Do you find that you are generally troubled and unable to sleep at night?
Are you preoccupied with thoughts of impending doom?
Well, we have good news and bad news.
The good news is that 2020 is almost over.
The bad news is that recent discoveries demonstrate more clearly than ever that reality
is completely indifferent to your existence.
For the final time this year, we are going to share the latest troubling news in science
and history.
The concept of panspermia suggests that microbes can survive in space.
Supposedly, when these organisms reach a suitable planet, they can multiply and colonize
it.
A recent experiment on a species of bacterium found in canned meat shows the idea could
be real.
It is exceedingly difficult for humans to live in space.
Scott Kelly, an American astronaut, discovered this by living on the International Space
Station for a year.
After returning to Earth, researchers discovered that Kelly suffered damage to his DNA, and
his gut microbiome was different.
Also, his feet hurt for months after returning home.
While Kelly was living on the space station, there were Deinococcus radiodurans bacteria
living there too.
But instead of living in a comfortable climate-controlled environment, they were
exposed to the vacuum of space.
After a year, the bacteria were brought back to Earth and were compared to control samples.
Fewer of the Earth samples died, but the ones that lived through exposure to space
were able to survive just fine.
Time in space did seem to damage the bacteria, but they had repair mechanisms which were
effective at fixing the damage.
The goal of the latest experiment was to discover which mechanisms the bacteria use to survive
in space.
A previous experiment tried to discover how long bacteria could survive in Earth orbit.
It found, to the surprise of everyone, that the bacteria could be revived after three
years.
If microbes are spreading life throughout the universe, could it be that the only reason
we exist is to serve their needs?
Existence can be a horrible curse when you consider that almost every species that ever
lived is now extinct.
But how long does a species live on average?
More to the point, could humanity be finished soon?
Trying to find an answer for how long species live is difficult.
For instance, Blue Whales have been swimming around for 4.5 million years.
Neanderthals only lasted a few hundred thousand years.
How do you compare these values and reach a meaningful conclusion?
When considering all mammals throughout the Earth’s history, the average time a species
existed was 1 million to 2 million years.
When considering just the Cenozoic era, which began 65 million years ago and continues
today, the average length of time a mammalian species persisted was 3.21 million years.
Furthermore, when mammals are divided into large and small, the larger animals tend to
survive as a species for a longer period.
Since direct comparisons aren’t useful, some scientists instead tried to use the death
rate to find out how species fare over time.
Even that wasn’t conclusive.
Some estimates suggest that one species per one million disappear every year on average.
A fact accepted by all the researchers is that extinction rates have increased dramatically
in the past several years.
Human activity, in most cases, is the direct cause.
Still, scientists can’t agree on which number is correct.
Some claim that the extinction rate is only 100 times faster than average.
Others claim the number is 10,000 times above average.
The unfortunate reality is that we can’t really predict how long a species will exist.
But if enough animals do go extinct, then humanity will surely follow.
The faster the animals die, the sooner we will cease to exist.
You might be feeling sorry for animals right now.
Or perhaps you are feeling sorry for yourself.
But the Russians didn’t have time for empathy when bears tried to board one of their submarines.
A submarine was recently docked near the Kamchatka Peninsula, which is in the far east of Russia.
Crew members watched in disbelief as two bears swam from the bay and climbed onto the
deck of the submarine.
As they emerged, it was clear that the pair was a mother and her cub.
The navy requested help from a local hunting instructor.
He used a shotgun to kill the bears, with the first casualty being the cub.
Social media was full of criticism after seeing footage of the bears being killed.
People clearly don’t enjoy watching baby bears get shot.
But the Russians that live in the area have a much different opinion.
The Kamchatka Peninsula is home to around 24,000 wild bears.
And it is not uncommon for them to enter human territory in search of food.
For instance, in February 2019, 50 polar bears invaded a nearby town when melting sea
ice prevented them from hunting.
So, as far as the Russians are concerned, if bears will chase a submarine for food then
they will chase people.
They considered killing the bears to be the only viable option.
Bad Things in History does not advocate killing animals.
But in all fairness, we also don’t know what other procedures can be used when removing
bears from submarines.
Some animals have far more in common with humans than you might expect.
But only the bad parts.
Naked Mole Rats are not the most physically attractive creatures.
But scientists can’t resist them.
