Did climate change cause the "Great Dying?"

12/13/18 • 42 min

The worst mass extinction in known history happened 250 million years ago, wiping out an astonishing 96% of all marine life. Scientists have offered many theories on how this could have happened, from meteors to volcanoes--but a research team may have finally cracked the code, and it doesn't bode well for our own future. Charlie brings in a paper that takes a grim dive into the world's most lethal time period. Read the paper and news articles here.

Previous Episode

Could you prove you're human in one word?

Hypothetical scenario: you and a robot are before a judge who cannot see you. You each must pick one word from the english dictionary to give to the judge. Based on these two words, the judge will decide who is human, and who is the robot. The catch--the one deemed a robot is executed. What one word do you choose?

James brings in a fascinating paper on the Turing Test (a famous computer science thought experiment) and a completely new paradigm for thinking of artificial intelligence. Read the paper here... and tune in to find out the disgusting word Charlie picked!

Next Episode

How does an "ion plane" actually fly?

Airplanes are responsible for 10% of the carbon footprint of the US. Recently the news reported on a new "ion plane" that could revolutionize the industry...but can it actually? James brings in a paper from MIT researchers detailing their new propulsion system and we get to the bottom of the real science. Read the paper here.