British Elections, Exploding Head Syndrome, Food, Algorithms

British Elections (1:06) Guest: John Talbot, instructor for BYU's Study Abroad program The dust is settling now on national elections in the United Kingdom. Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative Party awoke Friday morning to a solid victory that came as a surprise to pollsters, pundits and Cameron's opponents who were all expecting a much tighter outcome. Exploding Head Syndrome (24:29) Guest: Brian Sharpless, assistant professor and director of the university psychology clinic at Washington State University We've all been startled awake by a loud noise at some point. You're on-edge, maybe unable to get back to sleep again for a bit. Now, suppose you were awakened by an abrupt loud noise that no one else heard. They say you're nuts. You start to think maybe you are crazy. Especially as it keeps on happening-sometimes it so intense if feels like your head is exploding. This is a real thing, sometimes called Exploding Head Syndrome. It's long been associated with people over 50, but new research by Brian Sharpless at Washington State University suggests nearly one in five college students suffer from the syndrome, too. ; Food Presentation (34:24) Guest: Kären Jurgensen, Chef Instructor at Seattle Culinary Academy When you're concerned about getting food on the table before your hungry kid's meltdown or your picky ones pitch a fit about what you're serving, how the food looks on the plate just doesn't feel top of mind, does it? But it should, says Chef Kären Jurgensen. She even says a nice presentation can make meals more satisfying and less inclined to over eat. Market for Algorithms (52:15) Guest: Kenny Daniel, the CTO and co-founder of Algorithmia Behind every search result on Google or friend post that shows up in your Facebook feed or recommendation that pops up when you shop on Amazon is an algorithm. It's a set of detailed instructions your computer follows to solve a problem. And when you think about how ubiquitous they are in our digital lives, it's easy to understand why a company like Algorithmia is having such success. Algorithmia is a market, and even a matchmaking service, for people who write algorithms and people who need them in the apps they're developing. Parent Previews: Avengers and Hot Pursuit (1:06:16) Guests: Rod Gustafson and Kerry Bennett of ParentPreviews.com First, the Avengers. Two weeks into its theater release and the latest film in the Marvel Comics Universe is still leading at the box office-by a long shot. The avenging team of superheroes this time battles a robot intent on eradicating evil by doing the obvious thing - eradicating the human race that does the evil. It's up to Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk and Black Widow to save the day. Another new movie in theaters - a comedy featuring Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara called "Hot Pursuit." Inventing the Perfect Box (1:20:51) Guests: Spencer Magleby, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Dean in the Fulton College of Engineering and Technology at Brigham Young University Mike Morgan, master's student in the mechanical engineering program Spencer Rogers, works in BYU's Technology Transfer office which license and markets innovations made on campus. More information about technology developed at BYU is available at techtransfer.byu.edu Have you ever found yourself wishing you had a third hand? Maybe you're holding something secure with one hand and trying to get the first aid kit or tool box or jewelry box open with your other and realizing you can't manage it with a single hand? If you had a morphing box you could, though. That's what BYU mechanical engineering graduate student Michael Morgan calls the box he invented with his faculty advisor Spencer Magleby. It's based on principles of origami.