Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Is there anything physics-related? Here is a thought: Space exploration used to be the coolestthing that captured everyone's imagination. Rick Rosner: Yes, especially back in the '60s and '70s. Before you were born, we would get out of class every time there was an Apollo launch. Jacobsen: But now, do people care about space anymore? Rosner: It …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1133: Cool Stuff From Back in the (To-?)Day
Rick Rosner: This is Carole's gaming chair. Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Gaming? What does she play? Rosner: She doesn't game, but when we went to the office supply store, they told us not to get an office chair but a gaming chair. They said it's designed for people who spend 12 hours or more sitting, …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1132: What do you mean Carole isn’t a big gamer?
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What has been your experience interacting with people analytically enveloped in dogmas like Flat Earth Theory? Rick Rosner: MAGA supporters generally tend to be more susceptible than others. I deal with that a lot because I post anti-MAGA and pro-Democrat content regularly, hoping to convince some people to vote for Democratic candidates …
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: How did Lance and you meet? Rick Rosner: I posed for him over 30 years ago. He's an artist. He needed a model, and we became friends because he's an interesting and smart guy. This was before he went completely off the deep end—he didn't lose it until after 9/11. So, around …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1130: From Richlin to Information Wars
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: I'll give a quick preface. The other issue you brought to mind, just as we started the call, was whether the public can make informed decisions when they need more background knowledge and processes to obtain the right information. It could lead to overload if they're overwhelmed by misinformation from social media, …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1129: Avalanche of Disinformation
Rick Rosner: When I used to work at Kimmel, there was a swag corner that was mostly neglected, except by me. People would send things from their shows, books, movies, or whatever they were trying to pitch, hoping it would catch someone's attention and be used on the show. But it never did. It just …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1128: Older and Old Men’s Routines and Aging
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: We can wrap it up or check for any new Trump news on the AP wire: Kris Kristofferson has died. Any reflections? Yes, he was a great guy in my mind. He passed at 88, so at least he lived a long life. Rick Rosner: He was a true hero in many …
Rick Rosner: Let’s talk about Trump. He's been saying some crazy stuff recently. Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What's the craziest thing he's said in the last day or so? Rosner: He said we could get rid of crime by having a "day of violence" with no rules. Some compare it to The Purge. But he's a …
Rick Rosner: I want to talk about crystallized versus fluid intelligence, which is part of the same broad theories related to IQ. Fluid intelligence is raw problem-solving ability at its peak in young adults. The trade-off is that, as you acquire wisdom—knowledge-based expertise—this becomes crystallized intelligence. As you learn more and your brain ages, fluid …
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: What's a bigger talking point in propagandistic conservative media right now: trans issues or immigration? Rick Rosner: Trans comes up a lot, and it's a bullshit issue in that it doesn't affect—well, both issues you mentioned, trans and immigration, neither of them significantly affect most Americans' lives. Trans people are less than …
Continue reading Ask A Genius 1124: Current Political Nonsense and Currency
Rick Rosner 