Six Degrees of Rumination

1/29/14 Episode -1/12: Technology has infinite possibilities--that is, -1/12.

In the spirit of calculating infinity, we have dubbed our twelfth episode, "Episode -1/12." 

The innovations keep coming as we near the end of the first month of 2014, and each is more inspiring than the next!  Reno and Nina make plans to land on the sun--they will leave, of course, at night.  When they return, maybe they'll take producer Mike out to sushi and see if their rolls are indeed radioactive. There's an app for that!  In a world of sugar batteries, robots in the cloud, and brains that develop like the city of Manhattan, thank goodness we have e-whiskers to guide us safely through life.

 

http://www.tweaktown.com/news/35032/north-korea-confirms-it-has-landed-a-man-on-the-sun/index.html

http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/01/17/263369742/weekly-innovation-a-radiation-detector-in-your-smartphone

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/01/23/265245172/potential-carcinogen-in-colas-has-fda-reviewing-data

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/01/23/265236618/contagious-cancer-in-dogs-leaves-prehistoric-paw-prints

http://www.kurzweilai.net/an-environmentally-friendly-energy-dense-sugar-battery

http://www.kurzweilai.net/a-wiki-for-robots

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/03/29/149629657/how-your-brain-is-like-manhattan

http://www.kurzweilai.net/e-whiskers-berkeley-researchers-develop-highly-sensitive-tactile-sensors-for-robotics-and-other-applications

http://www.kurzweilai.net/seeing-things-a-new-transparent-display-system-could-provide-heads-up-data

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/01/28/267923336/neanderthal-genes-live-on-in-our-hair-and-skin

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/02/06/272385603/no-jail-for-teen-with-affluenza-who-killed-4-in-crash

1/22/14 Episode 11: The Human Experience

Oh, to be human!  We have the unique ability to analyze our thoughts, research the world around us, and use all we learn to do things like:

Compress our own ashes into heirloom jewelry

Sequence tens of thousands of genomes for $1,000

Create recognition algorithms that learn without us

Build robots that learn through improvising--and look like Pixar characters!

Model biobots after our own sperm

And, as a bonus, we can also calculate infinity.  What's next?  Or could anything be next after infinity?  If so, we'll find it.

http://www.npr.org/2014/01/19/263128098/swiss-company-compresses-cremation-ashes-into-diamonds?utm_content=socialflow&utm_campaign=nprfacebook&utm_source=npr&utm_medium=facebook

http://www.kurzweilai.net/worlds-first-1000-genome-enables-factory-scale-sequencing-for-population-and-disease-studies

http://www.kurzweilai.net/a-smart-object-recognition-algorithm-that-doesnt-need-humans

http://www.ted.com/talks/guy_hoffman_robots_with_soul.html

http://www.kurzweilai.net/tiny-swimming-biobots-propelled-by-heart-cells-or-magnetic-fields

http://www.npr.org/2014/01/21/264575969/after-hibernation-rosetta-seeks-its-stone

http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2014/01/21/263455905/treat-yourself-to-a-huh

1/15/14 Episode 10: Good Shit

Hey everyone-

The audio is a little wonky on this episode.  My apologies!

-Producer Mike

Welcome to 2014.  We're surrounded by sound waves that can levitate objects, self-driving cars, pens that can draw conductive circuits, and renewable energy that's only getting more efficient.  Anti-psychotic pharmaceuticals are also developing at an insane rate--want perfect pitch?  Just make sure you suffer from seizures first.  But that's not the only advancement in the medical world.  Need a heart transplant?  Hit the farms and grab some pigs.  Want to taste food without the calories?  Hook yourself up to a sensor and have a virtual banquet.  Oh, and fecal matter transplants?  Still relevant.  Now that's good shit.

http://www.kurzweilai.net/organic-flow-battery-promises-breakthrough-for-renewable-energy

http://www.kurzweilai.net/self-driving-vehicles-benefits-to-society-policy-challenges-for-lawmakers

http://www.kurzweilai.net/conductive-ink-for-drawing-circuits-for-flexible-electronic-books-displays-wearables

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/01/02/259148381/using-sound-to-levitate-objects-and-move-them-in-mid-air

http://www.npr.org/2014/01/04/259552442/want-perfect-pitch-you-could-pop-a-pill-for-that

http://www.npr.org/2013/12/20/255831250/is-it-possible-to-live-with-the-voices-in-your-head

http://www.kurzweilai.net/growing-human-organs-inside-pigs-in-japan

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/dolphins-get-high-pufferfish-toxin

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/youll-never-believe-what-doctors-are-using-to-fight-gut-infections-fecal-transplants/2014/01/06/24f36388-724a-11e3-9389-09ef9944065e_story.html?wpmk=MK0000200

http://www.kurzweilai.net/are-you-ready-for-virtual-taste

12/30/13 Episode 9: Don't worry, it's all just an illusion

It's a good thing our universe is just a hologram and nothing matters, because otherwise we'd have to try to understand what that means!  

