What The If?

Spooky children?! Past lives?! Astrology?! What could we possibly be talking about? What The If past lives, and reincarnation were real? On this episode, we talk about an article Philip found on NYTimes about reincarnation and how they actually considered the occult as scientific?! WHAT?! This if is dedicated to the comment section of this article: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/26/parenting/pretend-play-creepy-kids.html — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

Science wins in the USA! Vaccine research looking good so far! As she does every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the COVID-19 Pandemic’s headlines. Three fascinating stories this week: "Pfizer’s Early Data Shows Vaccine Is More Than 90% Effective" - The New York Times - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/09/health/covid-vaccine-pfizer.html "Pfizer announced positive early results from its coronavirus vaccine trial, cementing the lead in a frenzied global race that has unfolded at record-breaking speed." By Katie Thomas, David Gelles and Carl Zimmer "Children Produce Weaker Coronavirus Antibodies, Study Finds" - The New York Times - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/05/health/covid-children-antibodies.html "The research suggests that children clear the infection much faster than adults and may help explain why many don’t become seriously ill." By Apoorva Mandavilli "Antibodies may explain some of COVID-19 clotting risk" - Time - https://time.com/5906911/covid-

We are joined by Historian of Medicine, Professor of History at Clarkson University, Stephen Casper! You've got a tailbone, but WTiF Humans actually had TAILS?! Hang off those trees like our ape-like ancestors, chill out with a nice cool drink and enjoy this ride on the Human evolution train! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton for help with today's show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

The New York Times headline is ominous: "How Are Americans Catching the Virus? Increasingly, ‘They Have No Idea’" As she does every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind this scary headline and we aim to learn how it is that the Corona Virus seems UNSAFE AT ANY SPEED! Read the article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/31/us/coronavirus-transmission-everywhere.html More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are welcome! Visit WhatTheIF.com/contact or email us at feedback@whattheif.com.

Reality TV in SPACE! What The If Aliens are WATCHING us!? Tune your televisions to the intergalactic channel, or open up your streaming app on your smart TV and watch the show called EARTH! Article mentioned in this weeks episode from Gizmodo: https://gizmodo.com/aliens-from-these-worlds-could-be-watching-us-right-now-1845452421 — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

NBC News reports, "A rare Covid-19 complication was reported in children. Now, it's showing up in adults." Gaby helps us understand what scientists do when alarming data appears. How do scientists even gather so much data, how do they digest it, what can they do when something is extremely rare but highly concerning? Also, we discuss trick or treating this year when Halloween occurs in the middle of real horror. Levity provided by... unexpected country music! Woohoo! Pandemic pickles all our brains, join us for the fun, for science! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are welcome! Visit WhatTheIF.

What The If Zombies were real!? Start armoring your vehicles, boarding up your windows, and stocking up on toilet paper! We've got a spooky episode for you, just in time for Halloween! The Walking Dead roam the earth! George Romero, eat your brain out! It's time for the RISE OF THE DAWN OF THE DEAD! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

It's Fall in the Northern Hemisphere, and Thanksgiving and other holidays are coming up, so we look to SCIENCE for answers on how to arrange our family gatherings during the PANDEMIC. But sometimes... science doesn't have enough ANSWERS! How are people dealing with making choices during this information gap, or even, really, INFO OVERLOAD in the time of Covid? What would YOU do? A whole lotta turkeys are betting on us cancelling Thanksgiving... what will be their fate? Tune in, turkeys and all you IFFers, and find out how to survive, at least until Christmas! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are

Vacuums in space! Space is a vacuum! This week on WHAT THE IF? We talk about Vacuums with the power of a black hole! How much MASS will they have?! Strap in, and get ready for a ride on the Event Horizon! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Howard Zheng and Kyle Crichton for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

Looking for the most ideal planet to inhabit, ya know in case ours goes belly up? Look no FURTHER! This week's WHAT THE IF? Will tell us where we can find the PERFECT Planet! The article discussed in this episode is called "Scientists discover 24 'superhabitable' planets with conditions that are better for life than Earth. By Aisha Zahid, news reporter https://news.sky.com/story/scientists-discover-24-superhabitable-planets-with-conditions-that-are-better-for-life-than-earth-12091801 BETTER?! Could it be like Hawaii, or could it be like the Arctic? Well, let's find out! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250

In honor of the exciting breaking news of the 2020 NOBEL Prize for Chemistry being awarded to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna for their development of CRISPR/Cas9 genetic editing, we present an encore presentation of our awesome episode with the great science journalist Carl Zimmer of The NEW YORK TIMES all about... CRISPR! Send us your questions and comments, and enjoy! ----- Would you CRISPR your baby? The great science journalist Carl Zimmer, award winning columnist for the New York Times and author of thirteen (!) books joins us to imagine the steep up sides and the slippery down sides of the revolutionary technique for modifying genes. Fix those typos in your DNA! Write a better life for baby! And why not rewrite your own bad self? What The IF... you could? CARL ZIMMER's newest book is "She Has Her Mother’s Laugh: The Power, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity". His column "Matter" appears each week in the New York Times. Zimmer’s writing has earned a number of awards, including the 20

The leader of Gaby's lab, Dr. Charles Rice, just won the NOBEL PRIZE! Exciting news for her and all her colleagues at Rockefeller University. What did Dr. Rice win, and why? Gaby shares the story! And Gaby also shares her most recent experiences as a member of the Covid vaccine trials. Did she get the PLACEBO or the real deal? How soon might WE and the WORLD get a safe vaccine? Tune in! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are welcome! Visit WhatTheIF.com/contact or email us at feedback@whattheif.com.

