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Episode 121: Elbow your brother
Published 31st January, 2025
Tom Crawford, Evan Heling and Katelyn Heling face questions about supervising saints, totalled towns and reversed roles.
HOST: Tom Scott. QUESTION PRODUCER: David Bodycombe. EDITED BY: Julie Hassett at The Podcast Studios, Dublin. MUSIC: Karl-Ola Kjellholm ('Private Detective'/'Agrumes', courtesy of epidemicsound.com). ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS: Joey Kerschnert, AAA, David Turner, Hayden LeMaster, James, Brian J. Devine, Lachlan C.. FORMAT: Pad 26 Limited/Labyrinth Games Ltd. EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: David Bodycombe and Tom Scott.
Transcript
Transcription by Caption+
Tom Scott:
In the game Fallout: New Vegas, what type of building caused a small town to be rechristened 'Novac'?
The answer to that at the end of the show. My name's Tom Scott, and this is Lateral.
Welcome once again to the show that's all about one thing.
(awkward beat)
Sideways thinking.
And if you're wondering what that little pause was, let me tell you about today's sponsor: the Em Dash.
For a long while, I've been using commas and hyphens to put pauses into my words, but they never quite give me the silence I need. And as for semicolons, who knows what those are for? When the team at Em Dash asked me to try out their punctuation, it made my sentences so much more poignant. And if you act now, you can get 25% off your first month of Em Dashes using the code Alt+0151.
Alright, back to the show. And hoping that their hopes will not be dashed today, we start with a mathematics fellow at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, and from his own YouTube channel, Tom Rocks Maths: Tom Crawford. Welcome back to the show.
Tom Crawford:
Pleasure to be back. It was a lot of fun last time,
Tom Scott:
so I'm excited to see if I can keep the run going. This is your second time on. How was it last time?
Tom Crawford:
It was very, very enjoyable. And I think the sense of achievement on getting anywhere near an answer was unmatched. With anything in my life.
Tom Scott:
That's also how I feel about mathematics.
SFX:
(guys laughing)
Tom Scott:
And I realise it's a cliché to just go, "I'm bad at maths".
But you're someone who has to deal with that kind of expectation from folks, that maths is something that they're just not good at. Do you—
How do you get around that? How do you get people to pay attention to a thing they think they're not good at?
Tom Crawford:
Two things.
First of all: I try and emphasise to them, they are good at it. So it's interesting. You said you don't— You know, you struggle. You're constantly figuring out how long we've been talking and how long you've got, right?
Tom Scott:
(laughs)
Tom Crawford:
You're doing maths in your head right now, right?
So I like to emphasise to people, they're doing it all the time to give them that confidence that you are doing maths. So maybe it's— can't be as bad as you're, you know... You're building it up to be worse than it is.
And other than that, it's trying to present maths in a way that makes sense to that person.
So find out what they are interested in. Maybe it's sports, maybe it's video games, maybe it's movies, and then let's talk about maths in that language.
So let's talk about how to take a perfect penalty kick in a game of football. Let's talk about the maths of Pokémon.
Whatever you're into, let's bring maths to your... field of play, as it were.
Tom Scott:
Well, very best of luck on the show today.
You are joined by some more returning players, who I believe are currently dealing with just a lot of resin in their lives.
Katelyn:
Always.
Tom Scott:
Evan and Katelyn, makers extraordinaire, welcome back to the show. How are you doing?
Evan:
Great!
Katelyn:
Good! So excited to be back!
Tom Scott:
It is always a joy to have you on the show. What's the... (laughs) What's the big impractical thing you're working on at the minute?
Evan:
Well, we just recently embedded a computer inside of a cardboard laptop. And now I just can't get out of my head, what else can I embed a computer into?
I honestly thought about combining two of our projects recently, and making a pumpkin computer.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
I was just saying, last time you were on the show, you were in the middle of the annual pumpkin run.
Evan:
Yeah.
Katelyn:
Yeah, yeah. But I do think—
Evan:
It's still going on.
Katelyn:
I do think making weird laptops is also becoming an obsession.
Tom Scott:
When you say made of cardboard... the case, which bits?
Evan:
The case, the keys, the... The whole thing, yeah.
Katelyn:
Everything but the electronics themselves was made of cardboard.
Evan:
We haven't yet figured out how to make a cardboard CPU, but maybe one day.
Tom Scott:
Well, good luck to you as well. There is only one more thing to do...
...and that's to go to our first question. And thanks again to Em Dash for that pause. Link's in the description.
When might users of the website of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh unexpectedly see a picture of St Anthony?
I'll say that again.
When might users of the website of the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh unexpectedly see a picture of St Anthony?
Evan:
Well, I am very lost, because I don't— I feel bad saying that I don't know who St Anthony is.
Katelyn:
I... don't either.
Tom Scott:
If you did, this would be very easy.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Evan:
(laughs)
Tom Crawford:
Is St Anthony— Okay, I have an out there idea. This is genuinely a guess. Is St Anthony the 404th saint? And so, you get an error 404, and it's of St Anthony's face.
Tom Scott:
So, you've answered the basic question. You're right.
Unexpectedly, on the website, you will see a 404 error, and it is St Anthony.
That's not the reason, and as we're getting that one quickly, you know what, I'm going to ask you why.
Why has the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh put St Anthony on their 404 page?
Evan:
'Cause he is always lost and wandering around, and it's an inside joke amongst that community that that person is always lost?
Tom Scott:
(straining) That's pretty close.
Evan:
(laughs)
Katelyn:
So is—
Tom Crawford:
He made lots of errors?
Katelyn:
Is Saint Anthony an actual saint? Or is he a mascot for something?
Tom Scott:
Oh, he is an actual saint.
Katelyn:
Okay, he's an actual saint, okay.
