Skeptics Guide #988

The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe Skepticast #988 June 12th 2024 Segment #1. Quickie with Evan https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/scientists-baffled-by-mysterious-53-minute-signal-from-space/ar-BB1nR77V?item=flightsprg-tipsubsc-v1a?season Segment #2. News Items News Item #1 – Ultraprocessed Foods https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/ultraprocessed-foods/ News Item #2 – Artemis Space Suits https://www.space.com/axiom-space-artemis-3-integrated-test News Item #3 – Interstellar Clouds https://phys.org/news/2024-06-astrophysicists-likelihood-earth-exposed-cold.html News Item #4 – Prebiotic Soda https://www.foodandwine.com/poppi-prebiotic-soda-lawsuit-explained-8657589 News Item #5 – Noninvasive Deep Brain Stimulation https://theness.com/neurologicablog/non-invasive-deep-brain-stimulation/ Segment #3. Who’s That Noisy Segment #4. Your Questions and E-mails Question #1: Baader-Meinhof phenomenon Hello fellow skeptics. I have been listening to the SGU for almost a decade now and really enjoy and appreciate what you guys are doing. Critical Thinking is needed NOW MORE THAN EVER. To my comment: Have you guys discussed the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon before? Apparently it is a frequency illusion where when you hear about something it all of a sudden appears more frequently. ie: Learning about a new person and all of a sudden the persons name appears everywhere. I have a sense that it is a cognitive bias but would like to especially hear Steve and Cara's take on the subject (the neurologist and psychologist respectively) Adrian Tello Texas 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. Item 1: Researchers unveiled a new computer modeling system of a living cell that is 1 million times faster than existing simulations. Item 2: For the first time physicists report they have been able to isolate true magnetic monopoles. Item 3: NASA recently successfully tested their new communications link to the ISS, which was able to transmit data up and down at 1.2 gigabits per second. Segment #6. Skeptical Quote of the Week "Understand well as I may, my comprehension can only be an infinitesimal fraction of all I want to understand." Ada Lovelace