Robot or Not?

Listener Tom really wants us to explain what it means if someone is “out of pocket.” This leads to some existential questions about the pocket and the people who may not be in it. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Niels follows on from the logical question of if a glass can be made of plastic to ponder what makes a can a can. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Justin tries to get us to stretch the definition of “facial hair” beyond the beard. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Roy brings us into his debate with his teenage son about what makes a shirt a shirt. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Jack wants to know if a few famous gates and statues are also buildings. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Gregory thinks Pop-Tarts are pies. We have ratio questions. Also: We remember so many burned palates caused by calzones and McDonald’s fruit pies. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Gregory tries to confuse us with a question about open-faced sandwiches and pizza. We largely ignore him and talk about different ways to eat things that are like pizza, but aren’t quite pizza. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Scott’s wife sure has a strange definition of which way is up. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Joel has discovered some Canadians referring to the first floor of a two-story house as a “basement.” Does this defy all reason? How low must you go to be a basement? John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Host John Siracusa asks himself to discuss the difference between Supercars and Hypercars, while Jason looks on. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

The difference between a slegh and a sled. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener William challenges our ruling about chargers and we get deep into the weeds of car charging. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Stephen Hackett has called us out and requests John’s ruling. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

What’s a blog, and what’s a news outlet? Are Jason and John bloggers? John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Kev needs us to unpack John’s comment about “spiders and other bugs.” Does that mean spiders are bugs? And what are the other bugs? Spooky! John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Matt can’t stand it when someone calls a USB cable a wire. But what does John think? John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Who scapes the lands? Who gardens the gardens? Who mows and who blows? Not us! John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

John fields some important questions about pasta from listeners Connor, Joshua, and Lee, including the definition of Al Dente and noodles versus pasta. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Eric asks if vehicles are only motorized, and we ponder how small a thing can be before it’s not a vehicle anymore. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Can a drinking glass be made out of plastic? Or is it just a cup? John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Summer is in full swing, so Listener Ken has asked us to differentiate between umbrellas and parasols. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Marc ponders the “VR headset market” and wants to know what makes a market a market. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Eric really needs his kids to differentiate between charger blocks and charging cables. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Christian, your time has come. Is an AI Lock the same as a Smart Lock? Or a Fuzzy Logic Lock? When bicycle gear shifters are called “AI”, how do we define what any of this means? I know—let’s ask John. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.

Listener Lorne asks what makes a spacesuit a spacesuit, and it gets complicated in a hurry. John Siracusa and Jason Snell.