from the Texas chaos but has had his fair share of wet weekends. That hasn’t stopped him from grinding away at backyard renovations. Fake grass is coming soon. In the process, he’s tearing out ivy and ground brush—bad news for copperhead snakes, which are venomous, and good news for anyone walking around barefoot.
Speaking of venom: Ben brings us the delightful fact that some birds are venomous. No, really. There are birds that store toxins from insects and plants and use them to defend themselves. The pitohui says hi. Nature is weird. More bird venom facts here.
Devon also dove into evolution this week, thanks to a Hank Green video about the great leap from water to land. Turns out the hardest problem evolution ever solved might just be how to turn gilled swimmers into four-limbed land mammals. Spoiler alert: it involves lungs, fins, and a lot of time. Watch the video here.
Ben, when not thinking about venomous birds, asked an important question: What do people do for fun in Palmdale? The answer, apparently, is “hang out near electrical poles.” He also recommends the board game The Red Dragon Inn for those nights when you’re too tired to fight dragons and just want to drink with them instead. Game info here.
Future or Now
Only Steven showed up for this segment, and he brought ancient lion maulings.
A new article from ScienceDaily describes a skeleton found in a Roman cemetery in York—with bite marks matching a lion’s jaw. It’s our first archaeological evidence of gladiator-style combat between a human and a lion, which is equal parts horrifying and fascinating. Steven points out that if curses were real, this would be prime material—digging up gladiator graves seems like an express ticket to ghost lion attacks.
Book Club
This week, we read The Last Question by Isaac Asimov, a story about entropy, immortality, the heat death of the universe, and one computer’s ongoing existential crisis. Devon raises a solid point: the story’s final punch line hits different if you grew up with the Judeo-Christian idea of divine creation. If not? It still works, but maybe not quite the same way. You could easily sub in other creation myths—or just throw in some Terminators and call it a sci-fi remix. Ben had Siri read him the story aloud via Mobile Safari and recommends the experience. Read it here or watch this animated version.
Next week: There Will Come Soft Rains by Ray Bradbury, a classic tale of loneliness, technology, and automatic breakfast machines still flipping eggs long after humanity is gone. You can read the story here or listen to a reading.
Oh, and if you missed it, Captain Kirk is coming back—sort of. He’s being resurrected for Star Trek: The Last Starship, a new comic set in the far future. We have thoughts. Mostly confused ones.
Real Life Ben took a family trip down to San Diego just in time for the other fireworks night—turns out, there are often more fireworks on the 3rd of July than the 4th. Devon also caught a local 3rd-of-July fireworks show, which has started to feel like the real deal instead of just a warm-up. Ben: “More fireworks on the 3rd than the 4th, easily.” The trend continues.
While Ben and Devon were oohing and aahing at sky explosions, Steven stayed home and got some solid mini painting in while the family was off in LA. No notes, just vibes. He and Ben also snuck in a round of Walkabout Minigolf on the Raptor Cliffs course—it's like someone built a coastal campground-theme park hybrid, then casually added actual dinosaurs. Possibly the greatest putt-putt theme of all time.
Meanwhile, Ben’s been hooked on Watch Duty, an incredibly useful app that tracks wildfires and public safety alerts—especially important during peak summer heat. And no, Devon is nowhere near the Texas flooding that made national headlines on the 4th. Tragic and preventable, if we hadn’t gutted infrastructure funding and climate prep years ago.
Steven got a chance to run Daggerheart, the new RPG system by Critical Role (yes, spelled right this time). The system leans into storytelling with hope and fear dice—2d12 that keep every roll interesting. He nearly lost a copy to a chaotic-good Barnes & Noble employee, but ultimately triumphed.
Future or Now Devon’s existential pick this week? A study suggesting that the universe might start collapsing... in only 7 billion years. Here’s the article. The researchers—drawing on data from the Dark Energy Survey and the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument—predict we could be headed for a Big Crunch by year 33.3 billion. Honestly, we barely understand time and space now. Let’s not even get into how to measure it.
Steven brought the yeast: scientists have bioengineered yeast to glow and produce billions of peptide-based drugs. It’s green tech, it's fast, it’s like if a lava lamp could cure cancer. Glowing drug factories made of yeast. We love science when it gets weird and useful.
Ben’s deep in the sleep zone again—this time biohacking naps. Apple Watches, dream journals, and the fact that napping might make you literally see the world differently. Ben’s fully ready to enter his lucid dream coding era.
Book Club Next week’s pick is Isaac Asimov’s classic: The Last Question. You can also watch it here if you prefer the audio-visual route. It’s short, sharp, and cosmic in scale—perfect for a group read before the universe crunches itself into a cosmic raisin.
This week, we tackled movies and memories. A great Patreon comment from Renee about the new Pixar-ish flick Elio:
"My kids liked Elio, it just kept reminding me of Flight of the Navigator. Not exactly, and I haven’t seen it in a long time, but enough that I was like hmm... this kind of reminds me of something. Also, in the beginning, Elio stumbles into a museum place and there’s a speaker talking about Voyager and whatnot. I turned to my husband and was like, wait—is that Kate Mulgrew? And he said, 'I have no idea who that is.' Sigh, being married to a non-nerd. But yea, they had Capt. Janeway voice a section about the NASA Voyager program." Chef’s kiss.
Quick movie reviews:
- Elio (Steven): ★★★¾ — good sci-fi intro for younger audiences.
- Flight of the Navigator (Devon): Still fun, though we forgot it has a 12-year time jump.
- How to Train Your Dragon (Ben & Devon): Ben called it a “competently done action movie,” Devon praised the depth and pacing—especially that final battle.
- Independence Day (Ben): It’s still a banger. Devon’s stunned Steven hasn’t watched it more.
- Jurassic World: Rebirth (Steven): Don't. Just... don’t. Not even for hate-watching.
And lastly: an original Technicolor print of Star Wars—yes, pre-Lucas tinkering—was recently screened in the UK. It’s official: Han shot first. If you're curious, the best fan restorations are the Despecialized Edition and 4K77, sourced from original 35mm prints. The Force is real, and so is the grainy, unedited magic.
Let us know if you watched fireworks on the 3rd, if you’ve played Daggerheart, or if you're Team Nap or Team Yeast in the great future wars. And if you’re watching Elio, listen closely—you might just hear Janeway.
Real Life
Ben Ben’s been quietly communing with the universe—and possibly with time travelers—through a book of accidental poetry called Adieu, Plane Snake. These are poems born from Wordle guesses, wrangled into a strangely beautiful collection. The result feels like overhearing wisdom whispered from another dimension... or from your roommate’s weird dreams. Ben recommends reading it with an open mind and maybe a cup of tea. Or a flux capacitor.
Devon Devon had to Dad some emails this week—calmly but firmly correcting errors from people who apparently do not know how email works. He also saw Elio, Pixar’s newest mid-tier offering. While it didn’t break any new ground for him, the cloning subplot raised a few existential eyebrows, and might be intense for younger kids. It’s fine. Just... Pixar-fine.
Steven Steven survived another summer birthday party. For those keeping score at home, that’s a fairy-themed, girls-only pizza party in the park, followed by public swim chaos. Summer birthdays always mean competing with vacation season, but the magic of fairy dust and chlorine carried the day.
He also dove into The Alters on Gamepass—a sci-fi survival game where the only way to make it through is to clone alternate versions of yourself. Each “Alter” has its own personality and baggage, forcing the player to confront wildly different versions of who they could’ve been. Existential dread with excellent lighting and resource management.
Future or Now
Ben There’s never enough Becky Chambers. Ben wrapped up The Galaxy, and the Ground Within, the final book in the Wayfarers series. It’s tender, slow, and full of aliens being thoughtful toward each other. No war, no chosen one. Just beings trying to communicate and grow. Want to nerd out even more? Check out the Wayfarers wiki’s list of species and marvel at Chambers’ world-building, where no one species gets to be “the default.”
Steven Meanwhile, Steven’s still trippin’—on science. A new study published in June strengthens the case that humans were in North America at least 23,000 years ago. How? Fossilized footprints in ancient lakebeds at White Sands, New Mexico. Radiocarbon-dated mud backs up earlier studies, making this the third independent line of evidence. It’s a big deal—and a good reminder that science is often slow, muddy, and surprising.
Devon This week, Devon is Future-or-Now neutral.
Book Club
We’re taking next week off—so catch up on chapters if you're behind, or just sit outside and let your brain breathe. It deserves it.
This week we read Chapters 7 (“The Wild”) and 8 (“The Summer Bear”) of A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. (Audible listeners, that’s Chapters 9 and 10.)
We’re deep in tea monk territory now. Dex continues their journey into the unknown and meets challenges that aren’t dragons or monsters, but doubts and unspoken expectations. It’s a gentle reminder that even in utopia, people still struggle with meaning and self-worth. It’s deeply human—even when the characters aren’t.
See You on Patreon
If you’re already supporting us there—thank you. We’ve got bonus episodes, Discord chats, and weird side quests waiting. This week we’re sharing a sneak peek at our next theme episode and some alternate podcast titles we almost used.
If you're not on board yet, come say hi. It’s like a summer birthday party, but with less sunburn and more sci-fi.
Real Life This week, real life got weird, itchy, nostalgic, and just slightly chaotic.
Ben celebrated a birthday by dragging his family through a hike in tick-infested grass. Friendly reminder: Don’t go into the long grass. We’ve seen Jurassic Park, we know how this ends.
Devon may or may not be living in Foreverware straight out of Eerie, Indiana. Start checking those Tupperware lids, folks.
Steven escaped a house overrun with cousins the only way he knows how: board game store therapy.
Here’s what we’re playing:
- Burnout Paradise Remastered is only $5 on Steam right now and it still rules. Devon showed us how to pull off some in-game stunts. Sadly, not applicable to real life.
- Steven got cozy with Harmonies, a gorgeous little nature-builder where you balance habitats and critters.
- Ben brought in Infinite Board Game (Piecepack)—a modular system that spawned classics like Worm Derby and 9 Ball.
- Steven also shouted out Tak (playable with Piecepack!) and unboxed his shiny new copy of Slugblaster.
Future or Now We talk a lot about the future, but this week, the past clawed its way back into the conversation.
Ben shared a killer quote from Ray Bradbury:
“I’m warning you now, so you don’t have to pay a psychiatrist 20 years from now…”
It came from a great piece of writing advice for screenwriters, poets, novelists—anyone with a keyboard. TLDR: read other stuff, write other stuff. Don’t get boxed in. Read the whole post here.
Devon brought space horror to the table: a NASA satellite that’s been dead for 57 years just pinged Earth out of nowhere. Read more
Steven dove into the fungal unknown: scientists have turned Aspergillus flavus—yes, the tomb fungus found in places like King Tut’s burial site—into a potential treatment for leukemia. Cursed no more. Science article here
Book Club We’re still steeped in the gentle robot comfort of Becky Chambers’ A Psalm for the Wild-Built. This week, we covered:
- Audible Chapters 6–8
-
Book Chapters 4–6:
- An Object, and an Animal
- Remnants
- Grass Hen with Wilted Greens and Caramelized Onion (legit sounds delicious)
Next week:
- Book Chapters 7 & 8 (The Wild, The Summer Bear)
- Audible Chapters 9–10
Bonus recommendation: Devon says you should read Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, if you want philosophy, talking apes, and big “what’s-wrong-with-the-world” energy.
Real Life
Ben had a pretty heartfelt Father’s Day. The kind that makes you wonder what to do with all those sentimental cards—save them? Repurpose them? Wallpaper a studio? He’s thinking bigger: moleskin notebooks and sketchbooks as repositories for meaningful letters, doodles, and moments. He also caught You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown at SLOREP, which delivered all the nostalgia and Peanuts poignancy one could hope for.
Devon saw Annie live and reports back that yes, the sun did come out. Meanwhile, he was also boots-on-the-ground at the No Kings march in Tyler, TX, where roughly 1,000 freedom fans turned out to peacefully protest monarchy (fictional or otherwise).
Steven joined a parallel No Kings march in Atascadero and followed it up with some Father’s Day chaos and a Mutant Crawl Classics game (ask him about severing arms for cybernetics). Also: he watched Predator: Killer of Killers on Hulu and is delighted to report that the 800 A.D. Vikings segment delivers exactly what the title promises—Vikings versus Predator. It’s glorious.
Future or Now
Ben warns us all: Motörhead tried to tell you, but you didn’t listen. At Download Festival, moshing got so intense that smartwatches started auto-dialing emergency services. Authorities had to step in and tell everyone to dial down the wearable chaos. We now live in a world where jumping to Ace of Spades might trigger a 999 call. Rock responsibly.
Steven, meanwhile, read a fascinating article on how old smartphones—millions of which end up in landfills—can be repurposed into micro data centers for public services. From bus tracking to marine research, your outdated Galaxy S6 may be the next scientific hero. As Moore’s Law slows, we ask: what if we used what we already have?
Devon abstained this week. (Or did he transcend time itself? TBD.)
Book Club: A Psalm for the Wild-Built
This week we dug into chapters 2 and 3: The Best Tea Monk in Panga and Splendid Speckled Mosscap.
The robot has arrived—and while it’s delightful, the kids in the book might be in spiritual peril. We unpack the loneliness and disconnection the humans seem to feel, and how it echoes the Jedi’s lack of attachments in Star Wars. There’s also a curious debate about genre: is this science fiction or fantasy? When your tech includes nearly-immortal pocket computers and self-aware robots emerging from the woods, the lines get blurry.
Next week: chapters 4–6 (Audible 6–8), including “An Object, and an Animal,” “Remnants,” and a dinner scene featuring grass hen and caramelized onions. If you're not hungry by the end of it, you're stronger than us.
This week, Steven, Ben, and Devon record remotely to avoid the usual chaos (rat wrestling included). From blacksmithing birthday gifts to questioning the ethics of breakfast, it's a classic episode full of heart, guilt, and sci-fi coziness. Real Life
Devon’s work trip was mostly pointless, thanks to the other party being wildly unprepared. Meanwhile, Steven got new windows installed and watched Captain America: Brave New World in the middle of it all — his verdict: “fine,” which seems to be Marvel’s current default. He and Ben discuss Harrison Ford stepping in as Thunderbolt Ross, the return of The Leader and Red Hulk, and whether Marvel’s third-act fight addiction is dragging it all down. On the home front, Steven had an “intense Thursday” filled with gymnastics class, BBQs, and blacksmithing five custom hooks for his mom’s birthday. Ben went to the beach and made a solid case for awe — like ocean waves — as a cure for modern burnout. Oh, and Yellowcard is releasing a new album with Travis Barker on drums. Yes, really.
Future or Now
Devon read Animal Liberation Now and now feels like a hypocrite for still eating meat. The book’s argument: if animals can suffer, they deserve rights. Cue a deep dive into factory farming, animal testing, calorie efficiency, and whether “ethical meat” should be a rare luxury rather than a daily default. They talk about cows, chickens, and baby monkeys; the morality of milk and butter; and why our modern food system depends on people looking the other way. Steven questions how to get enough protein on a vegan diet, and Devon admits it’s complicated — especially for anyone without time, money, or access. If nothing else, they agree that learning to treat animals better might teach us how to treat each other better, too.
Book Club: A Psalm for the Wild-Built
The gang begins Becky Chambers’s cozy sci-fi novella, where humans and robots live separately but peacefully. Dex, a non-binary monk, ditches the city to become a tea monk — traveling the countryside offering comfort in the form of warm drinks and conversation. Their first attempt fails, so they go all in: building a hydroponic tea garden and trying again. The story is full of sustainability, small joys, and gentle spirituality. The hosts love the “cozy punk” vibe and Ben’s especially struck by the god of small comforts’ advice: find the strength to do both. Next chapter brings a two-year time jump — and (hopefully) a robot.
Thanks for listening and supporting the show — and for sticking with us through windows, waffles, and weird philosophical spirals.
– S, B & D
Real Life
Things kicked off with stories from Friday night’s bonfire, where the nature of reality was hotly debated between toasted marshmallows. That conversation somehow spiraled into a serious (and slightly absurd) discussion about Noodles and Soba—Ben’s son’s pet rats—and the potential benefits of getting female rats fixed. Apparently, doing so can add about a year to their lifespan by preventing reproductive cancers, but the surgery’s cost is a tough sell when you’re in what Ben called “debt paydown mode.” Devon floated the idea of unscrupulous “rat hustlers” faking the procedure, which—frankly—feels like a dark Netflix documentary waiting to happen.
From there, it was a short hop to a conversation about whether rats lay eggs (they don’t), Jurassic Park’s “life finds a way,” and then straight into tearing apart Gremlins logic. What even is “midnight,” anyway? Local time? Greenwich Mean? Galactic zenith? And why are we trusting a kid instead of the old shopkeeper? Gremlins may now officially live in the “science fantasy/biological fiction” corner of the canon.
Saturday brought gaming with their friend Greg. They played Relic Blade, where Devon managed to escort a yak to safety despite Steven’s attempts at sabotage. Greg used a clever trick involving a D20 and gravity to determine movement direction, which frankly should be in the rulebook. They also played Marvel Dice Throne, where Devon’s Wolverine got obliterated almost immediately thanks to poor positioning and cruel dice. Then came Living Well, a minimalist dice game with retro 70s-style art and some satisfying ability upgrades. Plans to play Arcs got shelved after a medical emergency—Nicole was hit hard by the heat and ended up needing CPR at the hospital (despite having a pulse and breathing, which… yeah, it was a weird night). She's recovering now.
Future or Now
TV-wise, the gang wrapped up Season 4 of Love, Death & Robots—with highlights including a talking cat, an occult bomber mission, and gang warfare against colossal babies. Over on Amazon Prime, they watched the Secret Level take on Pac-Man, which was surprisingly grim and humanoid-heavy. Ben and his son also dove into Scott Pilgrim territory, rewatching the movie and starting Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, which quickly turns into a clever alternate universe story that’s fun, stylish, and charming enough to inspire a trip through the graphic novels. Ben gave a thumbs-up to the newest season of Black Mirror, calling one episode a bit conceptually broken but championing another as a "new Callister."
Book Club
In Book Club, the crew dug into “Liking What You See: A Documentary” by Ted Chiang, from Stories of Your Life and Others. Framed as a mockumentary, the story centers on Caliagnosia—a reversible condition that disables facial beauty perception. The ethical and social ramifications are explored through interviews and propaganda, making the story feel eerily real. It raises questions about freedom, superficiality, advertising, and the influence of unseen tech on our minds. Tamara’s personal journey through switching Cali off and on again added a human element to the philosophical questions. Everyone agreed: it was a banger of a story.
Next up for Book Club: the first three chapters of A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. Get reading!
Real Life Roundup
Let’s address the elephant not in the room: Devon is dead. Well, not dead-dead. Just birthday-visit-family-IRL-dead. We pour one out for our absent co-host, and prepare for his resurrection next week.
Meanwhile, Steven has been watching robots get wild. The Wild Robot, that is. The new animated flick has dropped (IMDB link), and Steven's verdict is in: heartwarming vibes, metal clanking emotions, and just enough kid-friendly existentialism to make you question whether your Roomba has feelings.
Also, did you know Black Adam shows up in DC League of Super Pets? Steven does. And he’s not okay about it.
Then came Doom. And then came… more Doom. One minute Steven’s a casual fan, next he’s elbows-deep in lore breakdowns and watching two-hour YouTube essays on timeline chaos. Marines killing demons across dimensions? Say less. Just hand him the BFG and back away slowly.
Oh—and he’s forging now. He didn’t elaborate. Just forging. Like, swords? Friendships? The future? Who knows. Steven contains multitudes.
Ben, on the other hand, has been diving into his subconscious with dream journaling. The result? Vivid, borderline cinematic dreamscapes. Not terrifying at all.
He’s also been getting deep with the Waking Up app, based on the book by Sam Harris. (Here’s the app link). Ben reports that it’s good for mindfulness, bad for avoiding personal epiphanies. Use at your own risk.
Future or Now
Ben introduces us to Space to Bark, a bizarre, short dungeon crawler where you play as a first-person Dogman navigating an underground labyrinth. Created by ComputerJames, it features:
- Bark-based controls ([SPACE] to BARK!)
- Wobbly hand-drawn dog sprites
- Combat! Puzzles! Dogmen lore!
Dogman95 isn’t just a pup with a dream—he’s a legend in training, guided by the sacred Dogmaiden. This is the kind of weird internet treasure we live for. Hat tip to Web Curios for digging this one up.
Devon, once again, is astral projecting or off the grid. No one really knows.
Steven had… nothing. Just an existential stare.
Book Club (but not really)
This week’s book club has been canceled due to lack of effort. Blame Devon. Blame the Void. Blame our over-scheduled lives. Either way, we didn’t read anything this week, and we’re not sorry.
Next week, however, we’re diving into “Liking What You See: A Documentary” from Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang. It’s a short story about beauty, perception, and what happens when you turn off the part of your brain that notices appearances. It's Chiang, so expect deep thoughts and possible feelings.
That’s it from us! Come back next week for more co-host resurrection, dream logic, robotic feelings, and maybe even a book.
If you like what we do, bark into the void or support us on Patreon. Your choice.
Real Life
Devon [Redacted silence.] Possibly building up for a season finale of his own. Or meditating on NASA budget cuts. Either way—stoic.
Steven We wrapped Andor, and while it stuck the landing, there’s still one huge question: Where are Hera, Chopper, and the Ghost crew?! Justice for space moms and droid chaos: #ReleaseAndorTheRebelsCut Also, Steven took us on a wild detour into Monopoly studies with college students—spoiler alert: inherited wealth makes people awful. Shocking, we know.
Ben Fresh from science camp and rocking a healthy dose of jet lag, Ben managed to be late to his own poetry reading. But hey—archery, mountain biking, and night hikes do things to a man. Possibly became a druid out there.
Future or Now
Steven “Hand hand fingers thumb…” No, we didn’t start a toddler book club—Steven shared research that suggests chimpanzees drum with distinct rhythmic patterns depending on their subspecies. Which means your drummer friend? Maybe not that unique. The longest drum solo in history begins now.
Devon NASA is facing a 53% cut to its science budget under the proposed presidential plan. That includes major slashes to earth and space science programs. Meanwhile, human spaceflight would get a commercial makeover. We quote Devon’s son: “Does Trump believe in God?” Also, we’re apparently heading back to the moon—just, you know, without a weather report.
Read about the cuts
Ben Ben took us on an emotional journey through the 2024 animated documentary Piece by Piece, which somehow manages to combine Lego stop-motion, Carl Sagan, and protest imagery into one transcendent experience. Trailer? Here. Carl Sagan clip? Also here. “Happy”? But make it devastating: This. More? Wikipedia’s got you.
Book Club
This week: The Evolution of Human Science by Ted Chiang What if human research became too advanced for most people to understand? No characters, just ideas. It’s written like a news article, and it's fascinating. Humanity has split into Normies and Meta-Humans, the latter genetically optimized before birth to the point that they operate on an entirely different intellectual plane. They use “DNT” (Digital Neural Transfer) and leave the rest of us behind with our podcasts and spreadsheets. Thought-provoking stuff.
Included with Audible [if you’re listening along].
Next week: Liking What You See by Ted Chiang Yes, we’re doing another Chiang short, because why not dive deeper into techno-philosophical existential dread? (Roughly 1.5 hours—get reading!)
Want more? Join the Discord. Support us on Patreon to get early episodes, bonus content, playlists, and the unedited chaos. And if you’re listening on YouTube—hit that subscribe button. Or don’t. But then we’ll tell the Meta-Humans on you.
Real Life Devon went full medieval this week with a trip to a Renaissance Fair—this one featuring permanent structures that actually looked “authentic” instead of slapped together by ye olde hot glue. There were swinging rides, wooden horses, and some legit jousting. Unfortunately, the real fantasy was thinking the kids would have fun. Big downer energy.
Steven is gearing up for an Arizona trip but had to make a sudden detour into Best Buy territory after his TV gave up the ghost. On the plus side, Andor continues to be amazing and makes up for any consumer electronics woes. (It really is still that good.)
Ben has seen Labyrinth (have you?), and he's here for the dream logic and David Bowie’s entire vibe. Also thrown into the cinematic blender: The Island and Cliffhanger. We’re now seeking out more films where geological or man-made features are basically the co-stars. Let us know if you have one.
Oh, and Ben also saw the Slate all-electric pickup truck, which looked like something out of Black Mirror. Meanwhile, TVs just… work now? What a time to be alive.
Future or Now Time for some spicy Star Wars takes.
We got into it over which trilogy was better: the Prequels or the Sequels. Episode IX (The Rise of Skywalker) got roasted—Devon called it "the worst." Ben leaned sequel-side, arguing they’re better than the prequels overall. The breakdown went something like:
- Prequels: bad films, good plots
- Sequels: good films, bad plots
There were also complaints about Starkiller Base, which feels like someone said “What if Death Star, but more?”
But then there’s Andor, which everyone agrees is just pure excellence. So Star Wars can still be good when they let writers write.
Our rankings for maximum judgment:
- Devon’s list: The Phantom Menace, The Force Awakens, Rise of Skywalker, Attack of the Clones, The Last Jedi, Revenge of the Sith
- Ben’s list: Rise of Skywalker, The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith, The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi
Your move, Internet.
📚 Book Club Next Week: We’re diving into Ted Chiang’s “The Evolution of Human Science,” which you can find in Stories of Your Life and Others (also included with an Audible subscription, if you’re fancy like that).
This Week: We read Jorge Luis Borges’ strange and unsettling tale There Are More Things. It’s Borges doing Lovecraft, but with fewer tentacles and more existential dread.
We were all in until the end, where it kinda… fell off a cliff. Still worth the read for the vibes alone. Also relevant: this animated gif of a tesseract, because the story kinda goes there.
New episode drops each week. Subscribe, tell a friend, and go re-rank your Star Wars opinions. We’ll wait.
Real Life: Devon would like to make one thing clear: queso is fine. Queso is acceptable. Just… not on everything, okay? Some of us still want to taste the actual food under the goo. That said, he did just survive a kid’s pool party, so maybe he’s earned the right to eat whatever the hell he wants — even fake grass, which he claims is "for winners." We’re choosing not to dig into that statement.
Steven, meanwhile, embraced the full Force of May 4th with joy, lightsabers, and an animated binge of Tales of the Empire — now fully released and featuring everyone’s favorite dead-or-maybe-not-dead villainess Asaaj Ventress and the cowboy space bug bounty hunter Cad Bane. Is she still canonically dead? Who knows anymore. The rule is: if you didn't see the body dissolve, they can always come back.
Also, Steven’s forge is officially up and running. That’s right — he’s now a blacksmith. We’re still waiting to see if this is a long-term thing or just a midlife crisis in steel-toed boots.
Over in The Last of Us land, Season 2 Episode 4 dropped, and fans collectively screamed, cried, and probably tweeted GIFs because one of the game’s most beloved scenes finally made it to screen — and yes, they nailed it. In a good way. Not like a fungal-mutant-jaw-through-your-neck way.
Ben went to a roller derby bout in Irvine (report: chaotic and excellent), wandered the capitalist labyrinth that is Daiso, and wants to remind you it’s Teacher Appreciation Week. So tell a teacher they rock, preferably with coffee, snacks, or a handwritten note of pure gratitude.
Future or Now Ben brought us Writing Tools, a sleek, free, open-source app created by a high school student in Bangalore (hi, Jesai!) that gives Mac, Windows, and Linux users a system-wide writing boost via AI. It fixes grammar, summarizes content, and even helps you rewrite your angsty emails into something that won’t get you fired. Bonus points for working offline and being featured basically everywhere. Teachers, students, chaotic creatives — check it out on GitHub.
This also led us down the rabbit hole: Are LLMs bad? Short answer: not inherently. Long answer: come back next week for a full debate, complete with Devon’s skeptical eyebrows and Ben’s tech optimism.
Devon watched Mickey 17, and the verdict is… “eh?” He appreciated the weirdness but didn’t feel like the weird ever came together in a satisfying way. Unlike Parasite, which he still recommends, Mickey 17 left him shrugging with existential confusion, which is not his preferred flavor of sci-fi.
Steven hit us with some mouse science: researchers have engineered gut bacteria that can detoxify methylmercury in mice, even when those mice are on a diet of bluefin tuna. The mice — and their babies — showed fewer signs of mercury poisoning. This means your sushi habit may one day come with a side of helpful microbes. Until then, maybe cool it on the sashimi.
Book Club: This week, we read A Brief Dance to the Music of the Spheres by Michael Kurland (from The Best of Omni Science Fiction, 1983). It’s a sleek, sharp short story that offers a fresh take on the Fermi Paradox: if there’s intelligent life out there, why haven’t we seen it?
The story gives us a possible answer — one we won’t spoil here, except to say it involves jazz, physics, and a little cosmic humility. You can read it on Archive.org or listen to the adaptation here.
Next week: we’re diving into Jorge Luis Borges’ There Are More Things. Yes, it’s a Borges horror story. Yes, we’re terrified and delighted. Yes, Devon has thoughts.
Got thoughts on queso, metal mice, or fictional villains who refuse to stay dead? Hit us up. And thank a teacher. Seriously. They’ve seen some things.
Real Life Devon just got back from Barcelona, where his sister-in-law’s wedding was equal parts joyful and medically confusing (house-wide illness, mystery IV drip, etc.). Between family chaos and questioning the overwhelming religious vibes, he managed to sneak in a tour of tapas bars—including Bobby’s Free, a barbershop turned speakeasy where you open a safe to get a drink. Also on the agenda: the Sagrada Familia, which still looks like Gaudí teamed up with an alien architect. Take a virtual tour and judge for yourself.
Steven went full Jedi at Disney’s Star Wars Night on Batuu, adding more lightsabers to a collection that's now approaching General Grievous territory. He caught the live Storyteller Show (“shockingly emotional for a theme park thing”) and did some heavy-duty geeking out at the custom saber forge. Series two sabers are out now. Good luck, your wallet.
Ben’s been working on his nap game. He’s reading Take a Nap! Change Your Life by Sara Mednick (link), thanks to a recommendation from Cool Tools. Lucid dreaming, better brain function, and maybe—just maybe—a dream where he finally builds his own lightsaber.
Also: Devon didn't watch The Naboo Movie, which we’re still not convinced is real.
Future or Now Ben found a Reddit guide to rewiring your brain—more philosophy than prescription, but helpful as a reminder: break bad loops, reframe your thinking, stay mindful. Simple ideas, not always simple to do.
Devon brought the science bombshell: astronomers may have detected a biosignature outside our solar system. It’s not a “we found aliens” headline, but it’s the strongest hint yet that something biological might be out there. Researchers are cautious, but intrigued. So are we.
Steven recapped Andor season 2, episodes 1–3. The political tension is still top-tier, the pacing’s tighter, and the existential dread remains on-brand. Also, WondLa season 2 is out now (IMDb), if you need more sci-fi world-building in your queue.
Book Club No book this week—we’re recharging. But next time, we’re reading “A Brief Dance to the Music of the Spheres” by Michael Kurland from The Best of Omni Science Fiction #6. Read it here, and don’t skip the illustrations—they’re wild in the best way.
Back next week with cosmic dances, dream experiments, and at least one more lightsaber.
Hey, it’s a new week and your favorite trio is back—well, two-thirds of us, anyway. Devon is currently living his best life in Barcelona, probably sipping espresso in a narrow sunlit alley or arguing with someone about FC Barcelona tactics. Meanwhile, the rest of us have been busy with spring break chaos, Santa Cruz curiosities, and turning broken laptops into gaming slabs.
Real Life Stuff Steven hit up Santa Cruz for a classic California spring break trip. That meant a day at the boardwalk, a ride up the mountains on a steam engine to hunt Easter eggs with the family, and—yes—the infamous Mystery Spot. For the uninitiated, it’s California State Historical Landmark #1055 and basically a physics-defying tourist trap nestled in the redwoods. It’s $10 and you walk out wondering if your equilibrium is off or if you’ve just witnessed real magic. Verdict? Worth it. Especially if you enjoy a healthy mix of skepticism and whimsy.
Ben had the kind of spring break that only a tech tinkerer dreams of. He loaded Bazzite SteamOS onto his desktop (yes, it’s real, and yes, it’s cool: bazzite.gg). Then he cracked open a MacBook Pro with the dreaded FlexGate issue—1/10 on the repairability scale, even with help from ifixit.com—and turned it into a Steam-powered “SlabTop.” Also in Ben's world: a visit from Mom, and a daycare full of cute dogs and chicks (the feathered kind, relax).
We also detoured into The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 2. Let’s just say the show continues to spark great conversation—and some tension between game purists and show-only folks.
The Future Is Now Ben brought the indie darling GOTY (Game of the Year) Lushfoil Photography Sim to our attention—an atmospheric exploration game that’s more about vibes than objectives. Think beautiful desolation and digital zen.
He also shouted out Radio Garden—a global map where you can spin the world and listen to live radio from just about anywhere. It’s the chillest rabbit hole you’ll ever fall into.
And for anyone trying to make sense of the digital mess that is our current internet, he also found this guide to misinformation-fighting tools. Even though it’s aimed at journalists, it’s super handy for the rest of us trying to tell real news from ragebait.
Steven took us on a hyperspace jump to Star Wars Celebration updates. Highlights? The Mandalorian and Grogu movie, Andor Season 2 (yes, please), Ahsoka Season 2, Maul: Shadow Lord, a new Star Wars: Starfighter movie, and Star Wars Visions Volume 3. Basically, it’s a great time to be a galaxy-far-far-away fan.
Book Club We’re taking next week off from Book Club (don’t worry, we’ll still be recording). But this week we dove into William Gibson’s “Fragments of a Hologram Rose”—his first published story and a dense little piece of cyberpunk mood. It follows a man piecing together memories of his ex via a near-future tech called ASP (Apparent Sensory Perception). It’s sad, it’s moody, it’s very Gibson. The whole idea of fragmented memory and identity hits especially hard in a world where we're all just scrolling, recording, and replaying everything.
We’ll be back next week (with or without Devon depending on how good that Barcelona weather is). As always, hit us up with your thoughts, your favorite indie games, your weird spring break stories, or your take on who’s actually in the right: Joel or Ellie. See you then!
Real Life: This week’s episode kicks off with Devon missing in action, attending a wedding and recovering from, well… life. Also, he’s apparently deep into building off-brand LEGO, which raises some very important questions: How many pieces? How many regrets?
Meanwhile, Ben survived a 5.2 earthquake and checks in to let us know that everyone’s safe. He also shares a couple links to Desert Child, an indie hover-bike racer/RPG that mixes hip-hop, ramen, and pixel art vibes—and may or may not be rolling onto Xbox soon thanks to some juicy UI integration rumors.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/844050/Desert_Child/
https://isthereanydeal.com/game/desert-child/info/
https://www.theverge.com/news/633478/microsoft-xbox-steam-games-support-ui
Steven’s life update is more... fluffy. Literally. He’s in line to pick up baby chicks for the backyard flock (Black Sexlinked and Smokey Pearl, if you're curious), and discovers that mailing baby birds is a surprisingly common thing. Also, he’s deploying next-level parenting tricks by disguising fun surprises as errands. The dad game is strong.
Also: The Last of Us S2 premiere dropped and Steven gives it a glowing 10/10. We talk a bit about how the show mirrors the game—and why it’s working so well.
Ben also brings us something very important: The Naboo Movie. It's real. It’s glorious. It’s here: watch it now.
Future or Now: Ben drops some cosmic perspective with a planetary fact that blew our minds: All the planets in our solar system could line up between the Earth and the Moon. That includes Pluto, for those of you still rooting for the little guy.
Steven introduces us to Mad Mouse—no, not a Disney spinoff. This is about AI mapping mouse brains. A new model simulates how the mouse visual cortex responds to images. Basically, it’s science fiction getting closer to just… science. Read the study here.
Book Club: This week, we took a listen to the first episode of It’s Storytime with Wil Wheaton, featuring “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Love, Death” by Caroline M. Yoachim. It’s a short, beautiful, gut-punch of a story about love across time and space—a real Gordian knot of feels. Check it out on Lightspeed Magazine.
Next week we’ll be diving into “Fragments of a Hologram Rose” by William Gibson, part of his Burning Chrome collection. It’s a short one—just 15 minutes—and dripping in cyberpunk atmosphere.
And if you're wondering about the Star Trek side of our brains: yes, we saw the new Strange New Worlds trailer. Yes, it looks wild. Yes, we’re watching. Peep it here.
Real Life: This week’s episode has movie madness, creepers, princesses, and ducks with vendettas. Devon took a deep dive into the Minecraft Movie—yes, it’s real, and yes, it might haunt him forever. Steven watched Disney’s live-action Snow White and has thoughts... strong ones. Meanwhile, Ben got cartoon-punched in the face (in the best way) by The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (IMDb). Think: Bugs Bunny meets alien invasion.
Future or Now:
Solar Panels on Canals? Yes, Please: Ben brings us Project Nexus—the U.S.’s first solar panel canopy system over irrigation canals. The $20 million pilot is up and running in California’s Turlock Irrigation District and could be a game-changer. Benefits include reducing water evaporation, improving quality, and cutting down on canal maintenance. Also? Clean energy. Read more
TV Necromancy: Devon reports on shows coming back—some you missed, some you didn’t know you missed, and a few you assumed were never coming back. Television's not dead. It’s just rebooting.
ba-ba-ba-BA-baaaaaa: Steven delivers the science: a Western diet can mess you up in just two weeks. Inflammation, weakened immunity, and long-term disease processes all kick in fast. But the good news? Switching to a traditional African diet (think fiber, fermented foods, veggies) can start reversing the damage just as quickly. Check it out
“Book Club”:
This week we read Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson. A short story that drips with classic cyberpunk vibes, data couriers, and one incredibly dangerous dolphin. Devon didn’t totally connect with it, but Steven loved the gritty worldbuilding and its ties to Neuromancer. Ben was onboard for the full ride—hacker noir, neon grit, and all.
Next week: We’re tuning in to It’s Storytime with Wil Wheaton (link) and covering “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Love, Death” by Caroline M. Yoachim (read it here). Time travel and heartbreak? Sign us up.
Real Life: This week’s episode is packed with real-life chaos, sci-fi intrigue, and some good ol’ tabletop talk. Devon's 4-year-old had to audition for attending a school, and guess what? It's a little stressful! Audible is now offering free content to subscribers, kinda like The Great Courses. Steven brings us part two of our City of Mist saga and shares his latest D&D session with the kids using Peril in Pinebrook, a free starter adventure. Also, D&D vs. City of Mist—how do they compare? Oh, and the neighbor’s dog ATE one of his chickens. Not cool. Ben recommends the first episode of Storytime with Wil Wheaton (https://wilwheaton.net/podcast/), where he narrated the incredible time travel love story "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Love, Death" by Caroline M. Yoachim (https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/rock-paper-scissors-love-death/). You know how people will move heaven and earth for their loved ones? What if they moved time itself? We may cover this in an upcoming Book Club, watch out for that. Plus, Win or Lose, Pixar’s new show, is a WIN.
Future or Now:
Like Brains, But Better: Electrical and computer engineers have developed a 'Super-Turing AI,' which operates more like the human brain. This new AI integrates certain processes instead of separating them and then migrating huge amounts of data like current systems do.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/03/250326123554.htm
This Week in Space: NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has detected the largest organic (carbon-containing) molecules ever found on the red planet. The discovery is one of the most significant findings in the search for evidence of past life on Mars.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/03/nasas-curiosity-rover-has-found-the-longest-chain-carbon-molecules-yet-on-mars/
https://www.sciencealert.com/nasas-unexpected-discovery-of-the-largest-organics-on-mars-explained
“Book Club”:
This week we covered three thought-provoking stories by Scott Base:
The Giving Man: https://www.badspacecomics.com/post/giving-man
A billionaire sacrifices everything, including the world, to try to fight his cancer. Living forever through the heat death of the universe.
Scour: https://www.badspacecomics.com/post/scour
The rings of Saturn are not what we thought. They’re made of BONES.
Hell and Back: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXVBlC3hmoc
No body survives Venus.
Next week: we’re tackling Johnny Mnemonic by William Gibson—a cyberpunk adventure that’s still eerily relevant today. https://youtu.be/aIwYxSuAzDA?si=SgcfWqx1cyiBoO1F
Real Life
This week, Steven got his hands dirty—literally. Between digging, yard work, and wrestling with a modem that decided to give up on life mid-game, it’s been an eventful time. Speaking of games, we dove into City of Mist, where Greg has to decide: is he the "Crusty DM" or simply sporting a "healthy patina of experience"? Devon, meanwhile, is a street shark (but NOT the cartoon kind), Steven’s embodying Job (maybe the biblical one?), and Ben’s teenage runaway Lily Chow has freed a djinn her parents were up to no good with. Good times, until technology betrayed us.
Outside of RPGs, we had a Margaritaville party (because sometimes you just need to lean into the chaos), and we gave Let’s Summon Demons a solid 4/5. Meanwhile, Devon tried out Harmonies—a game in the vein of Cascadia—and highly recommends it. If you want to check it out, here’s the link: Harmonies on BGG. Oh, and Devon’s also been watching Daredevil: Born Again, so we’ll probably hear more about that soon.
Ben, on the other hand, watched Flow (IMDB), an indie Latvian/French post-apocalyptic film with animals, boats, and a slow but gorgeous vibe. Sci-fi? He says yes. Thrill ride? Not quite, but definitely worth a watch.
Future or Now?
Ben took a deep dive into his cosmic worldview this week, courtesy of a Substack quiz designed to help pinpoint one’s beliefs about reality. Turns out, he hovers somewhere between animism, Gnosticism, and multiverse theory—because why pick just one? He also explored Emergent Materialism, the idea that consciousness and social phenomena are more than the sum of their physical parts, while Steven proudly waved the banner of Reductive Materialism: "We’re all just atoms and molecules—deal with it!" Devon, ever the skeptic, leaned into Pragmatic Instrumentalism: “Do we even know what reality is?” And of course, the multiverse debate made an appearance. Do we really buy into it? We debated it all… while channeling our inner Matt Murdock.
Steven also brought up some interesting research on how we misinterpret our dogs’ emotions. Humans have a habit of projecting their own feelings onto their pets, leading to misunderstandings about what they actually need. Here’s the study if you want to check it out. Ben, meanwhile, admitted that his labrador has him trained rather than the other way around—because, let’s face it, food is the ultimate motivator.
Book Club
This week, we discussed To Be Taught, If Fortunate: Votum by Becky Chambers. Topics ranged from chirality and molecular handedness to the ultimate decision-makers in the universe. Steven had thoughts about the book’s ending… and let’s just say he made sure we all heard them. Repeatedly.
Next week, we’re diving into three stories by Scott Base: The Giving Man, Scour, and Hell and Back (watch here). If you want to read along, now’s your chance!
That’s it for this episode! Let us know your thoughts, especially if you have strong opinions on RPG archetypes, cosmic worldviews, or whether your dog is secretly running your life. Catch you next time!
Real Life
Devon has been diving into The Electric State, and the discussion turns to the unique blend of kid-friendly aesthetics and eerie, unsettling imagery. The upcoming movie adaptation ( IMDB link ) raises the question: who is this really for?
Meanwhile, Steven is excited about the group finally playing City of Mist with Greg—expect some noir-drenched, super-powered storytelling soon. Also, Windows 11 users, rejoice (or at least breathe a little easier): Microsoft is making moves to remove ads from its interface. Progress? We hope so.
Ben bids farewell to Clawed, a beloved companion. Losing a pet is never easy. As a result, he's rethinking his relationship with social media. When you're grieving, the internet can be both a comfort and a drain. Is it time to step back and reevaluate our online spaces?
Future or Now
Ben introduces us to SEN, a project aiming to revolutionize desktop environments with a data-centric approach. Unlike existing knowledge management systems, SEN prioritizes local storage and metadata integrity over cloud-based solutions. If you're into Obsidian, Haiku OS, or just wish your computer worked with your thoughts instead of against them, check it out ( SEN introduction ). And for those interested in the philosophy behind it, the Data-Centric Manifesto lays out the foundation of this approach.
Devon takes us way, way back—to LUCA, the Last Universal Common Ancestor. New research suggests all life on Earth traces back to this single organism that existed only 400 million years after Earth formed. Even more fascinating? LUCA likely had an early immune system, meaning it was already fending off viruses. ( Read more ) Life finds a way, indeed.
Book Club
Next week, we're reading To Be Taught, If Fortunate: Votum by Becky Chambers. If you’re following along, now’s the time to grab a copy!
This week, we covered To Be Taught, If Fortunate: Opera. One of the standout moments:
“It was not a cozy storm, a curl-up-with-a-book-and-a-blanket storm. This was weather that resented us.”
That kind of atmospheric writing is why we love Becky Chambers.
In other media news, Steven and Ben wrapped up Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and were blown away. A season-long What If? style arc that absolutely delivered. Meanwhile, Devon and Steven have jumped into Daredevil: Born Again. How does it hold up to expectations? You'll have to listen to find out.
That’s it for this week! If you’re enjoying the podcast, let us know what you think about the books, games, and tech we’re covering. And if you have a take on LUCA, Windows 11, or The Electric State, we’d love to hear it.
This episode contains:
Daylight savings hit, and we’re all just trying to cope.
Real Life (or Whatever That Is)
Devon Saw Apocalyptica in Dallas—three cellists and a drummer, blasting Metallica covers. It was energetic, intense, and apparently, the drums were a standout. Nita Strauss opened, because Devon only goes to shows with legendary guitarists involved. Also, he went to a production of Cheaper by the Dozen, which was… a different vibe entirely. Steven got into Marvel Crisis Protocol, which he describes as similar to Shatterpoint. More importantly, he won his first game against his friend Greg, which obviously means he’s an expert now. Devon saw Wicked and was deeply underwhelmed. (Expect fan outrage.) Ben went to a production of Million Dollar Quartet, which tells the story of a legendary jam session between Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins. If you don’t know what that is, here’s a Wikipedia link: Million Dollar Quartet.
Future or Now (Depends on Your Perspective)
Remember Me!
Steven presents a real-life prequel to Fallout. Sweden is burying its radioactive nuclear waste in sealed bedrock for 100,000 years. The challenge? How do we make sure future generations don’t dig it up and think, “Oh cool, ancient glowing rocks!” Scientists have some ideas, and they range from the practical to the deeply sci-fi.
Check it out:
Science Daily | Highly radioactive nuclear waste: how to keep it from oblivion
A PDF of the actual Key Information File
CALM DOWN, JEEZ
Ben brings us a podcast from NPR and the TED Radio Hour about how we handle emotions, featuring insights from neuroscientist Ethan Kross on managing emotional overwhelm. Science-backed coping mechanisms? Yes, please. An example: talking to yourself in the second person to coach yourself.
Listen here: NPR - Ethan Kross on Managing Emotions
Also, Ben’s dog has got Diabetes insipidus, which, despite the name, has nothing to do with regular diabetes. More on that here: Diabetes Insipidus
Book Club:
Continuing coverage of the novella To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers.
This week, our crew traveled to Mirabilis (also the name of the chapter we read)—a planet of ice, deep-sea creatures, and they brought with them some existential dread. Some key themes:
- Survival of the fittest (but at what cost?)
- The emotional toll of killing an animal for survival
- Missing communications from Earth
- The sheer terror of the unknown
Devon asked, “Are they vegan?”—a question inspired by his recent reading of Animal Liberation Now. Also, sometimes Devon’s not in the mood for fiction, but Becky Chambers’ writing is worth it.
Next week: the chapter “Opera” (same book, different planet).
Real Life
Devon had a little adventure at Meow Wolf, which, as expected, was a wild, surreal ride. Also, finally got around to fixing the fence—fingers crossed it actually stays fixed this time.
Over in office world, the TV is officially on the wall, the SNES emulator is up and running, and Devon has entered the inevitable "but how does it work?" phase. This led to Ben patiently explaining BIOS, which, if you're curious, has a whole Wikipedia page that is both informative and an excellent cure for insomnia. Meanwhile, Devon has also started reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance because, apparently, philosophy is the next rabbit hole.
Steven, on the other hand, has nothing new to report. Just wrangling the circus as usual.
Ben is saying a fond farewell to Windows 10 and Skype—pour one out for the relics of the past. In more exciting news, he checked out the demo for Wheel World, and it’s super cool. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s worth a look on Steam. Also, he’s officially made the jump to Linux, currently rocking Kubuntu and going full customization mode. Speaking of Linux, SteamOS is doing some interesting things, which you can check out here.
Future or Now
Devon got a bit of a scare with the whole “asteroid might hit Earth” thing, but turns out, the European Southern Observatory has pretty much ruled out a 2024 YR4 impact. So, we’re good—for now. Still, it brings up the whole Sweet Meteor of Death (SMOD) meme, because wouldn’t it just be the most on-brand way for things to go? If you haven't seen Don’t Look Up, now’s a great time. Also, AES Andes is doing some interesting environmental work, which you can read about here.
Ben actually has some good news for once! Engineers have created the first flat telescope lens that can capture color while detecting light from faraway stars. Science is officially magic. If you’re curious, Phys.org has all the details.
Steven? Still nothing. Just vibes.
“Book Club”
Next week, we’re diving into To Be Taught, If Fortunate the Mirabilis chapter by Becky Chambers, so if you want to read along, now’s your chance.
This week, we covered To Be Taught, If Fortunate: Please Read This, and Aecor (and Earth)—all Becky Chambers, all the time. We got into some fun (and mildly unsettling) topics, like torpor—aka space hibernation, but with an existential twist. Sleeping without dreaming, aging super slowly—would you do it? And then there’s somaforming, where instead of terraforming planets, you change humans to survive in space. Also, radiation-resistant food, glitter face (yes, really), and the idea of “crowd-funded” space travel—would that actually work? Lots to love about these stories so far, and we’ll keep the discussion going next time.
See you next week!
Real Life Updates Devon’s Redecoration Adventure Devon has been painting and redecorating—at Jen’s request—to make things look more "adult." This involved taking down metal posters to put up a TV for gaming, which led to a frustrating experience with Displate (spoiler: they suck). While redecorating, Devon also came across a fascinating philosophy YouTuber, Alex O’Connor.
▶️ Watch Alex O’Connor: YouTube Link
Also, ChatGPT can apparently generate a perfect glass of wine… all the way to the top.
Steven’s Gaming Corner Steven has been playing Avowed (part of Xbox Game Pass—so "free"). His verdict? "Pretty fun." Thanks to his beefy new graphics card, he’s playing on PC.
▶️ Check out Avowed: Steam Link
He also tried Keep Driving, a game about driving to the right, avoiding potholes, picking up hitchhikers, and helping a little girl find her parents—all while managing fuel, energy, and car repairs.
▶️ Try Keep Driving: Steam Link
Ben’s Solitaire Obsession Ben has discovered Scoundrel Solitaire by Zach Gage and Kurt Bieg, a solitaire game played with a real deck of cards and a D20.
▶️ Learn how to play: Rules PDF ▶️ Play online: Itch.io Link
Future or Now: Music & Media Renee’s Music Question: Renee’s kid is getting into 90s rock (Weezer, The Offspring, etc.), and that sparked a conversation about favorite musical sounds and guitar solos. Here’s what we came up with:
- Ben: The sound of an orchestra tuning up (potential energy). Favorite solo: We Will Fall Together – Streetlight Manifesto
- Steven: Any heavy bass sound. Favorite solo: Waking the Demon
- Devon: Pinched harmonics. Favorite solo: Octavarium (Razor’s Edge) – John Petrucci
▶️ Dream Theater - Octavarium Guitar Solo: YouTube Link
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man We checked out Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, which fills in gaps between the Tom Holland movies. Like X-Men '97, it takes some big swings.
▶️ More on the show: IMDB Link
Devon’s Disturbing Read Devon is reading Animal Liberation Now by Peter Singer. It’s unsettling, to say the least. More thoughts after he finishes.
▶️ Read it here: Google Books Link
Steven’s Movie Night Steven watched some of Wicked Part 1 with his kids. They haven’t asked to watch more. Suspicious. He also revisited Return to Oz, which remains a fever dream.
▶️ Return to Oz: Rotten Tomatoes Link
Book Club Corner Next Week: To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers A look at 22nd-century space exploration using somaforming—biological modifications that allow astronauts to survive hostile environments. But what happens when Earth moves on without them?
▶️ Audiobook: Audible Link
This Week: Billennium by J.G. Ballard A classic dystopian short story exploring extreme overpopulation. But why "20,000 million"? And what would you do if you suddenly came into wealth? Would you help others?
▶️ Read it here: PDF Link
▶️ World population discussion: Worldometer
Real Life:
Steven’s been back at the forge for Blacksmithing Class #2, where Ben learned the existence of trivets (yes, those little metal stands your grandma probably had). Meanwhile, babysitting round two for Steven’s nephew went... well, let’s just say he survived. Rainy days are not great for four-year-olds. On the tabletop front, we got into Dungeon Crawl Classics (aka the ‘70s cranked up to 11) with its insane artwork and a spell system that just loves making you regret your choices. Then there’s Mutant Crawl Classics, which, well... we didn’t get as far, but you know it’s gotta be weird and radioactive. Ben, on the other hand, had feedback about last week’s discussion of Mothership. Devon’s character was from Planet America, and Ben played Rodney McKay, based on our favorite Grumpy Scientist from Stargate: Atlantis. Also, Ben’s dog has bladder problems (is it Cushing’s disease?), and he’s making custom Mac Mini decals that look like that Joy Division album cover that you probably know from Hot Topic t-shirts.
Future or Now:
Since Devon’s not here, let’s talk about video games.
Dragonsweeper is Minesweeper meets dungeon crawler, and it’s addictive as heck. Play it for free on the web at one of these two links:
https://dragonsweeper.com/New-Dragonsweeper-Version
https://danielben.itch.io/dragonsweeper
Also, can we finally talk about UFO 50, that game that combines 50 indie games in one, all looking like they’re straight out of the 80s? Ben waxes on and on about Party House: a deckbuilding game where you gather as many guests as you can to throw a huge party, but don't let it get out of hand! If it was released separately, it’d probably have been game of the year.
https://ufo50.miraheze.org/wiki/Party_House
Paper, Watch Out! Scientists in Japan are making biohybrid hands with lab-grown muscle tissue. These “MuMuTAs” are a step toward prosthetics and robots that mimic real muscle movement. Read more about it here:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/02/250212151423.htm
This reminded Ben of a love poem he wrote recently: Colonies:
https://ben.lawless.rocks/poetry/colonies/
“Book Club”:
This week:
Burning Chrome by William Gibson, specifically the titular story in the collection that brought us cyberpunk classics like Johnny Mnemonic.
Next week:
Billennium by J.G. Ballard — a 1962 dystopian tale of extreme overpopulation, where people live in minuscule rooms in overcrowded cities. Sounds like fun, right?
Real Life: How silly is Devon? According to him, not at all. But his big toe pain might argue otherwise. The jury is still out. Steven took a blacksmithing class, and it turns out, there’s a whole process to it. Safety docs? Check. Appropriate clothing? Check. Payment going to the blacksmithing museum? Very cool. His first project? A letter opener—definitely not a shiv. (Side note: Can you just carry knives around? What if you’re being particularly menacing?) Good news: Steven is now a Level One Blacksmith and qualifies for the Level Two class! There’s even talk of a blacksmithing tournament and chili cookoff. Speaking of knives… does everyone remember sock knives? On a more serious note, Ben reflects on the passing of his neighbor, Ronna, and the challenge of timing at the end of life. A moment to acknowledge those we lose and the impact they have.
Future or Now: Ben’s Dive into the Desktop Metaphor Ben took us down a philosophical rabbit hole about the desktop metaphor in computing. How does it relate to capitalism? How did William Gibson envision computing? Are there better metaphors we should be using? If you want to dig deeper, here’s some background reading:
- History of the Graphical User Interface
- Xerox PARC and DNLS from 1968
- Liber Indigo - Metaphysical Prisoners of the Desktop
- MercuryOS and Jason Yuan’s vision
Steven’s Reaction: Uh…what? Steven, caught off guard, tried to process it all. But then he found an interesting study: link. The question is: Are its findings really about gender differences, or are they tied more to familial and societal roles? Let’s just say, we have some thoughts about the methodology.
Book Club (But Make It TTRPG): Next Week’s Read: Burning Chrome by William Gibson We had to shift things around this week since Ben had a family emergency. But next week, we’re diving into Burning Chrome by William Gibson. Get ready for some cyberpunk goodness!
Mothership: A Sci-Fi Horror TTRPG Review Instead of discussing books, we reviewed Mothership, the sci-fi horror RPG that Steven ran, with Devon as a player. Here’s the rundown:
- The setup: A distress call leads the crew to a ship.
- The dilemma: Follow company orders or investigate the alien presence?
- The experience: Mystery, clues, and big decisions.
- The result: Devon said he’d play again—high praise!
If you’re into sci-fi horror with a heavy dose of corporate greed and existential dread, Mothership might be worth checking out.
That’s it for this week! As always, let us know your thoughts, and we’ll see you next time for Burning Chrome and more weird, wonderful discussions.
Real Life Devon’s journey to California was an absolute disaster—airline delays, misfortune, and plenty of travel woes. We also dive into how our phones are both doom-scroll machines and powerful learning tools. Devon shares his love for the music app Simply Piano, which teaches more than just piano.
Meanwhile, Steven and Devon jammed out on piano and acoustic guitar, and Ben reflected on fatherhood—specifically how video games can help break generational trauma.
We also tackle a big question: Who can we trust for accurate news anymore? And why does it seem like we only feel tragedy when Americans are attacked? What does that say about us as humans, and is there any way to break the cycle?
Fantasy Media & Devon’s Deep Dives Devon has been lost in The Stormlight Archive, an epic fantasy series spanning thousands of pages. (Check it out: Stormlight Archive). We talk about what got Devon into fantasy in the first place—The Name of the Wind and Red Rising—and how playing D&D shaped his storytelling.
Speaking of books, Devon brings up Exturb1a’s poetry, which gets Ben way too excited. Then we take a detour into The Saxon Stories, which may not technically be fantasy, but Devon argues otherwise. We also discuss “The Nailed God” and its historical parallels. (More on The Saxon Stories)
Steven is prepping to run a Mothership TTRPG session for Devon, Ben, and friends. He shares his process for session creation, and we get into how ChatGPT is surprisingly useful for game prep—and how AI might shape video games in the future. (Mothership TTRPG)
Some Good AI / LLM Talk Ben has been experimenting with Notebook LM by Google, which is basically a 90% accurate study guide. But is that good enough? We also discuss Dropout TV, Cartoon Hell, and the weird world of AI in everyday life—like how Steven had to sign an AI release just to get pet healthcare?!
Ben compares all of this to that chaotic Invader Zim episode, "Play The Tape!" and quickly plugs Becky Chambers’ To Be Taught If Fortunate. (Check it out here).
Real Life Devon is gearing up for a trip to Barcelona in April, planning a Friday-to-Wednesday itinerary. The big question: is it worth it? We’ll see how he weighs the travel time, costs, and must-see sights against the trip’s duration.
Meanwhile, Steven has been deep in Sonic nostalgia. He picked up a remake of Sonic the Hedgehog from the original Sega on the Switch, only to find his oldest daughter struggling with its difficulty. Ben suggests they try Sonic Adventure from the Sega Dreamcast era, but Steven is skeptical. On top of that, they’ve watched the first two Sonic movies—but Steven refuses to pay to see Sonic 3. Also, a side note from parenting life: manage expectations when handing kids new electronics. In other news, Steven has started learning Latin on Duolingo and already has thoughts—mostly about the overwhelming number of ads.
Ben has been learning some unexpected rat facts since his son got new pet rats. Steven, from prior experience, warns that they don’t have the longest lifespans. Speaking of things taking a dark turn, Ben draws a comparison to the game Heavy Rain, where a child finds a dead bird—definitely a tonal shift from Super Mario Brothers.
Future or Now Ben revisited Star Trek: Section 31 and had a moment of deep reflection—too deep, according to Steven. Is Section 31 aimed at 11-year-olds? Are the plot holes too much? Devon steps in to explain Section 31 to Steven, who—by his own admission—is a Star Trek dummy. Meanwhile, Ben is also reading Star Trek: Discovery: Die Standing for even more Trek content. If you're curious, check it out on Goodreads.
Devon drops an incredible animal fact: the nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus) is the only vertebrate that always gives birth to identical quadruplets. Every single time. Scientists still aren’t sure why this happens, but it’s a fascinating mystery of biology. Read more on IFL Science and Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
Steven, meanwhile, has been thinking about water scarcity and the challenges we might face in the near future. He calls it "Not a Drop to Drink" and shares an article which you can read here.
Book Club Next Week: We’re diving into Burning Chrome by William Gibson. If you’ve ever wanted to jack into the Toronto construct matrix, this is the time. Gibson, often credited with popularizing the term "cyberspace," helped define cyberpunk as a genre. Burning Chrome prefigures his famous novel Neuromancer and introduces one of the first literary computer hackers. Unfortunately, the story isn’t available online, but you can find it in the Burning Chrome short story collection.
This Week: We discussed "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester. Bester, best known for The Demolished Man, was a unique figure in Golden Age sci-fi—not just a visionary storyteller, but also an incredible writer. "Fondly Fahrenheit" is a dark, gripping short story about a servile android-robot that turns murderous. What makes it unforgettable is the way Bester plays with language, shifting perspective and structure in ways that make the writing an essential part of the story itself. If you haven’t read it, you can find it on Goodreads or read it online here. Be warned: it’s a dark one, featuring a serial killer narrative that may not be suitable for younger readers.
That’s it for this week—see you next time for more real-life updates, sci-fi debates, and deep dives into classic literature!
This episode contains: Steven is under the weather and Devon had to run fast for Sonic 3. Ben’s making his way through the Knuckles TV show (lots of bowling in this one) before seeing the absolute zaniness turned up to 11 of Sonic 3. Do y’all remember “Dumb Running Sonic” on Tumblr? Devon recommends Jury Duty (Amazon Prime): Imagine a prank show where everyone’s an actor… except one guy. Chaos ensues. Devon says it’s a must-watch, as is The Wild Robot. It’s all about nature, death, and a reminder that “nature is real.” Production babies galore! Ben explains how he got a Virtual Boy emulator on his 3DS, while Steven has been reading the book Filter World. Ben’s also been playing GRIP Combat Racing, which is kinda like Mario Kart if you prefer ecstasy to mushrooms. You can get it for free right now from Amazon Gaming. Devon’s contemplating getting Mario Maker, but then he’d have to get a Switch and that’s, like, a lot of work, man…
- Dumb Running Sonic: https://dumbrunningsonic.tumblr.com/
- 3DS Virtual Boy Emulator: https://github.com/skyfloogle/red-viper
- Filterworld: https://www.kylechayka.com/filterworld
- My Video Went Viral. Here's Why: Veritasium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHsa9DqmId8
- Tokyo Override: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32581509/
- GRIP Combat Racing on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/396900/GRIP_Combat_Racing/
- GRIP Combat Racing on Amazon Gaming: https://gaming.amazon.com/grip-gog/dp/amzn1.pg.item.d2358a22-76ef-4c8a-aa76-17b9a10543f5?ingress=amzn
Future or Now:
The Magic Schoolbus meets Rick and Morty: Ben recommends WTF 101 from Dropout TV. A quartet of kids in detention are schooled by an eccentric and sometimes cynical teacher who takes them on often horrifying field trips with the help of a time-traveling/teleporting/shrinking device. Their travels take them face to face with nature's most ruthless parasites, humanity's dumbest failed inventions, and much, much more. If WTF 101 had just made up all of these lessons, it'd still be a funny watch thanks to the clever storytelling, fast-paced plot, and punched-up dialogue. But it's the fact that the show seeks to educate audiences on real-world factoids that gives it that extra shine. It’s hilarious, gross, weird, profane, and mostly true! It is NOT FOR KIDS and very much NSFW. Devon reflects on debates between theists and atheists. Why does evil exist? Maybe the animal kingdom knows.
