The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe

The Skeptics Guide #986 - Jun 1 2024

June 1, 2024

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  • A new gene editing system called Moby (Multiplexed Orthogonal Base Editor) offers significantly reduced off-target mutations compared to previous methods for single-base pair edits. 
  • NASA's new GRX810 superalloy, developed using advanced modeling and 3D printing, demonstrates up to 2,500 times longer lifespan than conventional nickel-based alloys under high stress and temperature. 
  • Research suggests that individuals lacking an inner voice (anendophasia) perform worse on tasks requiring internal verbal rehearsal, such as rhyming, but this deficit is compensated for by speaking the words aloud. 
  • Ancient engineering capabilities, such as building the pyramids, are often vastly underestimated due to modern ignorance of the effective use of simple machines like levers and pulleys. 
  • Pseudo-scientific claims about ancient technology, like the 'pocketbook of the gods,' arise from misinterpreting archaeological artifacts (which are actually water buckets) and filling knowledge gaps with fantastical, often alien-based, mythology. 
  • The newly discovered exoplanet Gliese 12b, the nearest transiting temperate Earth-sized world, is a crucial target for studying whether planets orbiting cool stars can retain atmospheres, despite headlines potentially overstating its immediate habitability. 
  • The discussion on Neil deGrasse Tyson's *Star Talk* regarding acupuncture is criticized for normalizing and promoting alternative medicine by featuring a proponent whose discussion of evidence, particularly concerning the placebo effect and acupuncture points, is deemed scientifically flawed and biased. 
  • Reducing aerosol-based air pollution, while immediately beneficial for air quality, can paradoxically worsen global warming and increase the risk of forest fires in the short term by removing the temporary cooling effect of particulates before long-term greenhouse gas reductions take effect. 

