Skeptics Guide #799

The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe Skepticast #799 October 28th 2020 Segment #1. COVID-19 Update Segment #2. News Items News Item #1 – Holiday Gatherings https://www.wired.com/story/what-should-you-do-about-holiday-gatherings-and-covid-19/ News Item #2 – Water on the Moon https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/water-on-the-moon/ News Item #3 – Murder Hornets Murdered https://theness.com/neurologicablog/index.php/murder-hornets-found-and-destroyed/ News Item #4 – High Value Plastic https://theconversation.com/most-plastic-recycling-produces-low-value-materials-but-weve-found-a-way-to-turn-a-common-plastic-into-high-value-molecules-148506 News Item #5 – Exoplanet View of Earth https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201021140931.htm Segment #3: Who’s That Noisy Segment #4: Your Questions and E-mails Question #1: Beef and Climate Change You have talked about the destruction of habitats and how biodiversity is going down because of this. Isn't one of the biggest contributors the demand for meat and especially beef, because many acres of rain forest gets burned down to plant soy and corn to feed livestock? Wouldnt phasing out meat consumption be the low hanging fruit regaeding biodiversity and climate change? I think grass fed kettle is carbon neutral but what is the percantage of all the beef consumed is that? We can talk a lot about the missing political will to change things or greedy corporations but in my opinion it has to start with the consumer. Andreas Kleim Germany Question #2: Superconductors and Computers Segment #5. Science or Fiction Each week our host will come up with three science news items or facts, two genuine, one fictitious. He will challenge our panel of skeptics to sniff out the fake – and you can play along. Theme: Magnetism #1) Scientists have defied a 178 year old theory by developing a technology for remotely canceling magnetic fields. #2) Astronomers observing distant galaxies have found evidence that the source of mysterious large-scale magnetic fields is likely dark matter. #3) Researchers have demonstrated a magnetic switch that uses 6 picosecond electric pulses, about 100 times faster than current devices. Segment #6. Skeptical Quote of the Week “Science is not perfect. It can be misused. It is only a tool. But it is by far the best tool we have, self-correcting, ongoing, applicable to everything. It has two rules. First: there are no sacred truths; all assumptions must be critically examined; arguments from authority are worthless. Second: whatever is inconsistent with the facts must be discarded or revised. ... The obvious is sometimes false; the unexpected is sometimes true.” — Carl Sagan