1 00:00:00,880 --> 00:00:03,880 Speaker 1: Welcome to How Stuff Works. Now. I'm your host, Lauren Vogelbaum, 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:10,480 Speaker 1: a researcher and writer. Here at How Stuff Works. Every week, 3 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:12,800 Speaker 1: I'm bringing you three stories from our team about the 4 00:00:12,800 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 1: weird and wondrous advances we've seen in science, technology, and culture. 5 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:20,960 Speaker 1: This week, schools in the United States are spending twice 6 00:00:20,960 --> 00:00:23,799 Speaker 1: as many students as in previous decades, and this type 7 00:00:23,800 --> 00:00:28,159 Speaker 1: of punishment may have lasting effects. Unrelated, we answer the 8 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:32,960 Speaker 1: age old question do smartphones really charge faster in airplane mode? 9 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 1: But first, Christian Sager, co host of a podcast you 10 00:00:36,200 --> 00:00:38,000 Speaker 1: might have heard of called Stuff to Blow Your Mind, 11 00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:40,800 Speaker 1: takes us on a deep dive into the history behind 12 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:49,159 Speaker 1: one of America's iconic fictional heroes, wonder Woman. Wasn't a 13 00:00:49,240 --> 00:00:52,479 Speaker 1: kind year to wonder Woman, especially considering it was her 14 00:00:52,520 --> 00:00:56,640 Speaker 1: seventy five birthday. In March, the Princess of the Amazons 15 00:00:56,640 --> 00:00:59,960 Speaker 1: made her big screen debut in the critically panned slow 16 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 1: fest Batman v. Superman Dawn of Justice. Then she was 17 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:09,400 Speaker 1: awarded an honorary United Nations Ambassadorship for Women and Girls, 18 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:12,959 Speaker 1: only to have it revoked two months into its planned 19 00:01:13,040 --> 00:01:17,720 Speaker 1: twelvemonth campaign. On the comic book side, the critically acclaimed 20 00:01:17,840 --> 00:01:21,279 Speaker 1: Legend of Wonder Woman series was canceled abruptly, and artist 21 00:01:21,319 --> 00:01:24,200 Speaker 1: Frank cho through a public fit when he couldn't draw 22 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: a Wonder Woman's underwear on a comic book cover. In 23 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:30,400 Speaker 1: the wake of this no good, very bad year, it's 24 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 1: worth remembering there's a secret origin behind Wonder Woman, one 25 00:01:34,280 --> 00:01:38,559 Speaker 1: that only a few storytellers are willing to commemorate. Her creator, 26 00:01:38,560 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 1: William Moulton Marston, saw Wonder Woman comics as an educational 27 00:01:42,400 --> 00:01:47,640 Speaker 1: opportunity to teach readers about his beliefs. Controversial both at 28 00:01:47,680 --> 00:01:51,760 Speaker 1: the time and today. Much has been previously written on this, 29 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 1: but writer Jill Lapoor pulled all the pieces together in 30 00:01:55,360 --> 00:02:00,559 Speaker 1: her book The Secret History of Wonder Woman. Mars had 31 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 1: three main fixations he baked into Wonder Woman's d NA, 32 00:02:04,440 --> 00:02:11,000 Speaker 1: the detection of lies, a matriarchal uprising, and sexualized bondage. Firstly, 33 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:15,600 Speaker 1: Marston is widely acknowledged as inventing the systolic blood pressure 34 00:02:15,639 --> 00:02:19,640 Speaker 1: test that was eventually developed into the LIE detector. The 35 00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:23,079 Speaker 1: gadget he put together wasn't much more than a stethoscope 36 00:02:23,120 --> 00:02:26,160 Speaker 1: and a blood pressure cuff, which is fairly basic compared 37 00:02:26,200 --> 00:02:32,280 Speaker 1: to the digital polygraphs forensic psychophysiologists utilized today. They operate 38 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:36,040 Speaker 1: on the same principle, though, that being deceptive produces anxiety, 39 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:39,560 Speaker 1: leading to physical changes in the human bodies blood pressure, 40 00:02:39,880 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 1: heart rate, respiration, and conductivity. But there's evidence that it 41 00:02:44,639 --> 00:02:48,239 Speaker 1: wasn't Marston who first came up with this idea. Instead, 42 00:02:48,800 --> 00:02:52,240 Speaker 1: his wife, Elizabeth Holloway, was the one who suggested it 43 00:02:52,480 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: after she noticed her blood pressure increase when she was upset. Regardless, 44 00:02:57,360 --> 00:03:00,680 Speaker 1: the lie detector's accuracy is as debatable now as it 45 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:04,280 Speaker 1: was in nineteen twenty two when Marston tried to introduce 46 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:08,679 Speaker 1: it into court cases. So Marston turned to fiction instead 