1 00:00:03,080 --> 00:00:06,120 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:10,600 --> 00:00:12,440 Speaker 2: Hi, my name is Robert Lamb, and this is the 3 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 2: Monster Fact, a short form series from Stuff to Blow 4 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:19,520 Speaker 2: Your Mind focusing on mythical creatures, ideas, and monsters in time. 5 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:26,320 Speaker 2: As we're slap dab in the middle of a Stuff 6 00:00:26,360 --> 00:00:29,560 Speaker 2: to Blow Your Mind series on the dog days of Summer, 7 00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 2: I figured, Hey, it's time to finally talk a little 8 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:36,680 Speaker 2: bit about the Yaptja, the central extraterrestrial hunters in the 9 00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:40,519 Speaker 2: Predator universe, and of course sometimes crosses over with the 10 00:00:40,520 --> 00:00:44,400 Speaker 2: Alien universe as well. I've talked about numerous organisms from 11 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:47,360 Speaker 2: the Alien universe already, and I've actually talked about the 12 00:00:47,440 --> 00:00:51,319 Speaker 2: Callusk from Predator bad Lands, but this is the first 13 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:53,479 Speaker 2: time I'm really zeroing in and talking a bit about 14 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:56,639 Speaker 2: the Yoptja. I guess one of the things about them 15 00:00:56,720 --> 00:01:01,840 Speaker 2: is that they're very technologically inclined culture in the films 16 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:04,320 Speaker 2: and in the related media, So I almost would need 17 00:01:04,360 --> 00:01:07,119 Speaker 2: to come back and do a sci fi artifact episode 18 00:01:07,160 --> 00:01:09,880 Speaker 2: on the various weapons of the Yatja, So maybe I'll 19 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:12,759 Speaker 2: do that in the future, but hey, let's talk about 20 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:15,440 Speaker 2: the organism here in case you need a refresher the 21 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:18,759 Speaker 2: Predator films, beginning with the nineteen eighty seven sci fi 22 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:25,800 Speaker 2: action Testosterone Fest. These revolve around technologically advanced bipedal alien 23 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:30,479 Speaker 2: hunters who periodically ventured Earth to hunt dangerous human game. 24 00:01:31,240 --> 00:01:34,959 Speaker 2: Decked out with everything from plasma canons and cloaking devices 25 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:39,039 Speaker 2: to wrist blades and spears, the hunters, who have eventually 26 00:01:39,120 --> 00:01:42,800 Speaker 2: come to be known canonically as the Yatja, seek out 27 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:46,119 Speaker 2: areas of intense human conflict so as to hunt only 28 00:01:46,160 --> 00:01:50,400 Speaker 2: the most dangerous and violent humans against the chaotic backdrop 29 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:54,960 Speaker 2: of warfare and violence. The first two Predator films also 30 00:01:55,080 --> 00:01:58,760 Speaker 2: firmly established that the Predators visit Earth only in the 31 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 2: hottest times the year, during extreme heat waves, and nineteen 32 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:08,560 Speaker 2: nineties Predator iiO leans into the heat aggression hypothesis, the 33 00:02:08,600 --> 00:02:13,560 Speaker 2: idea that intensely hot temperatures drive human aggression and violence. 34 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:16,320 Speaker 2: In the film, all of this, of course, plays out 35 00:02:16,400 --> 00:02:20,840 Speaker 2: in the then future setting of sweltering nineteen ninety seven 36 00:02:20,919 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 2: Los Angeles, engulfed in both a heat wave and a 37 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:29,440 Speaker 2: crime wave involving rival gangs feuding with each other, so 38 00:02:29,600 --> 00:02:33,520 Speaker 2: we don't really get into heat aggression hypothesis specifically, in 39 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:36,360 Speaker 2: our Dog Days series is currently airing, unless we end 40 00:02:36,480 --> 00:02:38,360 Speaker 2: up getting into it later in the series, and we 41 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:42,720 Speaker 2: haven't recorded those yet, but the idea sets pretty snugly 42 00:02:42,760 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 2: alongside the idea of the dog Star that hot temperatures 43 00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 2: may be linked to high levels of human violence in 44 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 2: general aggression, and when you dig in deeper into the topic, 45 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:56,120 Speaker 2: there are generally a lot of different factors to consider. So, 46 00:02:57,040 --> 00:03:01,160 Speaker 2: for instance, the July fourth holiday is statistically one of 47 00:03:01,200 --> 00:03:04,639 Speaker 2: the deadliest in the United States, with spikes in violent crime, 48 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:07,800 Speaker 2: and heat waves may well factor into it, but you 49 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 2: have to factor in other things like increased in widespread 50 00:03:11,160 --> 00:03:17,080 Speaker 2: alcohol consumption, increased outdoor activity, bigger crowds, increase traffic on 51 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:21,080 Speaker 2: our roadways, on our waterways, and the complete array of 52 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:25,040 Speaker 2: factors underlying any level of crime or societal unrest. So 53 00:03:25,639 --> 00:03:28,000 Speaker 2: there does seem to be correlation there to be sure, 54 00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:31,360 Speaker 2: but there are also just multiple factors involved, so I 55 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:34,840 Speaker 2: don't know. Maybe the yachtjas do recognize this correlation as well, 56 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:38,920 Speaker 2: factoring it into their vacation planning, but what other factors 57 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:42,840 Speaker 2: might underlie their timing. One of the big possibilities, of course, 58 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:46,119 Speaker 2: is that and this is one that's frequently explored in 59 00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 2: the literature and online is that the yachtas prefer or 60 00:03:49,560 --> 00:03:53,840 Speaker 2: even require, a much hotter climate. Now, they're certainly armored 61 00:03:54,040 --> 00:03:58,160 Speaker 2: in the movies, but they typically forego extensive clothing and 62 00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:01,120 Speaker 2: seem capable of breathing Earth's out atmosphere as well when 63 00:04:01,120 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 2: they're unmasked. There's some quibbles that are had here and 64 00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:08,200 Speaker 2: there regarding what we see in the film, particularly in 65 00:04:08,280 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 2: Predator too, but for the most part it seems agreed upon, 66 00:04:12,600 --> 00:04:15,320 Speaker 2: maybe just for ease of storytelling, that they can breathe 67 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 2: our air and we don't have to worry about them 68 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:20,080 Speaker 2: wearing masks, and likewise we don't have to worry about 69 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:22,960 Speaker 2: wearing masks if we're aboard one of their ships. Just 70 00:04:23,000 --> 00:04:25,159 Speaker 2: makes it a little easier to tell the story. But 71 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:28,000 Speaker 2: at any rate, within the context of the thing, yeah, 72 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:31,960 Speaker 2: they don't require environmental protection suits, they don't require any 73 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:35,200 Speaker 2: thermoregulation gear, or at least none of this that we 74 00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:39,880 Speaker 2: could identify from our own much lower place than technological ladder. 75 00:04:40,600 --> 00:04:44,960 Speaker 2: So it goes that the Yachtja's possibly cold blooded or 76 00:04:44,960 --> 00:04:49,520 Speaker 2: simply evolved to thrive in hotter climates, just prefer tropical 77 00:04:49,600 --> 00:04:54,719 Speaker 2: jungles and urban heat environments urban heat islands for the 78 00:04:54,760 --> 00:04:58,280 Speaker 2: most part, and choose those as the destinations for their 79 00:04:58,440 --> 00:05:02,520 Speaker 2: hunting excursions. Now Here on Earth, it's pretty common for 80 00:05:02,600 --> 00:05:06,240 Speaker 2: creatures to base their activity levels on thermal conditions. In 81 00:05:06,320 --> 00:05:09,719 Speaker 2: hot environments, organisms may avoid the heat of the day 82 00:05:09,720 --> 00:05:11,839 Speaker 2: and venture out during the cool of the night to 83 00:05:12,200 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 2: hunt forager feed. In colder climates, they may do the reverse, 84 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:19,719 Speaker 2: only emerging during the warmest part of the day. But 85 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 2: there are exceptions because sometimes it is advantageous to seek 86 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:28,680 Speaker 2: sustenance during the extreme heat of the day. Consider the 87 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:35,240 Speaker 2: desert iguana. This is Dipsosaurus dorsalis of southwestern United States 88 00:05:35,240 --> 00:05:39,360 Speaker 2: and northwestern Mexico, the most heat tolerant of all North 89 00:05:39,400 --> 00:05:44,800 Speaker 2: American reptiles. Its adaptations enable it to remain active in 90 00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:49,280 Speaker 2: one hundred plus degree fahrenheit weather after other reptiles have 91 00:05:49,360 --> 00:05:52,599 Speaker 2: already called it a day. As pointed out by the 92 00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:56,080 Speaker 2: Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden, which I've been to a lovely 93 00:05:56,120 --> 00:06:00,280 Speaker 2: place in the article Iguanas in the garden, these character 94 00:06:00,440 --> 00:06:05,000 Speaker 2: colored lizards may do this in order to ai their digestion, 95 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:09,159 Speaker 2: but also to avoid the bulk of its many predators. 