It isn’t hard to see why considering that compared to other mammals they appear
to have superpowers.
Naked Mole Rats are resistant to cancer.
They age slowly or not at all.
They can survive twenty minutes without oxygen.
And they are incredibly resistant to pain.
Unfortunately, it seems that Naked Mole Rats also like to kidnap each other’s babies
and turn them into slaves.
The social structure of these creatures is more like insects than other mammals.
They live in cooperative colonies that can have up to 300 workers in them.
Most of the workers are sterile and cannot reproduce, which is also similar to how bees
and ants function.
When one colony encounters another colony, they might fight each other.
And the winner will capture children from the losing side and convert them into sterile
slaves.
More research is needed to understand this phenomenon.
But scientists think this aggressive behavior provides Naked Mole Rats with the advantages
they need to live in a world with scarce resources.
Have you had enough depressing animal news yet?
Well, don’t finish your slide into despair too quickly.
It’s time to set aside that impending sense of doom and take a history quiz!
In the 1920s, which Italian Immigrant created a pyramid scheme that bankrupted thousands?
Was it Charles Ponzi?
Perhaps it was George Remus.
Or could it have been Joseph McCarthy?
Take a few moments to consider your answer.
The correct choice is Charles Ponzi.
He was so successful at separating people from their money that the term Ponzi Scheme
is now used to describe the strategy he used.
If you want to learn more about this criminal and how he swindled thousands, please watch
our episode Charles Ponzi The Modern Grifter.
Have you ever wanted to be taller?
Have you ever dreamed of living in a world where you can reach things more easily?
Well, we are ready to crush your dreams yet again.
It seems that being taller comes with its own set of dangers.
Most animals live outside.
So, it isn’t surprising that lightning strikes are a problem.
Thousands of animals are injured or killed by lightning every year.
Are taller animals more likely to be killed this way?
For two giraffes earlier this year, the answer was most definitely yes.
Lighting killed them, and one of the animals even suffered a direct strike to the head.
At least one researcher has suggested that these tall animals might also function as
a lightning rod in storms.
But there are no peer reviewed studies to support this claim.
However, for the giraffes that died earlier this year, they were in a grassy area with
no trees.
The animals were clearly the tallest things around.
It seems reasonable that the two animals that perished, on that day at least, were
biological lightning rods.
We’re not sure how many giraffes have to die by lightning before scientists conclude
being tall in a thunderstorm is risky.
But if you are wanting to observe some of the most disgusting food and beverages
ever created, that is available right now.
Disgust is a universal human emotion.
But what makes something disgusting varies from culture to culture.
The Disgusting Food Museum in Sweden likes to educate people about all the horrible things
people around the world consume.
More recently they decided to look at alcoholic beverages from around the world.
One item on display is a Scottish beer that is the strongest in the world with 55% alcohol
per volume.
The reason it’s disgusting is because the beverage is served inside a taxidermy
squirrel.
Another item on display is a Korean rice wine called Ttongsul, which they claim was once
used as a medical remedy.
Why is it disgusting?
According to the museum, the wine is brewed with fermented human feces.
Dislaimer: When I asked Korean friends about this, they had literally never heard of such
a thing, and I found some claims online that this is only ever mentioned in anti-Korean
propaganda.
So, don’t expect to find this at Starbucks in Seoul any time soon.
Then there is a beer from Iceland that the museum showed to visitors.
It is made from whale testicles.
The testicles are lightly salted and then smoked before fermentation begins.
Finally, they are also proud to provide Anty Gin.
It’s the world’s first Gin that was brewed with wood ants.
Supposedly it has a citrus taste.
Visitors are probably relieved to find that they are not allowed to taste these beverages.
Smelling them, if we had to guess, is probably more than enough.
Space microbes, hungry bears, dead giraffes, and mole rat slaves.
What other horrible things does nature have in store for us?
You can rest assured that scientists are working hard every day to make sure that we
never feel safe again.
We hope that you learned something new from this episode.
If you enjoyed it, then please like the video and subscribe to our channel.
It makes us happy.
And it lets us know you might want to see more episodes like this in the future.
We will be back next year with more tales of the worst science has to offer.
In the meantime, please watch some other episodes on our channel.
Most of our videos focus on the worst parts of history, and we release new episodes every
Monday.
Thank you for watching Bad Things in History.