Evan:
Is he still alive?
Tom Scott:
Definitionally, no. A saint cannot be alive.
Evan:
Oh, okay. Mm, mm, that's good to know.
Tom Scott:
They must have been dead for a certain number of years and had two miracles ascribed to them, I think is the rules.
Tom Crawford:
Did he try and do a miracle, but then got an error message?
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Crawford:
He's trying to... He's like, "Guys, guys, I've done a miracle!" Like, "It's just an error message. Don't worry about it. But I did the miracles, it's cool."
He's gotta have something to do with errors.
Katelyn:
Yeah, something—
Tom Crawford:
I don't know. There must be something he did wrong, or something... Otherwise, unless it's just an actual complete inside joke. Surely there's a link to things going wrong.
Tom Scott:
I mean, it's kind of a Catholic inside joke.
Tom Crawford:
I did go to a... Church of England primary school, but that was, obviously... twenty men— twenty something years ago.
Tom Scott:
Yeah, and it's not Catholic either.
Katelyn:
Okay, so, a Catholic inside joke that has to do with saints. But for some reason, St Anthony specifically is on the 404... error page. So when you have an error, it's like, the page cannot load.
Evan:
It cannot be found. It doesn't exist.
Katelyn:
It doesn't exist. So is he a fake saint?
Tom Scott:
No, a real saint. Evan, you did say lost earlier.
St Anthony is the patron saint of lost things.
Evan:
Oh my gosh! (snaps fingers repeatedly) Lost pages!
Tom Scott:
Yep, the page says, "Dear St Anthony, Please come around. This page is lost and cannot be found."
Because St Anthony is the patron saint of lost things.
Evan:
That's cute.
Tom Scott:
Evan, we will go over to you for the next question.
Evan:
This question has been sent in by Anonymous. Ooh.
After a year or two, why might your coach say: "Elbow your brother, and then phone your mother"?
I'll say this again.
After a year or two, why might your coach say: "Elbow your brother, then phone your mother"?
Tom Crawford:
Elbow, phone. Elbow, phone.
Katelyn:
Oh, you think it's like a move?
Tom Crawford:
Is it like, are we dancing? Are we dancing?
Katelyn:
Elbow and phone.
Tom Crawford:
Elbow, phone. The elbow, the phone.
Katelyn:
And why would it happen after a couple years?
So it's something with either experienced players, or it's like, if you're on a high school team, and you're gonna graduate, you know? Something where—
Tom Scott:
Or you've been selected for something.
Like, alright, you know. You are going to the big leagues. Give your brother a nudge, call your mom. You're going to whatever the sports equivalent of Hollywood is.
Katelyn:
Yeah.
SFX:
(Tom Crawford and Evan laugh)
Katelyn:
You're going to the sports bowl, son.
SFX:
(both Toms laugh)
Tom Scott:
We haven't even established the sport yet, or even if it is a sport.
Katelyn:
Oh yeah, well you said—
Tom Scott:
This might just be a motor coach. This might be a bus.
Katelyn:
That's true. It could be a voice coach. Or something else.
Tom Scott:
Oh, yeah.
Katelyn:
Or life coach. I feel like the wording of "elbow your brother, call your mother" sounds like a sports thing, though.
Tom Scott:
Yes, it does.
Tom Crawford:
It feels— I don't know, I want to keep— I'm just going to keep doing this action. It feels like, why would you... You're elbowing. And then you're putting your— as though you're on the phone.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
So is it like... The fact that it has to be a few years, does that suggest you're quite advanced? It's not a beginner move. It's a pro kind of tip.
Katelyn:
Okay, so it's something—
Evan:
Yeah, you're on the right track.
Katelyn:
Something that has to do with being more advanced in the sport.
Evan:
Now also, the moves have to be done quickly.
Katelyn:
So it is moves.
Evan:
Oh, oops.
SFX:
(both laugh)
Katelyn:
I mean, we are getting there, we are getting there.
Evan:
You're getting there. You're getting there.
Katelyn:
Okay, so it is moves.
Tom Scott:
Yeah, I think we'd figured that one out.
Katelyn:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, you're just seeing me doing this consistently, and deciding...
Katelyn:
New TikTok dance.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Crawford:
Oh, is it TikTok?
Tom Scott:
Yeah, there's TikTok dance coaches out there now.
Evan:
Oh my gosh, that'd be hilarious! But no.
Katelyn:
Aah! Okay. Or is it like a swimming thing? This is a stroke? A swimming stroke?
Tom Scott:
For some reason, I'm thinking skiing.
And I have absolutely no reason to back that up, other than it feels like some sort of arm motion... with a ski pole or something like that, that's just kind of some advanced thing to get it out of the way.
Tom Crawford:
Snowboarding?
I feel like with skiing, you're kind of planting the poles more. So I don't know why you'd quite go up here. But snowboarding to twist your body? Possibly.
Oh, oh, is it like diving? It's, is it like... platform diving to make yourself spin? You hold your arm out.
Tom Scott:
Yeah, because you have to spend years working up to be good at that.
Katelyn:
Oh, I have a question. Is the move... like a repeated thing? You elbow, phone, you elbow, phone, you elbow, phone? Or is it like a single, you elbow, phone, and then you move on to other things?
Evan:
You elbow, phone, but you do it repeatedly.
Tom Scott:
Okay.
Evan:
You'll elbow your brother, you'll phone your mom, then you'll do something else for a while. Then you'll elbow your brother, phone your mom, then you'll do something else for a while. So...
Katelyn:
Okay.
Evan:
And I'll give you one more hint. You perform these actions when parallel to the ground.
Katelyn:
So that makes me think of swimming, I guess.
Tom Crawford:
Or falling through the air. How else could you be— Unless you're literally lying on the ground.
