Serious Inquiries Only

Latest Episodes:

SIO527: The Science of Why We Ask Why, with Dr. Tania Lombrozo Sep 15, 2026

Show notes

Dr. Tania Lombrozo, professor of psychology at Princeton University (affiliated with its philosophy and cognitive science departments), joins Thomas to discuss her forthcoming book Why We Ask Why: The Science of Explanation and the Human Drive to Understand.

Why are humans so driven to explain things, but only some things? Why does understanding go beyond just being able to predict? And what happens when asking why makes you the social liability in the room?

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SIO526: Why Is College So Expensive? Sep 01, 2026

Show notes

David O'Brien, higher education policy scholar with the California Community Colleges System, is back to answer the question Thomas posed last time: why is college so expensive?

They get into tuition vs. total cost of attendance, the dirty little secret of private university pricing, administrative bloat, the amenities arms race, and why the people loudest about college costs are likely well-off, but getting very little financial aid.

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Some More News Is COMPLETELY WRONG About Spider-Man Brand New Day Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

I cannot stop thinking about Cody from Some More News's video in which he could not stop thinking about Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Cody is INCREDIBLY sure that you're an idiot incapable of watching movies or consuming art if you don't agree with his conception of what the ending of Brand New Day meant. The problem is... Cody gets about a billion things wrong and his arguments are terrible.

This was going to be just a Patreon bonus of Serious Inquiries Only but I wanted to put it up on YouTube so it's going out to everyone! WATCH HERE!

Cody's video: "How Did Everyone Become So Bad at Watching Movies"

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SIO525: Dude Who Said Autism Is "Extreme Male Brain" Walks It Back Aug 11, 2026

Show notes

... and other autism/ADHD research! So pleased to have Dr. Jenessa Seymour back - this time with a variety of studies in the Autism and ADHD realms.

Jurek, L., Duchier, A., Gauld, C., Henault, L., Giroudon, C., Fourneret, P., … Nourredine, M. (2025). Sensory processing in individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder compared with control populations: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 64, 1132-1147.
Le Cunff, A., Russell, C. & Dommett, E.J. (2026). Hyperactive–impulsive ADHD traits predict
Higher curiosity in adults: evidence from a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychology, 14, 1-11.
White, R.C. & Remington, A. (2018). Object personification in Autism: This paper will be very sad if you don’t read it. Autism, 23, 1042-1045.
Botha, M. & Cage, E. (2022). “Autism research is in crisis”: A mixed method study of researcher’s constructions of autistic people and autism research. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1-22.
Devlin, H. (July 5, 2026). Pioneer of ‘extreme male brain’ theory of autism now says phrase unhelpful. The Guardian.

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SIO524: Why We Haven't Cured Cancer Yet, Part 2 (with Dr. Eric Jaffe) Jul 29, 2026

Show notes

Part 2! Dr. Eric Jaffe returns to actually treat the cancer this time: why radiation is basically catching your kid smoking and making him finish the carton, how CRISPR turns your own T cells into an assassin squad, and why oncolytic viruses are just Jurassic World Dominion for tumors.

Haven't heard Part 1 yet? Start there or you'll be lost.

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SIO523: What Cancer Actually Is, Part 1 (with Dr. Eric Jaffe) Jul 28, 2026

Show notes

Part 1! Dr. Eric Jaffe, the biology teacher who keeps naming proteins after cartoon characters, returns for a two-part cancer deep dive. Today: what cancer actually is at the cellular level, why elephants barely get it, why whales get it even less, and why the "they're hiding the cure" conspiracy falls apart the second you learn who actually funds the research.

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Part 2, the cure, is already up for Patreon supporters!

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SIO522: College Is Impossibly Expensive. But It's Not Because of Bogus Degrees. Jul 21, 2026

Show notes

Part 2! Thomas is joined again by David O'Brien, a higher education policy scholar with the California Community Colleges system, to finish dismantling The Daily's take on Trump's student loan crackdown. Reagan, Pell Grants, and decades of quiet state defunding all get their due, plus a theory on why tuition keeps climbing that has nothing to do with cosmetology degrees.

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SIO521: The Daily Is Sane-Washing Trump's War on Higher Ed Jul 21, 2026

Show notes

Thomas is joined by David O'Brien, a higher education policy scholar who works for the California Community Colleges system, to pick apart Trump's new rules threatening to cut off student loans and Pell grants from "low-earning" degree programs, and to fact-check The Daily's recent take on the same story. The real history runs through Reagan, Prop 13, and decades of quiet austerity nobody on that podcast wants to mention.

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SIO520: My Talk at SkeptiCal - Selective Skepticism Is Not Skepticism Jun 30, 2026

Show notes

Thanks so much to the folks at SkeptiCal for inviting me! Though the talk does deal with the Butler shooting, I thought some way different stuff for this including a ridiculously overwrought hypothetical, my favorite kind! And, I found a Young Turks video where they are apparently Joe Rogan now!

SIO519: People Are Misinterpreting Obsession in Very Revealing Ways Jun 24, 2026

Show notes

The "nice guy" is the villain. We watched Obsession and cannot stop thinking about it. It has so much to say about gender, consent, "nice guys" and more. And it scarred Lydia for life.

WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS.

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