96 00:06:09,600 --> 00:06:11,960 Speaker 2: Just go out when it's so hot that you just 97 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:15,359 Speaker 2: don't have to deal with as many predatory threats to 98 00:06:15,440 --> 00:06:19,240 Speaker 2: your presence. Now, here's another interesting example from the insect 99 00:06:19,279 --> 00:06:22,480 Speaker 2: world in which we have organisms venturing out in the 100 00:06:22,520 --> 00:06:25,800 Speaker 2: extreme heat of the day. It's the Saharan silver ant, 101 00:06:25,839 --> 00:06:31,680 Speaker 2: and this is a cataglyphous bombasina. These ants forage in 102 00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:35,680 Speaker 2: the full mid day sun of the Saharan Desert, surviving 103 00:06:35,680 --> 00:06:38,800 Speaker 2: temperatures of up to one hundred and fifty eight degrees 104 00:06:38,839 --> 00:06:42,160 Speaker 2: fahrenheit or seventy degrees celsius, which they accomplish via a 105 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:48,400 Speaker 2: combination of enhanced optical reflection and radiative heat dissipation, according 106 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:50,920 Speaker 2: to a twenty fifteen study from the US Department of Energies, 107 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:55,200 Speaker 2: Brookhaven National Laboratory. From you at all, these adapticians give 108 00:06:55,200 --> 00:06:59,000 Speaker 2: the silver ants first dips on any insects and other 109 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:02,839 Speaker 2: arthropods out there that have already succumbed to the boiling 110 00:07:02,920 --> 00:07:06,119 Speaker 2: heat of the mid day Sahara. So in a sense, 111 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:08,640 Speaker 2: they kind of let the heat do the hunting for them, 112 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:11,240 Speaker 2: and they are the first to pick up the scraps 113 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:15,520 Speaker 2: because they can endure the heat and move swiftly enough 114 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:19,360 Speaker 2: that they don't succumb to it themselves. So neither example 115 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:21,960 Speaker 2: here is directly applicable to the Yatja, of course, who 116 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:24,840 Speaker 2: have other ways of avoiding unwanted attention and have no 117 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:27,840 Speaker 2: interest in carrying. But if we're going to stick to 118 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:32,800 Speaker 2: the preferred temperature range interpretation, yeah, it seems reasonable Earth's 119 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 2: high temperatures might match preferred mid range temperatures on their 120 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:43,560 Speaker 2: home world. We might roughly compare this to observations that 121 00:07:43,600 --> 00:07:48,240 Speaker 2: the conditions on Mars, for example, along the equator, these 122 00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:50,679 Speaker 2: can reach eise of like seventy degrees fahrenheit or twenty 123 00:07:50,680 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 2: degrees celsius, which in and of itself that sounds quite 124 00:07:54,320 --> 00:07:58,400 Speaker 2: hospitable for human life and human beings like ourselves. Unfortunately, 125 00:07:58,800 --> 00:08:03,160 Speaker 2: the Martian atmosphere certainly is not hospitable to us, among 126 00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 2: other factors. So that's all I have to say today 127 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:10,000 Speaker 2: about the predator. But we could come back again and 128 00:08:10,000 --> 00:08:12,960 Speaker 2: discuss their weaponry in greater detail. I think there's a 129 00:08:12,960 --> 00:08:16,320 Speaker 2: lot more to discuss there. Tune in for additional episodes 130 00:08:16,320 --> 00:08:19,480 Speaker 2: of The Monster Fact The Artifact for Animelius Stupendium each week. 131 00:08:19,800 --> 00:08:22,960 Speaker 2: As always, you can email us at contact at stuff 132 00:08:22,960 --> 00:08:32,720 Speaker 2: to blow your mind dot com. 133 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:35,800 Speaker 1: Stuff to Blow your Mind is production of iHeartRadio. For 134 00:08:35,880 --> 00:08:38,680 Speaker 1: more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, 135 00:08:38,840 --> 00:08:41,600 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.