High Science

Kat leads the way as we explore how science research is conducted and presented. We follow the progression of a research paper and discuss important concepts found in each section. The goal is to give everyone the tools they need to find and critically analyze science from the primary source. Kudos to Kat for running a great episode!

(Mistake correction: When talking about the statistical tests, we misspoke about the p value. A p value of 0.05 corresponds to a 5% chance the null hypothesis is true or a 95% chance that the results are significant.)

Major Topics Covered:

Important adjectives to describe science (measurable, falsifiable, etc)

Types of variables

Where to find research papers

How to read and analyze research papers

Validity

Sample sizes

Types of studies

Blinds

Statistical Analysis and Tests (chi squared, T-test, etc)

Theoretical science vs. experimental science

General discussion on the topic

It's time to inch up to a touchy subject. This week we follow the history of science and religion along with their intersection throughout human history.  From ancient serpent gods to the scopes monkey trial, we explore the clashes of science and religion. Here are a list of topics that we cover throughout the episode:

The life of early humans

Ancient religions and why they emerged

Philosophical razors and a bit of Ancient Greece

Copernicus, heliocentrism, and the church's reaction

Galileo and his conflict with religion

The age of the Earth and the literal interpretation of the bible

Darwin and evolution

Why religion is still around in the age of science

Our personal relationship with religion

The Scopes Monkey Trial: Science and religion go to court

Epilogue: Random discussions

Oh boy this is a long one. This week we have Jake the space guru talking about all things beyond our atmosphere. Many topics are covered ranging from cosmology to star life cycles to the voyager spacecraft. We spend time freaking out about black holes and potential alien life. We finish off the discussion with an existential discussion about creating meaning in a meaningless universe.

Mr. Dr. Sean comes to visit and we talk about quantum gravity and deep physics concepts! Sean is working on the front lines of theoretical quantum gravity research. We pick his brain about physics in general, his research, symmetries, quantum mechanics, and general relativity. Sean has a knack for explaining difficult concepts in simple terms. We tackle topics from causality to entropy and debauchery ensues every step of the way.

We're talking about the brain! It's important to note that we are talking neuroscience here and not psychology. Neuroscience is the study of the brain while psychology is the study of the mind. So what is the brain? How did it evolve? How does it work?

Evolution and Structure of the Brain

The first nervous system evolved in a group of animals known as cnidaria. Jellyfish are a part of this group. This simple nervous system is known as a "nerve net". Our centralized nervous system evolved in steps. First the medulla oblongata was present and this structure controls involuntary actions like heartbeat, digestion, etc. This part is located at the top of your spinal cord. Another structure near the medulla is known as the cerebellum. This is a bulb above the back of your neck. This structure controls balance and coordination. It also plays an important role in motor control. You can thank your cerebellum whenever you pick up a glass of water and don't crush it in your grip. The midbrain is the next structure that evolved and it is responsible for some sensory processing and basic monkey emotions like arousal. The cerebrum is the large wrinkly part of your brain. This is the human part of your brain that controls language, memory, thought, and a whole lot more. The left side of your brain controls the right side of your body and vice versa. It should be noted that our nervous system is made up of small units known as neurons or nerve cells. These cells are built to send electrical messages from one cell to another. The brain is made up of grey matter and white matter. Grey matter sits on the surface of your brain and is responsible for doing things. White matter is inside your brain and is responsible for sending the messages that the grey matter "creates". White matter is white because the nerve cells are coated in a white fatty substance known as myelin that helps the electrical signals travel faster.

The Terrifying Homunculus

One of the goals we had while studying the brain was to locate where each action occurs. For example, when I move my pinky, which part of the brain is responsible for that? We can do the same for facial recognition, memory, thought, etc. A result of this study is the Cortical Homunculus. After studying the motor strip, or the strip of brain that is responsible for movement of our bodies, a drawing was made that shows where each body part is controlled in the brain. The bigger the body part drawing, the more surface area of the brain is used to control it. Here is the resulting monstrosity: (If you cannot see the image, just google "cortical homunculus")

Image Source

If this wasn't enough, a scientist created a little person replica using the homunculus as a guide. He made the sizes of each body part corespond to how much brain tissue you use to control it. Here is the homunculus man. Sorry for the nightmares.

Image Source

Other Brain Information

Left brain is not solely mathematical and right brain is not solely artistic. The best correlation we can find is the left brain is more detail oriented while the right brain is more big picture oriented.

We cannot multitask well. We only use 12 watts of power to run our brains so we can only pay attention to a few things at a time. PSA: Try to avoid texting and driving.

We do not only use 10% of our brain. We use 100% of our brain just not all at once. We cannot unlock our potential by using more of our brain.

The rest of the episode talks about different brain studies and philosophical implications of brain stuff. We also spend a decent chunk of time off the rails talking about a bunch of bullshit.

After about two minutes of bullshitting and talking about episode introductions, the crew gets into talking about the philosophical field of argumentation. This episode focuses on the structure of arguments, validity of arguments, and logical fallacies.

