1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:06,120 Speaker 1: I guess what podcast listeners, So Will isn't here today, 2 00:00:06,160 --> 00:00:08,000 Speaker 1: but I did want to tell you a quick story. 3 00:00:08,280 --> 00:00:11,520 Speaker 1: So years ago, we were brainstorming a game show for 4 00:00:11,600 --> 00:00:13,680 Speaker 1: this big production company who wanted to work with us, 5 00:00:13,840 --> 00:00:17,120 Speaker 1: and we came up with this concept called Smartest Person 6 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:19,759 Speaker 1: in the World. Actually, there's some debate about the title 7 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:21,439 Speaker 1: because one person in the group thought it should be 8 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:24,840 Speaker 1: called Smartest Human Being in the World, because he insisted 9 00:00:24,880 --> 00:00:27,720 Speaker 1: human beings were a funnier title. But it was this 10 00:00:27,880 --> 00:00:30,520 Speaker 1: ridiculous quiz show and we were trying to figure out 11 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:32,280 Speaker 1: what the big challenge would be and we were stumped, 12 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:34,960 Speaker 1: and finally we thought, what if you took a smart person, 13 00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:38,680 Speaker 1: gave them some materials like a lab or big textbook 14 00:00:38,720 --> 00:00:41,120 Speaker 1: on optometry, and told them, why don't you just make 15 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:43,720 Speaker 1: a pair of glasses? Like could the smartest person in 16 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:46,159 Speaker 1: the world or smartest human being in the world just 17 00:00:46,240 --> 00:00:49,000 Speaker 1: forged together some glasses in thirty minutes on this weird 18 00:00:49,080 --> 00:00:51,880 Speaker 1: reality show. And now that I say it out loud, 19 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:54,120 Speaker 1: it sounds like a terrible idea, or like a more 20 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:57,240 Speaker 1: ridiculous version of nailed It. But thinking about that show 21 00:00:57,280 --> 00:00:59,680 Speaker 1: idea made us wonder, how hard is it to create 22 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:02,920 Speaker 1: a civilization from scratch, Like, if we had enough time, 23 00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 1: could we build a bicycle or figure out how to 24 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:08,440 Speaker 1: spin silk or make those pair of glasses we were 25 00:01:08,440 --> 00:01:11,399 Speaker 1: talking about? And is there a funny instructional book that 26 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:13,640 Speaker 1: tells you how to do all of this? It turns 27 00:01:13,640 --> 00:01:37,680 Speaker 1: out there is. Let's dig in. Welcome to Part Time Genius. 28 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:40,679 Speaker 1: I'm together, Tristan's in the booth wearing his I Miss 29 00:01:40,720 --> 00:01:43,919 Speaker 1: Will t shirt, and Will is off officiating a wedding 30 00:01:43,959 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: for a college friend of ours. Happy wedding day, Joyce. 31 00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:51,120 Speaker 1: But as a side note, if you want Will to 32 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:53,559 Speaker 1: officiate your wedding and Tristan to DJ the after party, 33 00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:55,279 Speaker 1: you can always hit us up at Part Time Genius 34 00:01:55,280 --> 00:01:58,120 Speaker 1: at how stuff Works dot com. Tristan, please don't edit 35 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:01,160 Speaker 1: that part out. So today we've got a very special 36 00:02:01,160 --> 00:02:03,560 Speaker 1: author on the show. He's the brains behind Dinosaur Comics. 37 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:06,720 Speaker 1: He's one awards for his comic book writing, including Penning 38 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:10,040 Speaker 1: Adventure Time, the New jug Head. But he's here to 39 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:12,320 Speaker 1: talk to us about his new book, How to Invent Everything. 40 00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:15,400 Speaker 1: Welcome to the program, Ryan North, Thank you for having 41 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:18,880 Speaker 1: me so I really loved How to Invent Everything. It's 42 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:23,360 Speaker 1: this ridiculous and hilarious guide to rebuilding a civilization from scratch. 43 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:26,800 Speaker 1: But the concept is way more interesting than that, and 44 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:29,280 Speaker 1: I was wondering if you'd mind telling our listeners a 45 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:32,720 Speaker 1: little bit about it. Yeah, sure, so. Um, the premise 46 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:35,880 Speaker 1: of the book, it's sort of a nonfiction core wrapped 47 00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:38,400 Speaker 1: in a fictional candy coding. The premise of the book 48 00:02:38,440 --> 00:02:41,359 Speaker 1: is that this is a it's a found document. It's 49 00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:43,800 Speaker 1: a repair guide for a time machine. If you go 50 00:02:43,880 --> 00:02:45,640 Speaker 1: back in time and your time machine breaks down, this 51 00:02:45,720 --> 00:02:48,160 Speaker 1: is how you fix it. But after the first couple 52 00:02:48,160 --> 00:02:50,360 Speaker 1: of pages of the book admits that, like, look, time 53 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:52,840 Speaker 1: machines are the most complicated machines humans have ever built. 54 00:02:53,360 --> 00:02:55,240 Speaker 1: There's no use servical parts, and so you're not gonna 55 00:02:55,280 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 1: fix it in the year two. You're trapped where you are, 56 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:00,480 Speaker 1: but we're not gonna leave you stranded. Here's how you 57 00:03:00,520 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 1: bring the future back to you by reinventing all the 58 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: basically the low hanging fruit of citialization. Everything you miss 59 00:03:06,440 --> 00:03:09,320 Speaker 1: is in this book from from first principles. And we 60 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:11,400 Speaker 1: don't assume like what time period you're in or what 61 00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:13,919 Speaker 1: tools you have. It's all like from basics here's how 62 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:16,919 Speaker 1: it works. So for the stranded time traveler it should 63 00:03:16,919 --> 00:03:20,000 Speaker 1: be legitimately useful in those circumstances, but for the non stranded, 64 00:03:20,880 --> 00:03:22,880 Speaker 1: for us who are just going through time at one 65 00:03:22,960 --> 00:03:25,920 Speaker 1: second per second and only ever forward. It's also like 66 00:03:25,919 --> 00:03:28,480 Speaker 1: an interesting book that makes you feel like a more 67 00:03:28,520 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: competent person in the world. That I feel a lot 68 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:34,679 Speaker 1: better having written it. I'd feel a lot more prepared 69 00:03:34,720 --> 00:03:37,480 Speaker 1: to do lots of things, among which is be stranded 70 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:39,840 Speaker 1: in the past. Yeah, so I guess I was curious 71 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:41,600 Speaker 1: about that, Like how much were you interested in these 72 00:03:41,600 --> 00:03:44,280 Speaker 1: things before you wrote this book? Like what was the 73 00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: motivation for writing this? Yeah? Like age six to sixteen. 74 00:03:48,800 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: Basically this is all I thought about, cause I saw 75 00:03:50,320 --> 00:03:52,280 Speaker 1: Back to the future and Martin mcflig goes back in time, 76 00:03:52,920 --> 00:03:54,800 Speaker 1: and like, that's amazing. What would I do if I 77 00:03:54,840 --> 00:03:57,000 Speaker 1: was trapped in time and I kept coming back to 78 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,440 Speaker 1: this idea that you know, I'd be saying, oh, it's great. 