Better Than Human

In Coffee and Complain: Amber is back in Ohio and heard about snakes slithering down unsuspecting human throats on the way down. We talk about how kink shaming is lame, and sometimes your parent's friends are ... not that bright.  Also, white privilege DOES exist, even if you don't think so.

You've heard of elephants, and you might have heard of a shrew, but you probably have not heard of the Elephant Shrew (actually called Sengis). It is the size of a rat, but actually closer related to an elephant than a rodent. Scientists recently rediscovered this species after is was lost to Western society for over 50 years. However, if you ask the locals in the region of Africa in which these creatures are found, they knew all about them and where to find. So where they really lost?

Sengis have large brains, and are one of few species beside humans to have menstrual cycles. Periods are lame, period. Learn more about these not-actually-a-shrew Elephant Shrews on the latest episode of Better Than Human. 

And Amber, BATS ARE MAMMALS.

For more information on us, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

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or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

In this week's Coffee and Complain, we talk YouTube’s political ads, which you can’t turn off and are forced to watch, and are equivalent to watching fiction. The Golden State Killer was sentenced, thank you Michelle McNamara. An no one is surprised that all those racist people who donated to have a wall built got their money stolen.

Despite what many think, evolution is not the survival of the fittest, but the survival of the just good enough. So sometimes evolution creates adaptations that decrease an organisms ability to survive but persists in the organism's population, like wisdom teeth. It’s called maladaptation, and is a trait that has become more harmful then helpful. Jennifer and Amber delve into some of the worst maladaptations in today's Earth, such as the female spotted hyenas giant genitalia. And is sleep a maladaptation or does Amber just think it's a waste of time? Or both.

Listen to learn more.

For more information on us, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
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on TikTok  @ https://www.tiktok.com/@l_a_mander

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

On coffee and complain, we talk Trump lacking basic human emotions, and how his attempt to destroy the Post Office could lead to an unstable government. 

Then onto this week’s topic, the big ass butterfly called Queen Alexandra's Birdwing, which is the largest butterfly in the World and is definitely not a bird.

The interesting discovery of this Butterfly involved an English naturalist, a 2nd Baron, and was named after royalty. 

The Queen Alexandra's birdwing is an endangered animal which is restricted to approximately 40 square miles of coastal rainforest in Papua New Guinea.

Jennifer manages to talk about platypus twice this episode, and Amber gets real dark towards the end. 

Don’t murder butterflies, they pollinate plants, they’re pretty and we like them. And enjoy this episode on this astounding Insecta.

For more information on us, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
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on TikTok  @ https://www.tiktok.com/@l_a_mander

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

Also, Jennifer said placenta, but she meant umbilical cord, around 28:00 into the episode.  

In Coffee and complain: Was Beirut Explosion Caused By a Missile? Did The Simpsons predicted the Beirut explosion? The answer is clearly no.

Our topic this week is the delightful, magnificent, and terrifyingly deadly Hippopotamus, which would NOT make a good Christmas gift. Despite their adorable deadliness, Hippos were almost brought to America for meat via the Hippo Bill. It's probably for the best that Hippopotamus never made into the US as Hippos are very aggressive and unpredictable creatures, with long sharp teeth. They are one of the worlds most dangerous animals, though that doesn't save them from being poached.

Though their territory once ranged across Europe, Asia, and Africa, the species currently only resides in Africa. Well, except the cocaine hippos... But we'll tell you more about that in this week's episode on the very adorable, but very deadly, Hippo.

For more information on us, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
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on TikTok  @ https://www.tiktok.com/@l_a_mander

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/hippo-haven-107453678/

In Coffee and Complain, Amber discusses the 'joys' of the American Health Care System, and why we're recording this episode on zoom. Murder hornets are now definitely a thing in the USA. Good times. Good times. Jennifer talks zombie fungus in cicada and why Donald wants to ban TikTok in the US. (Follow Amber on TikTok at https://www.tiktok.com/@l_a_mander)

Then onto this weeks topic, Zospeum tholussum a cute, translucent snail that was recently discovered. They are a cave-dwelling species of air-breathing land snails found only in the Lukina Jama Cave, which is located in the Velebit caves systems of Croatia. The "Lukina jama" cave is the 14th deepest cave in the world and the deepest cave in southeast Europe. We also discuss the other new species discovered in the cave systems.

