In this episode, we continue our coverage of the Olympics, as well as discuss the breezy topic of Infinities. Don’t skip this episode!
TOPICS
Fin du Monde Beer: For most Americans, this might even qualify as sweet wine. Not a taste for everyone. [1] Why is it that you feel more energetic when you drink? Turns out it’s all in your head, dummy.[2]
Average Person’s Political Impact: While one study can hardly claim to be able to measure actual political impact, there are various theories on just how disproportionate it is on the side of just a few people [4]. I also highly recommend spending some time reading this study that was done that tried to lay the groundwork for how you can test such a hypothesis. The conclusions are terrifying to say the least [5][6]
People Who Point Guns at Cameras: Why is this a thing anyways? You get the feeling that nothing good can ever come from trying to look “hard”.
Ben Franklin Loved those Rippened Berries: You want some advise on how to get a mistress? Why not try Ben Franklin’s little sex advise colonm from the old days [7]
Rio Olympics Part Deux:Remember that disgusting green pool from the Rio Olympics? For a while, they couldn’t explain it. Luckily, I found a good article that explains how they messed it all up.[8] Also, you don’t want to miss on your chance to download this picture form the Olympics [9]
Olympic Prediction:
Mr. B: An Olympian was assaulted. The details were sketchy, but what is clear is that Dirk Van Tichelt can take a punch to the face, and all to get back his buddy’s stolen phone![10]
Mr. 14: It seems that I had been right that there would be a terrorist attempt, but the good news is that France had their shit together on this.[10]
Mr B: Let’s not forget the sexual assault thing from the Nambian boxer Jonas Junias. I do believe he was the flag bearer at the ceremony. His trail starts soon.[11] Luckily those Serbian rowers had healthy immune systems. [12]
Mr. 14: If you have the guts, then check out the video of the guy breaking his leg[13]. That and the video paramedics dropping him are hilarious.[14]
Mr. B: Who’s up for 11 minutes of Brazilian kids robbing tourists? Fun times. [15]
Make-a-Wish Rio Olympics: I wasn’t able to find the story I quoted, so I could have been misinformed. Then again, no one is too eager to advertise disappointing a sick kid.
Bonus Prediction: After the news of the stray bullet hitting the equestian stables, I tried to predict that a stray bullet would kill someone.[16], While Mr. B correctly predicted some scandal, which involved at least 5 Kenyan officials [17]
Police Killing in Rio: The number of dead “criminals” in the favelas is difficult to calculate. First, since getting the Olympics the number of deaths due to violence rose sharply. [19]. That’s on top of the hundreds of people that were executed by the police without trial. [20]
Kuru: The Shaking Disease: There’s a good reason not to eat your fellow man that’s more important than “it’s just not the neighborly thing to do!”. Turns out rogue prions can cause a disease called Kuru, which basically means “to shake”.Sounds fun, no? [21]
The Plant that Bleeds: Holy cow, vegetarians might soon have the real deal: a plant that can perfectly imitate meat. Check out the reviews [22]
Disease transmission from animals: This one is a scary thought: considering how many diseases are actually transmitted from other species, would it be better not to have an animal barrier (our domesticates), or simply take our chances [23]
Rural vs Urban Health: The situation i presented, about rural people living longer, is a tad bit more complicated. It turns out that in general, city dwellers are healthier, as they have access to better health services.[24] Still there is evidence to suggest they have a much lower rate of cancer.[25] I still feel healthy however. Maybe it was all the thumb-sucking I did as a child that helped me! [26]
Larger cities have higher standards of living: There’s a strange relationship between the size of the city, and how much more people make there.[27] It might have something to do with the fact that we just love being around as many people as possible. Are we bees or something?
Nature Go: I keep mentioning this idea of creating a scientific version of augmented reality. Maybe someday I’ll meet people that could actually pull it off. Hey, if I don’t try, who the hell will?
Mythologizing what science teaches us: It might sound crazy, but at the very least, if we made myths that were a little closer to what science has learned, at least people might have a better chance to learn it.
Tribes that don’t count higher than three: Yeah, this is actually a thing. Some people just couldn’t be bothered by numbers. [28]
The Madness of Infinities: If this is news to you, you might want to ignore this. You see, there are many different types of infinities, and some are bigger than others. This drove poor old Gregor Cantor mad. Some people of course say it was bipolar disorder, [29], but i’m not so sure you can discount it too easily. Also, now you know how to win at that “infinity +1” game. In case you want to wrap your head around this concept a little more, try this video [30]
[1] https://boozedancing.com/2012/03/01/beer-review-unibroue-la-fin-du-monde/
[2] https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/03/why-alcohol-makes-you-feel-good/254315/
[4] http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/is-america-an-oligarchy
[5] https://journalistsresource.org/studies/politics/finance-lobbying/the-influence-of-elites-interest-groups-and-average-voters-on-american-politics
[6] https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/div-classtitletesting-theories-of-american-politics-elites-interest-groups-and-average-citizensdiv/62327F513959D0A304D4893B382B992B/core-reader
[7] http://www.swarthmore.edu/SocSci/bdorsey1/41docs/51-fra.html
[8] http://www.splashmagazine.com.au/2016/11/13/caused-green-water-rio-olympic-pools/
[9] http://i.imgur.com/ZmoVi2c.jpg
[10] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-36791664
[11] http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rio-2016-namibian-boxer-jonas-junias-olympics-rape-charge-allowed-to-fight-a7186361.html
[12] https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/06/serbia-rowers-sunk-capsize-rio-olympics
[13] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH92MaB-bSA
[14] http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/rio-2016-video-paramedics-drop-stretcher-of-french-gymnast-samir-ait-said-broken-leg-a7177186.html
[15] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq0iEeJuKd4
[16] http://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-rio-security-bullet-idUSKCN10H0MC
[17] http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2016/11/21/5th-kenyan-olympic-official-arrested-on-suspicion-of-theft/94232746/
[18] http://www.news.com.au/world/south-america/rio-olympics-2016-police-history-of-killings-worrying/news-story/2d64092b323bf38f71c8b38c0d5031e7
[19] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/09/violent-deaths-in-brazil-surge-to-peak-of-58000-amid-olympic-safety-fears
[20] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/08/brazil-trigger-happy-military-police-kill-hundreds-as-rio-prepares-for-olympic-countdown/
[21] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuru_(disease)
[22] http://sfist.com/2016/10/26/a_vegetarian_and_a_carnivore_try_th.php
[23] https://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/~sjryan/PPP/readings/Daszak%20et%20al.,%202000.pdf
[24] https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christopher_Dye/publication/5593134_Health_and_Urban_Living/links/565cb11908aeafc2aac7197a/Health-and-Urban-Living.pdf
[25] https://uncch.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/cancer-in-rural-versus-urban-populations-a-review
[26] http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/upside-thumb-sucking-nail-biting-2016071910032
[27] http://www.rieti.go.jp/users/kondo-keisuke/serial/en/002.html
[28] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asM39tfblMQ
[29] https://thonyc.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/infinity-did-not-drive-cantor-crazy/
[30] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elvOZm0d4H0