79 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:02,400 Speaker 1: In the future have computers, and people would say, great, 80 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 1: how do they work? Can I say, I don't know, 81 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:09,480 Speaker 1: but you're gonna love them. I have no proof. And 82 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:11,520 Speaker 1: I wanted to be that person to be like, oh, 83 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:13,800 Speaker 1: how does it mean to work? No problem. And by 84 00:04:13,840 --> 00:04:16,280 Speaker 1: the way, here's an internal combustion engine, and here's like 85 00:04:16,360 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: everything else you need. So it was something that I 86 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:22,120 Speaker 1: sort of fantasized about, and I kept waiting for um 87 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:25,600 Speaker 1: this book to be written, and finally I wrote up myself, 88 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 1: which I think is the origin story of a lot 89 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: of books. We all write the books we'd like to read. Yeah, definitely, 90 00:04:29,800 --> 00:04:31,680 Speaker 1: I mean you know that that was always our goal 91 00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:34,040 Speaker 1: at Metal Fhiss two, was trying to make people interested 92 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:36,120 Speaker 1: in something they didn't think they could be interested in. 93 00:04:36,279 --> 00:04:38,840 Speaker 1: You know, we used to have these conversations in our 94 00:04:38,880 --> 00:04:40,960 Speaker 1: dorm rooms. Will and I actually about like if we 95 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:43,440 Speaker 1: went back in time, what we could actually do, like 96 00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:46,160 Speaker 1: how confident would be and really, other than telling people 97 00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:48,400 Speaker 1: to like wash their hands a lot, like, we really 98 00:04:48,440 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: didn't feel like we had much advice of them. But 99 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:54,760 Speaker 1: you know, I was there, you need soap, like but 100 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 1: that that's the thing, like you write about how to 101 00:04:56,560 --> 00:04:59,560 Speaker 1: make soap, like why horses can only use certain type 102 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:02,159 Speaker 1: of caller. It was like you have this argument between 103 00:05:02,160 --> 00:05:05,840 Speaker 1: like a water wheel enthusiasts and windmill enthusiasts, and like, honestly, 104 00:05:05,839 --> 00:05:08,520 Speaker 1: I had never thought i'd have an opinion on on 105 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:11,919 Speaker 1: why windmills are better, but it really is terrific, Thank you. 106 00:05:12,000 --> 00:05:14,520 Speaker 1: I mean, it's it's the way it normally works. As 107 00:05:14,520 --> 00:05:16,200 Speaker 1: you may know, when writing a nonfiction book, He's right 108 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:17,680 Speaker 1: kind of a proposal. We say, here's the book I 109 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:19,640 Speaker 1: want to write, and here's a sample chapter, and here's 110 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:22,200 Speaker 1: the table of contents, and here's what I want to do, 111 00:05:22,560 --> 00:05:24,080 Speaker 1: and you try to get people than that. But for 112 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:26,760 Speaker 1: this book, I wasn't at all confident that what I 113 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:30,920 Speaker 1: was trying to do was possible collapsalization into four hundreds 114 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:33,040 Speaker 1: and odd pages, and I wasn't sure that would work, 115 00:05:33,040 --> 00:05:34,240 Speaker 1: and I wasn't sure if I could do it, if 116 00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:36,120 Speaker 1: it would be useful like I would. I was worried 117 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:38,480 Speaker 1: about contecting it so much. It would be at level 118 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:40,320 Speaker 1: of you know, you need food to live, find some 119 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:43,359 Speaker 1: food and need it, and you wouldn't learn anything. So 120 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,960 Speaker 1: I actually wrote a fifty words for the proposal. I 121 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:49,960 Speaker 1: cut down into a smaller amount um and then sort 122 00:05:49,960 --> 00:05:51,680 Speaker 1: of point from there. But I wasn't at all confident 123 00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:53,320 Speaker 1: that this book woul actually come together, because it was 124 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:56,040 Speaker 1: just it seemed like, this is the craziest thing I've 125 00:05:56,040 --> 00:05:58,600 Speaker 1: ever tried to do it is I mean I and 126 00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:00,719 Speaker 1: the fact that like I walk away no ing, what's 127 00:06:00,720 --> 00:06:03,919 Speaker 1: a better like way to harness the horse is amazing 128 00:06:04,000 --> 00:06:06,320 Speaker 1: and it's it's told in like diagrams and just a 129 00:06:06,320 --> 00:06:09,320 Speaker 1: few sentences, you know, and it is it is stunning. 130 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:11,479 Speaker 1: I do want to talk about some of the specifics 131 00:06:11,480 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: if you're up for it. You know, fairly early in 132 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:15,720 Speaker 1: the book you talk about written language and the importance 133 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:18,680 Speaker 1: of creating a language, and you discuss pictograms, which I 134 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:21,839 Speaker 1: hadn't really thought about, like those don't really work as 135 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:24,880 Speaker 1: a language when read, you know, and and and could 136 00:06:24,880 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: you explain that a little bit because I really found 137 00:06:26,440 --> 00:06:28,600 Speaker 1: that fascinating. Yeah, that's what came out. I was at 138 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,200 Speaker 1: the XO EXO conference last weekend and we're talking about 139 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:33,919 Speaker 1: emojis a lot there, and it's sort of a similar 140 00:06:33,920 --> 00:06:37,320 Speaker 1: idea where people you can say, oh, emojis are language, 141 00:06:37,320 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 1: and I went to school for linguistics from the guy 142 00:06:39,760 --> 00:06:44,320 Speaker 1: being like, I'm actually there's different seeing there's a difference 143 00:06:44,360 --> 00:06:47,280 Speaker 1: between communication and language, right, So, like you can communicate 144 00:06:47,320 --> 00:06:49,440 Speaker 1: with the dog and you know what your dogs feelings 145 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:52,280 Speaker 1: are communicating with you, and you're exchanging feelings if not 146 00:06:52,680 --> 00:06:57,200 Speaker 1: legitimate commands, right, And there's difference. So you can really 147 00:06:57,279 --> 00:06:59,839 Speaker 1: communicate with animals but you can't really have a language 148 00:06:59,839 --> 00:07:02,120 Speaker 1: with them in the same way we have language right now. 149 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:04,600 Speaker 1: And one of the main differences between pictograms and words 150 00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:07,960 Speaker 1: is that words have a specific meaning. So I think 151 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:09,640 Speaker 1: in the Book of example of a picture of a 152 00:07:09,680 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 1: woman tossing your hair in the emoji style and a 153 00:07:12,480 --> 00:07:17,000 Speaker 1: peach and sunglasses. I think, and if you know the 154 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:19,480 Speaker 1: story those emodia you're trying to tell, you can reconstruct 155 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:22,520 Speaker 1: it from those pictograms. And a cool woman ate a peach. 