Note: Jennifer meant Emma Stone NOT Emma Watson and Amber was talking about the Netflix show Maniac.

For more information on the speleologists, go to their website: https://speleologija.eu/velebita/indexen.html

For more information on us, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
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or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

This week in Coffee and Complain, a supernova exploded and threw a small dwarf star, but forget about that! That's science, and the Trump administration said we shouldn't listen science.

And now for something completely different!

Did you know there is a church in Mexico that was built in honor of a fungus? To be more specific, the church built around a very special mushroom, a magic mushroom.  

Magic mushrooms, or more technically Psilocybin, are found all over the world and have a rich history throughout many different cultures. Though it is hard to be certain of their ancient history, magic mushrooms have been used  in many different religious ceremonies, especially for Pagan gods. Though Christianity attempted to squash the ritualistic use of mushrooms, the ceremonies survived and ironically, it was these ceremonies that re-introduced the Western culture to magic mushrooms. 

Listen and learn about Psilocybin mushroom from prehistory into modern times. 

For more information, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
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or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

In Coffee and Complain, Amber discusses an article about research that found people who refuse to social distance are not as intelligent as those who do. So if you want dump people to social distance then we need to dumb down how we explain the need for masks to them.

Then onto this weeks topic, a continuation of last week's episode on genetically modified organisms. First we talk genetically modified bugs. Should we eradicate mosquitoes from the face of the Earth?  We can make a good argument for GMO mosquitoes, but what about humans? Genetically modifying humans is a huge moral grey area. If we can eliminate genetic disorders from humans before they're born should we, or could this lead to a slippery slope of designer baby?  Who knows, we don't know, but these are important questions we must ask, sooner rather than later.

For more information, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
on Instagram @betterthanhumanpodcast

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

In our new segment, Coffee and Complain, we talk about how Trump wore a mask like a big boy, and then bragged about how pretty he looked. 

Our topic this week are genetically modified organisms, more commonly known as GMOs. 
What is the definition of a GMO? Can you guess what the first genetically plant and animal were? Do you know how long humans have been modifying things in their environment? It's a lot longer than you think. We also talk about the pros and the cons of genetic modification. Spoiler alert, GMOs are not bad for you. 

For more information, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
on Instagram @betterthanhumanpodcast

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

In recent events, we lost a star. Not our star, obviously, but a star. Scientists aren't quite sure exactly what happened to it. Perhaps, the Dalek stole it. In other news, Alabama students hold Covid-19 parties. The hosts of this podcast cannot believe anyone needs to be told how dumb that truly is. 

Then Amber and Jennifer delve into why the Mimic Octopus is better than human. First discovered off the coast of Indonesia in 1998, this relatively small octopus has been observed mimicking numerous different sea animals. Unlike many other mimics in the animal kingdom, the mimic octopus doesn't just change its color. Find out more about what makes this fascinating creature the ultimate mimic and just how intelligent an octopus can be in this week's episode. 

For more information, visit our website at betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
on Instagram @betterthanhumanpodcast

or Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness

On August 24th, 2019, 23-year-old Elijah McClain was walking home after buying some tea at a local convenience store when he was murdered by Aurora Police. Please sign the Change.org petition for Justice for Elijah McClain, and so that his killers finally face consequences.

https://www.change.org/p/adams-county-district-attorney-justice-for-elijah-mcclain-88600e12-fb72-41e4-9137-030a1dcaf695

After signing the petition, please listen and learn why parrots are better than human in this week's episode. 

Parrots are among the most intelligent birds, and some have the ability to imitate human speech, often to humorous results.  Not only have parrots demonstrated intelligence through scientific testing of their language-using ability, but also some species of parrots, such as the kea, are also highly skilled at using tools and solving puzzles, some have the intelligence levels of 4-year-old human children. Parrots can practice acts of kindness, and use specialized calls to communicate with their friends. How does this make better then human? Listen and learn more.

After listening, if you wish to adopt a kākāpō, you can do so at:
https://www.doc.govt.nz/our-work/kakapo-recovery/get-involved/adopt-a-kakapo/

Visit our website betterthanhumanpodcast.com

Follow us on Twitter @betterthanhuma1
on Facebook @betterthanhumanpodcast
on Instagram @betterthanhumanpodcast

Email us at [email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you, and we look forward to you joining our cult of weirdness!

#betterthanhuman #cultofweirdness