The Reality Check

Darren takes on listeners’ requests to do a segment on giving during a pandemic like COVID-19. Cristina looks behind an age old notion to find out whether our stomachs really ‘shrink’ when we diet. Adam rounds out the show by dissecting reports of cats catching the Coronavirus.

What would happen if the moon was made of cheese? Could you pop popcorn in space? We mastered the time zones and finally got our favourite two Stus together for a fun and informative show! Dr. Stuart Robbins is a research scientist who studies planetary geophysics and Dr. Stuart Farrimond is a medical doctor turned science communicator and expert on food science. We talk about food, we talk about space, and we talk about food in space.

Cristina examines why we didn’t need to quarantine during previous outbreaks like SARS or the Swine Flu like we do with COVID-19. Adam answers a question on many people’s minds right now...how is your phone being tracked? Does Sarah Connor’s idea of putting a phone in a bag of chips to protect her from being tracked in The Terminator work? Finally, Darren tells us why we should all read Toby Ord’s, “The Precipice: Existential Risk and the Future of Humanity” right now.

Let’s take a break from COVID-19 and talk about space! This week we bring you a great interview with friend-of-the-show and our 5th Beatle, Dr. Stuart Robbins. Stuart is a research scientist who studies planetary geophysics and is part of a team looking into the feasibility and cost of a future Pluto orbiter mission.  

Just can’t get enough coronavirus and Animal Crossing talk? We’ve got you covered! This week Darren checks in on you and asks: what are the actual chances of dying from COVID-19? As usual, it’s complicated. Next Adam looks into whether Tom Nook from the game Animal Crossing is a greedy capitalist villain, keeping players buried under ever-increasing debt.

Cristina looks into the proliferation of homemade hand sanitizer tutorials and whether it’s safe to even be promoting the practice. Adam brings us a segment he planned to do during TRC’s live show at Toronto Comicon this year...from a safe distance; how does the science in the latest Sonic The Hedgehog movie stack up? Finally, Darren answers a question from a cuboid who asks, ‘is there an influenza virus separate from the influenza disease? Is calling COVID-19 a virus not accurate?

How is everyone holding up out there? This week the whole crew is back...sort of. Darren tapes solo from his post-travel quarantine to bring us an in-depth look at COVID-19 versus the seasonal flu. Cristina shares some recent COVID-19 mythbusting from the WHO so we...ahem...won’t get fooled again. Adam rounds out the show by looking at the recent stockpiling of toilet paper and asking, ‘is there really a toilet paper shortage?’

With half the crew in isolation, we take a reprieve from coronavirus news. First, Adam digs into headlines about daredevil "Mad Mike" Hughes who died in a homemade rocket accident intended to “prove” the Earth is flat. One of our two favourite Stuarts, Dr. Stu Robbins, brings us a relatively compelling look into the precession of Mercury. Finally, Darren brings us an interesting overview of revealed preferences, a major theory of consumption behaviour. 

Producer Pat schools us on 9-1-1 and emergency numbers worldwide after a personal experience dealing with a medical emergency opens his eyes. Cristina finds a way to tie the Toronto Raptors into her segment, when she looks into why bagged milk is a Canuck thing. Finally, while the COVID-19 situation is changing by the minute, Adam gives us a general overview of coronavirus disease and debunks some of the more ubiquitous myths.

Just in time for Valentine’s Day! Dr. Cheryl Harasymchuk is an Associate Professor at Carleton University in the Department of Psychology. She runs the “Positive Activities in Intimate Relationships Lab.” Adam and Darren sit down for a fascinating chat with Cheryl about relationships, love, and how to make those relationships better through play and leisure.