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Episode 155: The missing whiskey
26th September, 2025 • Tom Lum, Ella Hubber and Caroline Roper face questions about skull schemes, nicked notes and perilous plasticine.
Transcription by Caption+
Tom Scott:
What sort of competitors might employ strategies such as 'Avalanche', 'Bureaucrat', or 'Toolbox'? The answer to that at the end of the show. My name's Tom Scott, and this is Lateral. Before we begin, I want you to select a playing card. Not one of the obvious ones, like Queen of Hearts or Ace of Spades. Pick one that you don't think I'll get. Um, so I think it is a... low card. Um...
Tom Lum:
(snickers)
Tom Scott:
It's... it's a black suit. And... I'm gonna say Four of Clubs? Yep, thought so. And now 1.9% of our audience thinks that I can read their mind.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Scott:
Speaking of not quite having a full deck, we welcome back today, the folks from Let's Learn Everything. I'm gonna start with someone who, at the end of the last show they were in, said that they were gonna hold their breath until the next episode.
Ella:
(cackles)
Caroline:
Nice.
Tom Scott:
Tom Lum, welcome back to the show.
Tom Lum:
(gasps loudly) Oh my god! Oh my god!
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Ella laugh)
Caroline:
Wow!
Tom Lum:
(raspy) It's so good to be back on! Thank you! Thank you!
Tom Scott:
How are you doing, Tom?
Tom Lum:
Hi, good. I'm doing great. Oh my god.
Tom Scott:
What else is going on in your life other than Let's Learn Everything at the minute?
Tom Lum:
(exhaustedly) I do YouTube stuff. (mumbles)
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Caroline laugh)
Tom Scott:
You can drop the shtick. I'm feeling exhausted just listening to you.
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Caroline laugh)
Tom Lum:
But yeah, love the podcast and love Caroline and Ella. I sure wish they were here right now.
Caroline:
Wow. Okay.
Tom Scott:
As if by magic, the next member of Let's Learn Everything appears.
Tom Lum:
No way!
Tom Scott:
Ella Hubber, welcome back to the show.
Ella:
Thank you. Thank you so much. I'd— Actually, you know what? No, I retract that 'thank you'. Because you just said we're a few cards short of a deck. Which is... horrible!
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Caroline laugh)
Tom Scott:
I wondered if—
Caroline:
Is this the second episode in a row where Tom Scott has mildly offended all of us before we start?
SFX:
(both Toms laugh uproariously)
Ella:
It's not even, I think it's every single time. Every single time.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Scott:
Producer David writes these scripts. I'm like, I'm just gonna read the words in front of me. I will fully Ron Burgundy this script and just let you put the words in front of me. They'll come out of my mouth.
Ella:
I won't take David. I won't— You can't bring David down for your mistakes.
Tom Lum:
You can choose not to say it, Tom.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
Also joining us today, the... No, I don't wanna say last. That implies hierarchy. The other member of Let's— I still— Caroline Roper, welcome back to the show.
Tom Lum:
You can say best.
Ella:
The other one!
Tom Lum:
You can say best.
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Ella laugh)
Caroline:
Why is it always me? What's going on? (laughs)
Tom Scott:
It's not deliberate, I promise! This is literally what the phrase 'last but by no means least' stands for.
Caroline:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
But you didn't say that.
Ella:
Yeah, you didn't.
Caroline:
(blurts laugh)
Tom Lum:
Alright, we're done. We're done roasting Tom now.
SFX:
(Ella and Caroline cackle)
Tom Scott:
Caroline, we should probably just briefly plug the podcast at some point in this.
Caroline:
I guess we should, shouldn't we? Us three, we're from Let's Learn Everything. We talk about science and miscellaneous topics. We have talked about drosophila and the meal deal in the same episode.
Ella:
In one episode!
Caroline:
In one episode.
Tom Lum:
It was a combo. It was really great.
Caroline:
It was so good. We talked about our location in the universe and carrots in another episode. It really is—
Tom Lum:
That was also one? I forgot.
Caroline:
Yeah, it was one episode. We're shocked by it. That's the energy of our show.
Tom Scott:
Well, it seems to match what we have here. There is a entire shuffled deck of questions ahead of us. So let's find out who will be the ace and who will be the joker ...and deal with question one. Thank you to Ryan Neary for this question. In 1997, Microsoft Office's apps allowed users to type text into a box that could be moved around the screen. Why did this upset one of their clients? I'll say that again. In 1997, Microsoft Office's apps allowed users to type text into a box that could be moved around the screen. Why did this upset one of their clients?
Tom Lum:
This is interesting.
Tom Scott:
Hopefully. That's what the show's about.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
Sorry! Apparently we're all in sassy mode today!
Caroline:
Oh my goodness.
Ella:
Imagine we just went, "This is really— This is a really boring one."
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Lum:
Ah, next. Can we skip? Can we pass? We get one pass, right?
Tom Scott:
Welcome to Straightforward.
Ella:
Yeah.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Ella:
I think— I feel like this is— It could be something to do with... fraud, you know, committing some kind of fraudulent act. Because now, in PDFs, you can type over things to change, like you could change the date. You could change the amount of money someone was requesting. So you could do something fraudulent. So maybe it's something along those lines of being able to move... like cover texts that you shouldn't be able to cover.
Tom Lum:
Oh, interesting.
Caroline:
That's so much more sensible than where my brain went, which was just like—
Tom Lum:
And we've gotta know where it went, Caroline.
SFX:
(both laugh)
Caroline:
Which is just like, man, I'm sure somebody got really upset that you could like, write something inappropriate and then just put it right over the top of somebody's head in an image or something like that. Like make a meme.
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Caroline:
You know? I won't say what inappropriate words came to my head or the people that came into my brain either, but that's where we went.
Tom Scott:
That's good because the actual text entered didn't matter.
Caroline:
Ah, okay.
Tom Scott:
You're right that this is about the boxes.
Tom Lum:
Oh, my thought was moving text in a box. My brain was like, oh, the... the dithering on the fonts was off and it made someone annoyed. I was thinking more technical.
Caroline:
Our three personalities right there.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Ella:
My brain is still in... You know, maybe it's like, someone uses this. Like, one of the clients uses this for acceptance letters to universities or something. Then you can put a text box over that's, you know, like you are accepted or something. But then why wouldn't you just edit it in the actual Word document? So that doesn't really make sense, does it?
Tom Lum:
What was the year again?
Tom Scott:
1997.
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Caroline:
Wow.
Tom Lum:
I'm wondering if it could be some kind of, yeah, like an early hacking thing or some forgery or...
