Conspiracy theorists hate uncertainty, a mushroom hot pot in China can apparently summon tiny imaginary people, a bunch of seeds have been sitting underground since the 1800s waiting for their moment and scientists are trying to quantify why words like boobs are funny. This week is a mixed bag of psychology, botany and childish humour, which is basically the entire scientific enterprise when you strip away the grant applications.

We start with conspiracy thinking and why it is often less about facts and more about feelings. Research suggests people who lean hard into conspiracies can struggle with ambiguity and prefer simple explanations in a complicated world. Certainty feels good, chaos feels awful and conspiracy stories offer villains, motives and a neat ending. Even when the story is wrong.

Then we head to Yunnan, China, where prized mushrooms can cause hallucinations if they are eaten too early, including reports of seeing tiny people. Researchers still have not nailed down the exact chemical responsible, and it may be a mix of biology, preparation and expectation. The takeaway is simple. If the locals tell you to cook the mushrooms properly, listen.

We look at one of the longest running experiments in science, where seeds buried in glass bottles in the 1800s are still being dug up and tested to see what can germinate. We also dip into the science of funny words and why certain sounds and associations make some words reliably hilarious. So, stay curious, cook your hot pot properly, and if you start seeing tiny people, maybe stop eating the mushrooms.

 

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Introduction

00:48 Conspiracy Believer Traits

03:13 New Study On Coverups

05:14 Ambiguity And Unfairness

06:42 Skepticism Vs Conspiracy

07:59 Mushroom Hot Pot Warning

10:19 Tiny People Hallucinations

14:01 Hunting The Active Compound

17:35 Seed Bottle Time Capsule

21:24 Custodians And Map

21:56 Bottles Remaining Timeline

23:12 Succession And Secrecy

24:51 2021 Dawn Dig

26:30 Why The Experiment Matters

29:10 Long Term Projects

30:48 Science Of Funny Words

36:31 Modeling Humor Categories

40:21 Phonemes And Incongruity

43:22 Destroying Humour And Wrap

 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0092656622000423

https://futurism.com/health-medicine/conspiracy-theories-psychology 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/21/science/beal-seeds-experiment.html 

https://magazine.wfu.edu/2022/10/05/unearthing-time-in-a-bottle/ 

https://www.sciencealert.com/the-worlds-longest-running-lab-experiment-is-almost-100-years-old?utm_source=news.sciencealert.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=superagers-have-two-key-advantages&_bhlid=8fd449a2c8ea1d56a84867da881e4444546af69c 

https://www.mentalfloss.com/science/15-longest-running-scientific-studies-historyhttps://people.howstuffworks.com/why-poop-and-wiggle-are-funny-words-according-to-science.htm?utm_source=HowStuffWorks+Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=themed-words-3-6-25

Conspiracy theorists hate uncertainty, a mushroom hot pot in China can apparently summon tiny imaginary people, a bunch of seeds have been sitting underground since the 1800s waiting for their moment and scientists are trying to quantify why words like boobs are funny. This week is a mixed bag of psychology, botany and childish humour, which is basically the entire scientific enterprise when you strip away the grant applications.
We start with conspiracy thinking and why it is often less about facts and more about feelings. Research suggests people who lean hard into conspiracies can struggle with ambiguity and prefer simple explanations in a complicated world. Certainty feels good, chaos feels awful and conspiracy stories offer villains, motives and a neat ending. Even when the story is wrong.
Then we head to Yunnan, China, where prized mushrooms can cause hallucinations if they are eaten too early, including reports of seeing tiny people. Researchers still have not nailed down the exact chemical responsible, and it may be a mix of biology, preparation and expectation. The takeaway is simple. If the locals tell you to cook the mushrooms properly, listen.
We look at one of the longest running experiments in science, where seeds buried in glass bottles in the 1800s are still being dug up and tested to see what can germinate. We also dip into the science of funny words and why certain sounds and associations make some words reliably hilarious. So, stay curious, cook your hot pot properly, and if you start seeing tiny people, maybe stop eating the mushrooms.
&nbsp;
CHAPTERS:
00:00 Introduction
00:48 Conspiracy Believer Traits
03:13 New Study On Coverups
05:14 Ambiguity And Unfairness
06:42 Skepticism Vs Conspiracy
07:59 Mushroom Hot Pot Warning
10:19 Tiny People Hallucinations
14:01 Hunting The Active Compound
17:35 Seed Bottle Time Capsule
21:24 Custodians And Map
21:56 Bottles Remaining Timeline
23:12 Succession And Secrecy
24:51 2021 Dawn Dig
26:30 Why The Experiment Matters
29:10 Long Term Projects
30:48 Science Of Funny Words
36:31 Modeling Humor Categories
40:21 Phonemes And Incongruity
43:22 Destroying Humour And Wrap
&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0092656622000423">https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0092656622000423</a>
<a href="https://futurism.com/health-medicine/conspiracy-theories-psychology">https://futurism.com/health-medicine/conspiracy-theories-psychology</a>&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/21/science/beal-seeds-experiment.html">https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/21/science/beal-seeds-experiment.html</a>&nbsp;
<a href="https://magazine.wfu.edu/2022/10/05/unearthing-time-in-a-bottle/">https://magazine.wfu.edu/2022/10/05/unearthing-time-in-a-bottle/</a>&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.sciencealert.com/the-worlds-longest-running-lab-experiment-is-almost-100-years-old?utm_source=news.sciencealert.com&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=superagers-have-two-key-advantages&amp;_bhlid=8fd449a2c8ea1d56a84867da881e4444546af69c">https://www.sciencealert.com/the-worlds-longest-running-lab-experiment-is-almost-100-years-old?utm_source=news.sciencealert.com&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=superagers-have-two-key-advantages&amp;_bhlid=8fd449a2c8ea1d56a84867da881e4444546af69c</a>&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.mentalfloss.com/science/15-longest-running-scientific-studies-history">https://www.mentalfloss.com/science/15-longest-running-scientific-studies-history</a> <a href="https://people.howstuffworks.com/why-poop-and-wiggle-are-funny-words-according-to-science.htm?utm_source=HowStuffWorks+Newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=themed-words-3-6-25">https://people.howstuffworks.com/why-poop-and-wiggle-are-funny-words-according-to-science.htm?utm_source=HowStuffWorks+Newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=themed-words-3-6-25</a>

From tales of historical idiocracy and scientific genius to weird and wacky cultural phenomena, Dr Rod Lamberts and Dr Will Grant are here to take you on a wild conversational journey, deep diving into the crevices of science, history and culture that you never knew existed. 

From tales of historical idiocracy and scientific genius to weird and wacky cultural phenomena, Dr Rod Lamberts and Dr Will Grant are here to take you on a wild conversational journey, deep diving into the crevices of science, history and culture that you never knew existed.

Bizarre science history from academics with beers