Katelyn:
Would you have a skydiving coach?
Evan:
(laughs)
Katelyn:
When we went skydiving, they just said to become a banana.
Tom Scott:
(laughs)
Evan:
So if you were parallel to the ground, and you did those actions, what would it look like?
Katelyn:
Okay, I just have to— I have to make myself more parallel for a second.
Tom Scott:
Flat to the ground. Elbow out. Phone to the ear.
Katelyn:
(giggling)
SFX:
(Evan and Tom Scott laugh)
Tom Scott:
This is great audio, this is. But you know what I can guarantee is that, assuming that they aren't driving a car or something like that, the entire audience at home is currently doing the same thing, trying to figure out what this gesture is.
Evan:
I'll give a very helpful hint. It has something to do with water.
Katelyn:
Okay. I keep saying swimming, but I feel like it can't specifically be swimming. It's gotta be some sort of other watersport. Like water polo... or... is it like synchronized swimming?
Evan:
I think that you guys are close enough. I'm just going to give it to you. It is swimming.
Tom Scott:
Okay, so why?
Katelyn:
Oh, does it have to do with— Oh, oh! It's kickflips. Is it kickflips?
'Cause you do those— It's— You do the elbow and the mother. And then you do something else for a while, and then you have to do it again.
That's the only thing I can think where you would do something else for a while, and then repeat it?
Tom Scott:
Wait, you mean when they're bouncing off the end of the pool at the end of a 50 metre?
Katelyn:
To turn around.
Tom Scott:
So they reach the end of the pool, they have to turn around, and... But they have to, when they're parallel?
Evan:
There's two ways to turn around when you reach the end of the pool. A kickflip is one. What's another way?
Katelyn:
Oh, there's another one? Oh my gosh. I know this is killing Evan because he swam in high school competitively.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Katelyn:
And so this is destroying him.
Evan:
It's destroying me!
Katelyn:
What's another wor— Wait, is it— Wait, is kickflip—
Tom Crawford:
Isn't kickflip the roll?
Evan:
Kickflip is the roll.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Evan:
Kickflip, you don't touch the wall with your hands. You only touch with your feet.
Katelyn:
Okay, so this is...
Evan:
Katelyn, I taught this to you.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
I mean, we've basically got it, right? It's the other way to turn at the end of a pool, whatever that is.
Evan:
Yes, so there's a... When you're swimming competitively, you do a normal kickflip when you're doing freestyle or backstroke. But when you're doing butterfly or breaststroke, we do an open turn, known as a two-hand touch turn, where you touch the wall, you quickly pull back with the elbow, and then you push out again to get streamlined again and keep on swimming.
Katelyn:
Which part of that is call your mother?
Evan:
Call your mother is the second part. I personally have issues with this. Because I don't fully understand the 'call your mother' completely. Elbow your brother, you do that fast. You go for it. And then you push out again.
Katelyn:
Maybe it's a quick call. It's like a, "Hey mom!"
Evan:
Yeah, 'cause you don't pause here. You push all the way through, and you don't call your mom like this.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
With one arm fully extended.
Katelyn:
Maybe it's elbow your brother, punch your mother.
Evan:
Yeah!
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Scott:
I mean, to be fair, it might just be like waving your arm in the air and going, "Mooom!"
Katelyn:
Call it over.
Evan:
Yeah.
Katelyn:
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, man, we were so on the edge for so long.
Evan:
You started out so close. You said swimming so early on.
And then you're like, "Nah, it can't be swimming." And I'm like, "Ugh, I'm malfunctioning over here."
Tom Scott:
Thank you to both Hayden LeMaster and James for this question.
On the 21st of July 2024, and shortly after, thousands of people in the US stepped out of their house and cut something in half. What was it?
I'll say that again.
On the 21st of July 2024, and shortly after, thousands of people in the US stepped out of their house and cut something in half. What was it?
Evan:
It's strange that it's thousands, because that's not a ton, if you think about the US population.
Katelyn:
Well, at first, I was thinking... there was an eclipse in the US sometime this summer.
Tom Crawford:
Yes.
Katelyn:
And a lot of people would step out of their house. But yeah, I feel like it would be more than thousands.
Evan:
Yeah, the thousands that actually— If it was hundreds of thousands, I might have more guesses, but thousands is relatively small when you think of a large population. You know what I mean? So it must be a community event, or a small city celebration, or—
Katelyn:
Well no, but it's in the US.
Evan:
Yeah, but somewhere in the US.
Katelyn:
Oh yeah, I guess—
Evan:
I wonder if— Is it spread out evenly across the US, or is it clustered in one area?
Tom Crawford:
And why would they be doing it in July?
Katelyn:
And what are they cutting in half?
Evan:
Did they— Was there a large opening ceremony across the US for a restaurant? And it was like, they all cut the... the red ribbon all at once across the US?
Katelyn:
Well also, is each of the thousands of people cutting something in half?
Evan:
I think so.
Tom Scott:
Yes.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Tom Scott:
Thousands of people, and thousands of things being cut in half. Usually about one-to-one on that, I'd say.
Tom Crawford:
Was it some weird world record attempt of the most things cut in half at once...
SFX:
(Evan and Tom Scott laugh)
Tom Crawford:
that was arranged?
Tom Scott:
You know what? It might actually qualify for that. But I don't think it was—
Tom Crawford:
Okay.
Tom Scott:
It wouldn't have been simultaneous enough for that.
Tom Crawford:
Okay, okay.
Katelyn:
My brain keeps going back to the eclipse. Because that was something in the US.
Tom Scott:
It was not that date.
Katelyn:
Dang it, okay.
Tom Crawford:
Just taking out your eclipse glasses and cutting them out.
Katelyn:
I know, I was like...
Tom Crawford:
Damn you, eclipse, it's over.