Caroline:
Is it even that a client had... difficulty or had paid more to have that function, and then all of a sudden, everybody else had it as well, and they were upset about that or...
Tom Scott:
No, not that.
Caroline:
Okay.
Tom Lum:
There's no compelling documentary about the text box races.
Caroline:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
He's like, "We're ruined!"
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Ella laugh)
Tom Lum:
Dragging around... text in a box. Typing text into a box and moving it around.
Caroline:
And it's— and the text doesn't matter. It's the movement of the box itself that was...
Tom Scott:
What the box looks like and the fact that you can move it, yes.
Ella:
I really like that Tom Lum, you... (cracks up)
Tom Lum:
Uh-huh?
Ella:
Because when we run out of ideas, instead of trying, you know, you can't think of anything else, you just say the same thing slower and more deliberately.
Tom Lum:
That's my secret.
Caroline:
Uh-huh, uh-huh.
Ella:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
That's my secret.
Tom Scott:
And sometimes, it works. Not this time, but sometimes.
Ella:
Eyy! (laughs)
Caroline:
(laughs) The shape of the box? You said the shape of the box was upsetting?
Tom Scott:
Yes, what the box looks like. It was square.
Caroline:
And not rectangular?
Tom Scott:
Nope, it was square, and the colour was a major concern.
Tom Lum:
Oh?
Ella:
Oh.
Tom Lum:
Interesting. I was just like, upsetting square. That sounds like in...
Caroline:
Yeah. (laughs)
Tom Lum:
Severance. When it's like these numbers make you feel things. It's like, oh, the box. That's an upsetting box. Did it look like something specific then? Like a logo?
Tom Scott:
It deliberately looked like something specific.
Tom Lum:
Oh, oh. Did it look like the Mac logo?
Tom Scott:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
Right? 'Cause that's a rectangle. I was like...
Tom Scott:
Is it? That's an apple. That's not a square box.
Tom Lum:
I know one of the— At least the Finder logo or icon. I know some Mac logos. It's the smiley face, right? With the— in a square. Maybe I'm wrong, and maybe it's— But some Mac-related thing. But I guess it's not that.
Tom Scott:
It's not that.
Tom Lum:
But that would be a fun way to poke at your competition, is to make something that's their logo, but...
Tom Scott:
No, remember these are square boxes. You can put text in them. You can move 'em around your screen.
Ella:
The text doesn't matter though. So is it like...
Tom Scott:
Text doesn't matter.
Ella:
they fill in the box with a colour, and it's just a square with a colour in?
Tom Scott:
Oh yeah. When you start these up, they're just squares with colours in.
Caroline:
So did it look like...
Tom Lum:
Interesting.
Caroline:
the Windows logo or something like that?
Tom Scott:
It looked like something.
Tom Lum:
A sticky note?
Tom Scott:
Keep talking, Tom.
Caroline:
(gasps loudly) Ohhh!
Tom Lum:
Was it the sticky note yellow color?
Tom Scott:
Yes, it was.
Tom Lum:
And... and was that just not allowed? Is that a very specific color they're protective of?
Caroline:
And Post-it was angry about that?
Tom Scott:
3M, the company that make Post-it notes...
Ella:
Right.
Caroline:
Wow.
Tom Scott:
were extremely angry that Microsoft had added their product to Microsoft Office without permission.
Caroline:
Yeah. (gasps)
Tom Lum:
Wow.
Tom Scott:
3M sued them for creating computer representations of repositionable adhesive notes, yellow in colour.
Ella:
Wow. Okay then.
Tom Lum:
(wheezes) That's the patent they're protecting.
Ella:
Did they successfully...
Caroline:
Yeah, did they win that?
Ella:
sue them, or...
Tom Scott:
Well, they... It's believed they settled out of court. Details a little hard to come by. 3M also had a software version of their Post-it notes. And that was what they were probably more angry about.
Caroline:
Oh, okay.
Tom Lum:
So there is a documentary here!
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
Yes, this is 3M, who sued Microsoft for making a digital version of Post-it notes. Ella, whenever you're ready, give us your question.
Ella:
This question has been sent in by LP. In 1937, palaeontologist Ralph von Koenigswald travelled to Indonesia in search of early human skulls. He paid the locals 10 cents whenever they found a genuine, old skull fragment. However, Ralph had to stop the payouts. Why? Once more. In 1937, palaeontologist Ralph von Koenigswald travelled to Indonesia in search of early human skulls. He paid the locals 10 cents whenever they found a genuine, old skull fragment. However, Ralph had to stop the payouts. Why?
Tom Lum:
Were they just... finding modern skulls through bad means? And trying to get the money?
Ella:
I feel like I shouldn't just immediately start answering your questions.
Tom Scott:
(chuckles)
Caroline:
(laughs heartily)
Ella:
Just, you know, roll through some ideas.
Tom Lum:
I was like, it sounds like there's some either grave robbing or...
Caroline:
Yeah. Oh, so you said specifically... the fragments of the skull? So not like... the whole skull?
Tom Lum:
Yeah, could— Oh my god! Could it— You have been— Caroline, Could it have been...
Caroline:
Could you have been...
Tom Lum:
old skulls? And they were smashing them?
Caroline:
smashing them up? (laughs profusely)
Tom Scott:
I was thinking they were smashing the skulls. 'Cause you said skull fragments, not skulls. They're not paying by weight. They're paying per fragment.
Ella:
Yeah. I mean, you've all— you all got there pretty quickly.
Tom Lum:
Wow.
Ella:
The locals were smashing the fossils into smaller pieces.
Caroline:
Wow!
Ella:
So, G.H. Ralph von Koenigswald travelled to Sangiran, Java and found a skull fragment of Pithecanthropus, or Java Man. He showed this to locals, offering up to 1 cent each for a tooth and 10 cents for a skull fragment. After a while, he realised that some of the pieces he was being offered by the Javanese locals were fitting together too perfectly.
Caroline:
Ohhh, man.
Tom Scott:
Ohhh.
Ella:
So in his book, Meeting Prehistoric Man, he wrote, "Too late, I realised that my opportunist friends were breaking up the larger pieces behind my back in order to get a bigger bonus." The scheme apparently cost 700 gilders per month because the locals insisted on immediate payment until they'd search any further. However, many of them ended up being worthless and thrown away anyway. So you're getting just tons of skull fragments, which are... (cracks up) maybe completely useless. Some of them were useful though.
