SoT 330: A Very Large Horn
Channel: Science on Top
Date: 2019-04-23

SoT 330: A Very Large Horn
https://scienceontop.com/330

An extraordinary must-read article in the New Yorker has an in-depth look at the few hours after a meteor hit the Yucatán Peninsula and probably wiped out the non-avian dinosaurs. It also follows an amazing discovery that could answer many questions about the appearance of dinosaurs and whether or not they were already dying out.
A study led by a team at the Duke University Clinical Research Institute has found that treatment recommendations that US doctors use when managing heart patients - less than 10 per cent of those recommendations are based on the best available evidence.
As computer graphics and robotics get more and more realistic, there's a point where an avatar or android is so close to real but not quite, and it's unsettling. That's the Uncanny Valley. But we don't often talk about it's auditory counterpart, and how there's an Uncanny Valley for artificial voices as well.
"Pumpkin toadlets" are tiny poisonous frogs in Brazil's Atlantic Forest. They're only about 15mm long, and their skeletons are fluorescent under a UV lamp!

This podcast relies on the generosity of our listeners. To become a supporter, go to https://scienceontop.com/donate

This episode contains traces of Q, a 'genderless' artificial voice.

https://scienceontop.com/330

Chapters:
00:01:06 The Day the Dinosaurs Died https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/04/08/the-day-the-dinosaurs-died
00:19:17 90% Of Heart Guidelines Aren’t Based On Best Evidence https://www.futurity.org/heart-disease-treatment-guidelines-2008992/
00:34:18 The Uncanny Valley Nobody's Talking About: Eerie Robot Voices https://www.wired.com/story/uncanny-valley-robot-voices
00:47:45 Wee Orange 'Pumpkin' Frogs Have Bones That Glow Through Their Skin https://www.livescience.com/65107-tiny-fluorescent-toadlets.html