We Have Concerns

Invisible Squid and Crab Blood

13 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Using a protein found in a squid called the opalescent inshore squid, scientists recently found a way to change the refractive index of human kidney c...

Screw Worms. And Birds. And Junk Journals, Too.

05 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What's the deal with birds... is a question Anthony and Jeff often ponder, but it's also the title of a new study released in the Scientific Journal o...

Life, The Universe, and Dom Deluise

29 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsThe Cannonball Run is a simple, and highly illegal, record that d...

Beard Science

22 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

(Sorry about the slight buzz in Anthony's audio this week. OUR BAD)A team of researchers injected human stem cells into mouse embryos. Just over two w...

Blame the Bats, Man

15 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A University of Saskatchewan (USask) research team has uncovered how bats can carry the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) coronavirus without ge...

Taking To Be Out of the Question

08 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

If we are all inaccurate perception machines, fallible even in our own ability to process and recall events we experienced, then surely our language ...

Dovetailing Through Space

01 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

There are more than 2,000 active satellites orbiting Earth. At the end of their useful lives, some will continue circling as "zombie" satellites — n...

Let's Found a Science

24 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Screens, social media, and the internet... it's destroying the minds of young people, right? Well, a new study aims to answer that very question by c...

Release the Icelandic Cut

17 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Birds. No one likes them. But how can they balance like they do, perched on wires and branches? It turns out scientists have only recently discover...

Birth of the Xenobots

11 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Biologists at Tufts University, Douglas Blackiston and Michael Levin have created all programmable organisms called xenobots — golems dreamed in sil...

Magnets is Beards

03 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

An Australian astrophysicist and research fellow at a Melbourne university injured himself by attempting to invent a device that stops the coronavirus...

Hi. We're back.

30 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns The Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/WeHaveConcerns/ Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter....

So Long and Thanks for All the Fits

03 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks so much for sticking with us for 600 episodes! We take a look back at what made us laugh (and learn!). In this episode, we introduce the greate...

One Last One Fermi

01 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The sheer abundance of stars in the universe suggests that, somewhere, an intelligent lifeform should be warming itself on a distant planet. Even if l...

Sum Answer Bee

29 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Bees seem to understand the idea of zero – the first invertebrate shown to do so. When the insects were encouraged to fly towards a platform carryin...

Put Your Foot in Your Mouth

27 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

If you could taste human flesh in an ethical way, would you? A man was recently in a motorcycle crash that put him face-to-face with the macabre hypot...

Psych Warn

25 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The Stanford Prison Experiment, one of the most famous and compelling psychological studies of all time, told us a tantalizingly simple story about hu...

Snow vs the Volcano

22 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Hawaii's big island recently got a little bit hairier. Golden filaments resembling human hair measuring up to two feet in length are draped across par...

Alien vs Temperature

20 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Did climate change already kill all the aliens we've been searching for? According to astrophysicist Adam Frank, it's certainly a possibility — and ...

Trip Down The Stares

18 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In 2015, a psychologist in Italy figured out how to induce a drug-free altered state of consciousness by asking 20 volunteers to sit and stare into ea...

This Space for Rent

15 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

NASA is talking to several international companies about forming a consortium that would take over operation of the International Space Station and ru...

Mind The Crap

13 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

It turns out those gut feelings or pits in your stomach may actually come from your second brain. Scientists from Australia have discovered that human...

Permanent Record

11 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When considering musical artists, your favorite record of theirs is often the first to which you listened. It makes sense that the first album one enc...

Call Made By Your Name

08 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What’s in a name? A lot, apparently. New research suggests that your first name shapes the way other people perceive your age, personality, and how ...

Mistake Your Vitamins

06 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A new study aimed to examine the benefits of vitamin and mineral supplements for prevention of heart disease, stroke and premature death. This found t...

Loch Screen

04 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A global team of scientists plans to scour the icy depths of Loch Ness next month using environmental DNA (eDNA) in an experiment that may discover wh...

