Serious Inquiries Only

Latest Episodes:

SIO278: The Filibuster is F***ing Stupid Feb 04, 2021

Show notes

It is unfathomable to me that Senator Kyrsten Sinema wants to preserve this idiotic accident of history. It is not anything the founders intended. It's not in the constitution. It's pure crap that stands in the way of not just progress but basic governance. I do a mini break down of how we got here, and I have a few ideas of how we could get around the filibuster and not make liars out of Manchin and Sinema.

SIO277: The GameStop Fiasco, with Phil Ferguson Jan 30, 2021

Show notes

The only thing that could possibly wrestle the internet back from Bernie Sanders's warm mittened hands is the GameStop madness. Joining me to break it down and try to explain and comment on approximately 1 billionth of everything to it is Phil Ferguson of the Phil Ferguson Show!

Leave Thomas a voicemail! (916) 750-4746, short and to the point! Support the show at patreon.com/seriouspod! Come watch us on Twitch! Follow us on Twitter: @seriouspod Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SIOmembers For comments, email thomas@seriouspod.com

SIO276: Is the Dunning-Kruger Effect Real? Jan 28, 2021

Show notes

A recent article by Jonathan Jarry made a few waves on the internet recently, as it claims that the Dunning-Kruger effect might not actually be real! Official SIO Science-splainer Lindsey Osterman is on with a full breakdown! Is the effect real or is it just statistical noise? Tune in and find out!

Links: (Original paper) Kruger & Dunning (1999), (Review chapter) Dunning (2011), (Response to early statistical critiques) Kruger & Dunning (2002), (First Nuhfer paper): Nuhfer et al (2016), (Second Nuhfer paper): Nuhfer et al (2017)

SIO275: President Biden! (marginal happiness warranted) Jan 21, 2021

Show notes

It's a celebratory show! I've got some thoughts on it all, and why we shouldn't waste any time being mad at Joe Manchin. Also, this election was closer than 2016 and that blew my mind.

SIO274: A Pornhub Rebuttal with Tom Curry Jan 16, 2021

Show notes

A few weeks back I had Eli Bosnick on to talk about Nicholas D. Kristof's Pornhub article. Eli attacked some of the fundamentalist Christian sources for the piece, and talked about the plight sex workers who had been left without income after the backlash. Tom, from Cognitive Dissonance and Citation Needed, has major disagreements with Eli on the topic and wanted to respond.

SIO273: Sam Harris is Wrong Again Jan 14, 2021

Show notes

Harris recently released another both sidesy "I'm the only rational one" podcast episode about the recent insurrection at the Capitol. While he condemns Trump and the right, he also makes a series of terrible arguments in the name of anti-wokeness. Lindsey and I are here to set him straight! *note I said 2 Capitol officers were arrested. They were only suspended.*

Check us out at twitch.tv/seriouspod!

Lindsey's Links: Reporting on police response to January 6th vs. BLM -WaPo, ProPublica, nbc news, Business Insider, Uprising: A Guide From Portland

Articles contextualizing the “bending the knee” moment during the BLM protests: Metro Times, WaPo

Reporting/video of police instigating and escalating violence in BLM protests: Drone Video of the BLM protest in Richmond, Guardian, CNN

SIO272: Sedition Special with Andrew Torrez and Allison Gill Jan 07, 2021

Show notes

I had a whole good news episode planned about Georgia. I have so much to say, and so many things to be positive about. And then some fascist f*cks stormed the Capitol building. Andrew and I just felt that we needed to get on the stream with our audience and talk it out. Don't worry, there will still be plenty of time for the good news later!

SIO271: Listener Qs! Dec 31, 2020

Show notes

Topics include Democratic messaging, the working class, tips for cutting out meat, and more!

SIO270: NYT's Kristof Duped by Christian Anti-Porn Group Dec 29, 2020

Show notes

Today's show features fan-favorite Eli Bosnick explaining how much is completely wrong about an op-ed by Nicholas Kristof. The article claims that PornHub is "...infested with rape videos. It monetizes child rapes, revenge pornography, spy cam videos of women showering, racist and misogynist content, and footage of women being asphyxiated in plastic bags." These are very serious claims, and reading the article might make you feel ill. However, there is a serious problem with it. Listen in and hear the breakdown!

Eli's Links: http://Trafickinghub.com, Daily Beast article about them, Exodus Cry page, Open Democracy on Exodus Cry, Exodus Cry's documentary on Netflix about how tinder leads to young teens getting kidnapped, Exodus Cry faq page, their Intervention manual, trafficking hub’s petition to shut the site down, Elevate Academy, their courses, their staff page, PornHub human screening, trusted flaggers, content removal form, digital systems for blocking content, PornHub best in class policies, Visa and other card companies pulled plug on PornHub.

SIO269: Evolutionary Psychology and Sex Differences Dec 24, 2020

Show notes

It's part 2 of the Defending Evo-Psych series! This one was so much fun. Lindsey talks about sex differences in different species and how they are also present in human behavior. We talk about ridiculous birds, mating dollars, casual sex, and all kinds of fun stuff!

Studies referenced: Singh (2002) - REVIEW, WHR, attractiveness, and fecundity, Li et al. (2002) - necessities and luxuries of mate preferences