Katelyn:
I know some people cut— You cut holes in cereal boxes to do something with the... with the shadows and stuff, but... Okay, so it's not the eclipse.
Evan:
I was also thinking... could it be a metaphor? Like, cutting your life in half? Like, cut something in half?
But, Tom said, you are physically cutting something, I think was implied.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Evan:
Physically cutting things.
Tom Scott:
Yep, there were photos of this put online.
Tom Crawford:
Was it the Olympics around that time?
Tom Scott:
No, but it was a current event. There is a very specific date being given there.
Katelyn:
Okay. As the people in the US, I feel like we should know this.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Evan:
Yeah, but we just make YouTube videos all day, every day.
Katelyn:
We don't have time for current events.
Evan:
We're not connected to normal society.
SFX:
(Evan and Tom Scott laugh)
Katelyn:
Okay.
Evan:
What gets cut in half irregularly?
Tom Crawford:
A cake. Was it like a birthday? Was there— What else could you cut that's not with scissors?
Katelyn:
Also, it's cut in half. That makes me think something is... Not like a cake where you cut it into multiple small pieces.
Tom Scott:
Mhm.
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, what would you specifically cut in half?
Evan:
Ribbons.
Tom Crawford:
Right, because then it rules out, not a loaf of bread.
Evan:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, a ribbon. You would cut a ribbon in half.
Tom Scott:
They all stepped out of their house. Specifically, their front door.
Evan:
Stepped out of their house and cut something in half.
Tom Crawford:
Cut something in half.
Evan:
I wonder if, does it happen regularly or only once?
Tom Scott:
I think it's safe to say... that this is the only time in history that this could have happened.
Evan:
Oh, wow.
Tom Scott:
Certainly in recent history.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Evan:
In recent history. And it doesn't happen regularly. So that rules out—
Katelyn:
Were people protesting something? Were they like, oh, I'm gonna cut my...
Evan:
Business card in half.
Katelyn:
Yeah.
Evan:
They cut my spending busi— But like the thing is...
Katelyn:
Why would they step outside?
Evan:
Why would they step outside?
Katelyn:
Did it have to be— So it would have to be something that you would— that would be better to cut outside than inside.
Tom Crawford:
It's gonna make a mess.
Katelyn:
Yeah, it's gonna make a mess.
Tom Scott:
The thing is outside already. It was already there.
Evan:
Does it have to do with a... no, a recent event? I was thinking flowers. You're cutting flowers... to give a gift to someone?
Katelyn:
Do you cut that in half?
Evan:
Not really.
Tom Scott:
I mean, it's usually in the garden, this thing.
Evan:
Oh, in the garden. But it's recent.
Tom Scott:
Very much not everyone. But... you'll have seen these around.
Tom Crawford:
Something in your garden. You would possibly... Would you normally cut it in half? Or was this—
Tom Scott:
No.
Tom Crawford:
No, okay.
Tom Scott:
This is a very special event.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Tom Crawford:
Right, okay.
Katelyn:
And people in the US are doing it.
Tom Scott:
Yep, and it would only have been the US, and it would only have been on or around that date.
Evan:
Only in the US? What only happens in the US?
Katelyn:
Because I'm trying— I was trying to think of, are there any obscure holidays or something?
Evan:
But it's the first time in recent— It's the first time it might have happened.
Katelyn:
Yeah, yeah, so it can't be a holiday. I feel like it's people protesting something. And then posting it on social media, or it's some sort of TikTok challenge.
Tom Scott:
(laughs) I don't think protesting is the right word here.
Katelyn:
Okay.
Tom Scott:
But you're not a million miles away with that.
Katelyn:
So maybe it is something people are doing in solidarity with each other. Even if it's not protesting per se, it's like, they're making some sort of statement?
Tom Scott:
Oh, they're definitely making a statement, yes.
Evan:
So they walk outside, they cut something in their garden in half to make a statement.
Tom Scott:
Quite a positive statement, to be honest, for them.
Tom Crawford:
Oh, oh!
Was that when Biden dropped out of the presidential race?
Tom Scott:
Yes, Biden dropped out on the 21st of July.
So, Tom, talk it through. What's happening?
Tom Crawford:
So, I'm thinking they would have a sign that said, "Biden" and "Harris"... with Biden as the president and Harris as VP.
Tom Scott:
Yes.
Tom Crawford:
So they went out and they cut it in half.
Tom Scott:
Yes, they did.
Tom Crawford:
And just left the Harris part.
Tom Scott:
Absolutely spot on.
Katelyn:
Oh my gosh. That was so good. That was so good. Also, we definitely failed as US citizens today.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Katelyn:
That was so good.
Tom Scott:
Yes, some people used duct tape to cover up his name, or they reinstalled signs from Harris' 2020 primary campaign. But yes, they were Biden-Harris signs, and they got shears, and they just cut off the top half to just say 'Harris'.
Evan:
Hey, that's some good DIY energy. That's great.
Katelyn:
There you go.
Tom Scott:
Tom, it is over to you for the next question.
Tom Crawford:
So my question is as follows.
And this question has been sent in by AAA. So thank you for your question, AAA.
On the streets of Vietnam, people wear rain ponchos with a special feature. Whilst the rest is opaque, there is a window of clear plastic roughly at waist height. How does this improve the safety and comfort of the wearer?
So I'll read that again.
On the streets of Vietnam, people wear rain ponchos with a special feature. While the rest is opaque, there is a window of clear plastic roughly at waist height. How does this improve the safety and comfort of the wearer?
Evan:
I have an answer that would be how I use it.
Hold my phone there. So I could look at my phone, and keep my hands and the phone out of the rain. So you can text, you can watch videos, and your phone isn't getting wet. Your hands aren't getting wet.
