A Little Bit Of Science

A relaxing trip to Japan turns into an accidental run down a double black diamond, a mathematician solves “impossible” problems because nobody told him they were impossible, and missing scientists get pulled into UFO flavoured rumours. This week, Will and Rod bounce between snowboarding psychology, statistical legend, conspiracy culture, and the strange ways expectations shape what we think we can do. We start on the slopes, where fear is sometimes just signage, then jump to George Dantzig, who solved famous unsolved statistics problems after mistaking them for homework. Same theme, different setting: not knowing the odds can be a weird kind of advantage. Then things get darker with disappearances, military secrecy, and the internet’s favourite genre, plus a look at the gluten conundrum and why non coeliac gluten sensitivity is still messy science. Bodies are complicated, and belief can play a bigger role than people like to admit. Finally, we head to the Marshall Islands, where a concrete dome covering radioactive waste from US nuclear testing sits in the Pacific like a “temporary” fix that has to survive storms, rising seas, and time. CHAPTER MARKERS 00:00 Science Snack Intro 00:43 Snowboarding The Hard Way 02:48 Expectations And Limits 03:16 Dantzig And The Simplex 06:02 Accidental Unsolved Problems 09:26 Never Tell Me The Odds 10:04 Missing General UFO Links 12:52 List Of Scientist Cases 16:28 Politics And FBI Probe 18:07 Conspiracy Dots And Anti Gravity 21:05 Flood The Zone Meteorology Tease 22:10 Hurricanes Go Backwards 23:02 Weather Control Conspiracies 25:02 Meteorologists Under Threat 27:47 Lessons From Misinformation 28:40 Nuclear Tests In Paradise 30:34 Inside The Runit Dome 34:20 Cracks Leaks And Sea Rise 36:57 Good Gluten News 40:19 Gluten Sensitivity Reality Check 42:35 Nocebo FODMAPs And Advice 46:16 Wrap Up And Listener Callout SOURCES: https://futurism.com/conspiracy-meteorologists-hurricanes https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/07/marjorie-taylor-greene-hurricane-helene https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/hurricane-milton-misinformation-meteorlogist-death-threats-1235130352/ https://futurism.com/space/fbi-investigating-deaths-disappearances-top-scientists https://futurism.com/space/another-military-ufo-guy-died https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fbi-investigating-possible-links-between-deaths-and-disappearances-of-at-least-10-scientists/ https://www.sciencealert.com/this-infamous-radioactive-tomb-is-leaking-and-experts-are-worried https://theconversation.com/your-gluten-sensitivity-might-be-something-else-entirely-new-study-shows-267098See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Crystals have been fascinating humans for hundreds of thousands of years, chimpanzees might share the same shiny object obsession, and mushrooms may be sending electrical signals through their underground networks. This episode bounces between ancient archaeology, animal behaviour, and the weird possibility that fungi are doing more than just quietly existing in the forest. We dig into evidence that early humans collected crystals long before cave paintings, then look at research showing chimps will pick crystals over plain pebbles and carry them around like prized possessions. It is either a shared cultural quirk or a shared ancestor who also could not walk past a sparkly rock without grabbing it. Then we head to Japan, where scientists have been measuring mushroom electrical activity with electrodes to see how fungi respond to things like water and chemical signals. It is not “mushrooms are speaking English”, but it does hint at complex, responsive systems in the mycelium that we are only just starting to understand. Finally, we get into the modern tech mess: AI powered toys like teddy bears that can be prompted into wildly inappropriate conversations, plus a brilliant detour where medieval Japanese poetry helps researchers track solar proton events using tree rings.  CHAPTER MARKERS 00:00 Introduction 00:42 Hippie Crystal Deodorant 01:59 Ancient Crystal Obsession 05:22 Chimpanzees Love Crystals 07:43 Crystal Plinth Experiment 09:55 Crystal Hoarding And Tradeoffs 11:41 Why Crystals Allure 13:30 Do Mushrooms Signal Pee 16:38 Urine Experiment Setup 18:48 Results And Dont Pee Dont Tell 20:17 Poetry Break And Limericks 21:25 Solar Proton Events Explained 22:23 Poetry Meets Space Weather 23:46 Kyoto Aurora Clue 24:07 Trees Confirm Proton Event 25:29 Trouble in Toyland Report 27:08 AI Toys Under Test 29:01 Guardrails Fail Over Time 35:49 Addictive Design Tricks 36:28 Privacy and Always Listening   SOURCES: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1633599/full?ref=404media.co https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-42673-y https://publicinterestnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/TOYLAND-2025-11-14-7a.pdf https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/medieval-aurora-poetry-provided-clues-to-historic-solar-storms/  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Robot wolves are now being used to scare bears away from Japanese schools, scientists have grown mini Neanderthal brains and plugged them into little robots, and snakes are quietly topping the lethality leaderboard while everyone keeps blaming sharks. This week, Will and Rod bounce between wildlife deterrence, prehistoric brain tech, and a public health reality check that hits harder than any movie monster. We start in Japan, where bears have been wandering into supermarkets and school grounds, and the solution is peak Japan: “monster robot wolves” with sensors, lights, and loud noises designed to scare bears off without harming them. They look like an 80s horror prop, but the goal is serious, keep people safe and avoid lethal control. Then we head into the lab, where researchers have grown tiny Neanderthal brain organoids, nicknamed Neanderoids, and connected them to small crab like robots. It is fascinating, slightly unsettling, and a reminder that science will always find a way to make the past feel uncomfortably present. Finally, we look at snakes as one of the world’s biggest killers, with India carrying a huge share of snakebite deaths, and we end with a cybersecurity story where a pen tester talked IT into handing over access on a phone call. Not ideal.     