Curiosity Weekly

Learn about how slow blinking at a cat can help you make friends with it, how temptation bundling can help you reinforce good habits, and why Moravec’s Paradox says the easy stuff is hardest for artificial intelligence. Slow blinking at a cat can help you make friends with it by Steffie Drucker Feline friendly? How to build rap-paw with your cat - new psychology study. (2020). EurekAlert! https://...

Learn about how AI could help predict which drugs won’t agree with women, and why Point Nemo is considered planet Earth’s spacecraft graveyard. But first, Ologies podcast host Alie Ward is back to tell us about her favorite ologie. Resources from Ologies host Alie Ward: Ologies Podcast: https://www.alieward.com/ologies Alie Ward's website: https://www.alieward.com/ Alie Ward on Twitter: https://tw...

Learn about why birds are the only surviving dinosaurs. Then, we’ll talk to Alie Ward of the Ologies podcast about why we should all ask smart people stupid questions. Why are birds the only surviving dinosaurs? By Grant Currin Hendry, L. (2018, June 15). Why are birds the only surviving dinosaurs? The Natural History Museum London. https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/why-are-birds-the-only-surviving-d...

Learn about why remote workers need a "virtual commute," what happened when scientists tried growing prehistoric-sized insects, and how the solar system has not one, but two alignment planes. Separate work from home with a "virtual commute" by author Kelsey Donk MacLellan, L. (2020, October). Create boundaries when working from home with commute rituals. Quartz at Work; Quartz. https://qz.com/work...

Learn how fathers benefit from being involved with their newborn babies, what you can do to control your dreams with science, and why the asterisk is used for corrections. Being Involved with the Baby Early on Benefits a Father's Mental Health by Kelsey Donk Greater father involvement in infant parenting is beneficial for paternal mental health. (2020). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_r...

Learn about a simple brain-training task that may reduce motion sickness, what parasites found in medieval human remains can tell us about eradicating them today, and the two main reasons why everything takes longer than you think it will. A Simple Brain-Training Task May Reduce Motion Sickness by Kelsey Donk You can train your brain to reduce motion sickness. (2020). Warwick. Ac. Uk. https://warw...

Learn about how 5G may impair weather forecasts, and how the first confirmed exoplanet was discovered a lot more recently than you may realize. Plus, science writer John Tierney is back to explore how negativity bias affects our relationships. Curiosity Daily is a finalist in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards, and we need your vote to win! Please vote for Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science...

Learn about two new neuroscience studies that show why birds are so dang smart. Then science writer John Tierney will talk negativity bias and how you can use it to your own benefit. Curiosity Daily is a finalist in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards, and we need your vote to win! Please vote for Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science Podcast via the link below. It's free and only takes a minute...

Learn about whether it’s better to be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond, a mysterious, ancient city called Cahokia that’s, weirdly, just outside St. Louis, and how AI might be able to catch heart disease with a selfie. Is It Better to Be a Big Fish in a Small Pond or a Small Fish in a Big Pond? By Kelsey Donk Even When You’re A Member Of An Elite Group, It Can Be Demoralisin...

Learn about a new theory for the uncanny valley effect and the Door to Hell, a giant fiery pit that’s been burning since 1971. We’ll also answer a listener question about how drug and alcohol tolerance works. Curiosity Daily is a finalist in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards, and we need your vote to win! Please vote for Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science Podcast via the link below. It's fr...

Learn how deliberate practice makes perfect, what the New England Vampire Panic is, and how baby tortoises are attracted to faces from birth. Curiosity Daily is a finalist in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards, and we need your vote to win! Please vote for Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science Podcast via the link below. It's free and only takes a minute. Thanks so much! https://awards.discover...

Learn why Einstein worried that science can’t explain “the now,” how high-impact exercise is actually good for your bones, and why in Haiti, zombies are more than fiction. Curiosity Daily is a finalist in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards, and we need your vote to win! Please vote for Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science Podcast via the link below. It's free and only takes a minute. Thanks so...

Learn about how bacteria in your gut can produce electricity. Then, performer and lecturer Thom Britton will tell us about the origins of seances and how Hollywood gets them wrong. Some Bacteria in Your Gut Produce Electricity by Cameron Duke Specktor, B. (2020, September 18). Scientists find “secret molecule” that allows bacteria to exhale electricity. Livescience. Com; Live Science. https://www....

