Unraveling Dark Matter’s Origins, Mars’ Stunning Aurora Discovery, and New X-Ray Mysteries

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Kind: captions
Language: en

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This is Spacetime series 28 episode 62


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for broadcast on the 23rd of May


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2025. Coming up on Spacetime, a new


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theory to explain the birth of dark


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matter, the first visible light auroral


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activity seen on Mars, and a new type of


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massive X-ray explosion discovered near


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monster black holes. All that and more


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coming up on Spaceime.


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Welcome to Space Time with Stuart Garry.


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[Music]


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A new study claims that the invisible


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mysterious substance known as dark


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matter may have formed when fast


00:00:58.800 --> 00:01:01.750
particles slowed down and got heavy. A


00:01:01.760 --> 00:01:03.830
new hypothesis reported in the journal


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Physical Review Letters suggests that


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dark matter, which makes up some 85% of


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all material in the universe, sprang up


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from particles that rapidly condensed,


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sort of like steam turning into water.


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Of course, scientists still have no idea


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exactly what dark matter is. They only


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know it exists because they can see its


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gravitational influence on normal


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so-called barriionic matter, stopping


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galaxies from spinning apart as they


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rotate and magnifying distant objects.


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The study's authors say dark matter


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could have formed in the early life of


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the universe from the collision of high


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energy massless particles that lost


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their zip and took on an incredible


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amount of mass immediately upon pairing.


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Importantly, they claim their hypothesis


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can be tested using existing


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observational data. The extremely low


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energy particles they suggest make up


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dark matter would have a unique


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signature in the cosmic microwave


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background radiation. The leftover


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energy from the Big Bang, which fills


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the universe today as a faint glow. The


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study's lead author, Robert Cordwell


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from Dartmouth College, says dark matter


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started its life as near massless


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relativistic particles similar to


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photons. Now, that's totally different


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to what dark matter is thought to be.


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Cold lumps that give galaxies their


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mass. Cordwall says this new idea tries


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to explain how dark matter went from


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being light to being lumpy. These


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particles were similar to photons,


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massless particles that are the basic


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energy or quant of light. And it was in


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this early chaos that extremely large


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numbers of these particles bonded to


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each other. Cordwall and colleagues


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theorized that these massless particles


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were pulled together by the opposing


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directions of their spin. Sort of like


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the attraction between the north and


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south poles of a magnet. As the


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particles cooled, an imbalance in the


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particles spins caused their energy to


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plummet like steer rapidly condensing


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into water. And the outcome was the cold


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heavy particles that scientists now


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think constitute dark matter. Now, the


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most unexpected part of this


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mathematical model was the energy


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plummet that bridges the high density


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energy and the lumpy low energy.


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Cordwell says at this stage, it's like


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these pairs were getting ready to become


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dark matter. And this phase transition


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helps explain the abundance of dark


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matter being detected today. It all


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sprang from high density clusters of


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extremely energetic particles in the


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early universe. The study introduces a


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theoretical particle that would have


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initiated the transition to dark matter.


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thing is scientists already know that


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electrons can undergo a similar


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transition. See at low temperatures two


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electrons can form what are known as


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Koopa pairs that can conduct electricity


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without resistance and are the active


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mechanism in certain


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superconductors. In fact the authors


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site the existence of Kooper pairs as


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evidence that the massless particles in


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their theory would have been capable of


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condensing into dark matter. They look


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towards superconductivity for clues as


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to whether a certain interaction could


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cause energy to drop so suddenly. And


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Koopa pairs are the proof that this


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mechanism exists. The metamorphosis of


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these particles from the cosmic


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equivalent of a double espresso into day


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old oatmeal explains the vast deficit in


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the energy density of the current


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universe compared to its early days.


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Scientists know that density has


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declined since the big bang as the


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universe's energies expanded outwards.


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But the author's new idea also accounts


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for the increase in the density of mass.