00:00 Japan Bear Surge 01:20 Meet the Hosts 02:58 Robot Wolf Deterrents 06:37 Upgrades and Risks 08:27 Neanderthal Mini Brains 12:03 Brains Wired to Robot Crabs 13:31 Fascism and Underlings 15:51 Torture Battalion Data 21:46 Animal Killers Teaser 22:35 Mosquitoes Kill Indirectly 23:30 Snakes Top the List 23:40 Floods and Snake Spikes 24:13 India Snakebite Mystery 25:07 Verbal Autopsies Explained 26:51 Antivenom Access Problem 28:22 Next Deadliest Animals Rundown 28:56 Parasites and Kissing Bugs 31:07 Elephants and Hunter Karma 33:15 Bears Sharks and Big Cats 35:06 Social Engineering Hack Story 38:40 Phone Calls Beat Security 39:05 Podcast Wrap and Callouts   SOURCES: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/japan-robot-wolves-high-demand-075406454.html https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/japan-built-robot-wolves-to-thwart-bear-attack-and-theyre-flying-off-the-shelves/ https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)01533-8/abstract https://theconversation.com/your-gluten-sensitivity-might-be-something-else-entirely-new-study-shows-267098 https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/489067/snakebite-antivenom-deaths https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schistosomiasis https://elifesciences.org/articles/54076 https://www.science.org/content/article/exclusive-neanderthal-minibrains-grown-dish https://www.theregister.com/security/2026/05/14/to-gain-root-access-intruder-just-had-to-ask/5239853 https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/18/world/americas/actually-democracy-dies-in-hr.htmlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A 1960s mouse utopia that collapsed into a vanity-obsessed apocalypse, a global database of 150,000 enthusiastic stool photos, and a scientific quest to help humans regrow limbs like a salamander. This week, we bounce between rodent dystopias, AI-powered gut tracking, regenerating toes, and international idioms for absolute chaos. We start in the late 1960s with Universe 25, an experiment that gave mice everything they wanted and accidentally proved that absolute perfection leads to a total social meltdown and a faction of self-obsessed, grooming-addicted rodents. Then, shifting gears with a violent jerk, we check in on a health app that has amassed a staggering database of 150,000 human poo images to train AI to analyse gut health. From there, we look to the future, where scientists are trying to steal a trick from the salamander to see if mice and eventually humans can regrow missing limbs. And to end the episode, we take a quick detour into international linguistics to look at how different cultures describe things going completely wrong, from Swedish blue cupboards to vivid Brazilian panic.   CHAPTERS: 00:00 Introduction 02:20 Why Universe 25 Happened 04:58 Building Mousetopia 08:43 Utopia Turns Violent 11:53 Behavioural Sink Theory 14:04 Misuse And Critiques 18:45 Poop App Citizen Science 24:58 Sharing Stool Online 25:44 Selling Poo Data 27:25 AI Data Hunger 28:23 Elvis Toilet Death 29:43 Constipation Studies 35:02 Mouse Toe Regrowth 41:17 Cactus And Sayings   SOURCES: https://www.404media.co/ai-poop-analysis-app-offered-to-sell-me-access-to-its-users-poops/?ref=daily-stories-newsletter https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-72066-8 https://bsky.app/profile/adamcsharp.bsky.social/post/3mlqozoour22z https://theconversation.com/constipation-increases-your-risk-of-a-heart-attack-new-study-finds-and-not-just-on-the-toilet-237209 https://www.mamamia.com.au/elvis-constipation/ https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-38068-y https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32873621/ https://www.theguardian.com/science/2024/nov/21/the-mad-egghead-who-built-a-mouse-utopia-john-b-calhoun See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A poll has asked people if they could win in a fist fight against Donald Trump, a survey on female orgasms has wandered into yawning, crying, and hallucinations, and vulture nests are quietly operating as accidental museums of human history. This week, Will and Rod bounce between political fantasy, private biology, and birds that apparently have a better archive system than most institutions. We start with the poll that turned politics into Fight Club, which is less about combat and more about confidence, identity, and how people relate to power. Then we get into the science of female orgasms, and why the data is far stranger than the usual “fireworks” story, with reports ranging from tears to yawns to hallucination like effects. Finally, we head to the vultures, whose nests can preserve scraps and artefacts for decades, creating accidental time capsules for archaeologists. And to end on a rare positive note, we’ve got some good climate news: renewable energy is still surging in the US, despite all the noise.   CHAPTERS: 00:00 Political Science Milestones 00:44 Poll Who Beats Trump 01:56 Meet the Hosts 02:50 Science Missed Female Biology 04:00 Mapping the Clitoris 05:49 Surveying Orgasm Effects 08:47 Peri Orgasmic Symptoms 14:08 Taboo and Medical Framing 15:20 Case Report Finger Cure 19:38 Altruism Games 21:38 Resenting Do Gooders 24:05 Tainted Altruism 27:07 Academic Award Hoax 30:49 Self Made Medals 34:11 Vulture Nest Time Capsules 40:07 Climate News UpliftSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.