Science Faction Podcast

This episode contains: The three of us are here and ready to talk sci-fi, and only sci-fi. However, we first talk about what makes a “gentleman” and recount our Thanksgiving day experiences.

Science Fiction: We discuss Andor’s first season, what we liked about it, and what we might expect from season two. There are a lot of SPOILERS. We end up talking about Andor for half the episode. Ben and Steven then talk about Disney’s Strange World. Ben has been looking forward to this movie for years, while most other people still don’t know it exists. This also has some SPOILERS. Devon is still there, we think. We quickly talk Rick and Morty, then move on to Wakanda Forever. Steven and Ben then tell us all about Wakanda Forever with, again, SPOILERS. We then discuss Marvel Phase Four in general. Also, The Rocketeer.

This episode contains: Ben will not be cooking turkey this Thanksgiving, instead it's poached salmon! Ben battled Devon's ghost on Geometry Wars 2, doubling Devon's high score (he got 12,676,335 if anyone is asking). Devon lost his leg in the Geometry Wars.  "Remember the Slaughter" is a pretty good band name.  Is somebody writing down our cool band names? "Annus Horribilis" is another great band name. It means "unfortunate year." Steven recommends the band "The Sword." They rock. Listen to them. This COULD BE a music recommendation podcast, but Steven rejects that idea. Devon introduces us to Swamp Pop instead of talking Science & Science Fiction.

Sleep, Data. Sleep: Artificial neural networks learn better when they spend time not learning at all.  During sleep, the brain is super busy repeating what we've learned in the day. Catastrophic Forgetting happens with neural networks: it's when new info overwrites old. "Computational Biology" is a rad band name too. Our development in neural network's sleep patterns can be applied to humans. Avenue 5 handled time delay comms, with AI that predicts conversation. We butcher discussing gender diversity during the Trans Day of Remembrance.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221118160305.htm

Mmmm, yumm 😋: Oldest evidence of the controlled use of fire to cook food, researchers report. Easily catching fish was a major development in human life. Thank you fish! 780,000 yrs ago humans first cooked fish. Before we thought it was 170,000 yrs. Researchers found fish teeth at a dig, saw they were heated = Cooking! Fishing is a safe way to hunt. Except if we're watching Jaws. Fishing also allowed our brains to get better.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221114111017.htm

This Week in Space: Pristine meteorite found within hours of hitting Earth. Everything was great till the UK Fireball Alliance attacked! 1.3 lbs of asteroid rock was found within 12 hours of landing. Most meteorite finds aren't very fresh. A meteorite find in Winchcombe is the best you can get without going to space.

https://astronomy.com/news/2022/11/pristine-meteorite-found-within-hours-of-hitting-earth

Science Fiction: Devon caught up on Avenue 5, and he digs it. The in-show show about Avenue 5 in Avenue 5 is hilariously terrible. There's comedy gold in mob mentality in Avenue 5. On Star Trek: Prodigy, The Protostar and the Dauntless start their showdown! The Ship was the 100th ep of DS9, and Timeless was 100th of VOY. Connections! The Outrageous Okona's Billy Campbell was in PCPA in Santa Maria and was The Rocketeer! Is Lower Decks really canon? Yes, Devon. Steven asks what a reptilian Xindi is. It's... complicated. We talk the upcoming Lower Decks and Strange New Worlds crossover. We don't talk about Andor too much, but we find time to bash Rise of Skywalker. Do you think K2SO will show up in Andor's last episode? We talk about a lot of Alan Tudyk. Watch Resident Alien. Devon says it's good. The new Disney film Strange World comes out this week! Alan Tudyk is in it too! Inside Job = Archer + Rick & Morty. A comedy where conspiracy theories are real. Devon gives Inside Job 4 out of 4 stars! 3 is too little, but it's not perfect? What's worse than raining cats and dogs? Hailing taxi cabs!

This episode contains: Three old men chat about their relative closeness in age. Ben and Steven played the fantastic science fiction RPG Traveller! Devon attended a BBQ and had some real talk with his kid about chicken.

Go, Ninja, Go!: Rats bop to the beat. Scientists have found that rats nod along to music, just like humans do. We talk about these implications. Also, Steven took the long way around for a TMNT joke.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/11/221111155715.htm

Busted: Innocent man freed from prison after 35 years, thanks to an old episode of Mythbusters. A man was jailed for admitting to lighting a molotov cocktail with a cigarette, which we know (from science and Mythbusters) to be impossible! He has since been freed.

https://www.iflscience.com/innocent-man-freed-from-prison-after-35-years-thanks-to-an-old-episode-of-mythbusters-65677

Rock You Like A Hurricane: NASA says its SLS rocket is good to go for a launch attempt next Wednesday. High wind gusts were within tolerance, and the rocket will be launched (spoilers, it was launched successfully!).

