We Have Concerns
Episodes
Die Hardly
06 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Rather than go with realistic methods of death, many films contain unbelievable movie death scenes that viewers accept as possible because they have b...
Public Dowsing
04 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Ten of the 12 water companies in the UK have admitted they are still using the practice of water dowsing despite the lack of scientific evidence for i...
Endeavor Young
22 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A small cluster of stem cells in the brain seems to help mice stay young, and injecting extra stem cells helps them live longer. The hypothalamus, whi...
Understanding Know
20 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
According to new linguistic analysis published in the journal Public Understanding of Science, even scientists who write about public comprehension of...
Ants vs Zombies
17 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
We’ve known about zombie ants for some time. These are ants infected with the parasitic fungus, O. unilateralis, which takes over their bodies amd ...
Dinky is the Brain
15 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists can grow miniature versions of human brains — called organoids — in the lab, but during the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscie...
Fooly Manmoth
13 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Swallowed by a sinkhole. Washed away by a mudflow. Drowned after falling through thin ice. These are the fates that many unlucky mammoths suffered in...
Daylight Salving Time
10 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Nathaniel Hoyle of the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK, and his team have been investigating how the time of day affects wound healin...
Pyramid Seam
09 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Egypt’s Great Pyramid of Giza—one of the wonders of the ancient world, and a dazzling feat of architectural genius—contains a hidden void at lea...
Thoughtopilot
06 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Brain scans have revealed that when your mind wanders, it switches into “autopilot” mode, enabling you to carry on doing tasks quickly, accurately...
I'll Have What She's Having
03 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Marine biologists from the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of Portsmouth in the UK published a study on the feeding preferences of nudi...
500 Ways of Bummer
01 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Behold! It is the 500th episode of We Have Concerns! Since that is a nice, round number, Anthony and Jeff take an episode to answer some listener qu...
Death Becomes Sure
30 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
According to researchers in New York, a person’s brain is still active after death, meaning in many cases they can be aware that they’ve passed aw...
Do Not Pass Go
28 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
AlphaGo the AI developed to play the ancient board game, Go, crushed 18-time world champion Lee Sedol and the reigning world number one player, Ke Jie...
Star Crash
23 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
For the first time, scientists have caught two neutron stars in the act of colliding, revealing that these strange smashups are the source of heavy el...
Downside Effects
20 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
When a harmless placebo becomes effective, it becomes harmful, too, causing side-effects seen in actual therapies. In a new study exploring this myst...
Space Mutants
19 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
NASA is considering the possibility of actually modifying the DNA of Mars astronauts in order to make their bodies more resilient to the dangers of th...
Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On
16 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Ufere, is the founder and CEO of the dream-interpretation app uDreamed, which allows people to record dreams, connect with other dreamers and co...
When Pigs Die
14 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A team at Mississippi State University conducted an unusual ecological experiment with 3 actual tons of pig carcasses. Jeff and Anthony dig into the ...
Occupational Vehicle
11 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
In the mid-2000s, Amazon had a problem. Every year, the company scrambled to find temporary workers during the peak months of hectic commerce leading ...
Slumber Partly
09 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A trio of Caltech grad students noticed some laboratory jellyfish were acting differently when the lights were turned off, and set about determining i...
Cave Story
06 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Indiana University freshman Lukas Cavar was on a spelunking trip to Sullivan Cave about 10 miles south of Bloomington when he became separated Sunday ...
The Dark Night Returns
04 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers say 80 percent of North Americans live in areas where light pollution blots out the night sky. Central Idaho officials are proposing the ...
Hawaii Survive-o
02 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Six NASA-backed research subjects who have been cooped up in a Mars-like habitat on a remote Hawaii volcano since January emerged from isolation .The ...
Feint Praise
29 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
An international team of researchers reports that when children are praised for being smart not only are they quicker to give up in the face of obstac...
Cephal Oppidan
27 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Octlantis is a just-discovered underwater city engineered by octopuses. But that's not all. Octopolis also exists! Ever vigilant to the alien threa...
Hardly Worker
25 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Ants are cultural signifiers of busy industriousness, but a new paper in Plos One reveals that, across species, about 40% of "worker" ants s...
Eat Me
22 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
There are a few animals that can survive being eaten, and the skill might help them spread and colonise new regions. Jeff and Anthony discuss a new a...
The Nose Have It
20 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
In a study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, researchers found that when it comes time for a pack of wild dogs to determine whether to ...
Evolution of Man
18 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
New research claims to have found traces of evidence that humans may indeed still be evolving. A study looked at the DNA of over 200,000 people livin...
WHC Program Note
08 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Due to a recording error at PAX West last weekend, there will be no new episode today or Monday. We Have Concerns will be back next Wednesday with ne...
Mess Up
05 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A new study published in the journal Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes says that being disorganized can actually increase productiv...
Aquatic Narcotic
04 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have tested the drug-seeking behavior of zebrafish in a tank that allows them to trigger the release of the opioid hydrocodone in the water...
Forget It
01 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Alongside the studies telling us how to keep our memories intact, an enormous body of research has led to another conclusion: In many cases, it's okay...
