 In a vital follow up to our police bias episodes, today we break down a new study that shows police killings were undercounted by MORE THAN HALF. This confirms what many of us have suspected about the "official data" on police violence, and it's only the tip of the iceberg. Links: Lancet article, Fatal Encounters, Mapping Police Violence, The Counted  

Serious Inquiries Only

SIO313: US Police Killings Undercounted by More than Half, According to New Study

 We've got some great questions as always! This time we start with some personal slash whimsical stuff including what song lyrics we have been wrong about. Other great segments include sex stuff and why Jordan Peterson is wrong about evo-psych. Or just... everything. Links: Dwulit & Rzymski (2019) - Associations of Porn Use with Sexual Dysfunctions  

SIO312: September Patreon QnA!

 It's part 2 of our sex stuff series. Dr. Lindsey Osterman did a deep dive into porn related research. Either that or I caught her looking at porn and she proposed this series as an elaborate cover. But either way you're getting some great stuff! Does the anti-porn side of the argument have the weight of evidence on their side? Is porn actually totally fine? Find out! Links: Michael Hobbes, Human Trafficking, Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, Revenge porn laws by state, Fisher & Kohut (2017) Pornography viewing: Keep calm and carry on, Grubbs et al (2018) Pornography problems due to moral incongruence, Reward Foundation (promotes porn abstinence; one of the authors on a review article claiming that porn is bad holds a position at this foundation), Ferguson and Hartley (2020) Pornography and sexual aggression: Can meta-analysis find a link? 

SIO311: What the Science Actually Says on Porn Consumption

 But don't take my word for it, Dr. Lindsey Osterman is here to break down the social science for us! And guess what, SURPRISE SURPRISE, it doesn't support the conservative war on porn and sex work. And it's not just conservatives, it's NYT's Nicholas D. Kristof, and prominent anti-porn feminists like Catharine MacKinnon. Listen as Lindsey explains why the war against sex work is bad for everyone. You're Wrong About: Sex Trafficking, The Butterfly Effect, Perry (2021) "Scientific authority, religious conservatism, and support for outlawing pornography", Platt et al (2018)  "Associations between sex work laws and sex workers’ health: A systematic review and meta-analysis of quantitative and qualitative studies", McCarthy et al (2021) "Job attributes and mental health: A comparative study of sex work and hairstyling", Cowen & Colosi (2021) "Sex Work and Online Platforms: What Should Regulation Do?", Jiao et al (2021) "Information and Communication Technologies in Commercial Sex Work: A Double-Edged Sword for Occupational Health and Safety", Bleakley (2014) "500 Tokens to Go Private”: Camgirls, Cybersex and Feminist Entrepreneurship, Cunningham et al (2018) "Behind the screen: Commercial sex, digital spaces and working online"   

SIO310: Banning Sex Work and Sex Work Websites Is Bad and We Should Stop Doing It

 Therese Chan, an actual vet (though not a horse doctor) is here to talk about Ivermectin. What is it, what does it do, what does it not do, why are so many people taking it, will it turn you into a horse, will it turn you back from a horse to a human, is this a simulation, no really is it, how is any of this real, and more! 

SIO309: A Veterinarian Answers our Ivermectin Questions

 It's that time again! Patrons asked some fantastic questions. Like, what's our favorite piece of visual art? Is Bari Weiss right about Amy Cooper? What are Lindsey's thoughts on tenure? Are morals taught or learned? When should people resign in protest vs. staying and fighting? And more! 

SIO308: August Patreon QnA!

 ... AGAINST ANTI GAY ACTIVISTS. Yeah. It's a bad science thingy. But bad science thingies are a bat signal for Dr. Lindsey Osterman, who is here to break down this study for us! What does the study prove? What does it definitely not prove? Find out! Uzarevic et al. (2021) "Are Atheists Unprejudiced?", Uzarevic et al. (2017) "Are Atheists Undogmatic?", Speed & Brewster (2021) "Christians, but not Atheists, Show High In-Group Favoritism" 

SIO307: Newly Published Study Shows Atheists are Prejudiced...

