Mark and Toddcast

This week Todd is joined by Dave Baehler from the NotNerd podcast to plow through the giant pile of news accumulated since our last show. Join us as we dive into AI police robots, RIP Alpenrose Dairy and artificial coloring, Minnesota Republicans introduce vaccine bill written by a hypnotist, Measles Watch 2025, great news for those who love salmonella in their chicken, a deep dive into why conservatives distrust science (even when science agrees with them), a Texas Furry ban, and a happy Hetero Awesome Fest to you and yourn.

Aum Shinrikyo was an active doomsday cult in Japan throughout the 1990s, and were responsible for the Sarin gas attacks on the Japanese subway, and threatened attacks around the world -- including Disneyland, which is where our story intersects with one Dr. RIP VHS. FInd out all about them on this week's show. In the news segment: "Illegal Ideas," Mein Kampf in and Maya Angelou is out at Navy libraries, the "truth decay" of congress, both a womb transplant and sperm transplant (unrelated to each other), AI upends fingerprinting, the moon is drifting away, the "Dire Wolf" situation, and more. Enjoy!

Many of us know about the Mars Opportunity rover currently on Mars, but some may not know about a self-piloting helicopter called Ingenuity that traveled with Opportunity. Designed for 5 flights, it ended up making over 70, collecting all sort of data as well as a proof of concept that a drone helicopter can fly in Mars's atmosphere. Hear Ingenuity's story this week! In our news segment: Wienerschnitzel eyeing Portland, YouTube is almost bigger than Disney, more book bans from people wanting "freedom," the saga of the I5 Uncle Sam Billboard (iykyk), a computer that runs on human neurons, hallucinogenic barbarians, and more! Enjoy this Opportunity.

Most of us know his theorum: a2 + b2 = c2. But few of us knew Pythagoras was the leader of his own cult/religion that lasted centuries -- and BOY did they hate fava beans. Find out more on this week's show. In our news segment: Oregon Children's Theater fails, the measles thrive, the Smithsonian's "Improper Ideology," the founder of Pirate's Booty attempt a coup of his city, sonic weapons, "spare" human bodies, and you'll never guess what happened to the Senator who thought "Trump Derangement Syndrome" should be a thing (you'll probably guess). Enjoy!

As tech companies keep convincing us A.I. is the way of the future, we stop to take a look at what that means for the power consumption necessary to produce results nobody really cares about and wants to avoid anyway. Dust off those nuclear power plants, because A.I. is here to stay regardless of whether we want it. In the news, we discuss federal cuts to protecting our dams, Amazon Echo won't let you record locally, scientists turn light into a solid, bananas that never brown, the Amazon forest gets plowed for climate change, and a dog shoots his owner. Enjoy!

We all know prepared foods and snacks are highly researched and studied to give us exactly what we want, but how do they do that? Are there measurements? When did it all start? Is that why we're all fat now? We'll answer those questions and so much more about the process of "Sensory-Consumer Science." In our news segment, we chat about Space X, Portland losing the "World's Smallest Park" crown, Gen Z is more pro-marriage than Millennials, a new unmanned Navy cruiser, why women age better than men, disappearing butterflies, the Enola "Not Gay," diamonds are forever (in your stomach), and much, much more. Enjoy!

One of the push-backs we often hear from critics of evolution is how unreliable the method of Carbon-14 Dating is. Which is correct. Sort of. But Carbon-14 Dating is far from the only method we use to figure out how old the earth and galaxy around us is, and this week we explore the many different ways we can understand, test, and know the relative age of what's around us. Plus, the most decorated military dog in history, you may die of dysentery, Montana wants to ban vaccines, Trump's meme coin quasi-rug pull, obligatory Elon Musk news, and Utah bans fluoride. What a time to be alive.

Many of us remember the late 90s ska-fueled song "Zoot Suit Riots," but many may not know the song is based on a real event, in which racial tensions in 1940s Los Angeles exploded into a series of attacks on Mexican-Americans by Navy servicemen, culminating in a 5-day riot. This week we dive into that story, as well as talk current news stories like what on earth is happening with DOGE and "The Gulf of America," Portland's shortest race with the Unipiper, who is most likely to fall for disinformation online, and a viscous banana attack in 7-11.  This shit is B-A-N-A-N-A-S.

This week we celebrate Todd's birthday by welcoming our wonderful friend Cara from Ohio. She joins us for the news, then takes on the role of judge as Mark and Todd go head-to-head for 5 rounds of "Wheel of Wikipedia" (which I'm now realizing is actually called "War of Wikipedia," but whatever). Cara is hilarious and the best person ever -- the perfect birthday show!

As we close out one year and face down another one, we clear out the news and go for a wild ride involving crystals, "brainspotting," "Severence," Todd's favorite documentary, Clackamas Town Center and Washington Square malls, Dr. Pamplin steals from his employees, the Belmont Goats, "brain rot," the speed of human thought, RFK Jr. and chemtrails, the DOJ recognizes the Tulsa Massacre, our slow brains, and a cow swims the Columbia River and takes on I-84, and much, much more.