Show Notes for TWS129: Space Between Your Ears Is The Final Frontier

On the show this week:

• Unbelieve you me, it’s the truth!
• Hard-hitting Science — On the Edge!
• Shredded Wheat and Chaff (EXTRA)

This week’s Challenge Question:
In celebration of JC Hutchins’ recent book release (Personal Effects: Dark Art) — which is a delightfully physical book with physical artifacts — here is the digital question: games, gatherings, music, news, books, bills, phone books, mail, movies, television, photographs: we are increasingly living in a non-physical world. What will the ultimate expression of this be? Or will we rebel, and return to physical things because they are “real”?
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Win some original artwork for subscribing or getting others to subscribe! My good friend Nuchtchas is running a little contest: if you started listening to TWS recently, or you turned someone else to listening to TWS, Tweet @nuchtchas or send her an email. Go to nimlas.org/blog and click on “Contest” for more details.

Oh, and tell her she’s awesome for doing this, would ya?

• Promo: The House Of Grey — A story of a typical teenaged life: going to high school (albeit the most exclusive high school in the world), living life (albeit with scars both physical and emotional), dealing with growing up (albeit with no memory of who you are except frightening visions of a power you don’t understand), meeting girls (albeit some of the most beautiful and mysterious girls on the planet) and doing homework (albeit some of it is magical training). A story revealing layers both mundane and supernatural in the life of Monson Grey, sole survivor of the attack on Barity Bridge.
• Promo: Guardians — An experiment in urban fantasy from Kimi Alexandre, host of Tale Chasing. This has just started, and promises to be quite a ride!

Full links to all stories covered and many more after the jump!

