We Have Concerns

Researchers in Toronto have used a technology called “neural karaoke” to teach a computer to write a song after looking at a photo, and the little carol it penned after viewing a festive Christmas tree is absolutely horrifying. Jeff and Anthony take a listen and give their thoughts. Happy holidays everyone! GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Seth Bedwell: http://www.avclub.com/article/ais-attempt-write-christmas-carol-absolutely-bone--247140 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

In a study published in the latest edition of the journal Nature Communications, researchers confirmed that Germany's Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) fusion energy device is on track and working as planned. This "star in a jar" technology could essentially provide Earth with limitless clean energy, forever. Jeff and Anthony have a few questions about this breakthrough, and might be worried about how close this is to the last level of a video game. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Jason Northcutt: http://www.space.com/34960-star-in-a-jar-fusion-reactor-works.html 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

An amusement park in Japan has been forced to close its skating rink after a torrent of online criticism over its centerpiece: thousands of fish frozen into the ice. Space World in the city of Kitakyushu, south-west Japan, bowed to pressure to close the facility after an online campaign denouncing the piscine graveyard as “cruel”, “immoral” and “weird”. Jeff and Anthony weigh in on the controversy and decide whether this is artistic or offensive. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Steven Badgery: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/28/anger-as-japanese-skating-rink-freezes-thousands-of-fish-into-ice-as-gimmick 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

Why are humans so prone to running late? New findings published in Hippocampus suggest greater familiarity with an area leads us to overestimate its physical distance, but also has the opposite effect on our judgments of travel times through that space – that is, we underestimate how long it will take us to travel through highly familiar routes. Anthony and Jeff discuss this quirk of the human mind, and how to combat its effects. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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: https://digest.bps.org.uk/2016/10/27/this-mental-quirk-could-explain-why-youre-always-running-late/ 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

According to a new study, layers of the upper atmospheres of cold brown dwarf planets sit at temperatures and pressures resembling those on Earth, and could host microbes that surf on thermal updrafts. These represent a whole new area of potential life in the galaxy. Jeff and Anthony discuss finding life on a planet with no actual surface, and what that might mean. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Xaccie: http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2016/12/alien-life-could-thrive-clouds-failed-stars 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

When a loved one died in parts of England, Scotland, or Wales in the 18th and 19th centuries, the family would grieve, place bread on the chest of the deceased, and call for a man to sit in front of the body. The family of the deceased watched on as this man, the local professional sin eater, absorbed the sins of the departed’s soul. Jeff and Anthony discuss the job of sin-eater, and whether they think it's an honest day's work. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Xaccie: http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-worst-paid-freelance-gig-in-history-was-being-the-village-sin-eater 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

A trio of fishermen in Oman made the catch of a lifetime when they came upon something far more valuable than their normal haul: 176 poundsof sperm-whale vomit. The substance – actually an intestinal secretion called ambergris – could fetch close to US $3 million. Why is whale vomit so valuable? Jeff and Anthony explain. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Brian Towns: http://www.seeker.com/whale-vomit-haul-to-net-millions-for-fishermen-2085342357.html 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

Yellowstone National Park contains a narrow corridor less than two miles wide where evildoers could do literally anything, including commit murder, and the law couldn't touch them. Jeff and Anthony discuss the Yellowstone Murder Zone, and how to best use its strange rules to their advantage. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Adam Womack: http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2016/11/22/best-place-to-commit-crime-in-america-yellowstone-national-park.html 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

After months of speculation and leaked documents, NASA's long-awaited EM Drive paper has finally been peer-reviewed and published. And it shows that the 'impossible' propulsion system really does appear to work. Jeff gloats as Anthony considers what this might mean for our prospects of dying in space. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 gamejumperx: http://www.iflscience.com/space/the-peer-reviewed-emdrive-paper-is-officially-out/ 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/wehaveconcern Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social

A man in Cologne, Germany was recently tried and convicted to ten months in prison for modifying a bottle recycling machine and swindling tens of thousands of euros from the national recycling system. Jeff and Anthony discuss schemes and the human propensity to do way more work than necessary, just to feel like they are cheating the system. GET BONUS EPISODES, VIDEO HANGOUTS AND MORE. VISIT: 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 Xaccie: http://www.odditycentral.com/news/german-man-cheats-recycling-machine-out-of-over-47000-using-a-single-bottle.html 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 Support the show and get bonus episodes, videos, Discord community access and more! http://patreon.com/wehaveconcernsJeff on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/jeffcannata.bsky.socialAnthony on Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/acarboni.bsky.social