- Watch the first episode for free on Youtube (The Gruesome Truth About Parasites): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aZVgyUlSng
- Check out the entire series on Dropout: https://www.dropout.tv/wtf-101
Burn it all down: Steven presents a groundbreaking study that reveals RNA — not DNA — might trigger sunburns. Sunburn has traditionally been attributed to UV-induced DNA damage. However, a new study by the University of Copenhagen and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, reveals that RNA, another vital cellular molecule, plays a major role in triggering acute sunburn reactions.
- Read more at Sciene Daily: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/01/250117112413.htm
Now for something a little more cheerful from Devon: Quantum suicide and immortality, a thought experiment exploring the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. The experiment involves repeatedly engaging in an activity with a 50/50 chance of death, with the idea that consciousness will always exist in the universe where the individual survives. Ben is reminded of the short film “One-Minute Time Machine” where a man repeatedly uses a time machine to retry a conversation with a woman, but what happens in the realities he leaves behind?
- More on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_suicide_and_immortality
- One-Minute Time Machine on Youtube: https://youtu.be/CXhnPLMIET0
“Book Club”:
This week: Philip K. Dick's short story "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale” (1966). The story follows Douglas Quail, a man obsessed with Mars who seeks out a company to implant fake memories of a Martian trip. It’s very different from the 1990 film adaptation of Total Recall, the film's action-oriented approach was very different from the story's focus on psychological elements. Is remembering something the same as living it? “I remember recording a good podcast once.” “Steven, we’ve never recorded a good podcast.”
- Read it here: https://philosophy.as.uky.edu/sites/default/files/We%20Can%20Remember%20It%20for%20You%20Wholesale%20-%20Philip%20K.%20Dick.pdf
Next week: Alfred Bester’s Fondly Fahrenheit. Though the story's disturbing premise—that a servile android-robot could turn on its human superiors and commit murder—was probably radical at the time, without Bester's way with words, Fondly Fahrenheit wouldn't have become the classic science fiction short story that it is today. It's still cited as one of the best sci-fi stories ever.
- Read it here: http://www.sfsfss.com/stories2/Bester,%20Alfred%20-%20Fondly%20Fahrenheit%20v1.0.htm
REAL LIFE Devon: We celebrated Nolan's Mario-themed birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's, and it was pure Mario madness—even down to LEGO sets! At home, we dove into the SNES Classic, revisiting classics like Super Mario World and Mario Kart. Speaking of Mario Kart, Ben has a lot of thoughts about kart racing games. Oh, and let's not forget Super Metroid made a cameo in our gaming nostalgia.
Steven: Exciting news! We're now on YouTube! Check out The Science Faction Podcast for all our latest episodes and content. Also, Steven got his hands on the 5-disc Complete Collector's Edition of Blade Runner. Talk about sci-fi collector goals!
Ben: Ben's been under the weather—boo! But that meant more movie time—yay! He's here to defend rewatching so-called "terrible" films like Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. But hey, the Indiana Jones videogame nails the adventure vibe. Steven couldn't agree more—there's nothing better than punching Nazis! Also, fun fact: The Matrix reused sets from Dark City, which Roger Ebert loved so much he even recorded commentary tracks for it. And yes, both Ben and Devon admit to falling asleep during The Phantom Menace... in theaters. Oops!
FUTURE OR NOW Ben: "The Buddhists Know How to Party" might sound like an odd statement, but Ben dives into the Five Remembrances of the Buddha, a reflection on aging, illness, and impermanence. It really got Devon thinking about Stoicism. Curious? You can read them here:
- I am of the nature to grow old. There is no way to escape growing old.
- I am of the nature to have ill-health. There is no way to escape having ill-health.
- I am of the nature to die. There is no way to escape death.
- All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change. There is no way to escape being separated from them.
- My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground on which I stand.
Steven: Steven brings up a serious topic: the insurance crisis in California. State Farm is pulling out of the state due to restrictions on raising rates, leaving them unable to cover major disasters like the LA fires. They currently have about $3 billion, but with an estimated $4 billion needed for payouts, this gap could lead to insolvency. Who's at fault—the state for blocking rate hikes or the companies for not adjusting sooner? Steven urges us not to "Luigi the wrong people" in this situation.
BOOK CLUB This Week: We took a deep dive into Ursula K. Le Guin's "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" from The Wind's Twelve Quarters. You can read it here. Ben found it "super fascinating," while Devon unpacked its core themes: a utopia sustained by the suffering of one child and the moral quandary of staying or walking away. Ben summed it up with, "The terror of not knowing keeps people away." Also, Devon joked that Omelas could just be Salem spelled backward—thanks, Oregon road signs! Devon also mused, "Ethics cannot be logically discerned."
Next Week: Get ready for Philip K. Dick's "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale" (1966). Here's a PDF. And no, Devon—you can't just watch Total Recall instead!
Real Life Devon shared his thoughts on Red One, a Christmas action movie involving a military operation to save Santa, describing it as “a slog and not clever,” though his kid loved Home Alone. Steven wrapped up holiday cleanup and started reading Future Noir, a deep dive into the making of Blade Runner. He also reflected on the differences between narration in Blade Runner and Dark City. Ben has been dealing with his son’s walking pneumonia and spent time playing Inertial Drift (check out the free prologue). On the music side, he enjoyed 311’s cover of The Offspring and The Offspring’s cover of 311.
Future or Now * Note this: Exploring the Obsidian Digital Garden Plugin, a tool to publish notes from Obsidian directly online. Supports static site generation and free hosting on Vercel or Netlify. Obsidian Digital Garden Docs | Ben's Demo * All Around the Globe: Discussed Flat-Earthers’ humbling experience in Antarctica while attempting to prove their theories. Article: Flat-Earthers Travel to Antarctica * Nevermind That Noise You Heard: Highlighted research on the link between poor sleep and mental health issues due to brain deficits that block unwanted thoughts. Related to themes from Reminiscence. Science Daily Article Reminiscence IMDB link
Book Club * Next Week: The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin Read Online * This Week: Arthur C. Clarke’s The Nine Billion Names of God Read Online | Audiobook on YouTube Discussion on its themes appearing in works like Three-Body Problem, Spin, and Blindsight. * Steven and Devon brainstorm the logistics of a Futurama-style “smell-o-scope,” inspired by Godfellas. Futurama Wiki: Godfellas * Devon: Talked about philosopher Philipp Mainländer and his fascinating, existential ideas. Wikipedia: Philipp Mainländer
Real Life Devon shared highlights from their recent trip to Oregon, where they visited the coast, skipped skiing, and explored a lighthouse. The visit to Tillamook stood out, especially encountering a hilariously judgy giant cow head. Check out Tillamook here.
Steven went on a major upgrade spree, adding a new desk chair, soundboard, and computer to their setup. They also delved into tabletop RPGs, including Perils & Princesses (official site), The Princess in Black (learn more), and Slugblaster, with its iconic quantum centipede kickflips.
Ben talked about navigating a family challenge with their kid’s walking pneumonia, which led to a movie marathon featuring The Martian and Sandlot. They’re also looking forward to the upcoming adaptation of Project Hail Mary (movie details). On the gaming side, they played Void Crew.
The team also reflected on the Lower Decks season finale, discussing intentionality in media consumption, and debated the myth of multitasking. More about Lower Decks here.
Future or Now Ben reviewed the film Hidden Figures, celebrating the incredible achievements of NASA’s “human computers” while highlighting anachronisms like gum-chewing in the 1960s. Read more about the film.
Devon recapped the year’s biggest science stories, from a total solar eclipse to Europa mission updates and record-breaking heat. Other highlights included mapping the fruit fly brain, Icelandic eruptions, and bird flu concerns. Full list of 2024’s top science stories.
Steven explored a groundbreaking AI-based therapeutic platform that mimics virus structures to develop innovative treatments. Learn more here.
Book Club This week, the team discussed Ray Bradbury’s A Sound of Thunder, diving into its themes of time travel, the butterfly effect, and unintended consequences. Read the story here.
Next week, they’ll tackle Arthur C. Clarke’s The Nine Billion Names of God, a fascinating tale blending religion and technology. The story follows two programmers hired by Buddhist monks to list all possible names of God—a task that might just end the universe. Read it here.
Real Life Steven shares his recent battle with the flu, updates to his computer and recording setup, and his deep dive into World’s Finest from the Superman: The Animated Series. He’s also been watching That Christmas on Netflix, a cozy seasonal pick. Meanwhile, Ben recounts his creative ventures, like shadow boxing the Moon Lord, experimenting with black paper and sharpies, and recommends Perfect Days. This Tokyo-based film follows the quiet, reflective life of Hirayama, a janitor whose mundane routines uncover profound beauty. With its oldies-filled cassette soundtrack, the film is perfect for anyone craving a refreshed outlook on life’s simple joys. Perfect Days on IMDb.
Future or Now? This Week in Space: In space exploration news, NASA's Parker Solar Probe is making history this week by flying closer to the Sun than ever before—just 3.8 million miles from its surface. It’s the fastest human-made object, designed to brave temperatures over 2,500°F as it ventures into the Sun’s corona to unlock mysteries about the solar wind.
That's Nuts!: Meanwhile, on Earth, scientists have observed California ground squirrels defying their herbivorous stereotype by hunting and eating voles. This unexpected carnivorous behavior highlights their adaptability and raises new questions about the flexibility of animal diets in response to environmental changes. Read more about this discovery in the ScienceDaily article and watch a detailed breakdown on YouTube.
Book Club This week, we dive into spoiler-heavy discussion for the short film Where Rabbits Come From, a moving tale set in a dystopian world. Ben reviews the story of a widowed father rabbit who defies an authoritarian government to spark hope and magic in his daughter’s life. They escape oppression, finding solace and a possible reunion in the meadow. Learn more on Letterboxd.
On a lighter note, Steven gives a glowing review of Skeleton Crew, a family-friendly Star Wars show featuring kid pirates and Shistavanen aliens, which ties back to some classic lore. Check out Shistavanen lore here.
Next week, we’ll explore Ray Bradbury’s time-travel classic, A Sound of Thunder. Read the story here or listen to an audio reading on YouTube. For a fun twist, watch this TV show adaptation.
Real Life:
Steven is sick or dead, we don’t remember, so Ben and Devon take over the show. Devon is traveling for the holidays so needs to bill as much as possible at work. Devon explains what it’s like to be an independent contractor. Ben’s work is a little less reliable. Snoop Dogg records a holiday message for Ben’s parent, parent, parent company. Snoop Dogg is somehow still as famous as ever.
Future or Now:
This Week in Space
Astrophysicists capture astonishing images of gamma-ray flare from supermassive black hole M87. The jet is tens of millions of times larger than the black hole's event horizon. The galaxy M87, located in the Virgo constellation, provided the first-ever photo of a black hole in 2019, when the Event Horizon Telescope captured an image of the supermassive black hole at the galaxy's center. An international research team has now observed a teraelectronvolt gamma-ray flare seven orders of magnitude -- tens of millions of times -- larger than the event horizon, or surface of the black hole itself. A flare of this intensity -- which has not been observed in over a decade -- can offer crucial insights into how particles, such as electrons and positrons, are accelerated in the extreme environments near black holes.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/12/241213140634.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messier_87
Black holes and why they look like that: https://youtu.be/zUyH3XhpLTo?si=7drAgoVloX9hytmo
New Technology Could Keep Communications Going During Disasters
RNZ (12/6) News from New Zealand: “The 'mesh node' is a small black walkie-talkie sized box that connects to a cellphone through Bluetooth. It then connects to a network of solar powered nodes across the region, which allows users to send short text messages, even when all other communications are down. It has been tailor-made by Tai Rāwhiti Civil Defence, and emergency manager Ben Green said it is "a cost-effective solution for reliable communications in a disaster.”
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/535819/new-technology-could-keep-communications-going-during-disasters
Book Club:
Next week book club: WHERE RABBITS COME FROM, a French animated short film that’s being shopped around for awards this season. The answer will surprise you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SH_TgDEuCfI&ab_channel=StudioNiloc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAkqGMU-mug&list=PLwDe6hrCodhk0k3qCN0QTqixXu6g2R5Nh&index=6
Lower Decks The 947th episode of Star Trek was the penultimate episode of Lower Decks. This episodes has awesome cameos and did multiverse right. Devon still likes the show but doesn’t feel it’s actually Star Trek canon. We wish Loer Decks had gone for seven seasons. There’s plans for more comedic Star Trek in the future. Will it be as good as Lower Decks?
More Star Trek News
The Section 31 movie is coming in January. Ben is looking forward to it, Devon has no plans to watch it. Ben is excited by the secondary cast of the movie. Are there Xindi in the movie? The movie is set in the “Lost Era”.
This episode contains: Ben welcomes a special guest host: Flint Lawless. Steven and Devon are off dealing with family illness and work commitments, so you know what that means! Well, we don’t actually talk about video games at all this one (I know, right?).
Future or Now:
The Magic Eye: Remember autostereograms (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autostereogram)? Stereograms are 2D images that create the illusion of a 3D scene by exploiting the way our eyes perceive depth. "Magic Eye" images are a popular form of autostereogram. Learn how to see Magic Eye images here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdWNYdk-vWY.
As a kid, Ben would spend hours looking at Magic Eye books, and it felt like magic because most everybody else didn’t see them. He was like a wizard. Recently, he came across an article about using Excel of all things to create Magic Eye images (https://divisbyzero.com/2024/11/30/make-a-magic-eye-image-using-excel/) but guess who has two thumbs and doesn’t have Excel? This guy! Turns out there’s an easy to use free online tool for making autostereograms (https://www.easystereogrambuilder.com/). He also found a music video that was a moving stereogram (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AKtp3XHn38). Flint was curious, but completely perplexed because he doesn’t know how to see them yet.
“Book Club”:
Next week: WHERE RABBITS COME FROM, a French animated short film that’s being shopped around for awards this season. The answer will surprise you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAkqGMU-mug&list=PLwDe6hrCodhk0k3qCN0QTqixXu6g2R5Nh&index=6
This week: No time for book club: the first two episodes of the new Star Wars show Skeleton Crew is out. It’s good! And we start comparing it to Farscape, Star Trek: Prodigy and One Piece. It’s a sweet Goonies-like mystery. The Republic likes to hide planets for some reason… maybe they’re not exactly the good guys? Flint and Ben discuss the morally gray areas of stories where the “forces of good” make questionable decisions that lead to positive and negative consequences.
This episode contains: We three hosts gobbled up Thanksgiving, celebrating with families, parents and in-laws. Why did Ford call their electric car a Mach-E? Or is it Maquis? A Mockery? Ben gives a slightly different (and more positive) take on Beetlejuice Beetlejuice than Devon’s review from a couple months ago (https://sciencefactionpodcast.com/2024/09/11/episode-522-incomprehensibly-gravelly/). The first half hour is definitely rough but it comes together, in the back half especially. Big shout-out to the production design of the afterlife and the cameos. Devon’s a pickleball-player now, and we contrast it with racquetball. Steven and his family saw Moana 2 and opinions varied wildly among the family. Don’t expect a Lin Manuel Miranda soundtrack, but do expect them to set up a bunch of sequels.
Future or Now:
Right now, in the 1960s: Ben’s ready to spoil The Twilight Zone episode “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street.” On a peaceful suburban street, strange occurrences and mysterious people stoke the residents’ paranoia to a disastrous intensity. This is nearly REQUIRED VIEWING for anyone on the internet these days. “The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, prejudices to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudices can kill, and suspicion can destroy, and a thoughtless frightened search for a scapegoat has a fallout all of its own for the children, and the children yet unborn. And the pity of it is that these things cannot be confined to the Twilight Zone.” Despite this being a story very inspired by McCarthyism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCarthyism), our current paranoia about our neighbors needs to stop.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0734664/
Three things to ponder (“Eat the 1%”): Devon wonders why don’t we eat turkey eggs? It’s all about the downsides: even though they’re not hazardous, turkeys have slower egg production, larger size and space requirements, and tougher egg shells than chickens. Why will some pets (especially dogs) eat their dead owners, even when there’s food available? The current hypothesis is that the dogs are trying to frantically wake up their owners, and after biting the face, their instinct takes over. Also, the Higgs particle only accounts for 1% of the mass of an object.
https://www.iflscience.com/turkey-eggs-why-dont-we-eat-them-77017
Get over here! (Don’t “TOASTY” me): Steven brings us this morsel of news: a tiny, four-fingered 'hand' folded from a single piece of DNA can pick up the virus that causes COVID-19 for highly sensitive rapid detection and can even block viral particles from entering cells to infect them, researchers report. Dubbed the NanoGripper, the nanorobotic hand also could be programmed to interact with other viruses or to recognize cell surface markers for targeted drug delivery, such as for cancer treatment.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/11/241127165721.htm
“Book Club”
This week: Big Oxygen by exurb1a
A janitor on a spaceship wakes up from an emergency alarm to complete bedlam. Every group he runs across has a different ideology, in fact, their baseline ideologies have been erased, and it doesn’t go well for anyone. Turns out belief without facts and reason will destroy, but also just getting facts without context is disastrous. It’s about how you digest facts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKouPOhh_9I
Also, ChatGPT cheats against Stockfish in Chess: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSCNW1OCk_M
Next week: WHERE RABBITS COME FROM, a French animated short film that’s being shopped around for awards this season. The answer will surprise you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAkqGMU-mug&list=PLwDe6hrCodhk0k3qCN0QTqixXu6g2R5Nh&index=6
REAL LIFE
Devon is dealing with a sick family and Ben is wiped, despite finally having a chance to rest. Ben has been covering for his boss and teaching a beginning HTML class to kids. Most of the kids are awesome but some are “chaos gremlins.” Ben also just drove to Burback and back for a roller derby tournament. Ben had to be the father to 15 kids. Ben’s wife had to stay home for work and to take care of a geriatric cat. For Steven this was conference week so his kids got off school early. He forced them to play outside with the extra time. Steven’s kids have been “bruh-ing.” Steven has jumped back into Caves and Qud. (https://www.cavesofqud.com/). It’s a fantastic, weird, fun game. Steven is reading Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer, which is… interesting. Steven also built a Lego Nano Gauntlet.
FUTURE OR NOW
First up, Mothership RPG (check it out here), the award-winning sci-fi horror game where surviving outer space is just the beginning. With streamlined character creation and easy session prep, it’s perfect for both new and experienced players. Steven’s even offering to run a game for our listeners—join our Discord if you’re in! Next, Ben explores a breakthrough in carbon capture with UC Berkeley's COF-999 powder, which removes CO2 from the air at record rates and promises a more energy-efficient future. Read about it here. Lastly, Devon dives into panpsychism, the philosophical idea that consciousness is a fundamental property of the universe. Hear his take, complete with debates from thinkers like Sean Carroll and Philip Goff. Want to learn more? Check out the Wikipedia entry or this intriguing Mind Chat video.
BOOK CLUB
Renee has been watching Prodigy. We mention needing to discuss the new episodes of Lower Decks and the short film Unification.
The High Test by Fredrik Pohl (1983)
Originally published in Asimov Science Fiction Magazine. A story of a man working as a driving instructor on a distant planet. He’s actually a flight instructor teaching humans and aliens how to fly their spaceships. A cozy slice of life according to Ben. According to Devon the story felt like a product of the 50s despite being written in the 80s. Was the inspiration for this story: what if an alien needed to pass a driving test before attempting to destroy humans?
Next Week
Big Oxygen by exurb1a
Real Life Devon shared about their recent visit to Fredericksburg, aka “Texas wine country,” where the German settlers brought their food and flair. While there were tempting wine tastings, Devon was not about to wait 30 minutes for a sip. Oh, and they’re currently battling a cold, which sounded something like SNNNOOORRRRTTT. Meanwhile, Steven recapped an out-of-town trip that included a stop at Black Diamond Games in Concord, CA, where he picked up the RPG Mothership and The Electric State. On the D&D front, Steven is on the hunt for elf druid miniatures for his daughter’s character. Ben, on the other hand, discovered Walkabout Mini Golf on iOS, which offers touch-to-putt and AR modes—sounds like a hole-in-one! He also dove into the world of Star Trek fan edits, sharing a link to Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Season 0. However, Ben admitted to only watching Voyager once (FOR SHAME!), while his son has decided Worf is the best (double shame!). Devon, ever resourceful, uses Star Trek as a threat to keep his kids in line.
Future or Now Ben stumbled into the world of web design and shared the new CSS logo—designed with a squircle, of all things. The logo’s hex color, #663399, is known as “Rebecca Purple” and has a meaningful backstory. Devon switched gears to science, geeking out about tardigrades (a.k.a. water bears), which are radiation-resistant extremophiles with 15,000 known species. These tiny creatures can repair their DNA after radiation damage and even borrow genes through horizontal gene transfer. Talk about resilient! For more details, check out this article. For some sci-fi vibes, we also pondered if the Netflix show Away about going to Mars might scratch your space-loving itch. Steven wrapped up this section with a discussion on the psychology of money. A recent study from ScienceDaily suggests that digital money doesn’t create the same emotional connection as physical cash. Devon thinks of cash as “free money,” while Steven questions if digital currency even feels real.
Book Club This week, we read Ray Bradbury’s The Crowd, a story rich with layers of meaning. It sparked discussions about collectivism vs. individuality, Red Scare-era anti-communism, and a lingering mystery: are they aliens, ghosts, or demons? Regardless of the interpretation, we thoroughly enjoyed this one! For next week, we’re diving into Frederik Pohl’s short story The High Test. You can check it out here.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are handling post-election nerves and how to channel that energy productively. Ben’s been comforted by watching New York City newscasts from 1981, which you can find on YouTube. How refreshing it is to see a newscast that’s not supposed to be entertainment! Steven’s been focusing on family time and getting to know his nephew. Ben binged the first four episodes of WondLa. Check out the official trailer and see how it’s tracking on Rotten Tomatoes. Steven is picking up some serious I Am Mother vibes from that WondLa trailer. RIP Star Trek guest star (and Candyman himself) Tony Todd, a legend gone too soon. Remember Star Trek: Lower Decks? The 943rd episode just aired (Season 5, Episode 4)! It’s good! You should watch it! We chat about how the multiverses are going, specifically DC vs Marvel.
Future or Now
Are You Bready For This?: Steven presents a new study that discusses human’s taste for carby bread and reveals how the duplication of the salivary amylase gene (AMY1) may have occurred over 800,000 years ago, long before agriculture. Wait, bread makes you fat? This gene duplication helped shape human adaptation to starchy foods and led to the wide genetic variation in AMY1 copy number that exists today, influencing how effectively humans digest starch.
Read more about this study on Science Daily.
Today is the greatest day I’ve ever known: Do you miss the social media of yore? The posts and videos that showed our humanity without the editing and gloss? Ben remembers it, and so does Ben Thompson, who wrote a blog post about the prevalence of IMG_#### videos on YouTube. These are relics from between 2009 and 2012 when iPhone and iPod Touch included a “Send to YouTube” feature that allowed users to upload videos directly to YouTube from the Photos app. Apple uses the ‘IMG_XXXX’ naming convention for all images and videos captured on iOS devices, where XXXX is a unique sequence number. Unwitting content creators would then upload their videos on a public site with a barely-searchable name. To this day, there are millions of these videos, and if you search YouTube for “IMG_” and then four random digits, you’ll find some one-of-a-kind videos of random stranger’s lives.
Read more and have a warm digital hug on ben-mini.github.io.
Book Club
Since Devon’s not here, we’re skipping book club this week. Next week, we’ll be exploring Ray Bradbury’s “The Crowd,” a haunting look at strange crowd behaviors in urban life. Watch an audiobook of this story on YouTube.
This week, we get into the trailers for some upcoming big Marvel and Star Wars stuff:
- Captain America: Brave New World
- Thunderbolts
- Star Wars: Skeleton Crew and a special shoutout to the music featured in the trailer: a Huttese cover of “Major Tom (Coming Home)”.
- Marvel Studios Disney+ D23 2024/25
Do you want to see YouTube more like a classic series of television stations? Check out YTCH.
This episode contains: Devon kicks things off with a Dr. Pepper Zero, or as we like to call it, “the creeping death.” Just caffeine jokes—or maybe there’s something deeper to his love for this soda! Steven, on the other hand, brings us a blast from the past with Department Zero, an RPG he created back in 2013. Imagine a Fantasy Men in Black vibe, complete with dragons, aliens, and magical conspiracies. This world has been brewing in Steven’s mind for a decade, and it sounds like an adventure for the ages!
Ben poses a question for the tech-minded: how long should a computer last? Steven has a “Computer of Theseus” filled with endless upgrades, Devon shrugs off the question with work laptops and a trusty gaming rig, while Ben takes a “separation of concerns” approach, keeping two laptops—one for work and one for personal use. On top of that, Ben has a family tradition of passing down old tech. This leads us to a broader discussion about the best ways to keep our tech alive and kicking.
Ben also brings us High Stakes: Las Vegas 2024. Imagine a world where vampires have stolen your blood, and you’re forced to win it back. Are you brave enough to play the card game of your life to recover what’s yours? This high-stakes adventure invites you to consider just how far you’d go to get your blood back.
FUTURE OR NOW Wake Up, Sheeple! Let’s Talk Science and Sci-Fi
In Devon’s Space Report, we delve into a cosmic mystery that’s puzzling scientists. A massive structure, dubbed “The Big Ring,” sits 6.9 billion light-years away, defying what we thought we knew about the universe. The Big Ring spans an astounding 1.3 billion light-years and lies near another oddity, the Giant Arc. Ordinarily, Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAO) suggest that structures in space should appear uniform, yet these two anomalies suggest otherwise. Are we seeing evidence of multiple big bangs, the presence of cosmic strings, or could it all just be a cosmic coincidence? Read more about it here.
On a lighter note, Ben gives us his take on Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5. Has Lower Decks finally hit its stride, or does Starfleet’s most comedic ship need a new direction? Ben has thoughts, and fans of the show won’t want to miss them.
Meanwhile, Steven shares a rapid-fire lineup of recent reads, including Red Rising, Annihilation, Fallen Dragon, and his thoughts on Agatha All Along’s finale. His recommendations cover sci-fi, mystery, and thriller genres, perfect for anyone looking to dive into a new story.
BOOK CLUB This week, we dive into Isaac Asimov’s “Nightfall,” widely regarded as one of the greatest sci-fi stories of all time. Check it out on Goodreads. Written when Asimov was in his twenties, Nightfall tells the story of a planet that’s continuously illuminated by six suns—until an eclipse plunges it into total darkness once every 2,049 years. When that darkness finally arrives, the population, who has never experienced nightfall, is thrown into chaos. The story explores themes of fear, the unknown, and societal breakdown, offering a compelling read that earned its status as a classic.
As a bonus, we recommend The End of Eternity, another must-read by Asimov. This novel tackles time travel with Asimov’s signature twist and intricate plotting. More on Goodreads.
Next week, we’ll be exploring Ray Bradbury’s “The Crowd,” a haunting look at strange crowd behaviors in urban life. Watch the adaptation here.
This episode contains: You should live every day like it’s Halloween! We bring this episode to you from the heart of spooky season. Ben tells us about a fan edit of Who Framed Roger Rabbit that includes deleted scenes that they cleaned up using today’s tech. The movie was way different than the book. Ben’s cat says hi to us. Ben attended the inauguration of his counties poet laureate. Ben was on the panel that selected the poet laureate. What makes a good poet laureate? Ben has watched a few episodes of Agatha All Along with his family and the reviews are mixed. The first episode was joyless and not fun. Steven recommends being patient with the show and assures Ben there are satisfying answers later in the show. Steven went apple picking with his family. Also, remember when October was cold? Devon did phone banking for democrats and had some interesting experience. Devon also can’t help but go off on the state of the presidential election.
FUTURE OR NOW
Fruit Fly Me to The Moon (Fast-Actin Tinactin): Scientists can reverse brain aging in fruit flies by preventing buildup of a common protein. Buildup of a protein called filamentous actin, or F-actin, in the brain inhibits the removal of cellular wastes, including DNA, lipids, proteins and organelles. The resulting accumulation of waste diminishes neuronal functions and contributes to cognitive decline. By tweaking a few very specific genes in the neurons of aging fruit flies, the researchers prevented F-actin buildup, maintained cellular recycling and extended the healthy lifespan of fruit flies by approximately 30%.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/10/241028164423.htm
Support You Local Theater: Ben when to the Great American Melodrama for the third or fourth time. He saw The Werewolf of Arroyo Grande. Howl did this happen? After a man relocates into Arroyo Grande to start up his nut based fast food restaurant, he discovers that the town is terrorized by a terrible hair raising werewolf! The village of Arroyo Grande must come together to put an end to the canine horror before it's too late! Next year will be the 50th year of the Great American Melodrama.
https://americanmelodrama.com/
BOOK CLUB
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson. A short story by Shirley Jackson that was first published in The New Yorker on June 26, 1948. The story describes a fictional small American community that observes an annual tradition known as "the lottery", which is intended to ensure a good harvest and purge the town of bad omens.
We discuss the importance of questioning traditions and scientific thinking. Are there any winners in this lottery? “In fact, every copy of Shirley Jackson's The Lottery has been checked out from the Springfield public library. Of course the book does not contain any hints on how to win the lottery. It is rather a chilling tale of conformity gone mad.” – Simpsons, Dog of Death, S3Ep19
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryr06emUnRw&ab_channel=TimThoughts
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=273395915450826
Next week we’re reading Nightfall by Isaac Asimov. This 1941 short story, written while Asimov was still only in his early twenties, is widely regarded as one of the greatest science-fiction short stories of all time. Indeed, in 1968 the Science Fiction Writers of America voted it the best science fiction short story written before 1965.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightfall_(Asimov_novelette_and_novel)
This episode contains: A big birthday wish to Martine! Devon’s been glamping, but needed a little more definition to ensure he did it right. This glamp was like a tiny home, with plumbing, a fire pit, and a hot tub too! It was strictly NO KIDS, and had a real beehive theme to it. Since it’s a two-person only sort of deal, if the three podcast hosts wanted to go glamping, Steven and Ben have volunteered to be the two monkeys wearing a trenchcoat (maybe AI can help us with that visual). Steven’s been walking (for his health, blechh) and listening to books. What’s he listening to? Book Six of Dungeon Crawler Carl, and it’s quite a ride. The audiobooks have some exclusive content. Steven’s also 3D printing a giant Cantina set for the Star Wars miniatures game. Ben has been playing video games, specifically UFO 50: fifty games in one Steam app that are meant to be an alternate universe take on a video game system from the 1980s. Kinda sounds lame except these are all games by six GOAT-level developers who worked for around a decade on them. They work great on the Steam Deck, have incredible game design choices and they also have a compelling meta narrative outside all the games. Check this review if you want to hear some genuine gushing about the game. Ben discusses the game Mortul within UFO 50, but then he surprises EVERYONE by talking about ANOTHER RETRO-INSPIRED VIDEO GAME PLATFORM. WHAAAAT?!?! If you like UFO 50, perhaps you’d be interested in the PICO-8 Fantasy Console (Hint, you may already have it if you bought itch.io’s Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality). Steven talks a little about a procedurally generated version of DOOM made by AI.
Future or Now: Steven’s watching Agatha All Along and The Penguin. Is this new tv era for MCU and DCU deeper, more grounded, and maybe better than the films? It comes down to fleshing out the characters better. Devon’s concerned that any new show has to be connected to successful movie franchises (especially if they’re comic book films) but this is nothing new. Remember Caprica? Ben does. We also have heard opinions but have no experience watching the new Joker movie.
Ben reviews The Wild Robot, and it’s an instant classic. It has the same writer/director as Lilo and Stitch but exists somewhere between a Miyazaki film, classic Disney films (like Bambi) and Becky Chambers’ Monk and Robot books.
Book Club: We’ll announce our next week’s pick on our Discord. Join our Patreon (even on the free tier) to get access.
This week, we read (or listened to) In the Hills, the Cities from Volume 1 of Clive Barker’s Books of Blood. Clive Barker weaves together kaiju monster movies with a touch of Socialism in Yugoslavia. Big thanks to Ben’s mom for suggesting this story. Is this a mediation on how we humans are just a colony of cells moving through life, screaming incoherently while destroying everything in our path? Didn’t work for Devon as well as Ben and Steven, but it makes Ben ponder the big questions:
- When do these people die? Is it when they are ejected from the community, or is it earlier? Is it when they give up sentience to be a part of the monster?
- What does this mean for us, and the groupthink in our communities, both locally and online? How destructive will our groupthink be?
This episode contains: Devon’s not having it with Dallas or New Found Glory (NFG), and don’t get him started on Paramount canceling Lower Decks. Also, what’s up with Harry Kim? Devon’s got some honest thoughts about his “shortcomings” and how NFG is “punk for preppy kids.” It’s all love though, as he and the crew have an “old crusty men talk about old crusty bands” moment. Plus, the reality check of the streaming era: no fanfare for new releases, no excitement for music anymore. What’s left for us aging punks?
Steven brings up NoFX’s final shows: Did anyone really want this? Punk rock legends bowing out—what’s next for the scene?
Future or Now: Ben takes us into the military’s latest climate change defense project—using oysters to fight hurricanes. Yep, DARPA’s Reefense program is building hybrid reefs combining manmade structures with live oysters to protect coastal military bases. Will it work? Rutgers and the University of Miami are giving it a go. Could this become the future of coastal protection for civilians too?
Learn more about DARPA’s Reefense project
Devon? Well, he's stressing out—whether it’s dark matter or election results, he’s following it all and it’s not doing him any favors. Can we talk about gravity existing without mass while avoiding existential election dread?
Read more about gravity without mass
Book Club: Next week’s suggestions courtesy of Ben’s mom! Clive Barker’s Books of Blood series. We’ll be focusing on In the Hills, the Cities from Volume 1 and The Body Politic from Volume 4. Expect the weird and the grotesque in these horror short stories.
Check out the review of In the Hills, the Cities
Also on the table: Eventually we’ll be diving into The Langoliers by Stephen King from Four Past Midnight. There’s a cool Star Trek reference in there, so you know we’re excited.
Finally, this week we’re revisiting E.M. Forster’s The Machine Stops. This 1909 classic predicted the tech-dominated world we’d all be living in by 2020. Spoiler: it’s not a happy prediction.
This episode contains: From deep within the spooky season we bring you an all new episode. Devon learns you have to jump on those bones early. Devon planed to build up his Halloween decoration collection. Ben doesn’t know how to say “Megadeth.” We also mention Funko Pop album covers for Iron Maiden. (https://pop-figures.com/franchise/iron-maiden-282) Ben beat Astro Bot, giggling the entire time. Ben also watched the original Dracula film from 1931, available on Amazon Prime Video. (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0021814/) Devon then recommends the more recent movie, Renfield (2023). Steven is on book 5 of Dungeon Crawler Carl, Devon just finished book 2. Devon is taking a break to read the new Bobiverse book. (https://www.goodreads.com/series/192752-bobiverse)
Future or Now
Ben: NASA is working on a plan to replace its space station, but time is running out. Over the next several months, NASA will finalize a strategy for its operations in low-Earth orbit after 2030. Then, toward the end of next year, the space agency will award contracts to one or more private companies to develop small space stations for which NASA and other space agencies will become customers rather than operators. (https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/10/is-nasas-commercial-space-station-program-doomed/). Would you rather go to a space station orbing Earth, or the Moon? Companies are looking into CLDs: Commercial Low-Earth Destinations. Why are we abandoning the ISS? It’s old and already has issues, that will only worsen. Also our problematic relationship with Russia.
Devon: Evidence of ‘Negative Time’ Found in Quantum Physics Experiment. Physicists showed that photons can seem to exit a material before entering it, revealing observational evidence of negative time. (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/evidence-of-negative-time-found-in-quantum-physics-experiment/) We try to understand this mild blowing experiment and result. (https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.03680)
Steven: Agatha All Along. This is great spooky fun. The main character stays true to who she was in WandaVision. Ben also finished Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. Both deal with the Darkhold. Ben also likes Agatha All Along.
Book Club
The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2148). The Pit and the Pendulum, Edgar Allan Poe’s agonizing tale of terror and suspense, was first published in 1842. One of Poe’s many horror stories, The Pit and the Pendulum became famous for its depiction of pure dread. None of us had read this before. Devon was surprised the main character survived. We get side tracked by the Simpsons but eventually talk about the story. Also, “Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!” Were we actually horrified reading this story? What was the inspiration for writing this story?
The Poet and the Pendulum by Nightwish. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKUS2k35cGQ&ab_channel=_Stargazer_)
The Inquisitor by Kamelot. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaKRRGMUCwg&ab_channel=Khan%2CKamelot%26ARKVideos)
Next Week: E. M. Forster, The Machine Stops (https://www.cs.ucdavis.edu/~koehl/Teaching/ECS188/PDF_files/Machine_stops.pdf). Is this the most prophetic story of the twentieth century? Published in 1909 and showing Forster’s disdain for technological advancement and the way it would make our lives poorer, this story attracted plenty of new readers in 2020 when so many people’s lives ‘went virtual’.
This episode contains: The three spoopiest hosts on this podcast enter the month of October being just... fine? Maybe overwhelmed? Ben was a groomsman for a fancy wedding (or at least a reception, it's a long story) this last weekend, and can we just pause to say how awesome it is that people can keep a friendship alive over decades? Steven's wife is going on a wild bachelorette party cruise and it sounds like A LOT. Meanwhile, we remember the best dog, Charlie, who Steven bid farewell to last Monday. Devon has been just doing his best, nothing to report.
This week in space! AI helps distinguish dark matter from cosmic noise. Only... it doesn't yet? Dark matter, the invisible force holding the universe together, is a subject of intense research. It makes up around 85% of all matter and 27% of the universe's contents. Despite decades of research, the true nature of dark matter remains a mystery. Some scientists believe that dark matter particles may occasionally interact, a phenomenon known as self-interaction. Detecting these interactions would provide crucial insights into dark matter's properties. However, distinguishing between dark matter self-interactions and active galactic nuclei (AGN) feedback has been a challenge. Astronomer David Harvey has developed a deep-learning algorithm called Inception, which can untangle complex signals and differentiate between dark matter self-interactions and AGN feedback. Inception achieved an impressive accuracy of 80% under ideal conditions (as in, pre-generated image data, not real photos), indicating its adaptability and reliability for future dark matter research. This AI-based approach could significantly impact our understanding of dark matter and help scientists analyze massive amounts of data from space.
Shadows searching in the night. Let Ben introduce you to Shade Map, a layer on top of Google Maps that lets you visualize shade anywhere in the world, down to the building level, at any date and time of day. It even lets you add buildings so you can visualize what a new construction project will do to the buildings and areas around it. There’s a slider that lets you change the time, and the shadows update in real time. Ben recommends using this on desktop. Also, hat tip to Tom for letting us know about Steam and Valve's battle against arbitration fees.
It's not a phase! Research reveals reality of Ice Age teen puberty. New research published in the Journal of Human Evolution reveals that Ice Age teens from 25,000 years ago went through similar puberty stages as modern-day adolescents. Researchers found evidence of puberty stages in the bones of 13 ancient humans between 10 and 20 years old. The study, led by University of Victoria paleoanthropologist April Nowell, found specific markers in the bones that allowed them to assess the progress of adolescence. The technique developed by lead author Mary Lewis from the University of Reading evaluates the mineralization of canines and maturation of bones to identify the stage of puberty reached by the individual at their time of death. The research helps to humanize these teens in a way that simply studying stone tools cannot. Researchers from six institutions collaborated internationally to develop this body of knowledge. This reminds Ben of Saffron teaching neanderthals Cockney slang in episode seven of the Time Bandits television show. Devon informs Ben that Time Bandits didn't get renewed, and the world became a darker place.
Book Club: Next week, we'll be reading some classic horror with Edgar Allen Poe's The Pit and the Pendulum. Get in the spirit with this live performance of The Poet and the Pendulum by Nightwish, one of Devon's favorite songs by that band.
This week, it's time to discuss The Remedy by Adam Haslett from the Dark Corners collection. It's so well written! Well, until the ending, that is. Spoiler alert: we did not like this one, so much so that we're going to take a break from these Amazon originals for at least a week. Oh, and find out what you call a werewolf with a YouTube channel.
This episode contains: Your usual hosts are back at it again, diving into personal updates and some wild topics! Ben is at capacity, juggling directing and editing a school fundraiser ad. Meanwhile, Steven is busy dog-sitting and catching up on Agatha All Along and The Penguin. Ben also shares that his old cat has been diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Devon, well, he’s keeping quiet this week.
The Ultimate Slap Bet: Steven introduces us to the world of slap fighting! We discuss the rise of slap competitions and how it ties into this recent scientific study and the rules from the Power Slap League. Plus, a quick throwback to the chaotic days of Jackass—because who can forget?
PS5 Nostalgia: Ben takes us on a trip down memory lane with the PlayStation exclusive Astro Bot. It’s a love letter to 30 years of PlayStation history, and you can check it out here.
Book Club: We’re prepping for next week’s read, The Remedy from the Dark Corners collection. But first, let’s talk mini-golf! We review the new Walkabout Mini Golf Mars course and its unique sci-fi theme. From eerie, isolated landscapes to hints of past civilizations, it’s inspired by the 1972 classic Silent Running. You can read more about the course here.
Dungeon Crawler Carl: Devon is loving Dungeon Crawler Carl, while Steven’s love for the book is still going strong. Ben hasn’t had the chance to dive back into it yet, but we’ll keep him in the loop!
That’s it for this week! Don’t forget to grab a copy of The Remedy for next week’s book club discussion.
This episode contains: It’s an all new episode featuring your usual hosts! We discuss reading the “fine print” and service agreements, which reminds us of the story about Disney using it’s Disney Plus agreement to defendant again a wrongful death claim that occurred at one of their parks. Ben went to San Deigo for a “not a bachelor party.” Ben is still tired from the trip. Devon has done nothing. Steven’s dog, Charlie, has IVDD (Intervertebral disc disease for dogs) and has to be contained for three weeks, hopefully helping him regain the use of his hind legs. This is common in “long dogs.”
This Week in Space: 'Spiders on Mars' fully awakened on Earth for 1st time — and scientists are shrieking with joy. Researchers have recreated the bizarre spider-like features seen on the surface of Mars for the first time ever. The breakthrough could help unravel further mysteries surrounding the static Martian arachnids.
https://www.livescience.com/space/mars/spiders-on-mars-fully-awakened-on-earth-for-1st-time-and-scientists-are-shrieking-with-joy
Book Review: Steven read Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. He is very excited to talk about this book. He listened to it rather than read it. Even Steven’s wife loved the book. This is part of the new LitRPG genre. Ready Player One is an example of this genre. Dungeon Crawler Carl scratched all of Steven’s itches. He describes the book as Ready Player One meets The Bobiverse meets The Hunger Games. Even non gamers will enjoy this book! It’s safe to say Steven LOVED THIS BOOK, HE WANTS TO MARRY IT!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56791389-dungeon-crawler-carl
Book Club: We continue the series with The Pit and the Box, part 2 of The Boy in the Iron Box by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. We would rather talk about anything else than this story. We eventually get the story and agree that there’s not much there there. A character finds the titular boy in the box and standard horror stuff ensues. Steven makes a motion to not finish this story. The motion passes.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CNYG9SR8
Next week we will be reviewing Mars Gardens in Walkabout Mini Golf.
https://www.mightycoconut.com/blog/mars-field-notes
Ben then leaves the podcast to work and Steven and Devon talk way too much about politics.
This episode contains: Devon contemplates the endless debate over his name and how it's pronounced. Is it Devon? Devin? Or maybe Devawwwwn? Rembember Final Destination and the infamous log scene? Emergency 911 and rebars? These have left an indelible mark on how millenials drive on the freeway. Ben shares how The Blair Witch Project made him a skeptic of everything he sees in media. Meanwhile, Star Wars Outlaws is still… fine.
We brainstorm inspiration for Shatterpoint terrain. Wouldn’t it be crazy to play as the Sarlacc Pit?
Exciting news for music lovers: Linkin Park is back with a new album and single featuring a fresh lineup!
👉 Watch the Linkin Park: FROM ZERO Livestream
Tech Talk: Future or Now?
Ben talks accessibility and how Apple’s Personal Voice can preserve your voice using on-device machine learning. This feature is game-changing for people at risk of voice loss. It’s private, secure, and allows users to communicate via Live Speech on their Apple devices. Also, the film Taika Waititi made about the feature ("The Lost Voice") makes Ben feel ALL THE FEELS.
👉 Learn more about Personal Voice
Devon gives a thumbs-down review of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Too many underdeveloped ideas. He also shares his disappointment with The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey. Not exactly his cup of tea.
It puts the Doritos on its skin: Scientists make tissue of living animals see-through. Weird science this week from Steven. In a pioneering new study from the University of Texas at Dallas, researchers made the skin on the skulls and abdomens of live mice transparent by applying to the areas a mixture of water and a common yellow food coloring called tartrazine.
👉 Doritos science explained
Also, a warm welcome to our new patron Johnny, and thanks to Josh for his comments on last week’s episode!
Book Club
This week we read Falling Down (The Boy in the Iron Box Book 1) by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. We got into the gritty details of the story, but had mixed feelings about Ralph Ineson’s incomprehensible gravelly narration.
👉 Amazon link to Falling Down 👉 Goodreads link to Falling Down
Next week, we’re tackling The Pit and the Box, part 2 of The Boy in the Iron Box series.
👉 Grab the next book here
This episode contains: All three mighty hosts are here this week. Devon shares that a family is moving in next door. He wonders if they should build a ping-pong fence to create a “play-berhood.” Steven updates us on his mini painting projects and talks about getting life back on track. Ben recounts the long journey of reclaiming space on macOS and solving the wallpaper bug. He mentions tools like Wallpaper Engine and Fences by Stardock.
Future or Now?
Let’s Get Skeptical: Ben discusses the rise of AI-powered photo editing tools like the Pixel 9's Magic Editor, which can create highly realistic fake images. This technology challenges our assumptions about the authenticity of photographs.
Read more on The Verge
In related news, a lawyer used ChatGPT in federal court, with disastrous results.
Read more on Forbes
Steven talks about The Acolyte being canceled and shares his thoughts on how loud idiots should be ignored. He also gives early impressions of Star Wars Outlaws after playing 10-12 hours. It's an open-world game, but it lacks the strong hook found in Fallen Order.
Book Club:
We discuss I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison. This chilling short story explores a dystopian future where a supercomputer has destroyed humanity, save for five individuals it tortures eternally.
Goodreads
Comic Adaptation
Next week we are reading:
Falling Down (The Boy in the Iron Box Book 1) by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan.
Amazon Link
(this post created in large part by chat gpt and edited by Steven)
This episode contains: All three mighty hosts are here this week. Ben discusses an episode of Dear Hank and John podcast where it is theorized that sickness might eventually be a thing of the past. https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dear-hank-john
We discuss the statistics of life expectancy. Devon tells us that most humans who have ever been born did not live to be adults. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9Mb0cbDenA&t=636s
Steven is finally over Covid and has finished Delicious in Dungeon. Ben recommends the show Sunny on Apple TV + https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18070898/
Future or Now?
It’s longer Than You Think: Ben is speedrunning Lushfoil Photo Sim. This is a tranquil photography experience. Ben found some really cool stuff in the game.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1749860/Lushfoil_Photography_Sim/
Soilent AI is AI!: Researchers from Rice University have identified a significant risk in generative AI when models are trained on synthetic data over multiple generations, leading to a condition called "Model Autophagy Disorder" (MAD). Similar to a feedback loop, this disorder causes AI models to produce increasingly poor-quality outputs, losing diversity and reliability. The phenomenon is compared to mad cow disease, where a self-consuming process degrades the system. The study emphasizes the critical need for fresh, real data to sustain AI integrity and prevent the potential deterioration of internet-based systems.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/07/240730134759.htm
Alien: Romulus Devon gives his review of Alien: Romulus. Is it too “key jangly?” Devon notes that Prometheus was made even worse by having the character be scientists, which made their stupidity that much more unforgivable. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18412256/
Book Club
We discuss The Egg by Andy Weir. The Egg is a short story written by Andy Weir, his most popular, and follows a nameless 48-year-old man who discovers the "meaning of life" after he dies. The story is about "you" (in the second person), and God, who is "me" (in the first person). God says that you have been reincarnated many times before, and that you are soon to be reincarnated once more, leading to quite a few existential questions. This story did not feel any real revelation from this story. Ben doesn’t like reincarnation.
https://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17563539-the-egg?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=rFr9UzthWP&rank=1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6fcK_fRYaI
We discuss who everyone is the main character in their own story, which reminds Devon of the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.
https://www.thedictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/
Ben tells us about ZEN FLESH, ZEN BONES.
https://archive.org/details/ZenFleshZenBones
Next week we are reading I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/415459.I_Have_No_Mouth_I_Must_Scream
This episode contains: Steven’s out sick with COVID, so you get the other two hosts this week! Devon’s a Texan Who Likes Mexican Food, but TexMex is not the same as Californian Mexican food. TexMex loves to toss in queso, y Devon no quiero. Ben was annoyed at an impromptu Trump rally that gathered in the parking lot of the park the junior roller derby team was practicing. Guess it pays to have a killer soundsystem, because you can drown out chants of “FIGHT! FIGHT!” and “USA!” with Lady Gaga. Don’t be a drag, just be a queen. Devon reminds us that there is a difference between legitimate free speech and AMPLIFIED speech. Outside of Disneyland, there’s some real annoying people shouting obscenities on megaphones, and even though they’re there for “religious reasons” they really gotta tone down their harsh language around the children. What jerks. Thanks Renee for your feedback on various topics including cold pizza, glitter, D23, and the Calm app. Devon weighs in on his experience with the Waking Up app and book (by Sam Harris), and he and Ben chat about the intentions behind meditation practices.
Future or Now?
AI is coming for our jobs: A mayoral candidate's proposal to let an AI bot run Wyoming's capital city. Victor Miller is running for mayor of Cheyenne, Wyoming on a platform of letting an AI bot named "VIC" run the city. Miller believes AI would be more objective and efficient than a human mayor. Miller's campaign has faced challenges from state officials and tech companies like OpenAI, who have tried to shut down his use of AI. The implications of an AI bot running a city have raised concerns among experts, but Miller believes it represents the future of government.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/08/19/artificial-intelligence-mayor-cheyenne-vic/
Book Club is on hiatus for the week.
Next week: The Egg by Andy Weir
https://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
This episode contains: The three of us start out this episode with a chat regarding the complicated relations between ourselves and leftover pizza. Steven has been enjoying Delicious in Dungeon and pitches it to Devon. Ben is on the hunt for the Perseids meteor shower. Steven holds back his excitement for Skeleton Crew and the new trailer from D23. Ben has been enjoying TIme Bandits, both old and new.
Future or Now?
Stop Making Fun of Me! ChatGPT unexpectedly began speaking in a user's cloned voice during testing. OpenAI's GPT-4o AI model unexpectedly imitated users' voices without permission, highlighting the complexity of safely managing voice synthesis. OpenAI has implemented safeguards, including an output classifier, to prevent unauthorized voice generation. The model can synthesize any voice from a short clip, posing significant security risks. Despite restrictions, similar voice-cloning technologies are expected to become widely available soon.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2024/08/chatgpt-unexpectedly-began-speaking-in-a-users-cloned-voice-during-testing/
Oops, All Universe: Scientists Discovered Something Kinda Alarming: The Universe Shouldn't Actually Exist. The universe is permeated by the Higgs field, which gives everything its mass. But the Higgs field isn't entirely stable, and if it were to "bubble," it would change reality to such a degree that everything in that "bubble" would cease to exist. The Higgs field could theoretically change to a lower energy state, creating "bubbles" that would dramatically alter the laws of physics. According to the researchers, primordial black holes that formed in the early universe should have triggered the "bubbling" of the Higgs field to such a degree that nothing should have ever been able to form. Primordial black holes should have caused the Higgs field to "bubble" in a way that would have prevented the universe from existing as we know it. The researchers propose two possibilities: either the models of primordial black holes are wrong, or there is some unknown physics about the Higgs field that we are missing.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/deep-space/a61816635/science-suggests-universe-shouldnt-exist/
This Week in Space: Scientists lay out revolutionary method to warm Mars. Researchers have proposed a revolutionary method to warm Mars by over 50°F, making it suitable for microbial life. This new method, using engineered dust particles - or really GLITTER (and Steven hates glitter) - released to the atmosphere, could potentially warm the Red Planet by more than 50 degrees Fahrenheit, to temperatures suitable for microbial life - a crucial first step towards making Mars habitable. The proposed method is over 5,000 times more efficient than previous schemes to globally warm Mars.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/08/240807225455.htm
Book Club
This week: The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VDJBGRY?storeType=ebooks
Steven puts it all out there and gives so much praise for this short story it's kind of embarassing. Devon and Ben both also enjoyed the story, but to a lesser degree. We cover the basic plot and some theories that we came up with while reading / listening. We all agree it's the sort of story that works once, additional read-throughs may not reveal any more insight. Ben says the middle might overstay it's welcome, but the end was worth it. Is ______ supposed to be our name? The audio version says "X" according to Devon.
Next week: The Egg by Andy Weir
https://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
Ben has been irritable as of late, we talk about why. This podcast is a safe space. We end up chatting a bit about meditation and how to get into it, if you should us an app and a podcast recomendation.
This episode contains: We’re joined by patron, friend of the show, and high school classmate of Steven and Devon: Renee! She went to Comic-Con, so we think she’s cool. Renee and Devon were in the smart class together. Turns out all of us were in the GATE program. We ask her how we can improve the podcast, but it turns out it’s already perfect. Steven and Ben went to The Ravine, a local water park, with their kids. Getting a cabana is a must. Ben has season tickets and considers using lunch time to slip away to the water park. Ben takes some time to reminisce about his departed father with a bike ride. Devon tells us about Glamping at Lake Tyler. Ben’s son Flint hates camping, it’s “the worst.” Devon is also going to stay in a tree house. Renee was traumatized by Steven’s boating/spider story from a prior episode. This concludes the camping portion of the podcast.
What We Have For You Today:
Hundreds of Beavers: Ben then brings us the black and white silent comedy movie: Hundreds of Beavers. A must-watch movie: “The second highest-rated film on Letterboxd at the halfway point of 2024 is a black-and-white silent comedy made for just $150,000.” Imagine Buster Keaton, Looney Tunes, and The Legend of Zelda thrown in a blender, but even better. The movie is a #ShowYourWork dream: Here’s the behind-the-scenes of how they made it https://letterboxd.com/crew/story/how-they-made-hundreds-of-beavers-exclusive/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email (lo-fi with lots and lots of After Effects), an epic list of movies that inspired the film https://letterboxd.com/100sofbeavers/list/movies-that-inspired-hundreds-of-beavers/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email, and an interview with the filmmaking team, who say, “We believe in small and slow” https://filmmakermagazine.com/126576-interview-mike-cheslik-ryland-brockton-cole-tews-hundreds-of-beavers/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email. Four people over 12 weeks can make a more interesting film than an indie trying to emulate a Hollywood look and only having 10 days.”
Ben then asks the age-old question: Godfather Part I v. The Bear Season 3? Ben watched The Godfather for the first time. Renee recommends the show The Offer about the making of The Godfather. Renee then reveals that she is not sure about the Fantastic 4 comics or movies. Steven is optimistic about the coming MCU Fantastic 4: First Steps.
House of the Dragon: We all finished this season of House of the Dragon. Devon gives us a rant about how the botched ending of Game of Thrones is even worse now given how important HOTD makes The Song of Ice and Fire. Ben didn’t fully buy Daemon’s character arc this season. Ben and Devon would like HOTD to be more removed from Game of Thrones. We still all liked the season. Renee schools us on dragons v. wyverns.
San Diego Comic Con 2024: We then interview Renee about San Diego Comic-Con. She, her daughters, and mother all dressed as Leia the last couple years. This year they went as characters from Percy Jackson, and X-Men '97 characters. Renee previously got a pic with Mark Hamil and wants a pic with Hayden Christensen (as various Leia incarnations). Renee explains how she got into cosplay and how she made some of her costumes. She liked using her daughter as a prop when she was a baby. She also makes clothes. She learned a lot by making Jane Foster’s Mighty Thor costume for her daughter. We then learn about the mechanics of the Con and off-site events. Marvel nerds will wait a long time for a panel, a long time. Artist panels are fun and don’t have as long as a wait. Renee’s daughter got to ask a question at the Percy Jackson panel. Renee recommends the off-site bar Mothership, the coolest bar ever! https://mothershiptrip.com/
The only Comic-Con Ben went to was in 1992, which was where they premiered Batman The Animated Series. Ben found some interesting videos of the 1992 San Deigo Comic-Con: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ek3-VofsGtQ&ab_channel=CBS8SanDiego https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPwQKn9ZfLI&ab_channel=retrogamer
Renee has also gone to Fan Expo and Condor. Also, The Santa Maria Inn had a come kind of Con when Renee was a kid. Ben has also been to a lot of Star Trek conventions, one with Devon. Ben and Devon also went to the Star Trek Experience in Vegas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8tEbC5JUu0&ab_channel=DannysonicPuppy
According to Steven, the new Batman show, Batman: The Caped Crusader, is a must watch. You can find it on Amazon Prime Video. It’s rated TV Y7 but it feels like it’s for adults.
You can find Renee on Instagram as @vongeekery, visit her esty store too: https://www.etsy.com/shop/VonGeekery/
Book Club: Next week: The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VDJBGRY?storeType=ebooks
This episode contains: The hosts are all here this week, and Steven and Ben met up with listener Hank and field-adjacent correspondent Matt to play Arcs. Spoiler alert: it was fun. Ben finally bought Super Mario Wonder and it is so much better than the “creatively bankrupt” New Super Mario Bros. series of games.
“What do you have for me today?” or “Future or Now”. I don’t know/don’t care anymore.
Brain Matters: I think therefore I am.
Devon reviews Consciousness Explained, a 1991 book by the American philosopher Daniel Dennett, in which the author offers an account of how consciousness arises from interaction of physical and cognitive processes in the brain. Dennett describes consciousness as an account of the various calculations occurring in the brain at close to the same time. He compares consciousness to an academic paper that is being developed or edited in the hands of multiple people at one time, the “multiple drafts” theory of consciousness.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consciousness_Explained
https://theness.com/neurologicablog/chalmers-dennett-and-the-hard-problem-of-consciousness/
Spicyness, the final frontier
Astronauts' perception of flavor changes in the space environment of the International Space Station (ISS). Can we duplicate this experience in VR? Astronauts report that food tastes less flavorful in space, leading them to add more spices and sauces. The study found that some aromas like almonds and vanilla seem more intense in a simulated space environment, while others like lemon are unaffected. The researchers suspect the chemical composition of certain flavors, like the sweet compound benzaldehyde, may influence how they are perceived in a space-like environment.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/07/astronauts-find-their-tastes-dulled-and-a-vr-iss-hints-at-why/
The multiverse is unending
Steven gives a spoiler-free review of Deadpool and Wolverine, and then discusses ALL the spoilers coming out of San Diego Comic Con for the MCU.
Book Club
In two weeks: The Last Conversation by Paul Tremblay
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VDJBGRY
Next week: an interview with listener/patron Renee, covering her experience at San Diego Comic Con!
This week:
Clap Back by Nalo Hopkinson
A real banger of a story that’s not without it’s flaws, but boy is this a must-read.
https://www.amazon.com/Clap-Back-Black-Stars-Hopkinson-ebook/dp/B098QNLW6D
This episode contains: Steven, Devon and Ben are all raring to go this episode. Steven talks about a power and internet outtage that almost kept our dear listeners from hearing his sweet, sweet voice. We end up chatting about house batteries, electric vehicles, generators, and how power flows through a power grid. Steven was also able to con his wife into playing Arcs, and she had some valid opinions. Ben says, "There are no good hands in Arcs" and he's not wrong. Ben's mom visited him for a few days (Hi Martha!) and he played tourist. They watched The Goonies in the theater, visited Hearst Castle and watched Twister. Devon was Devon, this whole time.
Future or Now
I can pay ten bucks to see Kevin Costner drink his own urine? Where do I sign up?: Scientists built real-life "stillsuit" to recycle astronaut urine on space walks. We talk about what astronauts do now on space walks, and to what extent this "stillsuit" will be helpful. Steven goes on a tangent about smells and coffee and drinking filtered urine.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/07/scientists-built-real-life-stillsuit-to-recycle-astronaut-urine-on-space-walks/
Devon's TV corner: Devon gives us a mini-review on the 4th season of The Boys. He talks about the "controversy" of the show thinly veiled attacked on the right, and how Vought = Fox News. It's silly that people didn't realize that The Boys has always been satire. Devon also watched the second season of Star Trek: Prodigy and he and Ben have thoughtful discussions about characters that Steven doesn't know. They focus on Chakotay and Robert Beltran. Steven tags onto Devon's tv reviews to give a micro-review on The Acolyte which we'll dive into more on a future episode.
Book Club
Next Week: "Clap Back" by Nalo Hopkinson
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098QNLW6D
This Week: "Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather" by Sarah Pinsker
https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/where-oaken-hearts-do-gather/
We have quite the discussion this week, mostly stemming from the format of this story. Ben had a strong reaction to the format (it disagrees with him). Steven enjoyed the mystery and parallel stories being told. Devon chimes in about folk song covers and references Metallica and Whiskey in the Jar and Mary of the Wild Moor by The Louvin Brothers. Ben is reminded of "Little Brother" by Corey Doctorow https://craphound.com/littlebrother/download/
In the future we may visit some horror short stories as requested by a listener (Thanks Tom!).
This episode contains: All three of our intrepid hosts are back for this all new episode! Ben is drinking decaf tea while the rest of drink coffee (“It’s tea time!”). Devon was out of town during Hurricane Beryl. Devon tells us about his family trip to California Adventure. His youngest did not like the Cars ride. Both of his kids really liked Sorin’. Steven and Ben played Arcs, a game about interstellar civilizations. It was a bit of a hard sell but Ben finally came around and enjoyed it. Pre-order here: https://ledergames.com/products/arcs Ben has finished Prodigy Season 2. It’s the Star Trek Legacy show we may never get. Everyone needs to watch the entire season to ensure Netflix makes another season. Prodigy does for Star Trek what The Clone Wars did for Star Wars. We have some spoilers for Season 2 of Star Trek: Prodigy.
