1 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:04,960 Speaker 1: I guess what will? What's that? Mango? So have you 2 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:07,760 Speaker 1: heard of this experiment from Albany Medical College where they 3 00:00:07,800 --> 00:00:11,000 Speaker 1: tried to figure out whether rats like jazz or classical 4 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:13,720 Speaker 1: music more? I don't know. I haven't heard about this 5 00:00:13,720 --> 00:00:16,640 Speaker 1: because it seems like a really important experiment, and actually 6 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:18,799 Speaker 1: I have to meet I am curious so so so 7 00:00:18,840 --> 00:00:21,280 Speaker 1: which one do they like? More? So? The scientists played 8 00:00:21,360 --> 00:00:23,759 Speaker 1: for a lease on loop for ninety minutes, and then 9 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:26,800 Speaker 1: they'd switched to Miles Davis and his song four, So 10 00:00:26,840 --> 00:00:29,440 Speaker 1: they just go from Ford for at least to four. 11 00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:32,640 Speaker 1: And of course they discovered that the rats like silence 12 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:36,680 Speaker 1: better than continuous music. But when they had to choose, 13 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:39,440 Speaker 1: the rats like Beethoven more than hard bop. And I 14 00:00:39,479 --> 00:00:41,559 Speaker 1: guess that makes sense. If we're talking about on repeat 15 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:43,479 Speaker 1: and they're having to hear this over and over, I 16 00:00:43,479 --> 00:00:46,080 Speaker 1: guess it's a little more soothing, right, Yeah, But the 17 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:49,120 Speaker 1: experiments weren't done then, so I have no idea why 18 00:00:49,159 --> 00:00:52,080 Speaker 1: they did this. They injected the rats with cocaine after 19 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:55,840 Speaker 1: this for seven straight days, and once the rats had 20 00:00:55,840 --> 00:00:59,040 Speaker 1: this cocaine just racing through their system, they couldn't get 21 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:04,880 Speaker 1: enough Miles. This, which also makes sense fairly. Science tells 22 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:09,039 Speaker 1: us that coked up rats really love jazz. But there's 23 00:01:09,080 --> 00:01:11,920 Speaker 1: a whole world of questionable science experiments, from the weird 24 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:15,080 Speaker 1: to the funny to the seriously ill advised. And that's 25 00:01:15,080 --> 00:01:38,679 Speaker 1: what today's show is all about. Let's dig in. Hey, 26 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:41,200 Speaker 1: their podcast listeners, welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will 27 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:43,520 Speaker 1: Pearson and as always I'm joined by my good friend 28 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:46,600 Speaker 1: Manesh Ticketer and on the other side of the soundproof glass, 29 00:01:46,640 --> 00:01:48,800 Speaker 1: putting his good name on the line for the sake 30 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:52,200 Speaker 1: of science conducting. What is we assume, the first ever 31 00:01:52,240 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: scientific attempt to bring a potato back to life. That's 32 00:01:56,040 --> 00:01:59,160 Speaker 1: our friend and producer Tristan McNeil, a potato back to life. Mano, 33 00:01:59,240 --> 00:02:01,680 Speaker 1: this is big science. I saw the potatoes, I saw 34 00:02:01,760 --> 00:02:04,160 Speaker 1: the labco I had no idea what was going on there. 35 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:07,760 Speaker 1: I think that's what the defibrillator is for. And you 36 00:02:07,840 --> 00:02:10,480 Speaker 1: might be wondering how you can tell the difference between 37 00:02:10,520 --> 00:02:13,640 Speaker 1: a live and a dead potato. Well, those are all 38 00:02:13,760 --> 00:02:16,680 Speaker 1: heavy questions, and hopefully Tristan's work will help shed some 39 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,280 Speaker 1: light on just a few of those. It maybe two 40 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:21,560 Speaker 1: over our heads. We'll see most of what Tristan does 41 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:26,000 Speaker 1: is anyway. I know this experiment sounds ridiculous, but honestly, 42 00:02:26,080 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: everything on today's show sounds a little ridiculous. So we'll 43 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:32,559 Speaker 1: dig into some of the weirdest, most questionable science experiments 44 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:35,000 Speaker 1: in history. Now, Mango, I know, for a while as 45 00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:37,200 Speaker 1: a kid you wanted to be a scientist, and I've 46 00:02:37,240 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 1: heard you talk about some of the experiments you conducted. 47 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:42,239 Speaker 1: So did you come up with any terrible experiments along 48 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:44,919 Speaker 1: the way? So many? I mean, you know, my dad's 49 00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:47,320 Speaker 1: a scientist, and he's a good one. So we test 50 00:02:47,360 --> 00:02:50,040 Speaker 1: things and I tell him about inventions ideas for inventions 51 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:52,760 Speaker 1: I had, like I had an idea for a d microwave, 52 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:54,880 Speaker 1: and the whole idea was that, like you could cool 53 00:02:54,919 --> 00:02:59,120 Speaker 1: down a hot bagel fast. And yeah, you tell me 54 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:00,919 Speaker 1: like why it would or would work or what I'd 55 00:03:00,919 --> 00:03:03,480 Speaker 1: have to think about. But I think the biggest failure 56 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 1: I had as a kid was in second grade and 57 00:03:06,680 --> 00:03:08,560 Speaker 1: my friends and I were at the bus stop and 58 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:10,960 Speaker 1: we always wanted a day off from school, you know, 59 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:13,200 Speaker 1: especially when the weather was nice, because you want to 60 00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:16,160 Speaker 1: stay home and play and whatever. So I hatched this 61 00:03:16,320 --> 00:03:20,320 Speaker 1: amazing scheme, like our our friend Kristen had access to 62 00:03:20,560 --> 00:03:23,280 Speaker 1: a ton of gum for some reason, and I knew 63 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:25,079 Speaker 1: that gum on the ground is sticky when you step 64 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:28,359 Speaker 1: on it. And I don't remember how we calculated this out, 65 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:31,160 Speaker 1: but there were drawings and some terrible math involved, but 66 00:03:31,240 --> 00:03:33,480 Speaker 1: we figured that if we could get a big enough 67 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:36,160 Speaker 1: wad of sticky gum in the right place, the school 68 00:03:36,160 --> 00:03:38,360 Speaker 1: bus tire would probably stick to it and get stuck 69 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:39,920 Speaker 1: there for the day and we wouldn't have to go 70 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,200 Speaker 1: to school. I really want to hear that this worked, 71 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:46,000 Speaker 1: but I'm gonna guess that maybe this didn't work. Yeah, 72 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:49,080 Speaker 1: of course not. I mean, my calculations were off, I guess. 73 00:03:49,160 --> 00:03:52,120 Speaker 1: And but the plan was like so elaborate. We we 74 00:03:52,240 --> 00:03:54,240 Speaker 1: planned about it, we talked about it, We made this 75 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:57,360 Speaker 1: giant wad of gum, and then we placed it in 76 00:03:57,440 --> 00:03:59,240 Speaker 1: what we thought was going to be the perfect spot, 77 00:03:59,720 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 1: and in the school bus tire didn't even roll over, 78 00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:05,400 Speaker 1: and so it's like super anti climatic and we sort 79 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:08,760 Speaker 1: of like deflatedly walked onto the school bus. But uh, 80 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:12,040 Speaker 1: now that I think about, the gum was also care free, 81 00:04:12,040 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: so it wasn't really like a sticky type of gum 82 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:18,719 Speaker 1: that was your problem because care Free was it's sugarless, right, Yeah, 83 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:20,240 Speaker 1: but I mean you go to war with the gum 84 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:22,640 Speaker 1: you have and it was not a great day for science. 85 00:04:24,040 --> 00:04:27,120 Speaker 1: All right. Well, today's show is all about odds science experiments, 86 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:30,120 Speaker 1: and just because their bizarre doesn't mean we should automatically 87 00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:32,600 Speaker 1: discount them. In fact, I was reading this article by 88 00:04:32,600 --> 00:04:35,359 Speaker 1: Alex Boss and he wrote a great book about odds 89 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:39,080 Speaker 1: science experiments, and there's a section where Alex explains why 90 00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:41,680 Speaker 1: he first got into weird projects and and why he 91 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 1: believes they should still be thought of as worthwhile. So 92 00:04:44,240 --> 00:04:45,720 Speaker 1: I just want to read a bit from this. So 93 00:04:45,760 --> 00:04:48,560 Speaker 1: here's what he says. I confess I had no profound 94 00:04:48,600 --> 00:04:52,280 Speaker 1: intellectual motive at first. I simply found them fascinating. They 95 00:04:52,320 --> 00:04:56,600 Speaker 1: filled me with disbelief, astonishment, discussed, and best of all laughter. 