We Have Concerns

Stephen Hawking has teamed up with a Russian tycoon to start a new search for extraterrestrial life. The cost? $100 million... and maybe the safety of our entire civilization? Whatever, we'll just build some moon tanks. Hey? Will you be at PAX? SO WILL WE! Come watch us record live episodes on Saturday 8/29 at 9:30 PM in the Chicken Theater! Show your true nature to the world: pick up a "Team Dad Jokes" or "No Dad Jokes" shirt at our store! Today's story: Stephen Hawking announces $100 million hunt for alien life Listen to the Fermi Paradox episode we mention: The Sky is Falling Jeff on Twitter: @jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: @acarboni

An article on the very scientifically-titled "Healthy, Wild and Free" blog explains why wearing shoes in the house is potentially KILLING YOU. Anthony and Jeff discuss hygiene, etiquette and how bacteria gets a bad rap. This episode was recorded LIVE at Nerdtacular 2015 by the wonderful people at Alpha Geek Radio! Patrons get a bonus recording of our Nerdtacular Q&A session! Check out our Patreon to listen to it as soon as it's live. WANNA SEE US LIVE? You totally can! We'll be at PAX Prime Saturday, 8/29 at 9:30 PM! Check the event schedule for more details. Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Jeff on Twitter: @jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: @acarboni Today's story: http://healthywildandfree.com/this-is-why-you-absolutely-need-to-stop-wearing-shoes-in-your-house/

Some newly declassified documents show that the US government knowingly sprayed all of San Francisco with a biological agent after World War II. How often does something like this happen? How many conspiracy theories are real? Are we more susceptible to paranoia than we believe we are? Thanks to Brock Wilbur for hanging out with us! Listen to the Brock Party Podcast! We have a bonus episode with Brock available right now for patrons! To listen to it, or to find out how to get bonus episodes and downloads every month, check out our Patreon! Jeff on Twitter: @jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: @acarboni Brock on Twitter: @brockwilbur Today's story was sent in by Soryo21! http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/us-military-simulated-biological-warfare-san-francisco If you have a story suggestion, email it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or post it on our subreddit!

A research lab has apparently created a healthy seaweed superfood that tastes like bacon! ... Yeah, that sounds like total marketing speak to us, too. Anthony and Jeff discuss the whole concept of twisting marketing health and wellness to people and the science news community's tendency to jump on a catchy headline. Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Today's story was submitted by Sean Williams. OSU researchers discover the unicorn – seaweed that tastes like bacon! Thanks, Sean! If you want to submit a story, email it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or our subreddit! Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni

We talk a lot about whether we can trust robots, but can robots trust us? HitchBOT was a robot on a goodwill tour of the world, depending on the kindness of strangers to get from one end of a country to the other. After successful tours of Canada and various parts of Europe, it came to the US. We killed it. We killed it good. What does this say about the US? What about the future of AI? GET SOME WE HAVE CONCERNS SHIRTS: http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Submit a story! Email wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or visit our subreddit Today's story was submitted by literally everyone on the planet. HitchBOT Homepage HitchBOT, the hitchhiking robot, gets beheaded in Philadelphia HitchBOT Was A Literal Pile Of Trash And Got What It Deserved Here's Video of the Jerk Who Killed hitchBOT (Update: It's a Hoax)

Presidential Candidate Zoltan Istvan is raising money to tour the country in a bus that looks like a coffin to promote the Transhumanism philosophy of immortality. Has there ever been a political stance more perfect for Anthony and Jeff? Use technology to defeat human frailty, force the public to confront their own mortality, and maybe even work some time in for Volcano Boarding. This is how you earn the We Have Concerns endorsement. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni Today’s story was sent in by atomlinson89: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/immortality-bus-with-presidential-candidate-zoltan#/story If you’ve seen a story you think belongs on the show, send it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or leave it on the subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/wehaveconcerns

In this episode, recorded in front of a live audience at the NerdMelt Showroom in Los Angeles, Anthony and Jeff wrestle with their feelings after seeing the results of an experimental Chinese medial procedure. A factory worker in the Hunan province would have lost his hand after it was sliced off in an industrial accident - if not for the fact that surgeons re-attached it to his leg and allowed it to live there for a month while his wound healed enough for it to be grafted back onto his arm. It is a disturbing image, but is it a reassuring concept? We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni Today’s story was sent in by Adrian Gonzales: http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/surgeons-successfully-graft-hand-patients-leg-again If you’ve seen a story you think belongs on the show, send it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or leave it on the subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/wehaveconcerns

Sonja Lang has created the world's smallest functional language. Her creation, Toki Pona, contains only 123 total words, and holds simplicity as its highest ideal. Jeff is enamored by language and charmed by the idea of designing one from scratch to fulfill a specific aesthetic, while Anthony is frustrated by the lack of nuance and potential for confusion. Together, they attempt to communicate what makes for great communication. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni Today’s story was submitted by Joan: http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/07/toki-pona-smallest-language/398363/ If you’ve seen a story you think belongs on the show, send it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or leave it on the subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/wehaveconcerns

For the last ten years, a man in the UK has been waking up every day thinking it is March 14th 2005, the day he was scheduled to receive a root canal. Anthony and Jeff think this sounds like something out of a romantic comedy, but stop to consider what it might actually be like for the man and his family. Could it ever be a good thing? We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni Today’s story was submitted by PowderblueKes: http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/blog.html?b=news.nationalpost.com//news/world/reverse-groundhog-day-u-k-man-wakes-up-every-day-thinking-its-march-14-2005-and-doctors-have-no-idea-why If you’ve seen a story you think belongs on the show, send it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or leave it on the subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/wehaveconcerns

A hotel has opened in Japan that is staffed almost entirely by robots. While this does seem like a cheap gimmick to Anthony and Jeff, they are still intrigued by the idea, and imagine what staying in such a place must be like. We Have Concerns is entirely listener supported! To keep us ad-free and get early episodes/bonus content, check out our Patreon: http://patreon.com/wehaveconcerns Get all your sweet We Have Concerns merch by swinging by http://wehaveconcerns.com/shop Hey! If you’re enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate/review it on whatever service you use to listen. Here’s the iTunes link: http://bit.ly/wehaveconcerns And here’s the Stitcher link: http://bit.ly/stitcherwhc Jeff on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jeffcannata Anthony on Twitter: http://twitter.com/acarboni Today’s story was submitted by Vrbatim: http://www.engadget.com/2015/07/15/japans-first-robot-staffed-hotel/ If you’ve seen a story you think belongs on the show, send it to wehaveconcernsshow@gmail.com or leave it on the subreddit: http://reddit.com/r/wehaveconcerns