156 00:07:22,640 --> 00:07:24,840 Speaker 1: That's what this is trying to say. But if you 157 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:27,720 Speaker 1: don't know, the story could also be like, oh, cool 158 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:31,040 Speaker 1: peach was around a woman, or a woman got transformed 159 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:33,000 Speaker 1: into a cool peach by aliens, And there's all this 160 00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:35,679 Speaker 1: stuff that you are reading into it. Because it doesn't 161 00:07:35,680 --> 00:07:37,840 Speaker 1: have one specific meaning, it's more like a reminder than 162 00:07:37,840 --> 00:07:41,040 Speaker 1: an actual narrative. With words, the whole point of language 163 00:07:41,040 --> 00:07:43,760 Speaker 1: is to communicate clearly, and so words tending. You can 164 00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:45,960 Speaker 1: still have miscommunications, but we try to minimize those in 165 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:48,640 Speaker 1: language that we can communicate quickly and acturally and not 166 00:07:49,000 --> 00:07:51,080 Speaker 1: you know, be passing pictures back and forth. Yeah, I 167 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 1: mean I thought you have this like long sentence there 168 00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:57,280 Speaker 1: about like I forget what it was, exactly like aliens 169 00:07:57,320 --> 00:07:59,160 Speaker 1: being in the glasses or something, you know, in the 170 00:07:59,160 --> 00:08:01,640 Speaker 1: shadow at the glasses of never in reflection, and and 171 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:04,680 Speaker 1: it was just so perfectly illustrative of the fact that 172 00:08:04,720 --> 00:08:07,320 Speaker 1: these aren't you know, one to one is pretty amazing. 173 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:09,480 Speaker 1: And and also the fact that I didn't realize this, 174 00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:12,680 Speaker 1: but Eastern Island had a script that's never been deciphered, Like, 175 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:15,560 Speaker 1: oh god, yeah, that's that's I mean, I'm trying to 176 00:08:15,560 --> 00:08:17,440 Speaker 1: communicate in the book. It's terrifying, Aby, the whole thing 177 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:23,160 Speaker 1: terrifying because um, it's this written script and basically Europeans 178 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:28,400 Speaker 1: show up and wreck everything in an unprecedented event. It 179 00:08:28,400 --> 00:08:32,319 Speaker 1: will never happen again, and so they bring disease, and 180 00:08:32,360 --> 00:08:34,760 Speaker 1: they bring like slavery raids and all this horrible stuff. 181 00:08:34,960 --> 00:08:37,880 Speaker 1: When they first show up, it's understood that this is writing, 182 00:08:37,920 --> 00:08:40,400 Speaker 1: but only the elites can understand it. And then when 183 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:42,320 Speaker 1: they come back onto years later in the the island 184 00:08:42,360 --> 00:08:44,480 Speaker 1: is in a horrible condition. There's only a few people left, 185 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:48,200 Speaker 1: and that knowledge of the script is lost, and so 186 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:52,439 Speaker 1: you know what had been words is now just squiggles 187 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:55,360 Speaker 1: that nobody understands, and it it really drove home the 188 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:57,679 Speaker 1: idea to me that, like, you know, language is a technology, 189 00:08:57,679 --> 00:08:59,839 Speaker 1: it's something we invented and we don't get it for 190 00:09:00,320 --> 00:09:03,280 Speaker 1: and writing downwards something we had to think of and 191 00:09:03,320 --> 00:09:05,880 Speaker 1: then do, and just like any technology, we can lose it. 192 00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:08,440 Speaker 1: An the idea of like losing the written word, it 193 00:09:08,480 --> 00:09:11,600 Speaker 1: feels like you're just cutting the heart out of any civilization, 194 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:14,280 Speaker 1: Like it's it's such a devastating blow that would be 195 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:16,560 Speaker 1: so hard to recover from. So I thought it was 196 00:09:16,800 --> 00:09:20,240 Speaker 1: a great example of just like things are more precious 197 00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:23,000 Speaker 1: than we tend to think they are, and pullly, as 198 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,199 Speaker 1: you bick of this, as writing can can still be forgotten. 199 00:09:25,280 --> 00:09:27,800 Speaker 1: Speaking of that, like you do this great section on farming. 200 00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:29,680 Speaker 1: I mean you go through everything from like why you 201 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:32,160 Speaker 1: leave a field, follow for a while, and like all 202 00:09:32,160 --> 00:09:34,840 Speaker 1: sorts of things. But it's a lot of work. Yeah, 203 00:09:34,880 --> 00:09:36,720 Speaker 1: I mean, but it's a small chapter. That's what's amazing 204 00:09:36,720 --> 00:09:39,320 Speaker 1: about it. But you know, you talk about ancient corn 205 00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:43,360 Speaker 1: and peaches and watermelon being completely different, and would you 206 00:09:43,360 --> 00:09:45,080 Speaker 1: tell us a little bit about what those were like 207 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:47,520 Speaker 1: and how they tasted. So we have this idea of 208 00:09:47,520 --> 00:09:50,079 Speaker 1: selective breeding where we basically the right thing about like 209 00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:51,840 Speaker 1: to breeding is this is one of the technologies you 210 00:09:51,920 --> 00:09:55,000 Speaker 1: kind of get without trying because it's just human nature. 211 00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:57,280 Speaker 1: If you have a plant that has you know, larger fruit, 212 00:09:57,640 --> 00:09:59,760 Speaker 1: you plant those seeds next year because it's a better 213 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:01,920 Speaker 1: plant to be planting. And so you tend to add 214 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:05,320 Speaker 1: this evolutionary pressure to get the kind of plants you want. 215 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:08,920 Speaker 1: But um, the results of that are things like peaches 216 00:10:08,920 --> 00:10:11,160 Speaker 1: where these we have these giants sucking with peaches in 217 00:10:11,200 --> 00:10:13,880 Speaker 1: the past, where these like hard sour things no one 218 00:10:13,960 --> 00:10:17,960 Speaker 1: really want to eat, but they're nothing. Corn is it 219 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:22,040 Speaker 1: comes from this ancient grain that's just like basically grass. 220 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:25,280 Speaker 1: And the crazy thing about corn is we haven't been 221 00:10:25,320 --> 00:10:30,040 Speaker 1: able to figure out exactly how you get corn out 222 00:10:30,080 --> 00:10:32,560 Speaker 1: of out of this ancient ancestor. It feels like it 223 00:10:32,640 --> 00:10:34,760 Speaker 1: must have been this one in a million, either random 224 00:10:34,800 --> 00:10:39,320 Speaker 1: cross breeding or mutation. But something changed to produce the 225 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:41,640 Speaker 1: larger heads of corn with these giant kernels. We can 226 00:10:41,640 --> 00:10:46,600 Speaker 1: eat that. Um, it's just we don't know how to 227 00:10:46,600 --> 00:10:49,240 Speaker 1: do it yet. Yeah, I mean, it's not like in 228 00:10:49,240 --> 00:10:51,800 Speaker 1: in your book like you'd only get something like four 229 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:55,160 Speaker 1: or five kernels of edible corn off a cob, which 230 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:58,040 Speaker 1: is just crazy to think about. But I mean, if 231 00:10:58,040 --> 00:10:59,400 Speaker 1: that's if that's the state of the art, that's what 232 00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:01,600 Speaker 1: you go with. You don't you don't imagine our modern corn. 233 00:11:01,720 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: It's ridiculously convenient packaging. We're just throwing the barbecue and 234 00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:06,920 Speaker 1: then peel it off and you've got this de wicious 235 00:11:06,920 --> 00:11:09,960 Speaker 1: corn ready to go, Like it's it's it's the thing 236 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:12,160 Speaker 1: where you know, you think of the natural world as 237 00:11:12,200 --> 00:11:16,160 Speaker 1: being permanent and unchanging, when we're surrounded by evidence of 238 00:11:16,679 --> 00:11:19,280 Speaker 1: human influence on this natural world, like we've been changing 239 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:22,200 Speaker 1: it since we've been humane to make it easier first. 