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/11/nasa-says-its-sls-rocket-is-good-to-go-for-a-launch-attempt-next-wednesday/

Science Fiction: Ben tells us all about Avenue 5, the basic plot and the latest season. We're intrigued. Steven mentions the cancellation of WestWorld with only one season to go. We all talk a whole lot about the 9th episode of Andor, "One Way Out!". What an amazing show. Ben tells us about the Studio Ghibli short Grogu and Dust Bunnies. Finally, Ben talks us through the latest episode of Star Trek Prodigy, which has some very interesting links to The Original Series.

This episode contains: Steven and Ben continue to cast without the delightful presence of one Devon Craft. We discuss out upcoming Traveller game (an amazing science fiction role playing game). Steven then tells why “today was not a good day for Steven.” Because of this, Steven is not prepared and so this is a much looser episode. So we talk about FTL, which Steven has not played since 2015, the Battlestar Galactica board game, and the recent history of indie video games. Steven brings up RimWorld, Tin Can, The Last Starship, and Cyberpunk 2077. Ben tells us about Plunder Panic, a patriate video game.

Science Fiction: Ben tells about the 856th episode of Star Trek or the 11th episode of Star Trek Prodigy. The Borg return in this “super good episode.” Star Trek Prodigy also has a video game, which Ben has of course played. Ben also knows what the fourth Star Trek film might have been. Chris Pine and Chris Hemsworth were going to team up somehow. We also discuss Ghostbusters, including the 2016 film and the animated show, because why not? Ben informs us of MythBusters Junior. It’s been a few weeks but we finally catch up on Andor. We discuss why Andor is such a good show… and more!

This episode contains: Around these parts, there's spooky and then there's spoopy. Steven says nope. Halloween can stick around year-round if you ask Ben. Ben found a house with severed limbs in the yard, but one was half a real rat. Steven's kids said no to Halloween decorations. They wanted Harvest Decorations. Stores are carrying skeletons for creatures without bones. Like octopuses.

Whoops? And your welcome?: US embassies may have accidentally improved air quality. 2008 was great! Steven and Ben had great jobs and would NEVER get laid off. 2008 was also when Geometry Wars 2 came out. In 2008, US embassies installed air-quality monitors and tweeted amounts hourly. Can regulators be shunned to improve air-quality by the power of tweeting? Purely informational intervention from US to improve air-quality. Maybe the regulators should crack down on the quality of our podcast.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/us-embassies-may-have-accidentally-improved-air-quality/

The D in DNA stands for Dubstep: Ancient viral DNA in human genome guards against infections. Viral DNA in our genomes are antivirals protecting cells against modern viruses. Steven correctly pronounces "endogenous!" Suppressyn has two S's and a Y, but the Y isn't where you think! Oh wait it is. Reverse experiments aren't just saying the word "experiments" backwards, Ben. Hauntingly futuristic: we say thank you to our DNA.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221027154145.htm

What is Dead may Never Die: Pebble, the OG smartwatch that may never die, updated to work with Pixel 7. Ben misses his Pebble. Recharging an Apple Watch every 2 days is TERRIBLE. The Apple Watch is a remarkable piece of tech, but if you want a WATCH... shrug. Pebble watches just got an update to support Android's 64-bit OS on Pixel 7. The Pebble Smartwatch: What is dead may never die. We have a story that only applies to those "rockin" the Pebble smartwatch.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2022/10/pebble-a-2013-smartwatch-updated-to-work-with-2022-pixel-7/

Science Fiction: Episodes 863 AND 864 of Star Trek on this week's podcast. Lower Decks: "The Stars At Night" are big and bright deep in the heart of Texas! Don't you need people to crew a starship to determine what good to do? How cool would it be if every California-class had a Texas-class escort? Evidently Jean-Luc Picard loves mummies. Shaxs finally got to eject his warp core! The M5 Multitronic Unit from TOS and the Texas-class AI are two peas in a pod. Badgey returned in a post-credit scene. If you wanted to start Star Trek: Prodigy on episode 11... you could but why? Ben recaps the Diviner's plan in Star Trek: Prodigy from months ago. The rest of Star Trek: Prodigy's first season has been compared to The Fugitive. Ben says Star Trek: Prodigy's 11th episode was rad. You should watch it. Tales of the Jedi: Ahsoka episodes are fun, Dooku episodes are incredible. Liam Neeson is back! Who deleted Camino from the archives? Now we know. What happened to Yaddle? Now we know. Will we ever see how EXACTLY Palpatine has returned? House of the Dragon is an amazing show about terrible people. Brothers named Arik and Erik? Man, screw this show. The first season of House of the Dragon was just setting up the upcoming game. Fallout's 25th anniversary is this year! Steven played it in High School! Steven reminisces about buying Fallout in EB Games in the mall back in the 90s.

