SGU Episode 124

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SGU Episode 124
December 5th 2007
Krauss.jpg
(brief caption for the episode icon)

SGU 123                      SGU 125

Skeptical Rogues
S: Steven Novella

B: Bob Novella

R: Rebecca Watson

J: Jay Novella

E: Evan Bernstein

Quote of the Week

'No amount of experiments can ever prove me right; a single experiment may at anytime prove me wrong.'

Albert Einstein

Links
Download Podcast
Show Notes
Forum Discussion


Introduction[edit]

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

News Items ()[edit]

Hucka-bee ()[edit]

  • www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1934276/posts
    www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Blogs.View&Blog_id=824
    www.theness.com/articles.asp?id=41


Moonbeams in Arizona ()[edit]

  • news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071205/sc_nm/moonbeams_dc_1;_ylt=AlH2J7H2OnC8mRO1ARi_KooE1vAI


Chimps Smarter than Humans? ()[edit]

  • news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7124156.stm


Anti-vaccine propaganda on Youtube ()[edit]

  • www.physorg.com/news116082504.html

Questions and E-mails ()[edit]

Stem Cell Con ()[edit]

A friend is getting adult stem cells to help with his elderly father. He is desperate so I can understand his willingness to try anything. I included the website listing below.
I am almost certain it is a scam. Someone is trying to replace supplements with these 'stem cell' pills. Not sure if it is any better.
Just curious if there are any papers or sites that might provide a more educated look at this stuff?
Are there stem cell vendors like this popping up all over the country?

stemcell4wellness.org/product.html

Richard Perceful
USA

www.mlmwatch.org/04C/Stemtech/stemtech.html


Information Theory ()[edit]

Someone recently posted this on another forum I frequent. I'm curious to know if anyone else here has read it, and what you think about it.

www.cosmicfingerprints.com/iidb.htm

It was difficult to read some of it, because the entire time I was reading I envisioned this guy pointing a finger and screaming at me. Also, I searched before I posted it; I'm sorry if this topic has been covered before.

Channel Lox
From the SGU Forums
skepchick.org/skepticsguide/viewtopic.php?p=147177#147177

Name That Logical Fallacy ()[edit]

  • Logical Fallacies

We humans must constantly be aware of the fallacy that 'correlation does mean causation'. Although I understand this fallacy, I'm not sure how the burden of proof is met. How do scientists prove causation? What burden of proof must one meet to satisfy skeptics and scientists?


Brandon Putz
Edwardsville, IL

Interview with Lawrence Krauss ()[edit]

  • www.phys.cwru.edu/~krauss/

    www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2007/11/21/scicosmos121.xml&CMP=ILC-mostviewedbox

    Director of the Center for Education and Research in Cosmology and Astrophysics at Case Western Reserve University

    Author of many popular books including:
    Fear of Physics
    The Physics of Star Trek
    Beyond Star Trek
    Atom: An Odyssey from the Big Bang to Life on Earth...and Beyond
    Hiding in the Mirror: The Mysterious Allure of Extra Dimensions, from Plato to String Theory and Beyond

Science or Fiction ()[edit]

Question #1: Contrary to prior belief, new evidence suggests that southwestern American indians were not introduced to alcohol by Europeans but were fermenting beer from corn for centuries prior to contact. Question #2: New research shows that young adults who have a close relationship with their parents are actually more independent. Question #3: New evidence suggests that silicon-based life formed on earth prior to organic life and may have served as a template for the first organic cells.

Skeptical Puzzle ()[edit]

This Week's Puzzle:

A person does the following things:

Tugs their ear
Puts a pen in their mouth
Passes gas
Induces vomiting
Pulls their tongue
Simulates being drowned
Presses a brass rod against their cheek

What are they trying to accomplish?


Last Week's puzzle:

An enemy of scientology
And a used car salesman to boot
He developed a strange philosophy
Of which Zen mastery was the root

Self-taught with no formal degree
He changed his name, and ran from home
Gullible masses made him rich, you see
He fled the country with money to roam


Answer: Werner Erhard
Winner: Zam

Quote of the Week ()[edit]

'No amount of experiments can ever prove me right; a single experiment may at anytime prove me wrong.'- Albert Einstein

S: The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe is produced by the New England Skeptical Society in association with the James Randi Educational Foundation and skepchick.org. For more information on this and other episodes, please visit our website at www.theskepticsguide.org. For questions, suggestions, and other feedback, please use the "Contact Us" form on the website, or send an email to info@theskepticsguide.org. If you enjoyed this episode, then please help us spread the word by voting for us on Digg, or leaving us a review on iTunes. You can find links to these sites and others through our homepage. 'Theorem' is produced by Kineto, and is used with permission.

References


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