In this podcast, Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss the following stories from Curiosity.com to help you get smarter and learn something new in just a few minutes: We May Have Detected Liquid Water on Mars. How Wet Is the Red Planet? There May Be a Long-Lost Gold Mine In the Arizona Mountains You Can Sharpen Your Memory With the Zeigarnik Effect For more science-backed ways to sharpen your mind, check out "The Leading Brain: Neuroscience Hacks to Work Smarter, Better, Happier" by Friederike Fabritius and Hans W. Hagemann. We handpick reading recommendations we think you may like. If you choose to make a purchase, Curiosity will get a share of the sale. Want to support our show?Register for the 2018 Podcast Awards and nominate Curiosity Daily to win for People’s Choice, Education, and Science & Medicine. Just register at the link and select Curiosity Daily from the drop-down menus (no need to pick nominees in every category):https://curiosity.im/podcast-awards-2018 Learn about these topics and more onCuriosity.com, and download our5-star app for Android and iOS. Then, join the conversation onFacebook,Twitter, andInstagram. Plus: Amazon smart speaker users, enable ourAlexa Flash Briefing to learn something new in just a few minutes every day!
In this podcast, Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss the following stories from Curiosity.com to help you get smarter and learn something new in just a few minutes:
For more science-backed ways to sharpen your mind, check out "The Leading Brain: Neuroscience Hacks to Work Smarter, Better, Happier" by Friederike Fabritius and Hans W. Hagemann. We handpick reading recommendations we think you may like. If you choose to make a purchase, Curiosity will get a share of the sale.
Want to support our show? Register for the 2018 Podcast Awards and nominate Curiosity Daily to win for People’s Choice, Education, and Science & Medicine. Just register at the link and select Curiosity Daily from the drop-down menus (no need to pick nominees in every category): https://curiosity.im/podcast-awards-2018
Learn about these topics and more on Curiosity.com, and download our 5-star app for Android and iOS. Then, join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Plus: Amazon smart speaker users, enable our Alexa Flash Briefing to learn something new in just a few minutes every day!
Full episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/water-detected-on-mars-a-lost-arizona-goldmine-and-zeigarnik-effect-memory-sharpening
[MUSIC PLAYING] CODY GOUGH: Hi, we've got three stories from Curiosity.com to help you get smarter in just a few minutes. I'm Cody Gough.
ASHLEY HAMER: And I'm Ashley hammer. Today, you'll learn about how we may have detected liquid water on Mars, and what's next for exploring the red planet, a long lost gold mine that might exist in the Arizona mountains, and how you can sharpen your memory with the Zeigarnik effect.
CODY GOUGH: Let's satisfy some curiosity.
ASHLEY HAMER: We've got big news to start off today. If you haven't heard, we may have detected liquid water on Mars. Radar observations from the Mars Express spacecraft suggest a 12 and 1/2 mile zone of sediments with water in the south polar region. For some background, there is definitely water on Mars already. There are layers of water ice, and sometimes carbon dioxide ice that wax and wane with the seasons on Mars. But we've never found running water where microbes might like to live. Scientists think Mars used to be a lot wetter than it is today. That's based on the canyons and certain rocks on the surface, like hematite, which usually form in water.
The theory is that the red planet's atmosphere slowly eroded away because Mars doesn't have a global magnetic field. So it didn't have a lot of protection from the sun's radiation. Now, not all scientists agree that this water reservoir is there. But if it is, then it's probably a leftover of that wetter period on Mars billions of years ago. And to be clear, the science team specifically said, sediments mixed with water. Not a lake, like some media outlets have been reporting. We strive for accuracy here at Curiosity. And we need more evidence to make sure that the water is there.
When we want to see what's under the surface here on Earth. A lot of the time, scientists use planes to beam radars at the ice in places like Antarctica. We'd need a craft closer to the Martian south pole in order to do that. If we find what we're hoping to find, then humans might have found just the right spot to set up a colony. One of these water zones might be where future humans settle. Although, we obviously have a lot of work to do before we can colonize the red planet. Seems like now might be a good time to start thinking about it.
CODY GOUGH: Somebody call Elon
ASHLEY HAMER: Elon, where are you?
CODY GOUGH: Ashley, you're from California. Did you ever go panning for gold when you were little?
ASHLEY HAMER: I did. We did a whole gold rush segment in fourth grade. And I panned for gold.
CODY GOUGH: Did you do a field trip for it?
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah. We went to a river, and we got the little-- the sieves. and stuff, and panned for gold. I wonder if everybody gets to do this when they're little? Because even I did it in Rockford. Which is Northern Illinois.
ASHLEY HAMER: That's cool.
CODY GOUGH: We had a little gold rush-era little village with a water mill. And you go and you to see the blacksmith. And you see where the prospect for the gold, and all that stuff. So I wasn't sure if that was a thing a lot of people experience.
ASHLEY HAMER: Well, yeah, I guess maybe they do.
CODY GOUGH: did you find any gold?
ASHLEY HAMER: I think I did. I was really into rocks when I was that age, too. So I had a bunch of different stuff. But I didn't have any gold. I had like pyrite. that's what they called--
CODY GOUGH: Fool's gold. yeah,
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah,
CODY GOUGH: Fool's gold's a good one. Minerals, you mean?
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah, minerals. Minerals, Marie.