Katelyn:
You're thinking of that because we were just in Alaska, and we used ponchos, and you couldn't use your phone.
Evan:
Yes! (laughs)
Tom Crawford:
I mean, you could use it for that. I think it has another purpose.
Tom Scott:
Agh!
Evan:
(laughs)
Katelyn:
I really thought you had it!
Tom Scott:
I was convinced.
Tom Crawford:
I feel like that's a valid answer.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
I think, let's say...
Tom Scott:
(laughs)
Tom Crawford:
I think the particular ponchos we're talking about were designed for another purpose. However, they could absolutely be used for the way you've described, Evan, to look at your phone.
Tom Scott:
To be fair, you said safety and comfort.
And I think that's definitely for comfort. I'm not sure it's for safety.
Katelyn:
Okay, so safety and comfort.
Evan:
Is it, in order to sign... Do sign language under your poncho, so your hands don't get wet?
Tom Crawford:
You have found another use for this particular poncho!
SFX:
(others laugh uproariously)
Tom Crawford:
This is the game now. How many alternative, incorrect uses can we come up with?
Tom Scott:
We've got DIY people on this show! This is their bread and butter.
Tom Crawford:
So again, I think that is a correct use. It is not the answer I'm looking for.
Tom Scott:
But that means we've got the picture of it right.
The poncho is opaque, and there is this... hole in the front that, in theory, you could see a phone through, or you could sign through. But it's that kind of size. There's just a transparent window on the front of— for your belly.
Tom Crawford:
Yes.
Katelyn:
I wonder. Is it more for the safety of the wearer, or for the safety of those around the wearer?
Tom Scott:
Yeah, because they could be wearing a high vis jacket or something. You can put that on over a poncho.
Katelyn:
Yeah.
Tom Scott:
On the other hand, high vis poncho.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn chuckle)
Tom Scott:
I did know someone who deliberately got a high vis lab coat made once.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Evan:
That's great, that sounds fun.
Tom Scott:
Sorry, I said deliberately. Why did I say deliberately? He didn't accidentally make a high vis lab coat.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Scott:
I don't know...
Evan:
Now I wonder. Does it have to do something with Vietnam in particular?
Tom Crawford:
It would certainly be used this way in Vietnam more than it perhaps would in a different country.
Tom Scott:
Oh, I'm immediately thinking about road safety then. I'm immediately thinking about trying to cross the road when there's 10,000 cars and scooters going by at very high speed.
Tom Crawford:
Uh-huh.
Evan:
(guffaws)
Katelyn:
(chuckles awkwardly) So... I mean, unless people... typically wear reflectors on their belts or something, and the window allows you to see the reflector through the poncho...
Tom Scott:
Yeah, but if I remember, I've not been to Vietnam, so I'm quoting something I heard a while back, is that basically the rules for crossing the road there are you start walking, and you expect everyone to avoid you.
You just keep a constant speed, a constant pace, and because everyone understands that's the rule, they will avoid you. You are just an object moving at constant pace that they plan their routes around.
And if you try and cross like you're European, and you just go, "Oh, should we, should we, wait?" you will get run into because they can't read what you're trying to do.
Katelyn:
(chuckles)
Tom Scott:
And, I don't know how a transparent bit of a poncho would help with that!
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Evan:
I feel like we have pieces. We just need to put them together.
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, absolutely. And you're completely right, other Tom.
Tom Scott:
Oh, not again.
Tom Crawford:
I was in Vietnam in... (laughs) Did that one on purpose. I was actually in Vietnam in September. And you're right, that's exactly how you have to do it. But who would be avoiding you? Who would be avoiding you as you were crossing by just walking at a constant speed?
Katelyn:
Cars.
Tom Scott:
Cars, scooters, bikes. Everyone on wheels.
Tom Crawford:
Which of those is most popular in Vietnam?
Evan:
Bikes.
Tom Scott:
Oh, okay. Okay, so what if it's not crossing the road or that sort of thing, but it's something you wear while cycling in a rain poncho?
Katelyn:
Well, I'm trying to think... Would there be anything under the rain poncho when you're cycling that gets kind of covered by it?
Evan:
Would the handles get covered by the poncho?
Katelyn:
I don't think so.
Evan:
But your hands are on. Your hands are on. Oh, oh, oh!
Katelyn:
Oh!
Evan:
I know it, I know it, I know it, wait! Okay, so if you're on a scooter... and the poncho's over your hands, too... Safety and comfort. You need to have a clear thing to see the dash of your motorcycle.
Katelyn:
Oh, I was gonna say something else. I was gonna say, if it's covering your hands, it might cover a light on the front of it.
Evan:
Oh, that, too.
Tom Crawford:
Katelyn's got it. (laughs)
Tom Scott:
This isn't a poncho just over the person. This is a poncho over the whole bike?!
Katelyn:
Well, it's like, oh, if it covers your hands, and you're trying to keep your hands dry, then that means it's covering the handles, and therefore covering some part of the front of the body.
Evan:
Oh, so to keep the light visible.
Katelyn:
Yeah, so the light can still shine through.
Evan:
Ohh!
Tom Crawford:
There you go. That's it, that's it. Well done, Katelyn. Yeah, yeah. I was about to say, Evan. You have once again... named another use for this particular poncho.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Crawford:
Which is so— It couldn't be closer. You're like, you're riding a scooter, you've got it, you need to be able to see. But you were like, dashboard instead of headlight.
Evan:
(laughs)
Tom Crawford:
I believe the use, the answer I was looking for is exactly what Katelyn said.
Katelyn:
Yay.
Tom Crawford:
It's, you put it over the handlebars. It keeps your hands dry, keeps them warm, but you need the clear bit to allow the headlight to still shine for safety.
Tom Scott:
That question writer, when they said waist height, it is at waist height, but just over the whole bike, and not you as a person.
