In this episode, we discuss the wars of ideology that always plague our species. It doesn’t help that we all think we’re smarter than we are. Tune in!
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The Dunning-Kruger effect: Ever wonder why people seem to be getting dumber AND more confident? It turns out that this is an actual phenomenon. The more you know something, the less confident about it you are. No wonder guys like Donald Trump think they know everything! [1]
The So-Called “Great War”: you might have heard somewhere that the First World War was started because of the assassination of Archduke Frans Ferdinand, which would eventually lead countries that had formed complicated alliances to war with one another. But keep in mind that it took months for people to actually give a shit, and the actual reasons for war were far more nuanced. Still you can’t say the man didn’t have an interesting life.[2] Continue reading →
Get your notebooks ready, because this one’s educational….mostly. Don’t miss out on this show!
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How a Litre is Measured: See, the metric system is kinda genius when you think about it. It’s just a measure of the volume of a decimeter squared. That’s a fancy way of saying a little cube that about 4 inches high.[1] The clumsy “Gallon”, on the other hand, was based on the volume of the weight of 8.34 pounds of water (at least in the US). Different countries have different gallons.[2] How scientific!
Science Papers are not Well Peer Reviewed: Ok, I’m not sure if my “incentivising” idea will work, but something has to be done about the fact that we are not peer reviewing enough papers![3] Continue reading →
This episode, we discuss everything from comics to Noah’s Ark. How are they related? You’ll need to tune in to find out!
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Grand Theft Auto Series: Most people forget its humble, 2D origins, but when Rockstar first got it’s start, it was just trying to make a simple yet hyper violent game. Would they be as successful if they weren’t so eager to satirise society? I doubt it. [1]
Comics Try to become Politically Correct: It would seem that the comic industry hates its own fans. They seem to think they are above the fat, lonely neckbeards that buy their shit. Well, when you turn Thor and Iron Man into women, there might be a bit of backlash.[2][3] Call me crazy, but it could be the heavy handed writing. That’s turning off their male readers [4] Continue reading →
In this episode, we finish talking about the Olympics, as well as tackle Climate Change. Turn on your AC and get ready for some heat for this show!
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Alexander Kieth’s Beer: I’m being unfair to them. I drink them even when I have other options, but my dad is a big fan. The internet, not so much [1]
Powerpoint for Graphic Novels: You might think I’m crazy, but people are doing it. I’d send you link, but they would all be powerpoint… In any case there is a promise of more to come on this, as comics will begin to play a bigger role in the future. Continue reading →
In this episode, we continue our coverage of the Olympics, as well as discuss the breezy topic of Infinities. Don’t skip this episode!
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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] Continue reading →
This week, we cover the Rio Olympics, but not from the sports perspective. Instead, we cover some dark prediction of what will happen. Who will win?
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Papst Blue Ribbon NOT bought by Russians: (Retraction) So it turns out that the original Bloomberg article that reported this story was wrong. The company “Oasis Beverage” was not actually involved in the sale, and the beer company is actually owned by a equity firm based in New York.[1]
Brewing Laws in Canada: I tried to find more information on the specifics of brewing rules in Quebec, but like most things, it’s almost impossible to find. This website promises to include it at some later time. [2] Continue reading →
This week, we discuss the glut of superhero movies, and everyone gets to see just how ignorant of pop culture Mr. B is! Oh, and who could forget talking about contemporary slavery! Missing this one is not an option.
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The Terminator Series: Unlike the poor Mr. B, I have watched all of the terminator series, much to my chagrin. Hollywood’s constant need to revisit the familiar how now left us with more Terminator movies than we know what to do with [1]. Will we film a reaction video of Mr. B watching Terminator? Well, only if you ask for it!
People are Confused by Inception Film: I can’t possibly imagine why anyone has trouble following this film. I guess that’s the pert of me speaking that wants to believe in human intelligence. Evidence disagrees with me. If you’re confused, try this site: [2] Continue reading →
This month we examine the story of Mossack Fonseca, a much neglected topic that gets greatly ignored due to its obscurity. Don’t be fooled, this is the story of the year no one is talking about! Don’t miss this show.
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Only Arrest in Mossack Fonseca Scandal: After several months of “investigation”, the only man arrested in the tax haven scandal has been an IT worker who was suspected of being the leak in the first place [1]
2008 Financial Crisis: The Government went so easy on Wall Street, they allowed the banks to borrow trillions of dollars at almost zero percent interest. This allowed them to pay their “fines”, a joke really, with the interest they had made off these loans [2]. Rather than a bailout, this was effectively a giant Ponzi scheme. Continue reading →
This first episode was recorded in early 2016, so if some of the references seem a bit dated, now you know the reason. But strangely enough, many of the topics we discuss eventually become significant issues in the future. Were we right about our predictions?
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Sleep Issues: Studies that find that human beings are not meant to sleep 7-8 hours in a row. An article at LiveScience claims that waking up in the middle of the night is normal [1]
Reversi: The game “Othello” is actually a “modern” game that was patented by Mattel in the 1970’s by a Japanese Salesman. It’s original version was popular in England in the 1880’s under the name Reversi, but some of the rules were different.[2] The game shares a visual similarity to Go, but the two are vastly different. Continue reading →
This show was first recorded in Jan 2015, as an episode of The Good Atheist. However, since the Sketchy show was still in development, I decided to include it since the topics are highly interesting.
Losing the Bible Stories Drawings: The first 5 drawings of Bible Stories were misplaced by yours truly, and my best guess is that my bag may have actually been stolen. There was a Sony PSP in there, so some selfish person probably took that and tossed the rest.
Art as Currency: Ever wonder why there’s artwork on money? It’s hard to replicate, and more importantly, it’s got to look impressive if you’re going to give things away for some scraps of paper. Continue reading →
