Third Space Podcast

Daniel celebrates his last day of work (for the school year) apparently by recording a podcast. In it, he and Bennett complain about adult obligations like car registration and insurance, but then they transition to a discussion of fear. What does it mean to feel fear? Is it different from anxiety or panic? Do Bennett or Daniel have any phobias? This and more is discussed, so don't be afraid to listen.

Acknowledgement. In this episode, Daniel and Bennett discuss greetings and how odd they can be. Daniel satiates his curiosity about light bulbs and learns why we can't just have TV technology inside them (or can we?!). And finally, they discuss houses; what kind of house would be best? What room is the most important? How valuable is land? Are tiny homes a sinister social engineering scheme?

Well, Zelda came out, so of course Daniel and Bennett discuss it a little. But considering the length of the game, it will likely be a recurring mini-topic. Afterwards, Bennett forces a Daniel Does Science, this time asking: is it alive?! Daniel does a surprisingly good job assessing the living qualities of things like milk, blood, and mildew. This leads into a little bit of discussion on the educational system as well.

Daniel introduces a new segment called Overrated Or Underrated Or Just Rated (OOUOJR) that really allows Bennett to flex his judgment muscles. Shopping malls, empathy, electric cars, and jerking before bed, among other things, all are judged. See if you concur.

Mind Your Morals returns, this time with a topic that is a little closer to the real world than those of previous episodes: the practice known as assisted suicide, or more recently, Medical Aid in Dying (MAID). Bennett presents Daniel with situations ranging from the sympathetic to the slightly outlandish, and Daniel tries to weigh the weight weights of morality and whether people should be assisted in achieving their own deaths. 

What do you think about birds? A simple question, but one that occupies Daniel and Bennett for half of the podcast. They then consider what a world might be like if cheap, nutritionally complete pills were readily available. Would restaurants disappear? Would fat people cease to be? Would it be overall a good thing or a bad thing?

The recent Super Mario Bros. movie serves as the backbone of this podcast. Bennett gives his movie review, but the discussion spawns tangents about mind-over-matter, identification with characters in media, video game design, and sequelitis. And somehow we forgot to even say "So long, gay Bowser!"

The snow melts away, leaving plentiful piles of pet poop, which Bennett complains about. Daniel muses on the sentience of AI and whether humans are the only beings with souls. And Bennett brings up Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy, an interesting disorder that Daniel and Bennett speculate on in relation to some current societal issues.

Daniel returns from his honeymoon to discuss teenage risk assessment, Willene in the Ingles parking lot, and Io, the moon of Jupiter, with a little help from Bennett. The conversation then broadens to vacation and travel in general; why do people travel? What's up with the people who make travel part of their identity? Should we live in a van?

Daniel conceptualizes a brand new segment for this episode: Father Bennett. Bennett is not actually a father, whether biologically or Catholically, but nevertheless Daniel presents him with a particular parenting scenario and has him explain how he would behave. This scenario involves Bennett's hypothetical teenage daughter wanting to wear somewhat revealing clothing, and Bennett handles the situation with tact and grace (in Bennett's opinion).