Katelyn:
Sneaky.
Evan:
Sneaky. I like it though. Now, why don't they just make the whole poncho clear?
Tom Crawford:
That's a very good question.
Tom Scott:
That's a very good question, and we'll move on to the next one!
Thank you to Brian J. Devine for sending in this next question.
In 2013, an actor portrayed a physician trying to help someone who, in the past, had also worked for the United Nations. Later that year, the actor took on another role with the two words swapped. Who is he?
I'll say that again.
In 2013, an actor portrayed a physician trying to help someone who, in the past, had also worked for the United Nations. Later that year, the actor took on another role with the two words swapped. Who is he?
Evan:
The two words swapped? There are a lot of words before the two words.
Katelyn:
Yeah, I'm trying to figure out which two words are swapped.
Tom Scott:
Oh, the two words of his role.
Katelyn:
Oh, okay.
Evan:
And what was his role again?
Katelyn:
He was a physician.
Evan:
A physician?
Tom Scott:
Mhm.
Evan:
Wait, how can he flip physician?
Katelyn:
I mean, it could have been a specific type of doctor that's two words.
Evan:
Ohhh! Okay, so, physician is a clue for...
Katelyn:
What the role was maybe?
Evan:
What the role was. And it's the role, and it's flipped.
Katelyn:
I mean, I'm guessing.
Evan:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
So, so it could be like, Doctor Strange becomes a strange doctor.
Katelyn:
Ohh.
Evan:
Ohh.
Tom Crawford:
I don't know. That's possibly how I'm interpreting the question. I was also really confused about what was being swapped around. I was like, is he working for the United Nations helping a doctor now?
Tom Scott:
You might have been confused, but you've got very close there.
Evan:
Okay.
Tom Scott:
That is how it works. He portrayed roles that were X-Y and Y-X.
Evan:
Okay, yeah.
Katelyn:
Okay, okay, okay.
Evan:
Okay. Okay. Okay.
Katelyn:
Okay, so the first role, he was a doctor helping someone from the United Nations.
Tom Scott:
Mhm.
Evan:
Infectious disease specialist.
Katelyn:
That's two words.
Evan:
I know. I'm just trying to, you know, trying to think of what doctor would help the UN.
Katelyn:
And this is in 2013. So 11 years ago.
Tom Crawford:
So is it gonna be the name as in like Dr. Smith? Or do we think it's going to be like, like you say, a disease doctor?
Katelyn:
I feel like it's probably more likely to be a name like Dr. Smith. Doctor Strange, something like that. Because, if you're just doing... you know...
Evan:
Physical therapist, therapist physical.
Katelyn:
Yeah, that doesn't make sense. So I feel like it is... I think... I think it's going to be Dr. Something, Dr. Blank, and then because Blank Doctor. So I'm trying to think of words that when flipped, maybe mean something else.
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, I mean, Doctor Strange works.
Katelyn:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
Would Doctor Strange help the UN? No, it says physician, doesn't it? He's not— I don't think you can call Doctor Strange a physician.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
Well, he was originally, and then...
Katelyn:
Oh yeah, I guess.
Tom Crawford:
Doctor Who? Who Doctor? Doesn't work.
Tom Scott:
Uhm, I mean, you've nearly got it there.
Tom Crawford:
Oh?
Tom Scott:
What other organisations might a UN employee work for?
Tom Crawford:
Oh, Doctor Who, the World Health Organisation, W-H-O.
Evan:
Ohh!
Katelyn:
Ohh!
Tom Scott:
Yes!
Tom Crawford:
Ohh.
Tom Scott:
If anyone has the trivia knowledge for which of the many Doctors that was in— taking on the role in 2013?
Evan:
We barely watch movies anymore.
Tom Crawford:
The guy who's now in Game of Thrones.
Tom Scott:
It was the one—
Tom Crawford:
House of the Dragon.
Tom Scott:
It was the one after him. It was Peter Capaldi, who took the role of the WHO doctor, in Brad Pitt's World War Z movie.
Katelyn:
(chuckles)
Tom Scott:
And then later that year took on the role of Doctor Who.
Katelyn:
Hah!
Evan:
(applauds)
Tom Crawford:
Very good.
Katelyn:
(joins clapping)
Evan:
Yay!
Tom Scott:
When you said Doctor Strange, early on, I was starting to panic a little bit that that one might fall in about 60 seconds.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Tom Scott:
Katelyn, it is over to you for the next question.
Katelyn:
Okay.
This question has been sent in by David Turner.
Dennis looks out a window and sees five words: 'COMMANDER LIEUTENANT COLONEL SERGEANT PRIVATE'. He thinks it's a joke, but it's real. What does it mean?
Dennis looks out a window and sees five words: 'COMMANDER LIEUTENANT COLONEL SERGEANT PRIVATE'. He thinks it's a joke, but it's real. What does it mean?
Tom Scott:
Commander Lieutenant Colonel Sergeant Private.
Tom Crawford:
So they're ranks of... in the army, right? I think.
Tom Scott:
Now, I'm not sure. Correct me if I'm wrong here. I think commander is the navy? Not the army?
Tom Crawford:
Nice, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Tom Scott:
Lieutenant, colonel, sergeant, and private, they're all army, but I think commander is navy?
Tom Crawford:
Or air force? Can you have a commander in the air force?
Tom Scott:
I don't know my military ranks enough to know which services those are.
Tom Crawford:
Okay, something military. Let's go with it.
Evan:
I thought it was gonna spell out something, but 'Clcsp' doesn't mean anything.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Katelyn:
Also, I'll just remind you that these five words are on a window.
Tom Scott:
Hmm.
Evan:
So those— these words are on a window.
Katelyn:
Yes, to... To give you a little bit more specificity, the window is part of a door.
