Virtual reality might still be for early adopters, but as headsets get smaller and social norms evolve, more people are meeting, hanging out, having sex, and even getting married in virtual spaces. Peter Rubin is a VR expert, author, and senior correspondent at Wired, where he covers VR social spaces. And while people have been socializing and getting kinky online for decades, Rubin believes that "embodied presence" (truly feeling that your body is physically next to another person in VR) is a b...
Oct 14, 2019•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 105
In 2005, Canadian blogger Kyle MacDonald traded a red paperclip for a fish-shaped pen. From there, he wanted to see how many times he could "trade up" for something bigger and better. After one year and 14 trades (facilitated by the Internet, of course), he acquired a two-story farmhouse in Saskatchewan. No money changed hands. The barter-only experiment became a viral sensation and presents deep thoughts about the nature of value. Alli and Jen talk to MacDonald about his inspiration for the pro...
Oct 07, 2019•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 104
Stand-up comedian Mekki Leeper wanted to see if he could convince the Internet to buy a fake wellness product. With some slick branding, fake Instagram followers, and the perfect media outrage hook, Leeper turned a Squarespace website and $1,000 into global demand for $80 used tissues. Vaev tissues claimed to get you sick today, so you'd be inoculated later. And people were willing to pay big bucks for these chic snot rags. The viral success of this fake health product (akin to Goop and Raw Wate...
Sep 30, 2019•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 103
Reborns are baby dolls with hyper-realistic features. So real, in fact, that bringing them out in public will often fool strangers into thinking they're flesh and blood, even upon close examination. There's a passionate online community of artists and collectors who fawn over these dolls, which tread right through the Uncanny Valley. Why? Alli and Jen talk with Reborn artist and YouTuber Stephanie Ortiz about the appeal of realistic dolls, her meticulous crafting process, their therapeutic uses,...
Sep 23, 2019•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 102
Amazon's Mechanical Turk service has a mixed reputation. Some see it as a way to turn found time into easy spending money. Others view it as crowd-sourced slave labor. While the majority of Mechanical Turk workers make very little money doing repetitive tasks like identifying images or taking surveys (and often give up on the platform entirely), there are some who have optimized the process to actually generate decent incomes. By studying the time-to-pay ratios of certain tasks and using basic t...
Sep 16, 2019•51 min•Ep. 101
Can you believe we've been podcasting for a CENTURY? Thanks for sticking with us on this journey of discovery and Internet magic. Here's a look back at our favorite moments. Your comments, calls, suggestions, emails, and tweets mean the world to us, so please keep them coming. See you in the next 100 years! Support 2G1P on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/2G1PJoin us on Discord: discord.gg/2g1p Email us: [email protected] Talk to Alli and Jen: https://twitter.com/alligold https://twitter.com/...
Sep 09, 2019•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 100
Anyone in a long distance relationship will tell you how hard it can be. And dating or marrying across countries comes with a huge list of expenses and immigration headaches. While people from different countries meet and fall in love all the time, why would anyone seek out a relationship with these complications from the start? The "mail order bride" concept has been around for centuries, and the modern equivalent are dating apps that facilitate specific international relationships: ColumbianCu...
Sep 02, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 99
Welcome to a new episode format we like to call: ASK YOU ANYTHING, where we ask Internet-famous people awkward questions in a sad attempt to embarrass them for your entertainment! (Don't worry, we'll have a regular episode for you next week.) This week we're joined by Gibi ASMR, a YouTuber and Internet content creator who specializes in ASMR — autonomous sensory meridian response. Millions of people watch Gibi's videos and use the sounds of her voice and various materials to relax and feel those...
Aug 26, 2019•19 min•Ep. 98
More than 300,000 volunteers are standing by right now, 24/7, ready to listen if you need to talk to about depression, anxiety, self-harm, or just need to vent about a rough day. Texting with a listener who cares has meaningful therapeutic value, according to 7 Cups, a crowdsourced platform for mental health. But how are these listeners trained, and how should these anonymous conversations about serious topics be moderated? The Internet is full of trolls, after all. And can anonymous texting eve...
Aug 19, 2019•57 min•Ep. 97
There's plenty of sexy fan art for any movie, show, or game imaginable, thanks to Rule 34. But there's something about Sonic the Hedgehog that lends the character to very specific and often extreme fetish art, in limitless quantities. Why Sonic? Writer and weird Internet excavator K. Thor Jensen walks Alli and Jen through the invention of the Internet's favorite blue speed demon, and the unique way he was positioned by his creators that set him up as a conduit for porn of all stripes. Support 2G...