47 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,680 Speaker 1: and created Wonder Woman's Golden Lasso of Truth that forces 48 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:16,720 Speaker 1: those in its thrall to reveal their deceptions. In addition 49 00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:20,840 Speaker 1: to marrying Holloway, Marston also partnered with his former student, 50 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:24,760 Speaker 1: all Of Burne. The three lived together in polyamory, with 51 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:29,320 Speaker 1: Marston fathering children with both women. Burn's aunt was feminist 52 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:34,320 Speaker 1: Margaret Sanger, whose philosophies influenced Marston and subsequently the comic 53 00:03:34,320 --> 00:03:37,520 Speaker 1: books he wrote. He had already supported women's rights in 54 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:41,400 Speaker 1: the Harvard Men's League for Women's Suffrage, but Marston also 55 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:46,440 Speaker 1: worked as a lab assistant under Harvard psychologist Hugo Munstenberg, 56 00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:50,520 Speaker 1: who was known to oppose the right to vote for women. 57 00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:54,720 Speaker 1: This confluence led Marston to believe that women were superior 58 00:03:54,760 --> 00:03:57,520 Speaker 1: to men and would eventually run the world because they 59 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:01,120 Speaker 1: were more trustworthy and less aggress of them men. In 60 00:04:01,160 --> 00:04:05,240 Speaker 1: a nineteen forty three essay, he wrote, women's strong qualities 61 00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:09,080 Speaker 1: have become despised because of their weak ones. The obvious 62 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:12,400 Speaker 1: remedy is to create a feminine character with all the 63 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:16,040 Speaker 1: strengths of a superman plus all the allure of a 64 00:04:16,080 --> 00:04:20,200 Speaker 1: good and beautiful woman. Marston's solution was the creation of 65 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:24,240 Speaker 1: Wonder Woman, and he drew inspiration from Munstenberg when creating 66 00:04:24,279 --> 00:04:29,479 Speaker 1: the villain Doctor Psycho. Finally, remember earlier when I mentioned 67 00:04:29,520 --> 00:04:33,440 Speaker 1: Marston's interest in the suffrage movement. A crucial spark toward 68 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:37,440 Speaker 1: that influence came when he witnessed suffragists chain themselves to 69 00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: offense in protest. Chains were used symbolically within this movement 70 00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: to signify women's emancipation from enslavement. This led to an 71 00:04:47,839 --> 00:04:51,560 Speaker 1: ongoing theme and Wonder Woman comics, where she was constantly 72 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:56,800 Speaker 1: chained up by her enemies Marston's allegory for female liberation 73 00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:00,920 Speaker 1: through birth control. Sanger herself published a collection of letters 74 00:05:00,960 --> 00:05:05,560 Speaker 1: from women titled Motherhood in Bondage, describing the lack of 75 00:05:05,640 --> 00:05:09,559 Speaker 1: birth control as akin to slavery. Now, to be fair, 76 00:05:09,880 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 1: while Marston may have worked progressive themes like this into 77 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:16,320 Speaker 1: his Wonder Woman's stories, there's still evidence that he suppressed 78 00:05:16,440 --> 00:05:20,240 Speaker 1: his first wife's career while taking credit for her ideas. 79 00:05:20,680 --> 00:05:24,320 Speaker 1: Hopefully this will be explored more in the upcoming biopic 80 00:05:24,680 --> 00:05:28,520 Speaker 1: Professor Marston and the Wonder Women. If not, We've always 81 00:05:28,560 --> 00:05:31,839 Speaker 1: got Galgado's second outing as Princess Diana in the summer 82 00:05:31,839 --> 00:05:36,960 Speaker 1: of as an opportunity to explore Marston's genesis for the heroine. 83 00:05:37,320 --> 00:05:40,520 Speaker 1: Here's hoping her seventy six year treats her a little 84 00:05:40,520 --> 00:05:49,000 Speaker 1: bit better than did next up, staff editor Eves Jeff 85 00:05:49,040 --> 00:05:52,039 Speaker 1: Coote and our freelance writer Julia Layton explore a troubling 86 00:05:52,080 --> 00:05:56,880 Speaker 1: trend in American public schools, stringent use of exclusionary punishments 87 00:05:56,880 --> 00:06:03,679 Speaker 1: like suspensions. US public schools suspended two point eight million students, 88 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:06,599 Speaker 1: or about six percent of its student population during the 89 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:10,760 Speaker 1: fourteen school year. That's about ten percent more than two 90 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:13,680 Speaker 1: thousand numbers and more than double the suspension rates of 91 00:06:13,720 --> 00:06:17,760 Speaker 1: the nineteen seventies. Suspensions rose dramatically with the widespread adoption 92 00:06:17,760 --> 00:06:22,200 Speaker 1: of zero tolerance policies. In the nineteen nineties, schools mandated 93 00:06:22,240 --> 00:06:25,640 Speaker 1: suspension for any student bringing a weapon onto campus, amid 94 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:29,400 Speaker 1: growing concern about crime and violence in schools. But according 95 00:06:29,440 --> 00:06:32,000 Speaker 1: to the u c l A Civil Rights Project, most 96 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:34,560 Speaker 1: suspensions in the two thousand nine to ten school year 97 00:06:34,680 --> 00:06:39,360 Speaker 1: were for offenses like tardiness, disrupting class, and violating dress codes. 