• Theme Song: Caffeine by Grubspoon from The Podsafe Music Network
• Unbelieve you me, it’s the truth!
  • Was the Montauk monster nothing more than the remains of a drunken surfer giving a Viking funeral to a dead raccoon? – Still On The Track blog: Montauk Monster Revealed
  • A potential sighting of a contender for Champ? Or a contender for chump? – Tetrapod Zoology blog: A ‘lake monster’ caught on film at Lake Champlain
  • Loren Colemen points out as much about the idea of the film-taker’s dilemma as the film itself. What would you do? – Cryptomundo: Latest News on Olsen “Champ Video”
  • EXTRA: Well, at least relatively. Jets are a little more armed, though — at least, for *now*. Hummingbird Force, ASSEMBLE! – BBC: Hummingbirds ‘faster than jets’
  • EXTRA: I’m waiting for the pet cloning people to start offering original mixed animal breeds like dogs and cats which change colour.. – The UK Telegraph: Colour changing frog worshipped as god in India
  • Yet another reason I want to go to Vegas: it truly is out of this world! – Las Vegas Now: The Raelians Target Las Vegas for a UFOland
  • It’s kinda sad when television funding may be the reason why the Truth isn’t known.. It’s kinda sad to rely on television funding, in it’s distorted reality bubble of importance, for anything.. – Examiner: The Sci Fi channel’s Roswell Dig findings finally come to light
  • It’s not all space sexy and astronaughty — we’ll all end up like that creepy uncle no one remembers being related to, or George Costanza.. – The UK Telegraph: Long distance space travel leaves you short, fat and ugly, claim scientists
  • The significant word here is “extragalactic”, meaning “holy crap that’s far!”. (We’re talking far! How far? Really far! How far? We’re talking really, really far!) [with nods and apologies to George Hrab…] – New Scientist: First extragalactic exoplanet may have been found
  • The tragic flight may have been even more of a crazy random happenstance than previously imagined (unless aliens are throwing rocks at us..). – Discover Magazine: Did a meteor bring down Air France 447?
  • Hmm.. Maybe aliens really *are* pitching rocks at us.. – Ananova: Schoolboy survives meteorite hit
  • Ok, imagine a city, with the roads being the paths of the planets, and the city busses being the planets. Now imagine some jerk cuts off a bus in mid-town traffic. Chaos! Now, imagine that ubs is the size of Jupiter.. – New Scientist: Solar system’s planets could spin out of control
  • EXTRA: Popular Mechanics is blasted for being more “popular” than “scientific” about UFOs — and not at all “mechanic”.. – The Herald Tribune: Science lite at PM
  • EXTRA: A curious artifact from a bygone era… Of course, these days they likely sell them at Wally World as decorations.. – The UK Times: Witch bottle is uncorked to discover spellbinding content
  • EXTRA: It wouldn’t have been so bad if they hadn’t insisted on burying them underneath the play field.. – BBC: Magic charms wreck Swazi stadium
  • EXTRA: And you know what they say: possession is 9/10 of the law.. – Birmingham Post: Mum claimed tragic Khyra Ishaq was ‘possessed’, court hears
  • EXTRA: Some Canadian ghosthunters go South to investigate a very haunted place. Hijinks ensue. (Personally, I think many of these televised ones get spooked too easily; that’s *why* they’re *televised*, because calm people make lousy TV..) – The Windsor Star: Ghost hunters show adventurous spirit
  • Not so much “hair of the dog that bit ya” as “biting the dog before it gets a chance to shed on you, to which you become angry and the dog bites you”… – STV/Reuters: China puts a stop to snake-bitten cock-in-a-pot
  • Question: where does art come from? Answer: sub-junction B15 of neuron H-9-8, or something.. – The Daily Mail: Masterstroke: Man who couldn’t even draw stickmen wakes from brain surgery… as a talented artist
  • Guess what: I’ve had so little sleep today that I’ve invented *additional* problems to solve… – Ananova: Sleeping on a problem really works
  • I wonder if this is related to the research that showed how cat purrs stimulate health? Hmm… – MSNBC: Music as medicine: Docs use tunes as treatment
  • The best criticism of this article I saw was the one that pointed out that they list several cures which *did* show evidence of success, despite the title.. – MSNBC/AP: $2.5 billion spent, no alternative cures found
  • This may explain why I’m always running out of time on my show.. Or maybe I’m the opposite: I move too slowly for time! – New Scientist: Time moves too slowly for hyperactive boys
  • I’m all for this! Of course, I use caffeine as my accelerant (or is that propellant?).. – New Scientist: Speeding up brain networks might boost IQ
  • EXTRA: I think they are talking as a kid here, not as an adult going in for a bank loan.. – New Scientist: Looking like daddy has material rewards
  • I think that all politicians could benefit from being funnier; it works for the news-comedy shows.. Of course, not everyone is good at telling a joke. – STV/Reuters: Japan bureaucrats get training in stand-up comedy
  • There is a mythological creation story in there, somewhere.. – The Garden Lisna/Kauai World: Fish coughs up golden watch
  • The flood of dogs-playing-poker-on-velvet paintings probably won’t help, however.. – CTV: Two donated paintings fetch big bucks for Goodwill
  • Remember that whole notion of how much safer it is to store money in your mattress? At least the banks won’t just be thrown out! No, they’ll be bailed out, not thrown out.. – BBC: Israel woman ‘bins $1m mattress’
  • There is something remarkably odd about this story. No, I take it back: there is *everything* remarkably odd about this. – Ananova: For sale – pretty girls’ saliva
  • EXTRA: Kinda like Citizens On Patrol — with paints. – CarPoint blog/MSN: Mystery sign maker literally stops traffic
  • Largely touted as the “first experiment on Twitter”, the author of this article laments for a time when Twitter users hold “real conversations”. Obviously, the author is misinformed: a) Twiter users are already holding real and meaningful conversations, and b) most real-world “real conversations” are very similar to the worst Twitter conversations.. – The Wall Street Journal: I Know What You Just Tweeted By Andy Jordan
  • Prof. Wiseman talks about his interesting experiment. Personally, I think the hypotheses that are being tested are themselves obviously flawed, leading to mis-interpreted results and improperly dismissive conclusions.. – ABC: First Twitter Experiment Probes Belief in the Paranormal
• Hard-hitting Science — On the Edge!
  • I’m not sure how “new” the technique is, other than it hasn’t been applied in quite this way… Although I’m probably not seeing something — the gravitational lens of my own ego is probably distorting things.. – ScienceDaily: New Technique Could Find Water On Earth-like Planets Orbiting Distant Suns
