Episodes

  • Mini: Three-Card Monte

    Mini: Three-Card Monte
    Jun 1 2026
    This old sleight of hand card trick is designed to steal your money. Be warned, you cannot win this game. It is rigged and 100% unwinable. We explain how the three-card Monte grift works so you can avoid being scammed.

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    Links and References:
    1. https://www.wikihow.com/3-Card-Monte
    2. https://zelmanow.medium.com/three-card-monte-a-lesson-in-spotting-rigged-games-in-life-05d74d47c57c
    3. https://youtu.be/p4f9LWCwBFM?si=mBxHQymz8fCfre1X
    4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-card_monte
    5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M_-u94l7weg


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    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    15 mins
  • Nostalgia: Speed Reading

    Nostalgia: Speed Reading
    May 27 2026
    Years ago, we looked into the research on speed reading. What we found raised difficult questions about how viable this strategy really is. As we reviewed recent research for this re-release, we discovered that a) you can read at extremely speeds, you just won't actually read anything or remember any of it, and b) you can't actually read at extremely high speeds. Tell us your thoughts!

    Recommendations
    • Abraham: Animal Control (season 4; https://www.hulu.com/series/animal-control-451af77e-25c4-4992-abc8-a313cbd2a2b7)
    • Shane: Hum - Inlet (https://open.spotify.com/album/6SfnjkSphtKowg3tt7azDi?si=AjVsX0kzQpeOX_yYm5Chow)

    Holidays (5/27/2026):
    • Cellophane Tape Day
    • National Grape Popsicle Day
    • National Gray Day
    • National Sunscreen Day
    • Nothing to Fear Day
    • Old Time Player Piano Day
    • World Otter Day
    • Hair Stylist Mental Health Day
    • Eid-al-Adha
    • Older Americans Mental Health Week
    • Prepare Tomorrow’s Parents Month
    • Scripps National Spelling Bee
    • Week of Solidarity with the Peoples of Non-Self-Governing Territories
    New links and references:
    1. https://bigthink.com/smart-skills/neuroscience-speed-reading-bullshit/\





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    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Mini: Car-Sick

    Mini: Car-Sick
    May 25 2026
    Sometimes we get nauseaus when riding around in or on vehicles. What is going on with this? We explore motion sickness and what you can do about it... if anything.

    Support us on Patreon!

    Links and References:
    1. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12782-motion-sickness
    2. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-does-reading-in-a-mov/
    3. https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/motion-sickness.html
    4. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4112051/
    5. https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/motion-sickness-how-you-can-prevent-symptoms-and-enjoy-travel/2024/05


    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/why-we-do-what-we-do--3419521/support.

    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    16 mins
  • Antimetabole and Chiasmus

    Antimetabole and Chiasmus
    May 20 2026
    There is a form of rhetoric that is suprrisingly effective at persuading people to adopt beliefs regardless of their accuracy. These are called "antimetabole." They are not necessarily inherently wrong, but we'll explain how to spot them and determine how they are trying to manipulate you.

    Recommendations
    • Abraham: Learn ASL! (lifeprint.com; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6w1ZDaE-whc&list=PLMN7QCuj6dfaUwmtdkdKhINGZzyGwp7Q1)
    • Shane: Mortal Kombat II (https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/mortal-kombat-ii)
    Holidays (5/20/2026):
    • Eliza Doolittle Day
    • Emancipation Day (Florida)
    • Emergency Medical Services Day
    • Flower Day
    • International Clinical Trials Day
    • National Juice Slush Day
    • National Quiche Lorraine Day
    • National Rescue Dog Day
    • Pick Strawberries Day
    • Weights and Measure Day
    • World Bee Day
    • World Metrology Day
    • International Pickle Week
    • Band director’s day
    • National Foul Ball Week



    Links and References:
    1. https://mralancooper.medium.com/antimetabole-1d95057c9658
    2. https://rhetoric.byu.edu/Figures/A/antimetabole.htm
    3. https://www.americanrhetoric.com/figures/antimetabole.htm
    4. https://www.southfloridawriters.org/post/antimetaboles-and-chiasmuses-and-expletives-oh-my
    5. https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/antimetabole
    6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimetabole
    7. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/digital-humanities/articles/10.3389/fdigh.2018.00010/full
    8. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6050388/
    9. https://gretchenschmelzer.com/blog-1/2015/1/11/understanding-learning-and-memory-the-neuroscience-of-repetition


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    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    53 mins
  • Mini: Evidence of Bigfoot?

    Mini: Evidence of Bigfoot?
    May 18 2026
    In several interviews, Jane Goodall explained why she believed there was evidence of Bigfoot. While she was a wonderful natural scientist, a good science communicator, and radically changed the way we think about animals, she also had some biases that prevented a healthy skepticism from driving her perspective. We explain the "evidence" and why it is not evidence.

    Support us on Patreon



    1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ukvQfUlAog
    2. michigansthumb.com/opinion/article/Jane-Goodall-making-monkey-out-of-average-Bigfoot-17018324.php


    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/why-we-do-what-we-do--3419521/support.