98 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:42,880 Speaker 1: Many education experts thank suspension is a poor approach to 99 00:06:42,880 --> 00:06:45,960 Speaker 1: school discipline. It doesn't address the issues that may cause 100 00:06:46,000 --> 00:06:49,560 Speaker 1: the student's problematic behavior, especially when some students see it 101 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:52,479 Speaker 1: as a holiday. But inefficacy may be the least of 102 00:06:52,480 --> 00:06:57,640 Speaker 1: school suspensions problems. An alarmingly vast body of research suggests 103 00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:01,320 Speaker 1: discipline and many US public schools could be ruining students lives. 104 00:07:01,839 --> 00:07:04,800 Speaker 1: The U S Department of Education reports that a student 105 00:07:04,839 --> 00:07:08,160 Speaker 1: who has suspended or it's spelled during preschool or elementary 106 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:10,520 Speaker 1: school is up to ten times more likely to face 107 00:07:10,640 --> 00:07:13,560 Speaker 1: jail tom later in life. A twelve study out of 108 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:17,160 Speaker 1: Johns Hopkins University found that a single suspension in ninth 109 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:20,280 Speaker 1: grade doubles the student's risk of dropping out, a major 110 00:07:20,320 --> 00:07:24,680 Speaker 1: predictor for incarceration. Experts say exclusionary punishment is a main 111 00:07:24,840 --> 00:07:27,880 Speaker 1: entry point to the school to prison pipeline that carries 112 00:07:27,880 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 1: students away from school and into the criminal justice system. 113 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:34,200 Speaker 1: The pipeline has a short version where schools involve law 114 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:38,880 Speaker 1: enforcement in matters of school discipline. In twelve police arrested 115 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:42,800 Speaker 1: nine students for in school offenses, But in the longer version, 116 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:47,240 Speaker 1: suspension causes the students to fall behind, fail academically, face 117 00:07:47,320 --> 00:07:51,240 Speaker 1: embarrassment among peers, and continue to misbehave. The school issues 118 00:07:51,240 --> 00:07:54,640 Speaker 1: more suspensions, and the student finally drops out. Responding to 119 00:07:54,680 --> 00:07:58,520 Speaker 1: student misbehavior can be a subjective process, and zero tolerance 120 00:07:58,560 --> 00:08:02,840 Speaker 1: policies tend to be open to interpretation. School officials often 121 00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:05,840 Speaker 1: determine what is and isn't suspension worthy on a case 122 00:08:05,880 --> 00:08:10,360 Speaker 1: by case basis, and sometimes these decisions are controversial, like 123 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:12,920 Speaker 1: when a first grader in Delaware was suspended for bringing 124 00:08:12,920 --> 00:08:16,520 Speaker 1: his cub scout camping utensil to class. Problems also arise 125 00:08:16,520 --> 00:08:21,280 Speaker 1: when officials apply zero tolerance policies arbitrarily and with racial bias. 126 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:24,920 Speaker 1: In the US, black students are three times more likely 127 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:29,360 Speaker 1: than white students to be suspended. Males, American Indians, Alaska Natives, 128 00:08:29,400 --> 00:08:33,280 Speaker 1: and disabled students are also overrepresented in a suspended population. 129 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:37,800 Speaker 1: Yet suspensions often don't improve student behavior. Considering the failure 130 00:08:37,840 --> 00:08:41,720 Speaker 1: and discrimination of school suspension policies, more effective measures of 131 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:44,760 Speaker 1: discipline are critical u s schools are trying to change 132 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:48,160 Speaker 1: their ways. Many schools are trading rampant suspension for research 133 00:08:48,240 --> 00:08:51,720 Speaker 1: based discipline models. Some take the restorative justice approach, which 134 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:55,640 Speaker 1: focuses on repairing the harm done through community cooperation, and 135 00:08:55,760 --> 00:08:59,760 Speaker 1: some limit police involvement in discipline. Also, Texas