[LAUGHTER]
CODY GOUGH: That was I was going for.
[LAUGHTER]
I'm so glad you picked up on that. Shout out to the Breaking Bad fans out there. Well, if you're an adventure seeker, a curious listener, then do we have the story for you. For more than a century, adventurous souls have sought the Lost Dutchman Mine. And since 1891, more than 100 people have claimed to find it. This is basically a long lost gold mine in the Arizona mountains. Settle in for some story time. And then we'll see if you can find it yourself. In the late 1800s, right after the gold rush. There was a German prospector named Jacob Waltz. Who definitely existed and was definitely German.
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah, he was actually called the Dutchman. Because Deutsch means German. So he was the Deutsch man.
CODY GOUGH: But they call the Dutchman.
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah.
CODY GOUGH: Because that's easier to say.
ASHLEY HAMER: Americanized.
CODY GOUGH: Yeah, very Americanized. According to reports, he started showing up in Phoenix with a lot of gold ore. Like a lot. He supposedly said it came from a secret mine in the Superstition Mountains.
ASHLEY HAMER: That's your first clue.
[LAUGHS]
CODY GOUGH: Some think the mine was first excavated by Mexico's Peralta family. But then was later commandeered by Apaches, or maybe just abandoned. What really matters, though, is that Jacob Waltz would not reveal the mine's location. Then in 1891 he died. But the story doesn't stop there. Because at the time of his death, he was living in Phoenix, reportedly, on land owned by Julia Thomas, a local bakery owner. They were friendly, and apparently, he gave her hints of other mine's location.
When he died, the 29-year-old Thomas sold her bakery, got a group together, and went searching for the mine. Funny, but kind of tragic story. She and her team passed over 2 enormous gold mines during their search for the lost Dutchman mine. Which they didn't find. So then, to recoup the cost of the failed expedition, Julia started selling maps that she claimed would lead people to the mine. And they were fakes. misinformation. And rumors about the mine, grew so ubiquitous that in 1895, they made it into the San Francisco Chronicle. The story is basically a bunch of hints about the mine's location. It's near a 1,000 foot tall rock tower. It's near a cabin in a cave. Apparently, back in those days, the standards of journalism weren't quite what they are today.
ASHLEY HAMER: Or maybe they're the same as they are today.
CODY GOUGH: I know. It's hard to know. But either way; back in those days, the story was enough to pique the curiosity of a guy named Adolf Ruth. He was an amateur prospector, who went into the Superstitions alone, at age 66. And just one day into his journey, he disappeared. But he found the lost Dutchman. At least according to, wait for it, a message in a bottle. Yes, in 1932, campers found a note from Adolf Ruth, floating in Arizona's Salt River. It read, quote, "I'm sitting under a tree in a creek with leg broke. I've got to have help, quick. Finder of this note, please give to Howard Peterson. PS. Have found the lost Dutchman, Ruth." Unquote.
ASHLEY HAMER: He didn't want to leave any clues or tell him where he was?
CODY GOUGH: His body and supplies were found in the mountain. And a medical examiner ruled that he died of natural causes. But some say he was murdered because he knew too much about the mine. Today, most geologists agree that the Superstitions probably don't contain a secret gold mine. But the lost Dutchman is still talked about in Arizona. And there are trails, and museum exhibits you can check out if you're in the area. This is one of history's unsolved mysteries. And please let us know if you find this mythical long lost gold. That would be worth a podcast interview.
ASHLEY HAMER: It would. OK, Cody. How do you feel when I go? (vocalizing) Da dada dada.
CODY GOUGH: I Mean, I'm going to say, (vocalizing) dada.
ASHLEY HAMER: Yeah.
CODY GOUGH: But it'd be better if you had said it.
ASHLEY HAMER: No, I was just going to leave it. I was going to leave it hanging. And I wanted you to stew in that tension.
CODY GOUGH: That is tense. And it's kind of painful. And I don't really know why.
ASHLEY HAMER: Well, it's all due to a psychological phenomenon called the Zeigarnik effect. It basically describes how an unfinished task sticks in your memory better than a finished one. And radio jingles actually do this on purpose. They don't resolve musically, so you get the impression that there's more to the song. It turns out you remember things better when they're left unfinished. So try this, the next time you have a song stuck in your head, try thinking about the ending. You'll satisfy your brain, and you might be happier, overall. You can do this with work, too. Try completing important essays, projects, and other big tasks in smaller chunks. That'll ensure your brain will have intrusive thoughts about them until they're completed. And that may result in a more thoughtful final product. And if you really want to hack your life, try this. When you meet someone new, tell them a gripping story, and then unexpectedly leave, because you got a phone call or something, before you reach the thrilling conclusion. There's one way to make people remember you.
CODY GOUGH: Oh, man, that reminds me of the guy that went up to me when I was at swing dancing last. Night I can't get into it because we're out of time.
ASHLEY HAMER: Oh, man.
[LAUGHTER]
CODY GOUGH: Read about these stories and more today on Curiosity.com.
ASHLEY HAMER: Join us again, tomorrow, for the Curiosity Daily. And learn something new in just a few minutes. I'm Ashley Hamer.
CODY GOUGH: And I'm Cody Gough.
ASHLEY HAMER: Stay curious.
SPEAKER: On the Westwood One Podcast Network.