96 00:04:57,200 --> 00:05:00,360 Speaker 1: But with hindsight, perhaps there is a deeper message. These 97 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:03,680 Speaker 1: experiments are not the work of cranks. All were performed 98 00:05:03,680 --> 00:05:06,560 Speaker 1: by honest, hard working scientists who were not prepared to 99 00:05:06,600 --> 00:05:09,880 Speaker 1: accept a common sense explanation of how the world works. 100 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:14,240 Speaker 1: Sometimes such single mindedness leads to brilliant discoveries. At other 101 00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:17,120 Speaker 1: times it can end up closer to madness. Unfortunately, there's 102 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:20,240 Speaker 1: no way of knowing in advance where the journey will lead. Yeah, 103 00:05:20,279 --> 00:05:22,040 Speaker 1: I mean, that's certainly something to keep in mind as 104 00:05:22,040 --> 00:05:24,520 Speaker 1: we go along. But while it might be true that 105 00:05:24,600 --> 00:05:26,719 Speaker 1: none of the people that Alex talked about were crackpots, 106 00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,159 Speaker 1: some of the ones I want to talk about definitely 107 00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:32,039 Speaker 1: worth So this includes the first guy we've gone on, 108 00:05:32,040 --> 00:05:35,640 Speaker 1: the list of Renaissance era physician and alchemist named Paracelsus. 109 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:38,320 Speaker 1: Now Parasulsis is known for doing some of the earliest 110 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:41,719 Speaker 1: research in toxicology and also psychotherapy, which are I guess 111 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:44,240 Speaker 1: both weird in their own right, but without doubt his 112 00:05:44,279 --> 00:05:46,320 Speaker 1: strongest claim to theme was his account of how to 113 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:50,479 Speaker 1: grow your own homunculous. To grow your own homunculous, mega 114 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:54,840 Speaker 1: can grow your own I do want to confess I'm 115 00:05:54,880 --> 00:05:57,479 Speaker 1: a little rusty on my pseudoscience lingo from what you 116 00:05:57,480 --> 00:06:01,920 Speaker 1: said the right. So, so, what exactly is a humunculous. 117 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,880 Speaker 1: It's a mythological creature. Fairly, Parasolsis believed in all sorts 118 00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:11,000 Speaker 1: of those, including giants and wood nymphs. But homunculus was 119 00:06:11,040 --> 00:06:13,240 Speaker 1: basically like a tiny living human the size of a 120 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:16,200 Speaker 1: doll or something, and paras els has actually claimed to 121 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:17,960 Speaker 1: have made his own, which he said was about a 122 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:22,359 Speaker 1: foot tall. Right. And you said this man was a doctor, right, Yeah, 123 00:06:22,400 --> 00:06:24,680 Speaker 1: I mean it was easier to get into medical school 124 00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:28,560 Speaker 1: back then. Some people thought he was a medical genius. 125 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:31,240 Speaker 1: Others thought he was more of this loud mouth, drunk type. 126 00:06:31,320 --> 00:06:34,240 Speaker 1: I'm guessing the truth was somewhere in between. But these 127 00:06:34,240 --> 00:06:37,000 Speaker 1: are actually the instructions Paracelsus has laid out to create 128 00:06:37,040 --> 00:06:41,440 Speaker 1: your own little homunculous. So here we go. Let the 129 00:06:41,520 --> 00:06:43,880 Speaker 1: seed of a man by itself be putrified in a 130 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:46,880 Speaker 1: gored glass and sealed up in horse done for the 131 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:49,440 Speaker 1: space of forty days until so long as it begins 132 00:06:49,480 --> 00:06:52,560 Speaker 1: to be alive, move and stir. After this time, it 133 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:55,440 Speaker 1: will be something like a man, yet transparent and without 134 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:58,640 Speaker 1: a body. Now, after this, if it be every day warily, 135 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: imprudently nourished and fair with man's blood, and be kept 136 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:04,560 Speaker 1: for the space of forty weeks and a constant equal 137 00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:07,560 Speaker 1: heat of horse dung, it will become a true and 138 00:07:07,720 --> 00:07:11,280 Speaker 1: living infant. You know what, just hearing this, it kind 139 00:07:11,320 --> 00:07:12,840 Speaker 1: of makes me want to go back and watch those 140 00:07:12,880 --> 00:07:15,160 Speaker 1: old s n L skits where Steve Martin played them 141 00:07:15,160 --> 00:07:19,160 Speaker 1: medieval barber because it sounds like pretty similar advice. And 142 00:07:19,360 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 1: you know, I admire Paracelsis ingenuity, and obviously at the 143 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:25,520 Speaker 1: time they had a much different set of knowledge. But 144 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:28,120 Speaker 1: I feel like it might be smarter for the human 145 00:07:28,200 --> 00:07:30,160 Speaker 1: race to stick with the you know, the old fashioned 146 00:07:30,240 --> 00:07:33,000 Speaker 1: horse dung freeway to make a true and living infant. 147 00:07:33,040 --> 00:07:36,880 Speaker 1: But anyway, you know, word of crazy experiments like this 148 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:40,240 Speaker 1: and these medical fallacies, they got passed around a lot 149 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:43,200 Speaker 1: during the Middle Ages and even into the Renaissance. So 150 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:45,600 Speaker 1: much so, in fact, that a physician philosopher named Sir 151 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:48,680 Speaker 1: Thomas Brown actually put together a massive list of these 152 00:07:48,720 --> 00:07:51,680 Speaker 1: widely believed tall tales, and he referred to these as 153 00:07:51,760 --> 00:07:54,840 Speaker 1: vulgar errors. So Brown would go around testing all these 154 00:07:54,880 --> 00:07:58,640 Speaker 1: absurd claims in order to disprove them once and for all. So, 155 00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:00,680 Speaker 1: for example, one weird idea that it's spread in the 156 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:03,640 Speaker 1: sixteen hundreds was that you could make an accurate weather 157 00:08:03,720 --> 00:08:07,280 Speaker 1: vane just by hanging a dead kingfisher bird from a string. 158 00:08:07,320 --> 00:08:11,680 Speaker 1: It's as simple as that. I love arts and crafts projects. 159 00:08:11,680 --> 00:08:15,280 Speaker 1: I'm guessing that didn't end wilda well. Apparently he found 160 00:08:15,360 --> 00:08:17,760 Speaker 1: himself a dead kingfisher one day, and he hung it 161 00:08:17,840 --> 00:08:21,040 Speaker 1: up from a beam outside, and much to his dismay, 162 00:08:21,120 --> 00:08:23,679 Speaker 1: the bird just sort of dangled and seemed to sway 163 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:25,960 Speaker 1: at random, you know, as you'd expect from a corpse 164 00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:29,040 Speaker 1: of a dead bird. But you know, being this man 165 00:08:29,120 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: of science, Brown knew he couldn't definitively disprove this claim 166 00:08:33,040 --> 00:08:36,520 Speaker 1: with just a single dead kingfisher, So he got another one, 167 00:08:36,559 --> 00:08:38,800 Speaker 1: strung it up next to the first, and watched his 168 00:08:38,920 --> 00:08:43,000 Speaker 1: both birds spun aimlessly in different directions. So with that, 169 00:08:43,120 --> 00:08:45,760 Speaker 1: with that degree of science, Mango Brown was able to 170 00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:49,360 Speaker 1: say conclusively that dead kingfishers are a poor way to 171 00:08:49,440 --> 00:08:52,480 Speaker 1: determine win direction. So forget trying. This is just not 172 00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:57,280 Speaker 1: gonna work. I do like that it took uh, just 173 00:08:57,520 --> 00:08:59,720 Speaker 1: two dead birds to put a stop to this idea, 174 00:08:59,800 --> 00:09:02,280 Speaker 1: but it you know, no one else had thought of this, 175 00:09:02,520 --> 00:09:05,000 Speaker 1: and I feel sorry for like whatever poor salesman at 176 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:07,600 Speaker 1: the market had stocked up on baskets of kingfishers, and 177 00:09:08,080 --> 00:09:11,080 Speaker 1: I guess like Brown just ruined his entire business model. 178 00:09:11,360 --> 00:09:15,720 Speaker 1: That's there and other interesting cat I came across was 179 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:19,040 Speaker 1: this guy named Johann Conrad Dipple, and he was this 180 00:09:19,120 --> 00:09:21,600 Speaker 1: German scientist in the late sixteen hundreds who had actually 181 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:24,959 Speaker 1: been born in the real Castle Frankenstein, which is kind 182 00:09:24,960 --> 00:09:27,560 Speaker 1: of amazing, And of course he had a lot of ideas. 183 00:09:27,760 --> 00:09:30,880 Speaker 1: Probably his least bizarre achievement was that he developed one 184 00:09:30,920 --> 00:09:34,040 Speaker 1: of the world's first synthetic pigments, in fact, the first. 