Trailer Overload: Steven made us watch a lot of trailers for new TV shows and movies. We’re surprised they’re still making Futurama. The actors are sounding a bit old. The Dune show looks cool. Ben has finally seen Dune Part II but Steven has not (and he’s still on the show for some reason). Will a new Time Bandits capture the charm of the original? We’re looking forward to more Severance. Captain America: Brave New World is also a movie that is coming out. Apparently it will tie together some loose threads in the MCU. Harris Ford as Red Hulk? Okay. More MCU: Agatha All Along. Steven and Ben are going to give it a shot.
Futurama Season 12: https://youtu.be/PBXlbrZj1sY?si=u1Vv9nJ9L_qfHzvA
DUNE: Prophecy https://youtu.be/EEoQAoEGLhw?si=695gZywFdpDfeMpf
Time Bandits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCA9jpc4R74
Severance Season 2 https://youtu.be/ULC9M8CCn28?si=-S6I1XaRPShKXczR
Captain America: Brave New World https://youtu.be/O_A8HdCDaWM?si=ONX8KdL7lqPfggak
Agatha All Along: https://youtu.be/ARulRbzM7Jw?si=oqgOqTDfLobzd4WS
Book Club: For this week’s book club we read All Systems Red: The Murderbot Diaries (The Murderbot Diaries, 1) https://www.amazon.com/All-Systems-Red-Murderbot-Diaries/dp/0765397536 We enjoyed it and want to read more about Murderbot (this is one of seven). The human characters were a little hard to remember and the action was confusing. But that might just be a Steven problem.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32758901-all-systems-red?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=RRNB79pgDU&rank=1
Next week we are reading: 2021 Nebula Award winner, Best Short Story in 2021: “Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather”
https://www.uncannymagazine.com/article/where-oaken-hearts-do-gather/
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are your hosts this week, and you know what that means... WE TALK VIDEOGAMES! Well, later we talk videogames. First, are y'all handling these high temps this summer alright? In our little California burg, we hit 112 degrees Fahrenheit a couple days ago. Steven is really enjoying the benefits of his home's heat pump. Happy Fourth of July to all the Americans listening, and on the fourth, we had a Devon sighting! It was kinda like bigfoot (the dude has grown quite a beard). Then Ben slept over at Steven's place that night, where we PLAYED VIDEOGAMES! But we're not talking about that yet. Instead it's time for our old segment, currently rebranded as...
Future or Now
Smack my Star Trek up: Ben reviews the first eight episodes of Star Trek: Prodigy. It's really, seriously, good. Ben's probably not going to be able to shut up about it for several episodes, so strap in. Prodigy just had it's second season drop in one fell swoop on Netflix on Monday, and this is the first of the new Trek shows Ben's binged for his first watch. The plucky kids are now Starfleet Academy hopefuls, and through their well-meaning shenanigans, they get stuck in a paradox. Thankfully the shuttle they stole has a shield that protects from time paradoxes! It's time to invert your warp bubble and WATCH THE SHOW. It's kinda like the greatest hits of Star Trek, but also like Back to the Future Part 2. Oh, and they have a Cetacean Ops on the Voyager-A. What's not to love?
https://trekmovie.com/2024/07/06/star-trek-prodigy-season-2-hits-netflix-top-10-internationally-discovery-season-5-on-nielsen-top-10/
Sleep on this: Steven reviews Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver. It's not worth it, says Steven. How could a movie this boring get made?
Video Game Extravaganza: The boyz come back from the mid-pod break and talk about the games you should be playing, specifically the games you should be playing with friends who are spending the night. There's Turbo Golf Racing, You Suck at Parking, and ye olde Geometry Wars 2. Ben was geeking out about how his Steam Deck could hold it’s own in competitive multiplayer games against an Xbox Series X. It’s his Game Big Boy (come after us, Nintendo). And if you're ready for some single player fun, Humanity is an incredible puzzler, and Cyberpunk 2077 is still as beautiful a mess as it's been, but even better now.
https://isthereanydeal.com/game/turbo-golf-racing/info/
https://isthereanydeal.com/game/you-suck-at-parking-complete-edition/info/
https://isthereanydeal.com/game/humanity--1/info/
This episode contains: We three hosts are here! Ben’s wife is having another birthday, but don’t worry it’s not 40 gifts over 40 days all over again. She wants to have a “Fat Girl Sunday” (not a Sundae) where she eats and drinks with friends, super chill. Ben’s happy to be a cabana boy for it. Devon starts talking about food and now we’re hungry... but I guess we have to record a podcast! Steven’s youngest had her birthday party, and I guess they’re not little kids any more. What will you miss when you don’t have little kids around? Birthdays during the summer are tough, but around our parts, Hops Bounce House has got you covered (what’s up Hops!). Steven’s got a secret 3d printing project (TELL US STEVEN), but instead of talking about secrets Steven’s 3d printed some props for some Ahsoka cosplay, and I guess he’s watching Black Sails. Ben makes a clever Starz joke. Ben and Devon wax poetic about One Piece (is it really just Farscape?). Ben prefers the anime of One Piece to the live action, though he’s watched 60 episodes of the anime and 1 episode of the adaptation... maybe a larger sample size is needed. Ben’s super excited for season 2 of Star Trek: Prodigy on Netflix this week.
https://trekmovie.com/2024/06/30/catch-up-on-star-trek-prodigy-with-season-1-recap-and-season-2-preview/
Let’s go way back: The Acolyte episodes 1-5. Steven’s gotta talk about Star Wars, and we’re here for it. There was a great Red Letter Media review about The Acolyte’s first five episodes and you should watch it... maybe after you finish this episode. After watching that Red Letter Media review, Devon’s intrigued and might actually watch... Farscape (DO IT! but wasn’t this about The Acolyte?). The Acolyte is something new for Star Wars, which can be rare in this day and age. Forget the haters. Live long and prosper.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-6WBWmoVEY
Multiverse of Madness: In defense of Madame Web. Imagine the Spiderverse with dialogue written by Tommy Wiseau, which actually isn’t that bad, especially when compared with other superhero stinkers (looking at you every Fantastic Four film so far). Ben and his eleven year old really enjoyed the campiness of Madame Web, and we’re kinda bummed they’re not gonna make the sequels they were totally setting up.
Book Club: The Black Pages by Nnedi Okorafor (part of Amazon’s Black Stars collection of scifi short stories). A solid 4 out of 4 stars this week, but was it scifi? Or was it modern mythology? A djinn is reborn into an iPad app after her book is burned in an al-Qaeda raid on an ancient library, and the boy carrying the iPad is now way in over his head. This story has got so much going for it in 31 pages, and y’all should read it if you haven’t already.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098T11H5Qhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58647675-the-black-pages
In two weeks, Book Club will return with a longer novella. We’ll be reading All Systems Red: The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells.
https://www.amazon.com/All-Systems-Red-Murderbot-Diaries/dp/0765397536
This episode contains: Steven, Ben and Devon are all here and accounted for. Steven is trying to not be a bump on a log and is attempting to use his Fitness+ plan to get fit. We get sidetracked by talking about the "runner's high" but don't get too far into it. Ben had a birthday! Happy Birthday Ben! He watched Inside Out 2 and we all give our opinions on the movie. Devon has been playing piano and talks about the Simply Piano app. Of note: Ben doesn't discriminate with music. Also, the renowned athiest Richard Dawkins coined the term "meme" and it isn't quite used as intended.
https://marathonhandbook.com/is-runners-high-real/
https://www.hellosimply.com/simply-piano
Your Scientists Were So Preoccupied With Whether Or Not They Could, They Didn’t Stop To Think If They Should: llama.tif is a font file that contains a large language model. You can use it to generate text like a chatbot (in any app that uses the HardBuzz software). Who is this for? Why does it exist? We discuss.
https://fuglede.github.io/llama.ttf/
This Week in Space: How did a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way come to be? Crater 2, located approximately 380,000 light years from Earth, is one of the largest satellite galaxies of the Milky Way. How this galaxy originated remains unclear. A team of physicists now offers an explanation. Devon does his best to explain Dark Matter and Dark Energy. He also talks about 'A Universe From Nothing' by Lawrence M. Krauss. This leads to chatting about another book: 'Raising Freethinkers' by Dale McGowan, Molleen Matsumura, Amanda Metskas and Jan Devor, which has guidelines for how to raise children to think beyond religion.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/06/240611130335.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Universe_from_Nothing
https://archive.org/details/raisingfreethink00mcgo_0
Book Club: These Alien Skies by C.T. Rwizi (part of the Black Stars collection). Accidents happen in the strange realms of the African Union system. One of them sends two humans to the far side of a star gate in a thrilling short story of hope, survival, and new dimensions. We chat about this short story, but honestly, our talk is kinda boring. This was a solid story and we all agree that we enjoyed it.
Next week we are reading The Black Pages by Nnedi Okorafor (part of the Black Stars collection).
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098QRGYHR?ref_=dbs_m_aos_rwt_calw_tkin_3&storeType=ebooks
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098T11H5Q?ref=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_H4Y39S68BAPVJJKQGFZH&ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_H4Y39S68BAPVJJKQGFZH&social_share=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_dp_H4Y39S68BAPVJJKQGFZH
This episode contains: Ben and Devon are eventually joined by Steven on this all new episode. Devon saw Inside Out 2 with his kids for Father’s Day. Steven got some cool gifts then did nothing. Ben helped set up a booth at a Pride Festival and then he and his son played Star Trek: Elite Force II deathmatch. Steven and Ben discuss the pros and cons of the Apple Watch.
Great Balls of Fire: Pair plasmas found in deep space can now be generated in the lab. Researchers have experimentally generated high-density relativistic electron-positron pair-plasma beams by producing two to three orders of magnitude more pairs than previously reported.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/06/240613161155.htm
Duh Duh Dun Dun Duh Duh, Deck Of Boards!: Ben discusses the "Deck of Boards" system, which allows you to easily create custom boards for playing abstract strategy games like chess, checkers, and Go. The system uses magnetic backing and washers to create flexible boards that can be set up quickly. The author has used the Deck of Boards to play a variety of games, including Adere, Othello, Qawale, Tintas, and ZERTZ. The key benefits are the ease of setup and the ability to experiment with different board layouts.
https://www.ludism.org/ppwiki/
https://sites.google.com/view/singularitygames/modular-magnetic-boards?authuser=0#h.gxtnut7b1p9i
https://www.looneylabs.com/games/pyramid-arcade
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g90WbcBqsdI&ab_channel=BillMakingStuff
https://play.abstractplay.com/
Movie Review: Devon and Steven discuss Godzilla Minus One. Devon had an interesting experiencing watching the movie with multiple interruptions over three nights. Is it a prequal, sequel, or reboot?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godzilla_Minus_One
Book Club: Stories in the Sand by Griffin McElroy. "There was not a Jawa on Tatooine who did not believe wholeheartedly that there was more sand below them than there was sky above." Ben did not do his homework. Steven and Ben liked the new perspective from the Star Wars universe.
https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Stories_in_the_Sand
Next week: These Alien Skies (Black Stars) by C.T. Rwizi.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098QRGYHR?ref_=dbs_m_aos_rwt_calw_tkin_3&storeType=ebooks
This episode contains: Steven and Ben wonder if anyone is reading these notes… but regardless, they’re your hosts this week, just so you know what to expect. Can you believe that Rubik’s Cubes are back? Ben’s son has mastered ye olde cube of Rubick, but isn’t it kind of like magic on the surface? And don’t even get me started on juggling Rubik’s cubes, geesh! You should stop what you’re doing and watch Godzilla Minus One. It’s an incredible depiction of the horrors of WWII. Ben got frazzled preparing for a BBQ, and told a story where he was asked to rate an Instacart driver’s scorpion face tatoo, even though it was shedding. What does one do after a BBQ? Well, Ben and Steven met in person and had beers and played Kings in the Corner. Ben was hoping to maybe play some Buried Treasure, but Steven wouldn’t have it.
Rules for Kings in the Corner: https://www.wikihow.com/Play-Kings-Corners
Rules for Buried Treasure (it’s a great game, really!): https://www.denexa.com/blog/buried-treasure/
Science or Fiction:
Ruh Roh: As leaks on the space station worsen, there’s no clear plan to deal with them. NASA and Roscosmos are struggling to address worsening leaks in the International Space Station, specifically in the PrK module of the Russian segment. Despite attempts to mitigate the issue, the leaks persist. While not currently posing an existential threat to the station, the leaks are now classified as a high likelihood, high consequence risk. The aging infrastructure of the station, particularly the Zvezda module, and limited resources due to geopolitical tensions, are contributing to the problem. The situation raises concerns about the future of the space station, set to retire in 2030.
https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/06/on-the-space-station-band-aid-fixes-for-systemic-problems/
Roh My: Adobe Sparks Backlash Over AI Terms That Let It 'Access, View Your Content'.
Adobe's updated terms of use allow its machine learning tools to view and use customers' content to develop future Adobe products—but it's unclear exactly what that entails. This is a big deal for a company making enterprise-level and industry leading products, and may impact whether corporate customers that have NDAs should continue to use Photoshop. Adobe later says the controversy is a misunderstanding about its effort to crack down on child sexual abuse material, but that seems flimsy, especially as they didn’t lead with that when they pushed the new terms to customers. Steven remembers the beginnings of Photoshop, and it’s connection to Industrial Light and Magic through Executive Creative Director John Knoll, who codeveloped Photoshop with his brother Thomas.
https://www.pcmag.com/news/adobe-sparks-backlash-over-ai-terms-that-let-it-access-view-your-content
https://www.ilm.com/people/john-knoll/
Who is this show for? Everybody! Let’s go! Steven review the first two episodes of The Acolyte. Is it truly the first BRAND NEW Star Wars since A New Hope? The rumor mill is swirling with talks of a new Star Wars trilogy set 25,000 years before the Skywalker Saga. We are here for it. Maybe not Devon, but Star Wars still has the other two man-children who host this show in it’s thrall.
Book Club:
Next week we’ll be reading Stories in the sand, by Griffon McElroy, published in the Star Wars short story anthology From a Certain Point of View.
But this week, we read a different story from that same anthology: The Trigger by Kieron Gillen. The story follows Aphra as she encounters stormtroopers while scavenging on Dantooine. Aphra is sentenced to execution… how will she escape? The story explores Aphra's changing views on the Empire after the destruction of Alderaan. So cool to see another story following Doctor Aphra, and another story by Kieron Gillen. We like it. So will you.
https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Chelli_Lona_Aphra
This episode contains: All three of your favorite hosts join this episode. We talk about who we would be in the bat-universe, and none of the answers are great. Steven and Devon have been playing Sea of Thieves, and having a blast. Ben ran a poetry workshop for his sons school called "Lie, Steal and Spll rong" and his students had a blast. Are you having a blast? You should be.
General Concepts: Fine-tuned universe. Devon gets high concept on us, and tries to explain to us plebians about the constants of nature and how their values do not seem to be arbitrary. Is this intelligent design? We also touch on Stephen Baxter's Manifold:Time book, and the Three Body Problem books.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine-tuned_universe
It's Been A Long Road: Star Trek: Discovery series finale: Life, Itself. Ben recaps the finale of Star Trek Discovery (or Disco, as the cool kids call it). We talk Progenitors, links to Calypso and Starfleet Academy. Should the show have taken more chances?
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Life,_Itself_(episode)
https://trekmovie.com/2024/05/30/recap-review-star-trek-discovery-pulls-it-all-together-for-life-itself/
Book Club: Laina by Wil Wheaton in From A Certain Point of View. We recap this very short (micro?) story that was recommended to us by a Patron (Thanks Renee!). We talk about the lack of connections to other Star Wars stories, while still being firmly in-universe. We also mention the hidden tragedy in the story, and how war affects families.
Next week: The Trigger by Kieron Gillen (also in From A Certain Point of View)
This episode contains: We’re all here for this massive episode filled with science and science fiction. Steven made the mistake of getting married around Memorial Day and Devon made the mistake of being born on Memorial Day. Steven thinks about what it would be like if some of his closest friends never existed. Devon has no plans for his birthday. Ben wants to return to the sensory deprivation chamber. Steven is watching Fallout with his wife who is enjoying the show (“She said yes!”). Devon watched the super depressing, but really good movie Iron Claw and cleansed his palate with Seinfeld. Ben recommends everyone watch the insane game show: Game Changer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_Changer_(game_show)#Season_6_(2024)
Ben beat Wizorb. It’s $3 on Steam. It’s a brick breaker, which is when you have a paddle on the bottom of the screen and bounce a ball to break bricks. Tack balls are great for Wizorb.
https://wizorb.com/
Brain Matters: Devon read Determined: A Science of Life without Free Will by Robert Sapolsky a few months ago and finally talks about it. The point of the book is that no one has free will and how we should change society in light of that fact. Devon explains determinism and why we likely do not have free will. We also learn why quantum mechanics and chaos theory do not provide us with free will. We then discuss the ethical consequences of there being no free will.
https://www.amazon.com/Determined-Science-Life-without-Free/dp/0525560971
Conway’s Game of Life is an example of a determined outcome that is unpredictable.
https://playgameoflife.com/
For Shame: Spotify bricking Car Thing in December without refund. In 2021 Spotify released “The Car Thing” to put in your car to have streamlined access to Spotify. However, they are now discontinuing support for the devise and will not open it up to the 3rd party firmware. As Redditor Wemie1420 put it: “Doesn’t feel great that there is literally no alternative other than trashing it. Feels like we’re being punished for supporting them. Dissuades me from buying anything Spotify puts out in the future. I feel like there would be some way to approach this without being like, 'yeah we’re done. Just throw it out it’s a waste of money now.” Ben finds this UNACCEPTABLE!
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2024/05/pleas-for-open-sourcing-refunds-as-spotify-plans-to-brick-car-thing-devices/
Witness Me!: Steven watched Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Steven was surprised by the film and gives it a 4/4. Don’t expect a rehash of Mad Max: Fury Road. Although some of the special effects were questionable. Get his mostly non-spoiler review here!
Book Club: Chatbot Kingdom on Bad Space by Scott Base is a story of how humanity uploads to a simulation and the eventual decline and destruction of that simulation. We enjoyed the poetic narrative and chilling images. We discuss capitalism, utopia, the fermi paradox, and simulation theory.
https://www.badspacecomics.com/post/chatbot-kingdom
This episode contains: We three hosts are back at it again, and while it’s been the normal posting schedule recently, for us “It’s Been A While” (like two weeks) and Aaron Lewis of Staind gets a lot of shout outs. Steven won a game of Shatterpoint! And guess what? You too can kitbash like the pros and like Steven, if you’ve got access to a Dollar Store. Ben took his mom to the Wonderfront Music Festival for Mother’s Day and whoo boy was it amazing. Big highlights were Beck (as the headliner), The Roots (wow, WHAT A PERFORMANCE) and Steel Pulse. Speaking of The Roots, hat tip to Ben’s mom for recommending Questlove’s book “Music Is History”. Devon got a new iPhone, and in true Texas style he likes 'em big and thicc (it's a Pro Max model).
https://www.amazon.com/Music-History-Questlove/dp/1419751433
Don't vomit in the car, man! Apple announces new accessibility features, including Eye Tracking. Yes, Ben is an Apple fanboy, but hardware updates are boring. Like, how exciting is the fact that this slab of glass is thinner than ever before? However, software updates are king! Every June, Ben looks forward to WWDC (where they announce the features in new Apple operating systems), and in September when they come out it's like Ben gets to enjoy a birthday with a dear friend. Occasionally, Apple announces features outside of the typical June and September cycle, and recently they announced some pretty wild things coming to iOS 18, in celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day. The coolest of these, to Ben, is Vehicle Motion Cues. It will be able to help reduce motion sickness for passengers in moving vehicles. Research shows that motion sickness is commonly caused by a sensory conflict between what a person sees and what they feel, which can prevent some users from comfortably using devices or reading a book while riding in a moving vehicle. With Vehicle Motion Cues, animated dots on the edges of the screen represent changes in vehicle motion to help reduce sensory conflict without interfering with the main content. Using sensors built into iPhone and iPad, Vehicle Motion Cues recognizes when a user is in a moving vehicle and responds accordingly.
Apple announces new accessibility features, including Eye Tracking (Apple Newsroom)
Movie review: Kingdom of the PotA. Steven's a real Ape movie fan, whether new or old... except for maybe that one with Marky Mark? We're in the middle of a nine movie Ape-stravaganza. Steven loves how the new films are portraying ape society. Devon wonders if it's just an analogue for our modern human societies... like, is there an Ape Trump? Anyhow, in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Steven gives it a 3 out of 4 stars, noting the special effects are amazing.
Show update: Resident Alien. Devon is still really enjoying Resident Alien starring Alan Tudyk. Catch it on Netflix or Peacock.
Book club: The Jaunt by Stephen King. A truly chilling sci-fi story from the master of horror. We loved it. Steven connects some dots with this story and the Deadlights across many of Stephen King's stories.
The Jaunt (Goodreads) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNg27VrdW4M&pp=ygUvdGhlIGV4aXN0ZW50aWFsIGhvcnJvciBvZiBldGVybmFsIGNvbnNjaW91c25lc3M= Deadlights (Stephen King Wiki)
Next week in our book club: it's a short scifi horror webcomic:
Chatbot Kingdom by Scott Base, from his Bad Space Comics anthology series.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven have record so as to not ruin Mother's Day. We don't understand morning people, ugh. Especially when those morning people have too many mods in their video games. Steven has finally started painting his Star Wars Shatterpoint mini models. Ben talks about his kit-bashed X-wing pilot and Hello Kitty. We also somehow talk about Frisbee Golf (Frolf?) and Ultimate Frisbee. Ben gives us a review of the board game Azul.
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/230802/azul
This Week in Space: Possible atmosphere surrounding rocky exoplanet. Atmospheric gasses have been detected surrounding 55 Cancri e, a hot rocky exoplanet 41 light-years from Earth. This super earth should have a temperature around 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit, but instead it's only around 2,800 degrees. This is a very strong indication that energy is being distributed from the dayside to the nightside, most likely by a volatile-rich atmosphere.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/05/240508121127.htm
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/webb/nasas-webb-hints-at-possible-atmosphere-surrounding-rocky-exoplanet/
You want thingamabobs? I've got twenty: Underwater bicycle propels swimmers forward at superhuman speed. French company Seabike has developed a swimming device that uses your own leg power to accelerate you through the water. It is strapped to the waist, your feet find the pedals and the 15 in propeller help you glide through the water. Best of all, you can instantly charge the device by eating a hot dog. Ha.
https://newatlas.com/marine/seabike-swimming-propeller/
https://movesea.nl/products/water-bike-2-0-seabike
Science Fiction: No Devon this week, our book club will continue next week with Stephen King's The Jaunt. Out patrons recommend From a Certain Point of View, the Star Wars books that fill in some gaps. We chat quite a bit about X-Men '97 episode 9, and what it means for our favorite mutie (spoilers, Wolverine isn't dead!). Steven talks about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, an amazing story by original and new creators. Plus, a video game is coming to PS5??
This episode contains: All three hosts are here and ready to talk about sci-fi; no science, sorry. Devon tells us about a birthday party at a trampoline park and Steven played a bunch of Star Wars board games. Meanwhile Ben was recording his son’s performances on his iPhone. Ben’s also been playing digital pinball on a vertical monitor. Devon has finished the Three Body Problem on Netflix and was pleased that it included elements from the second and third book. He was worried they would only include the first book, which he feels is only the prologue to the real story. Steven gives us a rundown of Tales of The Empire on Disney Plus. This show provides backstory to characters in Ahsoka. Ben and Steven talk about X-Men ’97. If you’re not watching X-Men ’97, you should be! It includes wacky and wild, heart stopping moments. X-Men ’97 was written for us, but new viewers could still understand about 90% of the show.
Book Club: For this episode we read the short story “2043... a Merman I Should Turn to Be” by Nisi Shawl.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58647676-2043-a-merman-i-should-turn-to-be?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=UGvenc3N0K&rank=1
Devon made sure to read the short story for this episode and has read the story for the next episode. Devon thinks the story would be better as a digital short given the “off-the-wall” concept and action in the story. Ben reminds us that the story is connected to the Jimmy Hendrix song: 1983 A Merman I should Turn to Be. The story reminded Ben of Lovecraft Country. Ben liked the statement about enemies wanting the same things we do. Steven enjoyed the story but was confused on some of the elements. We have a discussion of who and how people would actually modify their bodies to live in different habitats. We note that adapting to new habitats is not easy and ponder what the first inhabitants of the Moon, Mars, etc. will face. We all give the story 3 out of 4 stars.
For the next episode we are reading The Jaunt by Stephen King.
https://archive.org/details/the-jaunt-stephen-king
Until next week, keep watching the skis! I mean skies.
This episode contains: These three fools are back at it this week. Steven’s had a rough go with little sleep, and he really enjoys the new videogame Manor Lords (are those two things related?). Ben’s super excited to play the new Venice course in Walkabout Minigolf. All we can say is “Good Job, Mighty Coconut!” Devon’s had a rough go of it too, what with dealing with extended family staying at his house. There’s also been car troubles. TEST THE BATTERY! FIX THE GARAGE DOOR! GET IN THE CHOPPA! Steven had a different experience this week: he attended the DisneyLand Star Wars night “Season of the Force.” It was AWESOME: so many Star Wars nerds everywhere, and since it was after hours, there was a much smaller park population. Goes to show you gotta give the mouse his due to be around Steven’s people: Star Wars people meets Disney people in a capitalist Venn diagram of scum and villainy. He also got to try out new food. The events were a little boring. I mean, the wrong era is represented in Galaxy’s Edge: Steven wishes it was Vader and the 501st instead of the “March of the First Order.” And then they changed Space Mountain to… HYPERSPACE MOUNTAIN??!?! Star Tours premiered some new characters and scenarios from Mandalorian and Ahsoka. And… well, Ben’s ready for May the Fourth with his Star Wars Day shirt: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1100663519/galaxy-far-away-sw-space-wars-inspired
Shock to the Heart: How Pluto got its heart. The mystery of how Pluto got a giant heart-shaped feature on its surface has finally been solved by an international team of astrophysicists. The team is the first to successfully reproduce the unusual shape with numerical simulations, attributing it to a giant and slow oblique-angle impact.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/04/240415163720.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tombaugh_Regio
Big Cheese: A vegan cheese beat dairy in a big competition. Then the plot curdled. A vegan cheese called Climax Blue was selected as a finalist for the prestigious Good Food Awards, shocking traditional cheesemakers. However, the cheese was later disqualified by the awards foundation, leading to a controversy over the definition of "cheese" and the role of plant-based alternatives.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2024/04/27/vegan-cheese-good-food-awards-climax
Book Club: Void by Veronica Roth (from The Far Reaches Collection).
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4QLYVHG TLDR, here are the ratings: Steven: 4/4 stars. The mystery allowed him to turn off his brain and just enjoy it. The characters were just right.
Ben: 3/4 stars. This could have been a decent pilot for a tv show on the Redundancy.
Devon: baseball analogies? Something about a bunt? Does that mean 1/4 stars? Devon compared it to other murder mysteries (Apples Never Fall, the works of Liane Moriarty) and this falls short.
Next week: 2043…(A Merman I Should Turn to Be) by Nisi Shawl, part of the Black Stars collection. Ben’s excited because the Audible version is read by LeVar Burton.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098QPR7QG
This episode contains: Everyone is here and accounted for, but earlier than usual. We talk about why. Steven played some Fallout Wasteland Warfare and watched the entire Amazon Prime Fallout series, because of course he did. Devon has been watching as well, Ben is still in progress. If you liked the show, you should play Fallout 4 (or maybe Fallout 76). Steven and Ben are watching X-Men '97 and if you're not, you're really missing out (Devon, looking at you). It's a mutant soap opera and we're here for it. Steven comments that it's not a Wolverine show, and that makes it different and makes it feel more X-Men-y. We chat about the Life/Death storyline in the show and in the comics. Ben is super excited to talk about Star Trek Discovery and it's latest time-loop episode.
Sweet Dreams Til Sunbeams Find You: 50 Years Later, This Apollo-Era Antenna Still Talks to Voyager 2. Deep Space Station 43 (DSS-43), an antenna located at the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex, has been instrumental in space exploration for over 50 years. It is responsible for over 40% of all data retrieved by celestial explorers and is the only antenna capable of communicating with Voyager 2. DSS-43 was honored with an IEEE Milestone in March during a ceremony held at the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/apollo-era-antenna-voyager-2
This Week In Space: Astrophysicist explains science behind once-in-a-lifetime nova outburst that will light up the sky this year. The nova will create a "new" star in the night sky, and will light up sometime between now and September. It will be as bright as the North Star. We also talk about what a Type 1a supernova is.
https://phys.org/news/2024-03-astrophysicist-science-lifetime-nova-outburst.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_Ia_supernova
Book Club: The Long Game (The Far Reaches Collection) by Ann Leckie.
https://www.amazon.com/Long-Game-Far-Reaches-collection-ebook/dp/B0C4QPCYZ4
Steven and Ben both read the short story, while Devon completely forgot. Boo Devon. Both Ben and Steven enjoyed the story, but had a few little nitpicks. We also talk about where this segment is going in the future.
Next week: Void (The Far Reaches Collection) by Veronia Roth.
This episode contains: It's our 501st extravaganza! Except due to technical difficulties, it’s not really. Steven tells us about the M. Night Shyamalan trilogy of Unbreakable, Split and Glass, which is now available on Netflix. Ben watched the classic 1991 Addams Family movie and Devon wonders if the new Munster’s movie by Rob Zombie is any good. It was panned when the trailer dropped but Devon thinks it actually looked kind of fun, and he’s a fan of Rob Zombie (more on that later). Devon also correctly identified MC Hammer as the artist who performed the theme for the Addams Family movie. Weird flex, but okay.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14813212/
Ben talks about Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire again, which is like speed racer meets The 5th Element. Ben’s taste is very specific for Ben.
https://www.disneyplus.com/en-gb/browse/entity-6b4f6834-0f00-4e3e-8a79-e5aa05ba0495?sharesource=iOS
Devon and his wife Jen started Dark City (on Tubi) but then switched to Fallout! Devon gives Fallout a positive review, despite some issues with inconsistent tone. Devon played the last three Fallout games to Steven’s surprise. Also, Deven gets cancelled for making fun of Polish people. We then lament the cancellation of Lower Decks, which will conclude with the upcoming 5th season. Will there be anymore animated comedy Trek?
https://trekmovie.com/2024/04/12/breaking-star-trek-strange-new-worlds-renewed-for-season-4-lower-decks-to-end-with-season-5/
Book Club: Just Out of Jupiter's Reach (The Far Reaches collection) by Nnedi Okorafor. This was different kind of story than we were used to. Steven drank the Kool-Aid and listened to this episode. Steven and Ben enjoyed it but don’t think it’s for everyone. Devon was lukewarm on it. We discuss the diverse cast of characters, new points of view and a different type of storytelling.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C4QR4SX7?ref_=dbs_m_aos_rwt_calw_tkin_4&storeType=ebooks
Next week we will be discussing the story The Long Game by Ann Leckie.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/151908306-the-long-game
We conclude with a discussion of Rob Zombie being a vegan, a non-drinker and a non-drug user. Apparently he’s just like that normally. We also try to analyze his recent album titles, such as The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy and The Electric Warlock Acid With Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser.
This episode contains: All three of your co-hosts are back to prove that 500 is just another number. We recorded on Rex Manning Day (you know, from Empire Records) and we missed First Contact Day (you know, from First Contact). Nobody remembers the Genetics Wars (you know, from nothing at all), or was it the Eugenics Wars? But you know what it really was today? It’s the Great American Eclipse! “I actually live in the path of totality” - Devon, and like several thousand more people. What kind of bedlam and absolute riot would there be at a ren faire during an eclipse? Shouts of “BURN THE WITCH” and whatever. Ben didn’t record last time because he had date night in the middle of Spring Break. Date night did NOT include seeing Dune, but did have terrible service, cold tacos, rain, and allergy medicine. Steven traveled to DisneyLand again (does he, like, live there now?) and there’s been some major updates to the tech in the queues for rides. Even with the new games you can play on your phone while waiting for the rides, the Peter Pan queue is just too skinny (it was made for people in the 1950s, and I guess we didn’t have an overweight problem in the US back then). Steven’s ready for war to never change, cause this upcoming week is the new Fallout TV show. You lucky dogs, reading this in the future… you’ve probably watched it all, haven’t you?
Death comes for us all and other light musings: What happens in the brain during the process of death? A woman named Patient One who suffered cardiac arrest became the subject of a study by neurologist Jimo Borjigin. When Patient One's brain activity was monitored after being taken off life support, unexpected electrical activity was still detected. Devon goes through the historical context on scientific interest in near-death experiences (NDEs) and consciousness after clinical death. More recent technological advances have allowed many more people to be resuscitated after cardiac arrest, providing new opportunities to study what happens in the brain during the dying process. Science may be on the verge of new discoveries about death, consciousness, and the relationship between the mind and brain.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/apr/02/new-science-of-death-brain-activity-consciousness-near-death-experience
This odd mindset shift regarding death could cure procrastination forever: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FC4jcrB4RHc
What does an eclipse sound like? Once upon a time, there was light in my life / But now there's only love in the dark. (Ben sings it!) An app called Eclipse Soundscapes was developed to help blind and visually impaired people experience solar eclipses. It provides audio descriptions of the eclipse's progress matched to the user's location, and also includes recorded sounds of animals reacting to the dimming light as if night has come, and a "rumble map" feature allowing users to feel the eclipse's stages through vibrations on their smartphone screen. The app aims to make the experience of the eclipse more accessible through multiple senses.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/what-does-eclipse-sound-180964203/
https://eclipsesoundscapes.org/
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/eclipse-soundscapes/id1262152991
Science fiction: Netflix’s Three Body Problem has dropped, and it’s so Game of Thrones in the best way. Ben presents Star Trek episodes 909 and 910. That’s right, Disco is back, baby! And it’s a wild Indiana Jones adventure this season, with strong ties back to a Next Generation episode that really should have been revisited a long time ago. Even though Devon and Steven poo-pooed Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire last week, Ben saw it, and he LIKED IT. Kinda weird Ben wasn’t excited about Ghostbusters: Afterlife before Steven gave his review of it all those years ago, and this time the tables have flipped. Kumail Nanjiani steals the show in the new Ghostbusters, but have you seen him in The Big Sick? Devon recommends. How do you like the new Science Faction website? It’s actually legible! https://sciencefactionpodcast.com/
Next week our book club will cover Just Out of Jupiter’s Reach (The Far Reaches collection) by Nnedi Okorafor. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C4QR4SX7
This episode contains: Devon is single dadding it, while Jen is in Buenos Aires. Devon also admits that he didn't "get" Starship Troopers. Steven is about to spend soooooo much money at Disney, again. The duo go on and on about Easter, it's kinda pathetic. But then Devon starts talking about Kafka and a life sized Tinker Bell. Either you get it or you don't.
Robot Overlords: Scientists have decided that robots need to smile and everything is going to end soon, so why not? They built a robot face, then gave it a mirror so it could learn how to make faces like a human. Then it was trained on people smiling and learned to detect when a human is going to smile about 840 milliseconds before they do, so that they can make a co-expression with them. They named this robot 'Emo'.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240327154854.htm
This Week in Space: Two of the Milky Way's earliest building blocks identified. Astronomers have identified what could be two of the Milky Way's earliest building blocks: Named 'Shakti' and 'Shiva', these appear to be the remnants of two galaxies that merged between 12 and 13 billion years ago with an early version of the Milky Way, contributing to our home galaxy's initial growth. It turns out that the metals in some stars were a dead giveaway that they were much older than the stars around them. As amazing as this is, Steven gets distracted by the name Shakti and immediatly stars talking about the Jedi Shak Ti.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240321155515.htm
Book Club: Falling Bodies (The Far Reaches Collection) by Rebecca Roanhorse.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4QJBCFV?ref_=k4w_ss_details_rh
Devon starts us out with a stellar summary of the story. We chat about the Genteel and make allusions to what they mean in the context of the story. Devon slips into some Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes to talk about the Cardassians and the Bajorans...and Nazis.
Next book we will cover is Just Out of Jupiter's Reach (The Far Reaches collection) by Nnedi Okorafor. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C4QR4SX7?ref_=dbs_m_aos_rwt_calw_tkin_4&storeType=ebooks
This episode contains: Ben and Steven brave the spring sunday morning to bring you a 100% pure podcast experience. Where is Devon? Who knows?! Ben attended a symposium for work, and his badge did not work. Total Benergy. There was a live coding excercise where taco emoji were added to a website. Good? Bad? Who knows?! Steven is gearing up for a Fallout Wasteland Warfare game day and he is super excited to use his Gunner faction to melt some heads. Steven also has a double Disney trip coming up soon. Again?! Why?! We also talk some X-Men '97 and Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire.
https://www.theverge.com/23794032/kizazi-moto-generation-fire-disney-plus-animation-streaming
Rama-lama-ding-dong: Montana traffickers illegally cloned Frankensheep hybrids for sport hunting. Conspirators used the genetic material of Marco Polo argali sheep from Kyrgyzstan to breed entirely new animals. We talk about how this real life John Hammond created his own private Sheep-rassic Park and then got caught. It's illegal if it's not on an island 120 west of Costa Rica.
https://www.popsci.com/environment/sheep-hybrid-hunting/
Let's Talk: Speaking without vocal cords, thanks to a new AI-assisted wearable device. The adhesive neck patch is the latest advance by UCLA bioengineers in speech technology for people with disabilities. A thin flexible device adheres to the neck and translates the muscle movements of the larynx into audible speech. We also take this opportunity to talk about AI speech in movies and how hopefully in the future you'll be able to have a Darth Vader voice all the time.
https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/speaking-without-vocal-cords-ucla-engineering-wearable-tech
Movie Trailers: Here's a bunch of links to the trailers we talked about!
Alien: Romulus
https://youtu.be/GTNMt84KT0k
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
https://youtu.be/e6yDanmWI1E
The Penguin
https://youtu.be/DQghiGQi6Lo
House of the Dragon (Black)
https://youtu.be/csSaSrJJPRs
House of the Dragon (Green)
https://youtu.be/gnxB9xZByyQ
Rebel Moon Part Two: The Scargiver
https://youtu.be/UEJuNHOd8Dw
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
https://youtu.be/FVswuip0-co
Star Wars: The Acolyte
https://youtu.be/BtytYWhg2mc
This episode contains: We start off with two hosts and are eventually joined by a third. We talk about Ramadan and fasting in religion. Steven has been spending money on the CCG Star Wars games, Star Wars Unlimited. Devon finally wakes up and joins us. Steven and Devon have been playing Helldivers 2 and Devon built the Lego Ornithopter from Dune. Devon talks about the recent Space X launch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8htMpR7mnaM&ab_channel=ScottManley
Ben played Cocoon on Xbox Game Pass.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1497440/COCOON/
Steven also talks about 3D printing for Shatterpiont, which has gone hard into Return of the Jedi. We are looking forward to the next season of Black Mirror, which will include a sequel to the Star Trek inspired episode “USS Callister.” And yet another Star Trek feature film has been announced. Should Star Trek even be a movie?
https://trekmovie.com/2024/03/15/the-black-mirror-star-trek-inspired-uss-callister-is-getting-a-sequel/
Lasers Make Everything Better: Earth Received a Message Laser-Beamed From 10 Million Miles Away in NASA Test. NASA successfully demonstrated a key technology for interstellar communication by laser-beaming messages across a distance of 10 million miles, approximately 40 times farther than the distance from Earth to the Moon. This achievement, part of NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment, represents the first time that optical communications have been sent across such a distance.
https://www.notion.so/sciencefactionpodcast/Home-Page-79a3bb96145f4d3b8ca685fdeedd44e8?p=d8838d0ae925465385f00bc7b29a44fa±=s
Book Club: Devon returns from finally drinking some coffee. We read the short story by James S. A. Corey, “How it Unfolds.” This is a story of human Von Neuman probes, space exploration and love. We discuss how some good short stories could be expanded into full books. Next week we will be discussing “Falling Bodies” by Rebecca Roanhorse, which is also part of the Far Reaches Collection.
Patreon only pre-pod: mike check, Devon’s epic phone and family journey, and only Siths deal in absolutes. Have YOU ever dealt with unreasonable family members? NEVER, I’m sure!
This episode contains: We three hosts record on MAR10 day! Ben played so much Mario Kart, not in celebration but just alone, to be cool. Steven’s plans to watch comedienne Taylor Tomlinson in Los Angeles fell through. Steven finally played Fallout Wasteland Warfare for real, shout out to Gordon’s Good Games! Alliteration! What’s up David!? You Fallout Collector you! There’s a local Discord for tabletop games, and Steven has found his people. Ben watched 2010: The Year We Make Contact with his son, and that film holds up! It’s a hard sci-fi film made for normals (not quite like the first film 2001: A Space Odyssey). It’s almost like an entire season of For All Mankind, only filmed in 1984. Why don’t they make film versions of 2061 or 3001? Devon managed to survive an Ewok attack, and then proceeds to discuss doors and rooms. Ahem, SECRET doors for SECRET ROOMS! Devon’s R2D2 replica will get weathered if he puts it in a secret room for sure. Devon then considers making the ultimate scifi Halloween garage.
Hey! Books are smart: Autogenerating a Book Series From Three Years of iMessages. Software engineer Ben Kettle wanted to be able to easily browse through old iMessage conversations from years past, so he developed a process to extract the iMessage database from iPhone backups, query it with SQL, and generate LaTeX source code to create printable books from the messages. How does one pronounce LaTeX? LAY-tek! He made an on-demand printed book containing the longest thread he’d had over three years. He had some issues supporting emojis, but was able to work around it. He split the conversation into three volumes and was able to inexpensively print paperback books through Barnes & Noble Press. The source code is available online for others to generate message books from their own conversation histories. We’re not going to make books like this… will you?
https://benkettle.xyz/posts/message-book/
Brain matters: Lack of focus doesn't equal lack of intelligence -- it's proof of an intricate brain. A new study provides insights into how the brain coordinates focus and filtering of distractions to pay attention. Lead author and neuroscientist Harrison Ritz has a cool name! Researchers used an fMRI task where participants had to distinguish colors and motions of dots. The anterior cingulate cortex tracks task difficulty and directs the intraparietal sulcus to adjust its "focusing and filtering knobs" - increasing focus on relevant information like color and reducing sensitivity to irrelevant information like motion. This shows the brain coordinates attention through multiple regions working together, rather than a single capacity limit. Understanding these coordination mechanisms provides insights into both effective attention and attention disorders. The research suggests lack of focus does not mean low intelligence, but rather shows how complex the brain's coordination of attention is.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240308122958.htm
Patreon only mid-pod: Did y’all finish Avatar: The Last Airbender on Netflix? Ben discusses. Remember Wizards First Rule / Legend of the Seeker?… Ben loved to get drunk and angry at the show. Will they get to do a live action Legend of Korra? That would be cool. 3 Body Problem (Netflix) reviews are out, Devon talks about it. Fallout trailer! What’s a good cadence to release streaming television?
Book Club: You Have Arrived At Your Destination by Amor Towles. Devon picked this one because he really enjoyed Towles’ book A Gentleman in Moscow. The audiobook for You Have Arrived At Your Destination was read by David Harbor. We go over it. Is it about choice? Is it about a multiverse? It’s confusing, but not if you apply True Lies logic to it. We discuss predestination: How accurate can the prediction be? What affects the choices we make? If they can be that accurate, how much does feee will affect the outcome? Do we have free will at all? Do our lives fit a three act structure? What act are you in in your life? Is this act structure about what happens to you, or is it about the perspective you bring to your life? Are you just waiting to die? Is that bad or good? Which of three lives would you pick for your child? Ben gets irrationally angry at the possibility of a different structure for the story that is only hinted at. Steven and Devon give it a high rating, but Ben gives it 1/5 of a star out of 4 stars.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49665863-you-have-arrived-at-your-destination
Next week, our book club will be covering How it Unfolds by James S. A. Corey.
Patreon only post-pod: Next week, Devon may talk about Determined by Robert M. Sapolsky. Do you listen to books at 1x, like a MONSTER?!
This episode contains: Devon, Steven and Ben all host this episode. Unfortunatly we end up talking about gurd and vomit right off the bat. Ben helped some kids play The Zone. Devon took another journey to Lousiana. Ben did a poem at an Ekphrastic poetry workshop, and it's good.
https://play.thezonerpg.com/
https://beaconartshow.com/#gallery
Robot Overlords: AI outperforms humans in standardized tests of creative potential. In a recent study, 151 human participants were pitted against ChatGPT-4 in three tests designed to measure divergent thinking, which is considered to be an indicator of creative thought.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240301134758.htm
Brain Matters: Surprisingly simple model explains how brain cells organize and connect. A new study by physicists and neuroscientists describes how connectivity among neurons comes about through general principles of networking and self-organization, rather than the biological features of an individual organism.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/01/240117143741.htm
Surprising Human Tricks: Tai chi reduces blood pressure better than aerobic exercise, study finds. Why electric bikes actually give more exercise than pedal bikes. A new study that found tai chi is more effective than aerobic exercise at lowering blood pressure in people with prehypertension. Electric bikes provide more exercise than traditional pedal bikes based on multiple studies, this is because e-bike riders tend to ride for longer periods of time and distances since the motor assistance makes biking less strenuous, especially on hills.
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2024/02/14/1231232197/tai-chi-aerobics-exercise-blood-pressure-hypertension-mindfulness
https://electrek.co/2024/02/20/why-electric-bikes-give-more-exercise/
Book Club: Slow Time Between the Stars by John Scalzi. We discuss. Devon has some additional thoughts on last weeks story, Randomize.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/151908304-slow-time-between-the-stars?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=HpJzWGPkkH&rank=1
This episode contains: Steven and Ben host this all new leap year episode. Ben thinks about how his life would be if he had kids at an earlier age. Steven has also been going through a midlife crisis, which has caused him to start journaling. Steven wants to stop wasting his life on his phone using focus mode. “How I Setup My iPhone — So It Doesn't Ruin My Life...” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrQHz-1UJ3g&ab_channel=TimKoa Ben reminds us at the phone should be the tool, not you. Ben is having an Obsidian Obsession. Steven recommends Pacific Drive, which has big Half Life 2 vibes. https://store.steampowered.com/agecheck/app/1458140/ We also talk about the live action Avatar on Netflix. Listener Hank points out that the HeLa Cells were in Emergency Skin were a reference to an historical wrong done to Henrietta Lacks. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02494-z Thanks Hanks! And thanks Henrietta Lacks!
It’s True, All Of It: Scientists scanning the seafloor discover a long-lost Stone Age 'megastructure'. In the fall of 2021, a marine geologist and students mapped the shape of the seafloor at high resolution and found something interesting. Not quite 70 feet below the surface, they stumbled upon a stone wall more than half a mile long that dated back to the Stone Age — one of the oldest such megastructures on the planet. In research published in PNAS, Geersen and his colleagues say this piece of ancient hunting architecture may have been used to corral and hunt reindeer, adding a level of sophistication to the prehistoric hunter-gatherers who lived 10,000 to 11,000 years ago.
https://www.npr.org/2024/02/22/1232694592/blinkerwall-stone-age-megastructure-hunting-underwater-baltic-sea?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-us
This One’s For Devon: Deliverance Forevermore!: Power Metal: is it really about dragons? Some years ago, Matt Daniels wrote a great article on who has the largest vocabulary in hip-hop, comparing Shakespeare to famous hip-hop artists. What about Power Metal? People know metal or heavy metal but not necessarily power metal. Power metal has speed (remember that last song on Guitar Hero), clean vocals (you can understand the words, looking at you grind metal) and lyrics about dragons. Is it really only about dragons? Running Wild (2949 unique words) has the biggest vocabulary, followed by Helloween (2641) and Elvenking (2505). Bands from Spain, Germany and Finland have an average of more than 1600 words vocabulary; in comparison native countries like UK, US and Scotland have an average of 925, 1383 and 1501 words respectively. The most metal words are deliverance, defender, honour, forevermore, realm and the least are shit, baby, fuck, girl, verse. The most negative song is Condemned To Hell by Gamma Ray and the most positive There's Something In The Skies by Dark Moor.
https://notes.atomutek.org/power-metal-and-dragons.html
Book Club: We read the short story by Andy Weir: Randomize. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49661162-randomize As you likely already know, Andy Wier is the author of The Marian and Project Hail Mary. This is a SPOILER filled discussion. The story concerns quantum computing, random number generation and gambling. The story presents the craziness of quantum computing to the lay person using a casino as the backdrop. But was the story racist?
The next short story is Slow Time Between the Stars by John Scalzi.
This episode contains: We're recording just after Valentine's Day. Sorry, we didn't get you anything, EXCEPT FOR THIS PODCAST! Ben was a bit disappointed in Valentine's Day this year... he's also working on "not wasting his midlife crisis." He chats about layoffs and opportunities and productivity, but Steven thinks that perhaps Ben's having a midlife revelation. Ben's reading The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferris. Steven and Devon have been managing democracy in HELLDIVERS 2. Devon doesn't know how to define video games, or perhaps he knows too much how to define video games. HELLDIVERS is pretty much the video game equivalent of Starship Troopers, with all the satire involved. Steven also really enjoyed Blue Eyed Samurai on Netflix. Not science fiction, but it's worth your time. Guess what? Ben's dental company had a major data breach. It's time to freeze your credit FOR FREE at the following addresses to to avoid ID theft:
- https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze/
- https://service.transunion.com/dss/login.page
- https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
Unless you're planning on taking out a new credit card or buying anything in the next few days, you should freeze your credit. If they are asking you for money, you're in the wrong place. It took Ben 15 minutes to do it, big thanks to password managers. Ben is now the Credit Score Fairy.
This Week on the Internet: Not all TLDs are Created Equal. In light of the recent cancellation of the queer.af domain registration by the Taliban, the fragile and difficult nature of country-code top-level domains (ccTLDs) has once again been comprehensively demonstrated. When the United Kingdom decided to leave the European Union, it fell foul of the EU’s rules for the registration of domains under the “eu” ccTLD. To register (and maintain) a domain name ending in .eu, you have to be a resident of the EU. When the UK ceased to be part of the EU, residents of the UK were no longer EU residents, and lost their .eu domain names. Also, after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the Ukranian Vice Prime Minister asked ICANN to suspend ccTLDs associated with Russia. While ICANN said that it wasn’t going to do that (they should change their name to ICANT), because it wouldn’t do anything useful, some domain registrars (the companies you pay to register domain names) ceased to deal in Russian ccTLDs, and some websites restricted links to domains with Russian ccTLDs. Generic TLDs (gTLDs) like .com, .net, .gov and other really cool new gTLDs like .rocks, .ninja, and .supplies are far better to register.
https://www.hezmatt.org/~mpalmer/blog/2024/02/13/not-all-tlds-are-created-equal.html
This Week in Space: Tiny moon of Saturn holds young ocean beneath icy shell. Saturn's moon Mimas harbors a global ocean beneath its icy shell, discovered through analysis of its orbit by Cassini spacecraft data. This ocean formed just 5-15 million years ago, making Mimas a prime candidate for studying early ocean formation and potential for life. This discovery suggests life-essential conditions might exist on seemingly inactive moons, expanding our search for life beyond Earth. Guess where else we've discovered oceans? Devon says "Earth." Ben knows he got that info from SeaQuest DSV. Saturns rings may have always been there for us, but what have they done for us lately?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/02/240207120512.htm
Patreon-only mid-pod: Ben has changed his note taking game, using Obsidian. Steven has rewatched Deadpool and Deadpool 2. Will X-Men 97 be terrible or radical?
Science Fiction Book Club: This week we're doing a spoiler-filled review of the novella Emergency Skin by N.K. Jemisin. An explorer returns to gather information from a climate-ravaged Earth that his ancestors, and others among the planet’s finest, fled centuries ago. The mission comes with a warning: a graveyard world awaits him. But so do those left behind—hopeless and unbeautiful wastes of humanity who should have died out eons ago. After all this time, there’s no telling how they’ve devolved. Steel yourself, soldier. Get in. Get out. And try not to stare.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49669410-emergency-skin
TLDR: Ben and Steven loved it, but Devon was a little lukewarm and wished it was longer and more nuanced.
Next week in the Science Fiction Book Club we'll discuss Randomize by Andy Weir. Get it for free if you have Amazon Prime and be informed for next week's discussion: https://www.amazon.com/Randomize-Forward-collection-Andy-Weir-ebook/dp/B07VDJBKNJ
This episode contains: Devon, Ben and Steven are here this week to give you live coverage of the Super....nah, just kiddin'. We do talk about the Super Bowl though, and with that comes Taylor Swift talk, becuase of course it does. Ben chats about roller derby practice and Devon wonders why us Californians get extra days off of school. We also talk about the death of baseball as it pertains to Star Trek Deep Space Nine. There is also some cricket talk and what would this episode be if we didn't talk about Bluey? Before we get to the science, Ben and Steven recount a gaming experience they had with The Zone RPG.
https://play.thezonerpg.com/
We were not DISAPPOINTED.
Ben is The Password Fairy: I Know What Your Password Was Last Summer... and we talk about why. Ben tells us of old passwords, how they are typically cracked and why having passwords at all is not a great idea. We talk about password creation, and the different options available to have super secure passwords that you would never have to memorize.
https://labs.lares.com/password-analysis/
Don't Worry, This Is Not A Threat: Low voice pitch increases standing among strangers. According to researchers, if you're looking for along-term relationship, or to boost your social status, lower the pitch of your voice. Researchers found that lower voice pitch makes women and men sound more attractive to to potential long-term partners, and lower pitch in males makes the individuals sound more formidable and prestigious. Devon tells us about Elizabeth Holmes from Theranos, and how she lowered her voice as part of her schemes. Steven and Ben had no idea who she was, and Devon was shocked.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/02/240208142418.htm
Science Fiction: Ben is ready to talk about B words! We start of with a lengthy chat about Barbie, which Ben just watched, and we talk about which awards it was nominated for (and which it was snubbed). Ben then once again talks some Beacon 23, which we recommends. Finally, we get a chat about Babylon 5 and Ben tells us the plans for season 4, and how that impacted season 5.
Book Club: We're starting a book club, kinda! Steven recently found some amazing short fiction, and we've decided to start a sort of book club. Our first story that we're going to read id "Emergency Skin" by N.K. Jemisin. It can be found as part of the Forward Collection on Amazon Prime. If you're Devon, you can pay extra for the audio version, or just use the kindle app and get it for free (with Prime of course).
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WK7PVFT?binding=kindle_edition&qid=1707678484&sr=8-1&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_tkin
We'll have a spoiler filled discussion on this story next week and announce the next title to read. Join the discussion! Read a Book!
This episode contains: We’re coming to you from a rainy Sunday. Devon is BORING, but also has rearranged a room in his home. Ben has Star Trek trivia night, which Steven had to miss to play D&D (BG3 actually). Ben’s team won, of course. Ben then gives us some of his great Star Trek team names. Also, Ben showed up in costume. Steven’s family is healthy. Steven finished a full game of Core Space and paint some minis. Steven also got to watch a movie: Self Reliance on Hulu.
Brain Matters: The theory that consciousness is a quantum system gains support. Hameroff and Penrose’s Orch Or Theory sees consciousness as the outcome of a quantum collapse of a wave function.
https://mindmatters.ai/2024/01/the-theory-that-consciousness-is-a-quantum-system-gains-support/
Other reading: Quantum Approaches to Consciousness.
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/qt-consciousness/
Wikipedia: Quantum mind
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_mind#:~:text=The%20quantum%20mind%20or%20quantum,entanglement%20and%20superposition%20that%20cause
Da-Na, Da-Na, Da-Na: First-ever sighting of a live newborn great white. Great whites, the largest predatory sharks in the world with the most fatal attacks on humans, are tough to imagine as newborn babies. That is partially because no one has seen one in the wild, it seems, until now.
https://sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/01/240129122437.htm
Hurt Me Plenty: “Can it run Doom?” (Gut bacteria edition). Ramlan explains her bacterial grid display model and how it fits into the wider " Doom runs on everything" tradition. Simulated 1-bit, 32x48 cellular grid runs at a blazing 0.00003 fps.
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2024/01/can-it-run-doom-gut-bacteria-edition/
The Big Question:
Time travel is possible, but only into the future. How far would you go? Why?
Time travel is possible, but only into the past. How far would you go? Why?
Rules: Travel is one way. You can affect the past/future, but may result in a different timeline. You cannot bring anything with you.
We discuss.
Pre-pod Patreon-only: Is Matt our constant? A blank minute with Flint Lawless, Palworld and AI, your parents aren’t cool anymore
This Episode Contains: Steven and Ben grace your ears this time 'round, having a chill time. Why are we on our best behavior when Devon’s around? He’s not our dad! Ben has to get dad energy sometimes when dealing with crossing guard stuff, especially when it turns into fight club. The Domingues house has been sick, so that’s been really disordered. He’s excited to continue to overdose on the board game Core Space (Thanks Damon!) https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/240271/core-space. Ben’s sketchbooks he’s been creating are now on Amazon!
A Woman Holding a Weasel:
Sketchbook : Da Vinci's Doodles, a Woman holding a Weasel Funny Notebook for Sketching, Drawing and Doodling: Perfect gift for art lovers with a sense ... (Size: 5.5 x 8.5 inches | 150 Blank Pages)
Cats versus Sailboat:
Sketchbook: Cats versus Sailboat, Wrong Turn, A Cat-Themed Notebook for Sketching, Drawing and Doodling: Perfect gift for school-age birthday (Size: 5.5 x 8.5 inches | 150 Blank Pages)
Come On You Apes, You Wanna Live Forever?! The fountain of youth is… a T cell? It’s Osmosis Jones meets Palworld: Scientists have discovered that T cells can be reprogrammed through genetic modifications to target and eliminate senescent cells, which accumulate in the body with age and contribute to inflammation and age-related diseases. When these modified "CAR T cells" were used to clear senescent cells from mice, the mice showed benefits like lower weight, better metabolism, and protection against conditions like obesity and diabetes. Even a single dose of CAR T cells early in life provided lifelong protection in mice. This suggests reprogrammed T cells could potentially be developed as a "living drug" treatment for aging and age-related disease that only requires one administration.
The fountain of youth is ... a T cell?
Reasons To Never Leave The House Again: Disney Unveils the HoloTile Floor, Inching Us Closer to a Real-Life Holodeck. Alongside announcing that Lanny Smoot will be the first Disney employee besides Walt to be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Disney also shared one of his newest projects called the HoloTile floor, which just may be a game changer for VR and could bring us ever closer to experiencing the Holodeck from Star Trek. This floor is made up of a bunch of tiles that all work to keep people in the center of them. The HoloTile floor can do more than just let people walk on it, as it can also move objects around. In a video, we see an object being moved around the floor and an arm extending at the corner of the screen, as if they were using the Force to move an object.
Disney Unveils the HoloTile Floor, Inching Us Closer to a Real-Life Holodeck - IGN
Can we just stop for a bit and talk about how amazing it is that we’re putting man-made structures on the moon for the first time since 1972? Japan’s lunar lander landed.
Mid-pod Patreon-only: Marcel the Shell With Shoes On follow-up, Droids in training at Galaxy’s Edge, Droid Lightsaber Caddies
Science Fiction: Did we need a mashup of Simpsons and AKIRA? No, but it’s pretty awesome! BARTKIRA!
http://www.bartkira.com/
Ben finished A Closed and Common Orbit, and his son knows that TRON is superior to TRON: Legacy but seriously, why do modern CGI films have trouble making amazing cinematography a la TRON: Legacy? How come modern CGI blockbusters are so sterile in their cinematography? We have some thoughts but this video sums it up:
https://youtu.be/VvLk9G9XuPw?si=e3PmXJCHktxomoR8
Yo, there was a TRON 2.0 video game in 2003 and it was originally meant to be a canon sequel to the original? You can get it on Steam and on GOG:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/327740/TRON_20/
https://www.gog.com/en/game/tron_20
Post-pod Patreon-only: Ben finished Star Trek Resurgence
This episode contains: Devon, Ben and Steven are all bright eyed and bushy tailed this fine episode. Steven played Palworld until 4am, and Ben doesn't recommend playing the Xbox version. Ben had an amazing poetry reading with Rock Star Poets. Devon has had some plumbing issues, but he's going to solve them (spoiler, he didn't), plus it's snow-ish in his part of Texas. Steven and Devon both missed the latest Walkabout Minigolf course, but Ben fills us in on the amazingness of it. We eventually get to the science...
Follow up to Moon's Haunted: What Went Wrong With Astrobotic's Moon Lander? And What Happens Next? Instead of landing on the Moon, Peregrine is set to burn up in Earth's atmosphere later this week. Re-entry won't pose any safety risk to anyone on the ground. A valve between the spacecraft’s oxidizer tank and a tank of high-pressure helium got stuck in the open position, so there wasn't enough oxidizer for a safe landing on the Moon.
https://www.inverse.com/science/astrobotic-moon-lander-peregrine-what-happened
Supposed Cicadapocalypse: Cicadapocalypse Returns To The US With First Double Brood Emergence In 221 Years. We talk about the emerging cicadas, specifically Brood 13 and Brood 19, which emerge every 17 and 13 years, respectively. We also talk about sensationialized journalism, and how these cicadas emerging isn't really that huge of a deal, although only happening every 221 years is cool. Their brood locations don't really overlap, so there isn't much to panic about.
https://www.iflscience.com/cicadapocalypse-returns-to-the-us-with-first-double-brood-emergence-in-221-years-72445
https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/cicadas-2024-emergence-periodical-brood-2024-map-cicada-rcna134152
Science Fiction: Ben gets a recommendation from Patron Joe: Star Trek: The Next Generation: Mirror Universe Collection which leads us into a chat about the Mirror Universe.
https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Generation-Universe-Collection/dp/1684057647?keywords=star+trek+the+next+generation+mirror+universe&qid=1705866286&sr=8-1
We're getting Nintendo 3DS Emulation on the Quest, which is an amazing sentence. The 3DS famously had two screens, so it is difficult to emulate on one screen. However, in a virtual display, both screens are easily seen.
https://www.uploadvr.com/quest-3ds-emulator-citra-vr/
Steven recentlt watched a breakdown video of Back to the Future Part 3, and that leads to a little chat about BttF and breakdown videos. Plus, Ben has to bring up the 'B to the F: The Novelization' tumblr account that is wild. https://btothef.tumblr.com/ Check out the Heavy Spoilers channel on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yXzSQszt78
We also talk more about Beacon 23, since Ben has now watched it and he gives us a little breakdown of what to expect in the show. Devon recommends Bodies, a Netflix mini-series which has some time-travelish components.
That's all folks! See you next week!
This episode contains: Steven and Ben take the reins while Devon is off at his son’s birthday party. We discuss relaxing mornings, and delightful dinners. Shout out to Barley & Boar which has some high end, delicious food and phenomenal drinks. Also, make sure to ask for the specials. Steven spends the Christmas cash that was burning a hole in his pocket. He bought Castle Panic and Core Space.
(https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/43443/castle-panic)
(https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/240271/core-space)
Ben tells us about his new book design. Also, check out Ben’s poetry reading on January 20, 2024 at 2 p.m. in the SLO Library Community Room at 995 Palm Street in downtown San Luis Obispo. Ben is very excited so you better attend!
