Science Vs

For decades we’ve been told that having a glass or two of wine is good for you. But recently there’ve been reports that even a little bit of booze is bad for you. So what is going on? Is just a bit of alcohol dangerous? To find out we talk to epidemiologist and nutritionist Prof. Eric Rimm, psychologist Prof. Tim Stockwell, and cancer researcher Dr. Susan Gapstur.

Check out the full transcript here: http://bit.ly/31p8pk5

Selected references: Eric’s study of drinking and heart attacks in over 40,000 men Tim and Kaye’s meta-analysis critiquing the heart benefit hypothesisMeta-analysis showing the increased risk of cancer and other diseases from drinking different amounts

Credits: 

This episode was produced by Meryl Horn with help from Wendy Zukerman as well as Rose Rimler and Michelle Dang. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Editing help from Caitlin Kenney. Fact checking by Michelle Harris and Michelle Dang. Mix and sound design by Peter Leonard. Music by Peter Leonard, Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. Thanks especially to Michelle Dang for her all her research help on this episode. A huge thanks to all the researchers we got in touch with for this episode including Dr. Arthur Klatsky, Dr. William Kerr, Dr. Tim Niami, Professor William Ghali, Dr. Wendy Chen, Max Griswold and many others. Recording help from Andrew Stelzer, Susanna Capelouto, Katie Sage, and Joseph Fridman. Also thanks to Lynn Levy, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. 

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Season 6 is on it's way, fellow nerds!

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A dead body turns up with a stolen identity. This week, we tell the story of how a grandmother tracked down the truth — and helped create a whole new and controversial world of crime fighting. To tell this story, we talk to U.S. Marshal Peter Elliott, Dr. Margaret Press, and Phil Nichols.

Check out the transcript here; http://bit.ly/33CNj3i

Note: in this episode we discuss suicide and homicide. Please take care when listening to the show, and here are some resources: National Mental Health Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357). National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255National Hotline for Crime Victims 1-855-4-VICTIM (1-855-484-2846) 

Selected references: Press Conference revealing Joseph Newton Chandler's true identity [SPOILER ALERT]Margaret Press’ DNA Doe ProjectCredits:

This episode was produced by Rose Rimler and our senior producer, Kaitlyn Sawrey with help from Wendy Zukerman as well as Meryl Horn and Odelia Rubin. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Editing help from Alex Blumberg and Caitlin Kenney. Fact checking by Michelle Harris. Mix and sound design by Emma Munger. Music by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. A huge thanks to all the people we got in touch with for this episode including Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick at DNA Doe Project and Curtis Rogers at GEDmatch. Recording help from Selene Ross, Tana Weingartner and Daniel Robison. Also thanks to the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. 

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Recently we’ve been hearing a lot about transgender identity. That made us wonder… what makes us the gender that we are? And what should you do if your kid doesn’t fit the mold? To find out, we talked with endocrinologist Dr. Joshua Safer, psychologist Dr. Laura Edwards-Leeper, and psychologist Dr. Colt Keo-Meier.

Check out the transcript: http://bit.ly/31k0oNk

UPDATE 3/29/19 : An earlier version of this episode misinterpreted a study regarding the question of how many children who visited a gender identity clinic grow up to be trans. The episode has been updated accordingly. We've explained the change in detail in the transcript.

UPDATE 1/17/19: An earlier version of this episode implied that all people who are intersex are born with indeterminate genitalia. This is incorrect and the episode has been updated.

Selected references: 

A paper from the 70s about shock therapy A review of the science behind the trans kids debateBest Practice Standards of Care for Trans PeopleRebecca’s podcast Trans Specific PartnershipThanks to our sponsor, Cole Haan. You can hear more of Wendy and other Gimlet hosts in conversation at ExtraordinariesOnTheMic.com, produced in partnership with Cole Haan.

Credits:

This episode was produced by Odelia Rubin and Meryl Horn along with Wendy Zukerman and Rose Rimler. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Editorial assistance by Rebecca Kling. Fact checking by Michelle Harris, Meryl Horn and Rose Rimler. Mix and sound design by Emma Munger. Music by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord.  

A huge thanks to all the researchers we got in touch with for this episode - including Dr. Jack Turban, Professor Anne Fausto- Sterling, assistant professor Samantha Busa, Associate Professor Susan Stryker, Dr. Katrina Karkazis, Professor Neill Epperson, Paula Neira, Professor Michelle Forcier, and Professor Joan Roughgarden. And thanks to all the trans folks who shared their stories with us. Thank you! Also thanks to the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. 

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Before WikiLeaks, there was the Wank Worm. In this week’s episode, we tell you the story of how Australian hackers infiltrated NASA, just months after the country was hooked up to the internet in 1989. Joel Werner, host of Sum of All Parts, helps us tell this story, along with cybersecurity researcher Dr. Suelette Dreyfus.

