We Have Concerns

Consumer Reports released a new report on Lunchables in which it found lead and cadmium, and also observed the presence of phthalates, which can impact reproductive health and the human hormonal system. Anthony and Jeff discuss the findings, and how to face the challenge of eating food that isn't actively trying to kill you.

If humanity is to successfully colonize the lunar surface, we will have to bring other animals with us. Which species are essential to create a thriving ecosystem? Which should arrive first? Anthony and Jeff discuss the factors involved in deciding which kinds of creatures will join us on the moon.

It is the 200th anniversary of the first dinosaur discovery, so Jeff and Anthony dig into the story of finding fossils and naming them. It leads them to the wild story of William Buckland, the man who coined the term Megalosaurus, in 1824. If you think you know dinosaurs, you may be shocked by how they entered popular culture.

A pair of recent studies suggest that the act of putting pen or pencil to paper increases brain activity and retention when compared to typing words into a computer. Anthony and Jeff discuss living a papered life, and whether taking physical notes is worth the increase in learning.

Statistics are amazing things. This week, Anthony and Jeff dig into the data around death to determine the most likely month and day that people all around the world will meet their end.

In 1944, the US Office of Strategic Services—now the CIA—published the "Simple Sabotage Field Manual," a top secret guide teaching the average citizen how to cause problems to any organization. Jeff and Anthony step through the instructions and marvel at how a by-gone era's tactics for creating chaos sound all-too similar to the everyday experience of daily life today.

In a new study by Harvard scientists, researchers have found that healing happens faster when the person involved thinks that time is progressing more quickly than it actually is. Jeff and Anthony discuss Mind/Body Unity, and what to do with all of the evidence that suggests we can control our physiology if we just believe.

Your average indoor/outdoor domestic cat is responsible for the destruction of other animal species on a scale that boggles the mind. Anthony and Jeff take a look at the data, and discuss why one cute, cudly pet might just be more than the planet can handle.

A new study breaks down comedy into specific types, and correlates those types of humor with mood and personality. Anthony and Jeff take a look at what their jokes might be saying about them.

New research has found that while people are often concerned that turning down an invitation will upset the inviter, and lead to fewer invitations in the future, their fears tend to be exaggerated. Jeff and Anthony dig into the five=part hard-hitting study of party invites!