    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    14 mins
  • English Accents

    English Accents
    May 13 2026
    Why do American and UK Accents sound so dissimilar? Could a couple hundred years of infrequent communciation result in that much drift? Did the Americans change or did the English change? Back in the 1700s, American English and British English sounded basically identical to.... American English today! We dive into the divergence of the various UK accents, as well as unique American accents. Language is weird.

    Recommendations
    • Abraham: Big Mistakes (season 1; https://www.netflix.com/title/81734605)
    • Shane: Goldentone Studios (https://www.discogs.com/label/281800-Goldentone-Studios?srsltid=AfmBOop0QkSpSlHdHzsHVnu6F6Z1dX_20fCHQ0iE_ai_cXXo2tZa1QCl)

    Holidays (5/13/2026):
    • Cough Drop Day
    • Donate a Day’s Wages to Charity
    • Frog Jumping Day
    • International Hummus Day
    • National Apple Pie Day
    • National Leprechaun Day
    • National Root Canal Appreciation Day
    • Top Gun Day
    • Tulip Day
    • World Orienteering Day
    • Food Allergy Awareness Week
    • International Coaching Week
    • National Bike Week

    Links and References:
    1. https://youtu.be/vnkOFZKN0Dk?si=IPeNuwtYoU_m86ue
    2. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-24703-3_6
    3. https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20180207-how-americans-preserved-british-english
    4. https://www.voices.com/blog/mid-atlantic-accent/
    5. https://beelinguapp.com/blog/the-transatlantic-accent:-what-is-it-&-how-do-you-talk-in-it
    6. https://www.cmdnyc.com/blog/2016/5/3/what-happened-to-the-mid-atlantic-accent
    7. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-international-phonetic-association/article/abs/effects-of-dialect-on-vowel-acoustics-and-intelligibility/EE3A72D1A6D39C5216EDA4F5D337538A
    8. https://www.studiocambridge.co.uk/a-brief-guide-to-british-accents-and-dialects/
    9. https://www.ef.edu/blog/language/why-us-and-uk-english-sound-so-different/


    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/why-we-do-what-we-do--3419521/support.

    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    57 mins
  • Mini: Designer Genes

    Mini: Designer Genes
    May 11 2026
    There are pros and cons to the trajectory of genetic engineering research. Eventually, we will be confronted by a systemic drive to apply these interventions to human beings. On the one hand, genetic engineering could alleviate a tremendous amount of suffering for people with horrible genetic diseases. On the other, we don't understand these processes well enough to anticipated the unintended consequences of manipulating something as complex as a genome. What do you think about the future of genetic engineering in humans? Email us at info@wwdwwdpodcast.com

    Blue Sky
    @wwdwwdpodcast.bsky.social

    Facebook
    https://www.facebook.com/wwdwwdpodcast


    Support us on Patreon


    Links and References:
    1. https://www.leopoldina.org/en/topics/genome-editing/the-pros-and-cons-of-genome-editing
    2. https://theweek.com/news/science-health/959606/pros-and-cons-of-gene-editing-babies


    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/why-we-do-what-we-do--3419521/support.

    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    18 mins
  • Billboard Hot 100

    Billboard Hot 100
    May 6 2026
    This fascinating and yet entirely expected piece of Americana has shaped the music industry for better or worse (probably worse). But, why does it exist at all? We explore how the Billboard Hot 100 came to be, what it was intended to do, and how it has affected musicianship around the world. Do you follow the Hot 100?

    Recommendations
    • Abraham: The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins (https://www.peacocktv.com/stream-tv/the-fall-and-rise-of-reggie-dinkins)
    • Shane: Project Hail Mary (https://www.penguinrandomhouseretail.com/book/?isbn=9780593135204)

    Holidays (5/6/2026):
    • Great American Grump Out
    • International No Diet Day
    • National Anxiety Disorders Screening Day
    • National Beverage Day
    • National Crepes Suzette Day
    • National Day to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy
    • National (Deaf) Interpreter Day
    • National Nurses Day
    • National Tourist Appreciation Day
    • Air Quality Awareness Week
    • Arson Awareness Week
    • Be Kind to Animals Week


    Links and References:
    1. https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2013/08/16/207879695/how-the-hot-100-became-americas-hit-barometer
    2. https://www.scribd.com/document/670560817/Billboard-Hot-100-2
    3. https://www.edmsauce.com/what-is-the-billboard-hot-100/
    4. https://sites.psu.edu/noahpassion/2019/10/25/the-evolution-of-billboard-and-birth-of-the-hot-100/
    5. https://www.billboard.com/pro/how-global-new-global-billboard-charts/
    6. https://www.billboard.com/charts/genre/hits-of-the-world/
    7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_charts
    8. https://www.billboard.com/pro/billboard-chart-history-evolution-milestones/#:~:text=now%20Nielsen%20Music.)-,Nov.,singles%20sales%20data%20from%20SoundScan.
    9. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/683851-longest-song-to-reach-no-1-on-the-billboard-hot-100


    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/why-we-do-what-we-do--3419521/support.

    Support our podcast: www.patreon.com/wwdwwdpodcast
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    1 hr and 6 mins