However, if you still find yourself up all night thinking about this concept, take comfort: there are plenty of things to distract you, like using your brain waves to control your blender, acting out video games in your house, making replacement organs with a 3D printer...

Also discussed is the hidden code in our DNA, how to make cells communicate to fight the aging process, and what to do when you need a new face.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=universe-really-is-a-holo&page=2

http://www.kurzweilai.net/openbci-opens-up-low-cost-brain-wave-controlled-experimentation-to-everyone

http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-system-allows-for-high-accuracy-through-wall-3d-motion-tracking

http://www.kurzweilai.net/cells-taken-from-the-retina-act-as-ink-in-inkjet-printer

http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-telescope-techniques-allow-for-imaging-binary-stars-may-soon-image-exoplanets

http://www.kurzweilai.net/scientists-discover-hidden-code-in-dna

http://www.kurzweilai.net/a-new-and-reversible-cause-of-aging

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/man%E2%80%99s-hand-grafted-his-foot-transplant

http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/teenage-girl-china-grows-new-face-her-chest-0

12/11/13 Episode 8: Hydrogen pressure cookers could totally out-power giant batteries (at least in Vacaville)

Reno's lifestyle choice to be a (semi) vegetarian is further supported by plant based diets that change human intestinal bacteria, a European space probe gets ready to ring in the New Year on a comet, and Mike and Nina realize with improved fiber optics, people on the Internet can show how dumb they are....a lot faster.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/12/10/250007042/chowing-down-on-meat-and-dairy-alters-gut-bacteria-a-lot-and-quickly

http://www.kurzweilai.net/neural-prosthesis-restores-normasl-behavior-after-brain-injury

 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/12/11/250245336/wake-up-rosetta-europeans-begin-checklist-for-comet-landing

http://www.kurzweilai.net/how-to-produce-enough-hydrogen-to-meet-global-energy-needs-in-50-years

http://www.npr.org/2013/12/11/250043599/big-batteries-needed-to-make-fickle-wind-and-solar-power-work

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ten-times-more-throughput-on-optic-fibers

 http://www.kurzweilai.net/new-algorithm-finds-you-even-in-untagged-photos

11/6/13 Episode 7: Randomizer!

Because all podcasts, at one time or another, have their random moments.  Sometimes, those moments comprise a whole episode!  Reno and Nina talk about how blind people see, how your smart phone might know you better than you know yourself, how seemingly cute animals are hiding their true natures, and how a newly developing drug may reverse the negative trajectory that leads to Alzheimer's.  These topics and more are discussed with the usual mix of puns, shortly followed by groans from producer Michael.  

Oh, and electrocution may be good for you after all.  Get out a fork and find the nearest outlet.  

http://www.kurzweilai.net/study-with-totally-blind-people-shows-how-light-helps-activate-the-brain

http://www.kurzweilai.net/neurocam-wearable-camera-reads-your-brainwaves-and-records-what-interests-you

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/animals-can-be-giant-jerks

http://www.kurzweilai.net/compound-blocks-neurodegeneration-in-mice

http://www.kurzweilai.net/jumper-cables-for-the-mind

http://www.kurzweilai.net/controlled-atomic-layer-crystal-growth-is-breakthrough-for-solar-cell-efficiency

http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-titan-arm-helps-you-lift-40-more-pounds

http://www.npr.org/2013/11/05/242991030/galaxy-quest-just-how-many-earth-like-planets-are-out-there

http://www.npr.org/blogs/13.7/2013/11/05/243081116/dark-matter-eludes-capture-science-and-the-unseen

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/11/01/242361826/exploring-the-invisible-universe-that-lives-on-us-and-in-us

DIY Fecal Transplants to cure yourself of digestive disease

www.youtube.com

This video is a supplement to my book about my experience successfully using fecal transplants and guide book for how to do it yourself: http://fecaltranspla...