Aug 12, 2019•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 96
It's become clear that nearly all information you come across on Facebook (or any social media for that matter) should be consumed with skepticism. But there's something about the trouble of organizing a physical event and inviting real people to a real place, that seems beyond the realm of forgery. Turns out, it's the hottest new form of online/IRL trolling. And Facebook users fall for it hook, line, and sinker. When photographer and artist Eric Pickersgill discovered that folks were tricking u...
Aug 05, 2019•58 min•Ep. 95
Tom has been to the Super Bowl multiple times. He goes on free cruises yearly, has ridden on the Daytona 500 track at 200 miles per hour, traveled with the U.S. soccer team, and devoted a room of his house to store all the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and big screen TVs he's won over the years. That's because he enters more than 100 sweepstakes every single day, and thanks to a constant supply of free gift cards, he rarely pays for gas, cable, or his cell phone out of pocket. But he's not a wizard...
Jul 29, 2019•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 94
Macrophilia is a surprisingly popular fetish involving sexual fantasies about giants — specifically, giant women. Being at the mercy of giants, or being coddled or crushed by them are staples of the community, but size change motifs also are common. Stories and media about giants (like the 1958 horror B-movie Attack of the 50 Foot Woman) or size change (1989's Honey, I Shrunk the Kids) have become touch points for the macrophilia community, though many have also taken to making their own media a...
Jul 22, 2019•52 min•Ep. 93
Perfect moms and unicorns have one thing in common: They don't exist. That mantra has brought together a huge community of women who are sick of the judgmental bickering that plagues typical "mommy groups" on social platforms like Facebook. Alli and Jen speak with Maria Hunt, the founder of Unicorn Moms, about her inspiration for starting a completely new kind of online support community for mothers. Spoiler alert: It involves a lot of drinking. Hunt explains the rules of her invite-only group (...
Jul 15, 2019•58 min•Ep. 92
The true crime explosion ignited by podcasts like Serial and Netflix series Making a Murderer has spawned a massive ecosystem of murdery content. One of the biggest and most passionate fandoms on the Internet today centers on two funny women and their obsession with real murder headlines, both new and historical. Their podcast, My Favorite Murder, has 19 million monthly downloads by conservative estimates. And the enormous community that gathers around it (whose members refer to themselves as "M...
Jul 08, 2019•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 91
There's no shortage of dating horror stories on social media. But dating in your later years — after a divorce, death, or other major life change — can be especially daunting. And while apps and services can take the friction out of finding a match, they can also be incredibly overwhelming, and often don't cater to those 60 and older. That's where Peggy Wolman steps in. She's a professional matchmaker with a focus on helping people find love later in life. She and her husband Richard work with c...
Jul 01, 2019•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 90
Adult content in video games is nothing new. Big budget franchises like Mass Effect and The Witcher series are noted for their character romances and sexy scenes. But in those games, sex is not the main attraction. It’s about gameplay and story. On the other side of the coin, Steam is awash in adult games featuring anime-inspired characters in various sexual situations. The gameplay is presumably nothing to write home about, but merely a vehicle for porn. Enter: Subverse. This sci-fi/RPG/porn ’e...
Jun 24, 2019•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 89
David Murray is known to millions of fans as "The 8-Bit Guy." His YouTube channel covers the gamut of computers, consumer electronics, and gaming consoles from the golden age of pixel art and command line operating systems: the '70s, '80s, and early '90s. His detailed tear-downs, restorations, and explanations of vintage technology have drawn a huge community of enthusiasts — and not just the stereotypical "middle aged geek." People of all ages and backgrounds flock to Murray's convention booths...
Jun 17, 2019•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 88
Bird watching probably conjures images of an old, retired guy sporting binoculars behind his country home. But Jason Ward is rapidly dispelling that stereotype. He's been an avid birder since his childhood growing up in The Bronx, NY, and has brought his passion to social media. His #TrickyBirdID Twitter threads challenge people to snap photos of unknown neighborhood birds so the global community of birders can identify them. His enthusiasm led him to make the popular webseries Birds of North Am...
Jun 10, 2019•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 87
Death is a difficult topic no matter how you slice it, but cultivating a healthier outlook on end-of-life issues can have profound effects on families when they encounter loss. That's the mission of Death Cafe. It's a self-described "social franchise" — a set of ideals that can be replicated in small groups around the world. It's not a support group, but a way to get people talking about death in a productive manner. After all, it's a social and personal issue that everyone will face at some poi...
