Everyone loves a good conspiracy theory. And nowhere do these theories find more love and acceptance than on the Internet.

But David Robert Grimes, a physicist and cancer researcher, might have just burst the Internet bubble. As a science writer for the Irish Times and the Guardian, he gets lots of emails and letters from "science-based" conspiracy theorists, who mostly accuse the entire scientific community of publishing fake data to fool the public at large.

So, being a mathematician and a man of reason, Grimes set out to dispel myths such such as NASA faking the 1969 moon landing, the medical community suppressing the cure for cancer and climate change fraud. He came up with an equation that considers the number of conspirators required to keep the secret, whether the conspirators merely had to remain quiet or if they had to actively maintain the conspiracy and the rate at which the involved people would die - either of natural or (shudder) nefarious causes.

“For a conspiracy of even a few thousand actors, intrinsic failure would arise within decades. For hundreds of thousands, such failure would be assured within less than half a decade,” Grimes says.

By his calculations, about 400,000 people would have had to work together to fake the moon landing and about half a million (including scientific bodies) to perpetrate climate change fraud. Both would have been exposed - either by accident or by a whistleblower on the inside - within about 4 years. Have a look at his chart:

Even though Grimes' equation should signal the death nell of hundreds of conspiracy theories, we know it won't. After all, Dr. Grimes is one of the accused: a scientist. I can't wait to hear the conspiracy theories that arise next...from the good doctor's own equations!

See you next week,
Bobby

No matter where you stand or who you stand with in the upcoming election, I think you have to admit: it's been pretty entertaining election season so far. And we have some pretty entertaining Things now and coming up to help you get in the spirit for November.

Not to pick on the "poor" Donald , but here are some of my favorite Trump-y Things we've seen so far. (Don't worry, I don't play political favorites — everyone will get their turn!)

The Trump Bobblehead: Love him or hate him, this is the perfect Thing for home, office or even the dashboard of your car. Just a flick of the hand will set his head to bobbling in that disapproving manner that says, "You're Fired!"

Maybe you want someThing a little more positive? How about a pencil sketch tee of the American made Donald with the exact opposite sentiment?

For the biggest laughs, try one of these "We Shall Overcomb" Things. Both make hilarious gifts for celebrating this crazy political season — for political allies, foes or for yourself.

Back in 1966, a high school Junior Historian published some predictions for the year 2016 in her local paper. Let's see what Margaret Louise Thorne envisioned for us today...and see if she was right.

• "Someone must find ways to captivate the sun's radiation and make it work for us. The sun will need to be our major fuel in the years to come." That's a hit. Solar energy is a Big Thing these days. 
• "Our water supply will need to be taken from the seas as our lands get drier and drier." Another hit. Water desalinization is a growing industry all over the world. 
• "People will take a pill for breakfast that will supply them with needed nourishment." Sounds like a good Thing, but that's a miss. 
• "The only land untouched by suburbia will be the national and state parks and forests...and a few farms of enormous size in the midwest." I'll give her half a hit for this, but her prediction falls a bit short of the total suburban sprawl she predicted.
• What will people do to earn a living? ...The vast majority of the people will be seated in front of man's ingenious invention, the computer." That's a dead-on bullseye. Almost everyone has to be a computer "geek" these days!

She didn't anticipate everyThing — smart phones, video games, information "clouds" — but she did predict that we'd be able to solve every one of our problems from food to energy to water with human ingenuity. We're not quite there in 2016, but I'd say that's a hit, too. Because we are working on all the Things she talked about!

See you next week,
Bobby

At a super cool science conference held in the Netherlands that included over 200 engineers, scientists, and industry experts, the European Space Agency unveiled plans to build 3-D printed villages — on the moon.

The lunar colony, slated to begin construction in about 5 years, will be the first permanent off-world settlement for humans. Designed to replace the International Space Station (ISS), the main focus will be studying Mars and creating a springboard for deeper space projects.

And the agency is on a fast track: they say the new base (which will be constructed by robots before humans arrive — and how cool is that?) will be move-in ready by 2030.

Hard to believe we could be living and working on the moon in just 15 short years. But...15 years ago, it would have been hard to believe a lot of Things (like tablets and drones) that we live and work with every single day now.

Like the ISS, the lunar village will be staffed by trained astronauts. And it will probably be a while before regular people like you and me get a chance to live off-planet. But if you ask me, this sounds like a one giant leap in the right direction!

See you next week,
Bobby

Most of you already know I don't make New Year's Resolutions anymore. Mainly because I never keep them. Not that I'm alone. Only 8% of people are successful in achieving their resolutions. I'd sure like to be among that small group, but I've never made it yet.

But I am determined to do just one Thing in 2016: I'm going to learn some self-defense techniques. I've been wanting to do it for a LONG time and since we have all the Things I need to learn, I'm out of excuses.

I'm hoping that in the process of learning self-defense, I'll accidentally lose some weight. Unintentionally get fit. And maybe, just by chance, I'll develop the self-discipline I need to join that 8% next year!

Happy New Year!

See you next week,
Bobby