Skeptics Guide

The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe Skepticast #981 April 24th 2024 Segment #1. Special Report John Oliver and UFOs theness.com/neurologicablog/u... Segment #2. News Items News Item #1 - Voyager Fixed www.livescience.com/space/spa... News Item #2 - NASAs New Solar Sail scitechdaily.com/liftoff-nasa... News Item #3 - Bird Flu in Milk www.nytimes.com/2024/04/23/he... News Item #4 - Dark Energy Getting Weaker www.space.com/desi-cosmologic... News Item #5 - After Death Communications www.huffpost.com/entry/hospic... Segment #3. Who’s That Noisy Segment #4. Your Questions and E-mails Question #1: Follow up Havana Syndrome Segment #5. Science or Fiction Each week our host will come up with three science news items or facts, two genuine, one fictitious. He will challenge our panel of skeptics to sniff out the fake - and you can play along. Theme: Medical Risk Item 1: A recent study finds that living in Canada increases one’s risk of developing multiple sclerosis by up to 70%, with risk being proportional to the time lived in Canada. Item 2: Researchers find that use of anti-acid drugs, including proton pump inhibitors, H2 blockers, and antacids, are associated with an up to 70% higher risk of having Migraine headaches. Item 3: A recent review of studies finds that gum disease is associated with up to a 30% increased risk in developing Alzheimer’s disease. Segment #6. Skeptical Quote of the Week "Failure is a reality; we all fail at times, and it’s painful when we do. But it’s better to fail while striving for something wonderful, challenging, adventurous, and uncertain than to say, “I don’t want to try because I may not succeed completely.” - President Jimmy Carter

[@johnsanchez2589]

Woohoo!!! I actually got my name on your Podcast!!!!! I’m in absolute shock!!!! Love the work all of you do.

[@nicholaicheck]

[0:19] John Oliver foreshadowing [1:05] Special Report John Oliver and UFOs [12:17] News Item #1 - Voyager Fixed [22:25] News Item #2 - NASAs New Solar Sail [31:23] News Item #3 - Bird Flu in Milk [43:53] Sponsor - Aura Frames [45:15] News Item #4 - Dark Energy Getting Weaker [55:41] News Item #5 - After Death Communications [1:13:48] Who’s That Noisy [1:18:51] Chicago plans [1:21:04] SGU Newsletter [1:21:37] How to support SGU [1:23:19] Question #1: Follow up Havana Syndrome [1:31:35] Science or Fiction [1:43:43] Quote of the Week

[@slianyong7550]

So appreciate you doing this ❤

[@lance134679]

I miss not being able to say to my Google Home Mini "play the latest episode of the Skeptics Guide to the Universe".

[@lance134679]

The John Oliver piece reminded me of the early days of the podcast. If you get a chance, listen to some of those early episodes. If nothing else, you'll get to hear an ongoing debate: monkeys vs birds. It was a more innocent time...

[@jonathanfireeatrer]

Perfect use and pronunciation of "shite"!

[@Broken_robot1986]

I don't think the podcast is uploaded to YT Music which is where Google now host podcast

[@PlayingMantis]

Id give anything to get some ADC from my husband (8/23) my mom (4/07) or my dad (2/83). And why did his son not get the same experience to save HIS life. If there's anything out there, if there's a way to communicate, it sure seems selective.

[@PhysicsPolice]

7:30 Uh, yeah, he was tone policing. The negative result of a dismissive tone can be a valid point separate from the thing being dismissed. He's trying to bring UFO conspiracy theorists into the fold. He's right to use this strategy. Studies show it works better than maintaining their isolation.

[@PhysicsPolice]

2:10 The John Oliver piece on UFOs wasn't out of step. He didn't even know what the "A" stands for in UAP. That's classic for his show. It's a comedy show. And it's politically aligned to the far left. They get stuff wrong all the time. The push narratives and jokes even if it means lying to their audience. I thought their overall narrative for UFOs was actually pretty good!