We Have Concerns

A London borough has decided to get to start DNA testing abandoned dog droppings and delivering retroactive tickets to the irresponsible owners. Anthony, Jeff, and special guest Greg Miller from Kinda Funny Vids discuss the ethics of cleaning up after your pet, and the ramifications of a DNA-empowered poop task force. Thanks to Greg Miller for joining us! Visit his website here: http://www.kindafu...

A new review of scientific literature finds that there is no evidence that eating the afterbirth is good for the mother. It could even be harmful. Which leads Anthony and Jeff to weigh the pros and cons of ingesting placenta, and wondering how this practice has become so common. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our...

The de-extinction movement is in full swing, which leads some scientists to consider reconstructing the DNA of Neanderthals. Could that be possible? And what would a prehistoric humanoid be like in the modern world. Anthony and Jeff consider the possible ramifications. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: h...

Dean Karnazes has a rare physiological condition that allows him to process lactic acid more efficiently than other humans and effectively run forever. His list of running accomplishments is truly super human. Jeff and Anthony differ on their opinion of whether running is worthwhile, but both of them imagine what they might do if they could replicate Dean's unique attributes. We Have Concerns is e...

Scientists have discovered that getting spiders to ingest carbon nanotubes will cause them to weave spider silk that is even stronger than their naturally strong tensile strands. This leads Anthony and Jeff to imagine all kinds of potential uses for this amazing new by-product. There is only one problem: how do you harvest spider silk? We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad...

Scientists now believe that they have isolated the specific parts of DNA that cause aging in humans. Which leads Anthony and Jeff to think, if they've isolated them, perhaps they can eliminate them... And if they can eliminate them, can't we all live forever? And, like, if we can live forever... what would that mean?! We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get earl...

A London-based company has developed highly articulated robotic hands, and has decided to use the technology to create an in-home product: stand-alone arms that will cook gourmet meals. Jeff and Anthony marvel at the innovation, but wonder if chef hands is really the most impressive use of the technology. Like, what about a tiny Ralph Macchio? We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To ke...

A new virtual reality startup called Project Elysium aims to give Oculus Rift users the ability to have conversations with their deceased loved ones by recreating them digitally, using pictures, video, and data from their lives. Jeff and Anthony think this is the technological version of clairvoyant shysterism, but actually stumble upon some interesting use cases. We Have Concerns is entirely list...

Whelp, it's happening. Scientists in China have begun genetically modifying human embryos. While these initial attempts to replace potentially fatal genes with new, safe, designer genes proved unsuccessful, the fact that Chinese researchers are even experimenting on human embryos has caused a stir in the scientific community. Jeff and Anthony debate whether humans should be playing god in this way...

When his heart was replaced with a constant, flowing artificial pump in March of 2011, Craig Lewis because the first human ever to live without a pulse. Anthony is eager to disregard his biological heart for science's improvements - he'd do it in a heartbeat - but Jeff is worried that living life without a pulse might lead to strange existence out of rhythm. We Have Concerns is entirely listener s...

Moore's Law states that every 2 years the number of transistors on a chip will double. But some scientists predict that in just 10 years, we will hit the upper limit of Moore's Law. Anthony and Jeff wonder what the will happen if we get to the end of the Law and suggest a few ways we might outsmart this presumptive limit. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get...

A group of biohackers is working on a way to create cheese without ever using an animal. The idea is to take custom-fabricated snippets of DNA and insert them into yeast to fabricate truly vegan cheese. In fact, they don't even need to use DNA from a cow. They could end up making human cheese. Jeff and Anthony debate the merits of dairy without the cow, and decide what kind of cheese they'd like t...

No one had ever observed geckos exhibiting behavior that could be described as "play". That is, until the reptiles were jettisoned into space in an unmanned Russian rocket. One of their collars dislodged in zero gravity, and the geckos onboard began to bat it around in improvised games. If such stoic, all-business creatures can discover fun in space, Anthony and Jeff wonder what other ef...

