The Skeptics Guide #1071 - Jan 17 2026

What's the Word: Culture; News Items: Increasing Life Expectancy, AI 2027, Deep Reading, Spray on Wound Treatment, Monkeys and AI; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: Global Warming Falsifiable; Science or Fiction

News Items: Donut Lab's Solid State Battery, Artemis Update, EPA Change, Life on Planets Around Red Dwarfs, Malaysia Air Search Resumes; Special Report: RFK on Vaccines and the Food Pyramid; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: Birding and Memory; Science or Fiction

Live From Not-A-Con 2025, with guests George Hrab, Andrea Jones-Rooy, Brian Wecht, and Adam Russell; What Are You Most Proud Of; What Is Your Quirky Pet Peeve; If You Could Change One Thing; Here Me Out; Science or Fiction

Psychic Predictions for 2025 and Rogue Predictions; News Items: Psychology Intervention for ADHD, Biological vs Artificial Consciousness, Fentanyl Vaccine, Possibility of Orbital Disaster; Who's That Noisy; Science or Fiction

2025 Year End Review, with special guest Ian 🍉; Best of SGU; Best Science of 2025; Skeptical Hero and Jackass of the Year; In Memoriam; Science or Fiction

News Items: Animals Adapting to Humans, Pig Organ Transplants, Japan Plans to Beam Energy from Space, Ant Yogurt, First Evidence of Fire Making; Your Questions and E-mails: Mercury in Fish, Compounding Pharmacies; From TikTok: Inventor of the Diesel Engine; Science or Fiction

News Items: Young Cancer, Adapting to Modern Life, Safety of mRNA Vaccines, Cosmic Rays Ground Aircraft, Reverse Aging Claim; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: EU Gene Editing; Who Said That; Science or Fiction

News Items: Cognitive Legos, China's Planting Lots of Trees, Misinformation and Birth Control, Dark Matter Detection, Asteroid Bennu Ingredients for Life; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: Climate Denial, Calcium Cardiac Scans; Science or Fiction

Quickie with Bob: Helion Fusion Update; News Items: CRISPR Wheat Sources Nitrogen, LLMs and Collective Intelligence, Origins of Theia, Holiday Scams, Hypervelocity White Dwarves; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: Cellulose Correction; Science or Fiction

Dumbest Thing of the Week: Noah's Ark; News Items: Using AI to Design Viruses, Creatine for Cognitive Function, Earth Digital Twin, Quiet Supersonic Jet, Tet For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; Who's That Noisy; Your Questions and E-mails: Wolf Tool Use; Science or Fiction