185 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:37,439 Speaker 1: It's a die called Prussian Blue that's still in use today. Yeah, 186 00:09:37,480 --> 00:09:39,360 Speaker 1: I've heard of Prussian Blue. But I think you said 187 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:42,960 Speaker 1: least bizarre achievements. So what was his most bizarre achievement? Yeah, 188 00:09:42,960 --> 00:09:45,360 Speaker 1: I did because I wanted to talk about Dipple's oil. 189 00:09:45,679 --> 00:09:48,360 Speaker 1: It was supposed to be kind of a life extending potion, 190 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:53,080 Speaker 1: but was in reality just this like terrible, disgusting slurry 191 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:55,520 Speaker 1: made from a mix of random animal bones and hides. 192 00:09:56,040 --> 00:09:58,640 Speaker 1: It's too bad. I'm curious that Did he sell a 193 00:09:58,679 --> 00:10:00,440 Speaker 1: lot of dipples oil? I'm at and it must have 194 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:03,400 Speaker 1: been a big hit with the local villagers there. Yeah, 195 00:10:03,480 --> 00:10:06,080 Speaker 1: you'd think so, but not so much. In fact, Dipple 196 00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:08,559 Speaker 1: was eventually run out of town because of all these 197 00:10:08,640 --> 00:10:11,120 Speaker 1: rumors that started circulating about what he was really doing 198 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:13,600 Speaker 1: in his lab. Like one of the rumors claimed that 199 00:10:13,640 --> 00:10:16,480 Speaker 1: Dipple was a grave robber and that he'd once tried 200 00:10:16,520 --> 00:10:19,240 Speaker 1: to move a soul from one corpse to another using 201 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:21,640 Speaker 1: just a funnel, a hose and a bit of lubricants. 202 00:10:22,120 --> 00:10:25,040 Speaker 1: You need the lubricant to get it through. But yeah, 203 00:10:25,120 --> 00:10:27,640 Speaker 1: I think we can both agree that's a bit of 204 00:10:27,679 --> 00:10:29,760 Speaker 1: the suspect signs there. I mean, I guess so I 205 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:31,800 Speaker 1: could see where they were going with that. But but 206 00:10:31,880 --> 00:10:33,720 Speaker 1: I do see what you mean about him being a 207 00:10:33,760 --> 00:10:35,839 Speaker 1: mad scientist, all right, But if you don't mind, I 208 00:10:36,160 --> 00:10:38,840 Speaker 1: kind of want to transition away from the total crackpots 209 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:40,880 Speaker 1: and start talking about some of the scientists who are 210 00:10:40,920 --> 00:10:44,240 Speaker 1: maybe I don't know, just a little misguided instead. And thankfully, 211 00:10:44,280 --> 00:10:46,440 Speaker 1: I think I have the perfect person to help us 212 00:10:46,480 --> 00:10:49,400 Speaker 1: make that leap, because he really does tow this line 213 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:52,760 Speaker 1: between those two types. And his name was Stubborn's Firth. 214 00:10:52,880 --> 00:10:55,000 Speaker 1: Isn't that a great name. It just seems like somebody 215 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:58,440 Speaker 1: that would tow those lines. All Stubbens. But in the 216 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:01,040 Speaker 1: early nineteenth century he was training to be a doctor 217 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:04,480 Speaker 1: in Philadelphia, and so during this time Stubbins began studying 218 00:11:04,480 --> 00:11:06,839 Speaker 1: the effects of yellow fever, and that was, of course 219 00:11:06,880 --> 00:11:09,319 Speaker 1: a disease that had laid waste to the area's population 220 00:11:09,400 --> 00:11:12,480 Speaker 1: just a few years before this and he had noticed 221 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:15,440 Speaker 1: that the fever hardest hit in the summer months, and 222 00:11:15,440 --> 00:11:18,920 Speaker 1: then it would disappear almost entirely by wintertime. And so 223 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:21,640 Speaker 1: this led him to the conclusion that all these widely 224 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:25,760 Speaker 1: held opinions about yellow fever being contagious were completely false. 225 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,040 Speaker 1: So to him, it seemed much more likely that yellow 226 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:31,240 Speaker 1: fever was brought on by excessive heat and food and noise, 227 00:11:31,280 --> 00:11:33,640 Speaker 1: and all of these things were much more abundant in 228 00:11:33,679 --> 00:11:36,560 Speaker 1: the summer than they were in the winter. I like 229 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:39,079 Speaker 1: the idea of just a lot of noise causing yellow fever. 230 00:11:40,320 --> 00:11:41,800 Speaker 1: It does sound like this guy's heart was in the 231 00:11:41,880 --> 00:11:44,880 Speaker 1: right place, Like I know, this doesn't feel like a 232 00:11:44,920 --> 00:11:47,640 Speaker 1: sound theory about what goes on from here. Well, this 233 00:11:47,679 --> 00:11:50,360 Speaker 1: is where Stubborns needed proof on this. So so the 234 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:52,839 Speaker 1: doctor in training began a series of self experiments to 235 00:11:52,880 --> 00:11:55,040 Speaker 1: show that no matter how often he was exposed to 236 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:58,280 Speaker 1: yellow fever, he would never catch it. And, not being 237 00:11:58,320 --> 00:12:01,880 Speaker 1: the kind of guy to do anything halfway, Stubborns decided 238 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:04,560 Speaker 1: that his best chance to ensure he was properly exposed 239 00:12:04,600 --> 00:12:07,480 Speaker 1: to the disease was to use This was the quote 240 00:12:07,480 --> 00:12:12,920 Speaker 1: from this notebook, Fresh Black Vomit from yellow fever patients. 241 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:16,680 Speaker 1: So this is already disgusting and I'm pretty grossed out, 242 00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:18,719 Speaker 1: but I do have to ask, like, what do you 243 00:12:18,760 --> 00:12:21,240 Speaker 1: mean by he used it? He used to how well 244 00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:23,520 Speaker 1: in all sorts of ways, and this actually gets even 245 00:12:23,559 --> 00:12:25,920 Speaker 1: more disgusting. But here the way. So first he tried 246 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:27,880 Speaker 1: to make small cuts on his arms, and then he 247 00:12:27,920 --> 00:12:31,959 Speaker 1: would pour some of this vomit into his wounds. Next 248 00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:34,679 Speaker 1: he DAPs some of the mess directly into his eyes. 249 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:39,160 Speaker 1: Then he heated some in a skillet and inhaled the fumes. 250 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:42,160 Speaker 1: And then lastly, as if those things weren't gross enough, 251 00:12:42,280 --> 00:12:44,720 Speaker 1: he just went for it. And I'm not joking. I 252 00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:47,000 Speaker 1: think you saw this coming. He just chugged some of 253 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:49,680 Speaker 1: the stuff, which makes me feel sick just hearing this. 254 00:12:49,760 --> 00:12:53,280 Speaker 1: But I mean, Stubbns never got sick, which, of course, 255 00:12:53,360 --> 00:12:54,960 Speaker 1: and I don't know how he would know that he 256 00:12:55,000 --> 00:12:57,600 Speaker 1: didn't get sick, because I can't imagine doing any of 257 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:01,199 Speaker 1: these things and not vomiting yourself. He took this all 258 00:13:01,240 --> 00:13:04,000 Speaker 1: as proof for his theory, so I don't understand how 259 00:13:04,200 --> 00:13:07,560 Speaker 1: any of that's possible. Like I thought yellow fever was contagious, 260 00:13:07,559 --> 00:13:09,960 Speaker 1: so it definitely has I mean it's highly contagious. But 261 00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:12,679 Speaker 1: as we know, the disease needs to come into direct 262 00:13:12,800 --> 00:13:15,960 Speaker 1: contact with the blood stream in order to cause that infection. 263 00:13:16,280 --> 00:13:18,960 Speaker 1: And that's likely why Stubborns observed so many more cases 264 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:21,280 Speaker 1: of yellow fever in the summer. There were just more 265 00:13:21,320 --> 00:13:24,680 Speaker 1: mosquitoes around to spread the disease. So I get that, 266 00:13:24,760 --> 00:13:27,240 Speaker 1: But why didn't Stubborns get sick when he was cutting 267 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:30,320 Speaker 1: himself in you know, like exposing that stuff to his cuts, 268 00:13:30,440 --> 00:13:32,440 Speaker 1: And I mean that that had to get in his 269 00:13:32,440 --> 00:13:35,520 Speaker 1: blood stream right, Well, normally, yes, but as it turned 270 00:13:35,520 --> 00:13:37,840 Speaker 1: out in this case, most of the patients whose samples 271 00:13:37,880 --> 00:13:40,480 Speaker 1: he used were in the late stages of yellow fever, 272 00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:44,000 Speaker 1: and by that point they were actually no longer contagious. 273 00:13:44,040 --> 00:13:46,959 Speaker 1: Though of course, you know Stubborns didn't know this. Well. 274 00:13:47,000 --> 00:13:48,560 Speaker 1: I mean, i'd say we're firmly in the realm of 275 00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,160 Speaker 1: misguided experiments after that one. So I'm actually gonna keep 276 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:52,920 Speaker 1: the ball rolling with what I hope will be something 277 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:55,679 Speaker 1: of a palate cleanser. And this is this crazy study 278 00:13:55,720 --> 00:13:59,280 Speaker 1: I found out about mating instincts of turkeys. I like 279 00:13:59,320 --> 00:14:02,800 Speaker 1: how you're calling mating instincts of turkeys a a palate cleanser. 