We Have Concerns

A very different kind of episode of We Have Concerns, this one was recorded live at the PAX South convention in San Antonio Texas, and consists entirely of questions from the audience. Thanks to everyone who came out to the live performance! Check out http://chainsawsuit.com/ and https://www.youtube.com/user/chainsawsuitoriginal GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.co...

The Austrian town of Saalfelden in the state of Salzburg is looking for someone to live in a nearby hermitage which was built more than 350 years ago in steep, rocky cliffs. So they put out an ad for a hermit. Meanwhile, a hermit in Gothic, Colorado, a ghost town deserted since the 1920s, spent the last 40 years recording all sorts of data, from daily snowfalls, temperatures, snow melting, animal...

Scientists have created the first successful human-animal hybrids. The project proves that human cells can be introduced into a non-human organism, survive, and even grow inside a host animal, in this case, pigs. Anthony, Jeff, and special guests Mikey Neuman and Kris Straub from Chainsawsuit discuss the pros and cons of creating human animal hybrids in the lab. This episode was recorded LIVE at P...

Why do we, as humans, have a sense of self? One new theory is that a "self" actually contributes to a stronger and more robust group dynamic. In order for a group to be more capable of surviving, it needs to be made up of specialized individuals who are drawn to disparate tasks. Anthony and Jeff selflessly tackle this subject, and try to figure out if being one is better for the many. GE...

Scientists have created bacteria that thrive using an expanded "genetic alphabet". The blueprint for all life forms on Earth is written in a code consisting of four "letters": A, T, C and G, which pair up in the DNA double helix. But the lab organism has been modified to use an additional two, giving it a genetic code of six letters. Jeff and Anthony try to figure out why they...

During WWII, there was a mathematician named Abraham Wald. Wald had an idea about allied bombers. Essentially, bombers were coming back after bombing runs with a lot of damage. Engineers were saying "okay, there's a lot of damage in the wings and tail, so that's where we should put the armor." Right? Not so much. Wald's analysis of where they should really be putting armor became the fun...

It's generally thought that the evolution of complex life was a rare, once-in-4.5-billion-years event. But new research suggests that conditions were right for complex cells to evolve and die off at least once - or perhaps several times - before our lineage even got started. The reason? New evidence that there was enough oxygen in Earth's atmosphere between 2.4 and 2 billion years ago before it dr...

Everything we eat is flooded with “virtual water,” or water used indirectly to produce food from cradle to grave. In fact, 70% of the world’s water consumption feeds the agriculture industry, and demand for fresh water is increasing at a rate of one trillion liters a year. The GRACE Communications Foundation wants people thinking more critically about the water in their food, and has released a re...

After exploring a virtual world, some people can’t shake the sense that the actual world isn’t real, either. Does the new technology of VR bring with it a new kind of depression? Anthony and Jeff discuss a world where real life is a let down compared to VR. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by...

Plastic surgeon Stanley Jacobs was obsess with an ancient Egyptian text about surgery known as the Edwin Smith Papyrus. Particularly, a recipe at the back of the book, titled “Transforming an Old Man Into a Youth.” His investigation into what this particular recipe was revealed that ancient Egyptians were far ahead of their time in unexpected ways. Jeff and Anthony discuss moisturizers, skin care,...

Scientists have never been certain what the appendix used to do -- and if it is still, in fact, useless. On Jan. 9, a team of researchers led by scientists at Midwestern University Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine published a review study proposing an answer: the appendix is a secondary immune function that both catalyzes immune cell responses and floods your gut with beneficial bacteria wh...

As self-driving cars become the norm, road deaths due to driver error will begin to diminish. It’s a transformative advancement, but one that comes with consequences in an unexpected place: organ donation. Jeff and Anthony discuss whether a smaller amount of potential organ donors is a good thing or a bad thing. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns...

A few years ago, three separate books were discovered in Harvard University's library that had particularly strange-looking leather covers. Upon further inspection, it was discovered that the smooth binding was actually human flesh... in one case, skin allegedly harvested from a man who was flayed alive. As you can imagine, Anthony is very happy to hear this. He and Jeff discuss the idea of bindin...

