Probably Science

Comedian Jeffrey Baldinger (@Jeffbaldinger) joins Matt and Jesse to talk about earthquakes, Santa Claus' dad, a strange new type of star in the middle of our galaxy and distinguishing between earthquakes and nuclear tests.

Comedian, actor and author Matt Knudsen (@mattknudsen) returns to the podcast to talk about his new book Have I Seen You In Anything?, working on soap operas, being in an iconic I Think You Should Leave sketch, going back to school, learning to tap dance, testosterone reducing the Audience Effect and a bat that uses its huge penis as an arm.

Comedian Leah Bonnema (@LeahBonnema) joins Matt, Jesse and Andy to talk about Matt and Leah's road gig adventure, Jesse being snowed in, going to the bathroom outside, the science behind the munchies, Japan's Moon Sniper making contact with the lunar surface, Leah's love of Love Island, 45,000-year-old tools and bones found in eastern Asia, the Levallois technique and everyone's lack of awareness of Bill Knapp's.

Comedian and author Moshe Kasher (@moshekasher) returns to the show to talk with Andy, Jesse and Matt about his upcoming book Subculture Vulture, chronicling his deep involvement in the seemingly disparate worlds of Hasidic Judaism, deaf culture, comedy, sobriety, rave culture and Burning Man, as well as digging into the possible de-extinction of the dodo.

Comedian Kim McVicar (@KimMcVicar) joins Andy, Matt and Jesse to talk about famous hecklers, Kim's dancing background, musicals and their parodies, coin flips not being as 50/50 as you think, neanderthal early birds, Daylight Saving Time talk, holiday penile fractures and the crazy waves hitting the west coast right now.

While the gang take a little holiday break, we thought it was worth revisiting Andy's conversation with AI researcher and UC Berkeley Professor of Computer Science Stuart Russell from wayyyyy back in 2019. Now that we're well into the era of generative artificial intelligence, it's interesting to look back at what experts were saying about AI alignment just a few years ago, when it seemed to many of us like an issue we wouldn't have to tackle directly for a long time to come. As we face down a future where LLMs and other generative models only appear to be getting more capable, it's worth pausing to reflect on what needs to be done to usher in a world that's more utopian than dystopian. Happy holidays!

Comedian Shane Torres (@shanetorres) returns to the show to talk with Matt, Jesse and Andy about his new special The Blue Eyed Mexican, his unique Covid experience, more SPATS chats, finding the lost space tomato, what happens when you take your gun into an MRI scanner, someone else who wasn't as lucky with the MRI, the most extreme rogue wave on record, and the sound that warns a tornado is coming.

Comedian and author Ryan Conner (@rconnercomedy) returns to the show to talk with Matt, Jesse and Andy about his porn doppelganger, the process of researching and writing his new satirical novel The Party, an AI ProbSci ripoff, SpaceX rockets punching holes in the sky, deep brain stimulation to help TBI patients and a tree-dwelling shrimp found in the Cyclops Mountains.

Comedian Dustin Ybarra discusses Formula 1 races in Vegas, mammal embryos in space, erectile dysfunction in astronauts, deterring orcas with heavy metal, 6G technology, and OpenAI's AGI breakthrough with hosts Jesse, Andy, and Matt.

Comedian Jenny Zigrino (@jennyzigrino) joins Jesse, Andy and Matt to talk about skunks, the Vegas F1 race, smelling in stereo, the upside of anger in completing tasks, dominant eyes, Iceland volcanos and the ultra-creepy hamster test or sperm penetration.