280 00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:06,040 Speaker 1: But but tell me more here. Yeah, it's a turkey 281 00:14:06,040 --> 00:14:10,600 Speaker 1: and moose bush. So wild turkeys are notoriously difficult to hunt, 282 00:14:10,600 --> 00:14:13,679 Speaker 1: which is why human hunters often resort to these lifelike 283 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:16,640 Speaker 1: decoy models of female turkeys. They use these to lure 284 00:14:16,640 --> 00:14:19,640 Speaker 1: the bigger male birds to them, and the males don't 285 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:22,080 Speaker 1: seem to mind or even notice the difference. For the 286 00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:25,640 Speaker 1: most part. They're actually perfectly content to mate with these 287 00:14:25,640 --> 00:14:28,920 Speaker 1: phony birds. And that behavior is actually what caught the 288 00:14:28,920 --> 00:14:31,680 Speaker 1: attention of these two researchers at the University of Pennsylvania. 289 00:14:31,880 --> 00:14:34,800 Speaker 1: Oh wow, so we're back in Pennsylvania again. Yeah, it's 290 00:14:34,800 --> 00:14:37,640 Speaker 1: a hotbed of science. But anyway, these guys that you 291 00:14:37,760 --> 00:14:41,400 Speaker 1: pen start wondering what was the minimal stimulus for exciting 292 00:14:41,400 --> 00:14:43,840 Speaker 1: a turkey, and so to figure that out, they decided 293 00:14:43,880 --> 00:14:47,200 Speaker 1: to gradually remove parts from a decoy turkey until the 294 00:14:47,280 --> 00:14:50,760 Speaker 1: male inevitably lost interests. So first they removed the tail 295 00:14:50,760 --> 00:14:53,960 Speaker 1: and the tail feathers, and then the feet and lastly 296 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 1: the wings. But despite all of these missing appendages, the 297 00:14:57,680 --> 00:15:00,200 Speaker 1: males were still eager to mate with the decoy. I mean, 298 00:15:00,320 --> 00:15:04,280 Speaker 1: I guess they just loved the personality and eventually the 299 00:15:04,320 --> 00:15:07,160 Speaker 1: researchers were down to just ahead on a stick. And 300 00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:09,000 Speaker 1: the strangest far is that the mail try keys were 301 00:15:09,040 --> 00:15:13,160 Speaker 1: still interested. Yeah, that's pretty crazy. I have to admit 302 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:16,560 Speaker 1: I feel slightly scandalized and more than a little concerned 303 00:15:16,560 --> 00:15:18,800 Speaker 1: about what the good people of Pennsylvania are doing with 304 00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:21,320 Speaker 1: their time. All in the name of science, I guess. 305 00:15:21,360 --> 00:15:23,800 Speaker 1: But alright, well, since you open the seal on weird 306 00:15:23,880 --> 00:15:27,840 Speaker 1: animal studies, there's one I've been dying to tell you about. Absolutely, 307 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:43,400 Speaker 1: But first let's take a quick break. You're listening to 308 00:15:43,400 --> 00:15:44,920 Speaker 1: part time Genius and we're talking about some of the 309 00:15:44,960 --> 00:15:48,200 Speaker 1: strangest experiments in the history of science. Now for better 310 00:15:48,280 --> 00:15:51,040 Speaker 1: Whereas many of the weirdest projects do tend to involve 311 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:54,040 Speaker 1: animal test subjects, but rather than focusing on the more 312 00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:57,080 Speaker 1: upsetting ones where animals come to harm, instead, I want 313 00:15:57,080 --> 00:15:59,080 Speaker 1: to tell you the story of a young boy and 314 00:15:59,160 --> 00:16:02,720 Speaker 1: his adopted chimpanzee sister. And yes, I said it is 315 00:16:02,760 --> 00:16:06,040 Speaker 1: adopted sister. Now, probably the most troubling aspect of this 316 00:16:06,080 --> 00:16:08,360 Speaker 1: one is that the boy's father decided to carry out 317 00:16:08,440 --> 00:16:12,160 Speaker 1: his experiment using his own son. But don't worry before 318 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:14,560 Speaker 1: I tell you about this the boy makes it through unharmed, 319 00:16:14,640 --> 00:16:17,600 Speaker 1: or at least more or less unharmed. Anyway. The father's 320 00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:20,440 Speaker 1: name was Winthrop Kellogg, and he was a psychologist who 321 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:22,720 Speaker 1: wondered what would happen if an animal was raised by 322 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:26,440 Speaker 1: humans as a human. This was in the early nineteen thirties, 323 00:16:26,440 --> 00:16:28,120 Speaker 1: so if you think about the time, then this is 324 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:30,600 Speaker 1: when you know the Tarzan books were all the rage, 325 00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:33,560 Speaker 1: and there are also several real life accounts of feral 326 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:36,880 Speaker 1: children who had been raised by animals, And so Kellogg 327 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:40,120 Speaker 1: was inspired by these stories and he wanted to test 328 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,040 Speaker 1: the opposite case, like, if an animal was raised as 329 00:16:43,080 --> 00:16:46,440 Speaker 1: a human, would it eventually act like a human too? 330 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:49,680 Speaker 1: Oh so it's like a bizarro jungle book or like 331 00:16:49,760 --> 00:16:53,000 Speaker 1: the reverse of Amogli situation. Yeah. So so that in 332 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 1: Kellogg brought home a seven month old female chimpanzee named Gua, 333 00:16:57,680 --> 00:16:59,360 Speaker 1: and he and his wife, who must have been this 334 00:16:59,440 --> 00:17:03,960 Speaker 1: extremely patient woman, started raising the chimp alongside their ten 335 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:07,239 Speaker 1: month old son Donald. And the Kelloggs treated their two 336 00:17:07,320 --> 00:17:10,159 Speaker 1: kids exactly the same. Donald and Gua were allowed to 337 00:17:10,160 --> 00:17:13,040 Speaker 1: play together, they ate together. They also took part in 338 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:16,159 Speaker 1: regular tests to track their development. For example, there was 339 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:18,640 Speaker 1: this one cookie test where the Kelloggs hung a cookie 340 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:20,960 Speaker 1: from a string in the middle of the room and 341 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:23,000 Speaker 1: then they timed how long it took the boy and 342 00:17:23,040 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 1: the chimp to reach it. Okay, so I mean he 343 00:17:26,560 --> 00:17:28,920 Speaker 1: was pitting a chimp against a baby, so the chip 344 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:32,119 Speaker 1: mop the floor with him, not surprising, it was no contest. 345 00:17:32,440 --> 00:17:35,720 Speaker 1: In fact, Gan typically outperformed Donald on just about all 346 00:17:35,800 --> 00:17:38,439 Speaker 1: the tests they took, except some of the ones that 347 00:17:38,520 --> 00:17:41,879 Speaker 1: involved language acquisition. So I know this is supposed to 348 00:17:41,920 --> 00:17:44,760 Speaker 1: be like a non upsetting study, but constantly losing to 349 00:17:44,840 --> 00:17:47,440 Speaker 1: a chimp couldn't have been good for a kid's self esteem, right, 350 00:17:47,640 --> 00:17:51,840 Speaker 1: Probably not, But you know, one downside did become clear 351 00:17:51,840 --> 00:17:54,480 Speaker 1: about nine months into the experiment, and and that was 352 00:17:54,520 --> 00:17:57,160 Speaker 1: that baby Donald's own language skills were not as far 353 00:17:57,160 --> 00:17:59,600 Speaker 1: along as they should have been. And looking back on this, 354 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:02,720 Speaker 1: that's probably not such a big surprise. But while he 355 00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: sometimes did better than Gua on their language based test, 356 00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:08,080 Speaker 1: it really wasn't by much, and so it started to 357 00:18:08,119 --> 00:18:11,200 Speaker 1: look like, rather than Donald having a humanizing effect on Gua, 358 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:14,720 Speaker 1: he was actually starting to adapt some to her way instead. 359 00:18:15,200 --> 00:18:17,520 Speaker 1: And the deciding moment came one day when Donald let 360 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:20,520 Speaker 1: his parents know how hungry he was by imitating the 361 00:18:20,560 --> 00:18:24,240 Speaker 1: barking sounds that Gua was making whenever she wanted. So 362 00:18:24,240 --> 00:18:26,440 Speaker 1: when the Kellogg's heard the food bark coming from their 363 00:18:26,520 --> 00:18:28,880 Speaker 1: human son, they decided then it was time to pull 364 00:18:28,920 --> 00:18:30,639 Speaker 1: the plug on the experiment. But I like that it 365 00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:32,600 Speaker 1: took that much to get them to realize maybe it 366 00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:36,240 Speaker 1: wasn't a great idea. Yeah, it seems like a smart move. 367 00:18:36,359 --> 00:18:39,320 Speaker 1: But strangely enough, the Kelloggs weren't the only scientists parents 368 00:18:39,320 --> 00:18:41,639 Speaker 1: to use their own kids as test subjects. So I 369 00:18:41,680 --> 00:18:44,600 Speaker 1: was reading about this other psychologist from the ninet thirties 370 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:47,879 Speaker 1: named Clarence Luba, and he used his own kids to 371 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:51,040 Speaker 1: determine if people learned to laugh when tickled or if 372 00:18:51,040 --> 00:18:54,280 Speaker 1: it's an innate response. I mean, this sounds more pleasant 373 00:18:54,320 --> 00:18:56,679 Speaker 1: than being pitted against the chimp. But I mean, if 374 00:18:56,680 --> 00:18:58,640 Speaker 1: you're going to use your own kids as test subjects, 375 00:18:58,640 --> 00:19:01,520 Speaker 1: at least don't be creepy about it, you know. Yeah, 376 00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:03,879 Speaker 1: I mean, I guess it depends on your definition of creepy. 