Segments

Viral Video Debunked
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(00:00:31)
  • Key Takeaway: The viral video of a little girl asking to pet a bear is an audio overdub from a different clip.
  • Summary: The audio of the phrase “Can I pet that doll?” was taken from a separate video featuring a little boy and placed over footage of a girl near a baby bear. The hosts noted the danger of the situation, emphasizing that a mother bear is likely nearby when a cub is present.
Internet Connectivity Comparison
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(00:02:49)
  • Key Takeaway: Starlink provided significantly better upload speeds (20 MB/s) in a remote area than typical US cable internet plans offer, even business-tier plans.
  • Summary: The host experienced excellent performance with Starlink in a remote location, achieving 300 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload, allowing for quick podcast uploads. US cable providers often heavily throttle upload speeds (e.g., 20-41 Mbps upload vs. 900+ Mbps download) due to historical infrastructure design prioritizing downloads. Fiber optic internet, when available, offers symmetrical speeds (e.g., 1000 Mbps down and up).
New Gene Editing Tool Moby
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(00:10:45)
  • Key Takeaway: Moby (Multiplexed Orthogonal Base Editor) is a new gene editing system that performs single base-pair edits with higher success (30%) and lower unwanted mutations (5% crosstalk) than older base editing techniques.
  • Summary: Unlike CRISPR which makes double-strand cuts, Moby performs precise single base-pair edits (e.g., C to T). This system is multiplexed, allowing multiple different edits simultaneously, making it a significant boon for genetic research, especially concerning single-point mutation diseases.
NASA’s GRX810 Superalloy
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(00:15:06)
  • Key Takeaway: NASA developed the 3D-printable GRX810 nickel alloy, which exhibits excellent heat resistance (over 2,000°F) and up to 2,500 times longer lifespan than conventional alloys under high stress.
  • Summary: The GRX810 alloy’s enhanced durability comes from nanoscale oxide particles, allowing components like rocket injectors and turbines to endure higher stress without deforming. NASA is commercializing this technology through its Technology Transfer Program, licensing it to four US companies for use in aviation and space industries.
Cognition Without Inner Voice
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(00:27:04)
  • Key Takeaway: Individuals lacking an inner voice (termed anendophasia) show significant performance deficits in tasks requiring internal verbal rehearsal, such as recalling words or checking rhymes, unless they are allowed to speak the words aloud.
  • Summary: Researchers are proposing the term anendophasia to specifically describe the lack of inner speech, distinguishing it from the broader concept of aphantasia (lack of visual imagery). The study found that while those with low inner speech struggled with working memory and rhyming tasks, this difference disappeared when they could vocalize the words externally.
Imperceptible Spider Silk Sensors
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(00:39:15)
  • Key Takeaway: Researchers created bioelectronic fibers using biocompatible polymers that are 50 times thinner than human hair, allowing them to be imperceptibly spun onto skin or plants to record health or environmental data.
  • Summary: These ultra-thin fibers, inspired by spider webs, integrate with biological surfaces without blocking pores or interfering with touch, producing identical EKG signals when compared to bulky commercial gel electrodes. The application method, called orbital spinning, allows for on-demand fabrication with minimal waste, suggesting future uses in health monitoring and precision agriculture.
Pyramid Construction Waterway
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(00:52:18)
  • Key Takeaway: Archaeological evidence suggests the massive stones used for the Giza pyramids were transported via a now-dry, ancient branch of the Nile River named the Aramat, which ran near the construction sites.
  • Summary: The existence of 31 pyramids built along this dried river branch resolves the logistical puzzle of moving multi-ton blocks far from the main Nile flow. The hosts noted that the persistent ‘alien’ theories for pyramid construction often stem from a racist underestimation of ancient non-European civilizations’ engineering capabilities.
Ancient Engineering & Pyramids
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(00:58:18)
  • Key Takeaway: The six basic engineering tools—wheel, lever, inclined plane, pulley, wedge, and screw—were sufficient, combined with muscle power, to construct the pyramids.
  • Summary: The six basic engineering tools are the wheel, lever, inclined plane, pulley, wedge, and screw. Ancient peoples had access to all these tools, which, when combined with significant muscle power, explains how massive structures like the pyramids could be built. This counters the tendency to vastly underestimate ancient technological capabilities.
Ancient Tech Underestimation
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(00:59:39)
  • Key Takeaway: People tend to vastly underestimate ancient technology because they fail to realize the significant accomplishments achievable with available tools and persistence.
  • Summary: The tendency is to underestimate ancient technology, often leading to pseudo-scientific claims involving aliens or lost civilizations for feats like pyramid construction. This underestimation stems from ignorance of the actual archaeology and the demonstrable power of simple mechanical advantages. Scientific archaeology provides artifacts and documentation that offer a good idea of ancient capabilities.
Misinterpreting Ancient Reliefs
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(01:01:28)
  • Key Takeaway: Reliefs often interpreted as gods holding ‘pocketbooks’ are actually two-dimensional representations of water buckets, confirmed by surviving artifacts and textual references.
  • Summary: The ‘pocketbook of the gods’ mythology is based on misinterpreting ancient reliefs where gods appear to hold purses. These objects are archaeologically confirmed to be water buckets, a symbol referenced in ancient texts. Filling these gaps with fantastical claims, like alien mythology, ignores existing evidence.
New Habitable Exoplanet Find
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(01:03:36)
  • Key Takeaway: Gliese 12b, located 40 light-years away, is the nearest transiting, temperate, Earth-sized world discovered, orbiting a cool M3 dwarf star every 12.76 days.
  • Summary: NASA’s TESS satellite helped discover Gliese 12b, a planet between Earth and Venus in size, orbiting the red dwarf star Gliese 12. Its equilibrium temperature is about 42°C (170°F), and it receives 1.6 times the energy Earth gets from the Sun. This planet is a prime target to study if worlds orbiting cool stars can retain atmospheres, which is crucial for understanding galactic habitability.
Who’s That Noisy Reveal
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(01:09:47)
  • Key Takeaway: The sound identified in ‘Who’s That Noisy’ was a Documentation Inc. M1000 punch card reader, capable of reading 1,000 cards per minute in the 1970s.
  • Summary: The correct answer for the sound was a computer punched card reader, specifically the M1000 model from Documentation Inc. These devices, inspired by Jacquard loom technology, stored data via punched cards and were essential in the 1950s through the 1970s. The M1000 could process 1,000 cards per minute, a fast rate for its era.
Upcoming SGU Events and Listener Help
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(01:15:04)
  • Key Takeaway: The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe will host a five-hour live show on August 18th to celebrate the 1,000th episode, featuring guest interviews and listener-submitted best moments.
  • Summary: The podcast is approaching its 1,000th episode, which will be a five-hour live event on August 18th featuring virtual guests and personal interviews. Listeners are asked to submit their favorite moments from past episodes via email to help curate content for the milestone show. The team will also be present at Sycon in October, where Steve will present on controversies skeptics disagree about.
Critique of Star Talk on Acupuncture
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(01:20:01)
  • Key Takeaway: Neil deGrasse Tyson’s interview with the NIH’s head of complementary health was problematic because the expert promoted misinformation regarding acupuncture’s mechanism and the placebo effect, which no other panelist was equipped to counter.
  • Summary: The Star Talk episode featuring the director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health was criticized for platforming a proponent of alternative medicine whose discussion of evidence was biased. The expert misrepresented studies, claiming acupuncture points have specific physiological effects beyond non-specific stimulation. True science-based medicine shows that acupuncture’s effects are entirely explained by ritualized placebo, as controlled studies show needle location does not matter.
Science or Fiction Results
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(01:45:06)
  • Key Takeaway: The development of a novel antibiotic, Lolomycin, effective against many multi-drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria without harming the gut microbiome, is real science.
  • Summary: The claim about a new antibiotic treating many multi-drug-resistant bacteria while sparing the gut biome was confirmed as science, despite seeming too good to be true. This antibiotic, Lolomycin, targets a unique protein system (LOL) found in pathogenic gram-negative bacteria, differentiating them from beneficial commensal gut bacteria. This proof-of-concept is highly promising but still requires years of clinical trials before market release.
Aerosol Mitigation Paradox
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(01:50:01)
  • Key Takeaway: Reducing aerosol pollution, while improving immediate air quality, ironically increases the risk of forest fires and short-term global warming by removing the immediate cooling effect of particulates.
  • Summary: The fiction item revealed that reducing aerosol particulate matter in the atmosphere increases the risk of forest fires. This occurs because these particulates scatter sunlight, providing a short-term cooling effect; removing them allows more solar radiation to reach the ground, increasing temperatures and drying out soil. Transitioning away from fossil fuels requires simultaneous greenhouse gas mitigation to avoid this unintended consequence.
Quote on Illusion of Knowledge
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(01:53:00)
  • Key Takeaway: The illusion of knowledge is a pernicious problem, as it is harder to correct misinformation in someone firmly persuaded they already know the truth than to teach a truly empty mind.
  • Summary: Leo Tolstoy’s quote emphasizes that the simplest concept cannot be explained to someone who believes they already understand it. This relates to the Dunning-Kruger effect, where the illusion of knowledge is the primary obstacle to learning. Effectively correcting false beliefs requires providing a replacement framework with higher affinity, rather than simply stating the existing belief is wrong.