Learn how calling loved ones builds stronger social connections than texting does, why the return of wolves improved life for every animal in Yellowstone, and how body snatchers of the 19th century contributed to modern medicine. Call, Don't Text, for a Stronger Social Connection by Kelsey Donk Kumar, A., & Epley, N. (2020). It’s surprisingly nice to hear you: Misunderstanding the impact of commun...

Learn about whether parasites can turn us into zombies, why awkward silences are so awkward, and why bubbles form in boiling water. Could parasites turn us into zombies? By Cameron Duke Ahmed, I. (2019, November). The science of zombies: Will the undead rise? Phys. Org; Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2019-11-science-zombies-undead.html Blum, J., Schmid, C., & Burri, C. (2006). Clinical aspects of...

Learn about how eclipses on Mars can tell scientists more about the planet’s interior, why we behave irrationally when our freedom is threatened, and how an ‘80s video game was at the center of a conspiracy theory. The Martian Moon Phobos Creates a Yearly Solar Eclipse — and Its Effects Could Tell Us More About the Planet by Grant Currin Surprise on Mars. (2020). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert...

Learn about how being a “Viking” was actually a career choice, not an ethnicity, why it’s easy to plant false memories, and how the pandemic has made birdsong more complex. "Viking" was a job description, not heredity by Grant Currin Helmets. (2020). National Museum of Denmark. https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-viking-age/weapons/helmets/ Curry,...

Learn about why predators don’t hunt their prey into extinction, then discover the history of crossword puzzles from author Adrienne Raphel! Why Don’t Predators Hunt Their Prey Into Extinction? By Cameron Duke Dickman, C., Nimmo, D., Ritchie, E., & Doherty, T. (2019, May 14). Invasive predators are eating the world’s animals to extinction – and the worst is close to home. The Conversation. https:/...

Learn about what it would be like to travel through a wormhole, how the pumpkin became North America’s Halloween mascot, and how social isolation can fuel conspiracy theories. What Would It Be Like to Ride Through a Wormhole? By Ashley Hamer Lindley, D. (2005). The Birth of Wormholes. Physics, 15. https://physics.aps.org/story/v15/st11 Nola Taylor Redd. (2017, October 21). What Is Wormhole Theory?...

Learn about why officials in Idaho once dropped beavers from parachutes, how your romantic partner might be influencing your goals (and vice versa), and test your podcast knowledge with this month’s Curiosity Challenge trivia game. Romantic Partners Influence Each Other's Goals by Kelsey Donk Romantic partners influence each other’s goals. (2020). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_release...

Learn about the disturbing original plots of five beloved fairy tales, how the HALT method can help control your impulses, and why our ability to drink milk evolved way faster than we thought! Here Are the Disturbing and Gory Origins of 5 Beloved Fairy Tales by Stephanie Bucklin Grimm 021: Cinderella. (2011). Pitt. Edu. https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm021.html Snow White. (2014). Vcu. Edu. https:/...

Learn how superstitions can actually reduce anxiety, why rebooting can often fix computer problems, and why the first full dinosaur skeleton ever found is finally being studied 160 years later. How Superstitions Can Actually Reduce Anxiety by Reuben Westmaas Brooks, A. W., Schroeder, J., Risen, J. L., Gino, F., Galinsky, A. D., Norton, M. I., & Schweitzer, M. E. (2016). Don’t stop believing: Ritua...

Learn about the likelihood that we all live in a computer simulation. Then, author Thomas Kostigen explains how geoengineering might help cool the planet and save the world. Two physicists calculated the likelihood that we live in a computer simulation by Grant Currin The Physics arXiv Blog. (2020, August 28). This Equation Calculates the Chances We Live in a Computer Simulation. Discover Magazine...

Learn why the concept of zero is newer than you might think, how you can worry more productively, and why the Earth’s atmosphere might be rusting the moon. The Concept of Zero Is Newer Than You'd Expect by Reuben Westmaas Matson, J. (2009, August 21). The Origin of Zero. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/history-of-zero/ What is the origin of zero? How did we indicate...

Learn about how patient O became patient zero, what it takes for a species to evolve twice, and how pesky fruit flies keep getting into your garbage. Please nominate Curiosity Daily for Best Technology & Science Podcast in the 2020 Discover Pods Awards! It's free and only takes a minute. Thanks so much! https://awards.discoverpods.com/nominate/ It's "Patient O," Not "Patient Zero" by Ashley Hamer...