Measuring a Cute Angle (W/ Mica Burton)

01 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

PATRONS GET A BONUS EPISODE WITH MICA. LISTEN TO IT HERE: https://www.patreon.com/posts/19007770/ There are roughly (or, if you prefer, ruffly) a bill...

Rice Guys Finish Last

30 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

How you behave in Starbucks may reveal something about whether your ancestors grew wheat or rice. That’s the conclusion of a new study in China, whi...

Been Taught Stealin’

28 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The number of self-check out terminals around the world is predicted to reach 325,000 by 2019 and some stores have even become fully self service. But...

Memories For Snail

25 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Biologists report they have transferred a memory from one marine snail to another, creating an artificial memory, by injecting RNA from one to another...

Working Like a Dog

23 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

If you're a dog lover, just being with your pet feels good. So it's no surprise that therapy dogs are healing companions for people with health condit...

High Blood Treasure

21 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

James Harrison, an Australian man whose blood contains a rare antibody that can create a treatment that saves babies' lives, has donated plasma one la...

Balloonacy

18 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The words "balloonfest" and "disaster" don't necessarily seem to go together – except in the case of the 1986 Cleveland Balloonf...

Alchemical Intelligence

16 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Ali Rahimi, a researcher in artificial intelligence (AI) at Google, took a swipe at his field last December—and received a 40-second ovation for it....

The Space Between

14 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In the beginning, the rules of the space bar were simple. Two spaces after each period. Every time. Easy. That made sense in the age of the typewri...

Piggy and the Brain

11 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

US-based researchers have successfully kept alive the brain cells of decapitated pigs for 36 hours, sparking concerns over the ethics involved in such...

The Odds in Your Flavor

09 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

893.35 quadrillion to one. That’s the likelihood of what’s happened to 20-year-old Dylan McWilliams. He was bitten by a shark, attacked by a bear,...

Sleep Depredation

07 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A study by University of Manchester researchers has shown for the first time that a bad night’s sleep is associated with suicidal thoughts the next ...

Trouble Stuffed

04 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Judges of the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year have disqualified a winning contestant after the anteater in his prize-winning photograph ...

Jeff just keeps having babies dot tumblr dot com

30 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Hi! Jeff is in the midst of the Fatherhood Ritual. We'll be back next Monday!

How the Sausage is Maid

30 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A Canadian man finally got the chance to clear his name after 17 years in exile from a hotel in British Columbia. His ordeal began in 2001, involving ...

Doggie Data Care

27 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What can artificial intelligence learn from dogs? Quite a lot, say researchers from the University of Washington and Allen Institute for AI. They rece...

Sight off the Bat

25 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

While hunting for dinner, the big brown bat must hone in on flitting insects and keep track of its surroundings to avoid crashing into them. Now, scie...

Apparent Teacher Conflicts

23 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

John Corcoran grew up in New Mexico in the US during the 1940s and 50s. He graduated from high school, went on to university, and became a teacher in ...

Crash Ear

20 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Crash safety technology has come a long way in the past decade or so, with cars that now sense an impending crash and can prepare the driver for impac...

Magnet Eyes

18 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Birds can sense Earth’s magnetic field, and this uncanny ability may help them fly home from unfamiliar places or navigate migrations that span tens...

The Little Engine That Turd (w/Ify Nwadiwe and Dani Fernandez)

16 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

PATRONS GET A BONUS EPISODE WITH IFY AND DANI. LISTEN TO IT HERE: https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-content-18207635 Right now, dozens of train cars...

Never Come Down (Live From Pax East 2018)

13 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The thrilling conclusion of our week of episodes recorded live at PAX East 2018 in beautiful Boston! We respond to audience questions. GET BONUS EPISO...

Sun Blot (Live From PAX East 2018)

11 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists in developing nations plan to step up research into dimming sunshine to curb climate change, hoping to judge if a man-made chemical sunshad...

Polyphasic Spree (Live From PAX East 2018)

09 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Around a third of the population have trouble maintaining sleep throughout the night. While nighttime awakenings are distressing for most sufferers, t...