  • EXTRA: Sometimes, science in space ain’t that pretty.. – Ananova: Penguin poo visible from space
  • Will this year be when they crack the universe’s secrets? Or, just crack the universe! Exciting! 😉 – The UK Times: Large Hadron Collider to run through the year in Higgs boson race
  • I got entangled in this story, and I think I changed its meaning as I was reading it.. – LiveScience: Einstein’s ‘Spooky Physics’ Gets More Entangled
  • The guy takes three minutes to try to justify why finding nothing is just good science. I think I took 5 to point out that I think he got it wrong. Pay me only $2bn, we’ll call it even. – The UK Times: Why spending £5bn and finding nothing is not a waste of money
  • Another black eye in the face of science reporting. Having published scientific papers, however, I can attest that it wasn’t that easy. Then again, I didn’t use vanity journals. (I don’t have the money for that anyway!) – New Scientist: CRAP paper accepted by journal
  • EXTRA: I find it stunning that, in such a crowded little island, they keep finding more and more history. One is almost tempted to believe the idea that ‘now’ is the only time which really exists, and time extends out in both directions, forward and back, from ‘now’, growing increasingly complex as you examine it more closely… (Almost..) – Science Daily: Neolithic Age: Prehistoric Complex Including Two 6,000-year-old Tombs Discovered In Britain
  • EXTRA: No, we’re not talking subaquatic humanoids here — although that would be very cool! 😉 – Science Daily: Archeological Evidence Of Human Activity Found Beneath Lake Huron
  • EXTRA: Of course, we find initial motivation to build such things for assassination and spying, but eventually they’ll just clean drains, gutters and rescue kitties from trees.. – Ananova: Robot snake is new spy
  • EXTRA: In particular, the quantum entanglement effects make it possible to at least know when a message has been intercepted. It still won’t prevent you from writing your password down on a yellow stickie next to the monitor.. – National Geographic: Supersecret Codes Made of Light Closer to Reality?
• Shredded Wheat and Chaff (EXTRA)
  • EXTRA: Crop circles may once have been a non-human phenomena, but these days there are too many human participants in the market.. At least some of the designs are great examples of large-scale, temporary art. – The Daily Mail: Jellyfish, dragonflies and peace symbols: The summer of crop circles is just getting started
  • EXTRA: Ah, nothing like the Fortean classics.. – Yahoo/AFP: It’s raining tadpoles in Japan town, residents say
  • FOLLOWUP: Followup to a previous story: apparently, they smurfed it right good! – Metro: New smurf world record smashed
  • EXTRA: Is this an artifact of a lost civilization, the mad scribblings of a madman, or a prank? Time will tell.. – National Geographic: Mysterious Inscribed Slate Discovered at Jamestown
  • EXTRA: I’ve covered them in smaller articles before, but the mainstream is starting to catch on that these people exist, and that they are actually quite serious about doing it. Also: this reads just like an article from Watchmen — eerily so! – CNN: Amid hard times, an influx in real superheroes
  • EXTRA: We should all be comforted when the things we create die.. I know every time a hard drive dies without a backup, I tear up a little.. – BBC: Support for ‘bereaved’ architects
  • EXTRA: The tree has lasted for hundreds of years: will it survive being popular? – Ananova: Communi-tree centre
  • EXTRA: If you are being watched, do you do better work? Personally, I hate being watched, especially while I type.. – The Economist: Light work
  • EXTRA: Not exactly supervillain, more like circus performer.. – Ananova: Burglar bit through steel bars
  • EXTRA: Why let a little thing like incarceration stop you from being a wealthy, generous human? – Ananova: Bar mitzvah behind bars
  • EXTRA: Well, if you read the story carefully: she asked for it. No, really: she literally asked for it. Sarcasm never works on cops.. – Ananova: Police ‘tase’ great-gran
  • EXTRA: I wonder if they are chained together.. – Ananova: Penal Tour de France pedals off
  • FOLLOWUP: Turns out, the flap was more fart than UFO. – Yahoo!/LiveScience: Mystery of Giant Ice Circles Resolved
  • EXTRA: More proof that just wrapping yourself in the symbols is not enough if you don’t believe — in that case, their just raw material.. – The Times Union/The Times Herald/AP: Squirrel at Mich. cemetery wraps nest in Old Glory
  • EXTRA: Proof that the apocalypse isn’t that far away.. – Ananova: Cat and mouse become pals
  • EXTRA: Humans disoriented by television; it’s much the same, really.. 😉 – LiveScience/Natural History Magazine: Deer Disoriented by Power Lines
  • EXTRA: Giant cannibal pigs on rampage! Oh, wait.. not a cannibal, just a meat eater. Still: Giant meat-eating pig on rampage! Oh, wait.. no rampage.. Still: Giant meat-eating pig! (Great, now I’m hungry for bacon..) – The Daily Telegraph: Giant pig shot for eating cow at Pilbara cattle station
  • EXTRA: If they keep this up, these tiny fish will have hands by next spring! (No, not really… I think.) – ScienceDaily: When Evolution Is Not So Slow And Gradual
  • EXTRA: Figures: evolution is apparently happening on those Galapagos islands again, where Darkwin got all inspired.. – ScienceDaily: Mosquito Evolution Spells Trouble For Galapagos Wildlife
  • EXTRA: More buffalo steaks in the world can’t be a bad thing, can it? – AFP: Indian scientists clone buffalo: report
  • EXTRA: Looks like the rooks have to take a backseat to our cousins, when it comes to tool use! If we keep looking, we’ll find computers, too.. – Discovery: Chimp-made toolkit most complex ever found
  • EXTRA: Personally, I just prefer women who are interesting.. Above-averagely shaped brains? – New Scientist: Men prefer averagely shaped women
  • EXTRA: Maybe, but… what would be the point? I’m all for health, I can’t stand smoking anywhere near me, but what would be the point in “safe” smoking? – New Scientist: Can smoking ever be made safe?
  • EXTRA: Turns out that the best way to avoid weight gain is be a solitary person. Never worked for me, mind you.. – Ananova: Get married? Fat chance!
  • EXTRA: Turns out, they may improve grasping wet things, but not things in general. Makes sense: catching slippery fish, not climbing walls. – New Scientist: Get a grip: Truth about fingerprints revealed
  • EXTRA: The second time around for the woman-become-man-but-with-woman-parts-left.. I’m not sure if I agree that everyone has the right to procreate biologically, but I like the definition-challenging aspect of this story. – Ananova: ‘Man’ gives birth – again
  • EXTRA: Sometimes, I just shake my head and wonder how humanity lasted this long.. Are we in the last decadent days of our planetary Rome? – News.com.au: Erotic ‘daggering’ dance craze causing bodily harm

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