Tom Scott:
Thank you to Robert Grundulis for this question. In 2004, the Northern Bank of Belfast was robbed of £26.5 million in cash. How did the bank get its own back, even though the thieves and the money had long since disappeared? I'll say that again. In 2004, the Northern Bank of Belfast was robbed of £26.5 million in cash. How did the bank get its own back, even though the thieves and the money had long since disappeared?
Ella:
When was this? Sorry? 19...
Tom Lum:
2004.
Ella:
Oh, 2004, okay. I was like, maybe, you know, the bank got its own back because they changed to euros. And so the money was useless.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Ella:
Although that wouldn't make sense. Oh yeah, really? Yeah, no.
Caroline:
Well, yeah. Or was it just old tender that wasn't used anymore?
Tom Lum:
Yeah, that would've been a good... And they didn't realise?
Ella:
But it's pounds. You said— Oh, Belfast is— No, Belfast is the— was Northern Ireland. God, please don't come at me for my bad geography.
Tom Scott:
(laughs) This is Belfast in Northern Ireland, yes.
Ella:
Yeah.
Tom Scott:
So part of the United Kingdom.
Tom Lum:
They made a movie out of it, and that was really cool.
Caroline:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
And they got the rights to the movies, because they're the... the bank robbers aren't gonna come back and be like, "Hey, actually this is my life rights story. You can't use this." Huh. Oh god. The currency conversion is a really, really clever thought, y'all.
Tom Scott:
I'd keep going down that line. But Britain never joined the Euro.
Ella:
No, of course. But down the currency, is it...
Caroline:
Could it just be like old pound coins
Ella:
Yeah.
Caroline:
that were not... I'm trying to think of why they would be defunct at that point. Misprints or something like that?
Tom Scott:
It was actual money that was very difficult to trace.
Tom Lum:
Did y'all ever get rid of a penny or something like that?
Ella:
Well, we've had a turnover
Tom Lum:
in types of money in the UK, so...
Ella:
Like coins have changed shape. I think all of them now. And our notes have also changed as well, to be more durable mostly. So it— but I think that's a lot earlier. 2004 is a lot earlier than any of this stuff happened.
Caroline:
It's too early. Yeah, yeah.
Tom Scott:
Also that wouldn't be the bank getting its own back.
Ella:
Yes.
Caroline:
Mm.
Tom Lum:
Mm, mm.
Tom Scott:
But you are... closer than you might think.
Caroline:
Was the bank trying to get rid of that money in some way?
Tom Scott:
Oh no, no. They got robbed.
Caroline:
They— okay.
Tom Scott:
Absolutely.
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Ella chuckle)
Tom Scott:
Successful heist.
Caroline:
Ah.
Ella:
And the money was then, could... you know, whoever robbed them, could they use the money afterwards fine? There was no...
Tom Scott:
Yep.
Tom Lum:
Presumably.
Ella:
Okay.
Tom Scott:
Yeah, after they pulled the bank notes out, they're bank notes.
Caroline:
The phrasing of like, "the bank got their own back".
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Caroline:
Got their own... Yeah, that's really—
Tom Scott:
Oh, no. That is in the metaphorical sense.
Caroline:
Okay.
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Tom Scott:
It's a figure of speech, how the bank got revenge.
Caroline:
Yeah. Yeah. It's— yeah. It's just really weird to be like, they got revenge, rather than like, it was fine for the bank. You know, they didn't mind too much or something like that.
Tom Lum:
Yeah. Were the robbers punished in some way? Or did they get some comeuppance? Or is it just the bank being all right, I'm wondering?
Caroline:
Yeah.
Tom Lum:
Could these robbers specifically have, because they were using this old currency for a long time, when it would've been recirculated, they could catch them? Is it a thing of catching them, or is it a thing of they— the money becomes useless to them, right?
Caroline:
Yeah, yeah.
Tom Lum:
I know that the... Lemme try my strategy again. (slowly) Belfast...
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Lum:
Bank robbery.
Tom Scott:
I'm being very careful here. this bank, the Northern Bank of Belfast, has something in common with some of the Scottish banks.
Ella:
Oh, oh! They have— So Scotland, they have their own notes.
Tom Lum:
Oh, wow.
Caroline:
Yeah.
Ella:
Scottish notes, which, in a lot of places... people – even though they are legal tender — I know, 'cause I've tried to spend a Scottish £20, and people will not accept that sometimes.
Caroline:
Yeah, yeah.
Ella:
So maybe this money is like, was like an Irish or Northern Irish note that's specific to Northern Ireland. And then in this town, or across island, the bank lobbied to say you can't accept that kind of money anymore in stores.
Tom Scott:
You're nearly there. Combine that with some of the other things you've said before.
Tom Lum:
Did they just fully get rid of this specific kind of note?
Tom Scott:
Yes, they did.
Ella:
But how did the bank— Is it— How did the bank do that? They made that—
Tom Scott:
The Northern Bank of Belfast is the one that prints those notes.
Ella:
Right!
Caroline:
Ohhh!
Ella:
And they were like— Oh, so was— They just stop printing the money, everyone using that now, you have to hand it back in to get your actual money back, or something along those lines.
Tom Scott:
Yep. To reduce the value of the haul, the bank hit on the idea of taking the entire stock of bank notes out of circulation, reprinting a new set, issuing new notes with a different logo and colour. This is why at the start, you were talking about currency conversions and changing stuff. It is kinda what happened.
Tom Lum:
Kinda, yeah.
Caroline:
Yeah.
Tom Scott:
so anyone who, for some odd reason, had a large number of those old notes, would have to go to a bank and change them.
Caroline:
Wow. Yeah.
Tom Lum:
Wow.
Tom Scott:
And if you legitimately have some old notes? Okay, that's fine. If you have £20 million worth of those notes...
Caroline:
Mhm, mhm.
Tom Lum:
(laughs)
Tom Scott:
There are gonna be questions!
Tom Lum:
It was under my mattress. I just found them.
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Caroline laugh)
Tom Lum:
That's also— I guess that's the problem of robbing such a big bank, is you're like, you're gonna get the money, but they can also be like, "Okay, no."
SFX:
(both Toms laugh)
Tom Scott:
Yeah, the Irish Independent reported that money launderers were putting £10 or £20 notes in car parking machines, in order to get the change out.
Tom Lum:
Oh wow!
Caroline:
Wow!
Ella:
And doing that for 20 million... (cracks up)
Tom Scott:
That's the thing.
SFX:
(guests laugh uproariously)
Tom Scott:
You can do that for 10. You can do that for 20. There's a point at which...
Tom Lum:
Oh my god.
Tom Scott:
it starts being a problem.