377 00:19:03,920 --> 00:19:06,639 Speaker 1: Because Luba decided that he shouldn't laugh or show a 378 00:19:06,680 --> 00:19:09,600 Speaker 1: happy expression while he was tickling his kids because that 379 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:13,119 Speaker 1: might ruin the experiment. So you know, the the idea 380 00:19:13,119 --> 00:19:15,600 Speaker 1: is that they might mimic his behavior or use it 381 00:19:15,600 --> 00:19:18,400 Speaker 1: to infer the proper response is to laugh when tickled. 382 00:19:18,480 --> 00:19:22,640 Speaker 1: So just to prevent that, Luba actually banned all unauthorized 383 00:19:22,640 --> 00:19:26,480 Speaker 1: tickling in his household and he institute these clinical daily 384 00:19:26,560 --> 00:19:30,880 Speaker 1: tickling sessions instead. And during these designated tickling times, uh, 385 00:19:31,040 --> 00:19:34,240 Speaker 1: Luba would hide his facial expressions behind a mask and 386 00:19:34,280 --> 00:19:37,960 Speaker 1: then joylessly tickle his son. Oh, I take it back, man, 387 00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:43,320 Speaker 1: this is the creepiest thing I've ever heard tickling sessions. 388 00:19:43,359 --> 00:19:45,119 Speaker 1: And that's just I don't know, maga, It's just like 389 00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:49,679 Speaker 1: deeply unnerving. Yeah. And Luba even took this measured approach 390 00:19:49,720 --> 00:19:52,399 Speaker 1: to how he tickled his son, like first he started 391 00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:54,720 Speaker 1: with a light tickle and then he would like tickle 392 00:19:54,760 --> 00:19:57,960 Speaker 1: more enthusiastically, and he always did the same order like 393 00:19:58,040 --> 00:20:00,440 Speaker 1: he um. I think he started under the pits and 394 00:20:00,480 --> 00:20:03,800 Speaker 1: then went to the ribs and then chin, neck, knees, feet, 395 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:07,080 Speaker 1: and uh. He kept this up for a full seven months, 396 00:20:07,520 --> 00:20:10,359 Speaker 1: and then after that he repeated the experiment for another 397 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:12,840 Speaker 1: seven months with his daughter when she was born. This 398 00:20:13,000 --> 00:20:14,479 Speaker 1: is just I don't want to hear about this one 399 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:16,959 Speaker 1: anymore because I I guess I am curious though, So 400 00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:20,040 Speaker 1: what were Louba's results? Well, in both cases, as you 401 00:20:20,119 --> 00:20:23,400 Speaker 1: might guess, he found that his kids spontaneously laughed when tickled, 402 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:26,240 Speaker 1: even though they had never been shown that behavior before. 403 00:20:26,320 --> 00:20:28,879 Speaker 1: So it would seem that laughing when tickled really is 404 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:31,760 Speaker 1: an innate response, and it only took weirding out a 405 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:34,200 Speaker 1: couple of his own toddlers to figure that out. Well, 406 00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:36,040 Speaker 1: I guess it's worth it in the name of science, 407 00:20:36,359 --> 00:20:39,760 Speaker 1: except not at all. That is so creepy. All right, Well, 408 00:20:39,800 --> 00:20:43,000 Speaker 1: since we're getting into this kind of psychological territory, I 409 00:20:43,040 --> 00:20:44,840 Speaker 1: have to mention a series of studies carried out by 410 00:20:44,920 --> 00:20:47,000 Speaker 1: Dr You and Cameron, and these were in the nineteen 411 00:20:47,040 --> 00:20:50,560 Speaker 1: fifties and sixties. Cameron was convinced that the brain could 412 00:20:50,560 --> 00:20:54,200 Speaker 1: be reprogrammed by imposing new thought patterns on it, and 413 00:20:54,480 --> 00:20:56,320 Speaker 1: his hope was that the method could be used to 414 00:20:56,359 --> 00:21:00,000 Speaker 1: help patients with schizophrenia achieve them more clear and maybe 415 00:21:00,119 --> 00:21:02,919 Speaker 1: positive way of thinking. So the way it was supposed 416 00:21:02,920 --> 00:21:04,640 Speaker 1: to work was that the patients would wear a pair 417 00:21:04,640 --> 00:21:07,520 Speaker 1: of headphones and then they would listen to these audio 418 00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:10,960 Speaker 1: messages that were played over and over, sometimes for days 419 00:21:11,119 --> 00:21:13,720 Speaker 1: or or even weeks at a time. And this was 420 00:21:13,760 --> 00:21:17,080 Speaker 1: something Cameron called psychic driving, because the idea was that 421 00:21:17,119 --> 00:21:20,840 Speaker 1: repeated messages would be driven gradually into the patient's psyche. 422 00:21:21,359 --> 00:21:23,920 Speaker 1: And the press gave the method a different name, though 423 00:21:23,920 --> 00:21:28,399 Speaker 1: they actually called it beneficial brainwashing, which I mean, I 424 00:21:28,400 --> 00:21:30,760 Speaker 1: guess sounds like good branding at least. Yeah, I mean, 425 00:21:30,800 --> 00:21:32,560 Speaker 1: it's a bit of an oxymoron of a name. But 426 00:21:32,720 --> 00:21:36,000 Speaker 1: it didn't deter Cameron, so for over a decade he 427 00:21:36,119 --> 00:21:39,520 Speaker 1: tested his method on hundreds of unwitting patients, many of 428 00:21:39,520 --> 00:21:42,600 Speaker 1: whom didn't even have schizophrenia. In fact, even people with 429 00:21:42,720 --> 00:21:45,920 Speaker 1: minor ailments would sometimes check into the clinic where Cameron worked, 430 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:48,560 Speaker 1: and before they knew it, they were drugged, strapped to 431 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:51,399 Speaker 1: a bed, and forced to listen to loop recordings of 432 00:21:51,440 --> 00:21:54,640 Speaker 1: these aspirational messages. I mean, it's actually crazy to think 433 00:21:54,680 --> 00:21:57,560 Speaker 1: about some of these things. Yeah, it's terrifying. So what 434 00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:00,399 Speaker 1: kind of messages were they made to listen to? Well, 435 00:22:00,400 --> 00:22:03,760 Speaker 1: they were mostly your typical positive reinforcement kind of stuff, 436 00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:06,159 Speaker 1: you know, like they would say things like people like 437 00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:09,320 Speaker 1: you and need you, and and you have confidence in yourself. 438 00:22:09,359 --> 00:22:13,119 Speaker 1: It sounds a little bit Stewart small exactly well. But 439 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:15,840 Speaker 1: one time, though, Cameron put his patients into a drug 440 00:22:15,880 --> 00:22:18,480 Speaker 1: induced sleep and then made them listen to the message 441 00:22:18,600 --> 00:22:21,600 Speaker 1: that said, when you see a piece of paper, you 442 00:22:21,640 --> 00:22:24,320 Speaker 1: want to pick it up. That's all that's said. Then, 443 00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:27,160 Speaker 1: once all the patients had woken up, Cameron drove them 444 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:29,720 Speaker 1: one by one to a gymnasium where a single piece 445 00:22:29,720 --> 00:22:32,119 Speaker 1: of paper was waiting for them on the floor of 446 00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:35,520 Speaker 1: the gym, and, according to report Cameron later wrote about 447 00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:39,720 Speaker 1: the experiment, most of the patients, without any prompting, spontaneously 448 00:22:39,760 --> 00:22:43,960 Speaker 1: walked over and picked up the paper. Such a dum ex. Man, 449 00:22:44,000 --> 00:22:46,399 Speaker 1: it feels like like you should test it with, like 450 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 1: putting a piece of paper and a puppy in a box, right, right, right, 451 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:53,600 Speaker 1: that's a good one. You should be a scientist. Well, 452 00:22:53,640 --> 00:22:58,040 Speaker 1: I basically am. But it doesn't sound like Cameron also 453 00:22:58,080 --> 00:23:00,920 Speaker 1: had like the full consent of this aations. I mean, 454 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:03,600 Speaker 1: did his operations get shut down quickly like once people 455 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:06,159 Speaker 1: caught onto what was happening. Well you would think so, 456 00:23:06,200 --> 00:23:08,640 Speaker 1: but actually when the CIA found out what Cameron had 457 00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:12,120 Speaker 1: been up to, it actually started funding his experiments in secret, 458 00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:14,920 Speaker 1: and this move ultimately backfired. Though there was a group 459 00:23:14,960 --> 00:23:18,400 Speaker 1: of Cameron's former patients that decided to sue the CIA 460 00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:22,399 Speaker 1: actually for supporting his work. I see. I eventually settled 461 00:23:22,400 --> 00:23:24,720 Speaker 1: the matter out of court, and Cameron was forced to 462 00:23:24,760 --> 00:23:27,920 Speaker 1: conceive that his brainwashing experiments, as as he called it, 463 00:23:27,960 --> 00:23:30,280 Speaker 1: had been what did he say, said, a ten year 464 00:23:30,320 --> 00:23:32,680 Speaker 1: trip down the wrong road. I guess that's one way 465 00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:37,560 Speaker 1: to put it. Yeah, I guess it's putting it lightly. 466 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:40,840 Speaker 1: But cameron story actually reminds me of another psychologist who 467 00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:43,879 Speaker 1: tried to change the thought patterns with weird repeated messages 468 00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:46,359 Speaker 1: and it didn't go as planned as you might have guessed. 