A new study pinpoints the geographic locations where the longest-living humans are most concentrated. Analysis of these "Blue Zones" reveals the kinds of activities and diet that contribute to longevity. Jeff and Anthony discuss the pros and cons of living healthy, as well as a side-plan to eliminate dark magic from the earth. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us a...

The Lujan Zoo outside of Buenos Aires has been dubbed the "World's Most Dangerous Zoo" because it allows visitors to cuddle, fondle, and feed lions, tigers, and bears. But when Anthony and Jeff hear about these practices, all they see are the inhumane and disgusting manner in which the animals are treated to ensure they remain in a state of lethargic docility. Are humans really this inse...

A new study at USC shows evidence that men who are going bald may actually be able to stimulate their dormant follicles by violently plucking out the remaining hairs that do grow. This counter-intuitive solution was reached by ripping out fur in healthy mice, which leads Jeff and Anthony to wonder how far we as humans will go to regrow our hair, and what kind of doctor even thinks to try this. We...

Anthony and Jeff learn about the affliction known as Exploding Head Syndrome, which, it turns out, is a really misleading name. It leads them to discuss sleep, inner voices, and the peace attained from a quiet mind. Oh, and alien probes. Somehow they also get to alien probes. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Pat...

An octopus at the Sea Life Aquarium in New Zealand has been trained to take photos. When visitors stand in front of his tank, Rambo the octopus reaches inside the casing of the underwater camera and presses the button, capturing the image of his "guests". Anthony reveals his long-held hatred of all cephalopods and fear that they will someday live in trees, while Jeff wonders how one trai...

A 30-year-old Russian man Valery Spiridonov has volunteered to become the world's first head transplant. His terrible, degenerative spinal disease has forced him to resort to drastic actions, but some scientists are worried that the resulting neural confusion of a human head transplant may actually be worse than death. Jeff and Anthony wonder what kind of doctor would try such a thing, and conside...

A new biotech startup aims to have synthetic, bioprinted eyeballs on the market by 2027. These could not only solve vision problems, but actually upgrade the eye to apply filters or even record video. Jeff, Anthony, and special guest Trisha Hershberger debate whether cool new functions are worth giving up your natural born eyes. Thanks to Trisha Hershberger for joining us! Visit her YouTube channe...

Cosmologist Fergus Simpson published a new scientific paper in which he suggests that intelligent aliens, if they exist, are likely enormous, weighing at least 650 lbs. Jeff and Anthony are skeptical of Mr, Simpson's mathematical model, but suspect first contact with gigantic aliens might not go smoothly. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bo...

Researchers studying the movements of tarantulas in different climates have discovered that at higher temperatures spiders can actually move much faster. This is due to fluid in their joints becoming more viscous in high heat. The trade-off is that they also become more wobbly and out of control. Jeff and Anthony imagine the hydraulic robots that might be created based on this information, and wor...

Historians uncovered an Old English book of Medieval remedies and decided to recreate and test them in modern conditions. Shockingly, one of the potions, made up of garlic, onions, and the bile from a cow's stomach was actually more effective at treating MRSA than modern antibiotics. Jeff and Anthony marvel at the wisdom that can be derived from trial and error, and wonder what other ailments alch...

Seattle cancer researchers are hoping that they will be able to use scorpion venom to fight deadly brain cancer through a new product called "Tumor Paint." Jeff and Anthony consider the challenges of attacking cancer in the most sensitive areas of the human body and hope something deadly can combat something deadlier. Also, they remember their short-lived cartoon series, Cancer Killers:...

Plastic water bottles are a massive global pollution problem, but new biotech aims to replace traditional non-biodegradable containers with a thin algae membrane. The result is an amorphous spheroid of H2O that is inexpensive to produce and has zero impact on the environment. Anthony and Jeff are ready for the blob water future, and have been working up a series of biohacker adventure novels in an...