Check out the transcript here: http://bit.ly/35EkMw5

UPDATE 12/07/18: An earlier version of this episode stated that Galileo's engines ran on nuclear power. We've removed this line, as it was Galileo's electrical systems, not the propulsion system, which ran on nuclear power.

Selected references: The original Sum of All Parts episode about Phoenix and Electron Suelette’s book, written with the help of Julian Assange, about the early Australian hacking movement, UndergroundAn in-depth reference on Hacktivism

Thanks to our sponsor, Cole Haan. You can hear more of Wendy and other Gimlet hosts in conversation at ExtraordinariesOnTheMic.com, produced in partnership with Cole Haan.

Credits: Original story produced by Joel Werner, for Sum of All Parts, from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Science Vs is Wendy Zukerman, Rose Rimler, Meryl Horn and Odelia Rubin. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Mixed and sound designed by Emma Munger. Music written by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. Our fact checker is Michelle Harris. A huge thanks to Alex Goldman, Jason Scott, Chris Avram, Professor Graham Farr, Barbara Ainsworth, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson.

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Is it possible that the pyramids were built with a helping hand... from aliens? If not, how on Earth did the Egyptians built them without modern technology? To get to the bottom of this, we speak to author Erich von Däniken, paleoanthropologist Dr. Shelby Putt, Egyptologist Dr. Mark Lehner, and archaeologist Prof. David S. Anderson.

Check out the transcript here: http://bit.ly/2P6tvl9

Selected references: This paper about the evolution of intelligence. Mark’s article about the canal system...with diagrams! Mark’s book about pyramid building-- along with this book and this one, too. David’s book about pseudoarchaeology.

Credits: This episode was produced by Rose Rimler with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Meryl Horn and Odelia Rubin. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Michelle Harris. Mix and sound design by Emma Munger. Music by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. A huge thanks to the team at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, as well as Professor Pierre Tallet, Roland Enmarch, Jens Notroff, Professor Erin L. Thompson and everyone else who spoke to us for this episode...thanks for your help. A special thanks to Sarah Hendricks, Jake Finnicum, Frank Lopez, Joseph Lavelle Wilson and the Zukerman Family.

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The 7 Minute Workout is all the rage, but can working out for just 7 minutes really do anything? To figure out whether this fitness trend is a load of crock, we speak to exercise scientist Prof. Jeff Coombes. Plus, Wendy gives it a go.

Check out the transcript right here: http://bit.ly/32qS7IO

Selected references: The original 7 minute workout Jeff’s review paper on short intense workouts and weight lossOther reviews about heart health, diabetes, and fitness in healthy peopleThe study on really, really, really short workouts

Credits:

This episode was produced by Rose Rimler with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Meryl Horn and Odelia Rubin. Our senior producer is Kaitlyn Sawrey. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Michelle Harris. Mix and sound design by Emma Munger. Music written by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. Recording assistance from Jack McDonnell. For this episode we also spoke to Martin Gibala, Chris Jordan, Kathryn Weston, Dan Schmidt, and others. Thank you so much for your help.

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CBD mania is in full swing and people are using it for just about anything, but what is this chemical in cannabis? In this week’s episode, we tell you unlikely origin story of CBD and if the science backs up the hype. We speak to Paige Figi, neuroscientist Prof. Kent Hutchison, clinical researcher Dr. Mallory Loflin, and Josh and Joel Stanley.

Check out the transcript right here: http://bit.ly/2OVCfub

Selected references: Mallory’s study showing most CBD products are labeled inaccurately and 1 out of 5 has some THCReview discussing all the possible things CBD is binding to in the brainNational Academy of Sciences report on cannabis and cannabinoids Clinical trial showing CBD reduces seizures for treatment-resistant epilepsy 

Credits:

This episode was produced by Kaitlyn Sawrey with help from Wendy Zukerman, along with Rose Rimler, Meryl Horn and Odelia Rubin. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell, with help from Caitlin Kenny. Fact checking by Michelle Harris. Mix and sound design by Emma Munger. Music by Emma Munger and Bobby Lord. A huge thanks to Professor Elizabeth Thiele, Professor Cinnamon Bidwell, Professor Celia Morgan, Associate Professor Ziva Cooper, and Associate Professor Didier Jutras-Aswad, as well as Sindu Gnanasambandan, Mathilde Urfalino, Frank Lopez, Joseph Lavelle Wilson and the Zukerman Family.

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In the final installment of our election series, we tackle immigration: the #1 concern of Americans as they head to the polls.

It's been a huge focus for President Trump... and people say immigrants are stealing jobs and driving up the crime rate. But what does the research say? There have been a bunch of new studies since we published our episode on immigration, so we've updated this to reflect what's new.

Check out the transcripts, with all the citations, here: http://bit.ly/2IZ6ixc

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