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They say structures get their mass due


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to the density of cold dark matter. But


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there also has to be a mechanism wherein


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energy density drops close to what we


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see around us today. And their theory


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suggests that the particle pairs entered


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a cold nearly pressureless state as they


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got slower and heavier. And this


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characteristic would make them stand out


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in the cosmic microwave background


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radiation. The cosmic microwave


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background radiation has been studied by


00:04:47.919 --> 00:04:50.550
several large scale projects and the


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authors say both existing and future


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data from these projects could be used


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to test their ideas. This is spaceime.


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Still to come, the first visible light


00:05:00.880 --> 00:05:03.670
aurora seen on Mars and a new type of


00:05:03.680 --> 00:05:06.070
massive X-ray explosion discovered near


00:05:06.080 --> 00:05:08.390
monster black holes. All that and more


00:05:08.400 --> 00:05:10.690
still to come on


00:05:10.700 --> 00:05:25.230
[Music]


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Spaceime. NASA's Mars Perseverance


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rovers made history by detecting visible


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light auroral activity on another planet


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for the first time. The detections were


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made during March last year near the


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peak of the current solar cycle and they


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were confirmed by NASA's Mars orbiting


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Maven spacecraft. The event reported in


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the journal Science Advances was


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triggered by a massive solar flare on


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the sun which generated a chronal mass


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ejection, a huge explosion of gas and


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magnetic energy that carries vast


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amounts of solar energetic particles out


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into space. And this solar activity led


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to stunning auroral displays across the


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solar system, including on Mars, where


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the six world cars size Perseverance


00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:08.830
rover saw them in the skies above Jezro


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Crater. The study's lead author, Elise


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Nudson from the University of Oslo, says


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the discovery opens up new possibilities


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for auroral research and confirms that


00:06:17.759 --> 00:06:19.749
aurora could be visible to future


00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:22.550
astronauts on the Martian surface. On


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Earth, auroray form when solar particles


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interact with the planet's global


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magnetic field, funneling these


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particles towards the poles along


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magnetic field lines, during which time


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they collide with atoms and molecules in


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the Earth's atmosphere, emitting light.


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The most common colors seen in Earthly


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aurora is green, caused by collisions


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with oxygen atoms. For years, scientists


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have theorized that green light auroras


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would also exist on Mars, but suggested


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they would be much fainter and harder to


00:06:49.120 --> 00:06:51.110
capture than the green auroral activity


00:06:51.120 --> 00:06:53.670
seen on Earth. Now, due to the red


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planet's lack of a global magnetic


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field, Mars has a different type of


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auroral activity to what we see on


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Earth. These include solar energetic


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particle aurora, which may have been


00:07:03.759 --> 00:07:06.790
discovered in 2014. These occur when


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superenergetic particles from the sun


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hit the Martian atmosphere, causing a


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reaction that makes the atmosphere glow


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across the entire night sky. Now, while


00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:16.790
Maven's already observed solar energetic


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particle aurora and ultraviolet light


00:07:18.800 --> 00:07:21.029
from Mars, the phenomenon's never been


00:07:21.039 --> 00:07:22.629
observed in visible light from the


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ground. Since solar energetic particle


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aurori typically occur during solar


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storms, which increase during solar


00:07:29.039 --> 00:07:31.510
maximum, like what we're in now, Mudson


00:07:31.520 --> 00:07:33.270
and colleagues set their sights on


00:07:33.280 --> 00:07:35.670
capturing visible images and spectra of


00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:37.830
solar energetic particle aurora from the


00:07:37.840 --> 00:07:39.990
Martian surface at the very peak of the


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sun's current solar cycle. Through


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modeling, Nutson determined the optimal


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angle for the Perseverance rover's super


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cam spectrometer mass cam Z camera to


00:07:49.039 --> 00:07:51.110
successfully observe the solar energetic


00:07:51.120 --> 00:07:53.589
particle aurora in visible light. And


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with this observational strategy now in


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place, it all came down to the timing


00:07:57.280 --> 00:07:59.270
and understanding the physics of coronal


00:07:59.280 --> 00:08:01.670
mass ejections. Scientists with the


00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:03.430
Maven mission determined there was a