This episode contains: Steven and Ben attended a well behaved dinner together. Devon contimplates shock collars for his kids. Oh, and Ben has another job. Neat.

Brain Matters: Lab-grown brain cells learn to play PONG, may be sentient. Both Steven and Devon report on new findings on human and mice neurons integrated into a silicon chip and taught how to play PONG. If some red flags are raised, you'd be right.

https://nerdist.com/article/lab-grown-brain-cells-played-pong-may-be-sentient/ https://gizmodo.com/scientists-apparently-taught-brain-cells-how-to-play-po-1849647952 https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/brain-cells-playing-pong/

Can You Hear Me Now?: Cheaper hearing aids hit stores today, available over the counter for first time. $799 for over the counter hearing aids, down from $2,000-$8,000. Steven shares his sister-in-law's hearing troubles. We discuss health care a bit.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/cheaper-hearing-aids-hit-stores-today-available-over-the-counter-for-first-time/ https://www.soundly.com/hearing-test

Science Fiction: Steven champions "A Closed and Common Orbit" the second book of the Wayfarer series by Becky Chambers. Ben reviews "Werewolf by Night" the new MCU Special Presentation. Devon (with many interruptions by Steven) talks about Andor and what is working for him with the series. After Devon departs early, Ben talks about the latest episode of Star Trek Lower Decks and informs Steven of all the nonsense that he missed.

This episode contains: It's been a long time since the three of us have been together in one podcast. Ben's been boogie boarding with his son and has learned some interesting things about waves and tides. Steven is doing fine, just fine. We discuss pumpkin art, or “part.” Devon is tired, so tired. Ben also won an arcade machine from work.

Boom Goes the Dinosaur: Impact that killed the dinosaurs triggered 'mega-earthquake' that lasted weeks to months. Some 66 million years ago, a 10-kilometer asteroid hit Earth, triggering the extinction of the dinosaurs. New evidence suggests that the Chicxulub impact also triggered an earthquake so massive that it shook the planet for weeks to months after the collision.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221006160638.htm

We Got Wet: Dinosaur-killing asteroid triggered global tsunami that scoured seafloor thousands of miles from impact site. The miles-wide asteroid that struck Earth 66 million years ago wiped out nearly all the dinosaurs and roughly three-quarters of the planet's plant and animal species.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/10/221004105010.htm

I Love to Laugh, He-He-He-He: Neuroscientists unravel the mystery of why you can’t tickle yourself. New study shows how tickling, playfulness can address key questions about the brain.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2022/10/neuroscientists-unravel-the-mystery-of-why-you-cant-tickle-yourself/

Science Fiction: Lower Decks returns to form with a new episode/sequel to the holodeck movie Crisis Point. Steven and Ben completely spoil the season finale of She-Hulk. See concluded after three seasons. Ben says this was a really good show. Ben also tells us about the dystopian future envisioned in Decelerate Blue by Adam Rapp.

This episode contains: Steven and Devon record on a glorious Sunday afternoon. Where's Ben? It's fun to have Nicole Lawless on the show (ep421) as an actual science person. Devon woke up in a good mood, until he watched the Star Trek: Picard trailer. That Star Trek: Picard trailer was TOO DARK. Brighten it up! Devon continues to work on removing the tree stump. With fire. When Devon removed the stump, did he shout "STUMPFEST"? Steven and Devon drool over the new Lego Razorcrest. Lego just bumped up all their prices due to inflation. Crazy. Steven finally gets a day off from single dad duty after Martine's recovery. Ok ok ok, where's Ben? Lego: so much money for plastic in different orientations. 

Evolutionarily speaking: Dead fish breathes new life into the evolutionary origin of fins and limbs. Evolution is AWESOME. Devon's 4yo. asked "when were chickens invented?" Devon talks evolution. Previously, our galeaspid fossils only had heads. Now we have a whole fossil. Primitive creatures on earth either had fins or limbs. Not both. If it wasn't for one measely asteroid, the dinosaurs would still be here. Is there a dinosaur planet out there? Is that where Ben is?