Magic Time!: Largest diversity study of 'magic mushrooms' investigates the evolution of psychoactive psilocybin production.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/01/240109183555.htm
I Brake for Machine Learning: Why autonomous trucking is harder than autonomous rideshare. Freeways were supposed to be easy. What happened?
https://kevinchen.co/blog/autonomous-trucking-harder-than-rideshare/
Science Fiction: We discuss the trailer for Ghostbusters: Frozen Kingdom, Beacon 23, For All Mankind (including discussion of the final episode with SPOILERS and were the show might go in the next season), and Star Trek in For All Mankind. And of course, so much more!
Pre-pod Patreon-only: The joys of passive agressively pretending you didn’t hear what other people say, 2022 is now 2 years ago (when did that happen?).
This episode contains: Three hosts check in for the first episode of the new year. Steven’s speech impediment comes back for a hot moment. Devon fervently rejects New Years resolutions, because as his wife says “he’s perfect the way he is.” Why wait till New Years to make yourself better? Ben resolved to not see a barber this year, as he’s shaved his head. Steven wonders about the bandaid on the back of Marcel’s skull in that OLLLD movie “Pulp Fiction.” We go through all of Ben’s discovered fears about having a completely bald head. Steven’s now getting a bunch of bald head stuff in his algorithm. But really Steven’s just geeking out over Remedy’s newest video game “Alan Wake II,” but he’s been a fan since the original “Max Payne.” Hey, what’s up with our newest member/non-member Dave? We guess some Patreon members cancel because they were looking for a different Science Faction podcast.
Video Game Talk with Devon: 13-Year-Old Boy Becomes The Only Human To Ever Complete Tetris. Hell has frozen over and Devon talks about the only game he’s ever played: Tetris. (Naw, he’s played other games. I digress.) Want to up your game? Tap buttons faster. An AI player can get up to level 237 recently, but a human player has crashed the game at level 157, essentially “winning” an unwinnable game. Eventually a glitch happens where the game switches from reading instructions from the code to reading the RAM as if it were code. Devon played Tetris as a kid on his computer, but Steven and Ben were Game Boy Tetris fans. We’ve seriously got to see the new Tetris film, and also stop snacking in the evenings. Ben recommends flossing nightly and going to the dentist yearly.
https://www.iflscience.com/13-year-old-boy-becomes-the-only-human-to-ever-complete-tetris-72267
Rawr: 'Juvenile T. rex' fossils are a distinct species of small tyrannosaur. How do scientists distinguish between young dinosaurs and a completely different species? Turns out it’s really hard to do.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/01/240102190920.htm
Moon’s haunted: White House responds to Navajo Nation request to delay mission that would land human remains on the moon. This week a commercial flight to the moon will carry human remains (among other things) to the lunar surface. Ben considers the ecology impact of humans and our waste (including human remains) on ANY environment, terrestrial or otherwise. Devon discusses whether anyone should change how they are behaving based on other’s opinions. This is all vanity, and is dumb, but perhaps there is an ethical angle we should consider.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/05/world/peregrine-moon-mission-navajo-nation-objection-human-remains-scn/index.html
Mid-pod Patreon-only: details on “corpses on the moon,” anybody can have a podcast… but does everyone deserve to be heard? One Piece anime adaptation, cheap anime, roller derby showers and glow parties.
A Big Question: Does knowledge have intrinsic value or does it need to have a practical use to have value? We spend a lot of time discussing what value even is, and whether it’s important to synthesize data with a more complete understanding of unrelated information. 2024 is all about Tetris, T-Rex, and Tiny bits of yourself on the moon.
Post-pod Patreon-only: Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.
This episode contains: All three amazing hosts lead the charge into the New Year, but have a few things to get off their collective chests first. Devon's got a wild child on his hands, and details some holiday destruction. Ben has had enough with his hair, and took matters into his own hands. Steven got a chance to let his true Disney self out, and finally played Lorcana (with Ben). He also finished a video game, which hasn't happened in a long time. Who wants a cart racer that's Disney themed? Ben and Steven do.
Let's Talk About the Public Domain: Mickey, Disney, and the Public Domain: a 95-year Love Triangle. What's going in here? It's complicated. Disney pushed for the law that extended the copyright term to 95 years, which became referred to derisively as the “Mickey Mouse Protection Act.” This extension has been criticized by scholars as being economically regressive and having a devastating effect on our ability to digitize, archive, and gain access to our cultural heritage.
https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/mickey/
Science Fiction: We do some movie reviews to round out the year. Ben and his kid watched 1984's Gremlins. Devon watched Leave The World Behind, and tries to do a spoiler free review. Devon also finally watched Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which goes about as expected.
What We're Looking Forward To In 2024:
- Presedential Moderation
- Star Trek: Prodigy season 2 on Netflix
- Dune Part 2
- Deadpool 3
- Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse
- Digital gaming with friends
- Playing boardgames
- Borrowing boardgames from the local library
SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!
This episode contains: Welcome to our post-Christmas episode. We discuss how the world’s going to hell, personally and socially. Devon thinks hating the year that’s gone by is a meme but Steven and Ben present there reasons why the world is actually burning down. We then move on to discussing our Christmas’s and Ben not doing his homework. Also, Ben made a youtube video for his mom:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JckIYYXhw98
Ben then teaches us all about Kwanzaa. Ben reminds us that all holidays are “made up.” In the spirit of Umoja we celebrate unity.
https://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org/umoja.html
100 Positive News from 2023: Despite not planning on doing science on this episode, Ben felt guilty about not doing his homework an so brought some science:
- Elimination of malaria close in Ghana
- Child mortality rate (probably) lowest ever
- Big drop in aids deaths
- World’s largest solar farm activated
- Most new electricity was renewable
- First green cement that can be used for buildings
- First fossil fuel-free flight over the Atlantic
- Women finally allowed to vote everywhere, Vatican City was the holdout
- More people than ever have clean drinking water
- Seven countries progressed to a higher income group
- Largest ever re-introduction of an “extinct in the wild” species
- Paris river to become swimmable for first time in 100 years
- Scientists find plastic-eating microbes
- Oryx back from extinction
- First Arab woman in space
https://www.gapminder.org/news/100-positive-news-from-2023/
Science Fiction: Steven and Devon both watched some movies. Ben did not however, but he still gives us his summary of the movies based on the trailers.
Steven saw Rebel Moon: Part 1: A Child of Fire. Ben thinks a child emerges from a lava planet, who then leads a ragtag group of minors against a fascist government from another planet. Steven says he got about 80% correct. Rebal Moon is Star Wars. That’s all. Zach Snider outdoes himself with the slomo. We note that there will be a directors cut.
Devon saw Oppenheimer. Ben thinks this is a science film about the man that worked on the atom bomb. Devon gives a not so brief summary of the movie and ultimately recommends it. Devon also talks about the book The Oppenheimer Alternative by Robert J. Sawyer.
Devon also saw The Creator. Ben thinks the AI attack LA and then become monks, then there’s a new AI in town in the body of a human child. Then humans want to destroy it as the perceive it as a threat. Devon then gives us his honest opinion that the movie is not that good.
See Y'all Next Year! 2024 IS GOING TO BE THE BEST
This episode contains: It’s December, it’s a big battle getting through the month, and Ben and Steven just can’t wait to be done with 2023. Ben is left alone by his family for the afternoon, and did a real long bike ride! All was well and good until he got a flat. Luckily he has friends. Friends with trucks. Steven was out of town hanging out with Devon, and they didn’t record a podcast. Instead he and Devon hung out IRL with their D&D group, playing an “artisinal cooperative experience” called Oathsworn. Lots of fun but not an easy game to play. The companion app to the game was narrated by Jeor Mormont himself, James Cosmo. Is Jeor just another way to spell “Jeff?” No, Steven. Ben then talks more about biking, specifically in the rain.
Oathsworn: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/251661/oathsworn-deepwood
Robot Uprising: OpenAI's reported 'superintelligence' breakthrough is so big it nearly destroyed the company, and ChatGPT. Thanks to our Patron Joe Kohr for suggesting this article! ChatGPT, or as the French say “Cat, I Farted”, is reportedly dealing with a breakthrough towards a generative AI gaining “superintelligence,” or reasoning outside of it’s programmed models. As in, it will be no longer “faking it”. Now, there’s a new OpenAI research group with the goal of developing safeguards against superintelligence. This all reminds Ben of something he heard on another podcast: where there’s a potential for using generative AI to create apps… but what if there’s no more productivity apps anymore? Where you ask questions and get data presented to you? The operating system could remove the need for productivity apps, because in 10 years the ways we interact with our phones and computers will be different. Steven runs a website but he doesn’t GO to websites. Where does anybody learn things on the net now? Social media? Empire and the East India Trading Company: the first company with shares.
https://www.techradar.com/computing/artificial-intelligence/openais-reported-superintelligence-breakthrough-is-so-big-it-nearly-destroyed-the-company-and-chatgpt
The podcast about generative AI creating apps: https://www.relay.fm/connected/479
Empire Podcast: https://pod.link/1639561921
Tonight on The Ocho: ‘You didn’t just succeed, you Exceled’: Sydney man dubbed the ‘Annihilator’ wins spreadsheet world championship. You might not have known this, but there’s a Microsoft Excel World Championship. Now that your mind has finished exploding, you can watch it yourself. This year was newsworthy not because of it’s existence, but because the winner this year was eliminated in the first round. The values Andrew Ngai received from the first round didn’t match the answer key… but it turned out the answer key was WRONG! We then continue to yak about EVE Online for a bit. One of the contestants eliminated in the finals thanked his wife, who “never made fun of me, even once, for competing in the Microsoft Excel world championships.” Ben gets made fun of for doing the dishes!
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/dec/15/you-didnt-just-succeed-you-exceled-sydney-man-dubbed-the-annihilator-wins-excel-world-championship
Watch the championship here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDGdPE_C9u8&t=288
Science Fiction: Has For All Mankind got too much character drama this season? Steven and Ben disagree. Steven wishes there was something more Mars-y on Mars, like red dust everywhere. You know, science fiction stuff! Netflix got The Batman and got Steven to drop everything and watch it yet again. Amazon got Merry Little Batman and got Ben to drop everything and watch it for the first time. Ben a synopsis of the really adorable film where Batman’s son has a Home Alone Batman moment. This Batman has definite Devon energy. Is that enough Christmas Batman for Ben? Not in the slightest. Ben played five hours of Batman: Arkham Origins, the most ignored Arkham game. But… it’s actually good? And Ben just shut his eyes and pretended it’s not an Arkham game at all, since the voice cast does not include Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill. It looks good, for a ten year old game.
This episode contains: Ben and Devon lead the charge this week because Steven is tired. Devon took his kids on The Polar Express, and everyone was wearing pajamas. Ben just realized that when a kid is in a sport, it consumes the entire family. Ben has a confrontation with a random. How does a pork dish taste like steak?
Gone Rogue: Gigantic Wave in Pacific Ocean Was Most Extreme 'Rogue Wave' on Record. Rogue waves are fun and terrifying; they are rare giant waves that can capsize boats. A 58 foot high wave, three times the height of the waves around it was recorded by a buoy in 2020. Rogue waves were thought to be ocean folklore until an 85 foot wave struck an oil-drilling platform in 1995. The intensity of rogue waves are measured against 'normal' waves around them. We talk about the differences between tsunamis and rogue waves.
https://www.sciencealert.com/gigantic-wave-in-pacific-ocean-was-most-extreme-rogue-wave-on-record
This One's For The Birds: Researchers Taught Parrots to Video Call Other Parrots. The parrots were taught to make calls to other dometic parrots using Facebook Messenger. The researchers wondered if given the choice, would the birds call each other? The answer is yes. Strong social dynamics started to appear. The calls lasted 5 minutes, and some of the birds created strong bonds (and still call each other after the study). Devon questions how making a video call is different from the 'mirror test'. Did pirates domesticate parrots? Devon is "well read" because of South Park and The Simpsons.
https://news.northeastern.edu/2023/04/21/parrots-talking-video-calls/
Science Fiction: Devon is reading and listening to Sun Eater series: Empire of Silence which is well written but borrows liberally from other scifi. Ben talks about the lit-verse of Star Trek novels. Ben has been reading the Typhon Pact series of Star Trek novels and is on book 4, Paths of Disharmony. Devon continually re-watches Star Trek and loves Deep Space Nine, The Next Generation, Enterprise and everything Trek. Do some alien cultures in Star Trek come across as too racist or stereotypical?
Patreon Only: Steven bails, Notion Problems, Another Disney Trip and Switzerland.
This episode contains: Steven, Ben and Devon are all present for this episode. This episode drops on Steven’s birthday. We discuss real v fake Christmas trees, the Guardians of Galaxy Holiday Special, Beep Beep I’m a Sheep by LilDeuceDeuce, letting kids use Discord, and Devon’s trip to Great Wolf Lodge.
Stop Calling Me: Receive robocalls or text message spam? Help shut the spammer down. Most reputable telecom carriers don't want unsolicited messages on their network or phone numbers. In order to disconnect their abusive customers, they need to hear about the abuse. That's where you come in. Here's how to report abuse to the telecom carrier that is responsible for the spammer's phone number – so the carrier can terminate their service.
https://reportphonespam.org/
Hot Rocks: A new solar system has been found in the Milky Way. All 6 planets are perfectly in-sync, astronomers say. The innermost planet completes three orbits for every two by its closest neighbor. It's the same for the second- and third-closest planets, and the third- and fourth-closest planets. The two outermost planets complete an orbit in 41 and 54.7 days, resulting in four orbits for every three. The innermost planet, meanwhile, completes six orbits in exactly the time the outermost completes one.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-six-planet-solar-system-in-perfect-synchrony-has-been-found-in-the-milky-way/
Big Question: Assume that in the future there will be huge leaps in human augmentation. Given a scale from completely human to completely machine, how far would you choose to augment yourself with robotics? What parts would you augment and why?
Ghosts with Sh*t Jobs
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1671570/
Pre-show Patreon Only: Void Train and other train games, Fallout 4
This episode contains: A chill post-Thanskgiving episode with Steven and Ben. Turns out people get tired after eating smoked turkey and phǒ (phǒ real? phǒget about it), at least people over 40. Good times with family. These kids are talking and love Bluey. If you’re of a certain age, you may not know Bluey, but you should. Are there new Bluey episodes? Not yet, but there is a new Bluey video game. Ben apologizes for talking about old Steam Deck issues, but he’s really not sorry, is he? Anyways, the most recent update (3.5) fixed the issues his son had, so this is just an old man shouting at the cloud. BTW, 30 years ago was not 1970, Steven. You poor thing. Steven was not prepared for Scott Pilgrim Takes Off on Netflix, which looks like the comic book, has all the actors for the movie, and then runs with a “What If?” story, completely changing the Scott Pilgrim story at a fundamental level. Our patron Renee met Mark Hamill while she and her family were all dressed like Leia. Mark Hamill is so lucky. Ben asks Steven to go on a date to see The Abyss Special Edition for his birthday, but it’s in Santa Maria, and Steven will never spend another birthday in “that hellhole” if he can help it.
Brain Matters: Our brains are not able to 'rewire' themselves, despite what most scientists believe, new study argues.
According to the article, two scientists argue that the commonly held belief that the brain can rewire itself and repurpose regions for new functions after injury or deficit is flawed. Through analyzing previous studies, they found no compelling evidence that areas like the visual cortex of blind individuals or uninjured areas after stroke took on entirely new functions.
Instead, they believe the brain enhances existing latent abilities through learning and repetition, not completely changing functions. So for example, when someone loses a finger, the area for that finger already got some input from neighboring fingers, it just enhances that after amputation. Their view is that understanding true brain plasticity limits is important for patient expectations and rehabilitation approaches. The brain's ability to adapt comes from hard work, not magical reassignment of resources.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231121175335.htm
Pure energy (like that song from Information Society, and Leonard Nimoy): Generating Power on Earth From the Coldness of Deep Space.
This article discusses the concept of generating power on Earth by utilizing the coldness of deep space. It explores the principles of thermodynamics, thermoelectric power generation, and radiative cooling. The article also presents various prototypes and experiments conducted to harness energy from the coldness of space, including the use of selective emitters and negative illumination photovoltaic cells. While the technology is still under development, it shows potential for powering low-power electronics and lighting, offering a sustainable energy solution.
https://spectrum.ieee.org/energy-from-cold
Mid-show Patreon Only: Limp Bizkit is making a comeback? Maybe you don’t want to hear it.
Science Fiction: Steven finally saw The Marvels with his wife. He liked it, but his wife was lost. Why is that? Well, if you haven’t seen Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel, Wandavision, Secret Invasion (but not really), LOKI, Hawkeye, Ant-Man and the Wasp: QuANTumania, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers Endgame or X-Men: The Last Stand, maybe you’re gonna be a little lost. Steven and Ben both agree: that’s a little much for the normies, but it’s also a little much for these tired old comic book nerds (like our valiant podcast hosts). With so much discussion about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ben says we’ve got to talk about something else, so what does he do? It’s DC time. My Adventures with Superman is a cartoon on Adult Swim and Max that is worth watching, and Ben gives just enough spoilers to whet Steven’s appetite. Maybe you would like it too. Steven always forgets that Superman is Ben’s jam, at least when anybody other than Zach Snyder is at the helm. What is Ben’s favorite Superman movie? Wouldn’t you like to know.
Post-show Patreon Only: The Flash movie, we have thoughts on how to fix the MCU
This episode contains: Three hosts again this episode. We talk about Kevin Bacon, Ben has returned and is now known as Numbers. We have an audio diary (that we share with the world). Devon shares a personal story and is now relieved, we chat a bit about Lethal Company and invite Ben to join. Ben tells us all about Patch Quest and the joy he's having with his son. Steven shares how he's brainwashing his kids into enjoying Pokemon (not really).
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1966720/Lethal_Company/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1347970/Patch_Quest/
Finally, Am I Right?: Please make more USB-C cables like this. Elgato has make a great teleprompter that also has a great USB-C cable that ships with it. Their latest USB-C cable has the bandwidth and USB type imprinted on the connector. A lot of USB-C cables have unknown data speeds, charging speeds or both. More companies should adopt this labeling standard.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/6/23948486/usb-c-cables-marking-speed-power-delivery-elgato
BONES!: Printed robots with bones, ligaments and tendons. Researchers have succeeded in printing a robotic hand with bones, ligaments and tendons made of different polymers using a new laser scanning technique. This makes it possible to 3D print special plastics with elastic qualities in one go which opens up completely new possibilities for the production of soft robotic structures.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231115113428.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about For All Mankind season 4, episode 2: Have A Nice Sol. Steven talks about his theory for the season arc. Ben watched The Marvels and gives us his non-spoiler review about his "fun film". Then we talk about the spoiler post-credit scene. Devon gets bored and breaks a toy. Steven and Ben watched LOKI and talk about the season finale and what it means for the future of the MCU. Spoilers for the ending of LOKI season 2. Devon argues about how movie flops might make Marvel change their business strategy, and Ben and Steven have a rebuttal. Ben has finally read "The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet" by Becky Chambers, and describes it as 'a space opera with no heroes'.
This episode contains: This is a throwback episode to the old times, before the Dark Times when Ben came. Steven and Devon host the show. We talk about the difficulty of scheduling a time for four people to get together consistently, Devon talks about having his neighbors over for dinner and how over-achieving they are, and the cost of success. Although, what is success? Steven is still dealing with sick kids and his own recurring illness. We also read and respond to comments from our Patrons.
Brain Matters: Rats have an imagination, new research suggests. Researchers have developed a novel system to probe a rat's thoughts, finding that animals can control their brain activity to imagine remote locations.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231102162557.htm
Devon also talks about reading Blindsight by Peter Watts and his recent foray into reading about consciousness.
Blindsight by Peter Watts: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blindsight_(Watts_novel)
Other Minds: The Octopus, The Sea and The Deep Origins of Consciousness by Peter-Godfrey-Smith: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Other_Minds:_The_Octopus,_the_Sea,_and_the_Deep_Origins_of_Consciousness
Fire Sale at the Lefttorium: Left-handers aren't better spatially, gaming research shows. By asking participants to download and play a video game that captured user information and tracked navigational challenges, researchers were able to measure demographic data -- including hand preference -- and activity from more than 420,000 international participants, across 41 different countries. They found that left-handers were neither better nor worse than right-handers at the tasks, clarifying a long-running debate about the links between handedness and spatial skills.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231109121511.htm
Science Fiction: We discuss the season premiere of For All Mankind, which Steven realizes he did not finish. We talk about the alternate history between the last season and this season, the events of the new episode and where the show might be going. We also talk about the first three episodes of this season of Rick and Morty. Devon enjoys the show more on rewatch. Steven then tells us about Lethal Company.
This episode contains: It’s just Ben with his son, special guest host Flint Lawless! Ben’s got COVID, Steven’s vomiting all over the place and Devon’s in California. Does anyone want to really listen to all that?!?! Instead, Flint and Ben chat about COVID quarantines, Halloween, and how awesome friends are.
Everybody wants to be a cat, Because a cat's the only cat who knows where it's at: Cats Make Nearly 300 Different Facial Expressions. Cats can sometimes get a bad rap for being aloof or not emotive. Compared to dogs, felines tend to be more subtle with how they express themselves—perhaps with a mere flick of an ear or curl of their whiskers. A study has found that cats use nearly 300 distinct facial expressions to communicate with each other. The findings suggest that cats' facial expressions provide information about their emotions and social behavior, and could potentially help humans better understand and communicate with their feline companions. This study may even one day lead to an app that can decode cat facial expressions.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cats-make-nearly-300-different-facial-expressions-180983185/
Turning old rotary phones into music streamers: Flint and Ben wax poetic about spinning wax. But what if it was even less convenient to listen to your music? Sometimes more convenience is cool, sometimes less is cooler. You pick up the rotary phone and it welcomes you in a bit of a sleepy voice with the words: “Hello, dial zero to listen to music”. Why zero? It is zero because it is the most satisfactory number to dial. Then you get to listen to a directory of your playlists, and choose using a two digit number. Dial the number of songs you want randomly played from the playlist, and then hang up. Voila, your music is now streaming to your speakers.
https://vasilis.nl/nerd/turning-old-rotary-phones-into-music-streamers/
Science Fiction: Flint and Ben review the 908th episode of Star Trek: “Old Friends, New Planets.” It’s the fourth season finale of Star Trek: Lower Decks, and we also by extension review the fourth season as a whole. What do you get when the Ferengi make a Genesis device? Then it gets fun when Flint gives Ben the rundown on how awesome the new 1.7 update for Trailmakers is. Trailmakers finally is going to space with the biggest map they’ve ever made, with several fascinating planets. Flint’s building spaceships to explore the cosmos. Flint’s even got a hot take on the lore behind the planet Doon (his theory is it was originally a water planet). Furthermore, there have been big updates to character customization. We wrap up the episode with last words, and Flint knocks it out the park.
This episode contains: Three hosts for three times the fun! Steven is drinking some coffee from Green Day and Oakland Coffee, have you heard there's a new album coming? Ben's brother gives us some feedback on space mining and fiction: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moon_Is_a_Harsh_Mistress We chat about how to read more by listening more. How do you read / listen to books?
Step Up 2 Tha Streetz: 8,000 steps a day to reduce the risk of premature death. A study has identified, for the first time, the optimal number of steps at which people would gain the greatest benefits. We talk about how most people have some sort of pedometer on them in the form of a smartwatch or phone, but getting out there to take the steps can still be a challenge. To be clear, there are no health deficiencies if you walk more than the suggested 8,000 steps. Steven once logged over 20,000 steps (while at Disneyland).
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/10/231026131551.htm
How's Your Pokedex coming? ASH - Ai Pocket Field Guide. Inspired by the legendary Pokedex, ASH was developed as a digital artifact that could help children connect and learn about and protect the biodiversity that surrounds them every day. This looks like an amazing thing that all children should have to help them explore the natural world around them...but we can't find a buy button. Is this a real product or just a concept? We can't tell, but the idea of ot being real is intriguing!
https://www.finh.cc/ash?ref=sidebar
This Week in Space (but really 30 years ago): How would we know whether there is life on Earth? This bolf experiment found out. Thirty years ago, astronomer Carl Sagan convinced NASA to turn a passing space probe’s instruments on Earth to look for life — with results that still reverberate today. In 1989 the Galileo spacecraft was launched, and later pointed at Earth to see if we could detect "life" which would give us a powerful control for when we would eventually probe exoplanets (which had yet to be discovered). Very cool. Steven is reminded of a mission in Starfield where an old generation ship is discovered at an already colonized planet.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-03230-z
Big Question: How many personal liberties would you give up for health and safety? We have quite a discussion this week, covering everything from gun control to different constitutional amendments, plugging into and out of the Matrix, Covid quarantine restrictions and fatigue, physical and mental health vs community responsibilities, personal liberties, governmental trust, revolutions and rebellions, and a whole lot more!
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are kid free! We revisit Scream, the first one, and how it relates to Dawson’s Creek. Also, how to use walkie talkies to move the moon. Steven discusses the fun of paranormal reality shows. Ben reminisces about the Blair Witch Documentary. Steven gives us an updated on his homelife and dealing with Covid.
I See You!: Molecular age of the eye determined. A team of researchers have mapped almost 6,000 proteins from different cell types within the eye by analyzing tiny drops of eye fluid that are routinely removed during surgery. The researchers used an AI model to create a 'proteomic clock' from this data that can predict a healthy person's age based on their protein profile. The clock revealed that diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and uveitis cause accelerated aging within specific cell types. Surprisingly, the researchers also detected proteins associated with Parkinson's disease within eye fluid, which they say could offer a pathway to earlier Parkinson's diagnoses.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/10/231019111231.htm
Can You Dig It? Space is starting to look like the better mining operation. Space agencies in Japan and the United States recently sent spacecraft to investigate, nudge, or bring back samples from these hurtling space rocks, and after a rocky start, the space mining industry is once again on the ascent. Companies like AstroForge, Trans Astronautica Corporation, and Karman+ are preparing to test their tech in space before venturing toward asteroids themselves.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/10/space-is-starting-to-look-like-the-better-mining-operation/
Science Fiction: Rick and Morty is back but hard to watch without cable. Ben assures us that Rick and Morty is still Rick and Morty despite not having Justin Roiland. The Lower Decks episode Caves is awesome. We also discuss ALF, possible Lower Decks style Star Trek novels, Steven finishes One Piece live action, Foundation is a good show but not fun, Star Trek Department of Temporal Investigations, and more!
This episode cotnains: Steven and Ben have a low-effort, high stress-relief episode. Nothing matters anymore: Steven’s world is on fire with COVID hitting his house again, and it’s looking to derail Steven’s wife’s 40th birthday plans. Well, they were secret 40th birthday plans that Steven has worked really hard to set up, and now are in peril. Some days, Steven just needs a nap and a juice box. Ben prefers the term “house spouse” to “stay at home parent,” but Steven HATES it. Devon isn’t here because he went to Omega Mart in Las Vegas: that crazy fever dream/theme park/grocery store. Ben’s mom is recovering well from surgery, and Ben has dealt with stress by forgetting a bunch of stuff he actually did do and escaping into Elden Ring.
Clean your room!: Air purifiers aren’t enough to clean your home from wildfire smoke. After a wildfire, if you want to stay healthy indoors, it’s not enough to just open windows. Volatile Organic Compounds can stay in floors and walls. How do you get rid of them? CLEAN UP! Mopping, dusting and vacuuming can get those VOCs out of your surfaces. Good luck if you have popcorn ceilings, like Ben does. Ben remembers finding patterns and images in the popcorn ceiling back in high school. Steven remembers the word Pareidolia: the perception of random images, especially faces, in random shapes and lines.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/10/air-purifiers-arent-enough-to-clean-your-home-from-wildfire-smoke/
Science Fiction: Where does Steven go for a pick-me-up when he’s down? Enter Peacock’s own Twisted Metal. Thanks for the recommendation, Devon. After three episodes, Steven sees it’s a decent show. It walks a fine line between being absurd and serious, but it’s all still believable within the show. Steven and Ben wonder what is going on with LOKI in season 2. Like, what’s up with X-5? Oh that’s right, this is a TIME TRAVEL SHOW. We’re all experiencing temporal whiplash. Maybe they’ll tell the rest of the story at another time? For all time, always. Ben’s son is not into this season, but is begrudgingly allowing us to watch LOKI instead of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Can you believe that Disney showed surprising restraint by not peppering the MCU’s version of 1977 with a bunch of Star Wars posters? The late-1980s McDonalds is incredible, now Ben wants an apple pie. Remember when McDonalds had lore? The McDonalds Cinematic Universe with the Hamburgler and fry guys and all the nostalgia! Is Sylvie’s manager a young Mobius?
We talk even more after the break: Let’s talk about Fallout Wasteland Warfare! Steven’s never played the tabletop game, but he’s excited about painting a Frank Horrigan figurine from it. Do you even Fallout, fool?: https://falloutfacts.com/fallout-frank-horrigan . Ben’s learning to git gud noob in Elden Ring, after noping out of it half a year ago. Big thanks to JumpinProductions for their Noob’s Guide for Elden Ring: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvSjDM1TnnA_lZWYp4N8hqj6IKNv3P7tc. In contrast to Elden Ring, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom are power fantasies. Steven tells Ben about i-frames. The real game is timing. Giant disgustingly beautiful enemies? Run around them! Stormwind Castle has incredible detail showing ancient battles and sense of place. Is Elden Ring the game of the decade? How could we know? After A LONG TALK about Elden Ring, Ben recommends 3D Sen VR: an NES emulator that makes ye olde Nintendo games 3D diaramas and it’s incredible. http://www.geodstudio.net/ We rank Batman movies, and Steven continues to sing the praises of The Batman, even over the Nolanverse. It’s so good, mainly because it brings in the detective side of Batman.
This episode contains: We have all three hosts this week, and you know what that means...a lot of faffing about until we get to the science. We talk about Ben's kid's Junior Roller Derby, Devon's upcoming trip to Las Vegas and the Omega Mart, and Steven tells us his crazy story about going to LA to look at a 1959 Hillman Minx. We also chat a bit about Indigenous People's Day and German heritage.
Shut Up and Take My Money: Google open-sourced a hat shaped like a giant keycap—and it actually types. Ben attempts to convince Steven that this device is amazing and not completely dumb. This giant hat can be used to "type" by pressing on it in various orientations. This is totally not a joke. This is real. They even offer files to make one of these on your own. Steven offers a $100 bounty if you prove that you make one of these.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/10/google-open-sourced-a-hat-shaped-like-a-giant-keycap-and-it-actually-types/
Big Question: Has the invention of the atomic bomb made the world a more peaceful place? We discuss mutually assured distruction, threats of war, what we would have done if nukes were never invented. Devon introduces us to the Nuke Map so you can experience existential dread anywhere. We also chat about post-nuclear rebuilding with Twisted Metal, Dollhouse and Neal Stephenson books.
https://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/
Science Fiction (?): Devon tells us all about his experience watching the Netflix show One Piece. We talk about the anime, and the show's weirder elements.
Patreon Only: Steven does Psyrreal, LOKI season 2 premired and we give some analysis, and we talk Ahsoka finale and where the story goes from here.
This episode contains: All three hosts are present and accounted for. Devon wants to go big for Halloween. Devon and Steven had a weekend long date where Devon tried Pumkin Spice Latte at Starbucks and played a ton of games. This included Wingspan, Aliens: Another Glorious Day in the Corps, and D&D. Steven was the DM for a Jurassic Park themed D&D session. Steven and Devon then argue over the quality of the hotel they stayed in. Meanwhile, Ben went to a wedding and ended up living it up in San Diego with his sister. Ben also teaches us about Kava Kava root and then we argue about it.
(https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/kava-kava#TOC_TITLE_HDR_3)
(https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/is-kava-safe/)
The Beautiful Future: Humane Finally Shows Off What the Ai Pin Looks Like Ahead of November 9 Unveil. The intelligent clothing-based wearable uses a range of sensors that enable natural and intuitive compute interactions and is designed to weave seamlessly into users’ day-to-day lives. The device is privacy-first, with aspects such as no wake word and therefore no ‘always on’ listening, reflecting Humane’s vision of building products which place trust at the center. The Ai Pin, which does not need to be paired with a smartphone or other companion device, includes AI-powered optical recognition and a laser-projected display, all powered by an advanced Snapdragon platform from Qualcomm Technologies.
https://www.inverse.com/tech/humane-ai-pin-hardware-reveal-november-9
Big Question: How important is play in living a healthy and fulfilling life? Warning, we start with some dark jokes. Ben gets philosophical, Steven hates washing dishes, and Devon wants to play RPGs with his kids.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are joined by Ben's son playing video games in the background. When do you get "you time" when you're a parent? Steven's looking for that time. Ben suggests recontextualizing "you time" by indoctrinating his son with Star Trek. With two kids: turns out when one kid wants something, the other doesn't. Why do kids want to fight things that COULD BE FUN!??! JUST GET IN THE CAR! I guess "giving things a chance" is a form of maturity. Ben is going to a kids birthday, and then his friend's wedding. Is this the Science Faction Therapy Hour? HELL NO. Now You See Me: Let's talk about digital assistants for the visually impaired. OKO App leverages AI to help blind pedestrians recognize traffic signals.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/gusalexiou/2023/08/10/oko-app-deploys-ai-to-make-crossing-the-street-safer-for-blind-pedestrians/?sh=55bff018687b At the end of 2020, the New York City Department of Transportation had a class action lawsuit filed because only 443 of the city's 13,200 signalized intersections were accessible to visually impaired pedestrians via audible and tactile features. That's less than 4% of intersections in NYC. Enter OKO, a "digital seeing eye dog" of sorts that uses iPhone's camera to notify the user when a street is safe to cross. Dot Go. The First Object Interaction App for the Visually Impaired. https://www.dandad.org/awards/professional/2023/236909/dot-go-the-first-object-interaction-app-for-the-visually-impaired/ Dot Go is the first object interaction app. It not only detects objects in the environment but also connects them to actions. These could be internal actions, like sounds and vibration, or external actions in other apps, websites, and even smart home devices. For example, a bus stop sign could trigger an app to open and buy a ticket. Anyone can easily build and share custom solutions with the community. Is this like Pokemon Go? Can it be more like Pokemon Go? Dot Pad tactile display makes images touchable for visually impaired users https://techcrunch.com/2022/03/10/dot-pad-tactile-display-makes-images-touchable-for-visually-impaired-users/?guccounter=1 Dot Pad is a smart braille device that not only allows for easy display of text, but tactile representations of imagery, potentially opening an entirely new layer for education and accessible content. Dot Pad gives the low vision community access to maps, diagrams, charts, and other illustrations, allowing easy access to content on the internet. By making productivity apps accessible, Dot Pad creates whole new career opportunities and a more inclusive workplace. Envision Adds ChatGPT AI Sight Assistance To Its Smart Glasses For The Blind https://www.forbes.com/sites/gusalexiou/2023/04/30/envision-adds-chatgpt-ai-sight-assistance-to-its-smart-glasses-for-the-blind/?sh=16c2aa05446f Google Glass-like devices can now use ChatGPT to capture text through the glasses' camera, then use their voice to ask direct questions about what it sees. This may range from questions like “What is the balance of this bill” to “What are the vegetarian options on this menu?” Blind people may want to know... how do sighted people actually lose things? Between the forest and the trees, don't get lost! Plant and forest researchers do not 'anthropomorphize' plants. This is not more Little Shop of Horrors talk. There has been a trend in science articles to anthropomorphize plants, and it needs to stop. Why? Conjecture gets equated with fact, and that is dangerous for science. Poetry is fantastic but has no place in a scientific journal.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/09/230920111155.htm Mid-shop Patreon-only talk: Now we have more Little Shop of Horrors talk. We talk about the upcoming film The Creator.
Science Fiction: Episode six of Ahsoka was peak Star Wars and Devon's not here to be a party pooper. "Far, Far Away" had Claudia Black as one of the Mothers of Dathomir. HOW COOL ARE EXTRAGALACTIC STORIES? Between this and Star Trek Discovery Season 4, you're gonna see something new when you go extragalactic. Too bad we'll never actually travel outside the galaxy. We finally get Star Wars Rebels season 5, with Ezra and Thrawn. The implied stories about Thrawn's broken stormtroopers feels like the best of old Star Wars. Remember Jedi Survivor? We now have stormtrooper zombies, right? Great casting for Ezra Bridger. Episode 899 of Star Trek is that Very Short Treks episode that is all about how boogers are gross: "Worst Contact". Gates Mcfadden, Jonathan Frakes, and microwaved fish! Lower Decks got the 900th Star Trek ever with "Something Borrowed, Something Green". You get so much more Tendi this week, the Mistress of the Winter Constellations herself. Steven throws shade on how Star Trek episodes are counted. Star Trek's non-canon animation is just copying Star Wars, no? Remember Star Wars Visions, or Droids, or the holiday special. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem was cool, fun and nostalgic, which is just what we expected. Steven and his family watched it at Ben's house, since it's now streaming on Paramount+. There's a crazy amount of comedic vomit in it. This film reallly emphasizes the "Teenage" part of it all. This film was written for us: twelve year olds living in forty year old bodies. The design of the film is excellent: doodles and graffiti and asymmetrical faces were all great design decisions. There is nothing as disgusting as a man-rat making out with a cockroach-woman. All of the voice actors for the turtles were recorded in group recording sessions, and worked really well. Get ready for the sequel and the Tales of the TMNT tv show. Steven gushes about TMNT toys. After-show Patreon-only talk: Portal 2 is now in VR.
This episode contains: Devon and Steven start out this episode lamenting Ben's absence. We talk about Devon's upcoming trip to California, and Steven's journey with the Aliens: Another Glorious Day in the Corps game. Devon is going to a sort-of costume party while dressing up as a starfleet officer with an alien chestburster coming out. We also chat about kids and xenomorphs. Steven's house should have burned down, but several thousand dollars later, everything is fine.
This Week in Space: Water world? Methane, carbon dioxide in atmosphere of massive exoplanet. K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as big as earth, has revealed the presence of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide. It could be a Hycean exoplanet, one which has the potential to possess a hydrogen-rich atmosphere and a water ocean-covered surface. We chat about how we could possibly know anything about this planet.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/09/230911141059.htm
Spit Take: Why People Hate Words Like "Moist". This one is all about word aversion. We talk about how the New York Times and the Guardian asked it's readers for words they had an aversion to. Some responses were: moist, slacks, loin, panties, crevice, phlegm, bulge, nugget etc. It turns out that word aversion may be caused by the literal sound of the word and/or it's connection to bodily functions. Or is it just pop-culture? We also talk about our own experiences with these words.
https://www.iflscience.com/why-people-hate-words-like-moist-70709
Science Fiction: Ben joins us for the sci-fi side of this episode. We talk about the latest episode of Very Short Treks, Moopsy (from the episode of Lower Decks from last week) and Megastructures from this week's episode. Devon tells us all about Little Shop of Horrors, and it's alternate ending. Ben and Steven chat about Simulant, a movie that was recommended to us by a listener (Thanks Tom!). Ben makes connections to the game Detroit: Become Human, and Steven had some issues with the unfocused nature of the story. Simulant definitely has some great ideas and it worth a watch.
This episode contains: We’re caffeinated and ready to podcast. Devon and Steven stayed up really late last night playing Baldur’s Gate3. Steven’s AC is not working and Ben is getting a new microwave. Ben had his first roller derby experience.
This Week in Space: The closest planet to Neptune turns out to be... Mercury. While Mercury is the innermost planet in the Solar System, on average it spends more time closer to Earth than Venus does. This applies to all the planets the solar system, including Neptune. To identify our closest neighbor, engineers affiliated with NASA, Los Alamos National Observatory, and the US Army's Engineer Research Development Center built a computer simulation to calculate the average proximity of Earth to its three nearest planets (Mars, Venus, and Mercury) over a 10,000-year-period. Because of the way the planets align during their respective orbits, the model shows that Earth spends more time nearer to Mercury than either Venus or Mars.
https://www.iflscience.com/the-closest-planet-to-neptune-turns-out-to-be-mercury-70424
Here In My Car I Feel Safest of All: Connected cars are a “privacy nightmare,” Mozilla Foundation says. Data privacy protections are almost nonexistent when it comes to automobiles. Today, the Mozilla Foundation published its analysis of how well automakers handle the privacy of data collected by their connected cars, and the results will be unlikely to surprise any regular reader of Ars Technica. The researchers were horrified by their findings, stating that "cars are the worst product category we have ever reviewed for privacy."
https://arstechnica.com/cars/2023/09/connected-cars-are-a-privacy-nightmare-mozilla-foundation-says/
Big Question: What are some small but transformative moments you’ve experienced with technology? Devon’s answer: cars and music. Steven: CDs, cells phones and no ringtones. Ben: phone calls “in stereo,” Hearing an orchestra tune up when booting my PS3 for the first time, and silencing unknown callers.
Patreon-only preshow: Do people have to cite their sources at ITT Tech? Steven says no. Steven got some Marvel Studios blind bag LEGO, gave a Patreon member one of his 80s Storm minifigs. Ben waxes poetic on the joys of opening trading cards, and rails against collecting things that are “maybe” worth money. Was 90s collectible culture a manifestation of the side-hustle? How cool is it to make indie films?
This episode contains: Morning podcasting is a very different vibe than evening podcasting. Twitter is dead, long live notes. Will these notes be a novel? If you're interested in reading a novel about bounty hunting, touch base with Steven. Bounty hunters are cool. How do they work? Cowboy Bebop live action is good, but if you've seen the anime, don't watch it! It's terrible compared to the anime.
What a trip!: Psychedelic Therapy May Be Coming To A VR Headset Near You. Hallucinogenic drugs may have positive effects in fighting depression, PTSD and substance use disorders. What if psychedelic drug-based therapy didn't require drugs at all? A small study published in March 2023 found that those who spent time using a VR program called Psyrreal, which attempts to mimic the hallucinogenic experience in virtual reality, had significant decreases in depressive symptoms two weeks after treatment. Ben tried the VR program Psyrreal, as a 45 minute experience, and felt a distinct connection to all things. What an incredible experience, only using visual and auditory sensations. You can try it too, for free, if you have a VR headset and a computer capable of running it.
https://www.inverse.com/health/psychedelic-therapy-in-virtual-reality
Psyrreal VR: https://psyrreal.mozellosite.com/
Be Naked Like a Mole Rat: Longevity gene from naked mole rats extends lifespan of mice. We need to live longer. In a groundbreaking endeavor, researchers at the University of Rochester have successfully transferred a longevity gene from naked mole rats to mice, resulting in improved health and an extension of the mouse's lifespan. Naked mole rats, known for their long lifespans and exceptional resistance to age-related diseases, have long captured the attention of the scientific community. By introducing a specific gene responsible for enhanced cellular repair and protection into mice, researchers at Rochester have opened exciting possibilities for unlocking the secrets of aging and extending human lifespan. Did you know that naked mole rats live up to 41 years?!?! The researchers previously discovered that HMW-HA is one mechanism responsible for naked mole rats' unusual resistance to cancer. Compared to mice and humans, naked mole rats have about ten times more HMW-HA in their bodies. After good results adding HMW-HA in mice, we're almost ready to test on humans. Would this break society? Almost certainly, but it probably will break it for the better! We dream about societal impacts from genetic modification.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230823165402.htm
Patreon-only midshow: Star Trek Lower Decks season 3 is now free on Youtube and a few other places, in prep for season 4. Ben describes Psyrreal in greater depth. Steven's kids love Ralph Breaks The Internet. Disney Dreamlight Valley is a gateway to all the Disney. Ben and his kid loved Ron’s Gone Wrong, even though it's similar to Next Gen.
Science Fiction: Starfield: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/starfield Ben can’t play yet because he’s cheap. Steven says SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY. Steven waxes poetic about his new galactic-sized timesink. The music in Starfield is the best part. Except for paying 500 credits for lemonade. 10/10 game of the year.
Secret Little Haven: https://ristar.itch.io/secret-little-haven Ben was captivated by a visual novel that replicates using an operating system circa May 12, 1999. You take the role of Alex, a young trans girl that discovers herself through fandom, chats, and the early internet. It takes about an hour and a half. It helped Ben contextualize the challenge of being your authentic self, from a Trans perspective. You can also get it on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/827290/Secret_Little_Haven/
We chat about episode three of Ahsoka, which really opened things up a bit in terms of characterization. The journey has began. Could Star Wars have a story with the scope of Foundation? Steven doubts it.
The Flash is now on Max. Ben says watch it! It's a movie that has nothing to lose. You'll like it, especially if you know about Eric Stoltz in Back to the Future. Is it time for a Batman Beyond project with Michael Keaton? We cast the project with a bunch of previous Batmen.
This episode contains: Everyone is here this week! Steven chats about camping, and spider attacks on a lake. Ben watched Super Mario Bros. in a field with a bunch of rude youths. We revisit the biolocks on guns debate with input from a special listener.
Insane in the Membrane: Woman’s mystery illness turns out to be 3-inch snake parasite in her brain. A woman in Australia had many symptoms that did not point to a specific disease. Eventually doctors found a snake parasite in her brains. She may have been infected after foraging for warrigal greens.
https://arstechnica.com/health/2023/08/australian-woman-has-3-inch-snake-parasite-pulled-from-her-brain/
Biologically Speaking: Pig kidney xenotransplantation performing optimally after 32 days in human body. Surgeons at NYU Langone Health have transplanted a genetically engineered pig kidney that continues to function well after 32 days in a man declared dead by neurologic criteria and maintained with a beating heart on ventilator support. We discuss the family and why they would or would not allow testing to continue before the body is laid to rest. We also talk about companies owning genetically engineered animals.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230816114156.htm
Soapbox Time with Steven: Paper drinking straws may be harmful and may not be better for the environment than plastic versions.'Eco-friendly' paper drinking straws contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals, a new study has concluded. Researchers tested 39 brands of straws for the group of synthetic chemicals known as poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Paper straws were most likely to contain PFAS, with the chemicals detected in 18/20 (90%) of the brands tested.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230825122044.htm
Science Fiction: Ben talks about Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go and how its a "Perfect Saturday morning cartoon" with an all-star voice cast. Ben (and his son) also watched My Adventures With Superman on Max and enjoys it very much. There is also a slight connection to Star Trek Lower Decks! Devon (as well as Steven and Ben) watched Ahsoka and he tells us his opinions on the first two episodes. Spoilers: he did not like it. All three of us interpreted a specific scene very differently. Devon is curious about Thrawn, but isn't confident the show will deliver. Ben and Steven both enjoyed Ahsoka, and Steven talks about links to other Star Wars properties. Also, Chopper is a total war criminal, and we're here for it.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben helm this episode. Ben discusses his Chess Renaissance (https://www.youtube.com/@chessplus). Steven tells us about the first week of school and delicious freedom. Ben shares some feedback from a listener about biolocks on guns.
Vaccination Fixation: Fall COVID shots will boost protection against latest subvariants, Moderna says. Pfizer vaccine also reportedly effective against the latest omicrons in mice.
https://arstechnica.com/health/2023/08/fall-covid-shots-will-boost-protection-against-latest-subvariants-moderna-says/
New malaria vaccine works well in infants, offers adults layered protection. New vaccine targets a distinct stage in the malarial parasite's life cycle.
https://arstechnica.com/health/2023/08/new-malaria-vaccine-works-well-in-infants-offers-adults-layered-protection/
Squeezing Electricity from a Stone: Energy-storing supercapacitor from cement, water, black carbon. Engineers have created a 'supercapacitor' made of ancient, abundant materials, that can store large amounts of energy. Made of just cement, water, and carbon black (which resembles powdered charcoal), the device could form the basis for inexpensive systems that store intermittently renewable energy, such as solar or wind energy.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230731151603.htm
Science Fiction: ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 Clip Reveals Legacy Returns; Producers Confident In Finding New Home. https://trekmovie.com/2023/08/05/star-trek-prodigy-season-2-clip-reveals-legacy-returns-producers-confident-in-finding-new-home/ We also discuss Star Wars: Ahsoka. https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Ahsoka_Tano
This episode contains: Ben's "the problem" this week and Devon's going back to school. What would Devon's show be like? Kindergardner Lawyer! Steven's hanging in there for the end of Summer. When the kids are in school, that's when the stay-at-home parents get a break. Ben loves his Coinops Legends 4 on the Steam Deck. Arcade goodness. Steven is going through the Ahsoka Essentials on Disney+. Watching Ahsoka's chronological story (as opposed to airdate order) is very satisfying.
Just keep talking about AI: AI-powered grocery bot suggests recipe for toxic gas, “poison bread sandwich." An AI-powered recipe bot has been made to help you use up leftovers in new recipes. What if a recipe AI was given harmful ingredients? From ammonia and bleach you get "Aromatic Water Mix". Devon joins the show in the middle of Ben's sentence. "Aromatic Water Mix" is made of ammonia and bleach, but at least it's non-alcoholic! If something is AI powered, turn up your skepticism. Ben drops the mike, but HE'S NOT DONE! Thankfully the recipe AI has been adjusted to no longer accept "invalid ingredients." Steven was one of those kids with a floppy disk of the Anarchist's Cookbook. Information isn't evil. It's what you do with it.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/08/ai-powered-grocery-bot-suggests-recipe-for-toxic-gas-poison-bread-sandwich/
Let's get tatted up!: Tattoo technique transfers gold nanopatterns onto live cells. Researchers have developed a way to tattoo living cells with nanowires. Flexible devices molded to curved surfaces used to be incompatible with living cells. Used to be. We're close to attaching circuits to living beings to create bionic devices and biosensors. Nearer to adjusting humans, we can use lithography to print circuits on clothing. We're closer and closer to Cyberpunk 2077 levels of bio-augmentation. What if a firearm was bio-coded to you? Would that lower child firearm deaths? If people start using bows and arrows instead of firearms, maybe they'd make that a hobby?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230810141018.htm
Science Fiction: Happy Birthday Devon! Here's all the things you hate! How does one say the word "Hegemony?" Strange New Worlds ended the season with a horror episode, and a cliffhanger. This season's finale of Strange New Worlds felt like a Voyager cliffhanger. Welcome to Strange New Worlds, Scotty! "And does he move like a REAL Gorn?" Devon asks, unironically. It's been four years since Strange New Worlds was announced, and only 20 episodes. Wow. We really didn't cover much Secret Invasion. Wonder why? Secret Invasion should have been a Samuel L. Jackson story, should have pushed story farther. What's up with the giant statue taking over half the ocean? TELL BEN. The Eternals should have been more popular. Loki Season 2 is looking incredible. So the TVA is in Deadpool 3? Whoa. Will Deadpool 3 be the death of the Fox Marvel universe? Hugh Jackman is glad to be in the Wolverine suit, doesn't have to get as jacked for Deadpool 3. Andor production is on pause due to the strikes. Steven provides an update. Steven is so excited about Ahsoka. You should be too! Is Slayer or Dragonforce more appropriate for kids? Devon weighs in. Anakin and Ahsoka have never been in the same scene in live action yet! Will this be The Book of Ahsoka? Not all bad guys are Sith, but all Sith are bad guys. Devon's hurt about what was done to Lightyear.
Post-show Patreon only: Steven gushes about Baldur's Gate 3. Ben recommends Rivals of Aether. Star Trek: Resurgence is legit. Support your local library.
This episode contains: Devon, Ben and Steven are all excited for their kids to go back to school! We talk about school supplies, magnet schools and space camps.
You Did What?!: They just bought the only physical encyclopedia still in print, and they regret nothing. $1200 will get you a 22 volume print encyclopedia. Ben is excited, but Steven isn't convinced. Devon once had a Star Trek encyclopedia.
https://arstechnica.com/culture/2023/06/rejoice-its-2023-and-you-can-still-buy-a-22-volume-paper-encyclopedia/
https://www.amazon.com/How-Invent-Everything-Survival-Stranded/dp/073522014X
https://www.amazon.com/Knowledge-Rebuild-Civilization-Aftermath-Cataclysm/dp/0143127047
Exploits!: Social media algorithms exploit how humans learn from their peers. In prehistoric societies, humans learned from members of their ingroup or prestigious individuals. Social media algorithms are misaligned with social instincts which can lead to large-scale polarization and misinformation. We talk quite a bit about social media and the "how" and "why" of what shows up on our social media.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230803113015.htm
Big Question: What two questions would you ask to get the most information about who a person truly is? We work together and spitball what these questions should be. Many revelations are had. In the end, we each have our own answers. Also, Ben learns that the Alien movies are all about genetalia. And Devon is a pervert.
This episode contains: All three of us are here on this cosmic journey. We all discuss having to be solo dads for a few days. Ben tells us about Goose, a 4 month old pig at the State Fair. Then there’s “X” for some reason.
Is it Alive?: GPT-3 can reason about as well as a college student, psychologists report. The artificial intelligence language model GPT-3 performed as well as college students in solving certain logic problems like those that appear on standardized tests. The researchers who conducted the experiment write that the results prompt the question of whether the technology is mimicking human reasoning or using a new type of cognitive process. Solving that question would require access to the software that underpins GPT-3 and other AI software.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230731110750.htm
Water, Water Everywhere: Dissolving circuit boards in water sounds better than shredding and burning. UK-based Jiva Materials makes Soluboard, printed circuit boards (PCBs) from natural fibers encased in a non-toxic polymer that dissolves in hot water. That leaves behind whole components previously soldered onto the board, which should be easier to recover. Infineon, Germany's largest semiconductor manufacturer and maker of components in cars, Raspberry Pis, and industrial equipment, has produced demo boards using Soluboard's tech.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/07/dissolving-circuit-boards-in-water-sounds-better-than-shredding-and-burning/
Big Question: At what point is a technologically enhanced human not a human anymore? What makes us human? Why does it matter? We discuss all this and more!
This episode contains: We got listener feedback this episode... FOR A DIFFERENT PODCAST! Did someone just learn to swear? Wouldn't it be cool if we were guests on some other Science Faction Podcasts? Why did we name this show Science Faction? Remember the Pure BS Podcast? We shout out "PS4 Tom." Nobody gave Devon a PS4. He's sad about it.
I didn't have enough time to have the AI write a title for this one... so this is it: Google demos “unsettling” tool to help journalists write the news. Remember when Ben used AI to help write poetry? Now Google wants journalism to use AI too. Google's "Genesis" AI tool for journalism writing has been called "unsettling". Buzzfeed, CNET, and Gizmodo have all had pushback for publishing AI-written articles. Remember when io9 was shamed for an error-filled Star Wars article? https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/io9-ai-generated-star-wars-article-errors-1235662194/ Asking AI to write an article about Terminator is how we get Skynet. Will AI one day become indispensible to writers, as word processors are today? Reuters article formatting is so strict, perhaps AI could be trusted to help write it. If we spend money watching movies AI has written, we'll get more AI written movies. Devon probably never would have been a lawyer if it wasn't for spell check. If AI is now writing articles, it is tremendously important for good editing. When AI makes up information, and it does, we've been calling it hallucinations. Did y'all hear about the AI-generated South Park fan episode? https://techcrunch.com/2023/07/18/maybe-showing-off-an-ai-generated-fake-tv-episode-during-a-writers-strike-is-a-bad-idea/?mrfhud=true The first few seasons of South Park are a completely different show than now. Authors wrote movies to be movies, not to be churned into a language learning model. How much do extras make in a movie? If it's nothing, you should be paid. We make wild assumptions about how Hollywood works in this episode. Why is Hollywood so pervasive? Maybe we've had enough and will watch indie films?
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/07/google-demos-unsettling-tool-to-help-journalists-write-the-news/
Science Fiction: Ben unveils his high school playlist: lots of pop music! Canadian rock! French hip-hop! Honor the past with Ben and his high school playlist, only for Patreon supporters. Steven reviews 65: Adam Driver shoots dinosaurs. It's by the numbers, but good! Adam Driver plays a spaceship... driver? Steven considers Adam Driver's huge hands. 65 has appropriately sized raptors. Did y'all see the Star Trek Lower Decks/Strange New Worlds crossover? It was incredible to get a surprise Star Trek episode. Thanks SDCC! Ben learned his son can't handle zombies. Thanks Star Trek Strange New Worlds. If you've never seen Lower Decks, you'll be a bit lost in the latest Strange New Worlds. Lots of love for the NX01 in the latest Star Trek Strange New Worlds. Strange New Worlds' animated opening credits were incredible.
Big Question: We discuss how having all media available at all times is affecting the next generation. We no longer have novelizations and trading cards based on TV and movies. Ben's son doesn't listen to his dad anymore for suggestions on video games. "Deep Space Nine is, like, the second best Star Trek series." - Ben's son. Bluey is back, y'all. We talk about the episode "Space".
After pod Patreon-only, we talk the latest season of Black Mirror and The Bear.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven do their worst (by which I mean their best) this episode. No Devon no cry. Ben went to a Renaissance Faire with his son and tells us all about it. Steven and his wife had a date night, with tacos.
Light, Keep It Light: Light-based “LiFi” is stunningly fast, notably fragile—and now standardized. Wireless communication now has a choice between radio and light waves, but this choice comes at a cost. LiFi has a ability to be extremely fast, but requires line-of-sight to be successful. We're looking forward to future developments!
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/07/light-based-lifi-promises-amazing-wireless-speeds-just-not-through-walls/
Aaaaauugggghhhhh: Surgical and engineering innovations enable unprecedented control over every finger of a bionic hand. A multidisciplinary team of surgeons and engineers have crafted a bionic arm with unparalled functionality. This prosthetic arm required rewiring nerves, osseointegration, and AI algorithms to function. It's amazing.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230712165138.htm
Science Fiction: Ben and his son watched Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which prompts a conversation about Transformer movies. But really, they got a very specific fact about technology and games from 1994 WRONG and it really bothers Ben. Steven chimes in with some Stormtrooper facts (that he stole from the YubNub Podcast) and also talks about the SAG-AFTRA strike. Ben is excited to talk about the best new episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Steven is trying to catch up on Foundation.
This episode contains: All three hosts are with us on the case. Devon complaints about the bad food in East Texas and what makes a good pizza. Steven then tells us about the Threads and Twitter war. Ben tells us about the chaos of his son’s birthday party and Devon tells us about his long drive to and from Virginia.
Evolutionarily Speaking: Why do animals keep evolving into crabs? Crabby bodies are so evolutionarily favorable, they've evolved at least five different times. So why does this process, known as carcinization, keep happening?
https://www.livescience.com/animals/crustaceans/why-do-animals-keep-evolving-into-crabs
Never Smile at a Crocodile: From 1907 until its relocation in 1953, the area of Lincoln Heights was home to what the Los Angeles Times dubbed “the city’s most exotic residents”: a thousand-strong collection of alligators that welcomed visitors every day of the year to see, pose with, and even ride them.
https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/los-angeles-alligator-farm
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-aug-03-me-19132-story.html
The Big Question: Would it be more frightening to discover that humans are the most advanced species in the universe or that we are far from being the most advanced species in the universe?
Pre-pod Patreon-only:
Wouldn't it be great if it was Indy 500 instead of Indy 5? Who's in Extraction? Chris "The Dentist" Hemsworth. This week, Steven messes up the opening of the show for once.
This episode contains: We're just loving life this episode. I don't know what it is about being 40. It sucks, is what it is. Ben burns the bottoms of his feet off at a water park. Steven drove down and back from Disneyland to surprise his family. For real. Shout out to the Yub Nub Podcast and Tim Barnes! We got to have him back on. Mickey's Toontown has a new ride?!?! Sweet! Can we just throw money away to fix our problems? Or do we have to do hard work? Ben saw the musical Once at the SLORep. It was incredible! Happy birthday to Ben's wife! We're curious why you listen to this podcast! Let us know at sciencefactionpodcast@gmail.com
This Week in Space: Galaxies are not scattered randomly across the universe. "The nearby universe" is one of our favorite phrases ever. "The epoch of reionization" would be a killer prog-metal album. Is the formation of life a consequence of the universe going to high entropy? Entropy is very misunderstood: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxL2HoqLbyA Cosmic web strands make Ben think of Orbitz: https://www.tastingtable.com/1185720/what-were-the-floating-balls-in-90s-soda-orbitz-made-from/ 90s kids! What's up! Remember the Orbitz flavor Pineapple Banana Cherry Coconut?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230629173611.htm
I'm angry about the internet and I'm gonna talk about it: Reddit API changes are imminent. Here’s what’s happening to your favorite apps. Ben misses how great Reddit was. RIP Apollo. Some apps are surviving the Reddit-ocalypse. Shout out to Narwhal 2! Why do we need 3rd party apps for Reddit? Lack of features, mostly. Will Lemmy replace Reddit? "I replaced social media with micro-journaling for a year" by Struthless: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFvdHfhVIsQ When's the last time you searched for content on the web, instead of having it presented? If you write down small problems, most of them will not matter in 10 days. Do y'all have things that nag in your craw? Do they bug you after ten days? Ben's been writing a diary in the notes app, and he talks about intentionality. Kids should use Breath of the Wild rules to pick who gets which sword in a play fight. Should you listen to Ben about quitting social media? Does he even use social media? If you're concerned about where your attention is going, you have choice.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/06/reddit-api-changes-are-imminent-heres-whats-happening-to-your-favorite-apps/
Science Fiction: We're talking a lot about our upcoming Patreon-only High School playlists. How great is Limp Bizkit's Mission Impossible theme? Take A Look Around: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3UHMV3jrZk Steven finally saw Across the Spiderverse! We do a full spoiler-filled review. How cool is it that the first half hour of Across the Spiderverse is the Gwen Stacy movie? Even without a lot of hip hop in Across the Spiderverse, the music is still amazing. Donald Glover's love of Spider Man was a big inspiration for Miles Morales. Steven and Ben saw Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny together. Spoilers ahead! The Temple of Doom was a silly film, which works for kids despite the rest of the film. Ben anticipated a different film from the trailer of Dial of Destiny. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has mostly incredible CGI.
This episode contains: Steven made Devon and Ben post-pone recording, sorry guys! Ben had a birthday: HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN, and Devon visited the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, super cool. Oh yeah, Steven watched the end of Rogue One and the beginning of A New Hope in succession and has some thoughts. We then talk a bit about the Oceangate disaster.
Pump Up The Water, Pump It Up!: We've pumped so much groundwater that we've nudged Earth's spin. Scientists estimate humans have pumped 2,150 gigatons of groundwater and moved it elsewhere, shifting our polar motion by nearly 80 inches. On geologic time scales, polar drift can have an impact on climate.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230615183147.htm
Come Sail Away With Me: Drones take to the waves: Saildrones are getting data where people can’t. Saildrones are sailboat like uncrewed surface vehicles predominately powered by wind and solar power. Saildrones have a "mission as a service" model where they collect data for scientists.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/06/drones-take-to-the-waves-saildrones-are-getting-data-where-people-cant/
Big Question: Has the internet been a net benefit or detriment to humanity (Social media in particular)? Should we shut it down? We quite a long discussion about the uses of the internet, mis-information, information bubbles, how we can move beyond social media, how to be skeptical around the internet and much more. It's a doozy.