469 00:23:46,440 --> 00:23:47,879 Speaker 1: And I'll tell you about that in a minute, but 470 00:23:48,000 --> 00:24:04,080 Speaker 1: first we gotta take another quick break. Okay, mano, let's 471 00:24:04,080 --> 00:24:06,760 Speaker 1: hear it. What's the strange subliminal science project that you 472 00:24:06,840 --> 00:24:10,360 Speaker 1: wanted to tell us about? Sure, so, I'm actually gonna 473 00:24:10,400 --> 00:24:12,959 Speaker 1: set the mood for this one. So the years nineteen 474 00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:15,359 Speaker 1: for you two. You're sleep in a cabin at a 475 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:18,240 Speaker 1: summer camp in upstate New York. On all sides of 476 00:24:18,280 --> 00:24:21,320 Speaker 1: you or other teenage boys also sleeping, and just a 477 00:24:21,320 --> 00:24:24,240 Speaker 1: few feet away there's a man standing alone in the darkness. 478 00:24:24,720 --> 00:24:28,159 Speaker 1: He speaks out loud to his unconscious audience. Again and again, 479 00:24:28,440 --> 00:24:32,480 Speaker 1: he mechanically recites the same one phrase, my fingernails taste 480 00:24:32,560 --> 00:24:36,399 Speaker 1: terribly bitter. My fingernails taste terribly bitter. Oh man, go, 481 00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:40,000 Speaker 1: I gotta stop at these you found these weird experiments? 482 00:24:40,320 --> 00:24:42,280 Speaker 1: Are you sure this is a science story and not 483 00:24:42,359 --> 00:24:45,439 Speaker 1: just a horror story? You're creeping me out today? I 484 00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:47,560 Speaker 1: know from from what I can tell you really was 485 00:24:47,560 --> 00:24:50,040 Speaker 1: in the name of the science. Uh. This guy's name 486 00:24:50,160 --> 00:24:53,240 Speaker 1: was um Dr Lawrence Lession, and that night in the 487 00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:56,280 Speaker 1: cabin he was actually conducting the sleep learning experiment. So 488 00:24:56,720 --> 00:24:59,800 Speaker 1: all of the boys have actually been diagnosed with c 489 00:25:00,119 --> 00:25:02,200 Speaker 1: like nail biting, and the hope was that they could 490 00:25:02,200 --> 00:25:05,919 Speaker 1: be cured by you know, these nocturnal messaging. You know, 491 00:25:05,920 --> 00:25:07,399 Speaker 1: I'm trying to think about this. So you said this 492 00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:09,240 Speaker 1: was in the forties, and so I'm trying to think 493 00:25:09,280 --> 00:25:12,080 Speaker 1: of how he would have delivered these messages. So, so 494 00:25:12,160 --> 00:25:15,040 Speaker 1: did Lesson have to like creep over them and repeat 495 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:17,600 Speaker 1: this phrase, you know, all night long to them? That 496 00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:20,879 Speaker 1: just seems so weird. I mean, it's not like he 497 00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:24,280 Speaker 1: could have used a phonograph or something like that, right, Yeah, Well, 498 00:25:24,359 --> 00:25:27,080 Speaker 1: I mean it adds to the story but Lesson actually 499 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:30,040 Speaker 1: did start the study using a recorded message and he 500 00:25:30,119 --> 00:25:32,640 Speaker 1: played it like three hundred times a night for the kids. 501 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:35,720 Speaker 1: But he had to take the task over himself when 502 00:25:35,760 --> 00:25:39,680 Speaker 1: his phonograph broke, and it actually broke down five weeks 503 00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:42,240 Speaker 1: into his experiment. Five weeks? How long was this study 504 00:25:42,280 --> 00:25:46,040 Speaker 1: is supposed to last? The whole summer? Apparently, like can 505 00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:48,159 Speaker 1: you actually imagine these boys coming back to school and 506 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:50,240 Speaker 1: the first day and and uh and they have to 507 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:52,560 Speaker 1: answer these questions for the classmates about how they spent 508 00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:55,680 Speaker 1: their summers and and you know, other kids would be like, oh, 509 00:25:55,720 --> 00:25:57,359 Speaker 1: I went to Hawaii, or you know, I went to 510 00:25:57,560 --> 00:26:00,359 Speaker 1: my grandparents and they're like, I spent eight weeks in 511 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:02,399 Speaker 1: a cabin with some weirdo telling me how bad my 512 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:05,760 Speaker 1: fingernails taste. Oh my gosh, So so I do have 513 00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:07,720 Speaker 1: to know. I mean, that sounds terrible, But was the 514 00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:10,159 Speaker 1: experiment of success like that the kids stopped biting their 515 00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:12,960 Speaker 1: nails kind of? I mean, at the end of the summer, 516 00:26:13,080 --> 00:26:16,400 Speaker 1: Lession determined that the boys had been cured, which made 517 00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:19,280 Speaker 1: it seem like his sleep learning techniques had some real merit, 518 00:26:19,440 --> 00:26:23,000 Speaker 1: But unfortunately other researchers looked into it. And they tested 519 00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:25,880 Speaker 1: his method. And you know, one study in nineteen six 520 00:26:25,960 --> 00:26:29,080 Speaker 1: track participants brain activity to make sure they were totally 521 00:26:29,119 --> 00:26:32,760 Speaker 1: asleep before playing this anti nail biting message, and in 522 00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:36,000 Speaker 1: that case, like the unconscious messaging didn't have any effect 523 00:26:36,000 --> 00:26:38,359 Speaker 1: at all. So the whole idea was that, you know, 524 00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:41,720 Speaker 1: those had probably kicked the habit because they were still 525 00:26:41,840 --> 00:26:45,040 Speaker 1: someone awake during those readings. Yeah, yeah, but I guess 526 00:26:45,040 --> 00:26:49,480 Speaker 1: beneficial brainwashing really does work. That's uh, that's interesting and weird. 527 00:26:49,840 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 1: Do you know one kind of weird experiment we haven't 528 00:26:51,640 --> 00:26:55,040 Speaker 1: talked much about today are the government funded kind of experiments. 529 00:26:55,040 --> 00:26:56,760 Speaker 1: And you know, we did cover some of these back 530 00:26:56,760 --> 00:26:59,960 Speaker 1: in our episode on Bizarre government investments, but I can't 531 00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:02,359 Speaker 1: across another one this week, and it's just too good 532 00:27:02,440 --> 00:27:05,600 Speaker 1: not to share. And it's called Bird's eye bomb, and 533 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:08,280 Speaker 1: it was developed during World War two by the famous 534 00:27:08,280 --> 00:27:12,119 Speaker 1: psychologist and behavior's named BF Skinner. Now, the idea here 535 00:27:12,119 --> 00:27:15,879 Speaker 1: amounted to what was basically a pigeon guided missile. And 536 00:27:15,920 --> 00:27:18,159 Speaker 1: when you know what, the inspiration came to Skinner one 537 00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:21,040 Speaker 1: day when he was watching a nearby flock of pigeons. 538 00:27:21,480 --> 00:27:24,160 Speaker 1: As he later wrote of this sense and and he says, suddenly, 539 00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:28,680 Speaker 1: I saw them as devices with excellent vision and extraordinary maneuverability. 540 00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:33,160 Speaker 1: Could they not guide a missile? So? I mean, who 541 00:27:33,200 --> 00:27:36,520 Speaker 1: hasn't seen a flock of pigeons and thought that? I 542 00:27:36,520 --> 00:27:38,879 Speaker 1: had a little confused that, Like, how exactly is this 543 00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:42,040 Speaker 1: supposed to work? All right? Well, Skinner trained the pigeons 544 00:27:42,040 --> 00:27:45,560 Speaker 1: to peck carefully at chosen images, like an enemy battleship, 545 00:27:45,640 --> 00:27:48,440 Speaker 1: for example. And you know, once the birds had committed 546 00:27:48,440 --> 00:27:51,240 Speaker 1: these targets to memory, Skinner would put them in these 547 00:27:51,280 --> 00:27:55,120 Speaker 1: custom made missile nose cones. And so the makeshift cockpit 548 00:27:55,160 --> 00:27:58,600 Speaker 1: included a little plastic screen and they used mirrors for this, 549 00:27:58,680 --> 00:28:00,680 Speaker 1: and then there would be an image of the missile's 550 00:28:00,720 --> 00:28:03,760 Speaker 1: flight path that could be projected onto it. So by 551 00:28:03,800 --> 00:28:06,520 Speaker 1: pecking at the screen, the pigeons were able to alter 552 00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:09,200 Speaker 1: the coordinates, and basically by doing this, they would steer 553 00:28:09,240 --> 00:28:12,400 Speaker 1: it toward a specific target. I mean, that's that's both 554 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:16,000 Speaker 1: ingenious and insane. And you know, this idea of like 555 00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:20,680 Speaker 1: kama kaze pigeons sounds so ridiculous, But I mean, is 556 00:28:20,720 --> 00:28:23,880 Speaker 1: there any way it could really work? So? Surprisingly, yes, 557 00:28:23,960 --> 00:28:27,680 Speaker 1: I mean, preliminary tests proved the pigeons were top notch pilots, 558 00:28:27,720 --> 00:28:30,600 Speaker 1: and plenty of scientists endorsed the project in light of 559 00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:33,760 Speaker 1: those early results, but in the end, the military just 560 00:28:33,800 --> 00:28:37,320 Speaker 1: couldn't stomach the thought of funding such a silly sounding project. 