240 00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:26,640 Speaker 1: So I was like, it is remarkable. Um So another 241 00:11:26,679 --> 00:11:29,160 Speaker 1: thing that I hadn't really thought about. You feel like 242 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:31,080 Speaker 1: this whole book is things I hadn't thought about. But 243 00:11:34,400 --> 00:11:37,960 Speaker 1: one of the things I hadn't thought about was, um 244 00:11:38,040 --> 00:11:41,319 Speaker 1: that that you have to test foods for edibility, right, 245 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:43,120 Speaker 1: like if if you're coming from the future and you 246 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:45,400 Speaker 1: don't know what you're looking at, that you need water 247 00:11:45,520 --> 00:11:47,520 Speaker 1: and salt water on hand, Like could you talk to 248 00:11:47,600 --> 00:11:49,640 Speaker 1: us through the process and why it might take something 249 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:53,160 Speaker 1: like seventeen hours to determine whether food is edible or not. Yeah, 250 00:11:53,240 --> 00:11:56,160 Speaker 1: it's it's called the universal edibility test. And if you're 251 00:11:56,160 --> 00:11:58,400 Speaker 1: not trapped in the past, it's also useful. If you're, say, 252 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:01,560 Speaker 1: trapped in the woods, no survivable situation, you know what 253 00:12:01,600 --> 00:12:04,320 Speaker 1: to eat. And so basically you're you're taking a tiny 254 00:12:04,360 --> 00:12:07,000 Speaker 1: bit of this candidate food and you just touch it 255 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:09,240 Speaker 1: to your skin and then wait fifteen minutes or something 256 00:12:09,280 --> 00:12:12,160 Speaker 1: horrible to happen, for your skin to erupt or bog, 257 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:13,960 Speaker 1: your crawl out of it, or something that's not gonna happen. 258 00:12:13,960 --> 00:12:16,920 Speaker 1: But then you're looking for a reaction, and then if 259 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:18,840 Speaker 1: that works, you press it to your lips, then the 260 00:12:18,880 --> 00:12:20,640 Speaker 1: inside of your lips, and then your gum, and then 261 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:22,160 Speaker 1: you chwold and spit it out. Then you chew it 262 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:23,560 Speaker 1: and hold in your mouth, and then you chew it 263 00:12:23,559 --> 00:12:25,520 Speaker 1: and s While I'm taking fifteen minutes between each of 264 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:28,280 Speaker 1: these steps, it takes I think it is it's sixteen hours. 265 00:12:28,320 --> 00:12:30,400 Speaker 1: Remember I forget how Yeah, I want to say it 266 00:12:30,400 --> 00:12:33,640 Speaker 1: was seventeen hours to do this. Yeah, but at the 267 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:36,160 Speaker 1: end of this, you know it's probably safe to eat. 268 00:12:36,840 --> 00:12:42,000 Speaker 1: But that is pretty remarkable. It was It was fun 269 00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:44,199 Speaker 1: um research in the book because I was reading a 270 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:46,600 Speaker 1: lot of survival books for the present right, because they're 271 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:49,880 Speaker 1: not unrelated scenarios. And when thay I discovered is that 272 00:12:49,920 --> 00:12:52,760 Speaker 1: there are some survival books out there they're just completely bonkers. 273 00:12:53,960 --> 00:12:55,600 Speaker 1: I was talking about food spoiling and say, you know, 274 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:58,560 Speaker 1: when the apocalypse happens, not if, but when you want 275 00:12:58,559 --> 00:13:01,440 Speaker 1: to be eating food that's in tin cans and stuff 276 00:13:01,800 --> 00:13:03,840 Speaker 1: or in fridges. And by the way, don't worry about 277 00:13:03,880 --> 00:13:06,640 Speaker 1: food going bad. That's a that's a myth. Food doesn't 278 00:13:06,640 --> 00:13:09,040 Speaker 1: go bad. You can still eat it just doesn't taste good, 279 00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:10,480 Speaker 1: but it still has nutrition in it. And I'm like, 280 00:13:10,480 --> 00:13:13,839 Speaker 1: I don't that's not That was like a stick to 281 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:19,840 Speaker 1: the second edition Excellent Fishing, and that's fish can go bad. Yeah, 282 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:22,600 Speaker 1: I'm pretty sure. You know. There was a time when 283 00:13:22,720 --> 00:13:25,360 Speaker 1: we used to look for funny prizes for UM a 284 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:27,600 Speaker 1: trivia show. We used to go around doing and and 285 00:13:27,720 --> 00:13:31,160 Speaker 1: I found a survivalist site that produced um peanut butter 286 00:13:31,200 --> 00:13:33,640 Speaker 1: and jelly in a can. And it was just meant 287 00:13:33,679 --> 00:13:35,840 Speaker 1: to be on shelves waiting for you, so that in 288 00:13:35,880 --> 00:13:38,480 Speaker 1: the future you could pull out like a fresh peanut 289 00:13:38,520 --> 00:13:41,599 Speaker 1: butter and jelly sandwich, which is just amazing to me. 290 00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:44,600 Speaker 1: But the word fresh is a very generous used the 291 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:49,360 Speaker 1: word fresh. I've never made a B and J sandwich. 292 00:13:49,360 --> 00:13:51,120 Speaker 1: So you know what this will. I'll let this cure 293 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:52,600 Speaker 1: for a couple of weeks before I eat, and then 294 00:13:52,640 --> 00:13:57,440 Speaker 1: it's going to beat the way. So um. You know. 295 00:13:57,640 --> 00:14:00,319 Speaker 1: You also have a great section on plants that are 296 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:03,400 Speaker 1: useful and and uh, and there's a whole list of them, 297 00:14:03,440 --> 00:14:08,080 Speaker 1: from apples to white mulberries where silkworms can grow, to rubber, 298 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:11,560 Speaker 1: to sugarcane. But you also include tobacco on this list, 299 00:14:11,559 --> 00:14:13,680 Speaker 1: and I was curious why you chose to do that. 300 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:16,560 Speaker 1: Was that just for humor or for historical purposes or 301 00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:18,880 Speaker 1: what was it? I mean, it's not a very glowing 302 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:22,400 Speaker 1: review of tobacco. You should do is smoke this stuff. 303 00:14:22,640 --> 00:14:24,880 Speaker 1: But it's one of the plants that has had this 304 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,600 Speaker 1: huge impact on human history, right, Like, it turns out 305 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:31,760 Speaker 1: that when humans find tobacco, they eventually try smoking it, 306 00:14:32,280 --> 00:14:35,320 Speaker 1: and so knowing not to do that can save your 307 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,160 Speaker 1: civil your potential future civilization, like millions and millions in 308 00:14:38,920 --> 00:14:42,360 Speaker 1: medical costs and lives cut down too soon. So I 309 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:44,920 Speaker 1: felt like that was more of a be careful with 310 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:48,160 Speaker 1: this one than by the way. Yeah. Actually, you know, 311 00:14:48,720 --> 00:14:51,520 Speaker 1: for the listeners, I I will note that I'll read 312 00:14:51,560 --> 00:14:53,840 Speaker 1: the quote you've put in the notes section under tobacco 313 00:14:54,360 --> 00:14:57,600 Speaker 1: avoid introducing tobacco to your civilization. You will save billions 314 00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 1: of dollars, millions of lives and prevent the invention of vaping, 315 00:15:00,760 --> 00:15:04,920 Speaker 1: which I found really funny. Oh man, I just laughed 316 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:08,520 Speaker 1: at my own joke. How embarrassing. But books you write, 317 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:10,000 Speaker 1: it takes a year or two and then you forget 318 00:15:10,040 --> 00:15:11,760 Speaker 1: the jokes you put in until you have them played 319 00:15:11,760 --> 00:15:14,760 Speaker 1: back to. That's pretty good past me. So do you 320 00:15:14,760 --> 00:15:16,880 Speaker 1: have any plans that you are particularly partial to on 321 00:15:16,880 --> 00:15:19,960 Speaker 1: on this list of yours. There's a footnote for I 322 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:24,280 Speaker 1: believe orange plants talking about scurvy and citrus, and it's 323 00:15:24,320 --> 