Patreon Only Post Show: Devon and Steven chat about streaming services and how awful everything is becoming and why.
This episode contains: We're your dads this week. Turns out Steven knows how to introduce a damn podcast. We argue how many weeks it's been since Devon's been on the podcast. Oh no, we started singing Barenaked Ladies this episode. Does anybody think our podcast is better when Steven is choking on cat hair? Steven's the Houdini of the podcast. Death-defying at every turn. Devon and his kids were putting together Lego on Father's Day. There's a new franchised Lego store around Devon: Bricks and Minifigs. Devon got the new Treehouse Lego set, and Steven is totes jelly. Steven got the Lego house from Up... and shoes. Happy Father's Day. Ben got a toolbox shaped like Mjonir and a card that says "Happy Person Father Day." Is Benergy hereditary? Or is it contracted? Looks like Ben's gonna put up drywall, and knows nothing about it. The drywall guy. Steven and Ben checked out our local watering hole, the Raconteur Room. Super chill. Steven found some people who also get migraines from hops. Instead of recording this podcast we could have went to a metal show at Dark Nectar. Ben will totally go to shows with Steven.
Honey, where are my pants? Scientists conduct first test of a wireless cosmic ray navigation system. Ben has a joke just for the Lego Movie fans. What's better than GPS (in certain situations)? muPS! GPS sucks when it encounters ground and water. muPS doesn't have this problem. Ever wondered all the things that muons have been used for? There's so many things! What's your deal, muons? Well, they decay. Check out the episode of Miikshi about Cosmic Rays, which covers the same research. Justin T. Lee not only made Miikshi, he also made ST:TNG Animated and Voyager Animated. https://news.muographix.u-tokyo.ac.jp/2023/05/15/filmmakers-interview-justin-t-lee-and-lindsay-lee/news-local/
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/06/scientists-conduct-first-test-of-a-wireless-cosmic-ray-navigation-system/
AaaH!CHOOO! Better understanding of how genes make us prone to allergies. This year has been way worse for Steven's allergies. He's trying a new med. Allergies rank as the 6th most prevalent cause of chronic illness in the U.S. Learning more about how allergies work can help uncover possible remedies for them. Looking to control allergies? Let's start looking at the ETS1 protein. The Golden book The Shy Little Kitten is really messing Steven up. What would an Avengers team from Golden Books look like? Steven keeps prompting songs from the other hosts on this podcast.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230615105331.htm
Patreon only Mid-pod:
Steven re-reviews Star Wars: Rogue One. Devon feels that's the only good Disney SW film. Ben doesn't know how to spell the Star Wars planet Jedha. He thinks it's Jetta. Poor Ben. Devon talks about how good the first episode of the most recent season of Black Mirror is.
Our Patreons get a new playlist as a gift from ya boi Devon C! Steven does not remember The Dear Hunter, despite Devon's knowledge dump several times.
Big Question: Is this the discount episode? 3 big questions for the price of 1! Would you rather have proof of intelligent alien life or true general AI? We discuss. Would true general A.I. be cool with us as planetmates? How about aliens as neighbors? What if knowing about intelligent aliens actually united humanity? Probably wouldn't though. We had the opportunity to unite and kill something evil on our planet for 3 years. No way. Ben makes another Star Trek V reference. Devon leaves him hanging. Is our hope for AI only to subjugate and enslave another life form? How amazing will it be when AI can build personalized curriculums for students? Would you rather self-driving cars everywhere or affordable low-orbit space tourism? What if low-orbit space tourism was as affordable as a cruise? If cars weren't important anymore, urban design would be completely revolutionized. People should get licenses to share a road with self-driving cars. Would you rather have faster than light space travel or mind uploads to computers? Ben wants the singularity. Functional immortality. Devon wants to be Mayor of the Matrix. Would FTL travel be worth it if you can't make your ship look like the Millenium Falcon? We haven't had a clip show in a while. Probably not for a while longer.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben record together from Ben’s house. We talk life insurance, college, life experience, and aches and pain from sleeping. We also decide that Devon’s wife is a super hero.
Not Funny: Researchers discover that ChatGPT prefers repeating 25 jokes over and over. When tested, "Over 90% of 1,008 generated jokes were the same 25 jokes." All responses were grammatically correct. However, some of the responses were nonsensical, such as: Why did the cookie go to the gym? To get a-cookie-dized.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/06/researchers-discover-that-chatgpt-prefers-repeating-25-jokes-over-and-over/
How to Create a Neural Network (and Train it to Identify Doodles):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfMk-kjRv4c&ab_channel=SebastianLague
This is the T-1000, That’s What This is: Liquid metal sticks to surfaces without a binding agent. Everyday materials such as paper and plastic could be transformed into electronic 'smart devices' by using a simple new method to apply liquid metal to surfaces, according to scientists. The study demonstrates a technique for applying a liquid metal coating to surfaces that do not easily bond with liquid metal. The approach is designed to work at a large scale and may have applications in wearable testing platforms, flexible devices, and soft robotics.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230609160620.htm
Science Fiction: Our Patrons get a fun surprise! We then discuss cartoons v. animated features, Steven identifies which movies have been morphed into Avatar: The Way of The Water, Ben continues to watch Silo, Steven is on the hype train for Starfield and more!
This episode contains: Everyone is back this week! Steven continues his Star Wars rewatch. Ben has issues with Steven telling his he listens to sad music. Devon chimes in on the music chat. We decide to make some playlists to share with our Patrons.
Unlimited Power: Scientists Successfully Transmit Space-Based Solar Power to Earth for the First Time. Caltech conducted a power transfer experiment using the Microwave Array for Power-transfer Low-orbit Experiment, or MAPLE. They beamed solar power from space to Pasadena. Gotta start somewhere.
https://gizmodo.com/scientists-beam-space-based-solar-power-earth-first-tim-1850500731
You Did It, You Blew it Up, You Maniacs!: They plugged GPT-4 into Minecraft—and unearthed new potential for AI. ChatGPT generates objectives to help an agent explore Minecraft and improve the bots skill over time. We use this as a jumping off point for exploring different uses for ChatGPT in our lives.
https://arstechnica.com/ai/2023/06/they-plugged-gpt-4-into-minecraft-and-unearthed-new-potential-for-ai/
Big Question: Do we value experiences based on how shareable they are? We chat quite a bit about how to even parse this question. We end up talking a bit about our hobbies and how we share them with our kids.
Science Fiction: Steven watched Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3, alone. We talk about if you need to see the Holiday Special first (we recommend it, but it's not required). Minor spoilers for a bit of the movie, but nothing major. Steven had some issues with Adam Warlock. We talk a bit about Marvel's (and Disney's) Jonathan Majors problem. Ben and Steven are excited for The Marvels, and Steven hypothesis that Secret Invasion will allow the MCU to retcon whatever they want with Skrulls.
Pre-show Patreon only: Steven wants to know if anyone wants about 50 blank CDs. Nope. Ben grieves by doing work. He's learning a lot about himself. Ben sent his wife a birthday message recorded by an Argentinian Bruce Willis lookalike.
This episode contains: Happy Birthday Devon! We recorded a podcast without you! Don't remember a birthday? You can remember a BELATED BIRTHDAY! Ben is giving his wife 40 gifts over 40 days for her 40th birthday. Steven says Ben is a good gifter... and should give him more gifts. Ben thanks Big Door Prize for the idea of 40 gifts for turning 40. Steven makes fun of a hat that Devon wears while boating, but he rocks it NGL. We giggle like idiots for most of this show.
Oh Man, Vacation’s Coming: More structure, fewer screens makes for healthier kids in the school holidays. Ben gets grizzled about the terrible screen-filled present we live in. Advertising revenue is more important than the health of the populace? #NoMoreScreens. Ben wishes his son was a foodie. So sad. He eats to live, not lives to eat. A study in Australia showed that kids are generally less healthy during school holidays. At what age do children get different levels of independence? Like, making their own snacks? On holidays, kids watch a whole lot more screens. How bad is this? We suggest setting limits on screen time for kids on holiday. When we were kids, we found things to do.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230414113518.htm
So I Listened to Another Podcast: Trip to alphaSyntauri | Welcome to Macintosh. I guess we now know how to pronounce Moog. Thanks Welcome to Macintosh! Charlie Kellner created a synth on an Apple ][, and it was used for TRON sound effects. The Dolphin Research Center used alphaSyntauri on Apple ][ to communicate with dolphins. Obviously, dolphins love TRON.
https://www.macintosh.fm/episodes/3
You Know What Else Makes Sense To Me?: Tetris on a chicken nugget is the game as it was meant to be played. Ready to play Tetris on a chicken mcnugget? This is the 40th anniversary of the chicken mcnugget! Hooray for 1983! But can the chicken mcnugget run Doom? Tetris will celebrate 40 years next year, as it was made in 1984. You need a chicken mcnugget 4 times the size to play Tetris on it. Steven and Ben sing Korobeiniki (the Tetris song) on this week's show. They're only making 400,000 mcnugget-Tetris machines.
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2023/05/finally-you-can-play-tetris-on-a-giant-chicken-nugget/
Mid-show Patreon only: Ben's living his best life: mounted his split ergo keyboard to two tripods. Ben's cat is turning 17 this year. We remember the day he nearly murdered Devon.
Science Fiction: Spicy take from Steven: cooking is just following directions. We love balancing chemistry equations... can someone make a balancing equations game? Silo is a great show, and Devon is an absolute legend. The compact disk was invented in 1983. Steven never knows what Ben is talking about. Isn't Silo just a Fallout show? Nay. This about life IN the vault. Silo is about how a society has been shaped to live underground for hundreds of years? Steven digs how non-linear the storytelling in Silo is. Does Silo out-LOST LOST? Shoutout to Jason Gurley this week, and his "Greatfall: A Silo Novel". Silo gets five stars out of three from us. You read that right. Jason Gurley's "Eleanor" is incredible. Steven read Jason Gurley's "The Dark Age" on the day his first daughter was born. Whoa. Steven's coming to terms with Anakin's character in the Star Wars prequels. Anakin is a deeply damaged individual, lost his mom and replaced her with Padme. Did Anakin use force powers to make Padme love him? Gives a different context to his creepy dialogue. Once Anakin is betrayed by Padme, he cuts off the "force love" and Padme dies from withdrawals? Clone Wars Anakin is very different from prequel movies Anakin. Men in Black holds up. Great film. Men in Black was a Marvel comic... could we see the MiB in the MCU?!? The Men in Black and Starship Troopers: Roughnecks cartoons were big for Ben in High School. Steven had a tape of Ghostbusters from TV, edited for content. Funny! Are y'all ready for seeing Mariner and Boimler in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?
Post-show Patreon only: We talk about the video games Star Trek: Resurgence and TRON: Identity.
Full title generated by Chat GPT: "Interstellar Metamorphosis: Unveiling the Science of Star Wars, Evolution, and Disney"
This episode contains: We have the classic line up of Steven and Devon on this episode. Steven loved the food at Galaxies Edge and so found a Star Wars cookbook. We then discuss the closure of the insanely expensive Galactic Starcruiser. Devon tells us about his upcoming “vacation” in the Ozarks.
Something About Death: Evidence of conscious-like activity in the dying brain. A small study finds intriguing brain wave patterns in comatose patients who died following cardiac arrest. A new study provides early evidence of a surge of activity correlated with consciousness in the dying brain.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230501163628.htm
Evolutionarily Speaking: Perfection: The Enemy of Evolution. Freedom to miss the optimal mark opens a wide range of new designs over time. Evolution is a sequence of design changes happening on their own in a discernible direction; it never weds itself to a single point on a drawing board. An evolving system or animal is free to simply go with what works. Not so much that its performance suffers greatly, but enough that it opens access to other options near the so-called optimal design. With scientists often looking to nature for clues to solve challenges, they should also free to miss the optimal mark and open a wider design space over time.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/05/230501163628.htm
Science Fiction: Devon tells us about the new show Apple Plus show Silo, based on the book series Wool, which we kind of read some of (minor spoilers). Steven is doing a rewatch of Star Wars. We then have an in depth discussion of just how bad the Star Wars Prequals were, and attempt to do some minor re-writes.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven, the healthy hosts, lead the charge this week. Thoughts and prayers to Devon. We talk a bit about importing hate, and protesting against it. Racism should be called out and shamed, consistently and constantly. Then we talk about The Lion King in all of it's iterations, for far too long.
The Disappearing Computer: The Disappearing Computer: An Exclusive Preview of Humane’s Screenless Tech by Imran Chaudhri. This Ted Talk had an amazing demonstration of a screenless tech future. We talk about the amazing tech, and what could be possible in the future. What would happen if this thing became popular and we all had bodycams on at all time? Time for a DNR, Do Not Record. We discuss if this tech is 'building the tower higher' or 'building something new'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMsQO5u7-NQ
Science Fiction: Steven has completed about 95% of Star Wars Jedi Survivor and give a mini very light spoiler review. He's not at all embarrassed to say he wants to go visit the Pyloon Saloon. Ben watched Crater, the Disney Plus hard sci-fi kid roadtrip movie. He very much enjoyed it. Steven is still working his way through the first season of 12 Monkeys, and admires its consistency. Finally, Ben has been playing the VR game Into The Radius and while he enjoys it, he thinks it's more Steven's speed.
We've done it again Watson!
Pre-pod Patreon only: The world only exists for us as long as we're alive. Ben's favorite epitaph: "Anyway, it's only other people who die."
This episode contains: Devon's been a skeptic as long as he remembers. Spoiler alert about Santa this week. If something doesn't exist, would it be PC to say they're a non-corporeal being? Ben can't remember when he discovered the truth about Santa, maybe because he wasn't traumatized. If anybody deserves presents more than anybody else, it's orphans. Ben got his son a drum set. The kid gets the heart of a musician. If you're starting drumming, get a used set on Craigslist, don't spend more than $300. Did you know you can use Youtube videos of Rock Band to learn songs on drums? Makes sense.
Mind Reader: Reading The Mind with fMRI and AI. Researchers have been able to decode words subjects were thinking by reading their fMRI scan. If someone is looking at a giant letter E, it physically maps to the cortex, and the E appears there too. AI has been trained on fMRI scans to help decode and reconstruct language. Everyone's brain is unique: AI can't decode your fMRI based on other's training. Mind reading won't work, probably ever, since everyone's brain is unique.
https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/reading-the-mind-with-fmri-and-ai/
Old white guys can shut the hell up: Former head of Roscosmos now thinks NASA did not land on the Moon. Why is an angry old man who is a moon-landing denier at all newsworthy? BECAUSE HE'S WRONG. NASA really did land us on the moon. Denialism should be recognized and shamed. The Soviet's Luna 15 mission was in orbit around the moon during Apollo 11. So many people spent so much effort to land humans on the moon. A win for humanity! Ben recommends the "Apollo 11" documentary from 2019. It's 99% fresh on RT.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/05/former-head-of-roscosmos-now-thinks-nasa-did-not-land-on-the-moon/
Big Question: What would you do if the world was ending tomorrow? Would that change if it was ending next year? Steven joins us for the back half of the show... the fun half? Let's talk about death. Remember Steve Carrell's movie "Seeking A Friend for the End of the World"? Also a Chris Cornell quote. If the world was ending soon, society would collapse. At a longer timeframe, society would adapt. Would you let your children know if the world was ending soon? Ben hopes to approach the end of the world with a little apocaloptimism. If the end of the world was coming, Ben would try cooking tiramisu. What's the worst that could happen? Steven suggests the darkest possible thing to do if the world was ending tomorrow. With the end of the world coming in a year, would you Bill and Frank it? If the end of the world was in 100 years... wait, are we talking about climate change?! If it's 100 years to the end of the world, let's all build rockets! Work together! Steven doesn't have a bucket list. Should he?
Recommendations: Ben talks about the SO MANY Firefly comics out there on Comixology Unlimited. It's really tricky to write the dialog right in Firefly comics. Devon's been watching Daisy Jones and the Six on Amazon, really cool rock n' roll drama. Daisy Jones and the Six seems like it's based loosely on Fleetwood Mac. NOFX has got some real great albums recently. So cool they've been around for 40 years. Steven is digging season 2 of Star Wars Visions. The present, past and the future walked into a bar. Things got real tense.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven steer the boat this episode. Ben has been going to the Kite Festival yearly. Steven is home with the kids while his wife lives it up in Hawaii. Steven bought more LEGO while his wife is out of town.
Light At the End of the Tunnel: Small acts of kindness are frequent and universal, study finds. A study found that people around the world signal others for assistance every couple of minutes. The research, which examined behaviors in towns and rural areas in several different countries, revealed that people comply with these small requests for help far more often than they decline them. The findings suggest that people from all cultures have more similar cooperative behaviors than prior research has established.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230424162911.htm
Why is This Even a Question? Nuke-launching AI would be illegal under proposed US law. On Wednesday, US Senator Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Representatives Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), Don Beyer (D-Va.), and Ken Buck (R-Colo.) announced bipartisan legislation that seeks to prevent an artificial intelligence system from making nuclear launch decisions. The Block Nuclear Launch by Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Act would prohibit the use of federal funds for launching any nuclear weapon by an automated system without "meaningful human control."
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/04/nuke-launching-ai-would-be-illegal-under-proposed-us-law/
Science Fiction: Roddenberry site offers virtual USS Enterprise Bridge Tours, Star Wars Jedi Survivor spoiler talk (very light), and more!
765874 - Regeneration (4K): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KXU2Ob8gYY
This episode contains: Steven and Devon finally recap their visit to Austin, Texas. There were live shows, uncharted adventures and gaming, oh my! Ben was not only left out of their adventures, but his house is still causing grief. Oof.
https://uncharteredadventures.com/
https://vigilantebar.com/
Machine Learning Makeover: Iconic image of M87 black hole just got a machine-learning makeover. Using PRIMO (principal-component interferometric modeling), scientists used data from the EHT (Event Horizon Telescope) and 30,000 simulated images of black hole to produce a high fidelity image of the black hole at M87. It's amazing.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/04/iconic-image-of-m87-black-hole-just-got-a-machine-learning-makeover/
Diggin' A Hole: The Deepest Hole Ever Dug By Humans Had To Be Destroyed. The Kola Superdeep Borehole was 40,230 feet deep, but only has 4.5 stars on Google. Huh. We chat about the history of the hole and what science can be done with a superdeep holes. 14 species of fossilized microorganisms were found among other things. (But no screaming.)
https://www.iflscience.com/the-deepest-hole-ever-dug-by-humans-had-to-be-destroyed-68110
Big Question: Is there inherent order in nature or is it all chaos and chance? We chat about this, quite extensively. We talk about nature, observation, self-organization, entropy, heat-death, the circle of life and being zen. It's quite the discussion.
Star Trek Picard: The third and final season is over, and we give our thoughts. We very much enjoyed the finale, and we talk about all the things that worked in favor of the show. Which begs the question: what happened with the first two seaons?! We're fully prepared to say goodbye to Picard, but we're all in on a Star Trek Legacy show.
12 Monkeys: Steven had such fun with the third season of Picard, that he investigated another Terry Matalas show, 12 Monkeys. Sure, it's based on that awesome movie, but it's also so much more.
This episode contains: Welcome to the Ben Lawless podcast. Lawless: The Ben Story. Y'all seen the movie Lawless? Ben hasn't yet. Was it good? Devon's not here tonight, because of... dinner? With his wife? We still would love a tour of the Mighty Coconut offices. They're doing great work. Steven pitches a series of Walkabout Minigolf courses to Mighty Coconut. Wouldn't you love to play minigolf through the backlots for scifi movies? We pitch minigolf courses based on alien invasions and Buck Rogers. Did you know that Mighty Coconut made Pigeon: Impossible? Which Spies in Disguise is based on? What if there was a minigolf course based on Pigeon: Impossible? Steven is pivoting from podcasts to putting, and pigeons. Ben needs a vacation from his vacation, amirite? Ben's son wanted to watch Speed Racer 2. Ben's heart broke to tell him the truth. Emile Hirsch wants to do another Speed Racer movie! Get the Wachowski's onboard. http://screenrant.com/emile-hirsch-speed-racer-return-hopes-response/ Ben is SO STOKED about the Apple TV+ Speed Racer show helmed by J.J. Abrams. Let's make the Speed Racer Extended Universe a thing.
Today in the Weird Wide Web: Chrome will support WebGPU! What the hell does that mean? WebGL is cool and all, but WebGPU is going to revolutionize graphics on the web. Remember how Apple told Adobe "No Thank You" about putting Flash on iPhone? Ben does. Steven wonders why the name Mozilla sounds so familiar... Hint: he uses Firefox. Sometime in May, WebGPU is coming to Chrome! Ben is so excited. Ben is telling you: Arc is the best web browser ever. Steven and Ben argue whether Bing is a browser. Ben has worked in web development for the last 14 years. Feels like 40. Ben called it years ago: Microsoft finally stopped making their own browser engine.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/04/chrome-113-will-enable-webgpu-a-modern-low-overhead-graphics-api-for-the-web/
Symphony of Scent: Making sense of scents: Deciphering our sense of smell. Remember the five senses? They're cool, right? What is smell? When do things start and stop smelling? Steven wonders. Scientists have created the first 3D picture of how an odor molecule activates an odorant receptor. "We need to see it so we can science it!" - Steven. Smells are somehow like hitting keys on a piano to produce a chord. Devon could explain it.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/03/230315132416.htm
Science Fiction: The Big Door Prize on Apple TV+ is really good. Is it scifi? Ben thinks so. If you were in The Big Door Prize, would you want to hear your "life potential?" Getting big Tales from the Loop vibes from The Big Door Prize. Are there similarities between The Big Door Prize and Machine of Death? Steven really enjoyed the ending of Shrinking on Apple TV+. The Bad Batch's third season will be its final. We finally talk about Star Wars Celebration this episode. THREE NEW STAR WARS MOVIES?!?!?! WHAT?!?!?! The Filoni film is going to wrap up the Mandoverse? Hate that term btw. So... Grogu trained with Luke for 2 years?! We are digging the trailer for Star Wars Visions Season 2. The claymation looks incredible. Ben finally watched the first Hotel Transylvania. Cool flick! We spoil Star Trek: Picard's 3x09 Vōx because you have to spoil it to talk about it. Now we know why Ro Laren didn't use the transporters!
Pre-pod Patreon-only: Ben monologued about sleep for 49 minutes.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben survived Easter to bring you this podcast. Steven’s continuing sickness has taken a turn. Steven did some research and found out he has Cricopharyngeal spasms. Steven also tells us about his history with anxiety. Ben has a full stand up arcade machine, which is hooked up to a steam deck. Ben has returned to live poetry reading.
This Week in Space: A scientific salad for astronauts in deep space. The ingredients were chosen for their nutritional value, as well as how easy they’ll be to grow with the limited room and resources available on a spacecraft.
https://astronomy.com/news/2023/03/a-scientific-salad-for-astronauts-in-deep-space
Mr. Peanut Dusts Off His Monocle: First-of-its-kind mRNA treatment could wipe out a peanut allergy. Peanut and tree nut allergies affect millions, yet there’s only one approved treatment. But a major breakthrough might be around the corner, with scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) testing a world-first mRNA medicine packaged up in tiny nanoparticles that not only reversed peanut allergies in mice but equipped the body with the microbiological tools needed to stop the often-life-threatening condition developing.
https://newatlas.com/medical/mrna-treatment-peanut-allergy/
Mostly Video Games: Steven tamps down his ego and decides to let Ben talk on the rest of the episode. We talk about Biomutant: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomutant Spaceborne 2: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1646850/SpaceBourne_2/ and then the Super Mario Brothers Movie. (no link, you already know what it is) Ben then tells us about the end of Hello Tomorrow! (SPOILERS)
This episode contains: We talk about April and it's Fools. Ben did some axe throwing, and his kid out-paced him. Devon attempts to get his kids to be quieter this episode, to varying degrees of success. Steven sick.
This Week in Space: Scientists observe flattest explosion ever seen in space. Explosions in space are almost always spherical, but this one was not. What is an FBOT? Fast Blue Optical Transient, and it is very rare, first discovered in 2018.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/03/230330210745.htm
Some Good News? Maybe?: Renewable energy outpaced coal this year. According to the Energy Information Administration, wind, solar, hydropower, biomass and geothermal generated 21% of US power in 2022, exceeding coal by 1%. Natural Gas, which is a fossil fuel, still generates a lot of power. The US is having trouble with it's aging power grid, making connecting renewables more difficult.
https://www.popsci.com/environment/renewable-energy-generation-coal-2022/
Big Question: How come we’re not more jazzed up as a society about climate change? We talk about the struggles of climate change and how difficult it is to even imagine changing things in our current society. Steven talks about the Apple TV+ show Extrapolations and how it tells our future story. Our final answer? Vote.
Science Fiction: We couldn't be all dour this episode, so we lighten things up with some talk about The Mandalorian and Picard. We're having issues with Mando, but Picard is finally firing on all cylinders. Neat.
This episode contains: We’re three podcasters who are probably not playing jump rope right now. Steven talks about the Nightmare on Elm Street films. They are… not good. Remember the Sam Goody in the mall in Santa Maria? Pepperidge Farm remembers. Ben had some poetry drama; Conflict with another poet. What?!?!? How?!?! Is Ben party to the silencing of women throughout history? He doesn’t intend to! Should we rewrite our tagline? It’s a show about science and… big questions? The bridge on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is SO WELL LIT. Steven finished A Prayer for the Crown Shy by Becky Chambers. So good.
It’s the End of Days, JTRO: The Internet Archive has lost its first fight to scan and lend e-books like a library. Ben can’t remember the name of the film “The FP.” Publishers have sued The Internet Archive for being a digital library. Save the library! The Internet Archive allows borrowing a book for an hour. It led to Ben purchasing those books. Internet Archive is a non-profit library of millions of free books, music, websites, and more. How can you help http://archive.org/ ? http://blog.archive.org/2020/06/14/how-can-you-help-the-internet-archive/ The Live Music Archive is incredible: https://archive.org/details/etree Let your local library know what books you want! That’s how they know how to spend funds. The best part about Hyperstudio is me!
https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/24/23655804/internet-archive-hatchette-publisher-ebook-library-lawsuit
Little Glass Slippers: Scientists finally figure out why the water bear is nearly indestructible. Steven brings an article from the before times of 2017. We were so young then. Tardigrades can be dried out for decades, then come back to life with water. Amazing! Water bear don’t care! Instead of dying when drying out, tardigrades turn themselves into glass! Our website is terrible. We’re sorry. Join our Patreon! http://patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast
https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/scientists-finally-figure-out-why-the-water-bear-is-nearly-unstoppable/
Big Question: Is the prime directive actually ethical? What is the prime directive? Don’t interfere with the development of a young species. Can we work together as a species to create harmony and warp drives? Aliens haven’t contacted us because we’re monkeys with nuclear weapons. In our talk about the prime directive, we talk a lot about The Orville and The Bobiverse. Remember when Wesley was sentenced to death for stepping on flowers? Devon schools us on Star Trek history and the prime directive.
Patreon-only pre-pod: The Ben Lawless story: Nothing is different, but everything has changed. Will Steven ever learn how to use Notion? Not this week! We make a pact to watch Extrapolations on Apple TV+ for next week’s show. Is it possible to make climate change exciting? Can the end of everything be kinda jazzed up somehow? #ClimateChange We apologize for interrupting Devon’s writing music with recording a podcast. Hey Steven, cancel your showtime subscription after the trial! We can’t remember what we talked about in our podcasts.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben grill Devon as to why he was not on the last episode. The answer is sleep. Ben had a weird bug so took a day off work. Devon keeps complaining about his kids, who can be heard in the background. Ben is applying to be the president of the PTSA. Steven has been making his "old wife" play a new Star Wars deck building game. Ben recommends the Humble Bundle:
https://www.humblebundle.com/games/kart-racers-games-bundle?hmb_source=&hmb_medium=product_tile&hmb_campaign=mosaic_section_1_layout_index_1_layout_type_threes_tile_index_2_c_kartracersgamesbundle_bundle
Walmart Has Everything: A bug expert went shopping at Walmart—and made a historic insect discovery. The giant lacewing had seemingly disappeared from eastern North America over 50 years ago. “The fact that this insect was spotted in a region that it hasn’t been seen in over half a century tells us something more broadly about the environment.”
https://www.popsci.com/environment/giant-lacewing-jurassic-walmart/?fbclid=IwAR2tmEEv4NxWjpmChq4FuIhTKMOdxUKRzRaBpTiHhm02Tj_QghSEE2XFs9Q
F’ing Finally: FCC orders phone companies to block scam text messages. First robotext rule requires blocking of texts from invalid and unused numbers. The Federal Communications Commission today finalized rules requiring mobile carriers to block robotext messages that are likely to be illegal. The FCC described the rules as the agency's "first regulations specifically targeting the increasing problem of scam text messages sent to consumers."
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/03/fcc-orders-phone-companies-to-block-scam-text-messages/
Big Question: Would you be able to tell if time had been altered in some way? Sci-Fi: Everything Everywhere All at Once review, The Last of Us season1 finale talk, Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister recommended by Devon's book club, maybe.
This episode contains: Just Ben and Steven on this episode, sorry not sorry. We kick off everything with a quick chat about the 2001 film 'The One' w/ Jet Li. Why? No idea. Steven and Ben are playing single dads, because wives need a break too. A lot of Mario Land 2 talk, and Steven makes some bold declarations. Steven is steadily introducing his kids to video games and scifi. Wall-E is a gateway movie. We played some VR mini golf with listener Josh. Thanks Josh.
Clicktacular: Bin, app, and subscription combo pledges a cleaner kitchen, environment. Mill is a company that wants to send you a trash can with wifi capabilities that will process your food waste, so you can mail it back and it can be used to feed chickens. Steven is enamored by this idea.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/01/new-service-wants-to-turn-your-food-waste-into-chicken-feed/
Brain Buzzing: Scientists complete first map of an insect brain. It took scientists 12 years to fully map a fruit fly larva brain: all 3,016 neurons and their 548,000 connections. The fruit fly brain map showed features that were reminiscent of machine learning architectures. First the flies, then comes mice.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/03/230309164711.htm
Science Fiction: Since it's only the two of us this week, we decide against a 'big question' and instead catch up on some science fiction we've been consuming. Picard season 3 has been outstanding, with it's first four episodes collectively being a new TNG movie. It's great, and stands on it's own without the need of watching season 1 and 2. The first two episodes of season 3 of The Mandalorian have been released and we point out some cool stuff that it's doing. Steven especially likes seeing 'live action Mandalore'. We also call out The Bad Batch for doing it's best to glue three trilogies together, and mostly successful. Finally, Ben informs us of the cute as heck sounding Dogs In Space on Netflix. Why send dogs to space? Loyalty.
Thanks Josh.
This episode contains: Ben and Devon's relationship is on the rocks, according to Steven. Things have finally settled down this week for Steven's family, since the holidays. Steven's now officially an old man, says him. Would you throw a rave at a 5 year old's birthday party? With whistles as party favors? Ben's super stoked about Owen Davies releasing Farscape Remastered in 4K. Shout out to the Farscape subreddit! If you like space muppets who fart helium and pee fire, watch Farscape. Steven had a bunch of fun 'stream tweeting' Star Trek: Picard s3e03. Everyone is disappointed that Steven hasn't seen Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Steven's gotta clear his schedule for 89 hours of DS9. Ben wishes he could rewatch DS9 for the first time. This could be the I WISH I WAS WATCHING STAR TREK podcast.
Paint by numbers: Scholars unify color systems using prime numbers. RGB and CMYK? Get outta here. It's time for the C235 color system. In CMYK, K stands for Key Black. Now you know! How could C235 colorize DNA codons? This article does not go into that. CMYK is subtractive color theory, where everything adds to black. RGB is additive color theory, where all colors add up to bright white. C235 is a color system based on prime numbers, and doesn't make sense unless you see the image at https:/ www.eurekalert.org/multimedia/976375 Steven eats some focaccia bread baked by his daughter. Good job, young one! Go colors!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/03/230302114200.htm
Whoa: Newly discovered chemicals are so deadly to fungi they are named after Keanu Reeves. "Keanumycins:" new fungus-killing compounds are so effective they were named after actor Keanu Reeves. During Keanu's AMA, someone asked him what he thought about Keanumycins. He said "Thanks, scientist people." Keanu Reeve's first pet was a guinea pig named Carrot. He was a cutie-pie. Keanumycins kills bad fungus, is biodegradable, and is safe for humans.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/03/world/keanumycin-fungus-killer-discovery-scn/index.html
The Big Question: How important is it to 'belong' to a fandom, and what does it mean to give it up? Is the entire concept of 'fandom' manufactured? Fandom has been important as a shortcut to find people who have like interests. As good as fandom can be to connect people, beware of the toxicity. The importance of fandom is based on what the fans get out of it. We talk about growing up and finding other Star Wars and Star Trek fans. Did corporations ruin fandom? They didn't used to use fandom to sell stuff, right? A fandom became a found family, people you could share jokes with about the subject. Will the next Metallica album be good? The singles have been alright. We have a lot of hot takes on the Big Question about fandom this week. Devon changed his mind about the quality of the last two seasons of Enterprise. Ben is a positive person who tends to like everything. How does he feel about Harry Potter? JK Rowling's views on trans rights and human rights are abhorrent. How does Ben feel about Harry Potter being read in his son's class, given Rowling's views? Canceling Harry Potter would be similar to banning books. The cultural value is in the conversation. Godzilla (1954) is EXCELLENT, Ben talks about watching it and it's cultural significance. 1956's Godzilla: King of the Monsters is terrible; they Americanized and removed all mention of H-Bombs and Nagasaki. Godzilla (1954) is like watching an H-Bomb walk around Tokyo causing the same destruction in slow motion. Is there a direct correlation between subreddits and fandom? So... spoiler alert? Godzilla died at the end of Godzilla (1954). How strange it spawned the franchise! We talk about Tom Cruise's personal beliefs and whether we can differentiate between the actor and the art. Where do you draw the line about creator's beliefs, and when you choose not to support it? Roblox is a digital narcotic for children... but it's fine? I guess? The cheapest way that eggs are made, the ways those chickens are treated is terrible. Shout out to carrots! You're a cool veggie.
This episode contains: Steven, Ben and Devon are all present and accounted for on this all new episode. Southern CA is getting snow for the first time is like forever. Steven had a mini family reunion while Ben is helping his sister-in-law move out. Devon saw Nate Bargatze live in Shreveport LA.
Bramble Pie Company: https://www.bramblepiecompany.com/
Stop in Name of Love: Traffic Lights Need a Fourth Color, Study Says: Here's Why. As more autonomous vehicles (AV) begin driving American roads, those roads need to change with them. One research team proposes a white light that allows AVs to leverage their impressive networking capability. These white light would signal human drivers to simply follow the car in front and could decrease traffic delays significantly
https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/infrastructure/a42804174/fourth-color-traffic-light-white/
Sorry Florida: A Giant Destructive Blob Is Headed For Florida, And It Stinks. Reports are forecasting that a gargantuan blob of sargassum seaweed has accumulated in the Atlantic Ocean and is headed for the US state, bringing with it millions of tons of odorous seaweed.
https://www.iflscience.com/a-giant-destructive-blob-is-headed-for-florida-and-it-stinks-67696
The Big Question: How would you make a truly multi-playing pinball game? We then meander a little and talk about Jeffrey Combs, the Fallout tv show, Hello Tomorrow on AppleTV and The Last of Us. Only then do we finally end this monstrosity.
This episode contains: Devon, Ben and Steven all record in the same room again! It's crazy! Devon tells us about his travels, and Ben tries to QA a Tesla. It's a whole thing. Only one Science and no Big Question this week because we have Sci-Fi to talk about.
Robot Overlords: Researchers Discover a More Flexible Approach to Machine Learning. Liquid neural nets can transform their underlying algorithms on the fly. They are based on the Caenorhabditis elegans nervous system. Nonlinear equations, worm nervous systems, and liquid neural nets are all here.
https://www.quantamagazine.org/researchers-discover-a-more-flexible-approach-to-machine-learning-20230207/
Picard: We talk about the first episode of the third season of Star Trek Picard. There are a lot of nits to pick, but we are generally optimistic about this final season. We start off with some complaints about seasons 1 and 2, but it seems season 3 has rectified some of those. We have deep discussions about Captain Shaw, The Orville, and ship refits.
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania: SPOILERS. Devon and Steven just watched it, Ben watched it a few days before and we do a deep dive. We talk about plot, characters, editing, Kang and how there was a bit of dissappointment in all of those things. Steven attempts to explain Kang, and we all try and figure out M.O.D.O.K. In there end, there was little consistancy, which is consistant with other Ant-Man movies.
This episode contains: Devon doesn't feel the valentine's spirit this week. Ben's kid loves Trailmakers, Ben used barter.vg to trade for the game. "Are we back to bartering?" asks Steven. Did we ever stop? Steven knows about bartering thanks to Fallout 1. Devon & Ben watched the Superbowl. Steven went to a SB party but didn't watch it. Steven is really enjoying Hogwarts Legacy. Steven recognized Ben was way too stressed out over debt in our Traveller game. Ben learned that he had more fun in an RPG by making it a "yes day." We don't want to be Murder Hobos in RPGs. Context around the term "murder den" is helpful.
This Week in Space: Ring discovered around dwarf planet Quaoar confounds theories. There's a ring around the dwarf planet Quaoar just outside the solar system. How is the dwarf planet Quaoar pronounced? Devon tries his best. Quaoar has rings further away from the planet than we thought possible. The Roche limit is the zone where a planetary ring can be created. Scientists discover planets by observing their gravitational pull.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/feb/08/ring-discovered-around-dwarf-planet-quaoar-confounds-theories#:~:text=Astronomers
THE YEAR 2000! I mean 2038: Remember the year 2000? Destiny's Child was huge. Y2K was a thing. Is Y2K behind us? Maybe! Y2K38 is upon us. It's the Epochalypse! Unix time started 00:00:00 UTC on 1 January 1970. What's a Unix system? Got an iPhone or an Android? You have a Unix system. Watch out! The Epochalypse bug will happen 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038, and all 32-bit systems will crash! When was Unix first created? Development started in 1969. We can solve the Epochalypse by going 64-bit, and give us 292 billion years more time. In 2038, do you think Destiny's Child will make a comeback?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2038_problem
The Back Half: Devon encourages our Patrons to keep doing what they're doing. We talk about some feedback we got from a Patron! You know Ben has a Merriam-Webster's unabridged dictionary. Silly Ben said Roget's Thesaurus, meant Merriam-Webster's unabridged dictionary.
The Big Question: Is technology making many jobs obsolete? If so, should we have a universal basic income? We talk the iterative nature of societal development. Are white collar jobs becoming obsolete too? YEP! Should government slow the pace of tech to ensure worker's can keep up? No. We talk about how cool universal basic income would be. Ben grew up a welfare kid: his parent's had govt support, and Ben is grateful. Ben's family had the benefit of society helping people, and made Ben who he is. Steven talks about how life changed after getting laid off. Life would have been easier for all of the hosts with universal basic income. Do you think less people would be willing to work with universal basic income? The 1980s concept that more money = happy life is not true. A good emergency can financially derail anybody. Is there a solve? Just because some people leech off a system, does it mean we shouldn't have nice things? Is offering help with conditions really offering help? Is it fully altruistic? Which other social programs would be superceded by universal basic income? How can we fix the inflation problem with universal basic income? Minimum wage is not a living wage. Would universal basic income be a living wage? Will Devon go to the robot-run McDonalds in Texas? Time will tell.
Kurzgesagt Universal Basic Income video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kl39KHS07Xc
Patreon Only:
Patreon-only pre-show: "Up is go!" The Lost in Space movie has a cool level of 1 million, says Ben. Devon has trouble with embedding websites in Notion, and he's frustrated. Devon doesn't know what a fuzzy search is. Even if you're a boomer on TikTok, you can say "get off my lawn" to mean gatekeepers. Ben is happy to be a house spouse.
Patreon-only mid-show: Have you guys heard about bit flips from cosmic rays? Devon has. Steven: Player's Guides are trash, now that we have the internet. Next week we'll be recording in person! All three of us! Maybe talk Quantumania.
Patreon-only post-show: We talk Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. So touching. Devon likes the book Anxious People. There's a reason for the different zombies in The Last of Us. That new Flash trailer looks fun. Ever wanted to know why Ben is pissed at a Star Trek novel?
This episode contains: We discuss how 2/5/2023 feels like it should be the future, but totally isn't/ Devon won big at Texas Hold'em, but not in Texas. Ben has a story about a frog and a banana. Devon also weathered an ice storm, his house not so much. We have suspect we have very special listeners.
This Week in Space: Will Machine Learning Help us Find Extraterrestrial Life? SETI is using machine learning to check 150TB of studied data, and found 8 signals of interest that were previously looked over. We talk about radio waves, and how this machine learning can sift through the noise coming from Earth. And then we talk about Futurama.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/01/230130130512.htm
What the Crazy Kids are Doing: Carbon capture is here—it just isn’t evenly distributed. New York City apartment towers are going to get smaller carbon capture facilities. These facilities will be able to remove carbon dioxide and expel it as "beverage grade". Then, it will be used in concrete as building material. A win-win!
https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/02/carbon-capture-is-here-it-just-isnt-evenly-distributed/
Science Fiction: We talk about the upcoming Picard Season 3. We talk about the failings of season 1 and 2, and the hope that Ben has for season 3. A hope that Devon and Steven are beginning to share, as an insider who hates nu-trek has seen the season and "gushed" about it online.
Big Question: What age is it appropriate to introduce children to The Matrix? Ben shares his experience watching the movie with his 9 year old, and seems disappointed that he wasn't blown away. Steven soapboxes about how The Matrix needs to be put into context of the world of 1999, which is vastly different from the current century. Devon seems apathetic, but also has a big brain and figured out the Matrix twist from the trailers. Here's a good one: does watching Star Trek innoculate you against The Matrix?
This episode contains: All three hosts are here, slowly rotating around the sun, to bring you science and science fiction. Devon explains why he can’t record this afternoon (the answer is football). Ben tells us about the ongoing woes of being a home owner. Steven and Ben talk about playing Walkabout Mini Golf on VR.
Listen To This: MusicLM: Generating Music From Text. MusicLM is a model generating high-fidelity music from text descriptions such as "a calming violin melody backed by a distorted guitar riff". MusicLM casts the process of conditional music generation as a hierarchical sequence-to-sequence modeling task, and it generates music at 24 kHz that remains consistent over several minutes.
https://google-research.github.io/seanet/musiclm/examples/
Riffusion’s AI generates music from text using visual sonograms. Riffusion is an AI model that generates music from text prompts by creating a visual representation of sound and converting it to audio for playback. It uses a fine-tuned version of the Stable Diffusion 1.5 image synthesis model, applying visual latent diffusion to sound processing in a novel way.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/12/riffusions-ai-generates-music-from-text-using-visual-sonograms/
Big Question: What sci-fi universe would you want to live in? What if you had to support your current family and could not count on being a hero in that story? What if Skype kept disconnecting you?
This episode contains: Ben joins Steven in person, and Devon phones it in this week. Your heart has ventricles and… dorsicles? No Ben; It’s atriums. Steven reminds us that he knows the beginning of a Barenaked Ladies song. Devon chats about his first cruise! TLDR: It was… about as he expected. Was Devon on a cruise long enough to get scurvy? Are drink packages on cruise ships worth it? Everything's still wrong with Ben this week. Looks like one of Ben's bedroom walls will need to be replaced. FEMA declared the recent rainstorms in California an Avengers-level event. Ben is getting his septic tank pumped this week. Goodbye wooden deck. Ben found a lot of surprising things when crawling under his house. You wouldn't illegally download a house, would you? Steven needs a break from his vacations. Listen to Steven guest host the Plastic Plesiosaur podcast this month!
Brain Matters: Orienteering may help fight cognitive decline. Orienteering is a new sport, kinda like extreme hiking. Devon is our resident sports advocate and expert. De-stress and unplug with Orienteering, and improve your cognitive fitness. The recent study about Orienteering is self-reported, so we're kinda skeptical. Ben loves exploring new routes in his town. Steven & Devon say "no thanks." Steven thought Ben was going to murder him when driving him the wrong way home.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/01/230120154924.htm
Charge it! Could gravity batteries really store excess renewable energy? Gravity batteries could theoretically be located in abandoned mines. Gravity batteries are one of the few ways to generate energy without steam! Gravity batteries are not feasible: maintenance costs outweigh the benefits. We chat about hydroenergy between two lakes. Why do all our tech advances go back to the Romans? Thanks, middle ages! Steven's kids just watched Ratatouille for the first time... is it for kids? Steven has a quick Rant-atouille. Ben invites Steven to come over and watch Everything, Everywhere, All at Once.
https://www.techspot.com/news/97306-gravity-batteries-abandoned-mines-could-power-whole-planet.html
Mid-pod Patreon only: Renee reminded Steven he's talking about Bridgerton. Devon recommends the second Downton Abbey film. Doesn't recommend the first. Devon lawyersplains Downton Abbey to Ben. He could go on for a half hour, easy. Ben guesses the footmen in Downton Abbey are the ninjas working for Shredder.
Science Fiction / Big Question: We gush about The Last of Us, video game and show. Cordyceps is a real fungal thing that set up the premise of The Last of Us. We compare The Last of Us to a couple other zombie media. The Walking Dead refers to the people still left... just like The Last of Us. Starting The Last of Us with scientists in a 1968-era show is a good choice. Anna Torv is FANTASTIC in The Last of Us, AND Fringe. Watch Fringe. Wanna see more Pedro Pascal? We recommend Prospect. Did anybody see the FBI marriage subplot in Sonic 2 coming? Devon did. Big question this week: we are old men grumbling about streaming services. HBO Max has been doing Ben dirty, y'all. Babylon 5 going away and a price hike? The Remastered version of Babylon 5 has been incredible. Could HBO Max have waited a little after The Last of Us premier to raise price? Is it time to begin rotating streaming services? Should we go back to physical media? When we bought shows that weren't revoked? Who would be hurt most from rotating streaming services? Is it just time for us to grow up? Devon grew up 30 years ago. Git gud n00bs. Devon recommends Kevin Can F**k Himself on AMC.
After-pod Patreon only: Devon tries to tell a joke. He gets there eventually. Joke Orienteering is our new sport: here's a map, let's find the punch line! We like Wednesday despite it being a Tim Burton show. Why did Tim Burton spend 25 years making movies that didn't speak to Ben? Wednesday gives Ben some Pushing Daisies vibes. Tim Burton was an Imagineer! That explains a lot, in a good way. Steven and Devon gush about The Last Kingdom. Very fast paced show. Slow book. Steven LOVES having maps in books, especially The Last Kingdom. The same characters are in both The Last Kingdom and Assassins Creed: Valhalla. Ben would love to take a nap every day. We say good night to Devon, and then Steven and Ben WE KEEP ON RECORDING! Steven tries to get Ben to name the people he hates.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven in the same room recording. Ben has a week of disaster. Steven is guesting on Plastic Plesiosaur Podcast. Devon is nowhere to be seen.
Magnets, How Do They Work?: Qi2: How Apple might finally harness MagSafe by giving it away. We talk about the future of phone chargers, and how everything being compatable is a complete win.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/3/23538131/qi2-wireless-charging-apple-samsung https://appleinsider.com/articles/23/01/10/future-of-magsafe-and-the-new-qi2-wireless-charging-spec
YUMMMM: Why chocolate feels so good; it is all down to lubrication. We talk about the science of lubrication in terms of chocolate. Fat is neccessary. We also ponder the ramifications of this science and the 'fake meat' industry.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/01/230113112804.htm
Big Question: Why are anachronistic elements in fiction so cool? We talk about Willow and dark City before Steven goes on his rant about Star Trek not being anachronistic but Star Wars is. Ben dives into tvtropes.org and we investigate the 'film' Kung Fury. Ben goes off topic and tells us about Lil Gator Game and his son, but then we refocus and talk about different sub-tropes of anachronisms. Steven finds that he doesn't like unexplained future-tech in the past. Lastly, Steven dives into Century by Alan Moore and spoils the whole thing.
Patreon Only: We talk about Babylon 5, The Bad Batch and A Psalm for the Wild-Built.
This episode contains: Steven and Devon host this all new episode while Ben rests. Devon tells us about his upcoming cruise and his work ethic leading up to a vacation. Steven talks about California’s torrential rain, including his trip to Disney during a storm. Devon then tells us about his day at The Great Wolf Lodge.
She’s a Brick House: Riddle solved: Why was Roman concrete so durable? An unexpected ancient manufacturing strategy may hold the key to designing concrete that lasts for millennia.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/01/230106144441.htm
Drink Up: Good hydration linked to healthy aging. Adults who stay well-hydrated appear to be healthier, develop fewer chronic conditions, such as heart and lung disease, and live longer than those who may not get sufficient fluids, according to a new study.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/01/230102100941.htm
Sci-Fi/Big Question: We discuss whether immortality is possible, what technologies may help us achieve immortality and the social impact immortality would have. We also discuss our own feelings about mortality/immortality. We end up discussing whether a digital copy is the same as the original person, the fact that even if you are “immortal” you're still going to die eventually, and the heat death of the universe.
This episode contains: Ben likes new things! Devon says hi. Devon's sick again. Can you tell? Steven says not to thank people for doing their job. What do you think? Disney Dreamlight Valley seems cool. What should someone do if they're totally burned out by Disneyland? Vacations with kids are just trips. Devon and Steven are done chasing kids. Steven's kids don't like Star Wars land at Disneyland. Not yet.
Shut up when I'm talking to you!: Being assertive: Reduce stress, communicate better. Assertiveness is not necessarily natural. It is a learned trait. Passive behavior can lead to stress, resentment, and feelings of victimization. Being assertive creates self-confidence, empowerment, and honest relationships. Passive, aggressive and passive-aggressive behavior all damage relationships. Just "No." is a complete sentence. You don't need to explain yourself. Formal assertiveness training is available through mental health professionals.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/assertive/art-20044644
Assertiveness Training - Fact Sheets https://www.abct.org/fact-sheets/assertiveness-training/
Power Slave: National Ignition Facility achieves fusion ignition. Fusion could power our society in future decades with clean & limitless energy. Scientists used fusion to get more energy out than put in, after ignition. Fusion would be a big step towards the U.S. net-zero carbon economy goal. All electricity, coal, nuclear plants are just complicated steam engines. Fusion: two light nuclei combine to a single heavy nucleus... SO MUCH ENERGY. Could we have wireless energy? You know, without touching? Steven dreams. To our patrons: thank you for listening. And we're sorry.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221213102033.htm
Science Fiction: High On Life is on Gamepass! Steven discusses the first ten minutes. The Red Letter Media lads have an MST3K cameo in High On Life. (https://www.reddit.com/r/RedLetterMedia/comments/zmbole how_to_find_the_rlm_lads_in_high_on_life/) Steven killed a kid alien in High On Life. Shame on him. He should play a more civilized game... like Fallout! Was this new Star Trek DS9 comic "The Dog of War" written by A.I.? It's nuts! What happens when you smash a Corgi Dog into Deep Space Nine? The Dog of War. (https://screenrant.com/star-trek-dog-war-ds9-sequel-new-series/) Poets nearly burned Ben at the stake for suggesting to use A.I. to help write. Is writing music performed by a computer similar to A.I. generated art? Devon rocks too loud at night when he's recording music. Rock finds a way. Is it weird when a composer can write a song they cannot play? Devon muses. Is there any difference in using a thesaurus vs. having an A.I. help write? How do solos get affected when nobody is playing the song? Check out Riffusion, generating music from text using visual sonograms. (https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/12 riffusions-ai-generates-music-from-text-using-visual-sonograms/) What is a solo for? Steven says it's about emotional peaks. When describing a group of cyborgs AND androids: Try the term "macheeple".
This episode contains: Steven and Ben record on Christmas Day, because they hate their families! Just kidding. Steven talks about his Covid filled Xmas, and Ben regales us with tales of his kid's broken arm. What joy! What Merriment! Merry Crisis.
Robot Overlords: We talk about the physical intelligence of ant and robot collectives. Harvard researchers designed a team of relatively simple robots that can work collectively with simple commands. The RAnts use photormones to successfully escape a corral. Neat.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221221135358.htm
Grumpy Cat of Birds: Ben introduces us to the Tawny Frogmouth, and you'll never be the same again. It's an amazing bird that isn't an owl, but kinda looks like one. Native to Australia and New Zealand, it is an ambush predator that simply swallows it's prey with it's giant mouth. So cool. Also, Steven gets schooled on cultural appropriation, but it's cool because Fight Club.
https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/tawny-frogmouth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nci3dnZPVfg
Big Question: We talk about eugenics and Star Trek. Why is starfleet against the victims of eugenics? Two different shows have currently have plot threads dealing with this idea and we try to figure it out. Also, we learn about eugenics.
Black Adam: Ben reviews Black Adam. Steven attempts a re-write. We also chat about the politics of hollywood and how it influences storytelling.
This episode contains: Steven is back “in studio” with the rest of us after having his internet completely replaced. Ben’s son may have broken his arm, if Ben could only open the CD to see the x-rays. Devon then tells us about his recent time in California, which includes playing Death May Die.
Batter Up: Affecting baseball friction with different substances. In baseball, even the smallest detail can tip the scales in favor of the batter or the pitcher. A recent publication has highlighted how rosin powder helps maintain a more constant friction when pitching, something that could bring about a fairer playing field in Major League Baseball.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/12/221215104734.htm
This Week in Space: Here’s what we know, and what we don’t, about the damaged Soyuz spacecraft current docked with the ISS. A leak in an external coolant of the Soyuz spacecraft could cause the flight computers to overheat. This may lead to an early departure from the space station.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/12/heres-what-we-know-and-what-we-dont-about-the-damaged-soyuz-spacecraft/
Science Fiction: Devon discusses the end of the second season of Avenue 5. We then review the most recent season of Rick and Morty, which just came to a close. Ben talks about Star Trek: Prodigy. This leads to a discussion of episodic TV v. serialized story telling. And so much more!!! (not really).
Patreon only: We discuss the use of AI in creative arts and who should get the credit for the final product.
Pre-pod Patreon-only: Devon remembers meeting Ben's cat. He still has the scar.
This episode contains: Ben leads the show, Steven phones it in, and Devon holds on for dear life. Devon has to go to "mandatory" parties for work. Steven's internet is unreachable, so he phones it in this episode. Ben was on the edge of the power outage that hit 5000 people. Ben describes the indescribable fun of the card game No Thanks. Ben's kid won 9 straight games of X-Men vs Street Fighter against Steven and Ben.
Jurassic Boom: No supersonic boom for dinosaur tails. The Diplodocid tail did not break supersonic speeds, despite earlier claims. Diplodocis tails were 12 m long, weighed 1.5 tons, and moved up to 33 m/s! A sonic boom occurs at 340 meters per second. Did Diplodocis have a huge-ass neck, or huge ass-neck? Devon's kids are gonna know what a sonic boom is, by golly! Devon's son wants to be a treehouse architect. Steven knows one who does that. Steven workshopped some other titles for Devon's article: "Must Go Faster Must Go Faster" and "Dun-dun-dun-duuuun dun-dun-dinosaurs (sung to the Indiana Jones' theme)".
https://phys.org/news/2022-12-paleontology-supersonic-boom-dinosaur-tails.html
We've got to go back, Kate: Fifty years later, remastered images reveal Apollo 17 in stunning clarity. 50 years ago, on Apollo 17 the last astronauts went to the moon (for now). Nobody's heard of hasselblad cameras. Why aren't they hasselgood? Remastered photos of Apollo 17 look incredible, but the captions are fire. In case anybody is curious, the crew of Artemis III is diverse. https://www.nasa.gov/specials/artemis-team/ The moon has an incredible amount of dust and dirt. Astronauts get grimy. Apollo 17 was the 1st mission with a scientist on the moon: Harrison H. Schmitt.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/12/fifty-years-later-remastered-images-reveal-apollo-17-in-stunning-clarity/ https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/apollo-17/in-depth/
Science Fiction: Big thanks to Joe Kohr for Steven's birthday gift of Steam cash! Hide and Seek in Among Us is super fun, and different enough from the game. Ben didn't finish the Star Trek: Prodigy episode before recording this week. R.I.P. Kirstie Alley at 71: Saavik from Wrath of Khan. Devon used to watch every sitcom that existed in the mid- to late-90s. Remember Herman's Head? Pepperidge Farm does, and so does Devon. Devon has an encyclopedic knowledge of 90s sitcoms. Why did they recast Saavik between Wrath of Khan and Search for Spock? Money. Devon rewatched the 1st season of Enterprise, and let's just say he's whelmed. Enterprise lacks the high concept scifi that even season 1 of TNG had. Devon wonders if Herman's Head is streaming somewhere... Enterprise could use more space-borne aliens. The original idea for Enterprise was for s1 to be on Earth, building the ship. Ben remembers the show Roswell, and there was a crazy Enterprise tie-in. Steven wonders if Jonathan Frakes is a little nuts. No reason, just wonders. The film Clockstoppers is a little self-explanatory, don't you think?
This episode contains: Steven and Ben (and others) attended Steven's birthday party, and we talk about the awesome fun times we had. Devon wasn't there, sorry Devon. However, Devon and Ben pooled their resources and bought Steven a Steamdeck for his 40th, which is amazing.
Buyer Beware: Handshake Domains: Blockchain Powered DNS Is Here, But Should You Use It? Ben explains what a DNS is, the control and attempted decentralization of web domains and his recent purchases. You should also check out https://lawless.rocks.
https://www.howtogeek.com/devops/handshake-domains-blockchain-powered-dns-is-here-but-should-you-use-it/
Last Week in Space: NASA’s Artemis 1 mission to the Moon sets the stage for routine space exploration beyond Earth’s orbit – here’s what to expect and why it’s important. We talk about the successful launch of the Artemis 1, what it's going to do, and how it's going to return. We also cover Artemis 2 and 3, which we are very excited for.
https://www.geeksaresexy.net/2022/11/17/nasas-artemis-1-mission-to-the-moon-sets-the-stage-for-routine-space-exploration-beyond-earths-orbit-heres-what-to-expect-and-why-its-important/
Science Fiction: There was a lot to cover this week. We recap the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, the Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 trailer, a Japanese indy film called Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (which was filmed on an iPhone), the trailer for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the shortest talk about Star Trek Prodigy Ben has ever done, and finally we talk about Undone season 2. Oh, and The Bear, which isn't scifi but is still amazing and you should watch it.
This episode contains: The three of us are here and ready to talk sci-fi, and only sci-fi. However, we first talk about what makes a “gentleman” and recount our Thanksgiving day experiences.
Science Fiction: We discuss Andor’s first season, what we liked about it, and what we might expect from season two. There are a lot of SPOILERS. We end up talking about Andor for half the episode. Ben and Steven then talk about Disney’s Strange World. Ben has been looking forward to this movie for years, while most other people still don’t know it exists. This also has some SPOILERS. Devon is still there, we think. We quickly talk Rick and Morty, then move on to Wakanda Forever. Steven and Ben then tell us all about Wakanda Forever with, again, SPOILERS. We then discuss Marvel Phase Four in general. Also, The Rocketeer.
This episode contains: Ben will not be cooking turkey this Thanksgiving, instead it's poached salmon! Ben battled Devon's ghost on Geometry Wars 2, doubling Devon's high score (he got 12,676,335 if anyone is asking). Devon lost his leg in the Geometry Wars. "Remember the Slaughter" is a pretty good band name. Is somebody writing down our cool band names? "Annus Horribilis" is another great band name. It means "unfortunate year." Steven recommends the band "The Sword." They rock. Listen to them. This COULD BE a music recommendation podcast, but Steven rejects that idea. Devon introduces us to Swamp Pop instead of talking Science & Science Fiction.
Sleep, Data. Sleep: Artificial neural networks learn better when they spend time not learning at all. During sleep, the brain is super busy repeating what we've learned in the day. Catastrophic Forgetting happens with neural networks: it's when new info overwrites old. "Computational Biology" is a rad band name too. Our development in neural network's sleep patterns can be applied to humans. Avenue 5 handled time delay comms, with AI that predicts conversation. We butcher discussing gender diversity during the Trans Day of Remembrance.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221118160305.htm
Mmmm, yumm 😋: Oldest evidence of the controlled use of fire to cook food, researchers report. Easily catching fish was a major development in human life. Thank you fish! 780,000 yrs ago humans first cooked fish. Before we thought it was 170,000 yrs. Researchers found fish teeth at a dig, saw they were heated = Cooking! Fishing is a safe way to hunt. Except if we're watching Jaws. Fishing also allowed our brains to get better.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221114111017.htm
This Week in Space: Pristine meteorite found within hours of hitting Earth. Everything was great till the UK Fireball Alliance attacked! 1.3 lbs of asteroid rock was found within 12 hours of landing. Most meteorite finds aren't very fresh. A meteorite find in Winchcombe is the best you can get without going to space.
https://astronomy.com/news/2022/11/pristine-meteorite-found-within-hours-of-hitting-earth
Science Fiction: Devon caught up on Avenue 5, and he digs it. The in-show show about Avenue 5 in Avenue 5 is hilariously terrible. There's comedy gold in mob mentality in Avenue 5. On Star Trek: Prodigy, The Protostar and the Dauntless start their showdown! The Ship was the 100th ep of DS9, and Timeless was 100th of VOY. Connections! The Outrageous Okona's Billy Campbell was in PCPA in Santa Maria and was The Rocketeer! Is Lower Decks really canon? Yes, Devon. Steven asks what a reptilian Xindi is. It's... complicated. We talk the upcoming Lower Decks and Strange New Worlds crossover. We don't talk about Andor too much, but we find time to bash Rise of Skywalker. Do you think K2SO will show up in Andor's last episode? We talk about a lot of Alan Tudyk. Watch Resident Alien. Devon says it's good. The new Disney film Strange World comes out this week! Alan Tudyk is in it too! Inside Job = Archer + Rick & Morty. A comedy where conspiracy theories are real. Devon gives Inside Job 4 out of 4 stars! 3 is too little, but it's not perfect? What's worse than raining cats and dogs? Hailing taxi cabs!
This episode contains: Three old men chat about their relative closeness in age. Ben and Steven played the fantastic science fiction RPG Traveller! Devon attended a BBQ and had some real talk with his kid about chicken.
Go, Ninja, Go!: Rats bop to the beat. Scientists have found that rats nod along to music, just like humans do. We talk about these implications. Also, Steven took the long way around for a TMNT joke.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221111155715.htm
Busted: Innocent man freed from prison after 35 years, thanks to an old episode of Mythbusters. A man was jailed for admitting to lighting a molotov cocktail with a cigarette, which we know (from science and Mythbusters) to be impossible! He has since been freed.
https://www.iflscience.com/innocent-man-freed-from-prison-after-35-years-thanks-to-an-old-episode-of-mythbusters-65677
Rock You Like A Hurricane: NASA says its SLS rocket is good to go for a launch attempt next Wednesday. High wind gusts were within tolerance, and the rocket will be launched (spoilers, it was launched successfully!).