Ella:
£20 million of pennies.
Tom Lum:
That's wild.
Caroline:
Wow.
Tom Scott:
Similarly, automated checkouts across the UK will accept Scottish and Northern Irish notes. They're all just programmed with the same thing. But still, that's £20+ million in bank notes you have to somehow launder when they're not accepted anymore.
Ella:
Mm.
Tom Lum:
Wow.
Tom Scott:
Tom Lum, whenever you're ready.
Tom Lum:
This question was sent in by Nicholas Meunier. Dee Jay is a Jamaican kickboxer in the Street Fighter games. His trousers were supposed to spell the word 'MANTIS', but designers found it more convenient to use 'MAXIMUM' instead. What was the reason behind this change? I'll say that one more time. Dee Jay is a Jamaican kickboxer in the Street Fighter games. His trousers were supposed to spell the word 'MANTIS', but designers found it more convenient to use 'MAXIMUM' instead. What was the reason behind this change?
Ella:
Mantis?
Tom Lum:
I do love, quickly, one of the clues here is "for the US, trousers are pants."
SFX:
(guessers laughing)
Tom Lum:
I appreciate that localization.
Tom Scott:
I appreciate that localisation not going the other way. That's good to know.
Caroline:
Yeah. (laughs)
Tom Lum:
Yeah. (laughs)
Tom Scott:
I just didn't know the 'Street Fighter Games' were a thing.
Caroline:
Yeah!
Tom Lum:
What?
Ella:
Oh yeah.
Caroline:
I did not know this was a thing.
Ella:
They're like, you know, like Tekken? Is Street Fighter in Tekken? They're pretty—
Tom Scott:
No, like I— it sounds like this is a mixed martial arts contest or something like that?
Ella:
Yeah.
Tom Lum:
You've never heard of the Street Fighter games? That's like a classic fighting arcade game, yeah.
Tom Scott:
Ohh.
Caroline:
Oh? Oh.
Tom Scott:
I thought, I genuinely...
Caroline:
I thought this too, Tom.
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Caroline:
It's okay. (laughs)
Tom Scott:
I thought it was like the Arctic Winter Games or the Olympic Games.
Caroline:
Oh.
Ella:
(laughs)
Caroline:
Some sort of martial arts activity?
Tom Scott:
Yeah. I genuinely did not parse that as the video game series Street Fighter.
Caroline:
No. (laughs)
Tom Lum:
Oh, in the 'Street Fighter Games'.
Tom Scott:
Yeah!
Tom Lum:
As in...
Ella:
Oh, okay.
Tom Lum:
(laughs heartily)
Tom Scott:
That's embarrassing. That's embarrassing. Okay.
Ella:
This is a good start.
Tom Lum:
No, it's a me question. It's gonna be something. (laughs) This question was assigned to me. It's a dorky one.
Caroline:
My brain was like, is he getting a wedgie? And the wedgie is spelling 'MANTIS' in some way?
Tom Lum:
(wheezes)
Caroline:
(giggles) Rather than like anything else?
Ella:
The first thing that came to my head is you said that this is a Jamaican... character.
Tom Lum:
Not relevant.
Ella:
Not rel— God damn. I was hoping it was like something to do with a flag shape. And the way you could spell... 'MAXIMUM' vs 'MANTIS' using the flag.
Tom Lum:
That's interesting. It's... I mean, you're thinking about 'MANTIS' and 'MAXIMUM' and some of the— I'll say no more.
Caroline:
Oh?
Tom Scott:
Which, annoyingly, the switch to video games means I've got enough nerd knowledge that I think I've put this one together.
SFX:
(guests clamouring)
Tom Scott:
So I'm gonna hand over to the other two.
Caroline:
Oh?
Ella:
Okay.
Tom Lum:
I love— That's funny. We've never had— I love a delayed, "I've got this". Because of your confusion at first. (laughs)
Tom Scott:
Yeah.
Caroline:
(laughs)
Ella:
Okay, Tom now getting it makes me think it's something to do with the technical side of the games, rather than the visual side of it. In terms of programming it in some way that it's harder to do 'MANTIS' than it is 'MAXIMUM'.
Caroline:
Is the S shape difficult? Is that the problem?
Tom Scott:
(laughs) I know why he's being quiet now.
Tom Lum:
Yeeaah.
Caroline:
Ooh?
Ella:
Is it the way that it moves? If it's spelling it, where— Do we need to know how it's printed on the trousers? Is that important?
Tom Lum:
That will help you.
Ella:
I'm just guessing it. Maybe it's the way the character moves? And so when...
Caroline:
Yeah.
Ella:
Easier, you said, and not like...
Tom Lum:
Yes.
Ella:
ruder for some reason. 'Cause it's like maybe the way— When he kicks in the air, it spells a naughty word, 'MANTIS', you know?
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Lum:
It's like a MAD magazine cover, where you—
Ella:
Yeah, exactly.
Tom Lum:
(laughs)
Tom Scott:
The same gag on Top Gear. Anytime they put decals with words on the side of their cars, it would be something rude when you open the door in the right way.
SFX:
(guests chuckle sardonically)
Ella:
Okay, so not that.
Caroline:
Is— Yeah, is it something to do with the symmetry of the word, or...
Tom Scott:
I hope it is, otherwise, I'm coming back into this question.
Caroline:
Oh.
Tom Lum:
Yes, but how, I will say?
Caroline:
Is it the Ms at each end of the word? Of 'MAXIMUM'?
Tom Lum:
No.
Ella:
Is it spelled like 'MAXIMUM', like 'MAX' on one leg... 'E' on the butt... 'MUM' down the side?
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Lum:
Someone design these pants. They're gonna sell like hotcakes. No, you guys have the pieces, and I think you'll get it. It does have to do with the symmetry of the word. How does that fit in? How would that fit into making this easier or for this game?
Ella:
I have no bloody clue.
Tom Lum:
Think about how, yeah. How would the— How, you were saying how the words are on the pants... How do you envision them in your mind?
Ella:
Up one leg.
Caroline:
Yeah.
Ella:
Is how you would normally do that kind of thing, I suppose.
Tom Lum:
Yeah, that's exactly right.
Caroline:
Okay. And then, so was it... The letters were sideways, going down the leg, or were they upright going? Because if they're upright going down the leg, then that is symmetrical each way.
Tom Lum:
It sure is.
Caroline:
Whereas—
Tom Scott:
Every letter in there has bilateral symmetry.
Caroline:
Yeah. Yeah-yeah-yeah.
Tom Lum:
Exactly.