561 00:28:37,440 --> 00:28:41,560 Speaker 1: So the cut Skinner's funding completely in October of four. 562 00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:43,400 Speaker 1: And it's just a shame because Top Gun could have 563 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:45,680 Speaker 1: been a totally different movie if you think about it. 564 00:28:46,480 --> 00:28:48,640 Speaker 1: I know, the animated Disney movie Top Gun would have 565 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:53,160 Speaker 1: been Okay. So you know you sneaked in another animal 566 00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:55,000 Speaker 1: based study, and so I need to do the same 567 00:28:55,160 --> 00:28:57,840 Speaker 1: and tell you about this fateful experiment that sent the 568 00:28:57,920 --> 00:29:01,440 Speaker 1: first humble Tarte grade to space. All Right, I feel 569 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:04,560 Speaker 1: like I've seen tartar grades in the news or reported 570 00:29:04,640 --> 00:29:07,280 Speaker 1: on a lot in recent years. But remind me of 571 00:29:07,320 --> 00:29:09,880 Speaker 1: what that is because it rings a bell as an animal, 572 00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:11,760 Speaker 1: but it also just sounds like something that might be 573 00:29:11,800 --> 00:29:15,560 Speaker 1: from like Doctor Who or something. Yeah. So, Tarte grades 574 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:20,240 Speaker 1: are these microscopic, eight legged potato looking things. They look 575 00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:23,320 Speaker 1: like little monster potatoes. Sometimes they were called water bears 576 00:29:23,560 --> 00:29:26,800 Speaker 1: or moss piglets, and you can actually find them in 577 00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:29,080 Speaker 1: just about every habitat on Earth. You can find them 578 00:29:29,080 --> 00:29:33,720 Speaker 1: on like mountaintops, rainforests. The bottom lags even even in Antarctica, 579 00:29:33,840 --> 00:29:36,960 Speaker 1: which is pretty incredible. But you know, speaking of doctor who, 580 00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:39,720 Speaker 1: because you mentioned it, the team behind the study must 581 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:42,800 Speaker 1: have been fans, because they actually named their experiment tarte 582 00:29:42,840 --> 00:29:46,400 Speaker 1: grades in space or tartis. Actually I just pulled up 583 00:29:46,400 --> 00:29:49,120 Speaker 1: a picture and they do look both cute and freaky, 584 00:29:49,160 --> 00:29:52,320 Speaker 1: and it's crazy that they're only like a millimeter big. 585 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:54,600 Speaker 1: But so he said, we shot these things into space 586 00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:57,800 Speaker 1: for some reason. Yeah, a team of European researchers wanted 587 00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,280 Speaker 1: to test just how resilient these tartar grades really they are, 588 00:30:00,440 --> 00:30:03,480 Speaker 1: because you can probably tell from that list of habitats 589 00:30:03,560 --> 00:30:07,160 Speaker 1: that you know, they're hardy creatures and they can survive 590 00:30:07,160 --> 00:30:10,360 Speaker 1: temperatures as low as negative three d twenty eight degrees 591 00:30:10,400 --> 00:30:13,520 Speaker 1: fahrenheit or as high as three hundred degrees fahrenheit. They 592 00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:16,400 Speaker 1: can also stand up to pressures as powerful as six 593 00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:19,320 Speaker 1: thousand times that of the Earth's atmosphere, and they can 594 00:30:19,320 --> 00:30:21,960 Speaker 1: even survive doses of radiation that are thousands of times 595 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:25,240 Speaker 1: stronger than it would take to kill humans. So clearly 596 00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:28,600 Speaker 1: they're super tough creatures, and it actually turns out there 597 00:30:28,680 --> 00:30:31,680 Speaker 1: so tough they can even survive exposure to the vacuum 598 00:30:31,680 --> 00:30:35,080 Speaker 1: of outer space. Wow. So so researchers just flew a 599 00:30:35,120 --> 00:30:36,800 Speaker 1: bunch of these what you what do you call them? 600 00:30:36,840 --> 00:30:38,720 Speaker 1: I like the name of moss picklets. I think that 601 00:30:38,800 --> 00:30:40,920 Speaker 1: was my favorite. So they flew these things into space 602 00:30:40,920 --> 00:30:44,280 Speaker 1: and just like chuck them out the airlock or what Yeah, 603 00:30:44,320 --> 00:30:46,520 Speaker 1: I mean the the approach was a little more nuanced 604 00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:50,160 Speaker 1: than that. So first they dehydrated the targets and uh, 605 00:30:50,200 --> 00:30:52,480 Speaker 1: you know, that makes them enter this state of hibernation 606 00:30:52,680 --> 00:30:56,080 Speaker 1: where all their metabolic activity drops to about point one 607 00:30:56,120 --> 00:30:59,000 Speaker 1: percent of normal levels. And then once they're in this 608 00:30:59,080 --> 00:31:02,320 Speaker 1: protective state, researchers exposed one group of water bears to 609 00:31:02,320 --> 00:31:05,280 Speaker 1: the vacuum space and another to both the vacuum space 610 00:31:05,360 --> 00:31:09,040 Speaker 1: and this immense radiation from the Sun. And after full 611 00:31:09,120 --> 00:31:11,880 Speaker 1: ten days of this, right ten days, the targe grains 612 00:31:11,920 --> 00:31:16,360 Speaker 1: were brought back to Earth and rehydrated, and amazingly, sixty 613 00:31:16,760 --> 00:31:20,000 Speaker 1: percent of the targe grades exposed only to outer space survived, 614 00:31:20,320 --> 00:31:22,480 Speaker 1: and even among the ones who were also exposed to 615 00:31:22,480 --> 00:31:27,120 Speaker 1: solar radiation, a handful were successfully revived. And the craziest part, 616 00:31:27,400 --> 00:31:29,800 Speaker 1: some of these even went on to produce healthy offspring. 617 00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:33,600 Speaker 1: So those things are pretty much unstoppable. But you know, 618 00:31:33,600 --> 00:31:36,240 Speaker 1: I actually have my own weird space experiment to share, 619 00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:38,640 Speaker 1: and I happen to think it blows yours away. Man, 620 00:31:38,760 --> 00:31:40,800 Speaker 1: I just wanted to get heads up on this. And this. 621 00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:43,680 Speaker 1: This comes from when a two man crew took the 622 00:31:43,720 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: Gemini three on a several trips around the Earth's orbit, 623 00:31:47,320 --> 00:31:49,760 Speaker 1: and one of the astronauts on that mission, John Young, 624 00:31:49,800 --> 00:31:52,040 Speaker 1: was apparently not a fan of the kind of the 625 00:31:52,120 --> 00:31:55,720 Speaker 1: standard food from a tube that NASA was typically providing them, 626 00:31:56,080 --> 00:31:58,920 Speaker 1: because once the pair reached orbit, Young revealed that he 627 00:31:58,960 --> 00:32:03,560 Speaker 1: had smuggled aboard contraband corned beef sandwich into his back pocket. 628 00:32:05,200 --> 00:32:07,240 Speaker 1: I mean, I love the story. I know this story, 629 00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:10,480 Speaker 1: but I'm not really sure you can call it an experiment. 630 00:32:10,600 --> 00:32:13,280 Speaker 1: I mean it sounds more like a great anecdote about 631 00:32:13,280 --> 00:32:15,719 Speaker 1: a hungry astronaut. I don't know, man, go actually, let 632 00:32:15,800 --> 00:32:17,760 Speaker 1: let me help me read this transcript. I've got this 633 00:32:17,840 --> 00:32:19,000 Speaker 1: for you. I want you to help me out here 634 00:32:19,000 --> 00:32:21,160 Speaker 1: and you'll see what I mean by this. So I'm 635 00:32:21,160 --> 00:32:24,120 Speaker 1: gonna be John Young, and you're going to be gust Grissome, 636 00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:26,760 Speaker 1: the co pilot. Are you ready to do this. Yeah, 637 00:32:26,800 --> 00:32:28,880 Speaker 1: I've got the script here, go go for it. It's 638 00:32:28,920 --> 00:32:33,280 Speaker 1: your line first. What is it a corn beef sandwich? 639 00:32:33,480 --> 00:32:35,840 Speaker 1: Where did that come from? I brought it with me. 640 00:32:35,920 --> 00:32:39,880 Speaker 1: Let's see how it tastes, smells, doesn't it. That's it. 641 00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,680 Speaker 1: That's the whole The whole incident lasted like thirty seconds, 642 00:32:43,040 --> 00:32:46,720 Speaker 1: including the script. I know, but it was worth it 643 00:32:46,760 --> 00:32:49,280 Speaker 1: because you know, there was thirty seconds, and that included 644 00:32:49,360 --> 00:32:51,560 Speaker 1: the time it took the nibble the sandwich before Young 645 00:32:51,640 --> 00:32:53,920 Speaker 1: tucked it back into his flight suit. But see, they 646 00:32:53,960 --> 00:32:56,640 Speaker 1: wanted to see what it tasted like. That's the experiment. 647 00:32:56,680 --> 00:32:59,640 Speaker 1: Does a corn beef sandwich taste and smell the same 648 00:32:59,640 --> 00:33:02,360 Speaker 1: in space ace as it does on Earth? And Young 649 00:33:02,520 --> 00:33:05,320 Speaker 1: suffered for his science too. After the mission. He was 650 00:33:05,360 --> 00:33:08,480 Speaker 1: sternly chastised by his superiors at NASA, though I guess 651 00:33:08,520 --> 00:33:10,960 Speaker 1: they didn't come down on too hard because he was 652 00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:12,840 Speaker 1: still permitted to land on the Moon as part of 653 00:33:12,840 --> 00:33:16,840 Speaker 1: the Apollo sixteen mission. Well, I am glad that an 654 00:33:16,840 --> 00:33:21,040 Speaker 1: illicit sandwich incident didn't cost him his career. Well all right, well, 655 00:33:21,080 --> 00:33:22,880 Speaker 1: I can tell from the smoke coming out of Tristan's 656 00:33:22,880 --> 00:33:25,120 Speaker 1: potato that we're running short on time. I do have 657 00:33:25,200 --> 00:33:28,560 Speaker 1: a few more weird experiments I wanted to cover, though, well, 658 00:33:28,600 --> 00:33:37,640 Speaker 1: thankfully that's exactly what the facts board. Why don't we 659 00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:40,920 Speaker 1: start with an experiment by the Swedish playwright August Strenberg. 660 00:33:41,360 --> 00:33:44,600 Speaker 1: Strendberg wasn't a scientist, but he certainly had some ideas, 661 00:33:45,080 --> 00:33:47,320 Speaker 1: and one of those was his belief that plants had 662 00:33:47,440 --> 00:33:52,240 Speaker 1: nervous systems and for some reason botanist had just overlooked it. Anyway, 663 00:33:52,280 --> 00:33:55,480 Speaker 1: he was determined to show everyone that plants could feel things. 