Jun 03, 2019•48 min•Ep. 86
In an age where nearly all information is a Google or Wiki search away, it's easy to forget that real, first-hand experiences of what the world used to be like are right in our own families and communities. That's the mission of the subreddit r/AskOldPeople. It's a place for members of one generation to get perspective from those who came before. The result has been some deep conversations about politics, personal finance, technology, and the timeless personal wisdom you just can't get from the ...
May 27, 2019•1 hr•Ep. 85
Nextdoor is the social network that connects people based on neighborhoods, rather than friend networks or common interests. Getting to know your IRL neighbors sure seems like a good idea. But at times, it combines the two worst things about social media: relative anonymity and real-world consequences. The platform is home to countless petty squabbles and strange behavior that reveal the absurdity of modern life, and the insanity of the people who live two houses down. The most ridiculous posts ...
May 20, 2019•50 min•Ep. 84
There's a box of treasure worth millions somewhere in the Rocky Mountains, and a global online (and IRL) community is devoted to the search. The treasure was hidden by Forrest Fenn, a collector of antiquities and nature lover, who — after cancer threatened his life in the '80s — decided to have some fun with the wealth he'd accumulated. He wrote a poem full of cryptic, geographic clues that are now a worldwide obsession. And while Fenn says seekers have gotten close, no one has uncovered the rea...
May 13, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 83
For thousands of years, God has communicated with humanity via dusty tomes, prophets, and the occasional miracle. But it's 2019, and the Internet is way more efficient for reaching the flock. That's why God has spent the last few years amassing followers on Facebook and Twitter, and smiting hypocrites and blasphemers (aka trolls) with his digital wrath. And if you've noticed that He's a little less about fire and brimstone, and more about calling bullshit on modern religion, you're not wrong. Al...
May 06, 2019•50 min•Ep. 82
When fantasy TV shows need an alien or elf to speak a fictional language, most writers make up a few foreign-sounding words to pad the script and move on. But that won't cut it when it comes to Game of Thrones, a show with details as deep as its fandom. So when George R. R. Martin and the show's producers needed to build complete, functional languages for Dothraki riders and Valyrian-speaking slavers, they turned to real-life linguist and "conlanger" David J. Peterson. He transformed a handful o...
Apr 29, 2019•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 81
We don't always think of Internet memes as a force for serious social change. But the humor behind image macros and mashup content can be leveraged in the fight against toxic masculinity — with the right talent, of course. Julia Hava has amassed a huge following on Instagram (@binchcity) by turning sexist advertising into hilarious commentary on feminism and mental illness. Alli and Jen talk to Hava about the modern feminist conversation happening online, and how memes and humor play an increasi...
Apr 22, 2019•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 80
A growing number of people believe that world governments and other shadow organizations are hiding the truth: that the Earth is not a globe, but a flat disc with a dome of stars above it. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, this "mother of all conspiracy theories" is flourishing on the Internet, giving rise to vast networks of YouTubers, podcasters, and social media communities that spread misinformation. This phenomenon led three filmmakers to ask: Why is this happening now, and how...
Apr 15, 2019•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 79
While it may feel like books face an existential crisis in the shadow of digital media, reading communities are alive and well in an unlikely social media sphere: Instagram. Showing off what you're reading with a fancy cup of coffee is only a small part of the #bookstagram trend. Insta has become a powerful tool for author discovery (especially for female writers of color), community, accountability, and marketing the wares of independent book stores. Alli and Jen talk with Tammy Gordon, who cha...
Apr 08, 2019•48 min•Ep. 78
On the list of "Things The Internet Is Useful For," lulz rank pretty highly (second only to porn, of course). Online pranks are as old as the ARPANET itself. This April Fools' Day, 2G1P is celebrating internet jokesters by chatting with three developers who can turn your web browser (or a co-worker's, if you're sneaky enough) into a veritable fun house of chortles, guffaws, and confusion. Alli and Jen talk with Eric Bailey, Clayburn Griffin, and Steven Frank, about their devious Chrome extension...
Apr 01, 2019•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 77
Worldwide and obsessive fandom is nothing new, but it's usually reserved for pop stars, actors, YouTubers, and video games. It's rare for tech CEOs to command such loyalty, but Elon Musk's journey from sickly, bullied child, to stumbling entrepreneur, to rocket-launching world changer is a story that's impossible to ignore. Musk has engendered a global community of superfans who hang on his every word, and who will defend him at any cost. Alli and Jen chat with Paula Mellon, the creator of a mas...
Mar 25, 2019•57 min•Ep. 76
