The Studies Show
Episode 69: Conspiracy theories
While you here do snoring lie, Open-eyed conspiracy His time doth take. If of life you keep a care, Shake off slumber, and beware: Awake, awake! …or so said William Shakespeare—about whom there are quite a few conspiracy theories, now we come to think of it. In this episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart do their best to waken you from your own slumber and open your eyes to the psychology of conspiracy theories. Why do people believe them? How do you even define a conspiracy theory? And is there anything we can do to shake people out of their mad “Truther” beliefs? The Studies Show is sponsored by Works in Progress magazine . In the most recent issue you’ll find fascinating articles on subjects as wonderfully diverse as the land value tax, prehistoric psychopaths, and (as mentioned in this week’s episode) the history of the pineapple, the King of Fruit. Find it all for free at worksinprogress.co . Show notes * Loose Change , the viral 9/11 Truther video * 2023 conspiracy theory review in Annual Review of Psychology * Tom’s review of How to Talk to a Science Denier * Iran-Contra ; the Invasion of Poland ; the Invasion of Manchuria * The UK infected blood scandal * Kemi Badenoch accused of giving credence to a “conspiracy theory” about the Netflix show Adolescence * First study using the specific-conspiracy-list measure of conspiracy belief * 2013 study proposing a broader questionnaire on conspracies * 2022 meta-analysis of the correlates of conspiracy belief * Theory of the psychological motivations behind conspiracy theories from 2017 * Associated meta-analysis from 2022 * Paper proposing that there are “ psychological benefits ” of conspiracy theories * New York Times article on left-wing conspiracy theories during the 2024 election campaign * 2021 paper on left- vs. right-wing conspiracy belief * 2022 paper with cross-country data on conspiracy belief * 2024 Science paper on how talking to GPT-4 reduces conspiracy theory belief by 20% * David Aaronovitch’s book Voodoo Histories Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
8 abr 2025 - 01 tim 10 min 38 sek
Episode 68: Cannabis
The Studies Show LIVE! Get your tickets for our live show in London on Friday 9 May at this link . Blaze it up! It’s time for an episode on cannabis. And just to be clear, not “on cannabis”, but “on, as in about , cannabis”. What’s the evidence that this incredibly popular drug will lower your IQ? What about the question of whether it causes psychosis? In this toked-up episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart try to find out—and gracefully refrain from any “drug humour” while doing so. The Studies Show is brought to you by Works in Progress magazine . Why does all that steam come out of the ground in New York City? Why are pineapples the greatest fruit? What on Earth was the Hanseatic League? All of these questions and more are answered in their most recent issue, available 100% free at www.worksinprogress.co . Show notes * A summary of the endocannabinoid system * 2015 review of the evidence on the psychological effects of cannabis * Famous 1987 study of Swedish soldiers on cannabis and psychosis * The NEMESIS study * 2007 systematic review of longitudinal studies of cannabis and psychosis * 2022 systematic review and meta-analysis with results on dose-response * Study finding earlier use predicts higher psychosis risk * 2023 study on sex differences in the cannabis-psychosis relation * Example of a Mendelian Randomisation study on cannabis and psychosis * Data on cannabis exposure over time in the UK * Dunedin Cohort study on cannabis and IQ * And a response to some controversy over the data * 2021 systematic review of IQ decline after smoking cannabis Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
1 abr 2025 - 01 tim 02 min 46 sek
Invitation to The Studies Show LIVE
The Studies Show. Live. In London. With Jesse Singal. Talking about controversial science. Friday 9 May 2025. What more need we say? Well actually, we say a bit more in this brief podcast. Get your tickets HERE! Or go to bit.ly/tss_live . See you there! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
31 mar 2025 - 09 min 04 sek
Paid-only Episode 18: Abortion
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com As if the basic “pro-life vs. pro-choice” issue wasn’t controversial enough, there’s been a decades-long scientific debate on the impact of abortion on mental health. Does getting an abortion cause a lifetime of depression? Or do most women think that in retrospect it was the correct choice? As it happens, this issue opens up some massive questions about meta-analysis, bias, and the impact of legal threats on science. Tom and Stuart discuss them in this paid-only episode of The Studies Show . To hear the full episode and read the show notes, you’ll need to become a paid subscriber at thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe . With apologies from Tom for lateness because he forgot to press send.