664 00:33:55,960 --> 00:33:58,280 Speaker 1: So during his walks around town, he would take out 665 00:33:58,320 --> 00:34:01,120 Speaker 1: some morphine and you know, away we all carry morphine, 666 00:34:01,120 --> 00:34:03,480 Speaker 1: I guess in our back pocket, so that he inject 667 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:06,520 Speaker 1: whatever he saw to see how it would react. And 668 00:34:06,560 --> 00:34:09,160 Speaker 1: one day he was arrested for injecting an apple with 669 00:34:09,200 --> 00:34:11,239 Speaker 1: the drug. But when he explained he was just trying 670 00:34:11,280 --> 00:34:13,280 Speaker 1: to get the apple high in the name of science, 671 00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:15,680 Speaker 1: the officer figured he was just a sweet lunatic and 672 00:34:15,719 --> 00:34:18,040 Speaker 1: not someone trying to go around poisoning the city and 673 00:34:18,120 --> 00:34:21,640 Speaker 1: let him go. So, you know, I've always heard that 674 00:34:21,680 --> 00:34:24,200 Speaker 1: thing about how a soul weighs twenty one grahams, which 675 00:34:24,239 --> 00:34:25,960 Speaker 1: is odd, like, why does it have to be in 676 00:34:25,960 --> 00:34:29,040 Speaker 1: the metric system we live in America. That the about it, right, 677 00:34:29,680 --> 00:34:33,400 Speaker 1: It should be like three forts of announced. But anyway, 678 00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:36,400 Speaker 1: I was curious where the idea came from, and apparently 679 00:34:36,400 --> 00:34:40,399 Speaker 1: it goes back to to this Massachusetts doctors, this guy 680 00:34:40,480 --> 00:34:44,280 Speaker 1: named Duncan McDougal, and so this actually comes from Discover magazine. 681 00:34:44,280 --> 00:34:47,080 Speaker 1: But to figure it out, McDougall made this bed fitted 682 00:34:47,120 --> 00:34:49,560 Speaker 1: with scales, and then he convinced a bunch of terminally 683 00:34:49,600 --> 00:34:52,279 Speaker 1: ill patients and this is pretty crazy, that they should 684 00:34:52,320 --> 00:34:55,000 Speaker 1: make it their literal deathbed. And then he was actually 685 00:34:55,040 --> 00:34:58,760 Speaker 1: pretty meticulous about it. So this is from the magazine quote. 686 00:34:59,040 --> 00:35:01,640 Speaker 1: He recorded not only each patient's exact time of death, 687 00:35:01,680 --> 00:35:03,680 Speaker 1: but also his or her total time on the bed, 688 00:35:03,880 --> 00:35:06,160 Speaker 1: as well as any changes in weight that occurred around 689 00:35:06,160 --> 00:35:09,320 Speaker 1: the moment of expiration. He even factored losses of bodily 690 00:35:09,320 --> 00:35:12,560 Speaker 1: fluids like sweat and urine and gases like oxygen and 691 00:35:12,680 --> 00:35:16,239 Speaker 1: nitrogen into his calculations. Of course, you know the conclusion 692 00:35:16,360 --> 00:35:18,680 Speaker 1: right like after the soul escaped the body, the people 693 00:35:18,719 --> 00:35:21,839 Speaker 1: weighed twenty one grams less. Okay, I've got one about 694 00:35:21,840 --> 00:35:24,480 Speaker 1: a guy named Hitting Brand and he really wanted to 695 00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:27,280 Speaker 1: get wealthy, and he believed he had a Scrooge McDuck 696 00:35:27,360 --> 00:35:29,600 Speaker 1: wade to kind of get there, and that was through 697 00:35:29,840 --> 00:35:33,960 Speaker 1: p Now in sixteen sixty nine, the German olcomist apparently 698 00:35:34,000 --> 00:35:38,040 Speaker 1: had stalked about fifteen hundred gallons worth of urine in 699 00:35:38,080 --> 00:35:41,279 Speaker 1: his basement. That is just so weird, but growth he 700 00:35:41,400 --> 00:35:44,279 Speaker 1: was convinced he could spin it into goal. Of course 701 00:35:44,400 --> 00:35:48,320 Speaker 1: he couldn't, but his experiments did lead to one interesting discovery. 702 00:35:48,680 --> 00:35:51,920 Speaker 1: After boiling one sample, he noticed a bit of unusual 703 00:35:52,040 --> 00:35:55,759 Speaker 1: glowing liquid, which is how he ended up discovering phosphorus. 704 00:35:56,520 --> 00:35:59,040 Speaker 1: Oh that's amazing. So you'll be happy to know that 705 00:35:59,080 --> 00:36:01,359 Speaker 1: I didn't just look up turkeys are attracted to I 706 00:36:01,400 --> 00:36:05,600 Speaker 1: also looked into chicken preferences and according to one study, 707 00:36:05,680 --> 00:36:09,239 Speaker 1: chickens don't like ugly people. And basically the scientist Dr 708 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:14,200 Speaker 1: Stephano Garlanda at the Zoology Institution of Stockholm University, he 709 00:36:14,239 --> 00:36:16,800 Speaker 1: was trying trying to understand whether physical attraction is inherited 710 00:36:16,840 --> 00:36:19,279 Speaker 1: due to jeans or learned. So he tested it the 711 00:36:19,320 --> 00:36:21,840 Speaker 1: way any of us would. He took some I guess 712 00:36:22,120 --> 00:36:26,200 Speaker 1: libidinous chickens, and these birds were just hot to trot 713 00:36:26,320 --> 00:36:30,640 Speaker 1: or what, Yeah, they were definitely uh quote excited and 714 00:36:30,640 --> 00:36:33,479 Speaker 1: and uh He showed them photos of people to see 715 00:36:33,480 --> 00:36:35,719 Speaker 1: which ones they wanted to meet with and which ones 716 00:36:35,719 --> 00:36:38,720 Speaker 1: they had pecked. So here Landa took photos of thirty 717 00:36:38,760 --> 00:36:41,319 Speaker 1: five males and females and these are humans, and they 718 00:36:41,360 --> 00:36:44,040 Speaker 1: mashed them into these digital picks of these very average 719 00:36:44,080 --> 00:36:47,359 Speaker 1: looking people and male birds mostly pecked photos of women. 720 00:36:47,520 --> 00:36:50,000 Speaker 1: Hen's mostly pecked photos of men. And then Geir Landa 721 00:36:50,040 --> 00:36:53,239 Speaker 1: gave them this other task. Right, He created another set 722 00:36:53,280 --> 00:36:55,840 Speaker 1: of more faces, and this time he asked college students 723 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:59,440 Speaker 1: to rate the faces on attractiveness. So percent of the 724 00:36:59,480 --> 00:37:03,400 Speaker 1: time the chickens actually pecked the more attractive face. Oh wow, 725 00:37:03,800 --> 00:37:07,480 Speaker 1: that's pretty interesting. Or well, here's a story I learned 726 00:37:07,520 --> 00:37:10,920 Speaker 1: from Cracked, and it asked the important question what happens 727 00:37:10,960 --> 00:37:13,680 Speaker 1: when you get leeches drunk? You know, we've all wondered this. 728 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:16,200 Speaker 1: The idea is that you can actually improve the rate 729 00:37:16,239 --> 00:37:18,200 Speaker 1: that leeches suck blood if you can just get them 730 00:37:18,200 --> 00:37:22,040 Speaker 1: a little bit loose beforehand. So researchers from Norway dipped 731 00:37:22,080 --> 00:37:25,120 Speaker 1: a bunch of leeches in guinness and also smeared some 732 00:37:25,239 --> 00:37:28,840 Speaker 1: in garlic and others in sour cream. Such a weird experiment, 733 00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:31,759 Speaker 1: and I'm guessing it wasn't just the leeches drinking during 734 00:37:31,760 --> 00:37:35,560 Speaker 1: this experiment, So what happened, Well, the drunk leeches are 735 00:37:35,680 --> 00:37:37,880 Speaker 1: not good at sucking blood. I don't know why this 736 00:37:37,920 --> 00:37:40,319 Speaker 1: would come as a surprise to anybody. They just kind 737 00:37:40,320 --> 00:37:43,280 Speaker 1: of wiggled and couldn't focus. They fell off the arms, 738 00:37:43,280 --> 00:37:45,120 Speaker 1: which is just I wish I had a video of 739 00:37:45,160 --> 00:37:47,759 Speaker 1: this experiment because it just sounds so weird. The sour 740 00:37:47,800 --> 00:37:51,319 Speaker 1: cream leeches fared better with slightly better sucking abilities, and 741 00:37:51,360 --> 00:37:55,040 Speaker 1: the garlic coated leeches, like any good vampire, garlic was 742 00:37:55,120 --> 00:37:59,440 Speaker 1: their kryptonite. They actually died. That's pretty amazing, and I'm 743 00:37:59,480 --> 00:38:01,919 Speaker 1: actually glad we started with rats on cocaine and ended 744 00:38:02,000 --> 00:38:05,319 Speaker 1: with leeches on a bender because science is great and 745 00:38:06,040 --> 00:38:08,400 Speaker 1: drunken science might even be better. But I'm gonna give 746 00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:11,759 Speaker 1: you today's uh today's trophy. Well, thank you, it's an honor. Now. 747 00:38:11,760 --> 00:38:14,120 Speaker 1: I'm sure there's so many great experiments. There were many 748 00:38:14,160 --> 00:38:16,759 Speaker 1: we couldn't include that we had looked into, but we'd 749 00:38:16,760 --> 00:38:18,160 Speaker 1: love to hear from you if there are ones that 750 00:38:18,200 --> 00:38:20,400 Speaker 1: you guys want us to hear about. Feel free to 751 00:38:20,440 --> 00:38:22,759 Speaker 1: email us part Time Genius at how stuff Works dot com. 752 00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:25,239 Speaker 1: You can also call us on our seven fact hot 753 00:38:25,280 --> 00:38:28,440 Speaker 1: line that's one eight four four pt genius or has 754 00:38:28,480 --> 00:38:30,799 Speaker 1: always hit us up on Facebook or Twitter. But thanks 755 00:38:30,800 --> 00:38:47,040 Speaker 1: so much for listening. Thanks again for listening. Part Time 756 00:38:47,080 --> 00:38:49,280 Speaker 1: Genius is a production of How Stuff Works and wouldn't 757 00:38:49,320 --> 00:38:52,080 Speaker 1: be possible without several brilliant people who do the important 758 00:38:52,080 --> 00:38:55,239 Speaker 1: things we couldn't even begin to understand. Tristan McNeil does 759 00:38:55,239 --> 00:38:57,520 Speaker 1: the editing thing. Noel Brown made the theme song and 760 00:38:57,560 --> 00:39:00,480 Speaker 1: does the mixy mixy sound thing. Jerry Roland does the 761 00:39:00,520 --> 00:39:03,560 Speaker 1: exact producer thing. Gay Bluesier is our lead researcher, with 762 00:39:03,600 --> 00:39:06,719 Speaker 1: support from the Research Army including Austin Thompson, Nolan Brown 763 00:39:06,760 --> 00:39:09,000 Speaker 1: and Lucas Adams and Eves Jeff Cook gets the show 764 00:39:09,000 --> 00:39:11,120 Speaker 1: to your ears. Good job, Eves. If you like what 765 00:39:11,200 --> 00:39:13,160 Speaker 1: you heard, we hope you'll subscribe, And if you really 766 00:39:13,200 --> 00:39:14,960 Speaker 1: really like what you've heard, maybe you could leave a 767 00:39:15,000 --> 00:39:17,920 Speaker 1: good review for us. We do. We forget Jason Jason, 768 00:39:17,960 --> 00:39:18,160 Speaker 1: who