took disruption 136 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:05,000 Speaker 1: of class office list of Class C misdemeanors. In overall, 137 00:09:05,160 --> 00:09:08,240 Speaker 1: the move to reform is showing results the two point 138 00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:14,679 Speaker 1: eight million suspensions, where actually it's reduction from the previous 139 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:25,520 Speaker 1: school year. Finally, this week, staff editor Christopher Hassiotis and 140 00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:29,120 Speaker 1: our freelance writer Patrick Jake Tiger have some practical advice 141 00:09:29,160 --> 00:09:35,559 Speaker 1: for us regarding how we charge our smartphones. Admit it, 142 00:09:35,880 --> 00:09:38,640 Speaker 1: you're a heavy duty smartphone user, and that includes just 143 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:41,880 Speaker 1: about everybody these days. Since the average Americans spends four 144 00:09:41,920 --> 00:09:45,280 Speaker 1: point seven hours each day gazing at and tapping that 145 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:47,800 Speaker 1: little screen. So you know how agonizing it is to 146 00:09:47,840 --> 00:09:50,520 Speaker 1: tear yourself away from cat videos and plug your phone 147 00:09:50,520 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: into a charger to replenish the battery. After all, some 148 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:57,400 Speaker 1: smartphones can take hours to fully charge, so listen. You 149 00:09:57,440 --> 00:09:59,760 Speaker 1: may have heard that you can reduce your separation anxiety 150 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:03,280 Speaker 1: a bit by following one simple tip while charging, switch 151 00:10:03,320 --> 00:10:06,000 Speaker 1: your phone to airplane mode. The thinking is that the 152 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:08,680 Speaker 1: phone won't spend energy trying to connect with the outside world, 153 00:10:09,000 --> 00:10:12,800 Speaker 1: thereby speeding up the charging process. So that's what you've heard. 154 00:10:12,920 --> 00:10:15,960 Speaker 1: But does it actually work. As it turns out, the 155 00:10:16,040 --> 00:10:21,000 Speaker 1: answer is yes. In fact, mobile provider Verizon actually recommends it. 156 00:10:21,440 --> 00:10:23,400 Speaker 1: The reason why the trick succeeds is that while your 157 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:26,440 Speaker 1: phone is in its regular mode, it's continually trying to 158 00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:29,839 Speaker 1: signal cell towers and pinpoint your location. And even though 159 00:10:29,880 --> 00:10:33,080 Speaker 1: your phone most likely has assisted GPS, which calculates your 160 00:10:33,080 --> 00:10:36,160 Speaker 1: location coordinates using the cell phone network rather than satellites, 161 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:39,400 Speaker 1: the function still burns up a lot of juice. That's 162 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:42,120 Speaker 1: because the location finding stops your phone from going into 163 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:45,439 Speaker 1: full on energy saving sleep mode. So when you switch 164 00:10:45,480 --> 00:10:48,000 Speaker 1: to airplane mode, you turn off reception of those radio 165 00:10:48,000 --> 00:10:51,800 Speaker 1: transmissions and as a result, your smartphone charges more quickly. 166 00:10:52,400 --> 00:10:55,040 Speaker 1: But don't get too hyped up, because it's not likely 167 00:10:55,120 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 1: to save you that much more time. When the website 168 00:10:57,559 --> 00:11:00,520 Speaker 1: c Net tested the proposition a few years ago, airplane 169 00:11:00,559 --> 00:11:03,200 Speaker 1: mode only shaved four minutes off of phones total charging 170 00:11:03,200 --> 00:11:05,959 Speaker 1: time in one trial and eleven minutes in another, a 171 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:09,240 Speaker 1: fraction of the overall time. Still, if you're in a 172 00:11:09,320 --> 00:11:11,200 Speaker 1: pinch and just have a few minutes to charge, it 173 00:11:11,280 --> 00:11:18,360 Speaker 1: may help, and it certainly won't slow things down. That's 174 00:11:18,360 --> 00:11:20,360 Speaker 1: our show for this week. Thank you so much for 175 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:23,480 Speaker 1: tuning in. Further thanks to our audio producer Dylan Fagin 176 00:11:23,600 --> 00:11:28,280 Speaker 1: and our editorial liaisons Alicon, Loudermilk and Christopher. Subscribe to 177 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:30,719 Speaker 1: now now for more of the latest science news, and 178 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:32,560 Speaker 1: send us links to anything you'd like to hear us cover, 179 00:11:33,080 --> 00:11:35,880 Speaker 1: plus a photo from your local women's march. You can 180 00:11:35,920 --> 00:11:38,360 Speaker 1: send us an email at now podcast at how stuff 181 00:11:38,400 --> 00:11:41,800 Speaker 1: works dot com, and of course, for lots more stories 182 00:11:41,840 --> 00:11:45,000 Speaker 1: like these, head on over to our home planet now 183 00:11:45,160 --> 00:11:56,560 Speaker 1: dot how stuff works dot com.