SGU Episode 288

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

This Day in Skepticism

 * Y2K38: Jan 19, 2038 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_2038_problem

No Ghosts in my Backyard

 * http://oncampus.macleans.ca/education/2011/01/14/ubc-shouldnt-cede-to-superstition/

Simulating Earth

 * http://www.zeitnews.org/index.php/Applied-Sciences/scientists-plan-qliving-earth-simulatorq-to-track-disease-disasters-and-traffic.html

Reaction to Bem's Psi Research

 * http://theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=2701&cpage=1#comment-29105

Engineering Chickens

 * http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19974-engineered-chickens-cant-pass-on-flu.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news

Cloning Mammoths

 * http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/8257223/Mammoth-could-be-reborn-in-four-years.html

Who's That Noisy

 * Answer to last week: a cat

Question #1 - The Sun as Battery
"Hello SGU - You guys are tremendous, witty, and knowledgeable. I'm so glad I found you one day about 8 months ago while looking for new science podcasts. Here in Colorado, the healthiest and most intelligent state in the Union :), we love SGU! I'm working in the renewable energy industry now, so once in a while I get a cool-aid-chugging friend sending me links and info on what usually turns out to be your average perpetual motion/free energy machine. This link is slightly different. Yes, this guy has all the credentials necessary for permanent residency in Cookville, USA, but there does appear to be an actual scientific effect going on here, so I thought you could set me straight on what I'm seeing. http://greenecoclub.com/tesla/ Enjoy, Tom Boyd Denver CO"

Question #2 - Land Sharks
"Sharks swimming on the streets of (flooded) Australia Jay will certainly love this one: http://www.thechronicle.com.au/story/2011/01/14/ipswich-bull-sharks-spotted-flood-affected-streets/ Love the show, by the way! Cheers, Felipe Campelo Belo Horizonte, Brazil"

Science or Fiction
Item #1: A recent study shows for the first time American's have a greater negative than positive attitude toward science. Item #2: A Spanish study finds that tractor rollovers are the #1 cause of farm-related deaths. [http://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/site/en/weizman.asp?pi=371&doc_id=6371 and== Quote of the Week == "'The tough mind is sharp and penetrating, breaking through the crust of legends and myths and sifting the true from the false. Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.' — Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr"