Conspiracy Frogs and Bad Science with Oki’s Weird Stories [Ep. 89]

Oki investigates, analyzes, and tells weird stories of all kinds, from the Alex Jones-driven conspiracy about water quality making frogs gay to the fraudster and ‘modern psychopath’ Jacob Wohl. And the more Oki talks, the more you can tell his knowledge runs deep about most everything. He’s part Internet Historian, part Vsauce2, and part Whang!, and it’s why he’s so passionate about getting to the bottom of media including films on the Kinocast and L. Ron Hubbard’s prolific literary catalog.

Oki explains why he’s not bothered by conspiracy theories and that he really just wants to hear crazy stuff. Does ketchup cause cancer? When do the benefits outweigh the effects? And how does that relate to the bizarre rise of Alex Jones?

Recycling, tobacco company deception, Popeye and spinach… all these science-based topics are teeming with more complexity and sometimes less honesty than we think. Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hour rule for expertise? 10,000 steps for a healthy heart? There’s a lot to probe and question in things we take for granted.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Tl7tpMssVqt7O4qej8Ro0?si=JnX3-HMSREmBkNHR7jkznw

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-create-unknown/id1437172203

Patreon: https://patreon.com/thecreateunknown

Join our Discord to talk with artists, creators, and fans of the finer things in online life: https://discord.gg/qAQV3Jw

0:00:00 - Intro

0:07:59 - What Do You Wish You Could Talk About?

0:14:03 - Is Drinking Water Turning Frogs Gay?

0:29:38 - Conspiracies, Balancing Toxicity and Entertainment

0:40:44 - The Recycling Industry

0:51:16 - Telling Controversial Tales on YouTube

0:59:43 - Spinach is a LIE

1:09:31 - Junk Science

1:22:40 - Making Mistakes

1:46:59 - Patron Questions

2:07:53 - See Ya Space Cowboys      

Oki's Weird Stories: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjDQKxiTVpXutZc2Ra9wCAg

Kinocast: https://www.youtube.com/c/KinoKast/videos

NPR Recycling: https://www.npr.org/2020/09/11/897692090/how-big-oil-misled-the-public-into-believing-plastic-would-be-recycled

The Patrons have a ball poking and prodding Oki (who stuck around for ANOTHER 2 hours in the aftershow chat), and with every answer we dig a little deeper into his mind with each answer.

Thanks to everyone who came out to hang with Oki, and thanks especially to the Patrons who make this show possible each and every week. You really are the best.

🎥 CREDITS:

Hosts: Kevin Lieber and Matt Tabor

Produced and Edited by Ben Webster → https://twitter.com/benwebsterTCU

"Created in the Unknown" theme by Basswaite: https://linktr.ee/Basswaite

Theme by Mega Drive → http://megadrivemusic.com

Opening Animation: Kidmograph

City Animation: Eric Langlay

"The Create Unknown" is produced by Unknown Media.

💬 CONNECT WITH US:

» Chat with us on DISCORD: https://discord.gg/qAQV3Jw

» Follow us on TWITTER: http://twitter.com/createunknown

» Follow us on INSTAGRAM: http://instagram.com/thecreateunknown

» Follow us on FACEBOOK: http://facebook.com/thecreateunknown

» View our website: https://thecreateunknown.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices