The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Alberta, Canada recently unveiled what is perhaps the best-preserved dinosaur specimen ever unearthed. That’s because, 110 million years later, the bones remain covered by the creature’s intact skin and armor. Anthony and Jeff discuss the discovery and what it means for B- and C-list dinosaurs everywhere. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http:...
May 22, 2017•22 min•Ep. 434
When residents of other countries are asked “What’s a dead giveaway that someone is American?” one trait comes up over and over again: big, toothy grins. Why do Americans smile so much? Anthony and Jeff dive into the research on the topic and decide whether its worth being happy about. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, pleas...
May 19, 2017•21 min•Ep. 433
A huge fish covered in ‘tattoos’ has been caught in the Philippines. Where you would expect plain scales, the fish has intricate blue designs of a crown and a shield, lettering and entwined plant leaves instead. But why? Only Jeff and Anthony can possibly unravel this mystery: The mystery of the tattooed fish. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re...
May 18, 2017•22 min•Ep. 432
An exhaustive comparison of Neandertals’ injuries to those of people today finds that water tubing and mishaps involving tables, result in top-heavy fracture patterns most similar to those observed on Neandertal fossils. This analysis illustrates just how little modern evidence reveals about ways in which our evolutionary relatives ended up so battered. Jeff and Anthony tackle the question of whether this question is worthwhile at all. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://p...
May 15, 2017•20 min•Ep. 431
All mammals poop in 12 seconds and there’s an equation for the ‘duration of diarrheal defecation'. All this and more revealed in a new paper from Nobel Prize winning scientists from Georgia Tech. Jeff and Anthony dive deep into poop science, and come out smelling like experts. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a ...
May 12, 2017•20 min•Ep. 430
A new paper by Kate Sweeny, psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside, argues there's an upside to worrying. Anthony, a professional-level worrier, agrees, but Jeff needs some convincing. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here...
May 10, 2017•22 min•Ep. 429
Researchers have discovered that mole rats can survive for 18 minutes without oxygen. What is even more astonishing is how they manage it. The mole rats effectively become plants, altering their metabolism so that cells are powered by fructose rather than glucose, a process which requires no oxygen. Anthony and Jeff discuss the usefulness of such an ability and how humans might benefit. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Ha...
May 08, 2017•18 min•Ep. 428
Scientist Federica Bertocchini of the Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology of Cantabria in Spain discovered a worm that eats plastic bags and leaves behind antifreeze. Jeff and Anthony discuss the potential of this natural solution to the plastic waste problem, and whether that ends up being good or bad for the worms. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop ...
May 05, 2017•22 min•Ep. 427
For a study published in the journal Nature Communications, researchers from Philadelphia suspended premature lambs, a close animal model for human fetuses, in a special bag filled with lab-made amniotic fluid, allowing them to further develop for four weeks—longer than in past similar attempts. Anthony and Jeff discuss the benefits of artificial wombs and whether they'd like to see what it would reveal. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get al...
May 03, 2017•18 min•Ep. 426
Researchers in the US say they've created a fluid with negative mass in the lab. What it means is that, unlike pretty much every other known physical object, when you push this fluid, it accelerates backwards instead of moving forwards. Jeff and Anthony try to work through what this means for the universe and for Tru TV's Impractical Jokers. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehave...
May 01, 2017•18 min•Ep. 425
We don't always have a good sense of why we fight. What pushes us to the point of conflict, when we know it will make us unhappy? And why does it leave us feeling so glum afterward? Jeff and Anthony take a look at findings from the world of psychology to investigate some less-than-obvious answers. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the...
Apr 28, 2017•24 min•Ep. 424
When we think of augmented reality face filters, we tend to think of goofy novelties like Halloween masks, face swapping, or inadvertent racist caricatures. But AR could go far beyond that, putting objects in real space with sophisticated tracking tech. Jeff and Anthony imagine a world of the not-too-distant future full of AR and cute widdle angels. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http:...
Apr 26, 2017•20 min•Ep. 423
A chicken embryo with a dinosaur-like snout instead of a beak has been developed by scientists. Is this a good thing or a terrifying thing? Jeff and Anthony are here to think it through. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: htt...
Apr 24, 2017•21 min•Ep. 422
Squids, cuttlefish and octopuses do not follow the normal rules of genetic information, according to research published in the journal Cell. Their RNA is extensively rewritten, particularly the codes for proteins found in the animals' neurons. Put simply, that's very weird. One might even say... alien. Anthony and Jeff remain on the case, gathering more and more evidence that they's aliens. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet W...
Apr 21, 2017•20 min•Ep. 421
Fed up with the theft of toilet paper from public bathrooms, tourist authorities in China's capital have begun using facial recognition technology to limit how much paper a person can take. Jeff and Anthony discuss toilet paper usage, and determine if facial recognition is a bit of overkill in this case. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoy...
Apr 19, 2017•21 min•Ep. 420
Architecture firm Clouds Architecture Office has proposed a building that, instead of being supported by the ground and reaching up into the sky, would instead hang suspended from an asteroid. Named Analemma, the proposed skyscraper would be the tallest building ever created, and would travel thousands of miles each day between the northern and southern hemispheres in a figure-of-eight loop - including a daily pass over New York City. Anthony and Jeff discuss the concept and decide whether livin...
Apr 17, 2017•24 min•Ep. 419
Tyrannosaurus Rex had a snout as sensitive to touch as human fingertips, say scientists. Experts believe that males and females rubbed their sensitive faces together in a prehistoric form of foreplay. Jeff and Anthony discuss dinosaur mating, and the need to always make room for snout time. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, ...
Apr 14, 2017•18 min•Ep. 418
Leonid Rogozov was a Soviet general practitioner who took part in the sixth Soviet Antarctic Expedition in 1960–1961. He was the only doctor stationed at the Novolazarevskaya Station and, while there, developed appendicitis, which meant he had to perform an appendectomy on himself, a famous case of self-surgery. Jeff thinks this makes Leonid a prime example of a badass. Does Anthony agree? GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We...
Apr 12, 2017•24 min•Ep. 417
Scientists have long suspected that the common swift remains airborne for extraordinary amounts of time during its annual migration. Now, a team of scientists in Sweden has proved that these birds can spend almost their entire 10-month nonbreeding period on the wing. Jeff and Anthony discuss the idea of non-stop flying, and whether that's the best birding or the worst. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch ...
Apr 10, 2017•18 min•Ep. 416
The contestants of a British reality show that marooned them in the wilderness for a year as a social experiment have returned to civilization — only to discover the series was taken off air several months ago and no one bothered to tell them. Jeff and Anthony wonder how this could happen, and what happens next? GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’...
Apr 07, 2017•22 min•Ep. 415
Scientists Martin Nyffeler and Klaus Birkhofer published their estimate of the amount of spiders in the world, and the amount of biomass they would consume, in the journal the Science of Nature earlier this month, and the number they arrived at is frankly shocking: The world's spiders consume somewhere between 400 million and 800 million tons of prey in any given year. In other words, spiders could eat all of humanity and still be hungry. Anthony and Jeff discuss spiders eating humans and how sc...
Apr 05, 2017•20 min•Ep. 414
Creativity is highly prized in Western society—much touted by cultures that claim to value individualism and the entrepreneurial spirit. But scratch beneath the surface, and it turns out that a lot of schools and businesses aren’t actually all that excited about bold new ideas. By and large, we tend to be threatened by creativity—and eager to shut it down. Anthony and Jeff talk about true creativity and how it is really valued. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.c...
Apr 03, 2017•21 min•Ep. 413
Scientists have found a way to use spinach to build working human heart muscle, potentially solving a long-standing problem in efforts to repair damaged organs. This opens up an entire field of vegetable-based human hybrids, and it has Jeff and Anthony imagining a Jolly Green Future. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please ...
Mar 31, 2017•21 min•Ep. 412
Aging can seem like a scary prospect, but a wealth of scientific studies have found that youth isn't all it's cracked up to be. There are plenty of cases in which human beings peak well into middle and old age. Anthony and Jeff look at a chart about when we peak at certain activities and contemplate what that means for their own lives. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcer...
Mar 29, 2017•23 min•Ep. 411
Hardened plaque harvested from Neanderthal teeth is loaded with genetic material from plants and animals these prehistoric hominins ate, as well as remnants of microbes that reveal a surprising amount about how they lived and even what made them sick. Researchers extracted the ancient DNA and bacteria from the jaws of three Neanderthal individuals from Belgium and Spain, and described the results in a paper published in the journal Nature. Jeff and Anthony discuss the findings and what it might ...
Mar 27, 2017•21 min•Ep. 410
South African surfer Chris Bertish just pulled off one of the most remarkable feats of human determination, perseverance and sheer grit of all time by paddleboarding for 93 days, 4,050 miles across the Atlantic Ocean - by himself. Jeff is definitely trying to make his "Chronicles of a Badass" a recurring feature. Does Anthony think this one holds up? GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http...
Mar 24, 2017•19 min•Ep. 409
Low self monitors tend to use inner beliefs and values in deciding how to behave, while high self monitors tend to monitor their surroundings and change their behavior to fit in. Anthony and Jeff take a test to see where they exist on the spectrum, and discuss what that means for their lives. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show...
Mar 22, 2017•24 min•Ep. 408
Python breeder Justin Kobylka says he spent over eight years selectively breeding ball pythons to finally achieve a smiley face emoji pattern on the reptile's skin. Jeff and Anthony discuss pastimes, evocations, and what it takes to dedicate 8 years to make emoji snake skin. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a mo...
Mar 20, 2017•25 min•Ep. 407
In 1939 a secretive cult known as the Royal Fraternity of Master Metaphysicians made headlines when its leader, James Bernard Schafer, announced their intention to conduct an unusual experiment. They were going to raise an immortal baby. Has there ever been a more perfect story for We Have Concerns to cover? No, there has not. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/sh...
Mar 17, 2017•24 min•Ep. 406
After noticing an uptick in a rare disease called melioidosis during the rainy season in parts of Southeast Asia and northern Australia, researchers used high-speed cameras and fluorescent dye to observe raindrops delicately catapulting the microbes into the air. Jeff and Anthony react to the idea that glorious, refreshing rain itself can spread disease. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by ...
Mar 15, 2017•18 min•Ep. 405
