Physical Attraction

www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction, that's www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction . If you go there, and subscribe selecting the $3/episode option, the RSS feed and access to all of the online bonus episodes will be yours. I want to make the subscription $3/bonus episode, so that you're only paying for the content I actually produce and give you rather than some neverending monthly subscription. But I will trail the bonus episodes in advance, so that you know what you're getting. The first one is the second half of the aliens episode that just went up on the feed; in the future, we'll have episodes about failed predictions for the end of the world, and for thermodynamics we'll have free energy projects that just didn't work out. If you're a patron, you can ask me about bonus episodes you'd especially like to hear, and I will do my best to respond to popular suggestions.

If you DON'T want to subscribe via patreon, there are other options. You can go to www.paypal.me/physicspod. There you will see a paypal link that will allow you to send money directly to me. If you send $3 and put in the "note" alongside the sending your email, and the bonus episode you wish to purchase, I will send you a download link to that episode. That way anyone who has Paypal can request an individual bonus episode. At some point in the future if this goes well, I'll look into setting up an online store that will make it easier for people to pay for the individual episodes they want, but for now, best to do things via Paypal and via www.physicspodcast.com. All of the relevant information and links will be at www.physicspodcast.com, so that's the place to go if you're interested; we also have a contact form there where I can explain any details in further... detail.

Thanks so much for listening and telling others about the show. I've recieved a wonderful response from many of you so far and I want to keep going for as long as possible, because I love doing this project, and I hope you guys enjoy it too.

www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction, that's www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction . If you go there, and subscribe selecting the $3/episode option, the RSS feed and access to all of the online bonus episodes will be yours. I want to make the subscription $3/bonus episode, so that you're only paying for the content I actually produce and give you rather than some neverending monthly subscription. But I will trail the bonus episodes in advance, so that you know what you're getting. The first one is the second half of the aliens episode that just went up on the feed; in the future, we'll have episodes about failed predictions for the end of the world, and for thermodynamics we'll have free energy projects that just didn't work out. If you're a patron, you can ask me about bonus episodes you'd especially like to hear, and I will do my best to respond to popular suggestions.

If you DON'T want to subscribe via patreon, there are other options. You can go to www.paypal.me/physicspod. There you will see a paypal link that will allow you to send money directly to me. If you send $3 and put in the "note" alongside the sending your email, and the bonus episode you wish to purchase, I will send you a download link to that episode. That way anyone who has Paypal can request an individual bonus episode. At some point in the future if this goes well, I'll look into setting up an online store that will make it easier for people to pay for the individual episodes they want, but for now, best to do things via Paypal and via www.physicspodcast.com. All of the relevant information and links will be at www.physicspodcast.com, so that's the place to go if you're interested; we also have a contact form there where I can explain any details in further... detail.

Thanks so much for listening and telling others about the show. I've recieved a wonderful response from many of you so far and I want to keep going for as long as possible, because I love doing this project, and I hope you guys enjoy it too.

Things have been very serious and very depressing on our TEOTWAWKI specials; so I thought it was about time to do a little bit of light-hearted debunking, rather than ranting about the genuine dangers of apocalypse that might await us in the future. I'll discuss why the Roswell story doesn't add up - even a little bit - what an actual alien invasion could you like; and why it's just so damn unlikely that any of these alien abduction stories are especially true. We'll even talk about reports of "UFOs" that stretch all the way back to Medieval Europe - with a healthy dose of skepticism. This is the first part of a TWO-PART episode. The second part will be available as a Premium episode. If you donate $3 or more via the Paypal link at www.paypal.me/physicspod I will give you a download link to the second part of the episode - the Premium bit - (enclose your email or send it to me on Twitter, or via a comment on www.physicspodcast.com). All Patreon subscribers will also get access to a special RSS feed containing all bonus episodes, and other extra content as and when I can produce it! You can find our Patreon at www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction This is not about making me a millionaire; it's about helping us cover the show costs, and all the time I spend making these shows... Although making me a millionaire would be a decent side-effect. So remember, you're not just paying for the episode: you're helping us produce every episode, and helping me carry on bringing you the show.

Things have been very serious and very depressing on our TEOTWAWKI specials; so I thought it was about time to do a little bit of light-hearted debunking, rather than ranting about the genuine dangers of apocalypse that might await us in the future.

I'll discuss why the Roswell story doesn't add up - even a little bit - what an actual alien invasion could you like; and why it's just so damn unlikely that any of these alien abduction stories are especially true. We'll even talk about reports of "UFOs" that stretch all the way back to Medieval Europe - with a healthy dose of skepticism. 

