Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast: your source of geekly entertainment! Tune in every Thursday as we talk about everything from LEGOs to Brit Lit and beyond!
Episodes
Thursday Aug 23, 2018
Thursday Aug 23, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Well, it worked last time, so here we go again! Welcome to a very technical episode of the GNAPcast, where we switch roles and David gets to explain something very dear to his heart--Rubik's Cubes!
(Just a quick note, though: the records we talk about apparently get broken faster than our egos, so there will be a lot of outdated information in this episode. More on that below.)
From discussing numbers bigger than we can really comprehend to learning that "cubing" is apparently a verb, it's bound to be quite an experience this week in Season 1's penultimate episode!
Extra Info and Updated Records --David
As of today, these are the most recent records and statistics on what we talked about...hopefully that doesn't change as soon as we upload the episode. Also, since speedcubing is extremely hard to explain in an audio podcast, here are some videos!
-World Cube Association Records
-Corner-cutting on a traditional 3x3 Rubik's Cube
-My in-competition personal best solve
-Fridrich method tutorial (and a much easier method)
-The current world record for a 7x7 solve (1:47.89) was set on July 20th of 2018 by Max Park.
-The current world record for a pyraminx solve is now 0.91 seconds, set by Dominik Górny.
-Marcin Maskow Kowalczyk (whose name I unfortunately couldn't pronounce in the episode) no longer holds the world record for multi-blind solves--that is now dually held by Shivam Bansal, completing 48 out of 48 correctly in 59 minutes 48 seconds; and Mark Boyanowski, completing 43 out of 44 correctly in an hour. On a side note, Maskow's non-competition, personal best multi-blind record is 49/50 in 58 minutes 25 seconds, which is still better than the world record despite being three years old at this point.
-Feliks' world record solve of 4.73 seconds has since been surpassed by Feliks himself--twice!
-My fastest unofficial solve time is now 6.68 seconds. If you're curious, here is a link to my YouTube channel, where I do a lot of speedcubing reconstructions.
-Mats Valk's world-record single from 2013
-Juan Pablo Huanqui's record megaminx solve
-Max Park has set a lot of new world records lately! Here are just a few examples of what he's been up to: new single and average solves for 4x4, 5x5, 6x6, and 7x7s; a new one-handed 3x3 average time; and a new world record for the 2x2 to 7x7 relay!
-Kevin Hays' underwater 3x3 world record
-A puzzle bigger than 22x22 does now exist! Check out the 33x33 here!
-Tony Fisher's "big cube" world record solve
Thursday Aug 16, 2018
Thursday Aug 16, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Last time, we listened as Seth attempted the monumental task of summarizing the entirety of the Mass Effect Trilogy in a 30-minute podcast. All was well (and more or less successful), but then David delved into the internet--only to discover a multitude of questions that were left unanswered.
Join Seth and David again this week for a follow-up to our Mass Effect episode, where we try another dumb internet game and play "Google Autofill" based around the Mass Effect universe! From Andromeda to zombies, Interrupts to the Systems Alliance, you'll learn more about the world of Mass Effect than you ever wanted to know! (And just for fun, drink a shot of ginger ale every time Seth says the word "interesting.")
Fact Checks and Extra Stuff! -Seth
H - I was unable to find anything solid on Shepard's in-game height. Ironically, however, David's pronouncement of 6'2" is exactly the height of Shepard's body model, Mark Vanderloo!
I - Is Commander Shepard Indoctrinated? (Game Theory)
L - The Commander Shepard Song (by Miracle of Sound)
O - In actual fact, Shepard's birth year is 2154--five years earlier than my stated year in the episode. Oops. His birthdate, April 11th, also coincides with the Apollo 13 launch in 1970.
T - The training simulator in Mass Effect 3 is called the "Armax Arsenal Arena," and is available in the Citadel DLC pack. I highly recommend it both for its story and its unique rewards!
U - "und dast ist mein" is actually the middle of a line from the German version of Mass Effect 2! The full line in German is, "Ich bin Commander Shepard und das ist mein Lieblingsgeschäft auf der Citadel!" In English, this line is, "I'm Commander Shepard, and this is my favorite store on the Citadel!" The line has become quite a meme, as might be expected.
V - Just to clarify (because I never did in the episode), I actually really like Mark Meer's portrayal of Commander Shepard! He does a fantastic job, as does Jennifer Hale. My own personal preference is to play a female Shepard, simply because I think it makes the game more interesting.
Y.5 - The Andromeda galaxy is approximately 2.5 million light years away, meaning David is actually closer in his estimate than I am. Oops again.
Z - Is Commander Shepard a Zombie? (The Game Theorists)
Thursday Aug 09, 2018
Thursday Aug 09, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! In this special, experimental episode, Seth cracks his metaphorical knuckles and tries to explain a particular topic to David (and all of you guys)! Today, that topic is: the Mass Effect trilogy! (That being said, BEWARE TRILOGY-SPANNING SPOILERS during this entire episode. You have been warned.)