00:15:26,680 Speaker 1: one of the most ridiculous footnotes in the book. So 324 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: it's talking about, you know, citrus prevents scurvy, and scurvy 325 00:15:29,640 --> 00:15:32,320 Speaker 1: is a horrible disease that kills you eventually after making 326 00:15:32,320 --> 00:15:34,600 Speaker 1: you be in pain for a long long time. And 327 00:15:35,520 --> 00:15:39,240 Speaker 1: the British Empire discovered, or like humists in general, discovered 328 00:15:39,320 --> 00:15:43,320 Speaker 1: that vitamin C is an orange juice and that prevents scurvy, 329 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:47,040 Speaker 1: and then forgot that fact so many times throughout history, 330 00:15:47,240 --> 00:15:49,200 Speaker 1: and it would be funny if people weren't dying every 331 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:52,360 Speaker 1: time it happened. And the most, the most outbreaking was 332 00:15:52,400 --> 00:15:55,760 Speaker 1: the British discover this not great, we solve scurvy. It's done. 333 00:15:56,400 --> 00:15:59,960 Speaker 1: And then you know, fifty years go by, they invent steamships, 334 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:03,040 Speaker 1: so people are traveling faster at sea. And also this 335 00:16:03,160 --> 00:16:06,680 Speaker 1: very nutrition shorts people better vitamin C reserves, and so 336 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:10,560 Speaker 1: nobody notices that when the British Army shifts from fresh 337 00:16:10,640 --> 00:16:13,120 Speaker 1: juice to this stored lime juice that they run through 338 00:16:13,120 --> 00:16:15,520 Speaker 1: copper pipes, which kills a vitamin seeing it that they're 339 00:16:15,560 --> 00:16:18,520 Speaker 1: scurvy cure no longer works because's being masked by the 340 00:16:18,520 --> 00:16:20,440 Speaker 1: fact that people are at sea for longer. And then 341 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:22,960 Speaker 1: you hit this great age of exploration in Antarctica and 342 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:24,800 Speaker 1: people start getting a scurvey again and they're well, our 343 00:16:24,800 --> 00:16:27,840 Speaker 1: cure is clearly not working, so we're out of ideas. 344 00:16:28,360 --> 00:16:30,920 Speaker 1: Be bad morale causes the scurvy, and you're like back 345 00:16:30,920 --> 00:16:33,400 Speaker 1: at square one again. You're like, why how do we 346 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:35,480 Speaker 1: keep forgetting this information? It's a disease that you can 347 00:16:35,560 --> 00:16:39,640 Speaker 1: cure by eating an orange. The medicine is the same 348 00:16:39,680 --> 00:16:44,000 Speaker 1: as the cure. It's it's heartbreaking but also hilarious, but 349 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:46,120 Speaker 1: also not funny at all because all these people are 350 00:16:46,200 --> 00:16:50,080 Speaker 1: dying from just the stupidest reasons. Yeah, when we UH 351 00:16:50,600 --> 00:16:52,680 Speaker 1: used to put out t shirts that Menophaus, one of 352 00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:55,840 Speaker 1: the first jokes I'd written for that was shirt with 353 00:16:55,880 --> 00:16:58,040 Speaker 1: a pirate on it and said, when life gives you scurvy, 354 00:16:58,120 --> 00:17:02,240 Speaker 1: make lemonade. And it's very divisive because people didn't like 355 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:04,880 Speaker 1: the idea of a scurvy joke on a shirt, but 356 00:17:05,440 --> 00:17:10,160 Speaker 1: it's legitimate advice though. Well, we're going to be back 357 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:26,040 Speaker 1: with Ryan North right after a little break. Welcome back 358 00:17:26,040 --> 00:17:28,200 Speaker 1: to Part Time Genius. But we're talking with Ryan North, 359 00:17:28,400 --> 00:17:31,000 Speaker 1: the author of How To Invent Everything. So we're just 360 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:32,640 Speaker 1: talking about plants. But I do want to get into 361 00:17:32,680 --> 00:17:35,159 Speaker 1: animal husbandry because you have a section on that and 362 00:17:35,440 --> 00:17:38,159 Speaker 1: uh it is really fun as well. I'm curious what 363 00:17:38,280 --> 00:17:42,879 Speaker 1: animal did you like riding up the most. There's this 364 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:46,359 Speaker 1: whole thing in medicine. I'm talking Western medicine, but it 365 00:17:46,359 --> 00:17:49,399 Speaker 1: applies a lot of them where we are operating under 366 00:17:49,720 --> 00:17:52,560 Speaker 1: the wrong idea of what medicine is for thousands of years, 367 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:56,119 Speaker 1: and in Western indsineces idea of the four humors that 368 00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:58,480 Speaker 1: are in imbalance, and because of that, you might have 369 00:17:58,520 --> 00:18:01,080 Speaker 1: too much blood, and that's the reason you know you 370 00:18:01,119 --> 00:18:03,840 Speaker 1: have cancer, not for another medical reason. You have too 371 00:18:03,920 --> 00:18:06,040 Speaker 1: much blood, We'll suck it up with the leech. And 372 00:18:06,040 --> 00:18:07,679 Speaker 1: so the leech was a way to talk about, you know, 373 00:18:08,359 --> 00:18:12,359 Speaker 1: how bad ideas of what diseases can cause bad treatments, 374 00:18:12,359 --> 00:18:14,840 Speaker 1: and how there is no medical use for a leech 375 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:17,920 Speaker 1: at any point in history. Then a footnote saying, okay, fine, 376 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:21,800 Speaker 1: there's a tiny medical use in the eighties we realize 377 00:18:21,800 --> 00:18:24,160 Speaker 1: that leech has had this one drug that was useful 378 00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:26,800 Speaker 1: in cosmetic surgery. Then we synthesize it five years later. 379 00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:28,960 Speaker 1: So in this narrow window, you can use leeches, but 380 00:18:28,960 --> 00:18:32,640 Speaker 1: you shouldn't be used anywhere else in time like, it's 381 00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:35,600 Speaker 1: just this idea that humans have, where I say humans like, 382 00:18:35,640 --> 00:18:37,200 Speaker 1: I'm not one of them. This idea we have when 383 00:18:37,280 --> 00:18:41,040 Speaker 1: we want onto this bad conception of what something is 384 00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:44,359 Speaker 1: and not examine it for literally thousands of years. It 385 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:46,880 Speaker 1: makes the point of view of a time traveler saying 386 00:18:46,920 --> 00:18:48,639 Speaker 1: there's a lot of things you can fix here, like 387 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:52,280 Speaker 1: there's there's ways for humanity to improve our history simply 388 00:18:52,359 --> 00:18:55,480 Speaker 1: by not treating diseases with leeches for a thousands of years, 389 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:58,920 Speaker 1: that'll that'll be a lot better. And you mentioned silkworms 390 00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:02,800 Speaker 1: as well, what you talk a little bit about that. Yeah, silkworms, Um, 391 00:19:03,040 --> 00:19:06,119 Speaker 1: they're there, I believe, the only domesticated insect we have. 392 00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:09,840 Speaker 1: And it has not worked out too well for silkworms 393 00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:13,600 Speaker 1: because they used to, you know, just feed on these 394 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:16,480 Speaker 1: leaves of this white mulberry plant and then spin this 395 00:19:16,560 --> 00:19:18,719 Speaker 1: cocoon of a single piece of silk and then emerges 396 00:19:18,800 --> 00:19:22,239 Speaker 1: these new animals. And now since we've domesticated them, they 397 00:19:22,320 --> 00:19:25,639 Speaker 1: spin this cocoon of silk and those that do emerge 398 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:27,480 Speaker 1: only live for a couple of days. They can't eat 399 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:30,639 Speaker 1: unless they're force fed, they can't fly, they're blind, and 400 00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:35,240 Speaker 1: they're just like these unhappy little beasts. And most of 401 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:37,240 Speaker 1: them we stick in boiling water to kill them and 402 00:19:37,359 --> 00:19:40,760 Speaker 1: harvest their silk. So they're the only dovestigated insect, but 403 00:19:40,840 --> 00:19:43,280 Speaker 1: hasn't been a real success story from the silkworm's point 404 00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:49,040 Speaker 1: of view. That's definitely just knowing, you know, where silk 405 00:19:49,119 --> 00:19:50,960 Speaker 1: comes from, could make you millions of dollars at certain 406 00:19:50,960 --> 00:19:52,719 Speaker 1: point in history, cause it was it was this big secret, 407 00:19:53,080 --> 00:19:55,120 Speaker 1: and they're all these ideas like where the silk come from? 408 00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:58,840 Speaker 1: You know, I heard it's when this is one insect 409 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:00,639 Speaker 1: that if you eat too much, the bloads in this 410 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:05,320 Speaker 1: explosion of silk. But yeah, sort of like it's a 411 00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:07,000 Speaker 1: telephone in a game, like someone who came from an 412 00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:08,440 Speaker 1: insect but didn't know how the silk happened, and you 413 00:20:08,520 --> 00:20:11,479 Speaker 1: sort of get this result down the road, and that's 414 00:20:11,520 --> 00:20:13,680 Speaker 1: pretty impressive. So one of the things I also really 415 00:20:13,720 --> 00:20:16,119 Speaker 1: liked in the section was about goats. And I'm a 416 00:20:16,160 --> 00:20:18,840 Speaker 1: fan of goats anyway, because they helped us discover coffee. 