Curiosity Daily

Why Limits Make You Lash Out, Cash vs Cards, Odds of Dying

Episode Summary

Learn why you act irrationally when your freedom is threatened; why you spend more with your credit card than you do when you use cash; and how statisticians calculate the probability of dying from something. The stories in this episode originally aired July 29, 2018 “Odds of Dying (w/ Ken Kolosh), Reactance, Credit Card Psychology” https://omny.fm/shows/curiosity-daily/odds-of-dying-w-ken-kolosh-reactance-credit-card-p   Injury Facts from the National Safety Council: https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/   Odds of Dying - Injury Facts. (2021, March 4). Injury Facts. https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/all-injuries/preventable-death-overview/odds-of-dying/  COVID-19 Cases in the United States - Injury Facts. (2021, July 16). Injury Facts. https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/home-and-community/safety-topics/covid-19-cases-in-the-united-states/  Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day withCody Gough andAshley Hamer. Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

Episode Notes

Learn why you act irrationally when your freedom is threatened; why you spend more with your credit card than you do when you use cash; and how statisticians calculate the probability of dying from something.

The stories in this episode originally aired July 29, 2018 “Odds of Dying (w/ Ken Kolosh), Reactance, Credit Card Psychology” https://omny.fm/shows/curiosity-daily/odds-of-dying-w-ken-kolosh-reactance-credit-card-p

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer. Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

 

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/why-limits-make-you-lash-out-cash-vs-cards-odds-of-dying

Episode Transcription

CODY: Hi! You’re about to get smarter in just a few minutes with Curiosity Daily from Discovery. I’m Cody Gough.

ASHLEY: And I’m Ashley Hamer. Today, you’ll learn about why you act irrationally when your freedom is threatened; why you spend more with your credit card than you do when you use cash; and how statisticians calculate the probability of dying from something, with help from Ken Kolosh from the National Safety Council. We originally ran these stories on July 29, 2018, and they’re so good, we remastered them just for you.

CODY: Plus, stick around for a brand-new recap segment at the end of today’s episode to hear our fresh takes on all of today’s stories. But right now? Let’s satisfy some curiosity.

RECAP

Hey, we’re back in 2021! Let’s do a quick recap of what we learned today.

  1. ASHLEY: There’s a term for when humans act out when they feel their freedom is under threat. It’s called “reactance,” and it makes people act irrationally to reestablish the sense that they’re free. Reactance isn’t triggered by normal limits; instead, it happens when you feel the freedoms you do have are slipping away. One way to counteract this in others is by giving them some freedom in another way, like by offering them a choice. 
    1. CODY: Like instead of a restaurant asking for proof of vaccination, they could ask for a recent negative result from a COVID test?
    2. We should also talk about how hilarious it is that Cody was like “I’m glad we’ve never butted heads” which is how you can tell that story is at least a few years old now. 
  2. CODY: According to research, you spend more money when you’re carrying around a credit card. The credit card makes you focus on a product’s benefits, while cash makes you focus on its cost. Cash is also physical, while credit cards deal in abstract numbers. If you’re in a situation where you can’t carry cash, then try to think of numbers as hours of your life, like we talked about in an episode a few weeks ago. Or use the HALT method before you buy something, and make sure you’re not hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. 
  3. ASHLEY: You can find your estimated odds of dying on the National Safety Council’s website. And in case you missed that URL, it’s injury-facts-dot-nsc-dot-org, and of course you can find a link in today’s show notes. According to Ken Kolosh, some odds are calculated using simple arithmetic: first, they take data from the number of deaths in a year from the CDC and break it down by causes. Then, they take data from the census bureau on population and life expectancy. Some risks are a little more tricky to calculate, like motorcycle accidents or earthquakes or other things not everyone is exposed to. But knowing your real risks can help you know what you should worry about and what you shouldn’t.
    1. CODY: And if you go to the Odds of Dying calculator right now, there’s a huge infographic about COVID-19. And the verdict is, quote, “Too early to know for sure,” unquote. That’s because the lifetime odds of death on that page are from 2019, and there were no recorded deaths from COVID in 2019. But the NSC does have a COVID-19 case page with some helpful information, including changes in various causes of death during the pandemic, like falls, overdoses, and car crashes. And it reads that based on the data they do have, quote, “It is likely that when final mortality data is released for 2020, COVID-19 will be the third leading cause of death in the United States, behind heart disease and cancer,” unquote.

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ASHLEY: Today’s writers were Mae Rice and Annie Hartman. 

CODY: Our managing editor is Ashley Hamer.

ASHLEY: Our producer and audio editor is Cody Gough.

CODY: [AD LIB SOMETHING FUNNY] Join us again tomorrow for a brand-new episode of Curiosity Daily to learn something new in just a few minutes.

ASHLEY: And until then, stay curious!