Caroline:
Oh! Oh! Is that it?
Tom Lum:
But... why is that helpful?
Caroline:
You could just mirror it rather than reanimating the whole other side?
Ella:
Ohhh!
Caroline:
(breathes heavily)
Tom Lum:
Exactly.
Caroline:
I feel so smart right now.
Ella:
Oh my gosh, Caroline, well done!
Tom Lum:
Nailed it, Caroline. These were 2D sprites in this— in the early Street Fighter games. And so when you were facing the other direction, for most characters, you can just mirror them.
Caroline:
Yeeaaah.
Ella:
Oh!
Tom Lum:
Exactly, for when they flip sides. But if the word is 'MANTIS', and you mirror that, it doesn't work. But if the pants say 'MAXIMUM', and you mirror it, it just so happens to spell the same way both ways. So yes, video games at the time were using 2D sprites. And to save, first of all, memory also, and having to draw them a second time, the sprites were simply flipped horizontally when the character moved in the other direction. The word 'MAXIMUM' was written vertically down the trouser leg. And since the word is made up of letters that have vertical symmetry, the word still reads 'MAXIMUM', even if the sprite is flipped over.
Tom Scott:
Our next question comes from Ciarán Cooling.
Ella:
One day in 2025,
Tom Scott:
at the Midleton Distillery in Cork, Ireland, 70,000 bottles worth of whiskey went missing. Despite this, the police weren't called, and no member of staff looked for it. Why? I'll say that again. One day in 2025, at the Midleton Distillery in Cork, Ireland, 70,000 bottles worth of whiskey went missing. Despite this, the police weren't called, and no member of staff looked for it. Why?
Tom Lum:
Is this one of the most up-to-date or modern Lateral questions I've ever heard?
Caroline:
Yes, super recent?
Ella:
Yeah. Someone must work there then. Someone sent this question in. 'Cause they—
Tom Lum:
Or they did this. To be on Lateral.
Caroline:
Yeah!
Ella:
Yeah, he did it.
SFX:
(both Toms laugh)
Tom Scott:
Announcing your heists through the medium of trivia podcast.
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Caroline laugh)
Tom Lum:
A detective listening to Lateral being like... "Ey, I'm just relaxing. Wait a second!"
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
That's where the £26 million from the Belfast Bank went.
Caroline:
Yeah!
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Ella:
You know what, I've gone— I've done so badly this episode. I don't even wanna guess.
Tom Lum:
No, what?
Ella:
No, I'm doing it.
Caroline:
Oh no!
Tom Scott:
Oh no!
Tom Lum:
No!
Ella:
Okay, no, no. It's Lateral, it's fine. I can... get the juices flowing. Is 'missing' a key word here? Or does it— Could it be like, you know, broken or lost or, you know, misplaced?
Tom Scott:
A few other words would work in there, yes.
Tom Lum:
Ella, I was gonna say. You can have the honor of saying it slowly if you would like.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Ella:
Thank you. I mean—
Caroline:
A part of me wonders if it's like the alcohol was close or was past its sell-by date or something, and therefore staff were told, "We must dispose of this, we must get rid of it", and just took it home?
Tom Lum:
I feel like if... (wheezes) The idea of a winery being like, "Oh my god, this is so old! We gotta toss it." don't think that happens with alcohol. (laughs)
Ella:
Yeah, no.
Caroline:
No.
Ella:
Also, is it like...
Tom Lum:
But...
Ella:
It wasn't sealed properly, and they all evaporated, you know?
Caroline:
Oh, that would be—
Tom Lum:
Ooh.
Caroline:
You know when you get kinda close... Tom goes, there's a different serious face that he does.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Lum:
Well, my thought... kind of maybe related to that thought, Ella, is... well, what, you said, and this is the phrasing... 70,000 pounds or dollars worth of bottles.
Tom Scott:
Bottles worth.
Caroline:
Bottles worth, okay.
Tom Lum:
Bottles worth, but... what if it's just one bottle that's worth that much?
Caroline:
Oh that's fascinating.
Ella:
Oh, yeah.
Tom Lum:
And then...
Caroline:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
But I dunno how that... That's like one part, but I don't know how that would get us to like why they didn't... Also, "went missing", right?
Ella:
Maybe this is a brand that is particularly... expensive and difficult to come by. So you wanna remove more from the market to drive up the price.
Tom Scott:
Ella, you know how early on, you were like, "I don't have any ideas, I've not been doing well this episode"?
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Caroline laugh)
Tom Scott:
You hit a key word in there. You replaced, "went missing" with a very key word there.
Caroline:
Was it evaporated?
Tom Scott:
It was. It was.
Caroline:
Yeeaaah.
Tom Scott:
Evaporated.
Ella:
It just literally evaporated?
Tom Scott:
70,000 bottles worth.
Caroline:
Was it like... and you said it was a... alcohol distillery?
Tom Scott:
Yes.
Caroline:
Specifically. So it wasn't like a hand gel manufacturer or something like that?
Tom Scott:
No, no. This is a whiskey distillery.
Caroline:
Okay— Oh okay, yeah. Cool.
Tom Lum:
Did someone just leave it open?
Ella:
Leave like a cask open, and then it just all evaporated?
Caroline:
Did they leave it? Did they not— Yeah. Did they not store it properly? Did they leave it in somewhere that was slightly too warm, or...
Tom Scott:
Oh, they stored it just fine.
Ella:
Maybe it's part of the process ...of aging the barrel. They let it evaporate out of the barrels. So the barrels are aged
Tom Lum:
Ooh!
Caroline:
That's fun.
Ella:
for another round of whiskey to come in. Come on, this is—
Tom Lum:
Yeah. It's like a loss that you have to do to retain something.
Ella:
Yeah.
Caroline:
Yeah.
Tom Scott:
Yes. Basically.
Caroline:
Oh?
Tom Lum:
Ella, what on earth?!
Ella:
It's a d— Oh.
Tom Scott:
You're basically right, that it's part of the process.
Ella:
It just matters which part of the process is the bit that we need to hammer down?
Tom Scott:
...Yes. What's one of the important parts of making whiskey?
Tom Lum:
Is it storing it in barrels?
Tom Scott:
Yes. Yes, you do.
Ella:
Well, so it's not what I said. It's not like to... 'cause of... with wine... So with we... well, when you make wine, you can make orange wine by putting... white grapes into barrels that have previously been used to age red grapes.
Tom Lum:
Mm.
Ella:
Red wine. Then that's a d— part of the process. So you know, you do other— You can do things to the cask itself to try and change the flavours or the, you know, whatever.