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/11/nasa-says-its-sls-rocket-is-good-to-go-for-a-launch-attempt-next-wednesday/
Science Fiction: Ben tells us all about Avenue 5, the basic plot and the latest season. We're intrigued. Steven mentions the cancellation of WestWorld with only one season to go. We all talk a whole lot about the 9th episode of Andor, "One Way Out!". What an amazing show. Ben tells us about the Studio Ghibli short Grogu and Dust Bunnies. Finally, Ben talks us through the latest episode of Star Trek Prodigy, which has some very interesting links to The Original Series.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben continue to cast without the delightful presence of one Devon Craft. We discuss out upcoming Traveller game (an amazing science fiction role playing game). Steven then tells why “today was not a good day for Steven.” Because of this, Steven is not prepared and so this is a much looser episode. So we talk about FTL, which Steven has not played since 2015, the Battlestar Galactica board game, and the recent history of indie video games. Steven brings up RimWorld, Tin Can, The Last Starship, and Cyberpunk 2077. Ben tells us about Plunder Panic, a patriate video game.
Science Fiction: Ben tells about the 856th episode of Star Trek or the 11th episode of Star Trek Prodigy. The Borg return in this “super good episode.” Star Trek Prodigy also has a video game, which Ben has of course played. Ben also knows what the fourth Star Trek film might have been. Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth were going to team up somehow. We also discuss Ghostbusters, including the 2016 film and the animated show, because why not? Ben informs us of MythBusters Junior. It’s been a few weeks but we finally catch up on Andor. We discuss why Andor is such a good show… and more!
This episode contains: Around these parts, there's spooky and then there's spoopy. Steven says nope. Halloween can stick around year-round if you ask Ben. Ben found a house with severed limbs in the yard, but one was half a real rat. Steven's kids said no to Halloween decorations. They wanted Harvest Decorations. Stores are carrying skeletons for creatures without bones. Like octopuses.
Whoops? And your welcome?: US embassies may have accidentally improved air quality. 2008 was great! Steven and Ben had great jobs and would NEVER get laid off. 2008 was also when Geometry Wars 2 came out. In 2008, US embassies installed air-quality monitors and tweeted amounts hourly. Can regulators be shunned to improve air-quality by the power of tweeting? Purely informational intervention from US to improve air-quality. Maybe the regulators should crack down on the quality of our podcast.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/us-embassies-may-have-accidentally-improved-air-quality/
The D in DNA stands for Dubstep: Ancient viral DNA in human genome guards against infections. Viral DNA in our genomes are antivirals protecting cells against modern viruses. Steven correctly pronounces "endogenous!" Suppressyn has two S's and a Y, but the Y isn't where you think! Oh wait it is. Reverse experiments aren't just saying the word "experiments" backwards, Ben. Hauntingly futuristic: we say thank you to our DNA.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221027154145.htm
What is Dead may Never Die: Pebble, the OG smartwatch that may never die, updated to work with Pixel 7. Ben misses his Pebble. Recharging an Apple Watch every 2 days is TERRIBLE. The Apple Watch is a remarkable piece of tech, but if you want a WATCH... shrug. Pebble watches just got an update to support Android's 64-bit OS on Pixel 7. The Pebble Smartwatch: What is dead may never die. We have a story that only applies to those "rockin" the Pebble smartwatch.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/10/pebble-a-2013-smartwatch-updated-to-work-with-2022-pixel-7/
Science Fiction: Episodes 863 AND 864 of Star Trek on this week's podcast. Lower Decks: "The Stars At Night" are big and bright deep in the heart of Texas! Don't you need people to crew a starship to determine what good to do? How cool would it be if every California-class had a Texas-class escort? Evidently Jean-Luc Picard loves mummies. Shaxs finally got to eject his warp core! The M5 Multitronic Unit from TOS and the Texas-class AI are two peas in a pod. Badgey returned in a post-credit scene. If you wanted to start Star Trek: Prodigy on episode 11... you could but why? Ben recaps the Diviner's plan in Star Trek: Prodigy from months ago. The rest of Star Trek: Prodigy's first season has been compared to The Fugitive. Ben says Star Trek: Prodigy's 11th episode was rad. You should watch it. Tales of the Jedi: Ahsoka episodes are fun, Dooku episodes are incredible. Liam Neeson is back! Who deleted Camino from the archives? Now we know. What happened to Yaddle? Now we know. Will we ever see how EXACTLY Palpatine has returned? House of the Dragon is an amazing show about terrible people. Brothers named Arik and Erik? Man, screw this show. The first season of House of the Dragon was just setting up the upcoming game. Fallout's 25th anniversary is this year! Steven played it in High School! Steven reminisces about buying Fallout in EB Games in the mall back in the 90s.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben attended a well behaved dinner together. Devon contimplates shock collars for his kids. Oh, and Ben has another job. Neat.
Brain Matters: Lab-grown brain cells learn to play PONG, may be sentient. Both Steven and Devon report on new findings on human and mice neurons integrated into a silicon chip and taught how to play PONG. If some red flags are raised, you'd be right.
https://nerdist.com/article/lab-grown-brain-cells-played-pong-may-be-sentient/
https://gizmodo.com/scientists-apparently-taught-brain-cells-how-to-play-po-1849647952
https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/brain-cells-playing-pong/
Can You Hear Me Now?: Cheaper hearing aids hit stores today, available over the counter for first time. $799 for over the counter hearing aids, down from $2,000-$8,000. Steven shares his sister-in-law's hearing troubles. We discuss health care a bit.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/cheaper-hearing-aids-hit-stores-today-available-over-the-counter-for-first-time/
https://www.soundly.com/hearing-test
Science Fiction: Steven champions "A Closed and Common Orbit" the second book of the Wayfarer series by Becky Chambers. Ben reviews "Werewolf by Night" the new MCU Special Presentation. Devon (with many interruptions by Steven) talks about Andor and what is working for him with the series. After Devon departs early, Ben talks about the latest episode of Star Trek Lower Decks and informs Steven of all the nonsense that he missed.
This episode contains: It's been a long time since the three of us have been together in one podcast. Ben's been boogie boarding with his son and has learned some interesting things about waves and tides. Steven is doing fine, just fine. We discuss pumpkin art, or “part.” Devon is tired, so tired. Ben also won an arcade machine from work.
Boom Goes the Dinosaur: Impact that killed the dinosaurs triggered 'mega-earthquake' that lasted weeks to months. Some 66 million years ago, a 10-kilometer asteroid hit Earth, triggering the extinction of the dinosaurs. New evidence suggests that the Chicxulub impact also triggered an earthquake so massive that it shook the planet for weeks to months after the collision.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221006160638.htm
We Got Wet: Dinosaur-killing asteroid triggered global tsunami that scoured seafloor thousands of miles from impact site. The miles-wide asteroid that struck Earth 66 million years ago wiped out nearly all the dinosaurs and roughly three-quarters of the planet's plant and animal species.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221004105010.htm
I Love to Laugh, He-He-He-He: Neuroscientists unravel the mystery of why you can’t tickle yourself. New study shows how tickling, playfulness can address key questions about the brain.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/neuroscientists-unravel-the-mystery-of-why-you-cant-tickle-yourself/
Science Fiction: Lower Decks returns to form with a new episode/sequel to the holodeck movie Crisis Point. Steven and Ben completely spoil the season finale of She-Hulk. See concluded after three seasons. Ben says this was a really good show. Ben also tells us about the dystopian future envisioned in Decelerate Blue by Adam Rapp.
This episode contains: Steven and Devon record on a glorious Sunday afternoon. Where's Ben? It's fun to have Nicole Lawless on the show (ep421) as an actual science person. Devon woke up in a good mood, until he watched the Star Trek: Picard trailer. That Star Trek: Picard trailer was TOO DARK. Brighten it up! Devon continues to work on removing the tree stump. With fire. When Devon removed the stump, did he shout "STUMPFEST"? Steven and Devon drool over the new Lego Razorcrest. Lego just bumped up all their prices due to inflation. Crazy. Steven finally gets a day off from single dad duty after Martine's recovery. Ok ok ok, where's Ben? Lego: so much money for plastic in different orientations.
Evolutionarily speaking: Dead fish breathes new life into the evolutionary origin of fins and limbs. Evolution is AWESOME. Devon's 4yo. asked "when were chickens invented?" Devon talks evolution. Previously, our galeaspid fossils only had heads. Now we have a whole fossil. Primitive creatures on earth either had fins or limbs. Not both. If it wasn't for one measely asteroid, the dinosaurs would still be here. Is there a dinosaur planet out there? Is that where Ben is?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220928113007.htm
Stressed friend: Dogs can smell when we're stressed, study suggests.
A psychological stress response alters odor profile in our breath or sweat. Dogs can detect an odor change in VOCs produced by humans in response to stress. Want to test stress among study participants? Give them Math tasks!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220929133419.htm
Common gene variant linked to COVID mortality: Presence of the APOE gene can predict cancer, dementia, and COVID severity.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220921093000.htm
Science Fiction: We have a picture of the hosts in Lower Decks style. Join our Patreon to see it! You want a whole episode of Lower Decks about Peanut Hamper? Be careful what you wish for. And they didn't really do any development on the character of Peanut Hamper. The bird people made Lower Decks feel like Rick & Morty. More Jeffrey Combs in Lower Decks this last week. AGIMUS is back, baby! But not Ben, I guess. Worf is a super serious Klingon, because he wasn't raised as one. Picard season 3 trailer came out, and everybody is SOOOO OLLLLLD. So... Worf is a pacifist now? Cool. We're down for it. Worf started as a cliche, but thanks to DS9 he's a well-rounded character. Big spiky ship now wants to blow us up, like the last few Star Trek films. Round ships vs. spiky ships: It's a simple rock-paper-scissors situation. How does 7 of 9 become captain of a Starfleet ship, given the first two seasons of Picard? Devon tears apart the ships of Picard season 3. Devon will not sell his Eaglemoss ships, even though it's out of business. Devon likes Andor! At least the first two episodes! The internet breaks! Devon review's Dennis E. Taylor's new book: Roadkill. Light read and fun. The A.I. in Roadkill is kinda like if the character Frasier from the show Frasier wanted to kill humans. Steven reviews The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers: 👍👍. No Ben this episode. He'll be back.
This episode contains: Ben and special guest (his wife) Nicole are your hosts this episode! Where are Devon and Steven? Who cares! What is an Avocado Elbow? The answer may surprise you.
Peckers and Protection: Woodpecker heads don’t absorb shocks — but some crustaceans do. Wood-peckers don't get concussions mostly because their brains are smaller and oriented different. The snapping shrimp has a sort of hooded helmet protecting the head.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/head-banging-woodpeckers-could-give-themselves-a-concussion-every-day-heres-how-they-avoid-it/
She's Just Doing a Die Hard: Deepfake Bruce Willis may be the next Hollywood star, and he’s OK with that. We talk about Bruce Willis and the other deepfakes that Hollywood has done.
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/09/bruce-willis-sells-deepfake-rights-to-his-likeness-for-commercial-use/
Science Fiction: In a previous episode, Devon talked about his enjoyment of the Uncharted movie. This episode, Ben and Nicole (who have both enjoyed the Uncharted video games) have some issues with the movie. B&N also talk about the third season of See, and if you're not watching it, there is a large swath of this episode that will be nigh unintelligible. Ben is surprised it took 3 seasons to get to cannibals. Lastly, the bonded pair talk about that Deep Space Nine episode of Lower Decks. Ben wanted Sisko to be his dad, and Nicole relates to Tendi, the "nerdy badass".
This episode contains: All three of us come together on a Monday morning to mostly talk about DART and Andor. Devon tried to burn down his backyard while Steven’s wife came home from a work trip with Covid. Ben has gotten his fourth Covid vaccination.
This Week in Space: NASA is hitting an asteroid with a space ship. NASA's DART mission hits asteroid in first-ever planetary defense test. After 10 months flying in space, NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) -- the world's first planetary defense technology demonstration -- successfully impacted its asteroid target on Monday, the agency's first attempt to move an asteroid in space.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220927095429.htm
https://www.space.com/nasa-dart-asteroid-impact-preview
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/dart/in-depth/
Steven also notes the new images of Neptune taking by the James Webb Telescope.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/stunning-nasa-james-webb-telescope-image-reveals-neptunes-delicate-rings/ar-AA125IQG
Science Fiction: We discuss the new Disney Plus Star Wars TV Show: Andor. It’s really good. Steven thinks Devon needs to give it a watch. We also talk about the other Star franchise with Lower Decks. We talk about how the conspiracy theorists on Lower Decks reference one of the most gruesome episodes of TNG:
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/05/one-of-our-favorite-st-the-next-generation-episodes-aired-29-years-ago/
We end with Steven’s review of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.
This episode contains: All three of us come together on a Monday morning to mostly talk about DART and Andor. Devon tried to burn down his backyard while Steven’s wife came home from a work trip with Covid. Ben has gotten his fourth Covid vaccination.
This Week in Space: NASA is hitting an asteroid with a space ship. NASA's DART mission hits asteroid in first-ever planetary defense test. After 10 months flying in space, NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) -- the world's first planetary defense technology demonstration -- successfully impacted its asteroid target on Monday, the agency's first attempt to move an asteroid in space.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220927095429.htm
https://www.space.com/nasa-dart-asteroid-impact-preview
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/dart/in-depth/
Steven also notes the new images of Neptune taking by the James Webb Telescope.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/stunning-nasa-james-webb-telescope-image-reveals-neptunes-delicate-rings/ar-AA125IQG
Science Fiction: We discuss the new Disney Plus Star Wars TV Show: Andor. It’s really good. Steven thinks Devon needs to give it a watch. We also talk about the other Star franchise with Lower Decks. We talk about how the conspiracy theorists on Lower Decks reference one of the most gruesome episodes of TNG:
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/05/one-of-our-favorite-st-the-next-generation-episodes-aired-29-years-ago/
We end with Steven’s review of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.
Pre-pod for our Patreon-only crew:
Ben's been kicked from the podcast. How quickly the tides have turned. Steven spits some hot knowledge. Remember how fire the Mortal Kombat song was? Steven's kid noped out of Prehistoric Planet pretty quick. Super scary.
This episode contains: We got a storm on the Central Coast, a week after we were burning to death. This episode, Ben accidentally calls Devon "William." Steven won't stop with the joke. Another branch from the same oak tree falls on Steven's house. "I'm not talking unless it's on the podcast & I'm getting paid for it." - Devon
Previously on... THE SOLAR SYSTEM: Lots of strange things about Saturn can be explained by a destroyed moon. Saturn's axis wobbles around dramatically. Scientists hypothesize a moon of Saturn scraped the surface and created the rings. How many moons does Saturn have? 83, with two more unconfirmed. Small moons are condensing out of Saturn's rings. On a galactic timescale, Saturn is violently changing right now. Saturn's rings are theorized to only be 100 million years old. Saturn may be in an orbital resonance with Neptune, they get weird together. Jupiter has 80 rings. Devon's noticed that number keeps going up. Saturn is the ringleader of this whole "Solar System" operation.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/lots-of-strange-things-about-saturn-can-be-explained-by-a-destroyed-moon/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220721101508.htm
Blacked Out: Emergency Text Alert ‘Saves’ California From Blackout. Steven thinks 78˚ F is still way too hot. A Flex Alert SMS went out to ask Californians to conserve energy. Ben would like to think that better energy infrastructure is being developed. Things don't change for the better unless we get a little uncomfortable. Stopping reliance on fossil fuels is imperative. Not everyone in CA will get electric cars on the same day, so calm yourself. Nuclear power is green energy. We should not have abandoned it in the 70s. What if solar power got so efficient a house wouldn't be connected to the grid?
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-62832775
https://www.geeksaresexy.net/2022/09/09/emergency-text-alert-saves-energy-supply/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jzfpyo-q-RM&ab_channel=Kurzgesagt%E2%80%93InaNutshell
Science Fiction: Flamin' Hot Mountain Dew, and the things it leads to, By Dr. Suess. Ben didn't totally hate Flamin' Hot Mountain Dew. Steven thought it's like whiskey without getting drunk! We talk about character generation in Travellers. Ben's character in Travellers is named Bucket "Buck" Hahn. Very well educated. The hosts reminisce about playing Fiasco, an amazing DM-less RPG. Devon's rewatching the original Quantum Leap. Is ye olde Quantum Leap now called "The Original Series?" or "The First Leap?" In TOS, was Hikaru Sulu originally an Astrobotanist or a Physicist? Answer: He was Head of the Physics Dept. They gave Pavel Chekov the Monkees haircut originally for sex appeal. Are the people making Lower Decks super horny? Towels and underwear and sex everywhere. "We got an ancient mask situation over here!" Not a new thing on Star Trek. "Bonks" are where humans used to keep their money. Devon and Steven get way into the ethics of holodecks. Ben brings the popcorn. Devon and Steven use a lot of euphemisms for sex in the episode.
Post-show for our Patreon-only crew:
The new Quantum Leap looks kinda basic, but we'll give it a chance. Just give us Quantum Leap with a labrador as the main character. It's weird that the weird future in original Quantum Leap was 1995! When Quantum Leapers touch each other, they discover their true selves. New Quantum Leap has a Ghostbuster AND Firefly's engineer? Sign me up. If holodecks existed, we'd just live in there forever.
Pre-pod for our Patreon-only crew:
Ben's been kicked from the podcast. How quickly the tides have turned. Steven spits some hot knowledge. Remember how fire the Mortal Kombat song was? Steven's kid noped out of Prehistoric Planet pretty quick. Super scary.
This episode contains: We got a storm on the Central Coast, a week after we were burning to death. This episode, Ben accidentally calls Devon "William." Steven won't stop with the joke. Another branch from the same oak tree falls on Steven's house. "I'm not talking unless it's on the podcast & I'm getting paid for it." - Devon
Previously on... THE SOLAR SYSTEM: Lots of strange things about Saturn can be explained by a destroyed moon. Saturn's axis wobbles around dramatically. Scientists hypothesize a moon of Saturn scraped the surface and created the rings. How many moons does Saturn have? 83, with two more unconfirmed. Small moons are condensing out of Saturn's rings. On a galactic timescale, Saturn is violently changing right now. Saturn's rings are theorized to only be 100 million years old. Saturn may be in an orbital resonance with Neptune, they get weird together. Jupiter has 80 rings. Devon's noticed that number keeps going up. Saturn is the ringleader of this whole "Solar System" operation.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/lots-of-strange-things-about-saturn-can-be-explained-by-a-destroyed-moon/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220721101508.htm
Blacked Out: Emergency Text Alert ‘Saves’ California From Blackout. Steven thinks 78˚ F is still way too hot. A Flex Alert SMS went out to ask Californians to conserve energy. Ben would like to think that better energy infrastructure is being developed. Things don't change for the better unless we get a little uncomfortable. Stopping reliance on fossil fuels is imperative. Not everyone in CA will get electric cars on the same day, so calm yourself. Nuclear power is green energy. We should not have abandoned it in the 70s. What if solar power got so efficient a house wouldn't be connected to the grid?
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-62832775
https://www.geeksaresexy.net/2022/09/09/emergency-text-alert-saves-energy-supply/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jzfpyo-q-RM&ab_channel=Kurzgesagt%E2%80%93InaNutshell
Science Fiction: Flamin' Hot Mountain Dew, and the things it leads to, By Dr. Suess. Ben didn't totally hate Flamin' Hot Mountain Dew. Steven thought it's like whiskey without getting drunk! We talk about character generation in Travellers. Ben's character in Travellers is named Bucket "Buck" Hahn. Very well educated. The hosts reminisce about playing Fiasco, an amazing DM-less RPG. Devon's rewatching the original Quantum Leap. Is ye olde Quantum Leap now called "The Original Series?" or "The First Leap?" In TOS, was Hikaru Sulu originally an Astrobotanist or a Physicist? Answer: He was Head of the Physics Dept. They gave Pavel Chekov the Monkees haircut originally for sex appeal. Are the people making Lower Decks super horny? Towels and underwear and sex everywhere. "We got an ancient mask situation over here!" Not a new thing on Star Trek. "Bonks" are where humans used to keep their money. Devon and Steven get way into the ethics of holodecks. Ben brings the popcorn. Devon and Steven use a lot of euphemisms for sex in the episode.
Post-show for our Patreon-only crew:
The new Quantum Leap looks kinda basic, but we'll give it a chance. Just give us Quantum Leap with a labrador as the main character. It's weird that the weird future in original Quantum Leap was 1995! When Quantum Leapers touch each other, they discover their true selves. New Quantum Leap has a Ghostbuster AND Firefly's engineer? Sign me up. If holodecks existed, we'd just live in there forever.
This episode contains: Why is Ben under the weather? Why does Devon think he can play full court basketball? Why doesn't Steven talk about his vacation?
https://www.amazon.com/Millies-Natural-Organic-Gluten-Free-Vegetable/dp/B075JQRZ34/
Wheels Driving Around My Brain, Driving Me Insane: Bridgestone has put more than $100M into eco-tires made of shrubs. Guayule (Parthenium argentatum) is better than typical petroleum-based rubber. We're super excited about this, because no matter what powers your car, it's gotta have wheels.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/bridgestone-has-put-more-than-100m-into-eco-tires-made-of-shrubs/
It wasn't me!: Stone age surgery: Earliest evidence of amputation found. There was a successful leg amputation 31,000 years ago. Oh, and Australian scientists like to pull pranks, apparently.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220909160834.htm
Science Fiction: Steven breaks down the first episode of the sixth season of Rick and Morty. Ben tells us all about the 856th episode of Star Trek, which is an episode of Lower Decks. Devon takes a deep, deep breath and talks about his re-watch of Star Trek The Original Series. Oh man, is he excited about it. We even plan a bonus episode.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D9c3bY2UrA Rick and Morty S6E1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qikSy3oGE6I Lower Decks intro comparison
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/These_Are_the_Voyages_(book_series)
This episode contains: Why is Ben under the weather? Why does Devon think he can play full court basketball? Why doesn't Steven talk about his vacation?
https://www.amazon.com/Millies-Natural-Organic-Gluten-Free-Vegetable/dp/B075JQRZ34/
Wheels Driving Around My Brain, Driving Me Insane: Bridgestone has put more than $100M into eco-tires made of shrubs. Guayule (Parthenium argentatum) is better than typical petroleum-based rubber. We're super excited about this, because no matter what powers your car, it's gotta have wheels.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/bridgestone-has-put-more-than-100m-into-eco-tires-made-of-shrubs/
It wasn't me!: Stone age surgery: Earliest evidence of amputation found. There was a successful leg amputation 31,000 years ago. Oh, and Australian scientists like to pull pranks, apparently.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220909160834.htm
Science Fiction: Steven breaks down the first episode of the sixth season of Rick and Morty. Ben tells us all about the 856th episode of Star Trek, which is an episode of Lower Decks. Devon takes a deep, deep breath and talks about his re-watch of Star Trek The Original Series. Oh man, is he excited about it. We even plan a bonus episode.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-D9c3bY2UrA Rick and Morty S6E1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qikSy3oGE6I Lower Decks intro comparison
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/These_Are_the_Voyages_(book_series)
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are doing okay despite the current heatwave. Ben introduces the grandfather paradox to his son while Steven worries about his chickens. Now, science!
Smell Ya Later!: Scent of a friend: Similarities in body odor may contribute to social bonding. An electronic nose relying on body odor chemistry may predict whether we are likely to 'click' with a stranger. Researchers have found that people may have a tendency to form friendships with individuals who have a similar body odor. The researchers were even able to predict the quality of social interactions between complete strangers by first 'smelling' them with a device known as an electronic nose, or eNose. These findings suggest that the sense of smell may play a larger role in human social interactions than previously thought.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/06/220627125010.htm
Double Meat Burgers: How sustainable are fake meats? Checking whether plant-based burgers may have lighter environmental footprints.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/how-sustainable-are-fake-meats/
Science Fiction: We discuss: Lower Decks, The Sandman, See, She-Hulk, House of the Dragon, and Rings of Power. The brevity of these notes brought to you by: sick Devon.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben are doing okay despite the current heatwave. Ben introduces the grandfather paradox to his son while Steven worries about his chickens. Now, science!
Smell Ya Later!: Scent of a friend: Similarities in body odor may contribute to social bonding. An electronic nose relying on body odor chemistry may predict whether we are likely to 'click' with a stranger. Researchers have found that people may have a tendency to form friendships with individuals who have a similar body odor. The researchers were even able to predict the quality of social interactions between complete strangers by first 'smelling' them with a device known as an electronic nose, or eNose. These findings suggest that the sense of smell may play a larger role in human social interactions than previously thought.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/06/220627125010.htm
Double Meat Burgers: How sustainable are fake meats? Checking whether plant-based burgers may have lighter environmental footprints.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/09/how-sustainable-are-fake-meats/
Science Fiction: We discuss: Lower Decks, The Sandman, See, She-Hulk, House of the Dragon, and Rings of Power. The brevity of these notes brought to you by: sick Devon.
This episode contains: Ben Lawless here to talk about the 4,747 ep of Star Trek... NOPE! Not this time! An episode with just Devon and Steven. Ben's out cause he was tired. Waah-waah. Apparently American Standard Toilets have a 3-inch hole. That's news to Devon. Devon & Steven have been fixing house stuff, flinging $%^* across the bathroom. Bob Villa was a real guy, Steven. He also was Tim's nemesis on Home Improvement. We're not the DIY House Podcast. This is a podcast about science & science fiction.
Aw, Trippy, Man: Man's Digits Turn Blue Due To Rare Side Effect Of Heavy Cannabis Use. Cannabis arteritis causes necrosis after heavy cannabis use, but is very rare. There's been only 50 cases between 1960 and 2008. If you start getting gangrenous fingers, consider stopping using cannabis.
https://www.iflscience.com/mans-digits-turn-blue-due-to-rare-side-effect-of-heavy-cannabis-use-65022
Existential Crises: Risk of volcano catastrophe 'a roll of the dice', say experts. Nice use of dice rolling sound effects by Steven. Forget asteroid collision. You may die from a large volcanic eruption. The world is unprepared. There is a Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at Cambridge. Whoa. The CSER says we have been underestimating the risk of volcano eruptions. 1815 was the year without summer, after a magnitude 7 eruption in Indonesia. Just another thing to add to your list of existential crises to worry about. Volcanic Devastation is still a pretty cool band name.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220817135557.htm
Science Fiction: Still just Steven and Devon during the science fiction portion. House of the Dragon seems like a good mix of early and latter Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon is an adaptation of a book with unreliable narrators and has a narrower focus than Game of Thrones, to it's benefit. The Sandman is high concept weird stuff, but SOOO GOOD. Steven says Devon would love The Sandman just for the visuals, and so would you. Why can't She-Hulk look as good as The Sandman? Is She-Hulk just a cameo show? There's something missing. Devon liked Pam & Tommy on Hulu, with Lily James, Sebastian Stan & Seth Rogen. Somehow, Devon's on a real Home Improvement kick this episode. Will Ben ever forgive us for talking about Star Trek without him? Boimler works at a raisin vineyard?! Star Trek Lower Decks has amazing writing. Rick and Morty is returning soon! Devon enjoyed rewatching the last 2 seasons. Devon says Beavis & Butthead Do The Universe is... not bad? Devon is really enjoying Little Demon on FX, with Danny DeVito and Aubrey Plaza. Steven and Devon don't know how to end the show without Ben there.
This episode contains: Ben Lawless here to talk about the 4,747 ep of Star Trek... NOPE! Not this time! An episode with just Devon and Steven. Ben's out cause he was tired. Waah-waah. Apparently American Standard Toilets have a 3-inch hole. That's news to Devon. Devon & Steven have been fixing house stuff, flinging $%^* across the bathroom. Bob Villa was a real guy, Steven. He also was Tim's nemesis on Home Improvement. We're not the DIY House Podcast. This is a podcast about science & science fiction.
Aw, Trippy, Man: Man's Digits Turn Blue Due To Rare Side Effect Of Heavy Cannabis Use. Cannabis arteritis causes necrosis after heavy cannabis use, but is very rare. There's been only 50 cases between 1960 and 2008. If you start getting gangrenous fingers, consider stopping using cannabis.
https://www.iflscience.com/mans-digits-turn-blue-due-to-rare-side-effect-of-heavy-cannabis-use-65022
Existential Crises: Risk of volcano catastrophe 'a roll of the dice', say experts. Nice use of dice rolling sound effects by Steven. Forget asteroid collision. You may die from a large volcanic eruption. The world is unprepared. There is a Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at Cambridge. Whoa. The CSER says we have been underestimating the risk of volcano eruptions. 1815 was the year without summer, after a magnitude 7 eruption in Indonesia. Just another thing to add to your list of existential crises to worry about. Volcanic Devastation is still a pretty cool band name.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220817135557.htm
Science Fiction: Still just Steven and Devon during the science fiction portion. House of the Dragon seems like a good mix of early and latter Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon is an adaptation of a book with unreliable narrators and has a narrower focus than Game of Thrones, to it's benefit. The Sandman is high concept weird stuff, but SOOO GOOD. Steven says Devon would love The Sandman just for the visuals, and so would you. Why can't She-Hulk look as good as The Sandman? Is She-Hulk just a cameo show? There's something missing. Devon liked Pam & Tommy on Hulu, with Lily James, Sebastian Stan & Seth Rogen. Somehow, Devon's on a real Home Improvement kick this episode. Will Ben ever forgive us for talking about Star Trek without him? Boimler works at a raisin vineyard?! Star Trek Lower Decks has amazing writing. Rick and Morty is returning soon! Devon enjoyed rewatching the last 2 seasons. Devon says Beavis & Butthead Do The Universe is... not bad? Devon is really enjoying Little Demon on FX, with Danny DeVito and Aubrey Plaza. Steven and Devon don't know how to end the show without Ben there.
This episode contains: We gather in the morning this week, have a cup of coffee and discuss our lives. Ben's house is being destroyed on purpose, Devon languishes about Chuck E Cheese and their non-ticket tickets and Steven is less full of hate...but time will tell.
Here in my car, I feel safest of all: Physical buttons outperform touchscreens in new cars, test finds. Tests were performed to pit touch screens against physical buttons while driving. Spoilers: physical buttons appear to be safer.
https://www.vibilagare.se/nyheter/physical-buttons-outperform-touchscreens-new-cars-test-finds
Beliefs?: We talk about why belief in conspiracies is sometimes adaptive and logical. Belief in conspiracies may be justified and adaptive in war, occupation or colonialism but maladaptive in times of prosperity and peace.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/finding-new-home/202208/why-belief-in-conspiracies-is-sometimes-adaptive-and-logical
Biologically speaking: Scientists change blood type of kidney, offering new hope for thousands of transplants. If the wrong blood markers enter our systems, they'll be attacked by our natural defense mechanisms. Using a normothermic perfusion machine, an enzyme snipped away markers that defined the kidney's blood type. So cool.
https://www.iflscience.com/scientists-change-blood-type-of-kidney-offering-new-hope-for-thousands-of-transplants-64931
Science Fiction: Devon talks to us about finally watching Prey. We talk a bit about our likes and dislikes, but we generally recommend it. Devon also watched Predator 2... and we also talk about our likes and dislikes but can't really recommend it. Devon laments watching Alien too young. Ben tells us some Picard season 3 news, and brings a whole bunch of hope. We have a general chat about the state of Trek, old vs. new and also Spock casting. Steven HAS to talk about She-Hulk, and while he can't really recommed it yet, the series does show promise, to the initiated. It won't change anyone's mind. Ben ends the episode talking about I Am Groot and the darkness hiding within Groot.
This episode contains: We gather in the morning this week, have a cup of coffee and discuss our lives. Ben's house is being destroyed on purpose, Devon languishes about Chuck E Cheese and their non-ticket tickets and Steven is less full of hate...but time will tell.
Here in my car, I feel safest of all: Physical buttons outperform touchscreens in new cars, test finds. Tests were performed to pit touch screens against physical buttons while driving. Spoilers: physical buttons appear to be safer.
https://www.vibilagare.se/nyheter/physical-buttons-outperform-touchscreens-new-cars-test-finds
Beliefs?: We talk about why belief in conspiracies is sometimes adaptive and logical. Belief in conspiracies may be justified and adaptive in war, occupation or colonialism but maladaptive in times of prosperity and peace.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/finding-new-home/202208/why-belief-in-conspiracies-is-sometimes-adaptive-and-logical
Biologically speaking: Scientists change blood type of kidney, offering new hope for thousands of transplants. If the wrong blood markers enter our systems, they'll be attacked by our natural defense mechanisms. Using a normothermic perfusion machine, an enzyme snipped away markers that defined the kidney's blood type. So cool.
https://www.iflscience.com/scientists-change-blood-type-of-kidney-offering-new-hope-for-thousands-of-transplants-64931
Science Fiction: Devon talks to us about finally watching Prey. We talk a bit about our likes and dislikes, but we generally recommend it. Devon also watched Predator 2... and we also talk about our likes and dislikes but can't really recommend it. Devon laments watching Alien too young. Ben tells us some Picard season 3 news, and brings a whole bunch of hope. We have a general chat about the state of Trek, old vs. new and also Spock casting. Steven HAS to talk about She-Hulk, and while he can't really recommed it yet, the series does show promise, to the initiated. It won't change anyone's mind. Ben ends the episode talking about I Am Groot and the darkness hiding within Groot.
This episode contains: Devon’s back so we have a full house on this ep. Steven is not in the best of moods, Devon is just chillin’ and Ben is not comfortable with where this podcast is going. Devon tells us about his recent trip to Maine and rock climbing. Ben and Devon also compare their track balls.
Does it still whip the llama's posterior?: Winamp, the best MP3 player of the 1990s, just got a major update. 5.9 RC1 Build 1999 focuses on modernizing Winamp's foundation for more features.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/08/winamp-of-all-things-gets-its-first-update-in-4-years/
https://webamp.org/
https://butterchurnviz.com/
Yucky Batteries: The bacteria powering a truly green revolution in personal electronics. Team engineers biofilm capable of producing long-term, continuous electricity from your sweat.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/08/220802153311.htm
Science Fiction: We discuss the new season of Bluey, briefly. Devon then gives us his review of this season of the Orville (mostly positive). Devon was going to watch Prey but decided to just watch the Red Letter Media review instead. Steven is not happy about this. Steven tells us about Paper Girls and we discuss the conclusion of season 3 of For All Mankind.
This episode contains: A 9 year old trash-talked Ben's Mario Kart skills. Steven went to a climbing gym with his daughter and he's still alive! The auto-belay is an awesome piece of rock climbing tech. Belaying is just Batman-ing in reverse.
Mechanical advantage: A 'nano-robot' built entirely from DNA to explore cell processes. Did Yoda write this article? How cool is DNA? It's the coolest. 1 piconewton is a trillionth of a Newton: the force of a finger clicking a pen. Steven can't find a clicky pen to save his life.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220728075911.htm
Here's one for all the kids who set the toy aside to play with the box it came in: DIY Tinycade aims to bring Alt Ctrl games to the masses. Make your own game controllers with items you can find in a grocery store. Love Nintendo Labo but don't want to spend $70 USD? Check out Tinycade. The controller makes the game, dictates how you interact with it.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/08/make-your-own-cardboard-diy-arcade-games-with-tinycade/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsRSNbrCEmE
https://www.perryowens.com/tinycade
Science Fiction: Steven thinks Lightyear was weird, but super good and enjoyable. Buzz is a broken man, his friends growing beyond his mistakes. Ben watched Rambo, Alien and Terminator way too young. Does Ben's therapist listen to our show? She could take good notes. We talk about Prey, originally titled "Eat Prey Love", the Predator prequel. Spoiler alert: Prey is about the Predator hunting things. Beautifully shot. We wonder what Devon will complain about regarding Prey. Ben loved The Wilds Season 2, but the cliffhanger was meh. Bummer it's canceled. Do a graphic novel or an audio drama to end The Wilds, please and thank you. Turns out episode 9 of For All Mankind season 3 was not the finale. Huh. Danny went through so many emotions in 5 seconds when he wasn't blamed for the Martian drilling accident. Can For All Mankind season 3 end progressive? A gay POTUS should be celebrated. Filming has begun on Furiosa! We're stoked.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben rule supreme this episode. Ben walks us through birthday twins and Steven talks about rolling 2D6, whatever that means. Ben also talks about some games he's been playing while recoving from some very minor surgery. Oh and we look at some Webb telescope images and compare them to Hubble.
https://www.webbcompare.com/index.html
Oh god, oh god why?!: Researchers turn dead spiders into 'necrobotic' grippers. Spiders don't have bones and muscles, but hydraulics and blood, and when that blood is replaced (via scientist) with air, the legs become grippers. It's a whole thing, and you probably shouldn't watch the video.
https://www.cnet.com/science/biology/researchers-turn-dead-spiders-into-necrobotic-grippers/
Blue moon, I saw you standing alone: UCLA scientists discover places on the moon where it’s always 'sweater weather'. People could potentially live and work in lunar pits and caves with steady temperatures in the low 60s. We talk about the possibilities of living on the moon in these temperate pits.
https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/places-on-moon-where-its-always-sweater-weather
Science Fiction: We talk about Nichelle Nichols and her lifetime achievements. Ben thinks season 3 of Picard looks good. Steven spoils/spills the beans on the Fallout tv show. Ben gives us some details on the second season of Babylon 5. Steven tells us all about Paper Girls. Ben has really enjoyed the second season of The Wilds. Of course we talk about the latest episode of For All Mankind, The Sands of Ares.
This episode contains: Steven and Devon have been playing D&D. Ben’s son has discovered his love for the ocean. Devon is home alone and is dealing with a multi-week long ear infection. We discuss the Google researcher who was fired for claiming Google has achieved AI.
https://www.engadget.com/blake-lemoide-fired-google-lamda-sentient-001746197.html
Robot Overlords: Robot dog learns to walk in one hour. Like a newborn animal, a four-legged robot stumbles around during its first walking attempts. But while a foal or a giraffe needs much longer to master walking, the robot learns to move forward fluently in just one hour. A computer program acts as the artificial presentation of the animal's spinal cord, and learns to optimize the robot's movement in a short time. The artificial neural network is not yet ideally adjusted at the beginning, but rapidly self-adjusts.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220718122229.htm
This Week in Space: The inner solar system spins much more slowly than it should. Now, scientists may know why. The researchers used computer models to simulate an accretion disk of 1,000 charged particles colliding with 40,000 neutral particles in magnetic and gravitational fields. They found that the interaction between the neutral atoms and a much smaller number of charged particles results in positively charged ions, or cations, spiraling inward and negatively charged particles, or electrons, moving outward toward the edge of the accretion disk. Meanwhile, the neutral particles lose angular momentum and spiral inward to the center.
https://www.space.com/inner-solar-system-slow-spin-explained?fbclid=IwAR3RXpCw7dpkPDMUmTg05Ag8P3sCgSjF2p7n6MT-GEzBk9-1V6ng5lfY1kw&mibextid=ZSqbUZ#l604vby6mix8hsozg2
Science-Fiction: We discuss For All Mankind, The Orville, Marvel Phase 5 and 6 reveals and Star Trek announcements at the San Diego Comic-Con and more!
This episode contains: Asheville, NC is called The San Francisco of Tennessee. Devon ventures into the Biggest Bass Pro Shop, a pyramid in Memphis. Steven isn't going if there's no LEGO store. Ben's kid and Steven's kid are both going to the same summer camp. AWKWARD. Ben got a wetsuit and has been boogie boarding, lots of happy endorphins. Steven doesn't get a "runner's high." He gets cranky, tired and angry. DO NOT SWIM IN THE ALGAL BLOOM. Do NOT let your kid play in it!
Maybe today you could put the past away: New ‘988’ mental health crisis hotline launches Saturday. Dial 988 for mental health help. No busy signal, no hold. Just help. Mental health crisis calls shouldn't go to 911. Use 988 instead. Text too. Local mental health help is far better than nationwide help. 988 replaces the old National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number.
https://www.theverge.com/2022/7/15/23219962/988-mental-health-crisis-suicide-hotline-lifeline
Monkeying around: Monkeypox Is Continuing to Surge Across the U.S.
There have been over 10K monkeypox cases worldwide, and 1,400 in the US alone. "Have we learned nothing?" - Steven. Monkeypox infection has flu-like illness followed by contagious rashes.
https://gizmodo.com/monkeypox-is-continuing-to-surge-across-the-u-s-1849183213
The most amazing thing that happened all week: First Images from the James Webb Space Telescope. Hot gas giant exoplanet WASP-96 b MAY HAVE H20 WATER!!! Thanks Webb Telescope!
https://www.nasa.gov/webbfirstimages
Science Fiction: Steven wasn't as into Ms. Marvel as Ben. Of course Ben loved it. He's a child. Marvel is taking their time getting to the X-Men in the MCU. Ben schools Steven on proper pronunciation of characters in the MCU. Who cares? Ben tries to convince Devon to watch Ms. Marvel using reverse psychology. A spoiler-filled discussion of Thor: Love and Thunder this week. "Thor: Love and Thunder was a decent, if janky movie." - Steven. There's a good edit of Thor: Love and Thunder, but it's not in theaters. We talk about New Eden, the 6th episode of For All Mankind. Remember when Danielle and the Soviet commander wrestled to be first on Mars? The kerfuffle about the astronaut who comes out on Mars is super interesting.
This episode contains: Join Steven and Ben this week but not Devon, who is on vacation. We chat a bit about dad stuff and video games w/ the kids. Steven has gotten back into 3D printing. Ben wants a better way to sort his games on Humble Bundle.
Never Swallow the Dentic: Shapeshifting microrobots can brush and floss teeth. We chat about magnetic fields to direct the motion of a robotic microswarm. Then we detour and talk about our own dental hygene and health.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/07/220705194142.htm
Man's Best Friend: Ice Age wolf DNA reveals dogs trace ancestry to two separate wolf populations. We chat about when and where wolves were domesticated and how we know that. And we reiterate: we do not deserve dogs.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/06/220629121135.htm
Science Fiction: Steven didn't do his Star Trek homework, as always, Ben picks up the slack and talks about the season finale to Star Trek Strange New Worlds. This is a spoiler filled chat, so beware. Steven talks about Stranger Things season 4, and rounds out something that he thought worked really well. We also touch on The Boys but not enough, so tune in next week.
This episode contains: Best friend of the show Matt was mauled by a dog, so Ben took him to the ER. A WILD STORY. "They don't give ice cream in the ER?" asks Devon. Shout out to team "Dad Bod" on season 2 of Floor Is Lava. Get new shirts guys.
There are no words: People are getting explosive gastroenteritis at the Grand Canyon. Amazing story full of poop jokes about the Grand Canyon by Beth Mole for Ars Technica. Thanks for the chuckles and the coverage of norovirus, Beth! Turns out if you vomit at the Grand Canyon, you gotta take it out with you. Steven isn't impressed by erosion, but Ben loved seeing the Grand Canyon.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/06/the-grand-canyon-is-brimming-with-norovirus-sickening-over-150/
This week in space: Surprise solar storm with 'disruptive potential' slams into Earth. A G1-class solar storm hit earth at 1.57 M miles per hour on 6/25, disrupting satellites and creating strong auroras as south as Oregon. Possibly unrelated: there was a giant sunspot in June, 2.5 times the size of earth. How do EMPs make electronics turn off? We'll look it up later.
https://www.livescience.com/surprise-solar-storm-hits-earth
Science Fiction: Need a Lola 3D printed from Kenobi? Renee found it for us on Thingiverse. We suggest a few kid-friendly podcasts instead of our show. For All Mankind episode three was exactly what Ben wanted from the show.
Devon wonders why For All Mankind had a ship spinning while engaging engines. Literally unwatchable. SEND ALL THE POETS TO MARS! YES! In case you missed it: watch the alternate-history news reports between seasons 2 and 3. Steven and Devon speculate who'll be POTUS in later seasons. We talk about three episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds this week. Steven continues to exploit his greater knowledge of Futurama over Ben. Devon remembers more of early Star Trek: The Next Generation than Ben. Devon kinda likes Stranger Things season 4, after the overhyped season 1. West World season 4 has low ratings, probably because of lack of advertising. Out of context, West World season 4 sounds bonkers, but Ben is in for it. Ms. Marvel is a great show: culturally, stylistically, and cinematographically. Steven talks about what to expect from the upcoming film The Marvels. Maybe next week Devon will talk about The Orville... or maybe not.
On Patreon-only: Ben sings the Skype song mashed up with A-Team theme. Book recommendations for roadtrips, Devon's noises, blinking and all about Memphis.
This episode contains: We get together on a Sunday to discuss how our weekends are going. Devon had a pool party and Ben is sick. Steven celebrated his kid’s birthday. Anyway, science:
Big Fish, Small Pond: New bacterium roughly the size, shape of an eyelash smashes size record. The discovery greatly expands the scope of known microbial diversity.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/06/new-bacterium-roughly-the-size-shape-of-an-eyelash-smashes-size-record/
This Week In Space: Scientists release first analysis of rocks plucked from speeding asteroid. Samples from asteroid Ryugu suggest it's leftover from formation of the Sun billions of years ago. Scientists have now begun to announce the first results from the analysis of a handful of dirt that Hayabusa2 managed to scoop off the surface of a speeding asteroid. What they found suggests that this asteroid is a piece of the same stuff that coalesced into our sun four-and-a-half billion years ago.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/06/220609195011.htm
Science Fiction: We discuss the final episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ben gives us his review of Lightyear, Devon gives his review of this season of The Boys, and more!
This episode contains: We have a full on dadcast this week. We talk about our respective Father's Days and then Ben talks about linux for a while.
You know that old friend who always got you in trouble...: The ghost of Internet Explorer will haunt the web for years. Internet Explorer is finally retired. We talk about why it stuck around for so long, and how it's maiming the internet.
https://www.wired.com/story/internet-explorer-dead-security-risks/
This Week in Space: NASA Insists All Is Well as the Webb Telescope's Mirror Gets Dinged. The Webb Space Telescope has taken damage but it should still be okay because of the forward thinking designs of it's creators.
https://time.com/6188507/webb-telescope-mirror-damage-nasa/
Science Fiction: Steven gives his review and spoiler filled rendition of Jurassic World Dominion. He gets into the weeds and doesn't really get out. We chat about the first two episode of the third season of For All Mankind. We're split on how the show is doing post Ronald D. Moore. Steven asks Devon about Top Gun Maverick and Devon talks more that he has in the past 5 episodes combined. Oh boy does he like Top Gun. We round out the episode with Ben giving us his review and recommendation of Calls, the Apple TV award winning original.
This episode contains: Extra Super Special Guest Tim Barnes joins Ben and Steven this episode. While he's here to push his new show Maurice on Mars on Comedy Central, we talk about a ton of stuff he's done, like writing for Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show, the new All That on Nickelodeon and also Warped! (Not to mention his podcast Yub Nub where he talks Star Wars with his co-hosts.)
Lend Me Some Sugar, I Am Your Neighbor: NASA plans to get Ingenuity through the Martian winter. We talk about just how cold it gets on mars and how that will affect Ingenuity.
https://www.wired.com/story/nasas-plan-to-get-ingenuity-through-the-martian-winter/
Robot Overlords: Google engineer put on leave after saying AI chatbot has become sentient. A Google employee thinks that their AI has the ability to express thoughts and feelings equivalent to a human child. We talk about some of the stuff the AI chatbot said, and the ramifications of creating true AI.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jun/12/google-engineer-ai-bot-sentient-blake-lemoine
Science Fiction: Tim Barnes tells us all about Maurice on Mars, the animated show he wrote and does voice work for. We talk about it's creation, influences, and about how quickly history can be erased. Then it's on to Episode 4 of Obi-Wan Kenobi! Steven does a recap and everyone else has to listen. Ben give us the low-down on Strange New Worlds and another classically animated Trek, this time tackling Voyager. https://trekmovie.com/2022/06/12/watch-star-trek-voyager-in-the-style-of-the-animated-series-creator-interview/
Don't forget to click these links!
Tim Barnes: https://www.timbarnescomedy.com/
Maurice On Mars: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju1jaIzmEZw&t=9s
Uncertain Life: https://www.uncertainlifecomic.com/
Yub Nub Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/yub-nub/id1544376247
This episode cotnains: We make episode 404 and didn't make a FILE NOT FOUND joke. FAIL. Ben finds podracing engines at an airplane museum. A new droid in Galaxy's Edge!? Steven's got the scoop on the C units. Did you know Chopper was cursing a bunch in Star Wars Rebels? Check out the newest ice cream flavor: The Wrath of P'Khan!
In the immortal words of Outkast: What’s cooler than being cool? Researchers Made Ultracold Quantum Bubbles on the Space Station. Scientists have produced tiny bubbles of extremely cold gas atoms on the ISS. NASA is able to take quantum paradoxes and make them visible to the naked eye. When rubidium cools to absolute zero, they become a new state of matter. Steven doesn't believe that the Magnetic Fields are a band. Is Baby Universe a really cool indie band? We don't look it up.
https://www.wired.com/story/researchers-made-ultracold-quantum-bubbles-on-the-space-station/
Take that, pig! Confused Cops Stop Driverless Car. San Francisco police pulled over a driverless car, but didn't file a citation. Give us driverless cars? Yes please! What kind of license is necessary for a driverless car? Most driverless car errors are actually human errors. If our roads were suddenly filled with driverless cars, it'd be super safe.
https://www.geeksaresexy.net/2022/04/14/confused-cops-stop-driverless-car/
Science Fiction: Steven does a light review of the first episode of season 2 of The Wilds. Stranger Things Season 4 Part 1 has been super good. The first episode of The Orville: New Horizons could have cut 25 minutes. Let's talk about the 848th episode of Star Trek. Spock Amok! It was great! Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part III spoilers this episode and whoo-ee, this was great. James Earl Jones was Darth Vader in Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part III, but got help. Steven gets excited about the glow and reflection off lightsabers.
Patreon-only content: Extreme parenting! Ben's designed 65 books since 2005. Heteronormativity in The Power of Now. The rituals we use to get to sleep. Dot-matrix printers and zen. How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe. Space Boy!
https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-404-67330237
This episode contains: All three amigos are present this episode. Devon talks about his birthday, and Ben and Steven had a BBQ. Welcome to summer, I guess.
Welcome to the Desert of the Real: Haptics Device Creates Realistic Virtual Textures. USC Viterbi computer scientists have created a user-driven haptics method. We talk about potential uses.
https://viterbischool.usc.edu/news/2022/05/virtual-textures-i-cant-believe-its-not-wood/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220521093332.htm
A Few Centuries Ago in Space: Rare Book From 1698 Reveals Belief In Extraterrestrial Life On Saturn And Jupiter. We talk about how Christiaan Huygens used logic of the time to figure out what alien life could be like.
https://www.iflscience.com/editors-blog/rare-book-from-1698-reveals-belief-in-extraterrestrial-life-on-saturn-and-jupiter/
Science Fiction: We talk about the first two episodes of the Disney+ show Obi-Wan Kenobi. It's filled with spoilers, so beware. We also talk about how the show Ahsoka is pretty much going to be live action Rebels. We then chat about the episode Momento Mori from Star Trek Strange New World, and the Gorn. We wrap things with talking about Love Death and Robots episodes and what we liked. Oh that Jibaro is amazing.
This episode contains: This week we have the entire gang together recording on a Saturday night. Devon is recording form a thunder storm, Ben is drinking Liquid Death, and Steven has to step away to deal with kids.
Science: We plan on doing science but get totally side tracked with Ben’s attempt to get another Covid vaccine booster. This turns into a conversation of the state of the pandemic in general.
Science Fiction: Ben tells us about the trailer for season 3 of The Umbrella Academy. Steven has watched a couple of the new episodes of Love, Death and Robots. Steven and Ben give us their review of the most recent episode of Strange New Worlds. We then talk about one of the best new shows: Severance. Steven then raves about the Chip ‘n Dale movie.
(There isn't any vasectomy talk on the episode proper, go to patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast to hear that bit!)
This episode contains: We record in the daytime for the first time ever, except for the last time. Do Texans eat lunch at 3 in the afternoon? We ask Devon. He never answers. How much do we love brisket tacos? We drink more Liquid Death: Berry It Alive and Mango Chainsaw. So good. Steven doesn't want to drink water that tastes like farts.
Fly Me to the Moon: Plants will grow in lunar regolith, but they don't like it. Steven and Ben both picked the same science news to share this week. Lucky pick! Kinda like in The Martian, plants are able to grow in lunar regolith. JSC-1A is the NASA-developed material meant to simulate lunar soil.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220512121840.htm
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/05/plants-can-grow-in-lunar-soil-but-very-poorly/
Science Fiction: What did Devon think of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds? He is hopeful and blase. And I quote: "Why is everyone an alcoholic in StarTrek now? Where's the hope?" Steven liked the second episode of Strange New Worlds more than the first. "When you answer a problem with math and music, you got good Star Trek." George Samuel Kirk is immortal until pancakes hit him in the face! Compare dinner party scenes from Strange New Worlds and Discovery, and choose your flavor of NuTrek. We go over major Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness spoilers. Do we talk about that thing? Of course we do. We saw the trailer for Season 3 of The Orville... What? No jokes? Devon drops the mike.
Alternate title: LET'S GO!!!!
This episode contains: Ben wrote his mother a poem for Mother's Day and he shares with us. Have your tissues handy. Steven went to Hawaii and only had a moderatly good time. No tears for him. Ben gives us an update on the xenoplantation we reported on a few weeks back.
https://www.theverge.com/2022/5/6/23060519/pig-virus-heart-transplant-xenotransplantation
Gas On The Moon: Lunar soil has the potential to generate oxygen and fuel. Chinese scientists are designing a system to use lunar soil and solar radiation for oxygen and fuel. For better success, they may try melting the lunar soil into a nanostructured high-entropy material. Cool.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220505114655.htm
What do you hate? Passwords. When do we hate them? All the time: Apple takes the first steps to a password-less future, and Google and Microsoft are along for the ride. We talk about passwords, authentication methods and FIDO.
https://sixcolors.com/post/2021/06/wwdc-2021-apple-takes-the-first-steps-to-a-password-less-future/
Science Fiction: We talk about the latest trailer for Obi-Wan Kenobi and discuss how we feel about another Kenobi / Vader fight. Does it break cannon? Do we care? We spend a lot of time covering the first episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. We were both pretty taken with it. Lastly, we chat about Star Trek: Picard and... let's just leave it at that.
This episode contains: The three of us are here and ready to talk Star Wars. Mostly about how it has failed. But we eventually get positive. We get onto the science pretty quick so we can discuss the Wars of the Stars!
I Wanna’ Fly Away, Yeah, Yeah…: Drones have transformed blood delivery in Rwanda. The autonomous aircraft have shuttled blood to rural, mountainous areas for years. A new analysis proves they’re faster than driving.
https://www.wired.com/story/drones-have-transformed-blood-delivery-in-rwanda/
Science Fiction: May the 4th Be With You! It’s all Star Wars! We talk about our favorite entries into the series, our least favorite, and our favorite scenes. We also talk about changes from the theatrical releases to the latest digital releases. Steven tries to do some comparisons, but ends up making Ben's soul leave his body.
This episode contains: Ben hangs up on Steven in this week's Patreon-only content. We have almost 36 minutes extra in this week's unedited ep.
https://www.patreon.com/posts/episode-398-65566625
Ben is allegedly a good kisser. Steven has some "smelly cat" going from his cold. Steven got a new iPad Air. Wanna know why? He's gonna rewatch The Batman!
Ben has been looking for what is leaking in his kitchen for 8 YEARS, and gets sciencesplained by a plumber.
Good music noises: Dun dun dunna dun dunna dun DUN. BWEAAAANNNRRR! Tumors partially destroyed with sound don't come back. You know what is so metal? Non-invasive sound technology to remove cancer. Steven can't pronounce the word histotripsy. Can you? Can we scare liver cancer away with sound? Not exactly scare, but yeah. "Violent Sound Bubble" will be the first album by Non-Canon Borg Queen. After killing 75% of a liver tumor, rats' immune systems can clear away the rest.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/04/220418093955.htm
"Could you save me / From the ranks of the freaks / Who suspect they could never love anyone?": Let's talk about digital preservation. If you go back to a file with links years later, you might find they're gone. How can you preserve links forever? Maybe ArchiveBox can help! How do we get a WordPerfect document from 1995 off a floppy drive? Our Twitter account has tweeted over 55,000 times! That's unpossible!
https://www.dpconline.org/digipres/what-is-digipres
https://archivebox.io/
Science Fiction: Ben's family is way into Space Boy. Ben's son is already caught up. Handling mysterious back story in fiction is risky: Maybe it won't pay off. Like Space Boy? Consider Kazu Kibuishi's work: Flight, Amulet, Copper. Steven's kids Spider-splained to him after watching Spidey and His Amazing Friends, so Steven pulled out Ultimate Spider Man, even though it has some hanky panky. Try talking about it with a 7 year old. Ben finally saw and loved The Batman. The movie The Batman was so much better than the animated series The Batman. "Michael Douglas is my Batman," says Ben's wife. But she's not wrong ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Keaton ). The narration in The Batman does a LOT for the story. The journey of The Batman and The Riddler are mirrors of each other.
This episode contains: We talk about sick kids, the easter, LIQUID DEATH, house destruction and possibly starting a proof-reading podcast.
Let's Go Fly a Kite: Could high-flying kites power your home? We chat about how kites wind power works and how it possibly couldn't work. Future power solutions are on the way and we are extremely excited.
https://knowablemagazine.org/article/technology/2022/could-high-flying-kites-power-your-home
https://skysails-power.com/
I Thought It Wasn't Real, But It Is: Burst of accumulated zinc shows how the mineral boosts immune function, suggesting ways to improve health. Steven had lumped zinc in with woo-woo nonsense when it came to boosting immune function. Until now. Zinc is needed for the development of T cells and prompts regeneration of the thymus. Too cool.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220331185359.htm
Science Fiction: Thanks @ibakepies for our cool new twitter header. Ben recommends the One-Minute Time Machine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBkBS4O3yvY
The release date for For All Mankind season 3 has been revealed, set your watches to June 10th. Steven does a mini-review on Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. You should go read it. Ben has come to terms with Picard, the episodes don't connect thematically or tonally. We really dug the TNG animated clip though:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jyz2pVqrEkI
On this episode: We have a full house: Steven, Ben and Devon. Ben and Devon played some Walkabout Mini-Golf. Steven has been dealing with sick kids. Devon has been spending time alone and building fire pits. Ben does his laundry…
Biology, Something, Something: Researchers generate the first complete, gapless sequence of a human genome. Scientists have published the first complete, gapless sequence of a human genome, two decades after the Human Genome Project produced the first draft human genome sequence. According to researchers, having a complete, gap-free sequence of the roughly 3 billion bases (or 'letters') in our DNA is critical for understanding the full spectrum of human genomic variation and for understanding the genetic contributions to certain diseases.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220331151517.htm
Be Prepared: AI Predicts if and When Someone Will Experience Cardiac Arrest. An algorithm built to assess scar patterns in patient heart tissue can predict potentially life-threatening arrhythmias more accurately than doctors can.
https://hub.jhu.edu/2022/04/07/trayanova-artificial-intelligence-cardiac-arrhythmia/
Science Fiction: We discuss: Spock has a first name, Moon Knight, Upload, Star Trek , LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, Space Boy and more!
This Episode Contains: In the Patreon-only pre-show, does Ben have mono? In Texas, Devon's got pollen covering his black truck. It's now YELLOW! Steven ordered the Lego Delorean, the last Lego he buys for a long time. Dream Theater just won their first Grammy! ROCK ON!
If you liked it, then you should've put a ring on it: The Long Goodbye to Saturn's Rings. Ben doesn't want to be alarmist, but Saturn's rings are going bye-bye. They are being vaporized over the course of the next 300M years. Imagine: Phobos may one day become the rings of Mars. The title sequence to Star Trek: Voyager is still breathtaking.
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2022/03/saturn-losing-rings-nasa-moons/629391/
This Week in Space: What's going on in space between the U.S. and Russia? Nasa said that they'll still work with Russia, despite threats and sanctions. There are treaties preventing owning the moon, but it's unenforceable. April 1st is the only day a year Americans will be skeptical of news articles.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/02/russia-to-end-cooperation-over-international-space-station
https://www.space.com/russia-threatens-leave-international-space-station-program-rogozin
Science Fiction: The Fallout show has a new lead... WHEN DOES IT COME OUT?!?!? How will Undone Season 2 resolves real vs. not real? Steven solves it. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is coming out on Revenge of the Fifth Day. Are we ever going to get a thinky Star Trek show? Moreso than Disco Season 4? Jurati and Borg Queen have very Farscape John/Harvey vibes. "Why is everyone so angry when you meet them in Star Trek: Picard?" - Devon. "Devon, emotions ARE a part of the human experience." - Ben. Ben gives a very short review of Halo. Devon reviews Black Fleet trilogy by Joshua Dalzelle: "Like The Expanse in intensity."
This episode contains: Break-ins, BBQs and Boxes. Would you like to know more?
Sip, Sip, Go!: Good news for coffee lovers: Daily coffee may benefit the heart. A new analysis of meta data shows that coffee is either neutral to, or associated with benefits to the heart. We talk about our own coffee (and bathroom associated) habits as well.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220324104420.htm
Creativity, blah, blah blah, creativity: Anyone can be trained to be creative, researchers say. Current foundation of creativity training is divergant thinking; treating the brain is logic machine. New creativity training focuses on developing new worlds and shifting perspectives.
https://news.osu.edu/anyone-can-be-trained-to-be-creative-researchers-say/
Science Fiction: Ben gives his review of the Kobo and how it works with Overdrive (at the request of a patron). Steven gives a mini-review of The Adam Project. Ben and Steven both give high praise to the short time-travel film Exit Strategy. https://youtu.be/2roa2AhhgbM At the one hour mark we finally get to Star Trek Picard. We talk about some key points, including the Punk on the Bus, 10-Forward, and the Borg Queen. We roundout the episode by a tiny chat about Raised By Wolves, in which Ben tries to talk about it, but it's just too cool and weird. Oh, and there's a tiny bit of Fallout tv news.
This episode contains: We have all three science podcasters on this episode. After going around the horn saying how we’ve been doing we get down to business.
Look Up, Picard: NASA’s Webb Reaches Alignment Milestone, Optics Working Successfully. On March 11, the Webb team completed the stage of alignment known as “fine phasing.” At this key stage in the commissioning of Webb’s Optical Telescope Element, every optical parameter that has been checked and tested is performing at, or above, expectations.
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-webb-reaches-alignment-milestone-optics-working-successfully/
https://www.webb.nasa.gov/content/webbLaunch/whereIsWebb.html
The Week In Space: Moon's orbit proposed as a gravitational wave detector. Researchers propose using the variations in distance between the Earth and the Moon, which can be measured with a precision of less than a centimeter, as a new gravitational wave detector within a frequency range that current devices cannot detect. The research could pave the way for the detection of signals from the early universe.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220317094755.htm
Follow The Sun: Materials scientists finding solutions to biggest hurdle for solar cell technology. Materials scientists have discovered the major reason why perovskite solar cells -- which show great promise for improved energy-conversion efficiency -- degrade in sunlight, causing their performance to suffer over time. The team successfully demonstrated a simple manufacturing adjustment to fix the cause of the degradation, clearing the biggest hurdle toward the widespread adoption of the thin-film solar cell technology.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220315141803.htm
Science Fiction: Ben fist gives us his review of the Kobo Sage, which was recommended by one of our Patrons. We then discuss the season finally of Star Trek: Discovery, episode 3 of season 2 of Star Trek: Picard, The Batman, and more!
