SGU Episode 248

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

Apollo 13 Remembered

 * http://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=70129991

Water on Mars

 * http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2010/04/12/new-evidence-of-transient-liquid-water-on-mars/

Bioprinting

 * http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6382QM20100409

Science Education in the US

 * http://www.theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=1832

Richard Dawkins vs The Pope

 * http://skepchick.org/blog/2010/04/yes-the-pope-should-be-arrested-and-i-dont-care-who-does-it/

Who's That Noisy

 * Answer to last week: Cheetah

Question # 1 - Colour Therapy
"Love your show (Jay, you're Awesome) :) Just wanted to send you guys a laugh, It's called colour therapy and invokes everything from Chakras to Dowsing. http://www.colourtherapyhealing.com/ It brought up an interesting thought for me, I've always been told that red makes you hungry, blue makes you tired, etc. Do you know if any of this is true? I've tried to find out but it's hard to wade through all the crap on the internet. Anyway, thanks for the wonderful show you put out, it does many people the world of good. Caitlin"

Interview with Seth Shostak

 * Seth in the Senior Astronomy for SETI - The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence

Science or Fiction
Item # 1: Including the recent announcement of 9 new expoplanets, more than half of all so-called 'hot Jupiters' orbit their parent star significantly out of its plane of rotation, and 6 are fully retrograde - challenging current models of planetary formation. Item # 2: A new report of the National Research Council indicates that the incorporation of genetically engineered crops into US agriculture has had significant benefits for US farmers and the environment. Item # 3: Feral ferret populations are on the rise in north American Cities, such as New York, where they have become popular as a means of rodent control.

Quote of the Week
"Be warned that if you wish, as I do, to build a society in which individuals cooperate generously and unselfishly towards a common good, you can expect little help from biological nature. Let us try to *teach* generosity and altruism, because we are born selfish. - Richard Dawkins"