25 mar 2025 - 10 min 59 sek
Episode 67: Seed oils
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. thinks that seed oils—like sunflower or soybean oil—are causing terrible damage to people’s health. And now he’s the US Health Secretary (wait, what?!) we should probably take him seriously. In this episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart trace the origins of the idea that seed oils are uniquely unhealthy, and look at all the best evidence from randomised trials on whether it’s remotely true. The Studies Show is sponsored by Works in Progress magazine , where you can find detailed, beautifully-written essays on technology and progress. If you need something to read that’s full of unexpected and inspiring ideas about how science and technology can make the world better, you can be confident that you’ll find it at worksinprogress.co . Show notes * Joe Rogan’s interview with the aptly-named dietary influencer Paul Saladino * A typical anonymous tweet about the supposed effects of seed oils * Article about Ray Peat’s advice on how often to measure your temperature for optimum health * Guardian article on RFK Jr. and his views on seed oils * Dynomight on seed oils * 2013 systematic review on linoleic acid and inflammation * 2017 systematic review on randomised trials of linoleic acid * 2015 meta-analysis of cohort studies looking at linoleic acid and coronary heart disease * 2020 meta-analysis of saturated fat and health outcomes * The safflower oil study beloved of seed oil worriers * And the Minnesota Coronary Survey Credits We’re very grateful to Stevie Miller for helping us with the research for this episode. The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
11 mar 2025 - 57 min 22 sek
Episode 66: Superforecasting
Whether it’s the 1903 New York Times article that claimed a flying machine was ten million years away, or the record executive who (allegedly) told the Beatles in the early 1960s that guitar bands were on the way out, predictions are hard . In this episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart discuss the psychologist Philip Tetlock’s research on superforecasters, the people who make the most accurate predictions of all. Even if you can’t become a superforecaster yourself, it turns out there’s a lot we can learn from them about how to form beliefs—and how to be right more often. The Studies Show is brought to you by Works in Progress magazine , where this week Tom has written a review of the new book, Doctored , about fraud in Alzheimer’s research. Read that and many other short pieces on the Works in Progress Substack at worksinprogress.news . Show notes * A book chapter on the “ Expert Political Judgement ” study from Philip Tetlock * Research on how people interpret terms like “a serious possibility” and “likely” * Research that argues against the idea that teaming up makes superforecasters better * Study on the correlates of being a good superforecaster (i.e. having a low Brier score) * A paper on “ small steps to accuracy ”: how people who update their beliefs more often are better forecasters * Philip Tetlock and Dan Gardner’s book Superforecasting * Julia Galef’s book The Scout Mindset * Tom’s book, Everything is Predictable * Tom’s review of Mervyn King’s book, Radical Uncertainty Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
4 mar 2025 - 01 tim 15 min 53 sek
Episode 65: Havana Syndrome and mass hysteria
Beginning in 2016, diplomats at the US Embassy in Havana started reporting strange concussion-like symptoms, even though they hadn’t taken a blow to the head. Some claimed they’d been the victim of a mysterious “sonic weapon”, aimed at them from somewhere outside and accompanied by a loud, high-pitched noise. Several scientific papers followed that appeared to confirm they’d been attacked. In this episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart tell the whole story of Havana Syndrome, and dare to touch on the highly controversial theory that the symptoms might’ve been the result of mass hysteria (or as it’s now known, “mass psychogenic illness”). The Studies Show is brought to you by Works in Progress magazine. Their Substack is full of shorter articles that highlight apects of science and technology you might never have considered. This week: the surprising story of “ The Prophet of Parking ”. You can find that any all of their shorter items at worksinprogress.news . Show notes * The most recent (January 2025) development in the story of Havana Syndrome * Stuart’s New Statesman article on Havana Syndrome from 2021 * Long and detailed ProPublica article from 2018 * Wikipedia articles on the LRAD and the Active Denial System * NY Times article from around the time, about the Trump administration’s reaction to the “attacks” * US Senate hearings on the “attacks” led by Marco Rubio * Initial 2018 JAMA article with cognitive and other tests * Response letters 1 , 2 , and 3 (“cognitive impairments everybody has”) * 2019 JAMA article on brain imaging results * Stuart’s 2015 study on brain imaging in ageing * Entomologists report on the similarity of the recorded sound to that of a cricket * Declassified US report that agrees * A history of mass psychogenic illness * BBC article on “ The Bristol Hum ” * Guardian article on the bizarre phenomenon of Morgellon’s Syndrome * Article arguing that critics of the “mass psychogenic illness” theory have misunderstood the condition * 2020 National Academy of Sciences report * Putin bragging about high-tech Russian weapons Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