Photographic Memory

06 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Though they may appear crystal clear in our minds, our memories are not a carbon copy of the events we witnessed. Every time we recall a memory, we ma...

Organ Web

04 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A study claims to have discovered a new human organ that could help scientists better understand its impact on diseases such as cancer. Reports sugges...

Tooth Bomb

02 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In the 19th Century, a Pennsylvania dentist called WH Atkinson came across a condition that sounds like the stuff of nightmares. Writing in The Dental...

Hi!

30 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A reminder of something rad coming up and a scheduling update.

Alone in the Dork

28 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Right after the election, Erik Hagerman decided he’d take a break from reading about the hoopla of politics. He swore that he would avoid learning a...

Lethal Collection

26 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

"What if we told you we could back up your mind?" That's the business pitch of Nectome, a preserve-your-brain-and-upload-it company. Its che...

Twin Galaxies

23 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A new study from NASA has found that astronaut Scott Kelly's genes are no longer identical to those of his identical twin after spending a year in spa...

Big Haply Family

21 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

IN THE LAST 20 years, genealogy websites have attracted more than 15 million customers by promising insights into your past. It’s deeply personal, a...

Deja View

19 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Most of us know it - that weird, sudden feeling of experiencing something not for the first time. It's called déjà vu - French for "already see...

Passing the Sniff Test

16 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A dog searching for a lost child is typically given an item of clothing to smell. But what does that scent “look” like? To find out, scientists te...

Logo Mindstorms

14 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Humans assign value to brands. Brands represent wealth, strength, and yes, sex. We are our brands. And for some rhesus macaques in a lab, one brand, A...

Special Aged

12 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

It's pretty extraordinary for people in their 80s and 90s to keep the same sharp memory as someone several decades younger, and now scientists are pee...

Black Hole Fun

09 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

If you ever fell into a black hole, your body would most likely be ripped into shreds and become 'spaghettified' - At least that's the theory put forw...

Nowhere You Are

07 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

In a triumph of data collection and analysis, a team of researchers based at Oxford University has built the tools necessary to calculate how far any ...

Bio Shock Intimate

06 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When Josiah Zayner watched a biotech CEO drop his pants at a biohacking conference and inject himself with an untested herpes treatment, he realized t...

Olympic Meddle

02 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Elizabeth Swaney is a 33-year-old skier from Oakland, California who competed in the 2018 Winter Olympics for Hungary. She is not a good skiier. Swane...

Supple Built Skin

28 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Biomedicine just took another leap forward. University of Colorado Boulder scientists created so-called electronic skin—e-skin for short. The e-skin...

Worms and Conditions

26 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

After about a week of eye irritation, which she thought might be caused by a stray eyelash, Beckley took a close look in the mirror and found the real...

Smell Wishers

23 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

What are the ingredients of a good relationship? Trust? Communication? Compromise? How about a sense of smell? When researchers in the United Kingdom ...

Some Snail a Prey

21 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Conservationists have been sounding the alarm over invasive species for years, warning of the damage they can cause to habitats and native animals. Bu...

Face: Your Fears

19 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The next time a police officer in black-tinted glasses gawks at you, they may be pulling up your personal information. Railway police in Zhengzhou, th...

Why Are You Crying?

16 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

We can cry out of sadness, fear, frustration, anger, or even joy. But why do streams of liquid leave our eyes? The truth is no one really knows for su...

Don’t Sweat the Ball Stuff

14 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The average athlete loses about a liter of sweat an hour; Alberto Salazar, an American marathoner, lost 3.7 liters per hour and 12 pounds of his total...

Banana Bred

13 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Japanese researchers made a botanical announcement on Monday that quickly circled the world. They had developed a banana with an edible peel, allowing...

Face/On

10 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Last month, Motherboard reported on a Redditor using deep learning technology to map female celebrities’ faces onto pornographic performers, with st...

Can a Peacock Fly?