Watch Your Hands
30 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Using a combination of depth cameras and computer-vision algorithms, a research team has tracked people around two hospital wards and automatically id...
Echo Effect
28 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The research firm eMarketer estimates that 60.5 million people in the U.S.—a little less than a fifth of the population—will use a digital assista...
Sloth Sleuth
25 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Usually, tunnels are made either by human engineers or flowing water. But near the town of Novo Hamburgo, Brazil, there are tunnels large enough to dr...
The Life Neurotic
23 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Neurotic people may get a lot of flak, but in reality neuroticism is linked to some very good traits—intelligence and creativity among them. And a n...
Dredge a Mite
21 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
When Australian teen Sam Kanizay felt sore after football practice, he decided to soak his legs at Dendy Street Beach in Brighton. Half an hour later...
Tell a Phony
18 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A team from the University of Warwick in England showed doctored photos to 707 people ages 14 to 82 who volunteered to test their ability to spot a fa...
Healing Touch
16 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers have developed a device that can switch cell function to rescue failing body functions with a single touch. The technology, known as Tissu...
Quiz Knows
14 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
People trying to comment on articles will now be forced to prove they understand what it's about. That's at least at Norwegian broadcaster NRK's websi...
Pharma to Table
11 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A DIY pharmaceutical revolution is coming - at least according to one scientist trying to make crafting your own prescription drug at home easier. An...
The Juice Diet
09 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A Finnish research team has taken a step towards the future of food by developing a method for producing food from electricity. If scaling it up prove...
Plan a Head
07 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have figured out why the women’s restroom line is always longer than the men’s. And while the reasons may not surprise you, the soluti...
Harder, Better, CRISPR, Stronger
04 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The first known attempt at creating genetically modified human embryos in the United States has been carried out by a team of researchers in Portland,...
Operating in a Vacuum
02 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A new article in Wired considers all of the dangers associated with performing surgery in space. NASA has never had to do it, but has thought about i...
Don't Stay in Contact
31 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A “blueish mass” of 17 contact lenses has been discovered in the eye of a patient who was scheduled for cataract surgery. The 67-year-old patient...
All You Breed is Love
28 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
People with Williams syndrome, a rare genetic condition, can’t stop hugging people, have no fear of strangers, and love everyone equally. And it ma...
Second Strife
26 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
According to an MIT study published in The Journal of Human Resources, second-born children are more likely to grow up to become criminals. Anthony a...
Neither Here Nor There
24 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers from China successfully teleported a photon from Earth to a satellite 500 km away. The work is an essential step towards establishing a gl...
Higher, Higher, Ants of Fire
21 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
After a flood, thousands of homeless fire ants pile on top of one another to build bizarro towers with their own bodies — probably as temporary shel...
The Old Guard
19 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A new study may shed light on why teenagers sleep late while grandparents are often up at the crack of dawn. Fifty years ago, psychologist Frederick S...
Stringing Up Baby
17 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Built in 1937 and distributed in London to members of the Chelsea Baby Club, the baby cage was meant for big-city apartments without yards, and would...
How to Kill a Gram
14 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists are about to change what a kilogram is. The weights and measures committee will establish a global value for Planck's constant and then wi...
Paternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (w/Vernon Shaw)
12 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have taken another step toward being able to edit out bad memories while leaving good ones intact — something that could one day be used ...
The Face That Feeds You
10 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Would your dog eat you if you died? Such in the question posed by The National Geographic in a new article. Anthony, as a dog owner himself, has to ...
Tick Talk
07 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A rare allergy that causes people to have a terrible reaction to eating red meat is being spread in North America by ticks. Anthony and his vegan cab...
The Hunter Games
05 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Some people say that the advent of farming gave people more leisure time to build up civilization, but hunter-gatherers actually have far more leisure...
Rank the Hurting Top
03 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The National Health Service has compiled a list of the 20 most painful conditions known to humans. Anthony and Jeff take a gander at the list to see ...
Left Tout
30 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The belief that there is a link between talent and left-handedness has a long history. Since Jeff and Anthony are both left handed, they might not be...
Post Natal
28 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
One of the most significant innovations of the early 20th century might be the Post Office’s decision to start shipping large parcels and packages t...
Not Dimension
26 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Neuroscientists have used a classic branch of maths in a totally new way to peer into the structure of our brains. What they've discovered is that the...
Far Fall, eh?
23 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
How far can you fall and still survive? Such is the question posed by a new article in Mental Floss. Jeff and Anthony discuss the answer... which mi...
Lucy in the Sky with Dolphins
21 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Back in the 1960s, neuroscientist John C. Lilly ran a NASA-funded research unit where humans attempted to communicate with dolphins. Somewhere along ...
Climb of the Sensory
19 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Alex Honnold climbed the mighty El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without any safety gear in about four hours using only his hands and feet. The 31...
Circuitry Good Explanation
16 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
With each passing breakthrough in artificial intelligence, we’re asking our machines to make increasingly complex and weighty decisions. Trouble is,...