10/30/13 Episode 6: Dark Matter, Dolphins, and Deja Vu

Nina and Reno talk about the brain's perception of time, and how long it takes (or seems to take) to impale one's leg on cymbals.  After deducing the coldest object in the universe is not Reno's heart, conversation is momentarily buried in puns--until producer Michael has a breakthrough in understanding space, Nina admits she doesn't know the order of the planets, and Reno interrogates both of them on the subject.  IQs are compared, numerosity is defined, and finally, somehow, the inevitable cats vs. dogs argument works its way in.

http://blog.bufferapp.com/the-science-of-time-perception-how-to-make-your-days-longer?utm_source=buffer&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=buffer865fa&utm_medium=twitter

http://news.yahoo.com/spooky-nebula-coldest-known-object-universe-photo-163732758.html

http://www.creativitypost.com/psychology/through_the_looking_glass

http://www.kurzweilai.net/dogs-are-people-too

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/new-species-humpback-dolphin-discovered

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/09/131010-elephant-pointing-animals-behavior-africa-science/

http://www.kurzweilai.net/mathematical-thinking-area-of-brain-identified-technique-could-lead-to-mind-reading-devices-scientists-say

http://www.kurzweilai.net/is-invisible-dark-matter-detectable

10/23/13 Episode 5 - Keanu Tomato Tofu Reeves

Why is immortality reserved just for jellyfish?  Can bio-bots perform rescue missions in the Bermuda triangle?  Has anyone else noticed that Keanu Reeves eerily takes on the flavor of ANY movie? When Mercury retrograde is afoot, these are the questions that come up!  Maybe that same mercurial interference is also responsible for the gaps in Nina's memory, and caused Reno to impale his leg muscle on a drum set.  Despite the cosmic assault on communication and coordination, Reno and Nina navigate their way through a panoply of topics from yoga for the blind to 3D computers, and Nina even analyzes Reno's and Michael's dreams. 

http://www.kurzweilai.net/kinect-based-program-makes-yoga-accessible-for-the-blind

http://www.kurzweilai.net/cyborg-swarm-maps-unknown-environments

http://www.kurzweilai.net/jellyfish-energy-efficiency-to-improve-bio-inspired-robotic-designs-for-navy

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/01/090130-immortal-jellyfish-swarm.html

http://www.kurzweilai.net/is-a-scientific-definition-of-consciousness-possible

http://www.kurzweilai.net/data-mining-our-dreams

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=236328380

http://www.kurzweilai.net/ibm-unveils-concept-for-a-future-brain-inspired-3d-computer

http://www.livescience.com/40535-show-unveils-worlds-first-bionic-man.html

http://www.kurzweilai.net/light-triggers-cancer-death-switch

Hey Everyone,

Sorry it's late!  But here's the long awaited Episode 5!  It normally doesn't take me this long to upload the podcasts, but hey, life happens!  You can direct all complaints at me (Producer Mike).

-Michael

10/16/13 Episode 4: Aliases, Time Machines, and Orcae

Nina can't stop laughing long enough to introduce the podcast--possibly because of the multiple Greek alphabet jokes made prior to recording.  Luckily, producer Michael is there to jump in, but immediately finds himself under interrogation by Reno and Nina.  Aliases quickly result all around, and the remaining episode is run by Johnny, Kathy, and Gerald/Gerry.  These aliases protect us as we discuss the government shutdown, admit to illegally burning movies, and worst of all, make plans to 3D print our own guns.

Oh, and Reno talks like a dolphin.

http://www.ted.com/talks/edith_widder_how_we_found_the_giant_squid.html?sa=X&ei=dPtOUsjLB8SSigLn1oFw&ved=0CBYQqwQ

http://www.npr.org/2013/10/07/230170093/even-antarctica-feels-the-effects-of-the-government-shutdown

http://www.kurzweilai.net/why-dont-we-have-fusion-yet

http://www.kurzweilai.net/4d-printing-adaptive-materials

http://www.kurzweilai.net/neural-circuits-that-control-rem-sleep-in-mice-identified

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/tue-october-1-2013/david-mitchell 

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/10/04/229190837/want-to-read-others-thoughts-try-reading-literary-fiction

http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2013/popular-physicsprize2013.pdf

10/9/13 Episode 3: Jet packs are my anti-drug

Producer Michael talks about his and Nina's new EOS, which, while not quite a jet pack, does boast the Optimus Prime feature.  Reno learns Chinese because of his innate percussive abilities, and Nina experiences cognitive dissonance against her will.

Hey everyone!  It's Episode 3!!  The sound is not as hot as the past two episode since I was trying something new with microphone placement and with the mixboard. I've been able to fix it for the most part, so it's still listenable.  Thanks for checking us out!

-Producer Michael

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/09/25/china-man-nose-forehead_n_3988678.html?utm_hp_ref=uk

http://www.kurzweilai.net/colossal-explosion-from-supermassive-black-hole-at-center-of-galaxy-revealed

http://www.kurzweilai.net/got-rhythm-you-can-learn-languages-and-reading-better

http://www.kurzweilai.net/wired-microbes-generate-electricity-from-sewage 

http://www.kurzweilai.net/jetpack-to-be-available-in-2014

https://www.simonsfoundation.org/quanta/20130917-a-jewel-at-the-heart-of-quantum-physics/

http://www.kurzweilai.net/water-discovered-on-mars

http://www.alternet.org/media/most-depressing-discovery-about-brain-ever