Tom Lum:
Yeah, are you priming the barrels with an initial coat that seeps in or something?
Tom Scott:
That wouldn't really be evaporating. That wouldn't be...
Tom Lum:
Right, right.
Tom Scott:
You're right to talk about what it's stored in. You kinda touched on that. Wine is matured in bottles.
Tom Lum:
In barrels.
Tom Scott:
Whiskey's matured in barrels.
Tom Lum:
Does it just go through the wood organically?
Tom Scott:
It just goes through the wood.
Ella:
Ohh!
Caroline:
Ohh!
Tom Lum:
Whoa!
Tom Scott:
Midleton Distillery has the largest stock of maturing whiskey in Ireland. It holds 2 million barrels across many, many warehouses. And that means...
Tom Lum:
Wow!
Tom Scott:
that every single day... about 70,000 bottles worth of whiskey just evaporates as it ages.
Ella:
Wow!
Caroline:
Wow!
Tom Lum:
Oh my god.
Caroline:
Oh, wow!
Tom Lum:
That's wild.
Tom Scott:
About 2% of their stock every single year goes to what they call the angel's share.
Ella:
The angel's share.
Caroline:
Oh, I love that!
Tom Lum:
That's great!
Ella:
I'm surprised they're not trying to find innovative ways to capture the...
Caroline:
Yeah!
Ella:
alcohol from the air.
Tom Lum:
I was gonna say, let the teens hang out on the roof and get a contact...
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Scott:
Caroline, take it away.
Caroline:
Lovely. This question has been sent in by anonymous. On a zoo trip in 1965, George and Charlotte Blonsky saw an elephant pacing around while giving birth. This inspired them to patent a new birthing table to make labour easier. How was it meant to work? One more time. On a zoo trip in 1965, George and Charlotte Blonsky saw an elephant pacing around while giving birth. This inspired them to patent a new birthing table to make labour easier. How was it meant to work?
Ella:
All that's in my head is, have you ever seen one of those tables that you strap yourself down to, and it rocks back and forth? You get tipped upside down?
Tom Lum:
No.
Tom Scott:
No?
Caroline:
Oh, for POTS diagnosis and stuff like that?
Ella:
Yeah. It's a medical thing they do— It's like a kind of medical table. Like an exercise—
Caroline:
No, it fully is, yeah. And they use it to— If your blood pressure changes drastically, they use it to diagnose POTS and things like that basically.
Tom Scott:
POTS?
Caroline:
So if you have blood pressure issues— Oh gosh.
Tom Scott:
It stands for a thing, and it's to do with the heart. Got it.
Caroline:
Yeah.
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Ella laugh)
Tom Lum:
It's also for Batman training. It's great if you wanna hang upside down.
Ella:
It tips you upside down though. I don't think that would be great for labour?
Caroline:
No!
Ella:
Against gravity doesn't sound like the best idea.
Tom Scott:
Oh, thank you, Producer David. Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.
Caroline:
There we go. And people get it— So like if you stand up, and you feel a little bit faint, it's basically a worse version of that. hence flipping you upside down on a table instead.
Tom Lum:
Hence the flippy table.
Caroline:
Yeah!
Ella:
So not— So they're not flipping the birthing women upside down.
Caroline:
No.
Tom Lum:
Well... But... and...
SFX:
(others crack up)
Ella:
"Well, I— actually, Caroline, you're wrong!"
Tom Lum:
It sounds like I'm gonna pitch the craziest thing! "What if!" No. But actually though – and I could be completely wrong – when you think about the anatomy of an elephant, they're on all fours. So their stomach is facing downwards. Right? And that is flipped. Versus a human laying on their back when they're giving birth, right?
Ella:
I mean, they're still... you're still... you know, not upside down though.
Tom Lum:
Right, well, well, your front, I guess is... What's the front of an elephant, right? Is facing downwards.
Caroline:
That birthing position isn't necessarily the only way that humans can be positioned for giving birth. You can sort of, wh— in whatever... That's like— it's a whole thing basically.
Tom Lum:
Oh, actually, really?
Ella:
So the birthing position people typically associate with birth— giving birth now – on your back with your legs open – is something that happened later, and is part of a kind of not so great medical history associated with giving birth.
Tom Lum:
Fascinating!
Tom Scott:
Huh.
Ella:
It's much— It's typically thought to be much better to, you know, be squatting.
Tom Lum:
Oh?
Caroline:
Yeah.
Ella:
Or... in water, for example. So, yeah.
Tom Lum:
Oh. So is it something where they somehow are on all fours... maybe moving their arms too, like an elephant walking, or...
SFX:
(others laughing)
Tom Lum:
Or is it just like a treadmill?
Ella:
You know, I think you get those machines, you know, the kind of... You pull them with your arms, and your feet move at the same time.
Tom Lum:
Yeah, the walking machines.
Tom Scott:
Cross trainers. Cross trainer, yes.
Ella:
A cross trainer. Cross trainer. And elliptical. One of those, for birthing?
Tom Scott:
(cackles softly)
Caroline:
(laughs heartily)
Tom Lum:
If we all do the action, will you say yes?
Ella:
I'm doing the movement right now, for listeners.
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Ella:
(cracks up)
Tom Scott:
Giving birth is generally not a dignified operation, but I feel like that's not adding much more dignity to it.
SFX:
(Ella and Caroline laugh)
Ella:
Okay, not that either then. (laughs) Wh— Tom, we should— Tom Lum, we should go into some kind of business together and come up with some more birthing tables.
SFX:
(group laughing)
Tom Lum:
We can be the best snake oil salesmen, I mean... assisters to birth in the world.
SFX:
(others laughing)
Tom Lum:
Huh. Have any of these been... Are we on a tr— (cracks up) Are we on a track, Tom?
Tom Scott:
Hold on, hold on. You said they patented this?
Caroline:
Yes.
Tom Scott:
You didn't say it actually went into common use.
Caroline:
I did not. What a fabulous observation.
Tom Lum:
Ohh. So it is the thing! It can be ridiculous!
Caroline:
(laughs)
Ella:
Or did it go into common use as some—- for another purpose, or was just never used?
Caroline:
No, this was never used.
Ella:
Okay. Well I didn't think the elliptical trainer for birthing was an actual real thing.
Tom Scott:
(cackles)
Ella:
Just to be clear.
Tom Lum:
I wanted y'all— This is 100% transparency. I literally forgot that Tom Scott was also answering this question with us, because we spent the last few minutes, Tom just looking at me and Ella coming up with wild ideas in disbelief.