No Fear Gear (w/ Anita Sarkeesian)
14 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Virtual reality systems can create out-of-body experiences — and these experiences may be able to reduce the fear of death, according to a recently ...
Extra Hasty Crispr
12 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
For the past few years, a new scientific tool known as CRISPR-Cas9 has been hailed as the future of medicine. But a new study, published in Nature Me...
Blood Money
09 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A start-up called Ambrosia is charging $8,000 for blood transfusions from young people. About 100 people have signed up to receive an infusion, found...
Go Pharm Go Fowl
07 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Authorities in Kuwait had been tracking a homing pigeon that was coming from Iraq. According to local newspaper Al-Rai, there were 178 ecstasy pills w...
New Wrongs Make a Right
05 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
When humans work together with not-very-smart robots, they’re better at solving problems than when they work only with other people, new research sa...
Bubble Hobble
02 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have healed severe bone fractures in pigs by blasting tiny bubbles with ultrasound in the animals’ bones. The technique encourages the pi...
Bugged Bunny
31 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Virtual rabbits across Second Life will fall asleep and never wake up, now that the their digital food supply has been shut down by a legal battle. Th...
Irrational Rational Rationale
29 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers at Tilburg University in the Netherlands surveyed both scientists and highly educated nonscientists and asked them to rate the two categor...
Gut and Run
26 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Fear, for the most part, is controlled by the brain’s amygdalae, but a team of researchers at University College Cork have discovered that the gut ...
Race Boast Coast to Coast
24 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
On October 30, 1919, Tony Pizzo arrived in New York City chained to his bicycle. He had pedaled 3,000 miles in five-and-a-half months, attached to his...
Preserved and Perfect
22 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Alberta, Canada recently unveiled what is perhaps the best-preserved dinosaur specimen ever unearthed. Th...
America Smirks
19 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
When residents of other countries are asked “What’s a dead giveaway that someone is American?” one trait comes up over and over again: big, toot...
Tat the Scales
18 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A huge fish covered in ‘tattoos’ has been caught in the Philippines. Where you would expect plain scales, the fish has intricate blue designs of ...
Modern Stone Age Calamity
15 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
An exhaustive comparison of Neandertals’ injuries to those of people today finds that water tubing and mishaps involving tables, result in top-heavy...
Info Dump
12 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
All mammals poop in 12 seconds and there’s an equation for the ‘duration of diarrheal defecation'. All this and more revealed in a new paper from...
Worry Some
10 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A new paper by Kate Sweeny, psychology professor at the University of California, Riverside, argues there's an upside to worrying. Anthony, a profess...
Mouseplant
08 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers have discovered that mole rats can survive for 18 minutes without oxygen. What is even more astonishing is how they manage it. The mole ra...
Worm Your Way Out
05 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientist Federica Bertocchini of the Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology of Cantabria in Spain discovered a worm that eats plastic bags and le...
Womb with a View
03 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
For a study published in the journal Nature Communications, researchers from Philadelphia suspended premature lambs, a close animal model for human fe...
On Mass
01 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers in the US say they've created a fluid with negative mass in the lab. What it means is that, unlike pretty much every other known physical ...
Fighter Starter
28 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
We don't always have a good sense of why we fight. What pushes us to the point of conflict, when we know it will make us unhappy? And why does it leav...
Hey R U AR?
26 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
When we think of augmented reality face filters, we tend to think of goofy novelties like Halloween masks, face swapping, or inadvertent racist carica...
Dino MIght Chicken
24 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A chicken embryo with a dinosaur-like snout instead of a beak has been developed by scientists. Is this a good thing or a terrifying thing? Jeff and...
Ceph Modifying Code
21 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Squids, cuttlefish and octopuses do not follow the normal rules of genetic information, according to research published in the journal Cell. Their RNA...
Owe de Toilette
19 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Fed up with the theft of toilet paper from public bathrooms, tourist authorities in China's capital have begun using facial recognition technology to ...
Starscraper
17 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Architecture firm Clouds Architecture Office has proposed a building that, instead of being supported by the ground and reaching up into the sky, woul...
Tyrannosaurus Sex
14 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Tyrannosaurus Rex had a snout as sensitive to touch as human fingertips, say scientists. Experts believe that males and females rubbed their sensiti...
Owner and Operator
12 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Leonid Rogozov was a Soviet general practitioner who took part in the sixth Soviet Antarctic Expedition in 1960–1961. He was the only doctor station...
Never, Never Land
10 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have long suspected that the common swift remains airborne for extraordinary amounts of time during its annual migration. Now, a team of s...
No-Show
07 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
The contestants of a British reality show that marooned them in the wilderness for a year as a social experiment have returned to civilization — onl...
A Snack-na Phobia
05 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists Martin Nyffeler and Klaus Birkhofer published their estimate of the amount of spiders in the world, and the amount of biomass they would co...
Creative Comeons
03 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Creativity is highly prized in Western society—much touted by cultures that claim to value individualism and the entrepreneurial spirit. But scratch...
Your Heart Will Grow On
31 Mar 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists have found a way to use spinach to build working human heart muscle, potentially solving a long-standing problem in efforts to repair damag...