Tom Scott:
Hm, okay.
Tom Crawford:
And do we think Dennis is important? As in, is this a person? Or do you think this is a random name?
Tom Scott:
Oh, this could be a specific Dennis, couldn't it?
Tom Crawford:
Yeah, I don't know any famous Dennis.
Dennis the Menace?
Tom Scott:
(chuckles)
My favourite Dennis the Menace fact, by the way, which I'm going to drop into this despite the fact it's completely irrelevant to the conversation.
There is a UK and a US Dennis the Menace strip. Comic strip.
They are completely different... by completely different authors... and they started in different newspapers on the exact same day.
Evan:
Whaaat?
Katelyn:
That's weird.
Tom Scott:
Britain has a very different Dennis the Menace. Same mischievous kid kind of thing, but ours is very different to the American one, and they just started on the same day. Utterly irrelevant to the question. I just love crowbarring that fact here. It's one of the weirdest coincidences.
Evan:
It is a wild— That's a glitch. That's a glitch. So he thought it was a joke, but it wasn't.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Evan:
So what would be funny about that?
Tom Scott:
And it's not a big window.
Tom Crawford:
(giggles)
Evan:
Commander Lieutenant Colonel Sergeant Private.
Tom Scott:
One of the reasons you would put words on a window... is that you are saying who's inside that office or something like that. It's inside a building, but...
I don't think there's going to be someone called Commander Lieutenant Colonel Sergeant Private.
Evan:
Oh, like a name label.
Tom Scott:
And if there was, it would just say Commander Private. Because, I am absolutely certain that somewhere in the armed forces, there is a Commander Private or a Private Commander.
But I don't see there being five names there.
Katelyn:
So, I will say... that the door that this window is a part of is an entrance to an office.
Tom Scott:
Okay.
Katelyn:
So you are correct on that front.
Evan:
I wonder, Tom, if you were onto something. I wonder if it is all the ranks that this person has held in their lifetime. And, like you said... maybe he jumped from... different service to different service. And he's just been collecting these titles for some reason?
Tom Crawford:
Mmm. Because, yeah, because if you got promoted... within, say you were in the navy, and you moved up the rank, you would lose your old rank. But what if you were a private in the army, and then became a commander in the navy? Could you technically use both titles in your name?
Tom Scott:
I still feel like it would be rude to put that on a door?
Evan:
(cackles)
SFX:
(both Toms laugh)
Tom Scott:
You're just kind of rubbing it in at that point.
Tom Crawford:
Maybe that's the joke! (laughs)
Evan:
But it's not a joke.
Katelyn:
It's not a joke.
Tom Scott:
Oh my god! Oh, no, no, no, no, no, I think... No, there isn't going to be a Commander Private out there. That's rare, but... Sergeant is a last name.
Evan:
Ohh.
Tom Scott:
Not a common one, but there are plenty of people out there with the last name Sergeant.
So... (cracks up)
Could this be the commander of the base...
whose rank is Lieutenant Colonel...
his last name is Sergeant...
and it is private. He should not go in.
Thus making it –
Tom Crawford:
Don't go in, yeah.
Tom Scott:
– Commander... em dash... Lieutenant Colonel Sergeant... em dash... Private.
Katelyn:
You got it!
Evan:
Whaaat?
SFX:
(others laughing)
Katelyn:
I didn't even have to use all my clues! Yeah, it's...
Tom Crawford:
Nice.
Tom Scott:
I'd have got that faster if I'd written it down, and actually used all the words, instead of just using rank abbreviations to save myself time.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Tom Crawford:
Was this a... this question included at the request of the sponsor?
SFX:
(group laughing)
Katelyn:
So in the late 1960s, Charles Sergeant – you're right, Sergeant is a last name – was serving in the 4500th Air Base Wing supply unit at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia.
His rank was Lieutenant Colonel, he was the commander of the base...
Evan:
Oh my gosh.
Katelyn:
And it was a private office. So...
Tom Scott:
Amazing!
Katelyn:
Just like you said, Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Sergeant, private.
Evan:
(cackles) That'd be so confusing!
Tom Crawford:
Do we know who Dennis is?
Katelyn:
We don't know who Dennis is! Probably the Menace. I don't know which one. I guess the US based one.
Tom Scott:
Those were some very quick solves. So we have unlocked the shiny bonus question.
Sent in by Lachlan C. Thank you very much.
In Australia, how is a pineapple and a lobster always worth 70 dollars?
In Australia, how is a pineapple and a lobster always worth 70 dollars?
Evan:
I wonder if the price of lobsters are controlled by the government for some regulatory reasons.
Katelyn:
That was kinda my first thought, is it had to do with regulation. I'm also curious... Is it a combined lobster and pineapple equal $70, or are they each $70?
'Cause why would a pineapple be $70? Are they super rare in Australia?
Tom Crawford:
Ooh.
Katelyn:
Even if they have to be imported though, that seems very expensive. But Australia is an island.
Tom Crawford:
They can't be $70.
Katelyn:
Yeah, they can't be $70.
Tom Crawford:
No way.
Katelyn:
But Australia is an island, so they... There would be certain things that can only be brought in by importing them.
Evan:
Also, I'm not a super big seafood person, but I've never seen lobster and pineapple together.
Tom Crawford:
Is it a species of lobster? Is there a pineapple lobster? Is the species? 'Cause it's spiky, and... I don't know.
Evan:
Always $70. That's the thing that I keep on going back to. Why is it always $70? Ooh. Is there only one place in Australia where you can get pineapple lobster? The dish?
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Katelyn laugh)
Evan:
And they have set the price to $70, and there's only one place where you can get pineapple lobster?
Tom Crawford:
And it's their signature dish, so it never changes price. You know, maybe the restaurant is called Pineapple Lobster For $70 Restaurant.
