SGU Episode 275

Introduction
You're listening to the Skeptics' Guide to the Universe, your escape to reality.

Benoit Mandlebrot 1924-2010

 * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beno%C3%AEt_Mandelbrot

Stem Cell Funding

 * http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-28/u-s-can-continue-embryonic-stem-cell-funding-through-appeal-court-says.html

Do Mummies Get Cancer?

 * http://theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=2402

Asteroids Buzz Earth

 * http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/09/100908-asteroids-earth-nasa-catalina-sky-survey-science-space/

Question #1 - Corrections
"Regarding Whale Feces and the ocean nitrogen cycle"

Question #2 - T-Rex Blood Cells
"Flipping through channels I saw a guy on stage talking animatedly to a large group of teenagers. It was called ... Maybe... Science Faqs? and I think his name was (now I'm gonna regret not googling first) Greg bachelor. He wasn't just talking antievolution, he was serious young earth creationist. And it looked like the kids were lapping it up. He basically said the reason we don't see dinosaur and human bones in the same geological layers is because of different sedimentation rates... He did bring up a tyrannosaur skeleton that had RBCs in it and that since all cellular elements should've been fossilized by then (according to 'evolutionists') the dating methods must be seriously flawed. Any thoughts? Sorry about this, I don't have access to a computer while temping here in AK, so I'm doing all this on muh iPod and it takes forever. PS I'm listening to every episode and I LOVE YOU ALL. Next time anyone visits Hawaii island let me know and I'll gladly be your personal tour guide. Mahalo, Alan Laird Ketchikan/Kailua-kona"

Question #3 - Help - My Friend is a Pseudoscientist
"Audio Question Hi Rogues, I'm having a bit of an ethical, moral, skeptical dilemma. Through Facebook I recently realized that one of the people I went to highschool with was a huge fan of Darwin. And being a fan of Darwin myself I decided to strike up a conversation. It went well, had a good conversation, until about two-thirds of the way through. I asked her what she was doing and she informed me that she was working with monkeys in Washington state. I asked her what experiment she was doing and she told me that they were running a battery of cognitive tests and taking gut biopsies. Now doubtlessly it's occurred to you what is happening, but it didn't occur to me at the time. I asked her if these measurements had anything to do with each other. She told me that they did, in fact, and asked me if I knew who Andrew Wakefield was. Instantly I realized my oversight. And so I endeavored to end the conversation politely. I informed her that I did know who Andrew Wakefield was, but I didn't divulge my opinions of his research. Should I say anything? It seems to me like this could hurt her career, working with Wakefield, and I feel like I should say something. But at the same time I think she has a lot of respect for Wakefield, and I wouldn't want to just throw away a friendship. Thanks, Rogues. Emerson White"

Who's That Noisy

 * Answer to last week - solar seismography

Science or Fiction
Item #1: Young couples are better than long-term partners at discerning each other’s preferences. Item #2: A recent study shows that gaining muscle-mass is easier for those who have gained muscle before. Item #3: In recent study it was found that people in their 20’s felt sadder than people in their 60’s did after viewing an emotionally distressing scene from a movie.

Quote of the Week
"In science, 'fact' can only mean 'confirmed to such a degree that it would be perverse to withhold provisional assent.' I suppose that apples might start to rise tomorrow, but the possibility does not merit equal time in physics classrooms. Stephen Jay Gould"