07 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Any animal could feasibly provide a human with emotional support, but it doesn't mean that they all should. According to a report by the BBC, the conc...

Retro Virus

05 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Inside the brain, proteins don’t stick around longer than a few minutes. And yet, our memories can hang on for our entire lifetime. Recently, an int...

Macaque of the Clones

02 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

For the first time, scientists say they created cloned primates using the same complicated cloning technique that made Dolly the sheep in 1996. Shangh...

Satellite Rodeo

31 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

When Rocket Lab’s Electron reached orbit for the first time on Jan. 21, space-pointed radar noticed a mysterious object in space alongside the three...

Talking Achoo

29 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Holding back a sneeze by pinching your nose while keeping your mouth closed may cause physical injury. In one such documented case, an otherwise healt...

Deep Sea Thriver

26 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

It’s like having “an elephant stand on your thumb.” That’s how deep-sea physiologist and ecologist Mackenzie Gerringer describes the pressure ...

Smite Angle

24 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Hampshire's Ipley Cross is a notorious crossroads where cyclists keep getting hit and even killed by motorists, despite the mostly level terrain aroun...

Black Bird Swinging in the Spread of Light

22 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The mating dance of the male superb bird of paradise is like nothing else on Earth, thanks to their feathers, which absorb 99.95 percent of light. Tha...

Big Skittle Lies

19 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Do gummy bears really come in different flavors, or do we just think they taste different because they are different colors? While closing your eyes, ...

The Hottest Fashion

17 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The mid-19th century vogue for flowing, diaphanous women's garments made from open-weave fabrics, combined with gas lighting, candles, and open fires ...

Heroes of Blight and Tragic

15 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

At first glance, Miles Traer seems like any other scientist, but this Stanford University geologist has an alter ego. He beats back the forces of envi...

Quantity Time

12 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Despite not being at the end of your life, you may very well be nearing the end of your time with some of the most important people in your life. The...

Fool Poisoning

10 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

The year was 1902. With funding and consent from Congress, Harvey Washington Wiley was about to embark on an experiment he dubbed the “hygienic tabl...

Halve A Seat

08 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

At the University of Chicago in the early 1920s, psychology grad student William Blatz built a remote-controlled trick chair that would collapse when ...

Bottled Potter

05 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A writing team at Botnik Studios used a ‘predictive keyboard’ – a text generator that tries to guess what the next word typed will most likely b...

A Fish Shout of Water

03 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

A species of Mexican fish amasses in reproductive orgies so loud they can deafen other sea animals, awed scientists have said, calling for preservatio...

When Aliens a Tax

29 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Since 2007, the $600 billion annual Defense Department budgets included $22 million spent on the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program. Th...

Plantesthesia

27 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers from the journal Annals of Botany report that, just like humans, plants can succumb to the effects of general anesthetic drugs. The findin...

Batman Doesn't Need Super Vision

22 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Psychologists have reported in Child Development that when four- to six-year-olds pretended to be Batman while they were doing a boring but important ...

Sign on the Clotted Spine

20 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

It’s usually OK to be proud of your work and lend your name to it. But most people would draw the line at signing their initials into the flesh of i...

The Nutty Processor

18 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Squirrels can bury up to 10,000 nuts annually, many of which they do go back and find. A recent study on cognition in the journal Royal Society Open ...

Have a Tat Habitat

15 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Engineers at MIT have developed a temporary tattoo that’s 3-D printed with living ink. The tattoo is made up of bacterial cells that are genetically...

School Injection

13 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Two neuroscientists at the University of Rochester say they have managed to introduce information directly into the premotor cortex of monkeys. Antho...

Ground Control to Major Germ

11 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

According to a new study in the journal PeerJ, the interior surfaces of the 17-year-old, 250-mile-high, airtight International Space Station harbor at...

Shake, Rattle, and Roil

08 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

In a study published in Geophysical Research Letters earlier this year, Roger Bilham of the University of Colorado and Rebecca Bendick of the Universi...