Skeptics Guide #965

The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe Skepticast #965 January 3rd 2024 Segment #1. Psychic Predictions 2023 Rogue Predictions for 2023 Rogue Predictions for 2024 Segment #2. Science in 2024 Segment #3. News Items News Item #1 – Dosing Gene Expression https://www.nature.com/articles/s41587-023-01989-0 News Item #2 – Solar Tower https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/twin-tech-solar-tower-energy-round-the-clock News Item #3 – Alzheimer’s Virus https://www.sciencealert.com/a-study-of-500000-medical-records-links-viruses-to-alzheimers-again-and-again News Item #4 – Quark Matter https://interestingengineering.com/science/the-likelihood-of-quark-matter-cores-in-massive-neutron-stars News Item #5 – Scientology RICO https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebrity/criminal-enterprise-scientology-should-face-rico-charges-danny-masterson-accusers-say-church-seems-to-contradict-itself-in-leah-remini-suit/ar-AA1mnDhn Segment #4. Who’s That Noisy 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: The Worst #1) The US has the highest rate of automobile accidents, at 5,938 per million people in 2019. #2) El Salvador has the highest murder rate in the world at 52 per 100 thousand people per year, while the US ranks 76th. #3) The country with the greatest income inequality is Brazil, with a Gini index of 52.9. (Gini index – 0 is perfect equality, while 100 is maximal inequality.) Segment #6. Skeptical Quote of the Week "Civility is hard to codify or legislate, but you know it when you see it. It’s possible to disagree without being disagreeable.” — Sandra Day O'Connor