Types and Structure of Arguments

There are two types of arguments: deductive and inductive. Deductive arguments attempt to guarantee the truth of the claim being provided. In other words, if all the premises are true and logical, it would be impossible for the conclusion to be false. An inductive argument attempts to arrive at a conclusion that is likely to be true. If all the premises are true, it is unlikely that that conclusion will be wrong. Examples for both are given in the episode.

It is important to remember that a sound argument can lead to a wrong conclusion and a ridiculous argument can lead to a correct conclusion. The study of argumentation is meant to maximize the probability of attaining the truth.

Logical Fallacies

Logical Fallacies are common errors in reasoning. These types of arguments feel true but are at their core fallacious. Knowing these fallacies gives you the tools needed to not only craft good arguments yourself, but to also identify fallacious arguments around you. In the rest of the episode, logical fallacies are given along with examples. Shenanigans ensue.

Note: At the end of the episode, we attempt to record an introduction of episode two. We ended up not using it but the recording is ridiculous enough that we had to leave it in.

Getting Small

Particle physics attempts to answer two questions:

What is the smallest unit of everything? What are the most fundamental building blocks of the universe?

How do those building blocks interact to create everything around us?

In order to get to the foundation we need to start here, on our scale. Imagine we have a cup of water, and we want to get to the smallest unit of water. So we stick our finger in and take out a drop. We start flicking away water until we're left with a wet finger. Where is the smallest unit? If we zoom into the wet finger, we will find the smallest lump of water. This lump is a molecule: the smallest unit of water that still has the properties of water. Things get weird at this scale, for example, temperature does not exist.

So we found the smallest unit of water. But is there something smaller? (Hint: yes)

Getting Smaller

So the smallest unit of water is actually a combination of two hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom. The thing is, once we break up this combination, we no longer have water. These atoms are NOT the smallest thing! (Even though atom means indivisible in Greek). Atoms are made up of subatomic particles known as protons, neutrons, and electrons. Protons and neutrons hang out in the densely packed center known as the nucleus while electrons swirl around the outside of the nucleus.

So electrons, as far as we know today, are fundamental. This means that we cannot break them into smaller pieces. We reached the first building block of nature. However, those protons and neutrons, are made up of some smaller things.

Getting Smallest

Protons and neutrons are made up smaller particles known as quarks. Three quarks to be exact. Quarks come in a few different flavors (not making this up). Protons are made of two up quarks and one down quark. Neutrons are made of two downs and an up. Quarks are not found alone in nature, they always come along with some quark friends. If you tried to pull a quark away from its buddies, you would have to use so much energy that new quarks would be created! Almost everything you experience, and everything you will experience, is just various combinations of up quarks, down quarks, and electrons. Every war in human history is simply a pile of quarks and electrons interacting in interesting ways. We've reached the fundamental particles. The next bit of the discussion describes all the different particles. Here is table that organizes them all. This table is known as the standard model:

Source: Wikipedia

 

The particles that make up matter are called fermions. These particles take up space so they build all the stuff around us. Fermions interact by exchanging another type of particle known as bosons. Bosons are responsible for all the forces of nature. The nucleus of atoms is held together through the strong nuclear force. The gluon is the boson responsible for this force. The boson for gravity is known as the graviton and the boson for electricity and magnetism is the photon (the particle of light!).

The conversation then moves to the experiments of particle physics. We discuss the gargantuan particle accelerators running today and why smashing particles together at high energies makes new particles. We briefly discuss quantum field theory and the different "realms" of physics. Particle physics lives in the realm of quantum field theory. We finish the discussion by answering an important question: why do we do particle physics? Why should we care? When it really comes down to it, particle physicists are deeply curious people and their motivation is simply to uncover the mysteries of the universe.

What is the Essence of You? ...... Musky

Where are you right now? Are you the all the meat sitting down listening to this episode? Are you behind your eyes? Just the jelly in your skull? If I took your head and put it on another body, would you still be you? John, James, Kat and special guest Greg explore different ideas of personal identity. Are we our bodies? Our brains? Our memories? If our memories got wiped tomorrow, would we still be us moving forward? How many sentences are going to end in a question mark?

What if John and James got hooked up to a machine. This machine left all the cells in their original bodies and only the information of John and James gets transferred? Memories, personality, and dreams get transferred from one person to another. Is James John or is James still James? Does your head hurt yet?

Teleportation Goes Horribly Wrong

Let's go to the future! Teleportation is a thing now. This is how it works: you walk in a room, you hit a button, the the room destroys the original version of you while a "new" you is constructed wherever you're going. You don't feel a thing. You blink and you're at your destination while your day continues. However, none of the original atoms that made you are moved to the new location. Is this a perfect system or are you dying and getting reborn every time you teleport? Let's make this situation more complex. Imagine you go in the room, hit the button, but nothing happens. You walk out to the front desk and tell them that there's a problem. They check the tape and inform you that you made it to your destination! That version of you is going through their day just like you would. Here's the kicker: they inform you that the original copy MUST be destroyed due to the teleportation policy. You proceed to understandably freak out. This thought experiment hones in on the core of what personal identity is for someone. You are what you control. But are you really in control?