This episode contains: Ben's been geeking out in books this last week. Not video games. Weird. But that didn't stop him getting an XBox Series X on MAR10 day. WHAT A TRAITOR! We chat about Moonglow Bay, a slice of life fishing RPG on Xbox Gamepass.
Alicia Keys: Let's talk about typewriters and e-ink. An artist made a concept typewriter with a curved e-ink display, called Flowo. Hemingwrite is a mechanical keyboard with an e-ink screen. Looks so old school IBM. Ben teaches Steven two different ways e-ink displays can work. Steven is really interested in color e-ink displays, and tells Ben about a Bryan Lee O'Malley comic he didn't know about called Snot Girl.
Flowo typewriter with curved E Ink display offers a similar feel as a real typewriter: https://goodereader.com/blog/e-paper/flowo-typewriter-with-curved-e-ink-display-offers-a-similar-feel-as-a-real-typewriter
A $600 E Ink typewriter got me one step closer to writing a novel: https://www.engadget.com/astrohaus-freewrite-one-month-writing-test-140008132.html
The Top 5 Color ebook Readers of 2021: https://goodereader.com/blog/electronic-readers/the-top-5-color-ebook-readers-of-2021
Little Tiny Miracles: The physics of fire ant rafts could help engineers design swarming robots. Scientists throw science ants into buckets of science water, for SCIENCE! Steven would still go to a Jurassic Park, even though he would probably die.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220302185954.htm
Science Fiction: We talk so much on the Patreon-only midsection of the episode about Star Wars, but finally come on-air to talk about the Obi-Wan Kenobi Teaser Trailer ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWTfhyvzTx0 ), and Steven schools Ben on the Inquisitors. Steven's daughter might finally think Star Wars is cool. Ben is conflicted on which trailer is better between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxuyzk5DUFc ). Captain Pike has grown a sadness beard. Steven digs the classic Star Trek sounds, but still "every day is Star Wars day, unless you're a coward" - Steven. Species 10-C in StarTrekDiscovery was SO GOOD. Think Star Trek meets Arrival. Discovery Season 4 > Picard Season 2 so far. Which is more horrifying to Jean-Luc: Eradication Day or Captain Picard Day? Picard says "there's a real old movie called Voyage Home. Let's do that." If you're using a WMD on the Vulcan homeworld, you've gone too far. Spot 73, Jurati's AI cat, is awesome and played by Patton Oswald. Is Picard season 2 another Book of Boba Fett? We think they're playing it a little too safe.
This episode contains: Ben's been not having some real problems with spreadsheets. In fact, this episode was almost called 'The Spreadsheet Edition'.
This Week in Space: 'Closest black hole' system found to contain no black hole. We've got some updates to system HR 6819 and the scientists behind the original conclusions were happy that their results were challenged.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220302092707.htm
The invention of the ship was the invention of the shipwreck: Study finds that over 100 different species made a 2,200-year-old shipwreck home. Scientists sampled and documented sediment blocks and biological materials inside and outside the shipwreck artifact. 114 different invertebrate species made the 2,200 year old shipwreck their home.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/01/over-100-different-species-made-this-2200-year-old-shipwreck-home-study-finds/
Science Fiction: DiMaggio is back, baby! Ben complains that there may be too much Star Trek right now. Ben covers the newest episode of Star Trek Discovery, titled Rosetta. Then Steven and Ben dive into Picard, season 2. Steven demands to do an act by act recap, so that we all have to suffer the way he did. All in all, not terrible, but Steven has a bad feeling about this one. We round out the episode by talking about Batman. Not the one you think though. Ninja Batman.
This episode contains: We record this on Sunday night, without Devon. Ben tells us about Babylon 5 without waiting for the Sci-Fi section of the podcast. Steven then talks about skipping first season of TV shows, including Parks and Rec.
There’s Nothing Funny About Measles: Scientists have known for years that measles can alter the immune system – but the latest evidence suggests it's less of a mild tweaking, and more of a total reset. Enter "immune amnesia", a mysterious phenomenon that's been with us for millennia. Essentially, when you're infected with measles, your immune system abruptly forgets every pathogen it's ever encountered before – every cold, every bout of flu, every exposure to bacteria or viruses in the environment, every vaccination. Once the measles infection is over, current evidence suggests that your body has to re-learn what's good and what's bad almost from scratch.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211112-the-people-with-immune-amnesia
Next Week in Space: Predicting the efficiency of oxygen-evolving electrolysis on the Moon and Mars. Scientists have today provided more insight into the possibility of establishing a pathway to generate oxygen for humans to potentially call the Moon or Mars 'home' for extended periods of time.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220208113903.htm
Science Fiction: Ben brings us up to speed on Star Trek Discovery. There’s something about a DMA and Omega Particle. Ben also talks about the coming first episode of the second season of Picard. Steven then tells us about the Apple TV+ show Severance.
This episode contains: Ben declares himself the President of being present. We caught ourselves a wild Devon this episode. Ben went to a float spa: think sensory deprivation tank. It was AWESOME.
Trouble in a Bubble: Eight People Attempted To Live In A Biosphere For Two Years – Then It All Went Wrong. We're not talking about the Simpsons Movie dome this week. Turns out Biosphere 2 was not a 1996 movie with Pauly Shore (That's Bio-Dome). Biosphere 2 is the sequel to the Earth, which is Biosphere 1. Biosphere 2 was a $200M USD failure in so many ways. Food in Biosphere 2 didn't grow quickly enough to support the inhabitants, oxygen fell to 15%, and there were cockroaches. Fun. Science is failure and trying again. Biosphere 2 is a good example of this.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/eight-people-attempted-to-live-in-a-biosphere-for-two-years-then-it-all-went-wrong/
DN-WHAT? Biohybrid fish made from human cardiac cells swims like the heart beats. Scientists are adapting cardiac cells to replace malformed hearts in children. Researchers made a swimming artificial Stingray from rat heart muscle cells. Yo, this biohybrid fish made from human cardiac cells is getting jacked!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220210154212.htm
Science Fiction: Steven is excited for Jurassic Park 6, whatever the subtitle is. Next Star Trek movie reunites the Kelvin crew. RIP Anton Yelchin. Perhaps the next JJ Star Trek movie will have scientifically accurate stuff? Steven wonders if a young Picard will be in the next Star Trek movie. No way. Devon wonders if there'll be a new Star Trek movie without a bad guy. No way. Steven takes a plot from Darkwing Duck and pitches a Star Trek movie. "Snoopy in Space" has a Rotten Tomatoes rating at 100% for season 1. Devon says the holiday Peanuts specials don't hold up. John Dimaggio tells us why he's not gonna be Bender in next season of Futurama. Star Trek: Discovery S4 is still a great Star Trek season. "Rubicon" was rad. Let's talk the trailer for Multiverse of Madness. Patrick Stewart?!??! What kind of Doctor is Dr Strange? Turns out he has an MD and a PhD. We're finally getting Starfleet in Star Trek: Picard season 3.
This episode contains: We learn about Devon's middle name, Ben's adventures in coloring book design and Steven has been playing some Pokemon. Ben and Steven both played Vampire Survivors, while Devon plays single dad.
Breathe In, Breathe Out: Researchers confirm newly developed inhaled vaccine delivers broad protection against SARS-CoV-2. We talk about how inhaled vaccines differ from traditional injected vaccines, and how this method is not only less invasive, but takes less 'vaccine' per dose to administer. Cool stuff that we're waiting for the negative spin on. We also talk about the California mask mandate and when we will know if the pandemic ends.
https://brighterworld.mcmaster.ca/articles/researchers-confirm-newly-developed-inhaled-vaccine-delivers-broad-protection-against-sars-cov-2-variants-of-concern/
Science Fiction: Futurama is back, again! But maybe without Bender's voice. Steven makes Devon and Ben watch the Jurassic World Dominion trailer and they make fun. Ben talks about the return of Star Trek Discovery and the secrets of Species 10-C. Devon mostly finished Prodigy and has some stuff to say about Janeway's ship. Devon also catches us up on Resident Alien, and Ben chats a bit about Raised By Wolves season 2. And finally, at the zero hour, Steven uses his final breaths to make one last stand with The Book of Boba Fett.
links:
https://youtu.be/fb5ELWi-ekk JWD trailer
https://youtu.be/V9txyZ-kRgM JWD prologue
This episode contains: Steven, Ben and Devon are all back on this episode. We discuss Devon’s Covid and disappointment in the lack of snow in Texas. Ben talks about playing new board games. Steven is fine...
This Week in Space: Moons may yield clues to what makes planets habitable. Because the moon is so important to life on Earth, scientists conjecture that a moon may be a potentially beneficial feature in harboring life on other planets. Most planets have moons, but Earth's moon is distinct in that it is large compared to the size of Earth; the moon's radius is larger than a quarter of Earth's radius, a much larger ratio than most moons to their planets. New research finds that distinction significant.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/02/220201144027.htm
You’ve Been Thunder Struck: WMO certifies two megaflash lightning records. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has established two new world records for megaflashes of lightning in notorious hotspots in North and South America. The longest single flash that covered a horizontal distance of 768 ± 8 km (477.2 ± 5 miles) across parts of the southern United States on 29 April 2020.
https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/wmo-certifies-two-megaflash-lightning-records
Science Fiction: We of course talk about Star Trek: Prodigy and The Book of Boba Fett, major spoilers. Ben also tells how he is looking forward to more Discovery and Picard, and the start of Strange New Worlds.
This episode contains: Where's Devon this week? Is there some Texan holiday we're not aware of? Should Spotify be responsible for COVID misinformation on their podcasts? Is Spotify a music platform or a podcast platform? Ben yells at the cloud, and is switching to Apple Music. Ben kicks Steven out of his Spotify family plan, on air!
See the real new music releases each week:
https://everynoise.co/new_releases_by_genre.cgi?genre=global®ion=US&albumsonly=true
There's a music genre to calm your pets:
https://everynoise.com/new_releases_by_genre.cgi?genre=pet%20calming®ion=US&albumsonly=true&hidedupes=on&style=list
Hippity Hop: Scientists regrow frog's lost leg
If you wanted zombies, this is how you get zombies. Scientists use a series of drugs on frogs for 24 hours, and 18-months later a functional leg grows. Viva Los Biodome! Salamanders, starfish, crabs, and lizards can regrow limbs: can mammals?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220126144001.htm
Flipping the Bird: The Magpie Machine
Ben describes a YouTube video, which may be the most inane thing possible. A father and son duo in Sweden made a machine to reward magpies for throwing away trash. Ben is now the daimyo of Science Faction. All he asks is for your neutrality when Devon returns.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyxMJc8OdQY
Science Fiction: Return of the Man-dalorian: Book of Boba Fett ep. 5 discussion. There was no book and no Boba Fett in this week's episode. Mando tries to plead the fifth when asked if he removed his helmet. Ben gives this episode three dank ferriks. Steven finally kinda likes it. In Star Wars, vehicles get normal names, characters are just gibberish. At the 59th minute mark, we start talking Star Trek: Prodigy, and "A Moral Star, Part 1" is SO GOOD! Kate Mulgrew goes all goth as Corrupted Hologram Janeway. The new uniforms on Star Trek: Prodigy are awesome. Star Trek Picard: No Man's Land is an audio drama with Jeri Ryan and Michelle Hurd, up for pre-order. The Expanse Season 6 stuck the landing, with a satisfying momentum.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven this week are not joined by Devon, because the 'Vid got him. Ben is excited to see No Way Home with him family and Steven has been attempting to get into shape with biking. Also, watch out for those Phantom Menace quotes.
This Time You've Gone Too Far: Turkish farmer tests out VR goggles on Cows to get more milk. The virtual sun-filled pasture appeared to help cows produce more (and better quality) milk. Steven is okay with the Cow Matrix, Ben not so much.
https://interestingengineering.com/a-turkish-farmer-tests-out-vr-goggles-on-cows-to-get-more-milk
Clean Up That Mess: Study challenges evolutionary theory that DNA mutations are random. Turns out, the most biologically important areas of the DNA are being 'protected' from mutation.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220112121512.htm
Science Fiction: Ben listened to our Patron and read that Doctor Who / Star Trek crossover comic. He really liked it. Steven had a massive change of heart withthe 4th episode of The Book of Boba Fett, The Gathering Storm. Steven and Ben talk about the 'flashbacks' that were prevalent in the first 4 episodes and how they were clunky and really didn't need to be flashbacks. Ben informs us all that there will be more Star Trek tv in our future, 51 new episodes this year! Ben then knuckles down and talks Star Trek Prodigy, and how it was a very Trek episode. We round out the episode by Steven talking a tiny bit about Kenshi and Ben explaining why Babylon 5 is so good.
This episode contains: Ben is super awake this episode, Devon is kinda here. We never know what Shrodinger Steven is gonna say to introduce the other hosts. Devon reviews a Peppa Pig playground. Steven got a LEGO Fender Guitar and Amp. Ben's got into sudoku. Steven's riding bikes. Devon's tired. All in the end of the world.
If I Fits, I Sits: Starlink's Self-Heating Internet Satellite Dishes Are Attracting Cats. SpaceX deployed 1,800 satellites for Starlink. They'll launch 40,000 eventually. Cat's love Starlink dishes on a cold day, because it's warm. Now SpaceX knows that Starlink satellite dishes can double as a cat home. Turns out cats want to become the center of your attention. Unless they don't.
https://gizmodo.com/if-i-fits-i-sits-starlinks-self-heating-internet-sate-1848327155
Now doesn't it make you feel better?: Pig heart transplanted to human for the first time. And the human's still alive! Xenotransplantation is important because there are more people on organ waiting lists than there are donors. Scientists have been genetically modifying pigs to make them better organ donors. The pig heart transplant was FDA authorized by it's compassionate use program. "If it oinks... it boinks?" We really should workshop these jokes.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/01/pig-heart-transplanted-to-human-for-the-first-time/
It's a plague!: The ‘surprisingly simple’ arithmetic of smell
When you want to learn about smell, consider the humble locust. Locusts can be trained to recognize specific odors. Locusts have palps. It's not short for "Palpatines" despite Steven's argument. You can't drown out a smell like you can drown out sound.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220110145300.htm
Science Fiction: Ben hasn't yet read the Star Trek TNG/Doctor Who: Assimilation graphic novel, but is going to (thanks to listener feedback from Joe Kohr). Episode 824 of Star Trek this week. It's the Prodigy episode "First Con-tact": Not to be confused with the eighth Star Trek movie, "First Contact", or the fifteenth episode of season 4 of The Next Generation, "First Contact". Nor even the season two finale of Lower Decks "First First Contact". Steven on episode 3 of The Book of Boba Fett: "the juice isn't worth the squeeze." Ben thinks the show is funny, but where's it all going?
This episode contains: We’re all back and recording on a Sunday night. Devon is taking his son to a Peppa Pig park and Rainforest Café. Ben finished Spiderman for the PS 5. Ben talks about a fan edit of the second Amazing Spider-Man film. Devon then complains about movie soundtracks where the songs are not in the movie.
Zoo Cares: Zoo air contains enough DNA to identify the animals inside. The air in a zoo is full of smells, from the fish used for feed to the manure from the grazing herbivores, but now we know it is also full of DNA from the animals living there. Two research groups have each published an independent proof-of-concept study showing that by sampling air from a local zoo, they can collect enough DNA to identify the animals nearby. This may prove to be a valuable, non-invasive tool to track biodiversity.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220106111549.htm
Admiral, There be Whales Here: Ben talks about an article form a good friend of his. Why 'Star Trek' made San Francisco the center of the universe.
https://www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/article/Star-Trek-and-San-Francisco-16751985.php
Science Fiction: We discuss The Book of Boba Fett, Star Trek: Prodigy, Station Eleven, Fallout TV show, Alien TV show, Matrix: Resurrections, Star Trek comic The Q Gambit, and more!
This episode contains: Good riddance 2021, welcome to hell 2022. Steven vacationed in Hawaii. Ben went to Disneyland. Devon is absent and tired.
That's an Old Tree: Ancient DNA reveals the world’s oldest family tree. Analysing DNA extracted from 35 entombed individuals, we found 27 of them were close biological relatives. Most of those buried in the tomb were descended from four women who had all had children with the same man.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/12/211222153113.htm
taH pagh, taH be?: To learn Klingon or Esperanto: What invented languages can teach us. Christine Schreyer, a language creator, has invented Kryptonian, Eltarian, Beama, and Atlantean. We also talk about Toki Pona.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/01/to-learn-klingon-or-esperanto-what-invented-languages-can-teach-us/
Science Fiction: Steven watched "Don't Look Up" and gives his review. Ben talks about the mid-season finale of Star Trek Discovery and it's connection to Star Trek Insurrection. Ben also gives us the run down on all the Star Trek media that's coming in 2022. We talk about the first episode of The Book of Boba Fett, and try not to get too detailed with our analysis. We need more episodes.
This episode contains: No Steven this week, but Devon and Ben make do. Devon got his son a Lego Hogwarts castle. Ben thought we'd be without Lego talk with Steven not on the show. He was wrong. Devon practiced an hour to pitch in a VR baseball game, and still sucks.
Oooh girl, shock me like an eletric eel: Here’s how to give an electric eel an MRI. Ben talks about how to give an electric eel an MRI. Devon asks "Why?" but still thinks eel skeletons are pretty metal. An anesthesized eel can still drown... How do vets keep them breathing? Ever wanted to know how to reconstruct a blown knee on a bullfrog?
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/12/how-to-give-an-electric-eel-an-mri/
Here comes the sun!: A spacecraft has 'touched' the sun for the first time. NASA's Parker Solar Probe spent five hours in the sun's corona. WOW! Devon talks about Alfvén critical waves, theorized in 1942 and proven in 2019. Turns out the corona is far hotter than the surface of the sun. NASA's Parker Solar Probe is the fastest known object built by humans.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/12/211214134947.htm
Science Fiction: Doom Patrol season 3 was crazy! Devon and Ben really liked it. Devon is caught up on season 4 of Star Trek: Discovery, but skipped season 3. We talk future airdates for Star Trek: Discovery, Prodigy and Picard in early 2022. Ben and Devon wrap it up with a low-spoiler chat about The Matrix Resurrections.
For this very special episode we are all together in the same room! We all just watched Spider-Man No Way Home and have a very, very spoilery discussion. Ben had some science but we told him there was no room for that BS. This also may be our last episode for a few weeks, unless Devon and Ben can figure how to record without Steven. Ben does get in some Star Trek Discovery at the end and Steven watched the first two episodes of HBO’s Station Eleven. So enjoy this almost all Spider-Man episode! Come back for our next ep in a few weeks, or less…
This episode contains: Happy belated birthday Steven! Sorry about Christmastime. Devon built a garage for his son's Lego MacLaren. Devon talks Let It Be, The Beatles documentary. You're a fly on the wall in the studio. Ben and Devon talk about the digital restoration of both the video and audio. In other news, Ben is Batman, Devon is Superman, and Steven is Catwoman. Mmmrowl!
X Gon' Give It To Ya: Let's talk about XRays and how scientists may have discovered the first exoplanet found in the M51 galaxy. Turns out finding exoplanets in other galaxies is really difficult, you guys. This exoplanet may be Saturn-sized and orbit a black hole and neutron star. Devon and Steven think maybe we should focus on the problems in our galaxy.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211027094914.htm
Engage: DARPA-funded researches accidentally discover the world's first warp bubble. The "Alcubierre/White Warp Drive" is a fascinating almost-viable propulsion theory, which was first theorized in 1994. If you accidentally discover warp drive while working on a death ray, finish the death ray. Ever wondered what DARPA stands for? Devon looked it up for you.
https://thedebrief.org/darpa-funded-researchers-accidentally-create-the-worlds-first-warp-bubble/
Science Fiction: Steven needs a new soundboard, as it's crapping out on him. Help us out: patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast. Netflix has canceled the live action Cowboy Bebop. Some people rejoiced. We mourn. Devon is sick of the drama on Netflix's Lost In Space. "Just tell me what happens!" he screams into the void. Steven and Ben played Walkabout Mini Golf in VR together and it's a blast. Can they convince Devon to get a VR headset? Ben says Star Trek: Discovery is firing on all cylinders in season 4. Devon calls a time of death on the podcast.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben talk about our Spotify year end things, Devon has become obsessed with sorting LEGO, and Ben has an endoscopy scheduled! Fun!
This Week in Space: Startup SpinLaunch completes first test flight with wild rocket-flinging launch system. Reducing fuel costs is a key barrier to affordable spaceflight. They don't even have to worry about the delta-v.
https://www.space.com/spinlaunch-first-test-flight-success
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAczd3mt3X0&ab_channel=ScottManley
Welcome to Earf: SpaceX launches NASA’s mission to collide with an asteroid. The DART mission seeks to demonstrate the capability to change an asteroid's orbit.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/with-tonights-launch-nasa-starts-getting-serious-about-planetary-defense/
Science Fiction: We play a little game called Two Truths and a Lie that Devon stole from the SGU (Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, not to be confused with Stargate Universe). Ben talks about the latest episode of Star Trek Discovery called 'Choose to Live' and he's really been enjoying the season thus far. Devon finally gets a chance to talk about Freeguy, a movie he watched months ago. There was more plot and AI sentience than he bargained for. Steven reviews the latest episode of Hawkeye called 'Echoes', and specifically talks about that phone call. Heartbreaking. Oh, and Devon has been watching the second season of The Great, and highly recommends it.
This episode contains: Devon is absent due to fear. Ben has lived with Devon but Steven has helped him move more often and has bought him two gaming consoles. We then move on to our thoughts on Black Friday, Ben’s book designing and vaccines for kids.
It Glows! Photoluminescent substances could be applied to sidewalks, streets, and buildings. A new generation of luminescent materials has the potential to cool cities by re-emitting light that would otherwise be converted into heat. They might also cut down on energy use, since luminescent sidewalks, glowing road markers, or even glowing buildings could replace some street lighting. Already, some cities in Europe have installed glowing bicycle lanes, and some researchers have studied using glowing paint for road markings.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/will-glow-in-the-dark-materials-someday-light-our-cities/
Monkey Wrench: Using mechanical tools improves our language skills, study finds. Research has revealed a correlation between being particularly proficient in tool use and having good syntactic ability. A new study has now shown that both skills rely on the same neurological resources, which are located in the same brain region. Furthermore, motor training using a tool improves our ability to understand the syntax of complex sentences and -- vice-versa -- syntactic training improves our proficiency in using tools.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211111154244.htm
Science Fiction: Amazon purchased MGM and so now own Stargate and Farscape. Hopefully they’ll do something with them. Steven then tells us about Hawkeye. We also discuss Hailee Steinfeld and her roles in Dickinson and Arcane. Steven has been watching the live action Cowboy Bebop. Ben then tells us about the new Netflix show: Dogs in Space. Ben squeezes in some Star Trek at the end.
This episode contains: Kids these days get the whole week off for Thanksgiving? Ben had time off and he spent it on himself. Nobody went to the hospital or died. What do you do when no kids are around? Steven plays Caves of Qud and watches Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Special guest Devon Craft tonight for the back half.
A grab bag: What next? 22 emerging technologies to watch in 2022. We have a bunch of short subjects that are really close to science fiction for science this week. Scientists are considering putting dust and ash in the atmosphere on purpose to cool the Earth. Heat pumps can efficiently heat and cool homes because they move existing air around. Sails can reduce container ship's fuel consumption by 20%. 40 ships will use this tech by end of 2022. Flying electric taxis are possibly coming in 2022, but Steven is skeptical. Artificial meat and fish will revolutionize the industry: produce food for less money and ecological impact. Steven's chicken died from an impacted crop. Poor thing. Nothing should be killed to feed people, if it can be helped.
https://www.economist.com/the-world-ahead/2021/11/08/what-next-22-emerging-technologies-to-watch-in-2022
Take another picture with your click click click click camera: Hubble update, One camera back, more to come. Hubble is back to doing science, despite issues with the timing signals. Hubble's scientific instruments had been in safe mode, and are now being cautiously restarted. Ben gets salty about the myth of planned obsolescence.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/hubble-update-one-camera-back-more-to-come/
Science Fiction: Devon's voice is broken but we forced him to record anyway for the second half. A spoilery discussion of Ghostbusters: Afterlife this week. Devon isn't a big fan but he liked the new Ghostbusters. He also doesn't care. Historical discussion on when there have been two new episodes of Star Trek out the same day. Star Trek: Discovery season 4 premier was good! Hopefully the rest of the season pans out. We talk about why – 16 years later – the Star Trek Enterprise theme still sucks. Steven rewrites Star Trek: Discovery season 3. Steven saw Eternals: the 26th episode of the MCU and the first rotten film? It's weird but ok says Steven. Evidently even non-nerds want to see DUNE again. Ben calls Steven a grown-up man-child thing.
This episode contains: Steven wants us all to be Nice Boys again. Ben received his 3rd Covid shot. Devon has had some time to himself.
Take the Midnight Train Down to Anywhere: Can we use big batteries to power our trains? In a California-based study, researchers look at the possibility of electrifying rail-based freight.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/11/can-we-run-our-trains-using-big-batteries/
Walking on Sunshine: We chat about making aircraft fuel from sunlight and air. Synthetic jet fuel releases same CO2 during combustion as was extracted from the air for production. Carbon-neutral liquid fuels from sunlight and air, sounds like a pipe-dream. But it isn't.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211104115245.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about that Book of Boba Fett trailer. Steven breaks down some plot points and everyone talks about what they think will be in the show and what we want to see in the show. Steven and Devon both watched the Apple TV+ film Finch and give their thoughts. Devon didn't think there was much plot in the movie and Steven enjoyed just about everything. Finally, Ben gives us the rundown on the latest episode of Star Trek Prodigy, and we all chat about M class planets, and how in most sci-fi, breathable air means the entire planet is safe. Devon also pitches a Q show.
This episode contains: Devon now lives in the woods, cleaning up limbs — you know, to celebrate Halloween. Devon ate all the kid's candy and bemoans adult refreshments that don't have alcohol. "Do they even make drinks for adults anymore?" Devon sleeps instead of podcasting. Vaccines are now ready for kids aged 5-11. Ben has his first appointment with a therapist, and he talks about why. Right now, your mental health is super important. It's always super important, but the last two years we've been running to extremes. Steven says: even if you're the most well-adjusted individual, it couldn't hurt to talk to someone. Steven's chickens dropped three eggs! Misremembering Simpsons quotes is now a national past time.
Devon's Pet Peeves: Hand washing and sanitizing not enough: Close that toilet lid after flushing! Leaving toilet lids open after flushing can disperse particles over a meter. Yuck. How can we reinvent the toilet? Steven and Devon consider it. "This podcast is one of the worst we ever recorded." - Steven
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211103115427.htm
So Olllllld: Scientists used publicly available lidar data to find 478 ancient Mesoamerican monuments. Not quite citizen science, but super cool. How will future civilizations view us? If you love Mesoamerican culture, Ben recommends Netflix's "Maya and the Three"
https://www.science.org/content/article/nearly-500-mesoamerican-monuments-revealed-laser-mapping-many-first-time
Not Talking About Frunks No More: Ford's F-100 Eluminator concept car looks like a 1970s truck. Finally, an electric truck that Steven appreciates. You can buy an Eluminator electric crate motor from Ford to "electrify" your ride, like Doc Brown's hover conversion.
https://mashable.com/article/ford-electric-truck-pickup-vintage
Science Fiction: Listener feedback from Renee about DUNE: a great movie for the average person, and something that will encourage people to pick up the book. Star Trek Prodigy looks beautiful but the story isn't enough to hook Steven and Devon yet. Ben still loves Star Trek Prodigy no matter what the haters say. Ben talks at length about last year's Star Trek Discovery episode "Forget Me Not". Not a great episode, but reframing it through trauma helps him to understand it. Devon and the rest of the world have finished watching Squid Game. Steven loves the new Netflix show Inside Job. Not for kids, but made by Gravity Falls showrunner. Ben loves Doom Patrol Season 3. Devon falls over on air... probably needs to sleep instead of podcast more.
**This Episode is Explicit****
This episode contains: Ben is still figuring out what is wrong with him, but he ruled out his liver. Steven has some sick kids, but also a LEGO Batmobile, so it evens out.
No science talk this week!
Science Fiction: Steven and Ben talk about the newest Star Trek show, Star Trek: Prodigy. Ben has watched it many times, and Steven only a few minutes, but that doesn't stop them. It's an action adventure show that barely resembles Star Trek, but it's a fun ride anyway.
DUNE: Here's what you've all been waiting for: DUNE chat with Miles Greb! The notorious lover of Dune, we talk with Miles about what this movies adaptation got right and (mostly) what it got wrong. Ben and Steven also give their opinions on the movie.
Click below for more Miles:
https://www.afterthegoldrush.space/#/dunecomic/
http://www.twitter.com/Goldrushcomic
https://www.patreon.com/milesgreb
This episode contains: Rain! It's been raining in California which is a nice change from all the fires. Ben has had some tummy trouble. Devon updates us on the mysterious hiking deaths from this summer.
I've Been Waiting For This Moment...: VR treatment for lazy eye in children gets FDA approval. 88% treatment plan success rate, up from 50% with regular drops and eye patches.
https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/20/22736894/fda-vr-tv-movies-treatment-lazy-eye-amblyopia
Biological Imperative: We finally know why we grow wisdom teeth as adults. We're not the only primates to have wisdom teeth, ours just come later in life.
https://www.popsci.com/science/why-we-get-wisdom-teeth/
Yum?: Wake up and smell the 'sustainable' coffee produced in Finnish lab. Produced by floating cell cultures in bio-reactors filled with a nutrient medium, this novel product mostly resembles coffee.
https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/wake-up-smell-sustainable-coffee-produced-finnish-lab-2021-10-13/
Science Fiction: We do a small spoiler-free chat about DUNE in preparation of Miles Greb joining us next week. Both Devon and Ben have been keeping up with Foundation. We talk a bit about Star Trek Prodigy and if it'll be too kiddie for us. Ben has some ideas about plot holes in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock and we all talk about it at length. We also get a bit into timelines and the sizes of ships in the Kelvin Timeline.
This episode contains: Ben likes being a positive force in people's lives. Steven believes people can 'level-up'. We chat about beautiful 2D video games.
Here Comes the Sun: To watch a comet form, a spacecraft could tag along for a journey toward the sun. 'Centaurs' near Jupiter could provide unique opportunity to learn about solar system.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/oct/11/lego-to-remove-gender-bias-after-survey-shows-impact-on-children-stereotypes
Snap it All Together: Lego to remove gender bias from its toys after findings of child survey. 71% of boys feared they would be made fun of if they played with what they described as "girls' toys". LEGO is now promoting nurturing, caring as well as spatial awareness, creative reasoning and problem solving.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/oct/11/lego-to-remove-gender-bias-after-survey-shows-impact-on-children-stereotypes
Science Fiction: Lower Decks season 2 finale time! We talk all about the episode, the cool bits that Steven missed and what we look forward to in season 3. The Expanse season 6 trailer is out and we talk about the series, what Steven is missing, and how are they going to fit the biggest book into the smallest season? Finally, we talk about the What If...? season finale. Steven does the whole recap thing and we talk about what season 2 could have, besides that cut season 1 episode.
This Episode Contains: We join Ben in saying goodbye to the best good dog, Apollo. Devon has been sick working, we talk about why. Steven went to a pumpkin patch, and bought a pumpkin for his chickens.
I saw it it written and I saw it say, pink moon is on it's way: Lunar samples returned by Chang’e-5 tell of recent volcanism. Oceanus Procellarum was likely to be deposited about two billion years ago, according to Chinese samples. Because of a basaltic magma eruption, the Moon had a more active volcanism than we might otherwise expect.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/10/lunar-samples-returned-by-change-5-tell-of-recent-volcanism/
Ohh-Eee-Ohh-Ahh-Ahh: Great apes' consonant and vowel-like sounds travel over distance without losing meaning. A range of orangutan sounds were played across the rain forest at set distances of 25, 50, 75 and 100 meters. The content of the orangutan sounds were uncompromised until the signal became inaudible.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210928193837.htm
Science Fiction: We chat a bit about Squid Game, even though only Devon has watched some of it. Steven talks about the Scholomance books he read in a week. Ben watched the Editor's Cut of Spider-Man 3 and tells us all about the pros and cons. Devon watched some Star Wars Visions and we all talk about lightsaber colors. Ben gets into it with Lower Decks this week, with the episode 'wej Duj'. We talk a little about the trailer for the next season of Discovery and a little about Foundation.
This episode contains: PUMPKIN SPICE. Also, we have a patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/sciencefactionpodcast
Skepticism 101: We talk about how a helmet and a bullet-riddled plane perfectly demonstrates survivor bias. It's nice to keep your skeptic toolkit up to date and remember all the fallacies you shouldn't fall for.
https://www.iflscience.com/editors-blog/how-a-helmet-and-a-bulletriddled-plane-perfectly-demonstrates-survivor-bias/
I Can See Clearly Now: The largest space telescope in history is about to blow our minds. The James Webb Space Telescope will be 100 times as powerful as the Hubble. 7.8 feet to 21.3 feet, the mirror of the James Webb Telescope has more than six times the collecting area as Hubble. So cool! What should we point it at first?
https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/22664709/james-webb-space-telescope-launch-date-december-science-hubble
Science Fiction: First we chat about What If... Ultron Won to get it out of the way (it was a really good episode), then we get right into Foundation. We talk about the show, the main plot (with minor spoilers for the first episode) and our thoughts. We all pretty much loved it. Ben then takes the wheel and we talk about the Babylon 5 reboot, Farscape, and Masters of the Universe: Revelation. It's crazy but it's good.
This episode contains: Devon joins us from Texas! Steven and Ben talk about Chess and r/AnarchyChess. Steven reveals that this podcast is, indeed, a tragedy.
Snakes, Why Did it Have to be Snakes?: Modern snakes evolved from a few survivors of dino-killing asteroid. 'Creative Destruction' allowed snakes to diversify into new niches.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210914111218.htm
The arena is empty except for one man...: Self-sustaining solar house on wheels wants to soak up the Sun. The Stella Vita sports 17.5 square meters of solar panels on its roof. Amenities include a bed, a small fridge, a toilet, a couch, and a small cooking area. We talk about investing in solar technologies.
Science Fiction: We talk about Star Wars Visions, just for Matt. Ben brings us on a journey to understand 'Where Pleasant Fountains Lie', the latest episode of Lower Decks. Ben and Devon have a serious chat about the Metroid series, and the recap that Devon gives is pure gold. Steven and Ben break down the first episode and the basic plot of Y the Last Man, both TV and comic.
This episode contains: We start this episode with hanitizer, staying up late, slick ps5 mentions, soda burps, and Brave New World.
Doom and Gloom: The warming climate is causing animals to 'shapeshift'. Several species of Australian parrot have shown a 4%-10% increase in bill size since 1871. Steven attempts to soapbox climate change again, but Skype has other ideas.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210907110718.htm
How Does It Feel To Treat Me Like You Do?: Hospital staff must swear off Tylenol, Tums to get religious vaccine exemption. Hospital staff in Arkansas are trying to get religious exemption from vaccinations, little do they know, they'll also have to swear off Tylenol, Pepto Bismol, aspirin, Tums, Lipitor, Senokot, Motrin, ibuprofen, Maalox, Ex-Lax, Benadryl, Sudafed, albuterol, Preparation H, MMR vaccine, Claritin, Zoloft, Prilosec OTC, and azithromycin for the same reasons: fetal cell lines.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/09/hospital-staff-must-swear-off-tylenol-tums-to-get-religious-vaccine-exemption/
Science Fiction: We talk about the first episode of Y the Last Man. Ben covers the latest episode of Lower Decks (Steven hasn't watched yet). Steven has been watching Red Letter Media's Star Trek The Next Generation best of lists and understands some of it. Ben covers the Star Trek: Nemesis Romulan Theory and Steven tries to keep up. Steven gives his thoughts (and a mini review) on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (no spoilers).
This episode contains: It's almost Devon's moving day, Ben has some bad luck, Steven visited Chicago.
Not Ponytails or Cottontails no, Ducktales. Woo-hoo: A duck named Ripper learned how to say “You bloody fool!” in 1987. In depth analysis of a recorded musk duck named Ripper reveals a shocking truth, he's probably lonely.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/09/confirmed-a-duck-named-ripper-learned-how-to-say-you-bloody-fool/
Math, Math, Math: A universal equation for the shape of an egg has been discovered. We discuss what it means to have this equation, and what it means for science. We also discuss the perfect shape.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210827133748.htm
Science Fiction: We didn't plan on it, but we talk about The Matrix: Resurrections trailer and how it may connect to the rest of the series. Ben has a lot to say about Star Trek Day, including information about re-released Star Trek games on gog.com, the cast of Strange New Worlds, and Lower Decks. We talk about the latest episode of Lower Decks and talk too much about what a scant is. We all dive deep into the Rick and Morty season 5 finales. What does it all mean? What's the central finite curve anyway? Did Devon even like it? We wrap with some weird and amazing news about the band Our Lady Peace.
Break music was compiled using these songs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zivl632phI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8X_DPy9KSU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLeNhr1J430
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lylzz8CeSNU
This episode contains: We talk about King's Cross Station and it's significance on September 1st. Steven and Devon hung out recently and played Dungeons and Dragons.
Try, try again: Firefly rocket explodes after launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base. Ben was watching the stream when the Firefly rocket launch went bad. Ben says science is failures and trying again.
https://www.ksby.com/news/local-news/firefly-aerospace-to-launch-its-first-rocket-from-vandenberg-space-force-base
What the Actual F: Initial autopsy fails to reveal what killed a family and their dog on a hiking trail near Yosemite. Trail has been closed due to 'unknown hazards', we talk about possible reasons.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/19/us/yosemite-family-death-trnd/index.html
Water Bear Don't Care: We talk about the physics behind a tardigrade's lumbering gait. Tardigrades evolved to walk just like insects that are 500,000 times their size. Perhaps water bears 'walk' just because of convergent evolution.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210827184153.htm
Science Fiction: We cover some listener comments and talk about Wizard magazine casting calls. We have a long discussion about Star Trek: Prodigy, what the show is about and conjectures about what it might be about. We chat a bit about the Doctor Strange episode of What If...? We end the show with Devon and Ben taking polar opposite sides on the recent movie Reminiscence. Oh boy are their opinions different.
This episode contains: We recorded late this week, but we still have covid and cockroaches in our lives.
This Week in Space: Will it be safe for humans to fly to Mars? Mission would be viable if it doesn't exceed 4 years. We don't have a good way to shield cosmic radiation.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210826111716.htm
Objects in Mirror are Smaller than they Appear: Millimeter-tall 'mountains' are on neutron stars. We talk about how mountains could be formed, no matter how small, on the surface of a neutron star.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210718191425.htm
Science Fiction: We're looking forward to the second season of See, the third season of Doom Patrol and the premier of Foundation. Ben goes all in talking about the third episode of the second season of Lower Decks, We'll Always Have Tom Paris. Steven does a huge recap of the third episode of What If, The World Lost its Mightiest Heroes. We end the show with a huge spoilery recap of Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. Seriously, it's all the spoilers.
This episode contains: We talk about how crazy of a weep we've been having. Ben's son broke his arm, Steven went to a high school reunion and for some reason we're still teaching cursive writing in schools.
That is a Spicy Meatball: Humans just generated nuclear energy akin to a star. What can humanity accomplish with an abundance of laser beams and tiny hydrogen fuel pellets? Almost ignition. Also, the lab that did this was in Star Trek Into Darkness, so that's cool I guess.
https://www.popsci.com/science/nuclear-fusion-successful-ignition/
Perpetual Something: Cancer patients' own cells used in 3D printed tumours to test treatments. Some current science feels like future science to Steven. Bioprinting? Wow.
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/cancer-patients-own-cells-used-3d-printed-tumours-test-treatments-2021-08-18/
Science Fiction: Before we talk science we take a detour into screen shot tools, website problems, and technical stuff that Steven barely understands. Ben is the smart one? Outstanding. We have a chat about a listener response (hi Renee!), and then get into the Lower Decks talk. Ben wants a Lieutenant Kayshon puppet. Steven and Ben then review episode 2 of What If...?. What if T'Challa became a Star Lord? We love it, such a cool show. Steven also responds a bit to the latest Eternals trailer.
This episode contains: Steven is not a robot, Devon saw some co-workers, and Ben is reading. Onward to science!
This Week in Space: The space station incident was far worse than NASA admitted, Russia’s newly-docked Nauka module accidentally fired its thrusters. NASA flight director Zebulon Scoville had to declare a spacecraft emergency. Everyone is fine now. How are you?
https://futurism.com/the-byte/space-station-incident-worse-nasa-admitted
Don't Stand So Close To Me: Emotion is a big part of how you assess risk. Risk is a function of logical and physical factors, both qualitative and quantitative. Emotions are why it is so hard to be objective about pandemic precautions.
https://theconversation.com/emotion-is-a-big-part-of-how-you-assess-risk-and-why-its-so-hard-to-be-objective-about-pandemic-precautions-165917
Science Fiction: We have new Star Trek to talk about! We watched the first episode of the second season of Lower Decks, and Steven has some questions about Strange Energy for Ben. Steven watched A Quiet Place Part 2, and we have a nice spoiler filled discussion about it. Both Devon and Ben have fallen behind, but Steven watched the latest Rick and Morty episode, Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort and talks about the bombshell dropped in that episode. We have a blast talking about The Suicide Squad and how great a job James Gunn did with it. Spoiler filled discussion, go watch it first! Steven and Ben talk about the first part of The Bad Batch finale. We chat a tiny bit about marvel's What If...? and if it's leading to another team up event.
This episode contains: Devon's opens up about a delicate operation he had performed, as well as something about himself that he has never told anyone, not even his wife!
Now Wouldn't You, Baraccuda: Giant sea bass are thriving in Mexican waters. Scientific research that found giant sea bass to be critically endangered stopped at the US-Mexico border. We talk about data, sampling errors and how much they can affect scientific studies.
https://theconversation.com/giant-sea-bass-are-thriving-in-mexican-waters-scientific-research-that-found-them-to-be-critically-endangered-stopped-at-the-us-mexico-border-165153
Brain Matters: 'Feel good' brain messenger can be willfully controlled, new study reveals. Mice can learn to manipulate random dopamine impulses for reward. We talk about why this would have evolved and how badly humans would use dopamine if they could directly control it.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210723121512.htm
Science Fiction: Steven read Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir and is so so so excited to talk about it. He and Devon succeed at a mostly spoiler free discussion regarding the structure of the story. Ben and Devon have been watching Schmigadoon! and tell Steven what it even is. Devon also name-checks Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. We round out the episode talking about the new Y the Last Man trailer that was revealed by FX Hulu. Steven and Ben compare it to and talk about the comic a bit.
This episode contains: We start this episode with quite a ramble. We cover Homestar Runner, the age of the internet, spotify, restaurants closing for covid, Mr. DNA, youtube comment sections, Devon committing 0 murders, and the delta variant. It takes us too long to get to the science.
I would have gotten away with it, if it weren't for you scientists!: Kids are using soft drinks to fake positive COVID-19 tests. We talk about how the lateral flow tests work and how important pH is. We really want kids to go to school, but Steven talks about how he was ground down in high school. Fun memories.
https://theconversation.com/covid-19-kids-are-using-soft-drinks-to-fake-positive-tests-ive-worked-out-the-science-and-how-to-spot-it-163739
Oops, there it is: 15,000-year-old viruses discovered in Tibetan glacier ice. We talk about the latest findings from ice core samples taken from 22,000 feet in Tibet. Scientists found 28 novel viruses that were completely unknown. It's crazy rad.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210720120538.htm
Science Fiction: We chat about the kerfuffle between ScarJo and the Mouse. Steven finally got around to watching that Lower Decks Season 2 trailer, and boy howdy, we get into it. After the Tamarian chat, we get into Tom Paris. Ben really knows his stuff. We dig deep. Steven finished the latest Bobiverse book, Heaven's River and recommends it to people who liked the other three Bobiverse books. The rest of the episode spawns from a comment a listener made about the X-Men and Storm. It devolves into a rant about how the MCU should introduce mutants and Steven thinks he has some pretty good ideas. Ben takes us through Powers of X and House of X and how Moira MacTaggart could be used as a framing device for the MCU.
This episode contains: Devon isn't here, he's in Las Vegas. Ben got kicked out of chess club for talking. Steven was gifted a jacket by Devon like 20 years ago and they are probably dating.
A Double Kick Drum by the River in the Summer: Minuscule drums push the limits of quantum weirdness. Vibrating membranes provide the first evidence of quantum entanglement in macroscopic objects. They used quantum mechanics to hack quantum mechanics and we're done here.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01223-4
The Wind Beneath my Wings: Dozens of baby hawks jumped to their deaths amid heatwave. It was so hot, the baby hawks chose to jump to the ground for a chance at survival. Steven rants about climate change yet again, and is frustrated that there isn't much we can do.
https://www.guardianmag.press/2021/07/dozens-of-baby-hawks-jumped-to-their.html
Science Fiction: Ben has watched A Quiet Place Part II and gives us all the run-down. He really enjoyed it and says it is a true 'part 2'. We've watched the newest Star Trek Prodigy trailer and chat about it a bit. Ben takes a bit of time to talk about Trollhunters. Well, it's more than a bit of time; plus he goes through Trollhunters, 3Below, Wizards, and Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans. Steven started reading Rabbits and goes down the rabbit hole. RUplaying?
This episode contains: We had a massive BBQ! All of your favorite hosts were together and Ben and Steven are here to tell you all about it. Steven panic bought a LEGO set and Ben has the best DropMix collection.
Brain Matters: 'Neuroprosthesis' restores words to man with paralysis. Scientists are translating signals from brains, to the vocal tract, directly into words. It is astounding.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/07/210714174148.htm
Take A Picture, It'll Last Longer: JPEG XL is the new image format that nobody wanted or needed. Ben tells us all about a new image format, and I promise, it's better than it sounds. Ben also seems to be recording from a kitchen, so there's that.
https://cloudinary.com/blog/how_jpeg_xl_compares_to_other_image_codecs
https://blobfolio.com/2021/jpeg-xl/
Science Fiction: We spend most of our science fiction time this week talking about the finale to LOKI, 'For All Time. Always.' We talk about the amazing Jonathan Majors as He Who Remains cough Kang cough and what the MCU is going to do now that variants can run wild and there appears to be an uncontrolled multiverse. We also discuss the differences between TV and Movies and what those differences should be in the future. Ben really wanted to talk about Space Jam 2, but that'll have to wait until next week (mostly).
This episode contains: We've got a full house and Devon is preparing his piano to move. Ben visits his office for the first time in 482 days and it's unsettling.
Get outta my dreams...: Why do electric cars look the way they do? Because they can. We talk about the design constraints with electric vehicles, and how they don't really have any. Then we talk about the Mustang Mach-E and frunks.
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a36877554/electric-vehicles-design-future/
AAWWOO!!: Wolf packs don't actually have alpha males and alpha females, the idea is based on a misunderstanding. We talk about an old study that people misinterpreted and won't go away. We also talk about true wolf pack dynamics and mixed family dynamics. It's wild.
https://phys.org/news/2021-04-wolf-dont-alpha-males-females.html
Science Fiction: We have a chat about Black Widow. We talk about seeing it in a theater compared to home viewing. We also talk about why it took Marvel so long to make it, and if it's even worth watching. We've all seen episode 5 of LOKI, "Journey Into Mystery" and we talk about the various easter eggs, Steven has to explain the Thanoscopter to Devon, and Ben once again doesn't believe the multiverse is coming. Devon and Ben both watched The Tomorrow War on Amazon Prime and gives a synopsis, and a mini review. There are some spoilers, but it doesn't seem worth watching anyway. Devon has watched the first season of Resident Alien, and gives a synopsis and recommends the show. It sounds great!
This episode contains: We recorded early because of the 4th of July! We talk birthdays, board games and BBQs.
Homo what?!: 'Dragon man' fossil may replace Neanderthals as our closest relative. Homo longi may have been adapted for harsh environments, allowing them to disperse throughout Asia. Somehow a comic book taught Steven about Neanderthals, but not really.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/06/210625120419.htm
What's cooler and being cool?: Physicists bring human-scale object to near standstill, reaching a quantum state. How still is still? On the quantum level, nothing is still. We talk about how this experiment even worked, and question it's dubious math. Still cool though.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/06/210617143625.htm
Science Fiction: LOKI. LOKI. LOKI. We talk about episodes 2-4, The Variant, Lamentis, and The Nexus Event. We discuss, in a non-violent way, whether or not there is a multiverse in the MCU. We question the intent of the TVA, and what happens when Loki stops being a Loki. We also talk about the first two episodes of the 5th season of Rick and Morty! Super awesome episodes, but we are still bummed that there's not an easy streaming way to watch it. We talk about and look forward to the unholy union of Dan Harmon and Nathan Pyle. Ben watched Infinite and gives an amazing synopsis that is punctuated with his not-so-amazing review.
This episode contains: We're back and we're all together. We talk about Father's Day, the SF Giants, and the LEGO Ecto-1.
Sharkpocalypse: There's a shark mystery millions of years in the making. New study turns up data on massive shark die-off roughly 19 million years ago.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/06/210603171119.htm
Out of Left Field, Some Good News: Edible Cholera vaccine made of powdered rice proves safe in phase 1 human trials. The MucoRice-CTB vaccine is stable at room temperature from start to finish. Steven has some issues with the naming convention, but beyond that, this is great news!
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-06/uot-ecv062221.php
Galaxy's Edge: Steven gives a detailed account of his first visit to Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland in Anaheim. He talks about the food at Docking Bay 7, building a lightsaber at Savi's Workshop with his daughter, the Smuggler's Run ride, and finally the new Rise of the Resistance ride. He had an amazing time. Next week we'll get back to our normal sci-fi talk.
This episode contains: Devon is back this week, but he'll soon be moving. Ben attended a birthday party. And so did Steven.
Brain Matters: Memory details fade over time, with only the main gist preserved. Our memories become more 'gistified' the more frequently we recall them. Ben talks about his alien abduction memory.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210526085058.htm
Daylight Decides There Will Be War With Sleeping In: Waking just one hour earlier cuts depression risk by double digits, study finds. Don't worry, we quickly discuss what our common sleep schedules are, I know you wanted to know.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210528114107.htm
Science Fiction: Steven has been watching Sweet Tooth and so has Devon, we give our thoughts. Ben finished The Wilds and gives his final thoughts. Devon is reading The Oppenheimer Alternative by Robert J. Sawyer and give us the run-down. Steven and Ben are enjoying The Bad Batch, and we talk about the latest episode. We do a deep dive into the first episode of LOKI. You guys, it's so good.
This episode contains: The timelines have converged, at least for Ben and Steven. We chit-chat about too much sushi, fixing computers and LAN parties of the past.
Insane in the Permeable Membrane: Mammals can use their intestines to breathe. Rodents and pigs share with certain aquatic organisms the ability to use their intestines for respiration. We chat about the study that lead to this conclusion, but wait! We have a new new challenger! Nicole, Ben's wife and science nerd, comes on the podcast to talk about her experiences in the veterinary field with intestinal drug use. It's pretty cool.
https://phys.org/news/2021-05-mammals-anus-emergencies.html
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210514134205.htm
Junk in the Trunk: We now know how an elephant's trunk manipulates air to eat and drink. Elephants dilate their nostrils in order to create more space in their trunks. We quickly chat about this since someone has a wife who just had to talk about animal butt stuff.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/06/210601194151.htm
Science Fiction: Steven's been re-watching Kill Bill. We talk about The Bad Batch episode 'Decommissioned' and guess who that hidden figure might be. Steven has been watching sci-fi adjacent show The Wilds, and heavily recommends it. We do a spoiler heavy talk about The Nevers and THAT episode. We run out of time, but Ben manages to squeak in a little bit about Infinity Train.
This episode contains: This is a weird episode. We didn't record at the same time and Devon only speaks in music. Ben (and son) saw the lunar eclipse. Steven went on a puzzle and LEGO fueled staycation.
Hello Darkness My Old Friend: Researchers force two mice to hang out and induce FOMO in a third. Researchers generated synchronized interbrain activity using optogenetic hardware and modulating neuronal activity. Is that even english?
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/05/researchers-force-two-mice-to-hang-out-and-induce-fomo-in-a-third/
Robot Overlords: The age of killer robots may have already begun. Autonomous weapons have been used to fight and kill human beings based on artificial intelligence. What a weird and dangerous timeline.
https://www.axios.com/age-killer-robots-begun-8e8813d9-0fa1-4529-baf9-3358c1703bee.html
Science Fiction: Ben found out about Sulu's missing scene in Wrath of Khan and talks about it. Steven covers the latest episode of The Bad Batch. Ben talks to us about the Unity Edit of Wrath of Khan, and why it had so much recycled footage in it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rrjzF9yAr0
This episode contains: We celebrate wedding anniversaries and build chicken coops. Chit chat is Ben's favorite part.
All We Are Is Dust In The Wind, Dude: Better than holograms: 3D-animated starships can be viewed from any angle. We talk about optical trap displays and the Princess Leia Project.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/05/scientists-created-tiny-animated-starships-light-sabers-with-lasers/
Life Hacks: New research optimizes body's own immune system to fight cancer. Engineered T cells, in new cancer therapies, can overcome physical barriers to fight tumors. Steven goes on a rant about the terrible awesomeness that is cancer.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210514134222.htm
Skepticism: Steven continues to rant, this time about "boosting your immune system" and the dummies that think their covid vaccines are magnetic. This leads him to tell Ben all about James Randi and the Million Dollar Challenge.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTVWMY8EZCA
Science Fiction: Steven finished The Nevers and does his best to not spoil it. Steven is reading Junkyard Pirate by Jamie McFarlane and is really enjoying it. Ben reviews Bill and Ted Face the Music. Steven review Army of the Dead (not a sequel to Dawn of the Dead). We discuss the latest episode of The Bad Batch and Ben praises Kipo and the Age of the Wonderbeasts.
This episode contains: Only Steven and Devon this week, and we recorded a full length podcast. Steven is building a chicken coop and Devon had a fun night out.
Silly in Silicon: The chip shortage keeps getting worse. Why can't we just make more? It's not rocket science, it's much more difficult. We talk about just how difficult it is to build and run a semiconductor factory.
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2021-chip-production-why-hard-to-make-semiconductors/
Shark Week!: Sharks use Earth's magnetic fields to guide them like a map. They rely on magnetic fields for their long-distance forays across the sea. We ask dumb questions, like if we can shield ourselves from the earth's magnetic field, or if we can use that magnetic field instead of GPS. And by we, I mean Steven.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210506142036.htm
Science Fiction: Steven recaps the latest episode of The Bad Batch. Both Steven and Devon have been watching The Nevers. We don't get into spoilers, but discuss the show at length. Steven recommends Jupiter's Legacy to everyone, even if you're done with superhero shows. Devon talks about the latest season of The Handmaiden's Tale and gives a review on Project Hail Mary. Steven has been playing The 7th Continent and loves it.
This episode contains: We start off talking about Mother's Day and moving to Texas. Just wait, it gets better.
Evolution, What Are You Gonna do?: There's no such thing as a #tree (phylogenetically). We talk dendronization, poaization, and how avocado and cinnamon are pretty closely-realted species. It's neat.
https://eukaryotewritesblog.com/2021/05/02/theres-no-such-thing-as-a-tree/
It's Hip to be Square: Scientists have studied the mysterious behavior of cats sitting on squares. A Kanizsa illusion was used to see how cats see squares. Also neat.
https://www.vice.com/en/article/v7eexj/scientists-have-studied-the-mysterious-behavior-of-cats-sitting-on-squares
Ok Computer: A team of researchers reports realization of a multi-node quantum network. Devon attempts to explain to us how a Quantum Internet would work. Ben wants to step into the quantum accelerator and vanish.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/04/210415142619.htm
Science Fiction: We wrap up talking about The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Devon is reading Project Hail Mary from Andy Weir. There's some new info about Picard season 2 and 3. We talk about that hour long The Bad Batch episode. We've all seen The Mitchells Vs The Machines. Devon and Steven discuss Stowaway. Steven talks probably too much about Invincible. Ben talks about Superman and Lois. We all have a great time.
This episode contains: We talk Covid vaccinations, because some of us had a BBQ! Ben and his kid had an engineering problem. Devon celebrated his 5th wedding anniversary!
I Am Not Throwing Away My Shot: Oxford malaria vaccine proves highly effective in Burkina Faso trial. Malaria kills over 400,000 thousand in Africa, but a vaccine could change that.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/23/oxford-malaria-vaccine-proves-highly-effective-in-burkina-faso-trial
Et tu?: Flu Has Disappeared Worldwide during the COVID Pandemic. 2020-2021 flu season had ~600 deaths, down from 22,000 in the prior season.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/flu-has-disappeared-worldwide-during-the-covid-pandemic/
Interview with Mike Troup: We have the amazing voice and creator of The Earth Collective on for the first time since 2015! We talk about his audio drama podcast, how production has been affected by the pandemic, and what his new Kickstarter Campaign is all about (spoilers, he's writing a book based on the first season of The Earth Collective!). Do us a favor and check out the links below, and listen to The Earth Collective, you won't be disappointed.
https://www.theearthcollectivestory.com/
https://www.patreon.com/TECStory
https://ko-fi.com/tecstory
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tecstory/the-earth-collective-book-volume-one
https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Collective-Protective-Domingues-dangerous-ebook/dp/B01B5EA022/
Science Fiction: Before we talk real science fiction, we take a moment to appreciate the ever-positive Ted Lasso. We've all been watching and love that show. Now, for guns on the moon! We talk about the season finale of For All Mankind. We break down the major plot points, give kudos where due, and theorize where the show can go from here. We're excited for 1995!
This episode contains: Steven starts this episode with talking about how he's gone 'full dad' and now 'enjoys' yard work. It's weird. Ben talks about his epic playing of Danger Zone 2, which temps Steven into talking about Valheim for too long. Don't worry, we make up for it in science.
Is There Anyone Out There, 'Cause It's Getting Harder and Harder to Breath: NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover extracts oxygen from Red Planet. We talk about the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (or MOXIE). Creating oxygen on Mars is sooo cool!
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8926/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-extracts-first-oxygen-from-red-planet/
They Did What Now?: Scientists have generated human-monkey chimeric embryos. We have some ethical concerns about the human-monkey chimeric embryos, but not too many. Steven asks the question of why repeatedly, and is eventually answered.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/04/210415142904.htm
I Only Miss You When I'm Breathing: Artificial photosynthesis device improves its own efficiency over time. Scientists have now demonstrated a process to produce clean hydrogen fuel, which improves over time. It has something to do with gallium nitride, but the article is a bit confusing.
https://newatlas.com/energy/self-improving-artificial-photosynthesis-device-hydrogen-efficiency/
Yay SpaceX!: SpaceX wins $2.9 Billion NASA contract for lunar lander being developed in Texas. We just kinda wanted to mention it.
https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2021/04/17/spacex-wins-2-9-billion-nasa-contract-lunar-lander-developed-texas/
Science Fiction: We find some time to talk about a little bit of science fiction. Ben watched The Ewok Adventure: Caravan of Courage and, oh boy, it's not as bad as you expected and not as good as you'd hoped. Steven has started watching the Mortal Kombat movie, and he's not having the worst time with it. Ben also watched 80's sci-fi classic Explorers with his family. We talk about how unique it is, and it's the only movie we know about that has a rat that tells the protagonist to "go to hell." We end with touching on the ending of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, with promises of circling around back to it once Devon has finished the series.
This episode contains: A special congratulations to Ben's mom for 9 years sober! Great job Martha! We talk about our covid vaccine experiences.
Genetics, yeah!: More than 500 genes linking depression and anxiety discovered in new study. We talk neuroticism and how it is one of the Big 5 personality traits.
https://www.sciencealert.com/researchers-uncover-more-than-500-genes-linking-depression-and-anxiety
Brain Matters: How did humans develop larger brains than other apes? What is the genetic mechanism that allowed our brains to grow larger? What are 'brain organoids' and how did they help fine a genetic switch for brains?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210324113502.htm
And I Don't Know What I'm Saying: There's a new Nirvana song out, and it was written by Google's AI. We're now training neural networks on Nirvana's music and this is the world I want to live in.
https://singularityhub.com/2021/04/07/theres-a-new-nirvana-song-out-and-it-was-written-by-googles-ai/
Science Fiction: Do you like space? Alternate History? LEGOS? We've got all that and more! Steven bought and built the Lunar Lander LEGO set. Ben and Devon recap two episodes of For All Mankind; And Here's To You and Triage. We continue to talk about this amazing show that tracks the alternate history answering the questions of what would have happened if the Russians has landed on the moon before us. GO WATCH IT.
This episode contains: Ben and Steven talk about how they are spending their spring breaks, whether it be taking cars to get serviced or getting a second covid vaccine shot. Neat.
Metal: NASA's most metal mission will test new, higher-power electric thrusters. Ben talks about Psyche the mission going to Psyche the asteroid. It totally isn't confusing.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/04/nasas-most-metal-mission-will-test-new-higher-power-electric-thrusters/
Last Week in Space: More than 5,000 tons of extraterrestrial dust fall to Earth each year. Dome C in Antarctica are finding particles a hundredths of a millimetre that have passed through the atmosphere, counting everything, and extrapolating. That's a lot of dust.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/04/210408131503.htm
Science Fiction: First Contact Day! Ben tell us all about his favorite announcements from the future and past of Star Trek. Ben details the trailer for Picard Season 2, and all of the cool things it shows us. We talk about the trailer for Discovery Season 4, and get hyped for Lower Decks season 2. Steven watched the first episode of the Amazon Prime show Invincible and gives his spoiler-free reactions. That leads us to an interesting conversation comparing and contrasting Batman The Brave and the Bold and Batman the Animated Series.
This episode contains: We talk a bit about Easter, and Steven is a real poo in the shoe about the whole affair.
Bears: An Unknown Disease Is Giving Bears Dog-Like Friendliness. Black Bears are suffering from encephalitis, but the root cause is not known. We discuss.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/an-unknown-disease-is-giving-bears-doglike-friendliness-and-its-dangerous-not-cute/
Shark Bait, Oh Ha Ha: Scientists show technology can save people from shark bites. How do we save 1,063 Australians from shark attacks? Personal electronic deterrents.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210330210940.htm
Brain Matters: Mice with hallucination-like behaviors reveal insight into psychotic illness. Human speech is hard to comprehend, if the brain becomes imbalanced, you may hallucinate.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/04/210401151253.htm
Science Fiction: For once, Devon is caught up on a show. We talk about For All Mankind episode 7, Don't Be Cruel. Steven finds out that the Korean Flight 007 disaster was a true event. Ben has to talk about that Space Jam 2 trailer...but mostly just talks about how amazing the original Space Jam was. We talk about the third episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Power Broker. Steven gets into the weeds talking about Madripoor and the Power Broker. Also, did you guys watch that trailer for The Bad Batch? So good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsOmYpP4UDU
This episode contains: Ben's cat consistently interrupts his REM sleep, and fun ensues. Steven got some chickens.