417 00:20:18,920 --> 00:20:21,399 Speaker 1: But you also write that they're a great way to 418 00:20:21,440 --> 00:20:25,080 Speaker 1: get rid of poison ivy. Why is that so? Poison 419 00:20:25,119 --> 00:20:27,840 Speaker 1: ivy is fascinating because, um, it has a horrible effect 420 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:32,240 Speaker 1: on humans, and it's probably an accident. There's no evolutionary 421 00:20:32,280 --> 00:20:35,240 Speaker 1: reason for this to affect only humans and one other 422 00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:38,000 Speaker 1: ape and that's it. So it seems to be an accident. 423 00:20:38,080 --> 00:20:40,200 Speaker 1: Poison ivy is even poisoned in the first place and 424 00:20:40,320 --> 00:20:42,119 Speaker 1: doesn't affect goats, but goats love to eat it, and 425 00:20:42,240 --> 00:20:44,560 Speaker 1: so if you have poison ivy, you can rent a 426 00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:46,919 Speaker 1: goat and just put it on your land and then 427 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:48,520 Speaker 1: we'll eat up all the poison I belong with your 428 00:20:48,560 --> 00:20:50,320 Speaker 1: other stuff. And I have to do is be careful 429 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:52,360 Speaker 1: not to pet the goat or drink the goat's milk 430 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:54,560 Speaker 1: by accident over the next couple of days, and your 431 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:57,520 Speaker 1: problem is solved. That's remarkable to the kind of person 432 00:20:57,520 --> 00:21:00,400 Speaker 1: who sort of ends up accidentally drinking goat milk the time. 433 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:05,720 Speaker 1: Here we go again, So this is back to an 434 00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:09,359 Speaker 1: earlier question, But like, I feel like you've written a 435 00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:13,720 Speaker 1: bunch of these, um, really unusual books or the concepts 436 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:16,120 Speaker 1: for the books are really unusual. And you've also written 437 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:18,720 Speaker 1: these books that tackles Shakespeare but treat them almost like 438 00:21:19,040 --> 00:21:21,639 Speaker 1: choose your own adventure books. What was your inspiration for 439 00:21:21,680 --> 00:21:24,800 Speaker 1: writing this style of book? Like, were there models of 440 00:21:24,880 --> 00:21:27,520 Speaker 1: these books or tones that you sort of were drawn 441 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:31,119 Speaker 1: to when you're growing up. No, Um, I'm I'm actually 442 00:21:31,160 --> 00:21:32,840 Speaker 1: hoping there's more books like this. I hadn't read a 443 00:21:32,880 --> 00:21:36,560 Speaker 1: book before that had, um a fictional conceit around a 444 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:40,919 Speaker 1: nonfiction core, And I know my publishers were works are like, well, 445 00:21:40,960 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 1: people think this is all fake information. We had this 446 00:21:45,359 --> 00:21:47,720 Speaker 1: huge babilyogrey with all the sources I referenced, so you 447 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:49,840 Speaker 1: know that there this is all real, except for the 448 00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:53,359 Speaker 1: time travel parts, which is not real. But it was. 449 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:59,320 Speaker 1: It was less of books I read and more movies 450 00:21:59,400 --> 00:22:03,160 Speaker 1: I saw to Time Travel Adventures, where usually pretty much 451 00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:05,600 Speaker 1: every time travel movie I've seen, there's not a person 452 00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:08,600 Speaker 1: who's like, I'm prepared for this scenario for I have 453 00:22:08,720 --> 00:22:11,400 Speaker 1: research just the information I had to her in this book. 454 00:22:11,960 --> 00:22:13,480 Speaker 1: So I just like the idea of someone who you know, 455 00:22:13,680 --> 00:22:17,080 Speaker 1: wakes up in the year negative and says, great, I 456 00:22:17,160 --> 00:22:21,920 Speaker 1: know exactly what to do today. Well, I feel like 457 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:23,520 Speaker 1: that in in the beginning, Like I feel like one 458 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:25,840 Speaker 1: of the things about time travel movies as people are 459 00:22:25,840 --> 00:22:28,320 Speaker 1: always disputing whether or not time travel can work, or 460 00:22:28,400 --> 00:22:30,879 Speaker 1: like the laws of time traveler or whatever, and I 461 00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:33,800 Speaker 1: like that you address them right up front. Yeah, I 462 00:22:33,880 --> 00:22:36,159 Speaker 1: sort of had to, because I the whole premise is 463 00:22:36,320 --> 00:22:38,240 Speaker 1: it's a rental time machine, right, And I feel like 464 00:22:38,840 --> 00:22:40,320 Speaker 1: if you can go back and step on a butterfly 465 00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:43,520 Speaker 1: and destroy the universe, it's wildly irresponsible in the rental 466 00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:46,520 Speaker 1: time machines, but it builds this model of time travel 467 00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:48,239 Speaker 1: whenever you go back in time, you create a new 468 00:22:48,280 --> 00:22:51,360 Speaker 1: parallel timeline where everything is the same except you're there, 469 00:22:51,359 --> 00:22:53,280 Speaker 1: and so you can't mess up the world you're from, 470 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:56,760 Speaker 1: which works for a time travel adventure, but it's also 471 00:22:56,840 --> 00:22:59,359 Speaker 1: like has huge ethical implications of just creating at a 472 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: parallel war world for tourism purposes. There's no consequences, but 473 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:07,800 Speaker 1: it's filled with living, breathing people. It's like a nightmare holidack, 474 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:11,080 Speaker 1: but works really good for this the purposes of this book. 475 00:23:11,520 --> 00:23:14,920 Speaker 1: I agree. So you have a section on medicine and 476 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:16,920 Speaker 1: how to invent it where you talking about things like 477 00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:20,159 Speaker 1: germ theory and and baselines for normal humans, but you 478 00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:23,399 Speaker 1: also have the sidebar on a rehydration drink, and I 479 00:23:23,520 --> 00:23:27,520 Speaker 1: was curious why you included that. Yeah, so this rehydration 480 00:23:27,680 --> 00:23:30,200 Speaker 1: drink is it's like everything else, it's a real drink, 481 00:23:30,600 --> 00:23:32,600 Speaker 1: and um, like everything else in the book, I should 482 00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:35,240 Speaker 1: say it's real, but um, the reason I included it 483 00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: is because there's tons of diseases that don't technically kill 484 00:23:39,040 --> 00:23:41,040 Speaker 1: you from the disease. They kill you from diarrhea, from 485 00:23:41,080 --> 00:23:45,040 Speaker 1: just dehydration of pooping so much, and it's such an 486 00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:49,399 