What the IF great achievers, such as Einstein, were offered to live FOREVER. GENIUS run amok! As time goes on there'd end up being a WORLD of geniuses! Would the standard of "genius" go up? Put on your safety pants, as we dive into this week's IF. Thanks to our Super IFFer, Ally Nonomous! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

Mutants!? Mutations! Viruses! Don't Panic! These aren't your favorite superheroes, these mutants are the changes in the Coronavirus! Scientists in Houston have released a study of more than 5,000 genetic sequences of SAR-COV-2 reveal that the virus's continual accumulation of mutations, one of which may have made it more contagious. Do these mutations mean the virus itself is deadlier? Gaby explains! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu For more info on the MIT lecture mentioned in the podcast, head on over to: https://biology.mit.edu/undergraduate/current-students/subject-offerings/covid-19-sars-cov-2-and-the-pandemic/ If you'd like to check out the news story we mention in this episode, check out this piece in WaPo! https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/09/23/houston-coronavirus-mutations/?arc404=true --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howa

What The IF there were NO RADIATION?! Grab your luminous yellow uranium glassware and fill it up with whatever you love to drink, because we're going to take you on a journey worthy of the PERIODIC TABLE! This IF comes in from our SUPER IFFER Listener, Guy, from Queens, NY! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt

The CDC now reports that Covid-19 is transmitted not just by coughing, sneezing and wheezing... but also by breezing! By which we mean BREATHING. Aerosol sized droplets of your breath, floating in the air, on a joy ride... for how far, and how long? Gaby explains! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are welcome! Visit WhatTheIF.com/contact or email us at feedback@whattheif.com.

YOUR BRAIN ON GAME What The If there were a VIDEO GAME that could take over your BRAIN? We're going into the arcade, so get your quarters or tokens ready. It's time to play POLYBIUS. So dust off your fanny packs, load them up with coins and get ready to get your BRAIN sucked out of your head. OUR GUEST STAR We are joined by a hero of Philip's, Dr. Kiki from the amazing podcast, This Week In Science! Dr. Kiki Sanford is is an American neurophysiologist and science communicator. After working at the University of California, Davis as a research scientist, she left research work to pursue a career in science communication. Her work has included multiple audio and video programs, including the This Week in Science radio program and podcast and Dr. Kiki's Science Hour, a podcast involving interviews with experts in a given scientific field. Visit her show at TWIS.org and her own website at: www.kirstensanford.com WANNA POLYBIUS OF YOUR OWN? As mentioned in the show, the folks at Numskull Games are makin

Good news! AstraZeneca just resumed their coronavirus vaccine clinical trials after stopping them abruptly last week. What happened? How does the safety system work? And how can YOU sign up to be a part of this historic global endeavor? Gaby explains! Every week, Rockefeller University Virologist GABY PANICCIA explores the science behind the headlines. More info at RockEDU: rockedu.rockefeller.edu and covid-19-research.rockefeller.edu --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Like the show? Share your love for the IF by dropping a review on Apple Podcasts! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Have you subscribed? Grab one (always free!) at pod.link/1250517051 and never miss an episode! Comments, questions, and more are welcome! Visit WhatTheIF.com/contact or email us at feedback@whattheif.com.

What The If the galaxy were full of... BERSERKERS?! And yet, we don't see ANYONE in the galaxy. Have they all gone BERSERK? This week we dive into the Berserker HYPOTHESIS. Survival of the fittest, IN SPACE! We are joined by the excellent science writer, Matt Williams of Universe Today, who's also an amazing science fiction writer. Check out his work on Universe Today, https://www.universetoday.com/147396/beyond-fermis-paradox-vi-the-berserker-hypothesis/ as well as on his website, https://storiesbywilliams.com/ where you can buy some of his amazing books including THE FORMIST SERIES. — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podca

What The If the UNIVERSE stopped spinning! The universal check engine light is on and we have stopped moving! Time to bring this bad boy into the shop! — Got an IF of your own? Want to have us consider your idea for a show topic? Send YOUR IF to us! Email us at feedback@whattheif.com and let us know what's in your imagination. No idea is too small, or too big! --- Special thanks to Kyle Crichton, Illia Zheng and Howard Zheng for their help with the show. --- Want to support the show? Click a rating or add a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app! itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1250517051?mt=2&ls=1 Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe at WhatTheIF.com Keep On IFFin', Philip & Matt