25 fev 2025 - 51 min 59 sek
Paid-only Episode 17: The lab leak hypothesis
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com It’s been five years since the start of the COVID pandemic (yes, you read that correctly— five years ). And the debate still rages online—did the virus come from a wet market, maybe via a pangolin, or from a gain-of-function experiment in a biolab? In this paid-only episode of The Studies Show , Tom and Stuart cover the lab leak hypothesis, and talk about what it means for how people should make their minds up about scientific controversies. To hear the full episode, read the show notes, and leave a comment, you’ll need to be a paid subscriber on Substack. You can become one at www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe .
18 fev 2025 - 10 min 47 sek
Episode 64: IQ
Every so often there’s a controversy related to IQ. The latest was caused by [checks notes] the new Vice President of the US attacking the IQ of a political podcaster on Twitter. You could argue that the VP should have better things to be doing. But Tom and Stuart certainly don’t, because they’ve recorded a whole episode of The Studies Show on the science of IQ. Hasn’t IQ been debunked as a measure? Does anyone take it seriously in 2025? Doesn’t an IQ test only tell you how good you are at doing IQ tests? In this episode, find out the answers to all these questions and more. The Studies Show is sponsored by Works in Progress magazine . It’s an online magazine associated with the broad “progress studies” movement, where you can find excellent, data-driven essays on what works to drive scientific and technological advances. You can find every issue of the magazine, for free, at worksinprogress.co . Show notes * JD Vance’s tweet about Rory Stewart’s IQ; Rory Stewart’s response * Study on how standardised testing helps get more poor/minority kids into “gifted and talented” programmes * 2023 meta-analysis on intelligence and lifespan * 2018 study ( n >2m) from the Israeli military on intelligence and early mortality * Brief Nature article discussing why intelligence might relate to lifespan * 2018 article on the psychological problems of high-IQ people * Huge Swedish study on psychiatric hospitalisation and intelligence * Can you ever be too smart for your own good ? * Meta-analysis on self-knowledge of IQ * 2020 study showing that the Dunning-Kruger effect is a “ statistical artefact ” * 2023 follow-up analysis Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
11 fev 2025 - 01 tim 14 min 58 sek
Episode 63: Philosophy of science
It had to happen eventually: this week The Studies Show is all about philosophy. As we look at science in general, how do we decide what those studies are actually showing? Tom and Stuart take a look at the Big Two of philosophy of science: Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn, with their respective theories of falsificationism and paradigm shifts. Both are theories that almost everyone interested in science has heard of—but both make far more extreme claims than you might think. The Studies Show is sponsored by Works in Progress magazine , the best place to go online for fact-rich, data-dense articles on science and technology, and how they’ve made the world a better place—or how they might do so in the future. To find all their essays, all for free, go to worksinprogress.co . Show notes * Tom’s new book, Everything is Predictable: How Bayes’ Remarkable Theorem Explains the World * Wagenmakers’s 2020 study asking scientists how they think about scientific claims * David Hume’s 1748 Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article on the problem of induction * Bertrand Russell’s 1946 book History of Western Philosophy * Popper’s 1959 book The Logic of Scientific Discovery * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article on Popper * Kuhn’s 1962 book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article on Kuhn * 2019 Scott Alexander review of the book * Michael Strevens’s 2020 book The Knowledge Machine * Daniel Lakens’s Coursera course on “ improving your statistical inferences ” Credits The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thestudiesshowpod.com/subscribe
4 fev 2025 - 01 tim 10 min 24 sek