Speaker 1: unfair way to die. Plus it can be treated. If 487 00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:51,680 Speaker 1: you're just drinking this rehydration rink even though your vomity, 488 00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:54,080 Speaker 1: drink it between the vomits, you'll be fine. And the 489 00:23:54,160 --> 00:23:55,880 Speaker 1: trick is it's got some solvent so lets your body 490 00:23:55,880 --> 00:23:59,359 Speaker 1: absorbed water slightly faster. And it's just a it's a 491 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:02,159 Speaker 1: really easy and really easy to make medicine you can 492 00:24:02,200 --> 00:24:04,240 Speaker 1: make out of water and salt at any time period 493 00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:07,639 Speaker 1: that can literally save lives if someone is having a 494 00:24:07,720 --> 00:24:11,000 Speaker 1: disease that makes them poper vomit too much as dehydrating them. Yeah. No, 495 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:13,240 Speaker 1: I mean it's incredible that dehydration is one of the 496 00:24:13,240 --> 00:24:15,480 Speaker 1: biggest causes of depth through human history. I mean that 497 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:18,840 Speaker 1: is something I just had never thought about. Yeah, I was. 498 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:20,880 Speaker 1: I was worried. There a lot of sections that worried 499 00:24:20,920 --> 00:24:22,080 Speaker 1: me at the start. In medicine was one of them 500 00:24:22,080 --> 00:24:23,560 Speaker 1: because I was thinking, you know, what can I tell 501 00:24:23,600 --> 00:24:26,520 Speaker 1: you that's usable, it's practical, like if you're years ago, 502 00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:28,120 Speaker 1: what can I tell you it's going to be valuable? 503 00:24:28,200 --> 00:24:31,399 Speaker 1: But even just that is insanely valuable, Like you can 504 00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:33,479 Speaker 1: save so many lives without just knowing how to make 505 00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:35,640 Speaker 1: it and went to administer it also had the benefit 506 00:24:35,720 --> 00:24:38,800 Speaker 1: that you know, killers like heart disease and cancer aren't 507 00:24:38,800 --> 00:24:40,119 Speaker 1: going to be a big concern if you're in the 508 00:24:40,200 --> 00:24:41,760 Speaker 1: distant past because you have to live a long time 509 00:24:41,840 --> 00:24:44,240 Speaker 1: usually for those who have an effect on you. Yeah, yeah, 510 00:24:44,320 --> 00:24:46,200 Speaker 1: that's true. So I do want to go back to 511 00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:48,159 Speaker 1: one of the things I have referenced in the beginning, 512 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:52,600 Speaker 1: which was the discussion of water wheels versus windmills, And 513 00:24:53,119 --> 00:24:55,560 Speaker 1: I was curious if you could talk about the benefits 514 00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:59,320 Speaker 1: of both of those and why a windmill might be superior. Oh, 515 00:24:59,400 --> 00:25:04,240 Speaker 1: you're on team and mill interesting. So basically what you 516 00:25:04,359 --> 00:25:06,280 Speaker 1: want with either a water mill or windmill is to 517 00:25:06,359 --> 00:25:09,280 Speaker 1: turn a wheel, because a wheel can power machinery which 518 00:25:09,320 --> 00:25:11,640 Speaker 1: can grind your grain and do all sorts of saw 519 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:14,040 Speaker 1: your would, all sorts of interesting things, hammer your iron. 520 00:25:14,760 --> 00:25:17,840 Speaker 1: It's basically a machine doing the work for you. And 521 00:25:18,440 --> 00:25:20,919 Speaker 1: water wheels are great because water carries more force when 522 00:25:20,960 --> 00:25:25,000 Speaker 1: it moves, but you need water moving water to do that. Well. 523 00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:27,000 Speaker 1: Windmills you just need the air and you can place 524 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:30,400 Speaker 1: them anywhere. Um So the windmill you have the advantage 525 00:25:30,440 --> 00:25:33,520 Speaker 1: of you can move it more easily to target the wind, 526 00:25:34,080 --> 00:25:36,639 Speaker 1: and you can place some in areas where you can 527 00:25:36,720 --> 00:25:39,360 Speaker 1: place a water wheel, but at the disadvantage that wind 528 00:25:39,400 --> 00:25:42,360 Speaker 1: doesn't carry as much work, so you're you're limited sorts 529 00:25:42,400 --> 00:25:44,600 Speaker 1: of things you can do. And this that the talent 530 00:25:44,640 --> 00:25:47,399 Speaker 1: type of the book is that, um, the fun of 531 00:25:47,440 --> 00:25:49,159 Speaker 1: it really was that some of the stuff you're like, oh, well, 532 00:25:50,400 --> 00:25:52,040 Speaker 1: this sounds boring, like why do why do I care 533 00:25:52,080 --> 00:25:54,600 Speaker 1: about this? But if you present it in a fun 534 00:25:54,680 --> 00:25:57,280 Speaker 1: sort of time traveling way, it becomes a you know what, 535 00:25:57,359 --> 00:26:01,000 Speaker 1: team where you hunting water wheel or team windmill. It 536 00:26:01,080 --> 00:26:03,119 Speaker 1: didn't even feel like there was an argument there. And 537 00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:07,200 Speaker 1: then once I read from Chomsky you, I think with 538 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:11,080 Speaker 1: the partner debating you, I didn't think I'd think about 539 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:13,920 Speaker 1: the benefits between the two, but it was really engaging. 540 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:16,520 Speaker 1: Thank you. I mean, that's that's That's what I'm trying 541 00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:18,320 Speaker 1: to do. And I think the fun of a book 542 00:26:18,359 --> 00:26:20,840 Speaker 1: like this because normally, if you're running nonfiction, you're always worried, 543 00:26:21,280 --> 00:26:23,280 Speaker 1: you know, is this boring? And how can I make 544 00:26:23,320 --> 00:26:26,680 Speaker 1: it not boring? But doing it in this time travel way. 545 00:26:26,800 --> 00:26:29,000 Speaker 1: Whenever I was like, oh, I wonder if this is boring, 546 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:30,959 Speaker 1: I could just go back to the time travel thing 547 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:32,840 Speaker 1: and put in the time travel joker have some some 548 00:26:33,000 --> 00:26:35,160 Speaker 1: fun with the conceit. So it gave me an easy 549 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:37,320 Speaker 1: way to make it um an engaging book and not 550 00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:39,520 Speaker 1: just here's the list of facts that are useful. Did 551 00:26:39,560 --> 00:26:42,640 Speaker 1: you know water boils at a hundred degrees? Now you do? Yeah? 552 00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:45,600 Speaker 1: I mean, and you also like those little jokes are 553 00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:48,679 Speaker 1: so funny, Like you have that section on famous songs 554 00:26:48,760 --> 00:26:52,080 Speaker 1: that you can plagiarize, and it's got sheet music to 555 00:26:52,160 --> 00:26:54,879 Speaker 1: like owe to joy and uh and talk about Cannona 556 00:26:54,960 --> 00:26:58,000 Speaker 1: or whatever. Like, I just thought that was such a 557 00:26:58,119 --> 00:27:00,080 Speaker 1: wonderful relief from from the rest of the tech. But 558 00:27:00,240 --> 00:27:04,119 Speaker 1: I'm curious, like what ended up on the cutting room floor, Like, 559 00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:07,240 Speaker 1: what what is stuff that you thought about tackling but 560 00:27:07,440 --> 00:27:10,760 Speaker 1: but found too hard to condense? Yeah, there was gonna 561 00:27:10,760 --> 00:27:13,600 Speaker 1: be a section on weapons, and by the time I've 562 00:27:13,600 --> 00:27:15,560 Speaker 1: written most of the book, I I started thinking, I 563 00:27:15,680 --> 00:27:18,600 Speaker 1: don't want a section of how to kill people. Yeah, 564 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:22,040 Speaker 1: it just feels the whole book is about building civilizations 565 00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:25,680 Speaker 1: and building like literally building a world around yourself. You know. 566 00:27:25,760 --> 00:27:28,520 Speaker 1: I'm actually I'm actually glad you didn't because I felt 567 00:27:28,560 --> 00:27:31,840 Speaker 1: like one of the brightest things about this book was 568 00:27:32,359 --> 00:27:37,320 Speaker 1: you were filled with news that's so distracting and irritating 569 00:27:37,359 --> 00:27:39,960 Speaker 1: and upsetting. And this book really felt, even though it's 570 00:27:40,040 --> 00:27:43,359 Speaker 1: kind of a survivalist