00:08:03.440 --> 00:08:05.189
noticeable solar storm heading towards


00:08:05.199 --> 00:08:08.070
the red planet in March 2024, which


00:08:08.080 --> 00:08:09.749
should arrive a few days after the


00:08:09.759 --> 00:08:12.390
initial eruption on the sun. And so they


00:08:12.400 --> 00:08:14.230
issued a Mars space weather alert


00:08:14.240 --> 00:08:16.150
notification to all currently operating


00:08:16.160 --> 00:08:18.790
Mars missions. Few days later that


00:08:18.800 --> 00:08:21.029
coronal mass ejection impacted Mars


00:08:21.039 --> 00:08:22.869
providing a light show for the rover to


00:08:22.879 --> 00:08:24.790
capture and showing the aurora to be


00:08:24.800 --> 00:08:27.909
nearly uniform right across the sky. To


00:08:27.919 --> 00:08:29.990
confirm the presence of solar energetic


00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:31.430
particles during the auroral


00:08:31.440 --> 00:08:32.949
observations, the authors looked to


00:08:32.959 --> 00:08:34.709
Maven's solar energetic particle


00:08:34.719 --> 00:08:36.070
instrument which was additionally


00:08:36.080 --> 00:08:37.990
corroborated by data from the European


00:08:38.000 --> 00:08:40.870
Space Ay's Mars Express Orbiter. That


00:08:40.880 --> 00:08:42.550
data from both orbital missions


00:08:42.560 --> 00:08:44.230
confirmed that the rover team on the


00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:46.389
ground had managed to successfully catch


00:08:46.399 --> 00:08:48.550
a glimpse of the phenomenon in the very


00:08:48.560 --> 00:08:50.269
narrow time window


00:08:50.279 --> 00:08:52.509
available. This is


00:08:52.519 --> 00:08:55.509
spaceime. Still to come, a new type of


00:08:55.519 --> 00:08:57.750
massive X-ray explosion discovered near


00:08:57.760 --> 00:08:59.670
monster black holes and later in the


00:08:59.680 --> 00:09:01.670
science report, confirmation that


00:09:01.680 --> 00:09:04.070
artificial intelligence chatbots


00:09:04.080 --> 00:09:06.230
exaggerate the extent and scope of


00:09:06.240 --> 00:09:09.430
research in scientific papers. All that


00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:12.500
and more still to come on


00:09:12.510 --> 00:09:16.829
[Music]


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NordVPN. And now it's back to our show.


00:10:42.399 --> 00:10:44.389
Astronomers have for the first time


00:10:44.399 --> 00:10:46.230
probed the physical environment of a


00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:47.990
recently discovered new type of


00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:50.389
repeating X-ray outburst found to exist


00:10:50.399 --> 00:10:53.350
near monster super massive black holes.


00:10:53.360 --> 00:10:55.590
These massive X-ray flares have been


00:10:55.600 --> 00:10:58.389
named quasi periodic eruptions.


00:10:58.399 --> 00:11:00.069
Astronomers recently observed these


00:11:00.079 --> 00:11:02.470
events in a system named Ansky which is


00:11:02.480 --> 00:11:04.630
located in a galaxy about 300 million


00:11:04.640 --> 00:11:06.550
lighty years away in the constellation


00:11:06.560 --> 00:11:09.030
Virgo. This event was the first


00:11:09.040 --> 00:11:11.110
indication that something unusual might


00:11:11.120 --> 00:11:14.310
be happening. It was the eighth and so


00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:16.150
far most powerful quasi periodic


00:11:16.160 --> 00:11:18.310
eruption source discovered setting the


00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:19.990
record in terms of both timing and


00:11:20.000 --> 00:11:22.230
duration with eruptions every 4 and 1/2


00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:24.310
Earth days and with each eruption


00:11:24.320 --> 00:11:26.870
lasting around a day and a half. The


00:11:26.880 --> 00:11:28.630
observations were achieved by NASA's


00:11:28.640 --> 00:11:30.470
Neutron Star Interior Composition


00:11:30.480 --> 00:11:32.790
Explorer or NISER telescope which is


00:11:32.800 --> 00:11:34.389
mounted aboard the International Space


00:11:34.399 --> 00:11:36.790
Station. Additional information was


00:11:36.800 --> 00:11:39.030
provided by NASA's Swift Space Telescope


00:11:39.040 --> 00:11:41.430
and NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory as


00:11:41.440 --> 00:11:43.750
well as the European Space Ay's XMM


00:11:43.760 --> 00:11:46.310
Newton Space Telescope. The study's lead


00:11:46.320 --> 00:11:48.069
author Joan Cheraborti from the


00:11:48.079 --> 00:11:49.829
Massachusetts Institute of Technology


00:11:49.839 --> 00:11:52.310
MIT says these quasyp periodic eruptions


00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:54.509
are both mysterious and intensely


00:11:54.519 --> 00:11:56.790
interesting. One of the most intriguing


00:11:56.800 --> 00:11:59.269
aspects is their quasyp periodic nature.


00:11:59.279 --> 00:12:00.870
See, astronomers are still trying to


00:12:00.880 --> 00:12:02.790
develop the mythologies and frameworks


00:12:02.800 --> 00:12:04.710
needed to understand exactly what's


00:12:04.720 --> 00:12:07.190
causing them. The findings reported in


00:12:07.200 --> 00:12:09.190
the Astrophysical Journal suggest that


00:12:09.200 --> 00:12:11.269
these eruptions occur in systems where a


00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:13.269
relatively low mass object passes


00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:15.269
through the disc of gas surrounding a


00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:17.269
super massive black hole that holds


00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:19.190
hundreds of thousands to billions of


00:12:19.200 --> 00:12:21.509
times the mass of the sun. When the


00:12:21.519 --> 00:12:23.030
lower mass object punches through the


00:12:23.040 --> 00:12:25.350
disc, its passage drives out expanding


00:12:25.360 --> 00:12:27.430
clouds of hot gas, which astronomers


00:12:27.440 --> 00:12:29.750
then observe as quasy periodic eruptions


00:12:29.760 --> 00:12:32.230
in X-rays. Astronomers think the


00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:34.310
eruption's quasi periodicity occurs


00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:36.389
because the smaller object's orbit isn't


00:12:36.399 --> 00:12:38.790
perfectly circular and spirals towards


00:12:38.800 --> 00:12:41.350
the black hole over time. Also, the


00:12:41.360 --> 00:12:43.190
extreme gravity close to the black hole


00:12:43.200 --> 00:12:45.269
warps the very fabric of spaceime,


00:12:45.279 --> 00:12:46.949
altering the object's orbit so they


00:12:46.959 --> 00:12:48.550
don't close on themselves with each


00:12:48.560 --> 00:12:51.110
cycle. Scientists current understanding


00:12:51.120 --> 00:12:52.949
suggest that these eruptions repeat


00:12:52.959 --> 00:12:55.350
until the disc disappears or until the


00:12:55.360 --> 00:12:57.430
orbiting object disintegrates, either of


00:12:57.440 --> 00:13:00.230
which could take several years. Ansky's


00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:02.069
extreme properties may be due to the


00:13:02.079 --> 00:13:03.750
nature of the disc around its super


00:13:03.760 --> 00:13:06.150
massive black hole. In most quasyp


00:13:06.160 --> 00:13:08.389
periodic eruption systems, super massive


00:13:08.399 --> 00:13:10.389
black hole likely shreds the passing


00:13:10.399 --> 00:13:12.470
star, creating a small disc very close


00:13:12.480 --> 00:13:15.190
to itself. But in Ansky's case, the


00:13:15.200 --> 00:13:17.350
authors think the disc is much larger


00:13:17.360 --> 00:13:19.509
and can involve objects further away,


00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:21.310
creating the longer time scales


00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:23.509
observed. Nice position on the


00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:25.670
International Space Station allows it to


00:13:25.680 --> 00:13:28.710
observe Ansky about 16 times every day.


00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:30.629
And this frequency of observations was


00:13:30.639 --> 00:13:32.230
critical in detecting the X-ray


00:13:32.240 --> 00:13:34.470
fluctuations that revealed Ansky was


00:13:34.480 --> 00:13:37.269
producing quasy periodic eruptions. The


00:13:37.279 --> 00:13:39.829
authors used data from Nicer and X-Men


00:13:39.839 --> 00:13:41.430
to map the rapid evolution of the


00:13:41.440 --> 00:13:43.430
ejected material driving the observed


00:13:43.440 --> 00:13:45.590
eruptions in unprecedented detail by


00:13:45.600 --> 00:13:47.750
studying variations in X-ray intensity


00:13:47.760 --> 00:13:49.550
during the rise and fall of each


00:13:49.560 --> 00:13:51.990
eruption. They found that each impact


00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:53.910
resulted in roughly about a quarter


00:13:53.920 --> 00:13:55.829
Jupiter's worth of mass reaching


00:13:55.839 --> 00:13:58.389
expansion velocities around 15% the


00:13:58.399 --> 00:14:01.110
speed of light. And NISA was then able


00:14:01.120 --> 00:14:03.030
to measure the size and temperature of


00:14:03.040 --> 00:14:05.110
the roughly spherical bubble of debris


00:14:05.120 --> 00:14:06.949
as it expanded.


00:14:06.959 --> 00:14:10.389
This report from NASA TV.


00:14:10.399 --> 00:14:11.990
From its perch on the International


00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:14.470
Space Station, NASA's NICER X-ray


00:14:14.480 --> 00:14:16.949
telescope has helped map a mysterious


00:14:16.959 --> 00:14:19.910
cosmic event for the first time. It


00:14:19.920 --> 00:14:22.069
happened in a galaxy 300 million lighty


00:14:22.079 --> 00:14:25.470
years away. Astronomers call this system


00:14:25.480 --> 00:14:27.990
Ansky. Ansky produces a type of


00:14:28.000 --> 00:14:31.189
recurring X-ray outburst called a QPE or


00:14:31.199 --> 00:14:34.310
quasi periodic eruption. These events


00:14:34.320 --> 00:14:37.189
were just recently discovered. Ansky is


00:14:37.199 --> 00:14:39.509
only the eighth known QPE emitter and is


00:14:39.519 --> 00:14:42.230
the most energetic to date. Some


00:14:42.240 --> 00:14:44.710
scientists think QPEs occur when a lower


00:14:44.720 --> 00:14:47.269
mass object orbits a super massive black


00:14:47.279 --> 00:14:50.310
hole in the center of a galaxy. When the


00:14:50.320 --> 00:14:52.310
smaller object passes through the disc


00:14:52.320 --> 00:14:54.870
of gas around the monster black hole, it


00:14:54.880 --> 00:14:56.949
produces a cloud of debris that causes


00:14:56.959 --> 00:14:59.670
an X-ray outburst. The low mass object


00:14:59.680 --> 00:15:02.150
isn't on a circular orbit and its motion


00:15:02.160 --> 00:15:03.829
is affected by the distortion of


00:15:03.839 --> 00:15:05.910
spaceime near the black hole. So the


00:15:05.920 --> 00:15:07.670
eruptions don't repeat over the same


00:15:07.680 --> 00:15:09.509
exact time frame which is what makes


00:15:09.519 --> 00:15:12.870
them quasi periodic. Ansky's outbursts


00:15:12.880 --> 00:15:14.710
are the longest of all the QPEs


00:15:14.720 --> 00:15:16.949
astronomers have studied with eruptions


00:15:16.959 --> 00:15:19.590
every 4.5 days or so that last


00:15:19.600 --> 00:15:22.550
approximately 1 and 1/2 days. That may


00:15:22.560 --> 00:15:25.030
be caused by a larger disc engulfing an


00:15:25.040 --> 00:15:27.910
object farther away. Nicer's


00:15:27.920 --> 00:15:30.069
observations of Ansky allowed scientists


00:15:30.079 --> 00:15:32.150
to probe the gas ejected from the disc


00:15:32.160 --> 00:15:34.870
after each collision. The gas expands,


00:15:34.880 --> 00:15:37.829
reaching velocities about 15% the speed


00:15:37.839 --> 00:15:40.470
of light and produces the X-rays we see


00:15:40.480 --> 00:15:41.470
as


00:15:41.480 --> 00:15:44.710
QPEs. Nicer and other missions will


00:15:44.720 --> 00:15:47.670
continue to study Ansky and other QPEs,


00:15:47.680 --> 00:15:49.829
helping astronomers reveal their


00:15:49.839 --> 00:15:51.670
secrets.


00:15:51.680 --> 00:15:55.720
This spaceime


00:15:55.730 --> 00:16:02.840
[Music]




00:16:07.830 --> 00:16:09.430
[Applause]


00:16:09.440 --> 00:16:11.189
And time now to take another brief look


00:16:11.199 --> 00:16:12.710
at some of the other stories making news


00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:14.629
in science this week with a science


00:16:14.639 --> 00:16:16.870
report. A new study has shown that


00:16:16.880 --> 00:16:18.870
artificial intelligence chatbots driven


00:16:18.880 --> 00:16:20.790
by large language models tend to


00:16:20.800 --> 00:16:22.870
exaggerate the scope of research when


00:16:22.880 --> 00:16:26.069
summarizing scientific papers. A report


00:16:26.079 --> 00:16:28.069
in the journal of the Royal Society Open


00:16:28.079 --> 00:16:31.430
Science analyzed 4,900 chatbot generated


00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:33.990
summaries of scientific abstracts. These


00:16:34.000 --> 00:16:36.150
abstracts themselves are short summaries


00:16:36.160 --> 00:16:37.670
found at the start of a scientific


00:16:37.680 --> 00:16:39.829
paper. They found the artificial


00:16:39.839 --> 00:16:41.910
intelligence was five times more likely


00:16:41.920 --> 00:16:44.230
to overgeneralize findings than a human


00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:46.710
expert. Now, the authors didn't ask the


00:16:46.720 --> 00:16:48.550
chatbots to write the summaries for an


00:16:48.560 --> 00:16:50.550
expert audience, but they did request


00:16:50.560 --> 00:16:53.030
systematic details and faithful abstract


00:16:53.040 --> 00:16:55.590
summaries in their prompts. Ironically,


00:16:55.600 --> 00:16:57.430
prompting for accuracy tended to


00:16:57.440 --> 00:16:59.749
increase overgeneralizations, and newer,


00:16:59.759 --> 00:17:01.749
larger language models were far less


00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:04.230
accurate than the older ones. In other


00:17:04.240 --> 00:17:06.390
words, AI is getting better at


00:17:06.400 --> 00:17:08.429
exaggerating and


00:17:08.439 --> 00:17:10.949
lying. Engineers have invented a small


00:17:10.959 --> 00:17:13.270
neuromorphic device that detects hand


00:17:13.280 --> 00:17:15.829
movement, stores memories, and processes


00:17:15.839 --> 00:17:17.590
information very much like a human


00:17:17.600 --> 00:17:19.510
brain, but without the need for an


00:17:19.520 --> 00:17:21.829
external computer. A report in the


00:17:21.839 --> 00:17:23.750
journal Advanced Materials Technologies


00:17:23.760 --> 00:17:25.669
claims the innovation marks a strong


00:17:25.679 --> 00:17:27.829
step towards enabling instant visual


00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:29.909
processing in autonomous vehicles as


00:17:29.919 --> 00:17:31.990
well as advanced robotics and other next


00:17:32.000 --> 00:17:34.070
generation applications for improved


00:17:34.080 --> 00:17:36.789
human interactions. Neuromorphic vision


00:17:36.799 --> 00:17:38.310
systems are designed to use similar


00:17:38.320 --> 00:17:40.470
analog processing to our brains which


00:17:40.480 --> 00:17:42.230
can greatly reduce the amount of energy


00:17:42.240 --> 00:17:44.630
needed to perform complex visual tasks


00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:46.390
compared with the digital technologies


00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:49.190
being used today.


00:17:49.200 --> 00:17:51.029
Scientists have discovered the oldest


00:17:51.039 --> 00:17:53.510
ancestor for all living Australian tree


00:17:53.520 --> 00:17:55.590
frogs. A report in the journal


00:17:55.600 --> 00:17:57.510
vertebrate paleontology has shown that


00:17:57.520 --> 00:17:59.590
the newly identified species has


00:17:59.600 --> 00:18:01.909
distinct links with tree frogs found in


00:18:01.919 --> 00:18:04.150
South America. Now, previously


00:18:04.160 --> 00:18:05.830
scientists believed Australian and South


00:18:05.840 --> 00:18:07.750
American tree frogs separated from each


00:18:07.760 --> 00:18:10.470
other about 33 million years ago. But


00:18:10.480 --> 00:18:12.310
the new discovery shows the split


00:18:12.320 --> 00:18:14.710
actually happened much earlier about 55


00:18:14.720 --> 00:18:17.110
million years ago.


00:18:17.120 --> 00:18:18.870
And now for the silliest story of the


00:18:18.880 --> 00:18:21.990
week. A former CIA agent claims he was


00:18:22.000 --> 00:18:24.230
taught to use his psychic abilities to


00:18:24.240 --> 00:18:26.390
undertake a remote viewing of the red


00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.190
planet Mars in its ancient past. And he


00:18:29.200 --> 00:18:32.150
claims he saw human civilizations there


00:18:32.160 --> 00:18:34.070
that were aware they were destined to


00:18:34.080 --> 00:18:36.390
face extinction. The trouble is Tim


00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:38.070
Mendum from Australian Skeptics points


00:18:38.080 --> 00:18:39.750
out that while astronomers have mapped


00:18:39.760 --> 00:18:41.430
every inch of the Martian surface by


00:18:41.440 --> 00:18:43.430
satellite, they yet to find any evidence


00:18:43.440 --> 00:18:46.630
of ancient ruins. Even the famous face


00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:49.110
on Mars sphinx and nearby pyramid-shaped


00:18:49.120 --> 00:18:51.029
structures all turned out to be nothing


00:18:51.039 --> 00:18:52.950
more than the simple play of light and


00:18:52.960 --> 00:18:55.590
shade on natural rock formations. The


00:18:55.600 --> 00:18:58.230
CIA did real tests of psychics during


00:18:58.240 --> 00:19:01.350
the 70s 80s. This is the remote viewing


00:19:01.360 --> 00:19:03.270
stuff. Yeah, remote viewing, the power


00:19:03.280 --> 00:19:04.549
to influence something else like


00:19:04.559 --> 00:19:07.029
telekinesis, move things, various things


00:19:07.039 --> 00:19:09.029
as they would and if you're really a


00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:10.549
follower of the CI as they probably


00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:12.630
should be trying out any avenue they


00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:14.150
could find to see if there's something


00:19:14.160 --> 00:19:16.390
to an advantage to their site, right?


00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:18.150
And they looked at psychic powers for a


00:19:18.160 --> 00:19:19.430
number of years and then after a while


00:19:19.440 --> 00:19:21.750
said nothing worth looking at here, not


00:19:21.760 --> 00:19:23.270
even anything that's sort of half


00:19:23.280 --> 00:19:25.029
inkling that could be developed and said


00:19:25.039 --> 00:19:26.070
there's nothing there to look at. And


00:19:26.080 --> 00:19:27.430
they spent a lot of money for it and


00:19:27.440 --> 00:19:28.789
ever since then people said, "Well, the


00:19:28.799 --> 00:19:30.549
CIA looked at it. It must be true." No,


00:19:30.559 --> 00:19:31.909
they looked at it. They try everything.


00:19:31.919 --> 00:19:33.190
They tried looking at people who can


00:19:33.200 --> 00:19:35.029
knock goats over with that thought. They


00:19:35.039 --> 00:19:36.549
look at all sorts of strange things just


00:19:36.559 --> 00:19:38.230
in case one of them proved true. And in


00:19:38.240 --> 00:19:40.470
a way, this is proof that it doesn't not


00:19:40.480 --> 00:19:41.909
true because they stopped. And they


00:19:41.919 --> 00:19:43.110
handed over all the information about


00:19:43.120 --> 00:19:44.950
it. It's available. Paper of the CIA


00:19:44.960 --> 00:19:46.630
investigations of UFOs. They readily


00:19:46.640 --> 00:19:48.070
handed over the information. They made a


00:19:48.080 --> 00:19:49.990
movie about it. Several. So this was


00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:51.750
someone who was supposedly was one of


00:19:51.760 --> 00:19:54.150
the subjects being tested by the CIA.


00:19:54.160 --> 00:19:55.750
It's called Project Stargate was the


00:19:55.760 --> 00:19:56.950
actual program that was looking at


00:19:56.960 --> 00:19:58.630
remote viewing, which is seeing things


00:19:58.640 --> 00:20:00.310
from a distance. And this fellow claimed


00:20:00.320 --> 00:20:01.909
he could also see into the past and the


00:20:01.919 --> 00:20:03.830
future. He was described himself as


00:20:03.840 --> 00:20:05.750
remote viewer number one. Say, "Wow, he


00:20:05.760 --> 00:20:07.350
must have been the best or the first. We


00:20:07.360 --> 00:20:08.750
had high opinions of


00:20:08.760 --> 00:20:10.870
himself." And he reckon he was given


00:20:10.880 --> 00:20:12.870
coordinates of a spot on Mars and the


00:20:12.880 --> 00:20:15.430
and the notation 1 million years BC. and


00:20:15.440 --> 00:20:17.750
a location and he spotted buildings, a


00:20:17.760 --> 00:20:19.990
pyramid and he spotted humans, actual


00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:21.830
humans but very tall humans who are


00:20:21.840 --> 00:20:23.510
looking very sad and very miserable


00:20:23.520 --> 00:20:25.029
because they were just about to be wiped


00:20:25.039 --> 00:20:27.830
out by some planet that brush past Mars


00:20:27.840 --> 00:20:29.590
and stole the atmosphere from Mars which


00:20:29.600 --> 00:20:30.549
would have happened very quickly. I


00:20:30.559 --> 00:20:31.750
think they must have had some warning.


00:20:31.760 --> 00:20:33.669
So the the visions he saw were inside


00:20:33.679 --> 00:20:36.310
this pyramid looked very sparse and lot


00:20:36.320 --> 00:20:37.990
looking sad and then they gone. They


00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:39.830
said there was definitely life on Mars.


00:20:39.840 --> 00:20:41.750
It's human. Not even humanoid. It's


00:20:41.760 --> 00:20:43.909
human. Big, tall, twice the size of us


00:20:43.919 --> 00:20:45.750
living in giant pyramids. The CIA


00:20:45.760 --> 00:20:47.270
seriously looking at this trying to find


00:20:47.280 --> 00:20:49.190
examples evidence and they couldn't find


00:20:49.200 --> 00:20:51.270
any. Okay. Whether you believe the CIA


00:20:51.280 --> 00:20:53.350
or not, this guy claims he did find


00:20:53.360 --> 00:20:55.029
something. He told them, and of course,


00:20:55.039 --> 00:20:56.710
instantly the evidence was covered up.


00:20:56.720 --> 00:20:58.630
So, he's come back here 50 years later,


00:20:58.640 --> 00:21:00.630
talk about what he what he discovered


00:21:00.640 --> 00:21:02.470
then as remote viewer number one.


00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:04.149
There's no way to prove it. Obviously, 1


00:21:04.159 --> 00:21:06.470
million years BC is a very very strange


00:21:06.480 --> 00:21:08.789
figure to choose. seeing tall humanoids


00:21:08.799 --> 00:21:10.149
to science. You just saw the movie


00:21:10.159 --> 00:21:12.630
Avatar. Yeah, quite possibly. It's just


00:21:12.640 --> 00:21:15.029
all too 1950s science fiction sort of


00:21:15.039 --> 00:21:17.190
thing. As much as we all love 1950s


00:21:17.200 --> 00:21:19.350
science fiction, it's not necessarily an


00:21:19.360 --> 00:21:21.590
accurate depiction of the way things


00:21:21.600 --> 00:21:24.149
are. That's Tim Mindum from Australian


00:21:24.159 --> 00:21:26.620
Skeptics.


00:21:26.630 --> 00:21:40.310
[Music]


00:21:40.320 --> 00:21:43.110
And that's the show for now. Spacetime


00:21:43.120 --> 00:21:44.870
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