As Seth and David journey into the distant future, they are met with strange and nagging questions--did ancient space machines really decide to exterminate all life in the galaxy? Are role-playing games only a fun way to do math problems? And most important, what the heck does a German Shepherd have to do with any of it?!?
Join us for an epic adventure through space and time, complete with fiddly vehicles, dumb jokes, and more sidetracks than Grand Central Station!
Thursday Aug 02, 2018
Thursday Aug 02, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Firstly, we'd like to say that we're okay--we just weren't able to publish last week's episode due to more technical issues. Yay!
Okay, now that that's out of the way, on with the show!
From The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe to Meredith Andrews' The Music Man! and some (terrible) stage accents, join Seth and David as we talk theater and drama stuff with returning guest Anna. As a subject that's dear to our hearts (but one that some of us don't have much experience in), we end up with a wide variety of perspectives...as well as an unfortunate incident with a tree and a cat.
This episode features Anna once again, our foremost theater expert from Iowa and an IRL Lucy Pevensie!
Thursday Jul 19, 2018
Thursday Jul 19, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Here we go again--it's time once again to debate our way through the Internet throug the predictably wacky Would You Rather!
Join David, Seth, and our new friend Anna as we answer those questions absolutely no one is asking, discovering new things about each other in the process! After freeing our inner carpenter, we find out that Anna enjoys drinking shots of maple syrup, that in addition to being a monkey, Seth apparently also really, really wants superpowers; and that David thinks responsibility is the worst superpower anyone can have. Hey, wait a minute...
This episode features Anna, a theater afficionado from Iowa who doesn't want to be experimented on by the government and likes walking...even at the expense of an arm.
You can play along at home, too! Ask yourself only the most important question: Would You Rather?
Thursday Jul 12, 2018
Thursday Jul 12, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! After a very bizarre intro (following our very first recording fail ever!), we jump feet-first into a genre of video games that has become very popular in recent years: sandbox games! Join us (and returning guest Jesse) for a whirlwind conversation about everything from Minecraft to Garry's Mod and back!
This episode features Jesse, our resident indie games expert who prefers his steak shaken, not stirred. Hey, wait a minute...
Here are some of the games we talked about during the episode. Go check 'em out!
Thursday Jul 05, 2018
Thursday Jul 05, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! It's that time again--time to spin the Wheel of Mor...uh, that is, to play Would You Rather!
Join David, Seth, and new guest Jesse as we once again try to logic our way through the Internet, with some life-altering questions and bizarrely thought-provoking conundrums (to absolutely no one's surprise). As Jesse points out, some of these are simply terrible, but we do find out that Seth wishes he was a genius, we all prefer the Beatles over the Rolling Stones, and that despite our best efforts, none of us can do the Epic Trailer Guy's voice.
This episode features Jesse, a computer engineer from Missouri who thinks Dawn of Justice would've been better with Nicholas Cage in it and hates sleep. (But really, don't we all at some point?)
You can play along at home, too! Ask yourself only the most important question: Would You Rather?
Thursday Jun 28, 2018
Thursday Jun 28, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Well, we started off the show with a controversial episode and here we are again! This week, Seth and David chat with returning guest Abi about the much-maligned Star Wars prequels--with a twist. Instead of bashing them further (because let's be honest, way too many people have done that already), we talk about things that we actually liked from the prequels! Tying in a handful of supplementary materials (as well as some personal anecdotes about the films), come along with us for another unique take on something very dear to our hearts.
This episode features Abi again, our resident millenial who wants to dye her hair blue and watched all of the Star Wars films in the wrong order, but we're not judging. Much.
(P.S. We will actually talk about the books and our framework of Star Wars at some point. Pinkie swear. We promise.)
Thursday Jun 21, 2018
Thursday Jun 21, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! Here we go again--we're about to tackle another lively attempt to logic through some bizarre and totally relevant hypothetical situations--it's Would You Rather!
Join David, Seth, and brand-new guest Abi on an adventure through the Internet, where we discover that after 15 episodes we've managed to finally go mainstream!...according to this game, at least. We also learn that David wishes he had a Batcave, Seth wants to be an Ewok, and that some of us (not naming any names) really, really hate spiders.
This episode features Abi, a broadcasting tech-in-training from Ohio who has no sense of balance and thinks Superman is overpowered. (You can decide for yourselves if she's right, we refuse to comment.)
You can play along at home, too! Ask yourself only the most important question: Would You Rather?
Friday Jun 15, 2018
Friday Jun 15, 2018
Heyyy, welcome to the GNAPcast! After a spectacular intro fail (and some odd technical issues), we once again take part in dissecting strange questions and finding out about ourselves--also known as the popular internet game Would You Rather! Come along with Seth and David as they debate each other over extremely relevant topics such as eating food from a dumpster, who they'd rather have narrate their lives, and how the world should end! (David's money is on the zombie apocalypse.)
You can play along at home, too! Ask yourself only the most important question: Would You Rather?