book, just felt so optimistic. You know, 571 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:45,920 Speaker 1: it is a very optimistic book. I mean you have 572 00:27:46,040 --> 00:27:48,680 Speaker 1: to be optimistic too to be you know, two years 573 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,280 Speaker 1: in the past and thinking I alone can rebuild civilization, 574 00:27:52,760 --> 00:27:54,760 Speaker 1: do it. But yes, so I didn't want to put 575 00:27:54,760 --> 00:27:56,480 Speaker 1: any any weaponry stuff. And honestly, if you want to 576 00:27:56,560 --> 00:27:58,560 Speaker 1: kill someone, like, there's probably fair in a way to 577 00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:00,639 Speaker 1: do it with what's in the book already, you know, 578 00:28:00,840 --> 00:28:05,080 Speaker 1: hurt their feelings with the written word. Uh. There was 579 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:07,480 Speaker 1: a section It's funny in the music section. So the 580 00:28:07,800 --> 00:28:10,080 Speaker 1: gig of that section is you have like some classics, 581 00:28:10,440 --> 00:28:12,880 Speaker 1: pack of bells, cannon and oh to Joy, and then 582 00:28:12,920 --> 00:28:17,879 Speaker 1: you've got the Tetris theme songs, folk tongue. I resually 583 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:21,040 Speaker 1: wanted to have Salt and Pepper's Shop there, but I 584 00:28:21,160 --> 00:28:23,360 Speaker 1: could not, for the life of me, get the rights 585 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:25,000 Speaker 1: holders to understand what I was trying to do with 586 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:29,800 Speaker 1: this book. It's like, hey, can I want to see 587 00:28:29,880 --> 00:28:31,879 Speaker 1: music and I know it doesn't exist, but I'll make it. 588 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:33,800 Speaker 1: And they're like, is this for a textbook? I'm like, no, 589 00:28:33,880 --> 00:28:36,399 Speaker 1: it's not a textbook. It's like nonfiction but fiction and 590 00:28:36,480 --> 00:28:38,920 Speaker 1: it's general information, like it's not a textbook. And they're like, oh, 591 00:28:39,040 --> 00:28:42,240 Speaker 1: so it's for school, it's a textbook, Like, no, one's 592 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:44,640 Speaker 1: not a textbook. They finally suffered funding to my emails, 593 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:46,920 Speaker 1: and I was like, fine, who would have thought the 594 00:28:46,960 --> 00:28:49,080 Speaker 1: problem is that, like I don't, there's a lot of 595 00:28:49,120 --> 00:28:52,440 Speaker 1: money in sheet music licensing, and so there's no motivation 596 00:28:52,520 --> 00:28:54,480 Speaker 1: to put a square peg in a round hole there. 597 00:28:54,560 --> 00:28:56,760 Speaker 1: They were like, this is already waste enough time emailing 598 00:28:56,800 --> 00:28:59,960 Speaker 1: this guy. Forget that is a great story, and and honestly, 599 00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:03,040 Speaker 1: Shoop is such a great punchline there for for some reason, 600 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:06,080 Speaker 1: it's really wonderful. And the other thing I ended up 601 00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:08,840 Speaker 1: cutting was at the end there was a kind of 602 00:29:08,880 --> 00:29:11,680 Speaker 1: a victory lap chapter with a recipe and how to 603 00:29:11,760 --> 00:29:15,520 Speaker 1: make apple pie and ice cream from scratch, and sort 604 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:18,360 Speaker 1: of riffed off it old Carl Sagan quote where he says, like, 605 00:29:18,440 --> 00:29:20,640 Speaker 1: to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first 606 00:29:20,720 --> 00:29:24,480 Speaker 1: create the universe. And in my verse, like, well you've 607 00:29:24,520 --> 00:29:26,920 Speaker 1: created a civilization, now here's how you make apple pie 608 00:29:26,960 --> 00:29:29,160 Speaker 1: and all the all the ingredients you could build off 609 00:29:29,200 --> 00:29:32,040 Speaker 1: what you've already learned in the book, but there's already 610 00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:33,800 Speaker 1: a pretty long book, and I felt like this is 611 00:29:33,880 --> 00:29:36,239 Speaker 1: just like a loop of things people already know. Well, 612 00:29:36,280 --> 00:29:38,520 Speaker 1: I understand why you didn't put it in, but it 613 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:40,920 Speaker 1: would have been a great addition. I think we're gonna 614 00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:42,760 Speaker 1: pause for a quick ad break, but we'll be back 615 00:29:42,840 --> 00:29:58,440 Speaker 1: with Ryan North in just a minute. Welcome back to 616 00:29:58,480 --> 00:30:01,520 Speaker 1: part times where we're talking to their Ryan North. So 617 00:30:01,640 --> 00:30:03,760 Speaker 1: I do want to read the last few sentences of 618 00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:05,640 Speaker 1: the book, and I promise it is a spoiler, and 619 00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:07,040 Speaker 1: I was curious if you'd let us do that on 620 00:30:07,080 --> 00:30:09,600 Speaker 1: the program. Yeah, I really like those last few sentences, 621 00:30:09,680 --> 00:30:12,280 Speaker 1: so go for it. So it goes. Reading this book 622 00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:15,160 Speaker 1: is transferred knowledge of humanity's greatest achievements from the palm 623 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:17,959 Speaker 1: of your hand to the interior of your mind. Earlier, 624 00:30:18,040 --> 00:30:20,640 Speaker 1: we remarked that this text, once stranded in the past, 625 00:30:20,840 --> 00:30:23,400 Speaker 1: was the single most powerful and dangerous thing on the planet. 626 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:26,720 Speaker 1: That is no longer true. You are go get him Tiger, 627 00:30:27,000 --> 00:30:29,400 Speaker 1: which I just thought it was such a wonderful way 628 00:30:29,440 --> 00:30:32,720 Speaker 1: to close this book. Thank you. No, I love it 629 00:30:33,000 --> 00:30:36,240 Speaker 1: of drama that gave it. But also you know you're 630 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:38,440 Speaker 1: you're about to do something crazy. You're about to try 631 00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:41,080 Speaker 1: to rebuild civilizations, so give you the pep talk at 632 00:30:41,080 --> 00:30:44,200 Speaker 1: the end. Go do it. You got every vantage in 633 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:47,080 Speaker 1: the world that we didn't have because we didn't know 634 00:30:47,080 --> 00:30:49,320 Speaker 1: about it at the time, So you can do this. 635 00:30:49,880 --> 00:30:51,760 Speaker 1: You know, there are really so many things we didn't 636 00:30:51,760 --> 00:30:54,040 Speaker 1: get to, from how to invent a bicycle to how 637 00:30:54,120 --> 00:30:57,280 Speaker 1: to understand all of modern philosophy and religion through high fives. 638 00:30:57,680 --> 00:30:59,440 Speaker 1: That might be the most valuable two pages in here, 639 00:30:59,480 --> 00:31:02,000 Speaker 1: but it's really been such a pleasure. Our guest is 640 00:31:02,120 --> 00:31:04,240 Speaker 1: Ryan North. The book is how to Invent Everything, and 641 00:31:04,360 --> 00:31:06,160 Speaker 1: thank you so much for being here. Thank you so 642 00:31:06,240 --> 00:31:21,880 Speaker 1: much for having me. It was great. Thanks again for listening. 643 00:31:22,080 --> 00:31:24,200 Speaker 1: Part Time Genius is a production of how stuff works 644 00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:26,760 Speaker 1: and wouldn't be possible without several brilliant people who do 645 00:31:26,880 --> 00:31:29,960 Speaker 1: the important things we couldn't even begin to understand. Tristan 646 00:31:30,040 --> 00:31:32,520 Speaker 1: McNeil does the editing thing. Noel Brown made the theme 647 00:31:32,600 --> 00:31:35,560 Speaker 1: song and does the mixy mixy sound thing. Jerry Rowland 648 00:31:35,600 --> 00:31:38,800 Speaker 1: does the exact producer thing. Gay Bluesier is our lead researcher, 649 00:31:38,880 --> 00:31:41,840 Speaker 1: with support from the Research Army, including Austin Thompson, Nolan 650 00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:44,160 Speaker 1: Brown and Lucas Adams and Eve. Jeff Cook gets the 651 00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:46,320 Speaker 1: show to your ears. Good job, Eves. If you like 652 00:31:46,440 --> 00:31:48,200 Speaker 1: what you heard, we hope you'll subscribe, And if you 653 00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:50,280 Speaker 1: really really like what you've heard, maybe you could leave 654 00:31:50,280 --> 00:31:53,320 Speaker 1: a good review for us. We do. We forget Jason. Jason, 655 00:31:53,360 --> 00:32:01,080 Speaker 1: who was the best po