 You might have seen the very scary headlines about a Massachusetts outbreak in which 74% of those infected were vaccinated. That sounds terrifying! But is it? What does actual science person Dr. Lindsey Osterman make of these numbers? The news is actually far better than you might think! Find out why! In a quick first segment, Lindsey gives us a hilarious recap of how thoroughly Sam Harris accidentally parodied the hell out of himself! Links: WaPo article on Provincetown Outbreak, Original CDC Report on Provincetown Outbreak, Bear Week, CDC data, Delta’s dominance in US, NYT Tracker of MA COVID cases, COVID-19 Vaccine Report, from MA Dept of Public Health, Tegan and Sara Study 

SIO306: What Does the Massachusetts Outbreak Say About Vaccine Effectiveness?

 After some thrilling haircut talk, we get to this month's questions! Topics this time include: choosing government by sortition, Manchin and Sinema ruining the country, who was the best movie president, vaccinating yourself vs. your children, a general strike, and neoliberalism! 

SIO305: July Patreon QnA!

 Continuing from the last episode, Lindsey backs up her claim that the bulk of the terrible science was yet to come. WOW. This study was complete garbage. You really ought to hear how terrible it is. Lindsey, as usual, did other people's homework for them. She got a hold of some of the data and did her own work with it, which revealed some interesting stuff. Here is the doc. Links: the study, the article, Moss & O’Connor (2020b; origin of White Identitarianism Scale), Pew Poll, Political Polarization in the American Public, Master’s thesis (origin of the PC scales) 

SIO304: Are the Woke Left and Alt-Right Alike? Part 2: The Study So Bad It Made Quillette Look Good

 Holy both sides, Batman! Yeah no suspense on this one, Quillette is garbage and the study this article references is garbage. But how garbage and why exactly? Is there any truth to it? As usual, Lindsey is here to give us the breakdown! This is a part 1. In order to grab part 2 early, make sure to pledge on patreon! Links: Moss & O’Connor (2020b; origin of White Identitarianism Scale), Pew Poll, Political Polarization in the American Public, Master’s thesis (origin of the PC scales) 

SIO303: Are the Woke Left and Alt-Right Alike? AKA Debunking a Garbage Quillette Article About a Garbage Study

 This episode was inspired by this Insider article, Baby Boomers Are More Sensitive Than Millennials. Science is often butchered by the media, so I sent it along to our own Dr. Lindsey Osterman to see if the study backs up the article. As it turns out... not really. But it does say some interesting things. Listen in and find out! Wetzel and colleagues (2017), The Narcissism Epidemic is Dead; Long Live the Narcissism Epidemic 

SIO302: Are Boomers Narcissistic? Are Millennials Entitled? What a Large Narcissism Study Does and Doesn't Tell Us

Today Lindsey and I are joined by Dr. Caleb Lack. Caleb is a full professor of psychology at the University of Central Oklahoma, and he's here to talk about evidence based mental healthcare. When it comes to treatment, what is actually evidence based and what is unsupported at best and pseudoscience at worst? Also, find out how Caleb trolled a predatory academic journal! Check out Caleb's book, Critical Thinking, Science, and Pseudoscience. Leave Thomas a voicemail! (916) 750-4746, short and to the point! Support the show at patreon.com/seriouspod! Come watch us on Twitch! Follow us on Twitter: @seriouspod Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/SIOmembers For comments, email thomas@seriouspod.com 

SIO301: Evidence Based Mental Healthcare, with Dr. Caleb Lack

 It's episode 300! And also the June patreon QnA! Topics covered include: moral panics – does the left engage in them too? Syria and an old SIO guest. Are we close to full institutional breakdown? How f*cked are we in 2022 and 2024? Who would we root for in a war against America? Christian socialists, critical race theory, people on the left wanting to lift mask mandates. And, what episodes are good for reachable right wing people? 

SIO300: June Patreon QnA!

 You've seen Critical Race Theory discussed everywhere thanks to an entirely ginned up moral panic by Christopher Rufo, but have you gotten to hear someone who actually teaches it talk about what it's really about? If not, I hope you'll listen as Dr. Ery Shin takes us through some basics, and also answers a few anti-CRT talking points from James Lindsay's Christian Nationalist funded New Discourses. 

SIO299: Debunking CRT Attacks with Dr. Ery Shin

Join Thomas for some critical thinking on questions of science, philosophy, skepticism and politics. These serious topics are discussed with some serious guests, but in an entertaining and engaging way! This is not your typical interview podcast; it’s a friendly dialogue, conducted thoughtfully and with plenty of humor. It's Serious Inquiries Only; but like, not boring or anything.