Free Will?

Do we have free will? To answer this as a scientist, we need evidence. People have been hooked up to electroencephalograms (EEGs) to measure their brain activity while they do various things. The example given in the episode was that participants got hooked up to an EEG and were asked to press a button. You would expect the brain to "light up" in the following order: (1) make decision to hit button, (2) motor strip tells your muscles to hit button, (3) button gets pushed. However, what really happened was that the motor strip lit up before they decided to hit the button. This has huge implications against free will. If we are our experience, and we don't even control that... who are we?

Are we Asking the Right Question?

It's human nature to want to categorize things. I'm me, you're you, that's a chair, we good. Perhaps that way of thinking is faulty. Maybe there is not a "me". Biologically, I'm just a pile of cells constantly replacing itself with new cells. When we talk about "us" we're really talking about a snapshot in time. You and yourself ten years ago have virtually no cells in common. Yet, when you look at an old picture, you say it's you. You KNOW it's you. So maybe it's what you know in your gut. Or maybe we are all not as separate as we might think.

In this special episode John interviews two scientists over Skype. Sam is a biochemistry/biophysics student studying the protein(s) involved in bringing nutrients to the transparent lens of your eye. Sirius Jay is a chemistry student studying the degradation products of turpenes. Turpenes are oily molecules that are found in nature and are responsible for many odors. Terpenes have many applications but the most interesting of which may be in vaporizing cannabis oils. Jay has taken history's first quantitative dab. Both of these guys are wicked smart and the conversation hits topics such as electron microscopes, quantum physics, and fact that teleportation is happening in our stomachs. We also talk about the history of chemistry back to the Greeks (love those Greeks) and some philosophy of science. We talk about some space travel possibilities such as solar sails and the alcubierre drive (incorrectly stated on the episode that the drive started with an "L"). We freak out over gravitational waves, stars, and supernovae as John says "out of control" way too much. Different types of stars and black holes are discussed along with how light "bends" around these things. We then pivot to talk about dark matter along with what it could be and how we know it's there. Sam and Jay share why they studied science this far. We move to talk about antibiotics along with how they work. How and why cannabis evolved to have THC is also discussed, including human involvement with that evolution. Sam then shows us his awesome tattoos and John stumbles through making sense of them. John also talks about the tattoo he would potentially get. This conversation was broad and this description doesn't come close to covering all the topics and shenanigans that happened on air but this should provide a solid summary of our talking points.

What Even is Light?

We know for sure it's not dark. How do light bulbs work? Are they small suns inside a glass circle? James and special guest Greg stumble around as they try to explain light fundamentally. Kat and John enjoy their struggle. How can we explain light to a five year old? In order to handle the the complex question about what light is, it is best to start by exploring what light does.

What Does Light Do?

Mirrors are weird. We know light can reflect or bounce off things. So is light made up of bouncy stuff? We also know light refracts or it's path can bend. Imagine a straw in a glass of water. The water half of the straw looks disconnected from the top half. This is because light bends as it travels from water to air (or vice versa).  Light has to bounce and bend. What kind of thing does this?

History of Our Understanding of Light

Always starting with the Ancient Greeks. They understood light as straight lines called "rays". But how do these rays move? Some Greeks (example: Pythagoras) thought that rays left your eyes, bounced off the object, and came back to your eyes to be detected. Other Greeks thought light rays only came into our eyes after it bounced off an object. Here, John goes on a quick tangent to discuss the fact that researchers have slowed down light to 38 MPH (about 61 km/hr).

The discussion then moves to Ancient Arab times and all the work they did with geometric optics. This is where pinhole cameras were invented. Lenses and all their weirdness are also briefly explored. Our history of light then fast forwards to Isaac Newton and all the work he did with light. He thought that light was made up of a stream of particles called corpuscles based on his experiments. However, Newton's contemporary Christiaan Huygens thought light was a wave based on his own observations! The basics of waves are briefly discussed at this point. So we have options here. That is until Thomas Young came along.

Young conducted the famous double slit experiment which definitively showed that light is a wave. So that's it right? Episode over? It would be if it wasn't for cha boi Einstein and the photoelectric effect. It order to explain how electrons come off some metals when light is shined at it, Einstein had to use the particle description of light! So what is light? A wave? A particle? Both? Neither? Today we describe light as having both particle characteristics and wave characteristics. This is known as wave-particle duality! From here, each "picture" of light is explored separately. First light waves are explored then later, light particles.

Light as Waves and Light as Particles

So alright cool, light is a wave. But what is waving? In order to understand what's going on, electromagnetism is briefly discussed. The work of Ørsted, Faraday, and Maxwell are all touched upon to show that light is an electromagnetic wave! The electromagnetic field is what's waving to create light! From here, different wavelengths of light are explained. Radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, x-rays, and gamma rays are all presented, explained, and discussed. In order to discuss the particle picture of light, black-bodies and the ultraviolet catastrophe were discussed along with Max Planck's solution. The episode concludes by talking about the finite speed of light and it's implications.