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220928113007.htm

Stressed friend: Dogs can smell when we're stressed, study suggests. A psychological stress response alters odor profile in our breath or sweat. Dogs can detect an odor change in VOCs produced by humans in response to stress. Want to test stress among study participants? Give them Math tasks!

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220929133419.htm

Common gene variant linked to COVID mortality: Presence of the APOE gene can predict cancer, dementia, and COVID severity.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220921093000.htm

Science Fiction: We have a picture of the hosts in Lower Decks style. Join our Patreon to see it! You want a whole episode of Lower Decks about Peanut Hamper? Be careful what you wish for. And they didn't really do any development on the character of Peanut Hamper. The bird people made Lower Decks feel like Rick & Morty. More Jeffrey Combs in Lower Decks this last week. AGIMUS is back, baby! But not Ben, I guess. Worf is a super serious Klingon, because he wasn't raised as one. Picard season 3 trailer came out, and everybody is SOOOO OLLLLLD. So... Worf is a pacifist now? Cool. We're down for it. Worf started as a cliche, but thanks to DS9 he's a well-rounded character. Big spiky ship now wants to blow us up, like the last few Star Trek films. Round ships vs. spiky ships: It's a simple rock-paper-scissors situation. How does 7 of 9 become captain of a Starfleet ship, given the first two seasons of Picard? Devon tears apart the ships of Picard season 3. Devon will not sell his Eaglemoss ships, even though it's out of business. Devon likes Andor! At least the first two episodes! The internet breaks! Devon review's Dennis E. Taylor's new book: Roadkill. Light read and fun. The A.I. in Roadkill is kinda like if the character Frasier from the show Frasier wanted to kill humans. Steven reviews The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers: 👍👍. No Ben this episode. He'll be back.

This episode contains: Ben and special guest (his wife) Nicole are your hosts this episode! Where are Devon and Steven? Who cares! What is an Avocado Elbow? The answer may surprise you.

Peckers and Protection: Woodpecker heads don’t absorb shocks — but some crustaceans do. Wood-peckers don't get concussions mostly because their brains are smaller and oriented different. The snapping shrimp has a sort of hooded helmet protecting the head.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/head-banging-woodpeckers-could-give-themselves-a-concussion-every-day-heres-how-they-avoid-it/ 

She's Just Doing a Die Hard: Deepfake Bruce Willis may be the next Hollywood star, and he’s OK with that. We talk about Bruce Willis and the other deepfakes that Hollywood has done.

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/09/bruce-willis-sells-deepfake-rights-to-his-likeness-for-commercial-use/

Science Fiction: In a previous episode, Devon talked about his enjoyment of the Uncharted movie. This episode, Ben and Nicole (who have both enjoyed the Uncharted video games) have some issues with the movie. B&N also talk about the third season of See, and if you're not watching it, there is a large swath of this episode that will be nigh unintelligible. Ben is surprised it took 3 seasons to get to cannibals. Lastly, the bonded pair talk about that Deep Space Nine episode of Lower Decks. Ben wanted Sisko to be his dad, and Nicole relates to Tendi, the "nerdy badass". 

This episode contains: All three of us come together on a Monday morning to mostly talk about DART and Andor. Devon tried to burn down his backyard while Steven’s wife came home from a work trip with Covid. Ben has gotten his fourth Covid vaccination.

This Week in Space: NASA is hitting an asteroid with a space ship. NASA's DART mission hits asteroid in first-ever planetary defense test. After 10 months flying in space, NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) -- the world's first planetary defense technology demonstration -- successfully impacted its asteroid target on Monday, the agency's first attempt to move an asteroid in space.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220927095429.htm

https://www.space.com/nasa-dart-asteroid-impact-preview

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/dart/in-depth/

Steven also notes the new images of Neptune taking by the James Webb Telescope.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/stunning-nasa-james-webb-telescope-image-reveals-neptunes-delicate-rings/ar-AA125IQG

Science Fiction: We discuss the new Disney Plus Star Wars TV Show: Andor. It’s really good. Steven thinks Devon needs to give it a watch. We also talk about the other Star franchise with Lower Decks. We talk about how the conspiracy theorists on Lower Decks reference one of the most gruesome episodes of TNG:

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/05/one-of-our-favorite-st-the-next-generation-episodes-aired-29-years-ago/

We end with Steven’s review of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.