This is the first part of a TWO-PART episode. The second part will be available as a Premium episode. If you donate $3 or more via the Paypal link at www.paypal.me/physicspod I will give you a download link to the second part of the episode - the Premium bit - (enclose your email or send it to me on Twitter, or via a comment on www.physicspodcast.com). All Patreon subscribers will also get access to a special RSS feed containing all bonus episodes, and other extra content as and when I can produce it! You can find our Patreon at www.patreon.com/PhysicalAttraction

This is not about making me a millionaire; it's about helping us cover the show costs, and all the time I spend making these shows... Although making me a millionaire would be a decent side-effect. So remember, you're not just paying for the episode: you're helping us produce every episode, and helping me carry on bringing you the show. 

Human beings have been facing apocalyptic circumstances for thousands of years. Our competitors, our nemesis have been pathogens like malaria, Yersinia Pestis, smallpox... every few generations, a cataclysmic plague would tear through human populations and leave entire towns uninhabited. In the modern era, with modern medicines, we may feel that - at least in the industrialized West - this horror is behind our species now. But with evolving technology and behaviours come new risks; and we have seen in pandemics like Zika and Ebola that there may well be terrors yet to come for humanity. What makes these pandemics so threatening? And what has natural selection and evolution produced in the way of pandemics? NOTE: This is part 1 of a two part series on pandemics; the second part will deal with biotechnology-inspired viruses and pandemics. If you're enjoying the end of the world, why not hit us up with episode suggestions on twitter @physicspod? You can donate to the show via Paypal there - every little helps us cover our costs. Please rate and review the show on iTunes if you don't want to donate - it helps us get noticed by generous, physics-loving billionaires. Until next time, stay safe.

Human beings have been facing apocalyptic circumstances for thousands of years. Our competitors, our nemesis have been pathogens like malaria, Yersinia Pestis, smallpox... every few generations, a cataclysmic plague would tear through human populations and leave entire towns uninhabited.

In the modern era, with modern medicines, we may feel that - at least in the industrialized West - this horror is behind our species now. But with evolving technology and behaviours come new risks; and we have seen in pandemics like Zika and Ebola that there may well be terrors yet to come for humanity.

What makes these pandemics so threatening? And what has natural selection and evolution produced in the way of pandemics?

NOTE: This is part 1 of a two part series on pandemics; the second part will deal with biotechnology-inspired viruses and pandemics.


If you're enjoying the end of the world, why not hit us up with episode suggestions on twitter @physicspod? You can donate to the show via Paypal there - every little helps us cover our costs. Please rate and review the show on iTunes if you don't want to donate - it helps us get noticed by generous, physics-loving billionaires. Until next time, stay safe.

Joining me today is Dr Rafael Alves-Batista. Rafael is a post-doctoral research associate at the University of Oxford. He received his Bachelor's Degree and his Masters' at the State University of Campinas in Brazil, moved to Hamburg, Germany for his PhD which he received in 2015, and then onto Oxford for his postdoctoral position. And, last year, he supervised my Masters' project, looking into the origin of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays: so I can attest to his genius first-hand! In this first part of the interview, we talk about cosmic rays - what are they, where do they come from, and what can they tell us about the Universe? We also talk about the current scientific understanding surrounding the topic of the Multiverse, and what the origins of the Universe can tell us about how it is today. For more information you can follow Rafa over at @8rafael, or visit his website at www.8rafael.com where you can read his scientific papers and see the other popular media he's taken part in.

Joining me today is Dr Rafael Alves-Batista. Rafael is a post-doctoral research associate at the University of Oxford. He received his Bachelor’s Degree and his Masters’ at the State University of Campinas in Brazil, moved to Hamburg, Germany for his PhD which he received in 2015, and then onto Oxford for his postdoctoral position. And, last year, he supervised my Masters’ project, looking into the origin of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays: so I can attest to his genius first-hand!

In this first part of the interview, we talk about cosmic rays - what are they, where do they come from, and what can they tell us about the Universe?

We also talk about the current scientific understanding surrounding the topic of the Multiverse, and what the origins of the Universe can tell us about how it is today.

For more information you can follow Rafa over at @8rafael, or visit his website at www.8rafael.com where you can read his scientific papers and see the other popular media he's taken part in. 

LIGO hold a big press conference and announce the merger of Neutron Stars detected via gravitational waves and optical instruments for the first time. We now know about types of gamma ray burst, and where gold and platinum come from. Since we did an episode about the gravitational wave detections and the Nobel Prize less than a week ago, I thought it would be fun for me to breathlessly describe it based on what reading I've been able to do and give a few early thoughts. YAY SCIENCE!

LIGO hold a big press conference and announce the merger of Neutron Stars detected via gravitational waves and optical instruments for the first time. We now know about types of gamma ray burst, and where gold and platinum come from. 

Since we did an episode about the gravitational wave detections and the Nobel Prize less than a week ago, I thought it would be fun for me to breathlessly describe it based on what reading I've been able to do and give a few early thoughts.

YAY SCIENCE!