Some South Koreans have built a mech, and it has taken its first steps. Designed by a veteran of science fiction blockbusters, the 13 foot tall, 1.5 ton Method-2 towers over a room on the outskirts of Seoul, and will be made available to buy by the end of 2017 for a cool $8 million. Jeff and Anthony want one - but who gets to ride in it first? GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: ht...

Researchers recently used a machine learning algorithm to decode the squeaks Egyptian fruit bats make in their roost, revealing that they "speak" to one another as individuals. It turns out, not only do they communicate, but they also argue - a lot. Jeff and Anthony also argue a lot, so they weigh in on this discovery and what it might mean. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. V...

Artist Stuart Semple, creator the world’s ‘pinkest paint’, has a new invention - the world'd 'glitteriest glitter'. The product has been made available to everyone, as long as buyers ensured that it would not make its way “into the hands of Anish Kapoor.” According to Semple, the renowned British-Indian sculptor didn’t deserve access to the colors, as he had been given exclusive rights to ‘Vantabl...

The 2015 Japanese census laid out a frightening realization for the country: its population is shrinking. In just five years, between 2010 and 2015, Japan's population shrunk by almost 1 million. But while everyone is quick to blame so-called "parasite singles" or a lack of immigration, Toyota is looking for a solution. In October, the car manufacturer introduced the Kirobo Mini, a robot...

A new study suggests that high intensity aerobic activity that requires sustained, repetitive locomotor and navigational skills may stress cognitive domains in ways that lead to altered brain connectivity, which in turn has implications for understanding the beneficial role of exercise for brain and cognitive function over the lifespan. In other words, running is for smarts! Anthony and Jeff conti...

Ikea is urging teenagers to stop creeping into its stores and having illegal sleepovers. About 10 "non-sponsored sleepovers" have been logged across the world by the Swedish furniture giant this year. The craze appears to have been started by two Belgian YouTubers who chronicled their adventure online. Jeff and Anthony discuss hiding out in stores and more generally... where to sleep. GE...

Hundreds of people online have shared memories of a cheesy Nineties movie called “Shazaam”, in which the standup comic Sinbad played a genie. There is no evidence that such a film was ever made. What does this tell us about the quirks of collective memory? Jeff and Anthony discuss the concept of "viral memories" and the potential that this can all be explained by multiple timelines. GET...

A man called Zhao Lianshan distributed fake university admission offers to students admission to the Shandong Institute of Light Industry, through a new pilot program for students who had not scored as well on entrance exams. They could enroll as full-time students for four years, and pay about RMB 8,000 per year in tuition. Sixty-eight students agreed to enroll, and it was not until June 3, 2012,...

Researchers in Toronto have used a technology called “neural karaoke” to teach a computer to write a song after looking at a photo, and the little carol it penned after viewing a festive Christmas tree is absolutely horrifying. Jeff and Anthony take a listen and give their thoughts. Happy holidays everyone! GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get a...

In a study published in the latest edition of the journal Nature Communications, researchers confirmed that Germany's Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) fusion energy device is on track and working as planned. This "star in a jar" technology could essentially provide Earth with limitless clean energy, forever. Jeff and Anthony have a few questions about this breakthrough, and might be worried about...

An amusement park in Japan has been forced to close its skating rink after a torrent of online criticism over its centerpiece: thousands of fish frozen into the ice. Space World in the city of Kitakyushu, south-west Japan, bowed to pressure to close the facility after an online campaign denouncing the piscine graveyard as “cruel”, “immoral” and “weird”. Jeff and Anthony weigh in on the controversy...

Why are humans so prone to running late? New findings published in Hippocampus suggest greater familiarity with an area leads us to overestimate its physical distance, but also has the opposite effect on our judgments of travel times through that space – that is, we underestimate how long it will take us to travel through highly familiar routes. Anthony and Jeff discuss this quirk of the human min...