SFX:
(others laughing)
Tom Lum:
And I assumed he was the one answering the question.
Tom Scott:
No.
Tom Lum:
Just now.
Tom Scott:
I wasn't getting involved in that mess.
Tom Lum:
A few minutes ago, I literally, I asked Tom. I was like, "Did we get the question right?" And then I realized, you weren't the one asking us questions.
Tom Scott:
Not my question mate. Not my question.
Tom Lum:
It was just... Your judgment and disbelief made me assume you were the one (laughs) asking the question!
Tom Scott:
You were both busy making cross trainer gestures with your hands. And I'm like, I'm gonna leave them to it.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Tom Lum:
I cannot believe— It was the— the disbelief was so strong. I assumed you were asking us the question.
Caroline:
Wow.
Tom Lum:
I'm so sorry.
Ella:
Okay, back— Let's— Come on, let's roll it back. Let's get it back in.
Tom Lum:
Oh no!
Ella:
We can do this. I believe in us.
Tom Scott:
So this is a never widely used invention? They just saw an elephant giving birth and were like, "Humans should do that"?
Caroline:
Not necessarily that humans should do that... because it was like... It was inspired by the motion that the elephant was doing, rather than the purpose of why the elephant was doing that thing.
Ella:
Wait, what? So it's not— I thought this was to help women give birth. Yeah, it is, right? To...
Tom Lum:
Oh, was it moonwalking?
Tom Scott:
Wait, wait, wait. The elephant was not giving birth here? The elephant was just pacing around?
Caroline:
The elephant was giving birth whilst pacing around.
Tom Scott:
Okay. Okay.
Caroline:
And this inspired them to patent a new birthing table.
Ella:
So it's the movement... It's the movement of the elephant that is— that's inspired—
Tom Lum:
Oh!
Ella:
Was it moving
Tom Lum:
Hold on, wait.
Ella:
in a particular way that isn't normal for an elephant?
Tom Scott:
I've heard of th—
Tom Lum:
I think I know, yeah.
Tom Scott:
We both—
Tom Lum:
Is this— Is centripetal force involved?
Tom Scott:
Yes.
Caroline:
(laughs uproariously)
Tom Scott:
This has dredged something from Tom and my memories. We've seen this somewhere.
Caroline:
And I'm so shocked that it took this long to get to this point. 'Cause I... This is so... This is such a commonly memed on thing, I think, that it's so great.
Tom Scott:
This is the centrifugal birthing table.
Caroline:
Yes, it is. (laughs)
Ella:
What? What in the world?
Caroline:
Ella, have you never heard of this?
Ella:
No!
Caroline:
(gasps loudly) Whaaat? Wow!
Tom Scott:
This is a... force assist.
Caroline:
(laughs)
Tom Lum:
So honestly, those spinning tables we were talking about earlier weren't that far off, in terms of—
Caroline:
It wasn't even that far off. Yeah, for sure.
Tom Scott:
The elephant was just pacing 'round in circles, I guess?
Caroline:
So, elephants in the wild will walk in circles whilst birthing, to sort of deter predators. Other elephants will join in
Tom Lum:
Oh wow.
Caroline:
in this behaviour. And that inspired— The circular motion that they were doing inspired the Blonskys to devise a spinning birthing table.
Tom Lum:
I... Sorry, I just love that it wasn't even inspired by the thing they were trying to do. It's by what it they thought it might be looking like.
Caroline:
It's so great.
Ella:
When you say – I must know – when you say spinning birthing table, what that actually entails a woman having to do. Sitting there and rotating violently around or...
Caroline:
Woman, lying on her back, giving birth, being spun around, a literal net at the other end of the...
Tom Lum:
Oh!
Caroline:
In front of her... to then catch the baby as the centrifugal force helped the process
Ella:
Oh my god!
Caroline:
of her giving birth.
Ella:
That's a torture device!
Caroline:
(laughs profusely)
Tom Lum:
That's...
Caroline:
That is... terrifying.
Tom Lum:
Give it— Give dystopia another few years, and that'll be Wheel of Fortune. (giggles)
Ella:
(applauds)
SFX:
(Tom Scott and Caroline laugh)
Tom Lum:
Just don't land on Bankrupt, baby!
Caroline:
(sighs) And yet you'll all be relieved to hear that although the patent was granted, it was never built or even tested in real life. It was purely—
Tom Lum:
Good!
Tom Scott:
Because a patent doesn't need to be good. It just needs to be new.
SFX:
(Tom Lum and Caroline laugh)
Ella:
Can I just check something? The physics of this very quickly?
Tom Scott:
(laughs heartily)
Caroline:
(laughs uproariously)
Ella:
If you're—
Tom Scott:
That's more than they did.
Ella:
When you're undergoing centrifugal force... you're being pushed back, right? You get pushed back against... Oh no. Yeah, so... Or you get pushed in a direction. So surely the baby is like, that's not—
Tom Scott:
You know, when you're on a playground roundabout...
Ella:
Mhm.
Tom Scott:
And you're going around quite fast, you mean pushed towards the outside of it?
Ella:
Yeah, yeah. That's what I mean. So, so, really, this is the opposite of what you'd want in a birthing situation, is for the baby to be pushed— (cracks up) being pushed back.
Tom Scott:
No, no, no. You've got the wrong— The woman's sitting in the middle, facing out.
Tom Lum:
The person giving birth is in the center.
Ella:
Ohhh!
Caroline:
Yeah.
Ella:
Oh, there's a net— a giant net around the outside?
Caroline:
Around the whole outside of the table. Yeah, uh-huh, uh-huh. It's insane. (laughs)
Ella:
Okay. I mean, it still doesn't work. But... at least there is...
Caroline:
No, absolutely not.
Ella:
At least there is some messed up logic in it.
Tom Scott:
(chuckles)
Tom Lum:
In comparison, my and Ella's ideas were tame. (wheezes)
Caroline:
Yeah, no, for sure. Compared to the centrifugal birthing table? Absolutely.
Tom Lum:
Well, hey. Let's just say we gotta go to the patent office, you and me, Ella.
SFX:
(guests laughing)
Ella:
Yeah!
Tom Scott:
We have unlocked the shiny bonus question. 'Cause there were some quick solds there. So... Who would be wary of a strip of plasticine that is 122cm long, 7mm wide, and 7mm high? I'll say that again. Who would be wary of a strip of plasticine that is 122cm long, 7mm wide, and 7mm high?
Tom Lum:
So it's like a square extrusion.
Tom Scott:
It is.