Tom Scott:
These are not edible.
Katelyn:
Oh?
Tom Crawford:
Pineapple and lobster.
Katelyn:
Can you read the question one more time?
Evan:
With a new context?
Katelyn:
Now that you can keep this in mind.
Tom Scott:
In Australia, how is a pineapple and a lobster always worth $70?
Evan:
Oh, oh wait! It's money! It's money!
Tom Scott:
It's money! Talk me through it!
Evan:
Okay, so he said, you can't eat it. It's always worth $70. On their money, there must be... either a combination of one or two notes that have a pineapple and a lobster to it. Maybe like, the $50 is the pineapple.
Katelyn:
So a $50 and a $20.
Evan:
And a $20 is the lobster.
Tom Scott:
You even identified which one's on which note. Absolutely right.
Evan:
(claps) Yay!
Katelyn:
Okay, that was good.
Tom Crawford:
Wait, wait, wait. Wait, so, so they literally have a picture of a lobster and a pineapple on Australian money?
Tom Scott:
It's not pictures on the money, but this is Australian slang.
Evan:
Ohh.
Katelyn:
Ohh.
Tom Crawford:
Okay, that's what I was about to say, 'cause I'm picturing— is— 'cause I was— I've been to Australia, and I was like, their money looked like normal money. I didn't feel like I was playing some kid's game, where I was like, "Here's a lobster note. Here's a pineapple."
Tom Scott:
Yeah. But what do you remember about that money? Is there anything in particular? They were one of the first countries to have the shiny new polymer notes.
Tom Crawford:
Really plastic, yeah. It did feel quite fake.
Tom Scott:
Anything else about it?
Tom Crawford:
There were see-through bits.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Tom Crawford:
You could hold it up and see through. It was transparent.
Katelyn:
Did it have to do with the colors? A yellow tone and a reddish tone?
Tom Crawford:
Aaooh.
Tom Scott:
Yep, they're all really colourful. Which is partly branding for, you know, the Australian government and mint. Partly to help accessibility, so you can tell which note is which. And partly just because it looks nice.
So, yes, the $100 bill, which is green, is the watermelon.
The $50, yellow, is the pineapple.
The $20, red, is the lobster.
You've got the $10, which is blue, which is a blue swimmer, a type of crab.
And the slang for the pink $5 note is the prawn.
Katelyn:
(laughs)
Evan:
Oh, that's fun!
Tom Scott:
Which brings us to the question right at the start of the show.
Sent in by Joey Kerschnert, thank you very much.
In Fallout: New Vegas, the video game, what type of building caused a small town to be rechristened 'Novac'?
Before I give the answer to the audience, does anyone want to take a quick guess?
Evan:
I've played old Fallout games, like the original, but I haven't played the one that you're referring to.
Katelyn:
Well, if it's something in Vegas, also.
Tom Scott:
That's a relief, because that question would be a lot easier if you played the game.
SFX:
(Evan and Katelyn laugh)
Tom Crawford:
Something to do with tennis. A tennis court.
Tom Scott:
Why do you say tennis court?
Tom Crawford:
Novak Djokovic.
Tom Scott:
Oh!
Tom Crawford:
To me, when I hear Novak, Novak is followed by Djokovic in my brain.
Tom Scott:
That is not the connection. It's slightly more complicated than that. What's Fallout set in? What's it about?
Evan:
It's a post-apocalypse world. There's nucular fallout. And people have... are coming out of vaults where they weathered the nucular fallout.
Tom Crawford:
No-Vac, as in no vacuum, no...
Tom Scott:
Oh.
Tom Crawford:
Is it short for...
Tom Scott:
Now you're getting very close. It is Novac with a C, not a K.
Katelyn:
Oh?
Tom Crawford:
Novac. No evacuation. No vac... (wheezes)
Tom Scott:
You've got most of it. It is from a sign that was worse for wear.
Tom Crawford:
No— Ah, no vacancy.
Tom Scott:
No vacancy.
Tom Crawford:
And then it 'tains...
Evan:
(claps)
Tom Scott:
So the type of building is?
Evan:
A hotel.
Katelyn:
It's a hotel.
Tom Crawford:
It's gonna be a hotel.
Tom Scott:
Yes, that is right.
That is the Dino Dee-lite Motel on Highway 95, noted for its roadside attraction, Dinky the T-Rex.
And after the game's apocalypse, most of the letters had fallen off, and you just have a big sign that says Novac.
Katelyn:
(chuckles snidely)
Evan:
Awesome.
Tom Scott:
Thank you very much to all our players. What's going on in your world? Where can people find you?
We will start with Tom.
Tom Crawford:
I recently sat an Irish high school maths exam. Which took me two and a half hours. So you can watch that on YouTube, and you can watch me struggle my way through maths that an 18-year-old should be able to do as a apparent professional mathematician.
Tom Scott:
And where can people find you?
Tom Crawford:
@TomRocksMaths, on all social media.
Tom Scott:
And Evan and Katelyn.
Katelyn:
We are Evan and Katelyn on YouTube and everywhere else.
And in terms of stuff we're working on, I'll shout out something a little bit different. We're testing weird food hacks on our second channel to see if the internet is lying to us or not.
Evan:
Why would the internet lie to us?
Katelyn:
Yeah, why would it do that?
Tom Scott:
(laughs)
And if you want to know more about this show, you can do that at lateralcast.com. We have regular video highlights at youtube.com/lateralcast, and we are at @lateralcast basically everywhere.
With that, thank you very much to Evan and Katelyn.
Katelyn:
Woo!
Evan:
Thanks for having us.
Tom Scott:
To Tom Crawford.
Tom Crawford:
My pleasure.
Tom Scott:
I've been Tom Scott, and that's been Lateral.
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