This episode contains: We weren’t going to, but what the hell, it’s easy so we did a 2016 review ep! We inevitably talk about celebrity deaths and the orange menace set to take office in a few weeks. Devon reminds us the nightmare has only just begun but also that some good things happened this year: Rogue One for starters.

The Science of 2016: Gravitational Waves found (and confirmed) at last! We then take a quick look back at the top stories of 2015 and realize we never found out what happened to the LA gas leak. Back to 2016: another Earth (supposedly) orbiting Proxima b. Three-parent babies are permissible, but not necessarily new. What happened to Neanderthals? Last year was Ebola, now we have Zika, thanks nature! The most popular science writer of 2016 was President Obama. AI defeated champion Go player in 2016. We learned more about the outer solar system and Planet 9. Dinosaur tail with feathers. Babylonian astronomers tracked the movement of Jupiter.

http://mentalfloss.com/article/90248/top-10-science-stories-2016

Devon’s Sci-Fi Cornucopia: Steven first butts in to tell us about his Christmas gifts: actual Legos and Lego Dimensions. Devon saw, and sort-of liked, Passengers (SPOILERS), even with the “misogynistic” twist. Devon saw Rogue One again (in IMAX 3D this time), then watched A New Hope right after. We compare and contrast the differences and continuity of the two movies. Devon got to experience PlayStation VR and loved it. Devon finished The OA and finds it disappointing. Having read all the books, Devon is finally catching up on the TV show of the Expanse. Devon also finished A Wise Man’s Fear. He is now reading Hydrogen Sonata by Ian M. banks. That’s not all, Devon is also watching the Magicians (which doesn’t pass the CW test).

QA: Where on Earth can you go to be the farthest possible from any other human being?