Tom Lum:
'Cause it's se— Yeah, 7x7 on the...
Tom Scott:
7mm by 7mm, extruded to just over 1.2m.
Ella:
What does extruded mean?
Tom Lum:
Like a Play-Doh machine.
Ella:
You push through a frame, kinda. So a light breeze, if this was put in front of your door?
SFX:
(Ella and Caroline giggle)
Tom Lum:
Yeah.
Ella:
Is it an— Who— Is 'who' a people?
Caroline:
Who would be afraid of this?
Tom Scott:
Yes.
Ella:
Or an animal? Oh, a people— a person.
Tom Scott:
Wary of it certainly.
Ella:
Wary of... Oh, so, so it's some kind of thing in your job, perhaps, that you... It's a task or a job you carry out, where if you see this, it says, "Don't go further than this." Oh, is it like... runners, sprinters? Or something like that? It's like the start line?
Caroline:
What?
Tom Lum:
What?
Tom Scott:
Ella, you said earlier you were having a rough episode. You're really not. You're getting very close here.
Caroline:
What?! Ooh!
Tom Lum:
Wait, what?
Ella:
Yeah, so like this... Or like a... Wary of... A triple jumper?
Tom Scott:
Ella... yes! Absolutely!
Tom Lum:
What is happening?!
Tom Scott:
Talk us through it.
Caroline:
What?!
Tom Scott:
Talk us through it. What's your thinking?
Ella:
Okay, so in the triple jump, you do like one, two, and then you jump on the last bounce. But you cannot— Your foot cannot go over that line even slightly, the marking... before you go into the sand.
Tom Scott:
Yeah, I have long jumper here, not triple jump, but same basic thing. In the long jump, an athlete commits a foul if their foot encroaches beyond the edge of the takeoff board. And so to ensure fair play, there is a thin strip of plasticine lining the edge of the board. So if there's an indent found there, the foot has gone too far. Which leaves us with just the question from the start of the show. Thank you to Jeffrey Harris for sending this in. What sort of competitors might employ strategies such as 'Avalanche', 'Bureaucrat', or 'Toolbox'? Does anyone want to take a quick guess at that before I give the answer for the audience?
Tom Lum:
Avalanche, bureaucrat, toolbox.
Ella:
Well, my mind immediately went to sudoku because— and sudoku championships. 'Cause you get tactics like the Swordfish and X-Wing. But I know it's not that.
Caroline:
Yeah, my brain goes to chess as well. Yeah, yeah.
Tom Scott:
Honestly, kinda both close. It's that sort of competitor. This is definitely a mental game.
Ella:
Go? Something like go?
Caroline:
Mm.
Ella:
We could— This is gonna be another listing thing. We haven't done one of those this whole episode, so maybe we can just go about that.
Tom Scott:
What words might you associate with avalanche or bureaucrat or toolbox?
Caroline:
What, like Scrabble? Great Scrabble words, or...
Tom Lum:
Ooh, Scrabble. Or crossword?
Tom Scott:
The Bureaucrat strategy is sometimes called 'Confetti'.
Ella:
Where you— oh, so you... sprinkle something over?
Tom Scott:
What would you sprinkle?
Ella:
In a board? Is this a board game?
Caroline:
Sprinkle...
Tom Lum:
Is it like Monopoly?
Tom Scott:
What's confetti made of?
Caroline:
Paper...?
Tom Lum:
Little bits of paper.
Ella:
Paper?
Tom Scott:
Mhm.
Tom Lum:
Scrapbooking.
Caroline:
(guffaws deeply)
Ella:
Competitive scrapbooking!
Tom Lum:
Competitive scrapbooking. They're using the Avalanche! That's not allowed!
SFX:
(scattered chuckling)
Ella:
Ooh.
Caroline:
Competitive origami.
Ella:
Oh?
Tom Lum:
Ooh.
Tom Scott:
There's another mind game that includes paper.
Ella:
Rock-paper-scissors?
Tom Scott:
Keep going, Ella.
Tom Lum:
(laughs) Rock-pap—
Ella:
Oh?
Caroline:
What?
Tom Lum:
What?
Ella:
Oh, so confe— The Confetti is just like, or Bureaucrat is just playing like... paper over and over and over again?
Tom Scott:
Yes, it is.
Caroline:
(gasps loudly)
Tom Scott:
What's the Avalanche?
Ella:
Rock over and over and over again?
Tom Scott:
And the Toolbox?
Ella:
Scissors over and over and over again.
Tom Scott:
Absolutely right.
SFX:
(Ella and Caroline laugh)
Tom Scott:
These are gambits employed by rock-paper-scissors players. Ella, what a comeback. This has been your episode.
Ella:
Woo!
Tom Lum:
Gambit is a stretch!
Caroline:
Wow!
Tom Lum:
Gambit is such a stretch of a word for what that is.
Ella:
Hey, there's game theory around rock-paper-scissors.
Caroline:
There's tactics to it!
Tom Scott:
Thank you very much to all of our players. Where are y'all from, Ella Hubber?
Ella:
We are Let's Learn Everything, a science and miscellaneous podcast. We cover literally everything.
Tom Scott:
Caroline Roper, things like?
Caroline:
We have talked about autumn leaves and swearing, or former cryptids and scary stories. It literally can be anything. All of those are paired together in episodes as well. So it really is a mixed bag of stuff.
Tom Scott:
And where can people find you all, Tom Lum?
Tom Lum:
You can find us all at letslearneverything.com.
Tom Scott:
And if you wanna know more about this show, you can do that at lateralcast.com, where you can also send in your own ideas for questions. We are at @lateralcast basically everywhere. There are video highlights at youtube.com/lateralcast and full video episodes on Spotify. Thank you very much to Tom Lum.
Tom Lum:
Woo!
Tom Scott:
Caroline Roper.
Caroline:
Thanks!
Tom Scott:
Ella Hubber.
Ella:
(holding back laugh) Thanks, bye.
Tom Scott:
I've been Tom Scott, and that's been Lateral.
Episode Credits
| HOST | Tom Scott |
| QUESTION PRODUCER | David Bodycombe |
| EDITED BY | Julie Hassett at The Podcast Studios, Dublin |
| MUSIC | Karl-Ola Kjellholm ('Private Detective'/'Agrumes', courtesy of epidemicsound.com) |
| ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS | Jeffrey Harris, L.P., Nicolas Meunier, Ryan Neary, Robert Grundulis, Ciarán Cooling |
| FORMAT | Pad 26 Limited/Labyrinth Games Ltd |
| EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS | David Bodycombe and Tom Scott |