Breath In, Breath Out: Scientists are now developing vaccination by inhalation. Scientists are figuring out how to deliver vaccines to the lungs, which can boost immune responses to respiratory infections or lung cancer. It's amazing.
https://news.mit.edu/2021/vaccination-inhalation-0319
Imperial March sounds: Massive 'Darth Vader' sea bug pulled from waters near Indonesia. Bathynomus raksasa measures about 13 inches (330 mm) in length, on average. We talk about these sea bugs and how absolutely horrifying they are.
https://www.livescience.com/supergiant-isopod-newfound-species.html
Bonus: Neighborhood Hero Builds AI-Powered Device That Automatically Compliments Dogs Walking By.
https://gizmodo.com/neighborhood-hero-builds-ai-powered-device-that-automat-1846562170
Science Fiction: We have a chat about episode 6 of For All Mankind, Best Laid Plans. We don't do it justice, please go watch the show. We do a recap of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, talk about who Isaiah Bradley is, and continue to be astounded on how the show deals with racism. We then move on to talk about The Snyder Cut. We talk about all the things that worked in this version of Justice League and a few things that didn't. Overall, we totally dug it, and Steven is hoping for more.
This episode contains: Do you kill bugs in your house and other interesting ways to start a podcast.
This Week in Space: What happened to Mars's water? It is still trapped there. We talk about a recent chemical analysis regarding water trapped on Mars and the results are astounding.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210316132106.htm
Here Comes The Sun and I Say It's All Right: We discuss the economics of covering California’s water system with solar panels. There are different ways it could be done, we talk about them and throw in a few crazy ideas.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/the-economics-of-covering-californias-water-system-with-solar-panels/
Science Fiction: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier has premiered and you know what that means: Steven talks way too much. We do a spoiler filled recap even though Devon hasn't seen it yet. We have all mostly caught up with For All Mankind, again Devon lags. We talk about episode 4 and 5 in detail. Ben has recently been re-watching the classic Superman movies and Superman Returns. He has some stuff to say. We end the pod with a chat about Stephen Baxter and some books he has written.
This episode contains: We have a new recording night, and this episode christens it. Happy Pi Day everyone, let's talk about pie. Ben has now been quarantined over a year.
For All Mankind, But For Real. Yo.: China and Russia unveil joint plan for lunar space station. We talk about these two super powers and whether or not we should be worried.
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/mar/10/china-and-russia-unveil-joint-plan-for-lunar-space-station
Where's Your Head At?: Sea slug can lose its head and regenerate new body in three weeks. We talk about how a sea slug decapitates it's own head and then lives on algae until it grows a new body. Gross.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/this-sea-slug-can-lose-its-head-and-regenerate-new-body-in-three-weeks/
Matter Over Mind: People with mind-blindness not so easily spooked. We talk about aphantasia and how people with a form of it cannot 'picture' what they read. It's frightening.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210310122434.htm
Science Fiction: Steven watched some of Space Sweepers and is enjoying it. We all watched Flora & Ulysses and talk about it probably too much. That squirrel CG though, wonderful! Devon tells us just how much he enjoyed the Sonic movie. We talk about episode 3 of For All Mankind, and backtrack a bit to episode 2. We'll be back on track next episode. With a mighty sigh we talk about what worked and what didn't with the WandaVision finale.
This episode contains: Ben survives choking on water, then attempts to survive one full year of quarantine. Listen in to see if he makes it.
......under pressure: Researchers build a swimming robot that works in the Mariana Trench. To deal with the immense pressures, researchers split their circuit boards, similar to the skull of the snail fish.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/researchers-build-a-swimming-robot-that-works-in-the-mariana-trench/
Really? Down There?: Microbes deep beneath seafloor survive on byproducts of radioactive process. To understand this, we first have to research irradiation and ionizing radiation.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210226103802.htm
It's A Terror Of Knowing What This World Is About: The cuttlefish can pass the marshmallow test. We talk about the marshmallow test and how it applies to cuttlefish.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/cuttlefish-can-pass-the-marshmallow-test/
Science Fiction: Ben tells us all about the Star Trek Picard novel The Dark Veil. We talk about the second episode of For All Mankind, The Bleeding Edge. Ben has been watching the second season of Umbrella Academy and is really enjoying it. We both do a deep dive of the penultimate episode of WandaVision. We talk about Agatha's motivation, and what Wanda has gone through. Steven talks way too much, like always.
This episode contains: Who loves Girl Scout Cookies? We do.
Technology Can Go To The Hot Place: Stanford study into "Zoom Fatigue" explains why video chats are so tiring. We talk about the various ways that video conferencing can take a toll. Except for Devon, who is superhuman.
https://newatlas.com/telecommunications/zoom-fatigue-video-exhaustion-tips-help-stanford/
Pumba, With You Everything Is Gas: Solar rotation varies by latitude. Ben's son asked him about the sun and now we have to deal with it.
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunearth/science/solar-rotation.html
Whiskey, the cause of, and solution to, all of life's little problems: Like wine, environmental conditions impact flavor of whiskey, study finds. We talk about what terroir is and how it affects the taste of stuff. We take a detour into making fun of wine snobs and free basing heritage wheat.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210223121629.htm
Science Fiction: I don't have the strength to type this all out again (I did a dumb and lost this info once -Steven), so enjoy a truncated version:
Ben and Steven watched some Babylon 5 and give their opinions.
Devon caught up on For All Mankind and gives his thoughts on the first season, and we all talk about the second season premiere.
Devon and Ben both did not enjoy the 7th episode of WandaVision, and Steven holds out hope that episode 8 will help make sense of things.
This episode contains: Ben has something to say about the state of grape buying in this country. Steven is still reminding everyone he has a 3D printer.
Lend Me Some Sugar, I Am Your Neighbor: NASA's Mars Perseverance rover safely lands on Red Planet! We talk about the rover and how it is taking samples to BRING BACK TO EARTH and also it has a drone attached for the FIRST FLIGHT ON MARS. How amazing is all of that?!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210218162028.htm
Brain Matters?: New research reveals the genetic basis for daytime napping. Genome-wide association study with over 450,000 data points was conducted and it turns out that 123 regions in the human genome are associated with daytime napping. Ben relates this study to how Salvador Dali took his naps.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210210133305.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about how we spent our Valentine's Days with our significant others. Steven is excited for X-Wing Miniatures news. Ben watched some Pixar Popcorn and Steven bought some humble bundle Fallout stuff. We wrap up with a long talk about the latest episode of WandaVision. Steven spends (probably) too much time talking about the Young Avengers. In the end, the two speculate on how Magneto could be introduced into the MCU.
This episode contains: Ben tells us about a Covid scare that his family had. Steven has been 3D printing stuff for Terraforming Mars.
Help Me Wander: There are age-differences in mind-wandering. A study was conducted about young and restless, old and focused and other things about mind-wandering. We also talk about interruptions and focusing.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210210133327.htm
Elementary!: We've had the first ever measurements of einsteinium, element 99. We talk about bond distance, actinides and how watching Back to the Future is better than listening to us.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/02/210206125326.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about some Lucasfilm news and who isn't working for them anymore. Don't worry, The Mandalorian will still be awesome. Ben finished the 5th season of The Expanse and talks about it, and the changes from the books. There is casting news for The Last of Us! Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey are our Joel and Ellie and we couldn't be more excited for the HBO series. Finally, we get to WandaVision and the implications of that crazy thing that happened at the end of episode 5.
This episode contains: We kick off this episode with some real Devon talk. Ben is using libraries correctly. Steven watched a little bit of TV.
Spiders, Is There Anything They Can't Do?: Tiny spider engineers use silk pulley systems to lift prey 50 times their weight. The Theridiidae spider not only has an impressive name, it can lift impressive weight. We talk about a video where this tiny spider lifts a cockroach; it's disgusting and awesome.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/tiny-spider-engineers-use-silk-pulley-systems-to-lift-prey-50-times-their-weight/
Pure Energy: According to a new study, a zero-emissions US is now pretty cheap. Wind and solar energy is now cheaper than buying fossil fuels. We also talk a little about carbon capture, and how to pay bills. Adulting!
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/01/new-study-a-zero-emissions-us-is-now-pretty-cheap/
Science Fiction: Steven put some money in Dogecoin, now let's watch him lose it. Devon and Ben do a recap and review of the first two seasons of Doom Patrol. Yeah, we're talking about it again, what of it? You should be watching. Devon caught up on WandaVision and gives his impressions. Turns out he sides with Ben with his opinion of the show. Ben talks The Expanse (tv show) and Devon talks The Expanse (books) and Steven listens and gets spoiled. Finally, we somehow we get on the topic of Gargoyles and TMNT, so there's that.
This episode contains: We all survived the recent storm in California, some of us more than others. Watch out for those downed power lines, Ben!
If You Liked It You Should Have Put A Ring On It: Saturn's tilt caused by its moons, researchers say. The influence of Saturn's satellites can explain the tilt of the rotation axis of the gas giant. We also talk about The Time Machine (2002) and whether the exploded moon would have the same mass and properties as the unexploded moon.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210121132103.htm
Next Week in Space: Dr. Fatima Ebrahimi has invented the rocket that may take us to Mars. New rocket engine uses fusion in an awesome way and could potentially be faster than our current chemical rockets by several orders of magnitude.
https://news.sky.com/story/new-concept-for-rocket-thruster-exploits-the-mechanism-behind-solar-flares-12202285
Science Fiction: Ben shepherds a final talk about Star Trek Discovery season 3. We analyze "That Hope Is You" parts one and two, and have some very polite discussions. Next we tackle episodes 3 and 4 of WandaVision. The recap of episode 3 short and sweet, we give the most time to episode 4, with as many call outs to other Marvel properties as possible. Pietro, Magneto, Mutants, Thor 1 & 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Captain Marvel. Steven attempts to figure where WandaVision is headed, but thinks there must be another major character yet to be introduced. We finish with Ben giving his final thoughts on The Leftovers. He says it's a gift.
This episode contains: We talk about President Biden's inauguration, and what we did to celebrate (like buy a bone folder or a hot tub).
Debunking Pseudoscience: Ineffective 'learning styles' theory persists in education. Were told you were a 'visual learner' or an 'auditory learner' or something similar? Turns out that 89% of teachers also believe this pseudoscience. We also talk about the merits of having physical books.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210106111959.htm
Just One Step in Front of the Other: First task for Biden’s CDC director: Fix everything Trump broke. We talk about Dr. Rochelle Walensky and the 100,000,000 shots in 100 days promise from the Biden administration. Finally, we chat about the efficacy of the coronavirus vaccine and how we don't really need to worry about the variants that have emerged.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/01/first-task-for-bidens-cdc-director-fix-everything-trump-broke/
Science Fiction: Steven has been reading Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi and gives an extended review of the first half of the book. Do you remember Lor San Tekka? You should. Finally, Ben and Steven talk about WandaVision and attempt to convince Devon to watch the show (which he had already agreed to do). We cover the Agatha Harkness theory as well as the meaning behind S.W.O.R.D.
This episode contains: This week we kick off the episode with some computer problems. Ben's PC failed him, and Steven attempts to diagnose it.
World Beat: How Earth's oddest mammal got to be so bizarre. Scientists have mapped the platypus genome and have found some very interesting things: 10 sex chromosomes, one of three egg laying genes survived from ancient bird ancestor, and more!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210106133034.htm
My God, It's Full Of Stars!: Distant colliding galaxy dying out as it loses the ability to form stars. Astronomers have seen a galaxy ejecting nearly half of its star-forming gas. A galaxy dies when it can no longer make new stars. Steven questions his galactic reality.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210111112147.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about the Star Trek Discovery finale. We talk about the need for a 'part 1, part 2', the Burn and it's origins, elevator fights, and Staments deserving to be more than just a car key. This will be the last Star Trek talk for quite a while, so enjoy it while it lasts.
This episode contains: This is a podcast about Science and Science Fiction, but when the world is on fire, we have to talk about it. We start this episode talking about the coup / insurrection attempt by Trump.
You Spin Me Right 'Round Baby, Right 'Round: What happens when your brain can't tell which way is up or down? Scientists used virtual reality to test the brain and how it acts when it's perspective is 'wrong'. We also quickly talk about how there is an AR Mario Kart coming to Universal Studios.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210107125312.htm
Robot Overlords: World's fastest optical neuromorphic processor has been created. The neuromorphic processor operates faster than 10 trillion operations per second, which is fast. Really fast. It's made of micro-combs, which act like a rainbow made up of hundreds of high-quality infrared lasers on a single chip. But can it run DOOM?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210107112418.htm
Hello Internet, This is your Dad Speaking: We talk about how to mitigate the impact of a lockdown on your mental health. Almost 10,000 people from 78 countries participated in a study about mental health in a lockdown. Having support, education, and flexibly adapting to the pandemic have improved mental outcomes. Ben is the Internet's dad. He's looking out for all of us.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210107112430.htm
Science Fiction: Steven talks a bit about his new hobby: 3D printing and upgrading his printer. We then talk about two episodes of Star Trek Discovery, 'Su'Kal' and 'There is a Tide...'. There is a lot of ground to cover, but we get through it. Final verdict? We're a bit disappointed. Ben gives us a run-down of the first season of The Leftovers, and recommends it. Steven finished the 3rd Bobiverse book, of course he loved that one too. Steven just started reading Light of the Jedi the first High Republic Star Wars book, he gives some initial impressions. Ben gives us the final wrap up of Alien Worlds, and oh boy does he recommend it.
Devon says some stuff.
This episode contains: We talk about some items we received for Christmas, and then get right to business.
Water Bear Don't Care: Water bears (tardigrades) are stuck on the moon after crash landing (in 2019). Tardigrades are under a millimeter long and can survive extreme conditions, 150C to almost absolute zero. We talk about the ethics of leaving things on the moon and how incredible the water bears continue to be.
https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-49265125
Top 10 Discoveries Missed in 2020: Devon does a listicle to close down the year. These items include (but are not limited to) ancient earth material, tyrannosaur embryos, Mars humming, Betelgeuse mystery, and the end of the Ebola outbreak. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/12/10-awesome-science-discoveries-you-may-have-missed-in-2020/
Science Fiction: We all watched the two big streaming movies of the holiday season: Soul and Wonder Woman 1984. We give our thoughts and reviews on both of them. We talk just a bit about Star Trek Discovery, since Steven missed the last episode. Devon and Steven have both been watching The Stand and give Ben a run-down of what it's all about. Ben and Devon watched Midnight Sky and give Steven a mini-review. Devon watched The New Mutants and was pleasantly surprised.
"The Moon is Littered with the Failures of Man"-Steven
This episode contains: We start out ready for 2021. Ben and kid have been reading Legend of Korra comics. Steven bought a 3D Printer.
Art is in the Eye of the Microbiological Organism: Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings have unique microbiomes, study finds. Hairs can be a marker for where you are. We have a nice conversation of art, it's purpose and how much Ben loves it.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/12/leonardo-da-vincis-drawings-have-unique-microbiomes-study-finds/
Biological Imperative: Is it better to give than receive? Children who experienced compassionate parenting were more generous than peers. We don't add much to this one, besides Ben thinking he's a bad dad. (He's not.)
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201201103626.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about the Star Trek Discovery episode Terra Firma part 2, and our varied opinions on how it all turned out. We talk a bit about Harlan Ellison and The City on the Edge of Forever. We talk on the season 2 finale of The Mandalorian. We talk about that reveal and where we think the show will go in a season 3. We also get excited for The Book of Boba Fett.
One last question: Who is your Spider-Man? Tobey Andrew or Tom?
This episode contains: Devon finally tells us what makes him happy, and it turns out it's a Mel Gibson movie. Merry Christmas.
Time Keeps on Ticking: New type of atomic clock keeps time even more precisely. A new atomic clock uses entangled atoms to keep time more precisely than its state-of-the-art counterparts. We try, and fail, to understand quantum entanglement. Also, how did we set our clocks before the internet?
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201216113301.htm
Whoopsie Daisy: Gut-wrenching footage documents Arecibo telescope’s collapse. We talk about what movies used the Arecibo telescope as a setting. Turns out the cable that snapped was an original one from 1963. IS that good or bad?
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03421-y
This Week in Space: Astronomers detect possible radio emission from exoplanet emanating from the constellation Boötes. The scientists used radio emissions from Jupiter as a template for what to look for out in the cosmos.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201216134701.htm
Science Fiction: Devon says the new Animaniacs is surprisingly good and then we talk too much about advent calendars. We cover Chapter 15, The Believer of The Mandalorian. We also talk about the first half of Terra Firma, the Star Trek Discovery episode. Steven is not a fan. Devon didn't watch it. Ben seems to be on board. We quickly talk a bit more about the Bobiverse, and The Expanse. Ben finally watched Joker and we have a spoiler talk about it.
This episode contains: Devon had a spaghetti incident, so he'll be joining us in the second half. Ben has been sizzling, and Steven finally has a kitchen again.
Gotta Go Fast: Researchers have discovered a new superhighway network to travel through the Solar System. The difference of speed is orders of magnitude: decades versus millions of years. We also talk about centaurs.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201209094216.htm
Science Fiction: Ben finally has his say and is able to talk about stuff he wants to talk about. We cover SpaceX, Lovecraft Country, Infinity Train, and The Gardens Between. Devon joins us and we find out what the spaghetti incident was.
Disney Investors Day: SO MUCH NEWS. We cover Marvel and Star Wars news, including: WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, Hawkeye, What If, Iron Heart, Armor Wars, Secret Invasion, Moon Knight, She Hulk, Ms. Marvel and more. We also cover Rangers of the New Republic, The Bad Batch, Ahsoka, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Lando and finally: Star Wars Rogue Squadron.
This episode contains: This is a very special birthday episode. It's Steven's birthday and he asked his co-hosts Ben and Devon to do an oops all sci-fi episode. They obliged. Before the sci-fi Ben talks about the monoliths that have appeared, one in his vicinity.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article247628785.html
Science Fiction: Lots was covered:
The Mandalorian, Chapters 13 and 14, The Jedi and The Tragedy respectively are talked about in detail. The all agree this show is bomb.
Steven is reading the first Bob-i-verse book, We Are Legion (We Are Bob). He talks about it, and how Devon was correct in recommending it three years ago. Ben proceeds to purchase the book.
Next: Star Trek Discovery, Episodes 7 and 8, Unification III and The Sanctuary are all debated upon. Survey says that Devon is out, but Steven and Ben are still in.
Steven and Ben finished reading Ready Player Two. SPOILER WARNING. Devon hasn't read it, but tells about what some reviews said. Ben and Steven break down the plot and what to expect when reading. Devon thinks he'll read it.
Thanks for going on this long journey with us. Next episode should be back to normal.
This episode contains: Steven didn't do the math and he and Ben had to record on Thanksgiving. The two talk turkey about their respective dinners.
R-R-R-R-Random: A biochemical random number has been generated. DNA synthesis was used to generate a random number. We talk about the process, and what random numbers are used for. Don't forget your A T C and G.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201120113854.htm
This Week in Space: Water may be naturally occurring on all rocky planets. The presence of water may be a byproduct of the planet formation process. We talk about the meteorite sample used in the study called 'Black Beauty' and its extreme expense.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/11/201109110228.htm
A Doggy Dog World: Bonus Science! We talk about the aging of dogs and how a new, more accurate calculation can be done to see how old your dog is in 'human years'.
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/11/here-s-better-way-convert-dog-years-human-years-scientists-say
Science Fiction: Another week, more mando. We talk about the latest episode of The Mandalorian, The Siege. We talk about seeing Greef and Cara again and what exactly an M-count is. Star Trek Discovery delivered another stunning episode and we talk about the Discovery's refit, relations between Orions and Andorians, and how cool Georgiou can be when unleashed. We also speculate about next week's episode and Ben has to explain to Steven what Unification I and II are all about. We tease a bit about Ready Player Two since we are both reading it, tune in next week for a full review.
This episode contains: We talk about our Thanksgiving traditions regarding gravy. Ben is ditching his iPhone for an Android, which some would consider heresy.
...It's Windy: Climate change causes landfalling hurricanes to stay stronger for longer. Warm ocean hurricanes have more moisture and stay longer and stronger after landfall. Because the hurricanes are lasting longer and traveling father, people who are unprepared will have to be. Climate change is still real.
https://www.oist.jp/news-center/press-releases/climate-change-causes-landfalling-hurricanes-stay-stronger-longer
Biological Imperative: Human ageing process biologically reversed in world first. What can oxygen therapy in a pressurized chamber do for you? We talk about telomeres and senescent cells and what they have to do with aging.
https://news.yahoo.com/human-ageing-process-biologically-reversed-153921785.html
Science Fiction: We talk about BOTH of the Star Wars Holiday Specials, the live action one and the LEGO one. Both have their ups and downs. We then talk about The Mandalorian episode The Heiress. Bo-Katan! What?! We then talk Star Trek Discovery and different future star ship names. Finally, Ben talks about FUSER the new music mixing game from Harmonix.
This episode contains: We start off talking about how long we've been quarantining and how we're not crazy, you're crazy.
Light at the End of the Tunnel: Pfizer has a covid-19 vaccine. We talk about an article written by Dr. Steven Novella (of Skeptics Guide to the Universe fame) about the vaccine and how much we should trust it. Turns out, there's a lot to be excited about.
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/pfizers-covid-vaccine/
Darkness at the Beginning of the Tunnel: We talk about the impact of covid-19 related school shutdown on sleep in adolescents. Steven reads (most of) a study regarding sleep and teens and then everyone reminisces about their high school morning and lack of sleep.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1389945720304184
Science Fiction: Hope you like Star Trek Discovery, because we talk about season 2 and 3. A lot. Like, almost too much. If that's not your thing, we cover the latest (as of recording) episode of The Mandalorian, The Passenger. We have quite a discussion on whether or not The Child is going to regurgitate the eggs he ate. Also, Dr. Mandible is Ben's favorite character.
This episode contains: We talk about the current US presidential election. Ben deals with standardized testing. Steven makes dreams come true.
Brain Matters: Brain study pinpoints why music can literally give you the chills. Music's effect on the brain hints at an ancient 'ancestral' function. We talk about music, getting the chills and how certain tests require more test subjects.
https://www.inverse.com/mind-body/why-music-gives-you-chills
The RGB Cases of the Animal Kingdom: As if the Platypus couldn’t get any weirder: they can also glow in the dark. We talk about the newest discovery about one of the strangest animals.
https://gizmodo.com/as-if-the-platypus-couldn-t-get-any-weirder-1845529134
Science Fiction: Hey Mando! we talk about the second season premier of The Mandalorian. We go deep, expect spoilers. Ben has been watching Earth to Ned and likens parts of it to Farscape. Steven finished The Lost World and has to talk about it. Steven has also been watching Star Trek Discovery Season 2 and he and Ben have a nice long chat about 'If Memory Serves'. Ben then goes into the future and talks about Discovery season 3.
This episode contains: With Ben absent, Devon fills the podcast with talk of Star Wars Squadrons and using the Force maybe.
Halloween Spooktacular: Shifts In Pet Cemetery Practices Reflect Our Changing Relationship With Animals. Devon talks about human relationships with animals with regards to pet cemeteries. He also has no idea what booping the snoot is. For shame.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/shifts-in-pet-cemetery-practices-reflect-our-changing-relationship-with-animals/
Halloween Spooktacular 2: We talk about The Thoughts of a Spiderweb. Spiders appear to offload cognitive tasks to their webs. Orb spiders were able to change their web strategy to mimic ancient spiders. We talk about extended cognition and embodied cognition a little bit.
https://getpocket.com/explore/item/the-thoughts-of-a-spiderweb?utm_source=pocket-newtab
Science Fiction: Devon talks about Children of Time and Children of Ruin a bit. We discuss the passing of James Randi, renowned skeptic. Steven finished Jurassic Park and started reading The Lost World and talks about their main themes, which are not dinosaurs. Steven has also been making his way through Star Trek Discovery Season 2. Devon is reading/listening to the newest Bobiverse story: Heaven's River. We talk about 'Brave' New Worlds (which is not the title) the new Star Trek show that is coming. (Strange New Worlds is the real title; I'm sure Ben had a stroke when he heard us.)
This episode contains: Ben is on medication and Steven upgraded his tech, strap in for this one folks, it's a dozy.
Keep Your Eyeballs Peeled: Online images are not always what they seem, especially on social media according to study. We talk about how images online can be whatever we want and the truth isn't necessarily represented. There are also poor forensic tools available for digital media literacy.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201021112337.htm
Hello Internet, This Is Your Dad Speaking: Ben does "research" on how to take out a splinter. He found a listicle that Steven is instantly skeptical of. Some of it might work maybe?
https://www.solvhealth.com/blog/5-creative-ways-to-remove-a-splinter
Emails: Field-Adjacent Correspondent Matt Dixon responds to our requests for data verification. He mails us about pigeons used in missiles, and why Microsoft Excel has a limit to the number of rows a file can hold. Thank you Matt!
Science Fiction: We talk about the goof in last weeks episode and that leads to some spoilers for Quantum Leap. Ben talks more about the Oculus Quest 2 and the games he's playing: EchoVR, Half Life: Alyx and some stuff from SideQuest. Ben then talks at Steven about the first episode of the third season of Star Trek Discovery. Spoilers ahead.
This episode contains: We start this fine episode with a little talk about how the apocal- I mean, how life is going, especially for those of us with kids in school. Also, Devon is still writing music.
What's Up Bird Brain: Crows possess higher intelligence long thought a primarily human attribute. We talk about corvids and how we have discovered more about how their minds work. That somehow devolves into talk about pon farr.
https://www.statnews.com/2020/09/24/crows-possess-higher-intelligence-long-thought-primarily-human/
Brain Matters: Babies' random choices become their preferences. We talk about unconscious bias and how it clearly develops when you're a baby. That leads us to justifying arbitrary choices, and finally choice overload.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201002091027.htm
Science Fiction: We talked about a lot this week. Here's a list: We aren't watching Star Trek Discovery Season 3 yet, Steven is re-reading Jurassic Park (again), spoilers for Camp Cretaceous, Ben got an Oculus Quest 2, Steven picked up Fallout 4 again, Devon watched all of Utopia and gives us his review, Steven and Devon finished The Boys season 2 and chat about it a bit.
This episode contains: We start off this episode on a high note and recount the misadventures of Reginald Barclay.
Let's Get Physical: Validating the physics behind the new fusion experiment: Seven studies describe progress thus far and challenges ahead for a revolutionary zero-emissions power source. We talk about the project SPARC and how close we are to zero emission energy.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200929123540.htm
More Excuses to Spread Sheet about Microsoft: Excel may have caused loss of 16,000 Covid test results in England. It turns out that Microsoft Excel spreadsheets only have room for 1,048,576 rows. That may seem like a lot but 16,000 positive covid test results were lost due to this limit.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/oct/05/how-excel-may-have-caused-loss-of-16000-covid-tests-in-england
Science Fiction: This week the scifi section is quite extensive. We start off by talking about the season finale of Star Trek Lower Decks, then Steven goes all in trying to explain Star Wars The High Republic. Steven then talks about his HOTAS and VR rig and how it's not been perfect playing Star Wars Squadrons. Ben and Steven both tried 5D Chess with Multiverse Time Travel and found it difficult. We talk about recent MCU Spider-Man news and try and wrap out feeble minds around a live action spider-verse. We cap off the episode with a ton of spoilery Raised by Wolves talk. It gets creepy and religious with snout mouth snakes.
This episode contains: We get a rough start on this one and it doesn't stop. Devon's kid had to take a Covid test. Ben is optimistic. Steven's kitchen no longer exists.
Travel Plans Pre-Apocalypse: Venus might be habitable today, if not for Jupiter. If not for Jupiter, Venus might not be a nightmare hellscape. Observations in the orbit of Jupiter and the strangely circular orbit of Venus show that Jupiter's orbit may have caused the changes in Venus before settling down. Also, there's a scientific scale from 0 to 1 regarding orbits.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200930085157.htm
Ya Filthy Animal: Parrots removed from public view in wildlife park for swearing at visitors. A group of African Grey Parrots appear to find it amusing to curse and cause their visitors to laugh. This has caused the wildlife park to seclude the birds from sensitive ears. We propose another option: Zoo After Dark.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/parrots-removed-from-public-view-in-wildlife-park-for-swearing-at-visitors/
Bonus Science!: Some severe Covid-19 cases linked to genetic mutations or antibodies that attack the body. We have found key genetic mutations and antibodies that are not helping the body to defend against Covid-19, accounting for 10% of severe cases.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200924141529.htm
Science Fiction: Steven is super excited for Star Wars Squadrons. Ben is now owner of an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate account, even though he has no Xbox. Steven and Ben have both played around with the latest update of No Man's Sky. Devon give us his thoughts on Project Power. Ben launches into the latest episode of Lower Decks and why spoofing the movies was done so well. Devon and Steven talk about The Boys Season 2, more specifically the character Homelander and how well he's done. Steven continues to be worried about the mystical elements of Raised by Wolves.
This episode contains: Operating without a safety net, the boys plow on ahead. Devon talks about how he writes and records music. Devon also attempts to do an article we've already covered. Oops.
This Week in Space: Comet discovered to have its own northern lights. 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was shown to have a far-ultraviolet aurora. We talk about the metric system and what it may be based on.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200921113857.htm
Hello Internet, This is Your Dad Speaking: Intermittent Fasting Improves Health Without Altering the Body’s Core Clock. It's not just what you eat, it's when you eat it, says science. We talk about intermittent fasting and how some of us have done it in the past, some perhaps by accident.
https://scitechdaily.com/intermittent-fasting-improves-health-without-altering-the-bodys-core-clock/
Science Fiction: We cover a lot this week: Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous, Doctor Who episode The Empty Child, The Offspring at the '99 Woodstock, Netflix's Away, Star Trek Lower Decks, Central Park, Apple and Onion, Project Power, The Boys, and Raised by Wolves. Jeez, and this is a free podcast?
This episode contains: Devon join us once again (for part of the episode) and Ben talks about the Eye Contact feature in iOS14.
This Week In Space: 'Black dwarf supernova': Physicist calculates when the last supernova ever will happen. Somehow, quantum tunneling may be involved. We also talk about how many zeros is in the number of years until the universe is dead.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200812113354.htm
This Week in Space: Possible marker of life spotted on Venus. We talk about the phosphine discovery that was made and how awesome life detected on Venus would be. We also talk about past missions to Venus.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200914112219.htm
Science Fiction: Devon, Ben and Steven dig into a little bit of science fiction before the interview: They talk about the ending of The Expanse book series, the CBS All Access change to Paramount+, and also how Star Trek Discovery may be linked to Voyager.
Chat with Miles Greb about Dune and more: After over two years, comic book author, atheist, skeptic and feminist Miles Greb joins us once again! We talk about the Dune trailer, what the movie means for the franchise, and a little bit of 'what they got wrong/right'. Interestingly the trailer used 'crusade' in a scene where he should have said 'ghost wind of jihad' and we're curious if the movie makers know the true story of Dune. We also talk a bit about the books Miles has created and you should check them all out: https://www.afterthegoldrush.space/
Also, if you don't know what a 'Dune' is: https://youtu.be/n9xhJrPXop4
Keep your eyes peeled, Miles has a kickstarter going live on October 1st that collects the first volume of After the Gold Rush, and it's something that you need to have. Need.
This episode contains: We missed last week because of Computer woes and audio issues, We read a listener email which teaches us all about female writers and directors.
Anti-Gravity Love Song: Physicists discover "anti-gravity" in bizarre buoyancy experiment. We talk about buoyancy, vibrating fluids, and upside down floating toy boats.
https://www.inverse.com/science/physicists-discover-antigravity
Brain Matters: Unconscious learning underlies belief in God, study suggests. We talk about unconsciously detecting patters, how this study was performed, and a bit about our own beliefs.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200909085942.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about a ton in this episode and I already typed this all out once and lost it, so here's a list: The Three Body Problem and Netflix, Harley Quinn, Xbox Series X announcements, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Cyberpunk 2077, Control, Raised by Wolves, Star Trek Discovery season 3, Lower Decks, Lovecraft Country, Legend of Korra, and The Boys.
This was an extra long episode. We were compensating for missing last week. And that's it. Promise.
(This episode is late because Steven's computer broke. Sorry.)
This episode contains: We start off this episode talking more about the wildfires in California. Ben has designed and published a book, check it out:
https://www.penciledin.com/books/an-undersea-book-of-hours/
We then read a few emails and get an update on the hornet and wasp situation in the UK.
Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na...: Mother bats use baby talk to communicate with their pups. We talk about the usefulness of this adaptation and hypothesize on whether other species have a similar adaptation.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200819094800.htm
This Week in Space: Ancient star explosions revealed in deep-sea sediments. We talk about how iron-60 is revealing our place in space and what it even means to be in an interstellar cloud.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200825110601.htm
Science Fiction: There's a bit of news about The Mandalorian and we discuss with some minor spoilers. We talk about DC Fandome and the new trailer for The Batman. We then dive deep into Harley Quinn tv show and the Birds Of Prey movie. We finish off with some minor Lower Decks discussion and Ben tells us about dangerous Driving.
This episode contains: We start out the episode talking about the California Wildfires and how they are effecting our lives. Then, a bet is settled.
You Have Got to be Kidding Me: An anti-vaccine group sues Facebook, claims fact-checking is "censorship." We dig into this issue, from a legal standpoint and from a logical standpoint. We talk about this so much, it's the only article we do this episode. It's that important.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/08/anti-vaccine-group-sues-facebook-claims-fact-checking-is-censorship/
Science Fiction: Ben watched the 1933 King Kong with his family and we talk about it a bit. Devon gives us his opinions on Umbrella Academy and he finally watched Watchmen, so he talks about that too. Steven tells us about the cool tech that's in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Ben talks about the non-Burnout Burnout games Dangerous Driving and Danger Zone 2. We then dig into Lower Decks and talk about the many trials that Chief O'Brien has had to face.
https://www.polygon.com/reviews/2020/8/19/21374936/microsoft-flight-simulator-review-pc
https://chiefobrienatwork.com/
This episode contains: We start off by talking about the weather and how it's melting us. We then transition to distance learning and what we're doing with our kids.
News: Steven does a small article about fungus from Chernobyl which eats nuclear radiation via radiosynthesis.
https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/videos/chernobyl-fungus-eats-nuclear-radiation-via-radiosynthesis-338464
This Week in Space: Mystery solved: Bright areas on Ceres come from salty water below. We now know if there is liquid inside of Ceres and how long ago the dwarf planet was geologically active.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200811134900.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fROq-ZxtvnU
More Excuses to Spreadsheet about Microsoft: Scientists rename human genes to stop Microsoft Excel from misreading them as dates. We talk about why scientists are doing this and laugh at some of the more ridiculously named genes.
https://www.theverge.com/2020/8/6/21355674/human-genes-rename-microsoft-excel-misreading-dates
Science Fiction: We talk about the second episode of Lower Decks and Ben rattles off all the neat things that Steven missed. We then talk about Doom Patrol and how no, Matt, it isn't a cartoon. But Harley Quinn is, and Ben thinks it's fantastic and not for kids. Steven talks about how he finished Community and we converse a bit about shows that are coming back to help provide relief for covid-19. Ben gives us a spiel about the digital Harry Potter books that have it's illustration animated and then talks at length about Dreams. Not his dreams, but the Dreams game on the PS4. It seems very, very cool.
This episode contains: We get this episode rolling with some talk about our sick pets. Don't worry all is well, except our carpets.
The Future is so Bright, You have to Wear SPF 300: Chemists have created the brightest-ever fluorescent materials. Chemists formulated positively charged fluorescent dyes into a new class of materials called small-molecule ionic isolation lattices (SMILES). We talk about what these new fluorescent dyes could be used for and how they are truly amazing.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200806111859.htm
Math: How does yield of 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate compare against Halifax explosion, Hiroshima bombing? We talk about the tragedy in Beirut and how the explosions of ammonium nitrate compares against other powerful explosions. We also attempt to drill down on what ammonium nitrate actually does / is, but kinda fail.
https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-beirut-blast-how-does-yield-of-2750-tonnes-of-ammonium-nitrate-compare-against-halifax-explosion-hiroshima-bombing-2836137
Technology: We take a moment to talk about the Firefox web browser, and different ways that you can keep yourself safe on the internet. Ben also has some great tips on how to stop SMS spam on your phones!
Science Fiction: Steven has watched several episodes of the second season of Umbrella Academy, but Ben hasn't even seen a trailer! For any of it! So, Steven gives the premise for the show and the comic in a very non-spoilery way. We've both watched the first episode of the new Star Trek series Lower Decks and talk about it at length; Steven with a casual eye, and Ben diving deep into it. And finally, Ben tells us about the fan fiction production Alone Together and if it can even be called fan fiction, when actors from Star Trek reprise their roles for un-official stories.
This episode contains: Devon is back for this episode, we try to talk about what we've been up to but it's all too depressing. On to the science!
This Week In Space: Mars Perseverance Rover Mission to Red Planet successfully launched. We talk about the recent Mars 2020 mission, what it is bringing to the red planet and what a MOXIE is.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200730133724.htm
Here's one thing you didn't know nori could do, number 1 will shock you: Seaweed extract outperforms remdesivir in blocking COVID-19 virus. We talk about how an extract from seaweed can act as a decoy molecule to help defeat covid-19.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200724104228.htm
Last Week In Space: Scientists propose plan to determine if Planet Nine is a primordial black hole. We talk about what a black hole is and how they can be detected, then see how that applies to the hypothesized Planet Nine, which could indeed be a black hole the size of a grapefruit.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200712105456.htm
Mister Rogers' Neighborhood: We take a quick detour to celebrate an awesome man. Visit this link and try not to cry:
https://twitter.com/ByTwistwood/status/1109936608122454020
Science Fiction: Ben is excited for the upcoming 23 Weeks of Trek, which has two new seasons of Trek shows airing back to back. Steven quickly talks about his learning Blendr. Ben tells us about the disappointing X-Men Dark Phoenix movie. Steven has been playing Grounded, which is pretty much Honey, I Shrunk the Kids the video game.
This episode contains: Ben was torn from his family and their viewing of Spider-man 2 to record this podcast. Was it worth it?
Geology Rocks: Plato was right, the Earth is made of cubes, on average. Researchers find the average shape for fractured rocks is a cube. Three dimensional polyhedron shapes, when sliced several times, will average into a cube. We talk about Plato and Captain Planet as well.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200720112214.htm
Please, please, please let me get what I want: Breakthrough blood test detects positive covid-19 result in 20 minutes. New method detects positive covid-19 cases using blood samples in about 20 minutes, identifies if one has contracted the virus. We talk about how a test done this quick would revolutionize this pandemic. We also talk about how Ben was mask-shamed, and how we're preaching to the choir with our science talk.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200717101037.htm
Science Fiction: We cover a lot of television. Here's a list: Dark, LOST, Game of Thrones, Doom Patrol, The Boys, Star Trek, For All Mankind, Star Trek Prodigy, Star Trek Lower Decks, Animorphs and Avatar: The Last Airbender. There's more of course, but you'll have to listen to find out.
This episode contains: We get off to a rough start this episode, we chat about Devon's roof caving in, why the Beatles took so long to join iTunes and sound effect editing. Don't worry, we eventually get to the science.
All The Lovely People, Where Do They All Come From?: World population likely to shrink after mid-century, forecasting major shifts in global population and economic power. New estimates show the world population peaking in 2064 with 9.7 billion and declining to 8.8 billion by 2100. We talk about what is changing in our world for these numbers to make sense, and how our world will change accordingly.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200715150444.htm
Light at the End of the Tunnel: Experimental COVID-19 vaccine safe, and generates immune response. The investigational vaccine mRNA-1273 was well tolerated and prompted neutralizing antibody activity in healthy adults. We talk about this amazing news and why science is so slow.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/07/200714171338.htm
Science Fiction: We quickly touch upon such topics as breath holding, the houses in Harry Potter, and Candyland before settling on the classic book from our youth, My Teacher is an Alien. Ben is reading it to his son, who loves it. We talk more about Bruce Coville's work before a segue into the newly announced book by Ernest Cline, Ready Player Two. We talk about if a sequel was required and wonder what it could possibly be about. Steven gets us up to speed on the newly announced show Star Wars: The Bad Batch, about a group of specialized clones and what they're up to after the Clone Wars end. Ben has been watching Doom Patrol and Steven asks for a reason to watch, to which he is given many. Steven then talks about The Old Guard, the Netflix movie adapted from the Greg Rucka comic. It's a good movie.
This episode contains: Devon is back! He tells us about what he's been up to, including some family drama? Also, we talk about what we did for the 4th and Hamilton.
This Week In Space: Mysterious 'fast radio bursts' fire rhythmically through the cosmos, study finds. FRB 180916.J0158+65 is firing off rhythmically, in a cycle that repeats every 16 days. We don't know exactly why, but we talk about several theories.
https://www.space.com/fast-radio-bursts-rhythm-discovery.html
Yet Another Article From Ben About Feces: During brooding, chinstrap and Adélie penguins are reluctant to leave their eggs unguarded in the nest; the penguins will hunker down and let fly a projectile of poo—thereby ensuring both the safety of the eggs and the cleanliness of the nest. We talk about the rectal pressure of the penguins and how much math goes into this kind of science.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/07/poopy-projectiles-penguins-can-fling-their-feces-over-four-feet-study-finds/
Hornet Redux: We received a few emails from 'friend of the show Matt Dixon' one of which answered Steven's question of whether or not Hornets were useful. He also poses a questions regarding being a Skywalker and balancing a Jedi that was "too light".
Science Fiction: We talk about Jedi being too light and how that may not be possible. Devon watched Palm Springs and we give it a mini review. Ben has been watching Floor Is Lava and playing Hot Lava. Steven talks about The Batman and it's spin-off show that has been announced for HBO Max. Devon talks about the third season of Future Man and gives it high praise.
This episode contains: We're recording late, for various reason, and Devon can't join us. Everything is hard.
Brain Matters: Why are some words more memorable than others? Our brains recall the words 'pig', 'tank' and 'door' more often than others, including 'cat', 'street' and 'stair'. Researchers started with epilepsy patients and ended up at a Christmas Party to figure out how our brains organize words. It's quite the journey.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200629120204.htm
No Control, No Surprise: A new single sign-on algorithm that provides superior privacy has been developed; it does not disclose the user's identity and sensitive personal information to the service provider.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200629124054.htm
Science Fiction: A Fallout series has been announced by Amazon, lead by the creators of WestWorld. Steven is very excited. We watched the Apple TV trailer for Foundation. Steven is tentatively excited. The CBS All Access show Star Trek: Lower Decks has a release date and both Ben and Steven are on board, it looks fun. Ben and his son have been playing the Apple Arcade game Sneaky Sasquatch and having a blast. Steven brings up an article about how Qui-Gon Jinn should be considered a Skywalker.
https://screenrant.com/star-wars-qui-gon-jinn-skywalker-jedi-how/
This episode contains: We talk about how quarantine continues to affect us and our lives. Steven is having a tough time with his kids and Ben is having a better time with work.
Why don't we replace more body parts with jello?: The first cartilage-mimicking gel that's strong enough for knees has been developed. Cartilage provides a combination of cushiony-yet-strong that hydrogels haven't been able to match, until now. New hydrogel consists of stretchy spaghetti-like strands, rigid and basketlike strands, and a meshwork of cellulose fibers.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200626114755.htm
Bee Cool: Asian Hornets are appearing in the UK. They are a great threat to the honey bee population as they can eat thousands of them per day. We talk about the differences between Asian Hornets and Asian Giant Hornets. Thank you to @Kenobidarth for these articles!
https://www.belfastlive.co.uk/news/belfast-news/bee-killing-asian-hornet-warning-18413762
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/what-you-see-bee-killing-16901249
Science Fiction: Ben received the Tales From the Loop book and gives us the run-down. Some of the book reminds Steven of a book he read in 1997: Footprints of Thunder. Ben (and his son) played 'A Short Hike' on PC and highly recommends it. Steven continues to play The Last of Us Part 2 and it still very taken with it. Slight spoilers for the beginning of the game. Steven has been reading the 2015 book Star Wars: Aftermath and talks a bit about it. Ben has seen the pilot for Doom Patrol and says it's really good.
This episode contains: Ben has been quarantined for 100 days. We talk about Juneteenth and how to be anti-racist.
This Week in Space: New light has been shed on existing intelligent life across the galaxy. A new study calculates there could be more than 30 intelligent civilizations throughout our Galaxy. We talk about both the Fermi Paradox and the Drake equation.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200615092753.htm
Biological Imperative: Hookworm trial offers new hope to MS patients. Parasitic worms could offer a new treatment for the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis. We talk about the study, which dealt with hookworms applied with plaster to the arms. Also, something about the T cells.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200618150223.htm
Science Fiction: Steven watched Infinity Train on HBO Max and talks about the concept and bits about the first three episodes. Ben has watched a few episodes of Space Force and talks about how deeply uncomfortable it is. Steven is finally watching Community and talks about the Dan Harmon Story Circle. Ben gives a PSA about Voice Control on your iOS device. Steven has just started The Last of Us Part 2 and give his impressions. Ben has continued with reading Milk Run and gives additional impressions.
Last Words: We used to say 'I was stuck in traffic' and now we say 'I have connection issues'.
This episode contains: Working hard and hardly working. We both survived anther week in this madness.
Brain Matters: Tiny, magnetically powered neural stimulators have been developed. Using a 'magnetoelectric' power source, these neural stimulators are now a viable option for clinical grade implants. Steven talks a lot about battery miniaturization and how it applies to developing science.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200608132537.htm
Here's Looking at you, Kid: World's first spherical artificial eye has 3D retina. An electrochemical eye has been developed and we couldn't be more over the moon. The talk devolves into a 'what if' scenario and whether or not we would choose to replace our poorly functional eyes with artificial ones.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200610102726.htm
Science Fiction: Steven does a mini review of Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal. Ben explains Infinity Train and it's core concepts. We do a quick dive into the Playstation 5 news and The Last of Us Part 2. We do a final (we promise) talk about The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Ben has been reading Milk Run from Nathan Lowell and Steven attempts to explain the behemoth that the board game Gloomhaven is.
This episode contains: We start off this episode talking about the historic SpaceX and NASA launch. We also rail on technology and parents a bit. Also, what's the difference between a rocket and a missile?
Bee Puns Really Sting: Bumblebees can speed up the flowering of plants. When pollen is in short supply, bumblebees damage plant leaves to accelerates flower production. We talk about their biting strategy and how it can be linked to climate change.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200526134651.htm
Wake up!: We talk about how to make the healthiest coffee, but not really. Turns out that filtered coffee is the "safest" coffee to drink. With a half a million sample size, this study tells us a lot about drinking coffee and death, and perhaps drinking coffee is healthier than not drinking any at all.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200422214101.htm
Science Fiction: We wrap up our talk about The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. There is some spoiler talk and Steven gives his impression about the ending of the book. Ben has some issues with the season finale of Upload. We do more spoiler talk and converse about the nature of seasoned tv and how sometimes a show can radically shift characters to the detriment of the show. Steven talks about the finale of Rick and Morty, non-spoiler since Ben hasn't seen it yet. And it wouldn't be Science Faction if Ben didn't talk about HBO Max.
This episode contains: This episode is full of anniversaries and sick burns. We also talk about the nonsense that is the 5G blocking USB stick that does ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. We talk about it in depth, more depth than we were anticipating.
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52810220
Biological Imperative: Migration patterns reveal an 'Eden' for ancient humans and animals. Researchers have discovered a new migration pattern (or lack of) at Pinnacle Point, a now-submerged region in South Africa.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200522140210.htm
Threat Level Brown: Sewage could signal impending burst of COVID-19 cases. Scientists took daily samples of sewage sludge from the East Shore Water Pollution Abatement Facility in New Haven, Connecticut, which serves a population of around 200,000 people. The researchers then measured the total amount of RNA in each sample, as well as the amount of SARS-CoV-2 RNA. This showed that levels of coronavirus rose over that time, peaked, and then decreased. This could be used to warn the public of impending cases of Covid-19. There hasn't been any peer review on this study, so take it with a grain of salt.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/05/pooping-for-public-health-coronavirus-in-sewage-could-warn-of-outbreaks/
Science Fiction: Steven covers the delay of all Star Wars: The High Republic media in the face of the current pandemic. Ben talks about the delay in Picard Season 2 and how it could potentially help the show. Steven has been playing Space Haven on PC and give a mini-review on the space colony builder. Ben has rediscovered the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics and talks about the continuing seasons. Steven talks more about The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Ben and Steven talk about what HBO Max has and how it developed into a streaming platform.
This episode contains: Welcome Devon back to the podcast after his paternity leave...but don't get too excited, he's only back because this is our 300th episode! We talk kids, Simpsons and other importance milestones.
Fracking Gorram Dren: Repeating the “F” word can improve threshold for pain during an ice water challenge. A recent study found that repeating the “F” word during an ice water experiment increased subjects’ tolerance and threshold for pain. However, reciting made-up swear words showed no such pain-reducing effects. We have fun talking about how "fouch" and "twizpipe" sound ridiculous, but we can't stop saying them.
https://www.psypost.org/2020/05/repeating-the-f-word-can-improve-threshold-for-pain-during-an-ice-water-challenge-56828
Madlibs: We do a fake re-open of the show and rehash some old articles, with a bit of fun. One article was from our 100th episode and one from our 200th episode.
Science Fiction: Steven watched Yesterday and Joker and gives mini reviews of each. We talk about HBO Max and The Snyder Cut of Justice League. Ben is excited for the announced Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Steven watched all of Upload and recommends it. Devon has been keeping up with Rick and Morty and we talk about some of the latest episodes. Steven is reading A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and is loving it so far. We also talk about Cobb Vanth and why he may be awesome.
This episode contains: Steven and Ben talk about napping and salad. Don't worry, we get to the science pretty quick.
This Week in Space: ESO instrument finds closest Black Hole to Earth. There's a black hole so close to Earth you can "see" it with your naked eye and it's part of a trinary system. HR 6819 has a star and a black hole orbiting each other and another sun orbiting both of those. Too cool.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200506091537.htm
Space is Big and Old: Hayabusa2 reveals more secrets from Ryugu. Ryugu's interaction with the sun changes what we know about asteroid history. We talk about material never before seen on Earth and Steven tries to connect it to a Where's Waldo book.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200511112547.htm
Science Fiction: We talk about the latest two episodes of Rick and Morty. "Never Ricking Morty" was amazing and confusing and "Promortyus" was a standard scifi spoof turned on it's head. Good times. Steven played a PC game called "Deliver Us The Moon" and gives a mini review. The hosts top off the episode talking about tinkering with tech when what you really want to do is play a darn game.
This episode contains: Steven's mind is a void and Ben is getting back to his other, other job, book publishing.
https://penciledin.com/
All We Are is Dust in the Wind, Dude: Exoplanet disappears in recent Hubble observations. The exoplanet that we have been observing in the Fomalhaut system is now gone. It is theorized that it may have been destroyed and is now a dust cloud so wide spread that we can no longer detect it.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200420165722.htm
DOOOOOM: NASA space laser missions map 16 years of ice sheet loss. We are losing a massive amount of ice each year due to climate change. So much that it needs to be measured in gigatons.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200501135243.htm
SciFi: We watch the recent trailer for the Netflix series Space Force and give our impressions. Steven talks way too much about Clone Wars and talk about how the series ended. Steven also flipped on Tales From The Loop and now recommends it. Finally, we talk about the final two episodes of the third season of WestWorld. We talk about what this season did right and wrong and how the show is going to change going into the fourth season.
This episode contains: Birth announcement! Devon and Jen had a healthy baby boy, Elliot Liam Craft. Congrats! Ben tells us of his adventures in Minecraft with his son. Steven answers questions about the moon landing that his daughter has.
This Week In Space: Geologists have created the first comprehensive geologic map of the Moon. They pieced together maps from the Apollo mission and current satellite imagery to create a full geologic map that can be used for future missions.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200422214035.htm
Cyberpunk 2020: Mind controlled prosthesis are now part of everyday life. New prosthesis are connected to nerve, muscle and skeleton and are controlled by the users mind. They can feel a wide range of sensations. But not pain. We discuss if they should be able to feel pain.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200430110321.htm
Science Fiction: Ben regales us with his journey down the Memory Beta rabbit hole where he read too much about Wesley Crusher. Steven and Ben have been playing Fallout 76 with each other and talk about their experiences. Steven played some Gears Tactics and gives a quick overview. Ben has been reading Star Trek Best Destiny and remarks on how it reminded him of Quarter Share by Nathan Lowell. We have a large discussion on Tales From the Loop and Ben has to defend it somewhat from Steven, who needs some convincing. Then we look at Things From the Flood, and you should too.
This episode contains: Benjamin Daniel Lawless joins us once again. We're on babywatch as Devon is anticipating the arrival of his new son. We do some dad talk and praise Cosmic Yoga.
If at first you don't succeed, pick yourself up and try again: When faced with a decision, people may know which choice gives them the best chance of success, but still take the other option, a new study suggests.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200420084253.htm
Biological Imperative: The sensation of sweetness starts on the tongue, but sugar molecules also trip sensors in the gut that directly signal the brain. This could explain why artificial sweeteners fail to satisfy the insatiable craving for sugar.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200415133627.htm
The Quizzes: We give each other quizzes! Steven starts us out with a Star Trek for Devon and Ben. Ben gives the Star Wars quiz to Steven and Devon, and lastly, Devon gives the Harry Potter quiz to Ben and Steven. Play along at home!
WestWorld: We end the episode with a little chat about episode 6 of the current season of Westworld, Decoherence. Devon wants to know where the "good news" people were. Did everyone have a messed up life? We discuss.
This episode contains: Ben is back again. We talk about what we’ve been up to during the quarantine. Devon talks about his new mouse.
Life, uh, Finds a Way: Ancient teeth from Peru hint now-extinct monkeys crossed Atlantic from Africa. Four fossilized monkey teeth discovered deep in the Peruvian Amazon provide new evidence that more than one group of ancient primates journeyed across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa. The teeth are from a newly discovered species belonging to an extinct family of African primates known as parapithecids. Fossils discovered at the same site in Peru had earlier offered the first proof that South American monkeys evolved from African primates.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200409141528.htm
Offspring Song: Time on screens has little impact on kids' social skills, study suggests. Despite the time spent with smartphones and social media, young people today are just as socially skilled as those from the previous generation, a new study suggests.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200413103532.htm
Keyboard not Preset, Press Any Key: Unemployment checks are being held up by a coding language almost nobody knows. A survey by The Verge found that at least 12 states still use COBOL in some capacity in their unemployment systems. Over the years, COBOL programmers have aged out of the workforce, forcing states to scramble for fluent coders in times of national crisis. Without additional funding from the federal government, it’s difficult for states to modernize their COBOL code and invest in hardware that can withstand the mounting number of unemployment requests they’re receiving this year.
https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/14/21219561/coronavirus-pandemic-unemployment-systems-cobol-legacy-software-infrastructure
Sci-Fi: Devon saw Birds of Prey, Aquaman, Dune, Ben tells us about Tales From the Loop, Steven saw It Chapter II, Devon is reading The Singularity Trap by Dennis E. Taylor, Ben asks us about the importance of watching the Star Trek movies in order, Quentin Tarantino was never going to direct a Star Trek movie, Steven subjects us to more Fallout 76.
This episode contains: We’re recording from our secret bunkers. Devon tells us about Lego Masters.
Big Things, Small Package: On Mars or Earth, biohybrid can turn carbon dioxide into new products, Bacteria on nanowires convert sunlight, carbon dioxide and water to organic building blocks. Chemists have created a hybrid system of bacteria and nanowires that captures energy from sunlight and transfers it to the bacteria to turn carbon dioxide and water into organic molecules and oxygen. On Earth, such a biohybrid could remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. On Mars, it would provide colonists with raw material to manufacture organic compounds ranging from fuels to drugs. The efficiency is greater than the photosynthetic efficiency of most plants.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200331130031.htm
Paleontology: Giant dinosaur footprints found on the roof of a cave in France. Recently reported in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, researchers from the University of Burgundy–Franche-Comté discovered the three dinosaur trackways during an expedition in 2015 around the labyrinth-like Castelbouc Cave beneath the Causse Méjean plateau in southern France.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/giant-dinosaur-footprints-found-on-the-roof-of-a-cave-in-france/
Sci-Fi: Steven talks about cooking, VR escape rooms, Westworld, The Matrix 4, and more!
This episode contains: We’re still stuck in our houses. We discuss how we’re dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 situation.
Biological Imperative: Ancestor of all animals identified in Australian fossils. A wormlike creature that lived more than 555 million years ago is the earliest bilaterian. Geologists have discovered the first ancestor on the family tree that contains most animals today, including humans. The wormlike creature, Ikaria wariootia, is the earliest bilaterian, or organism with a front and back, two symmetrical sides, and openings at either end connected by a gut. It was found in Ediacaran Period deposits in Australia and was 2-7 millimeters long, with the largest the size of a grain of rice.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200323152108.htm
Biological Imperative: Squid can control their genetic coding by editing their RNA. "Now we are showing that squid can modify the RNAs out in the periphery of the cell. That means, theoretically, they can modify protein function to meet the localized demands of the cell. That gives them a lot of latitude to tailor the genetic information, as needed." The capacity to edit the mRNA outside of the nucleus enables the squid to alter which proteins are expressed (coded for) along different parts of the nervous system. The team isn’t yet sure exactly why squid have evolved this capability, which implies it plays a beneficial role. mRNA editing within the nucleus has been observed in octopus and cuttlefish, which has led to researchers questioning if perhaps this tweaking skill has contributed to these invertebrates' superior intelligence.
https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/squid-can-control-their-genetic-coding-by-editing-their-rna/
Sci-Fi: Rick and Morty, Solar Opposites, Westworld, Tiger King, and more!
This episode contains: We’re joined by frequent guest host, Ben Lawless. We talk about how were all handling the quarantine.
In cyberspace, no one can hear you read: Internet Archive offers 1.4 million copyrighted books for free online. Until this week, the Open Library only allowed people to "check out" as many copies as the library owned. Of course, these restrictions are artificial for digital files. Earlier this week, with libraries closing around the world, the Internet Archive announced a major change: it is temporarily getting rid of these waiting lists. They're calling it the National Emergency Library. The Internet Archive says the program will ensure students are able to get access to books they need to continue their studies from home during the coronavirus lockdown.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/03/internet-archive-offers-thousands-of-copyrighted-books-for-free-online/
Coronavirus Article: Coronavirus Will Change the World Permanently. Here’s How. A crisis on this scale can reorder society in dramatic ways, for better or worse. Here are 34 big thinkers’ predictions for what’s to come.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/03/19/coronavirus-effect-economy-life-society-analysis-covid-135579
Sci-Fi: Flight of the Navigator, Undone, Explorers, Man Seeking Woman, Half-Life: Alyx, Avenue 5, Picard and more!
This episode contains: No St. Patricks’ day celebrations for us now that we’re in lock down. We discuss like in the time of COVID-19. We then discuss the death of flat-Earther “Mad” Mike Hughes.
https://www.wired.com/story/diy-rockets-tragedy-mad-mike-hughes/
Music, Computers and Law?: An Algorithm Has Created Every Possible Musical Melody So No One Can Ever Sue For Copyright Infringement.
https://www.iflscience.com/technology/algorith-created-every-possible-musical-melody-no-one-can-ever-sue-copyright-infringement/?fbclid=IwAR1PvdBo7QLVDRwJ5WhWGsgc7iiRfyeQXZQCcY4BJ4lYQzWXL9gsQ3Dp0pk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfXn_ecH5Rw
Sci-Fi: Steven hasn't been able to consume any sci-fi except for playing Satisfactory. Devon has caught up on Picard, and is still very lukewarm on the series. We forget about Westworld! But then we talk about it! Spoilers for Season 3, Episode 1.
This episode contains: We’re broadcasting from our quarantine bunkers. We of course talk about the coronavirus.
Evolutionarily Speaking: To predict an epidemic, evolution can't be ignored. Whether it's coronavirus or misinformation, scientists can use mathematical models to predict how something will spread across populations. But what happens if a pathogen mutates, or information becomes modified, changing the speed at which it spreads? Researchers now show for the first time how important these considerations are.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200302153551.htm
This Week in Space: Astronomers detect biggest explosion in the history of the Universe. Scientists studying a distant galaxy cluster have discovered the biggest explosion seen in the Universe since the Big Bang. The blast came from a supermassive black hole at the center of a galaxy hundreds of millions of light-years away. It released five times more energy than the previous record holder.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200227114459.htm
Sci-Fi: Archer 1999, Picard, The Foundation, Altered Carbon.
This episode contains: We talk about our different styles of comedy. We also talk about parenting. Steven then talks about some new items before getting into the science. Steven Spielberg will not direct Indiana Jones 5. Earth has a new moon.
Next Week In Space: How to deflect an asteroid. Engineers devise a decision map to identify the best mission type to deflect an incoming asteroid.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200219152843.htm
Robot Overlords: Artificial intelligence yields new antibiotic. A deep-learning model identifies a powerful new drug that can kill many species of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Using a machine-learning algorithm, researchers have identified a powerful new antibiotic compound. In laboratory tests, the drug killed many of the world's most problematic disease-causing bacteria, including some strains that are resistant to all known antibiotics. It also cleared infections in two different mouse models.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200220141748.htm
Sci-Fi: Star Wars: Project Luminous, Beforeigners, Lock and Key, Jojo Rabbit, and Altered Carbon
This episode contains: We get started with some disturbing corn facts.
Biological Imperative: Scientists find ally in fight against brain tumors: Ebola. Glioblastomas are relentless, hard-to-treat, and often lethal brain tumors. Scientists have enlisted a most unlikely ally in efforts to treat this form of cancer -- elements of the Ebola virus.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200212150149.htm
Next Week in Space: Simple, fuel-efficient rocket engine could enable cheaper, lighter spacecraft. Researchers have developed a mathematical model that describes how rotating detonation engines work.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/02/200218143706.htm
Scfi-Fi: The Foundation series, Westworld 3, Beforeigners, 1917, Timecode, return of the Clone Wars, more.
This episode contains: We discuss our Valentine’s Day plans. Devon also reviews the new Lego show.
Brain Matters: Brain networks come 'online' during adolescence to prepare teenagers for adult life. New brain networks come 'online' during adolescence, allowing teenagers to develop more complex adult social skills, but potentially putting them at increased risk of mental illness, according to new research.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/01/200129104705.htm
Brain Matters: People Are Weirded Out To Discover That Some People Don't Have An Internal Monologue. It turns out there is a range of the level of internal monologue we all have.
https://www.iflscience.com/brain/people-are-weirded-out-to-discover-that-some-people-dont-have-an-internal-monologue/
Sci-Fi: Locke and Key, Bojack Horseman, The Good Place, Picard, and more.
The View From Halfway Down: https://medium.com/invisible-illness/the-view-from-halfway-down-798a77f5ed5b