Why We Still Don’t Have Flying Cars & Your Amazing Teeth
Sep 30, 2024
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Nicole Kobie, a tech journalist and author, discusses why we still lack flying cars despite expectations from decades past. She explains the societal preferences and technological challenges that have stymied these innovations. Additionally, she touches on the future of autonomous vehicles and the ethical complexities of AI. Meanwhile, zoologist Bill Schutt delves into the fascinating world of teeth, exploring their evolution, maintenance, and surprising connections to overall health. Together, they offer an eye-opening look at technology and biology.
Using self-checkout lanes while grocery shopping can significantly reduce impulse purchases, leading to lower overall spending.
The evolution of teeth in humans requires extensive maintenance, impacted by dietary changes and societal perceptions over time.
Deep dives
Strategies for Cutting Grocery Bills
Grocery store layouts are intentionally designed to encourage customers to spend more money, particularly by causing people to linger while shopping. Research indicates that shopping while hungry can lead to increased impulse buying, leading to higher grocery bills. To combat this, using self-checkout lanes can significantly reduce impulse purchases, with studies showing women and men bought 32% and 16% fewer impulsive items, respectively. By being more conscious of what is being scanned, shoppers become selective, ultimately leading to lower spending.
The Reality of Flying Cars
The concept of flying cars has long captivated public imagination, often highlighted in popular culture, yet their practical existence remains obscure. Surprisingly, flying cars have existed since 1956, when Moulton Taylor's Arrow car was certified for both road and air use, though they proved inefficient as both vehicles. Challenges arise when merging vehicle and flying technology, as they often fail to perform effectively in real-world scenarios, leading to limited consumer interest. The drive for innovation persists, yet the reality of flying cars challenges longstanding expectations and highlights the complexities of technological integration.
Health Impacts of Debt
High levels of debt have been found to negatively affect not only mental health but also physical health, making it crucial to address financial burdens. Studies link increased debt to higher instances of hypertension, stress, depression, and even heart attacks due to associated lifestyle changes and psychological strain. The pressure of maintaining payments not only weighs heavily on individuals mentally but manifests physically through symptoms that can lead to serious health complications. Thus, reducing debt can significantly contribute to overall well-being, promoting a healthier lifestyle.
The Significance of Teeth in Humans and Animals
Teeth are a crucial aspect of human biology, directly tied to dietary habits and social perceptions, yet they require extensive maintenance compared to other species. Human teeth evolved to accommodate a diverse diet, but the increasing prevalence of processed sugars has led to a range of dental issues, necessitating regular care. Other animals, depending on their diet, display various adaptations, with some losing teeth altogether due to evolutionary shifts. Interestingly, the aesthetic and social judgments surrounding dental appearance in humans developed relatively recently, influenced by early film and media representations.
For decades many of us have looked forward to flying cars, real human-like robots, smart cities, driverless cars and other technologies. Yet, they just never quite seem to get here. Why is that? Well, that is exactly what Nicole Kobie is here to explain and discuss. Nicole is a technology and science journalist and a contributing editor for Wired. She is author of the book The Long History of the Future: Why Tomorrow's Technology Still Isn't Here (https://amzn.to/3Bg3z0d).
It is hard to imagine life without your teeth. You use them to eat, to talk and they are an important part of your appearance. Still, some animals have no teeth while other creatures grow new ones when the old ones fall out. There is a lot you likely don’t know about teeth that I know you will find fascinating when you listen to my guest, Bill Schutt. He is a zoologist and author of six books. His research has been published in Natural History magazine, The New York Times, Newsday, the Economist, and Discover. His latest book is titled, Bite: An Incisive History of Teeth, from Hagfish to Humans (https://amzn.to/3zvSVSK).
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