Lateral with Tom Scott - 180: A curved bridge

Episode Date: March 20, 2026

Rowan Ellis, Jarvis Johnson and Jordan Adika face questions about Disney decorations, cartoon casts and birthday backs. LATERAL is a comedy panel game podcast about weird questions with wonderful answers, hosted by Tom Scott. For business enquiries, contestant appearances or question submissions, visit https://lateralcast.com. 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: Rex S., Jacob Star, Bryan, Ayasa, Alex, Hugh. FORMAT: Pad 26 Limited/Labyrinth Games Ltd. EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: David Bodycombe and Tom Scott. © Pad 26 Limited (https://www.pad26.com) / Labyrinth Games Ltd. 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For what purpose does Disney use colours called go-away green and blending blue? The answer to that at the end of the show. My name's Tom Scott, and this is Lateral. Welcome to Lateral, or as it's known in France, Le Ponce en Zigzag. In Italian, it's called Il Quiz de la Curva Improvisor, which means the quiz that takes a corner sharper than a vesper on cobblestones. But, of course, the most precise translation comes from Germany, where it is officially titled,

De Zondafragan den Sports Show. Rolls right off the time. And appearing in every version are a wonderful guest. Firstly, it is a goodenthalg to one half of the Sad Boys podcast and on Jarvis Johnson Gold. Jarvis Johnson, welcome back.

Yeah, I'm now going by Jarvis Johnson Gold as my YouTube channel is my identity. And there's nothing more than the man on the screen. It was a while back when I was on the podcast, I was on Sad Boys, you with a Z, with a Z. And at some point I would love to come back on because I did not know that, like, the Patreon bonus we did was weird game show clips. Yeah. Yeah. And like, if I ever come back, I have so many clips to prepare to send you. Like, prepare for an entire 90-minute deep dive

on obscure European game shows. Completely improvised. Tom just had so many, like, we joke privately that Tom just randomly knows, like, oh yeah, that was a weird show that was produced by Bimbley Frog Johnson. In what's crazy is that later he got cancelled. It's like, oh, cool. I appreciate how the accent there divided between mine

and also Dick Van Dyke and Mary Poppins. It was halfway between the two. I want everyone to feel represented, you know? We're also joining us, the other half of the Sad Boys Withersy, podcast, Jordan Adika. How are you doing? With a Z. Jordan's Adegas is fine with me.

Yeah, I'm good, man. How you're done? No one ever asks that. No one ever asks that. I, the empath. I will spare you the thousand-word diatribe on exhaustion. Just say, yeah, mate, I'm fine. Same as everyone else in England does. You're all right, safe, yeah, yeah.

What have you been talking about on the podcast lately? Lotta AI. A lot of AI stuff. The trouble is that's the least appealing thing you could say? Can't help it. But the reason it comes up so much is because I think the show is at its best when we are psyched up, when we are fired up about something. And right now it is such a nice go-to for things that are annoyingly funny to us. So that's been a focal point.

Same with I finally got back to posting on my channel. That video is a very long video of me ranting about a creepy AI product that I saw and I don't want to do other stuff. Well, thank you for being here and away from the world of AI for a while. The last member of our trio today from the Queer Movie podcast

and her own YouTube channel, Rowan Ellis. It's all right, can Nick the English Spacken? No, I was literally just in Berlin do as a creative, doing a creative residency with a research project about AI.

So what I've really done is like used my life combined to make this a really relevant introduction accidentally. Yeah, no, I'm doing great. So good to be here. Do you actually speak German or have you just memorized the line?

The same way I've memorized pardon, jeepalseille de francais. Yeah, I've memorized it. I don't even know if that's right. And what's really funny about Berlin, is you can say a single syllable, and they'll be like, don't speak German to me, you're clearly English, and so you can't even, you can't even practice it. Stolen Valor. Well, very best of luck to all three of our players on the show today. We'll begin today's show with a universal

phrase we all understand. Question one. Sam worked in a retail store in Vancouver. In 2012, a customer chose to post his business card online. Why did this go viral? I'll say that again. Sam worked in a retail store in Vancouver. In 2012, a customer chose to post his business card online. Why did this go viral? Okay, so Vancouver, Canada, Canada only just got the internet. What are they into? Mostly like moose and stuff like that?

Maple syrup. But having a greater quality of life, though. It was 2012, right? Yeah, yeah. Okay, so again, year the world ended. Okay, yeah. You guys doing it right after that? Famously, famously.

I mean, it was, okay, so the viral elements of this, it's something to do with the business card. Was it like a, if we think about why things go viral, it's either very funny, like ironic or anger-inducing. I feel like there's kind of a variety of reasons why virality is like, or he's like a missing person or something like someone who like hasn't been seen oh my god it was he was he was Amelia Earhart

right exactly this card just says DB Cooper yeah DB Cooper Dave and Busters Cooper oh my God it's all coming together what a huge slip up on DB Cooper's part he got away with it and then started giving out his name I'm DB I'm a criminal

he was watching a DVD about being a good businessman. He was like, you gotta get business cards, the DVD told. The funny thing about that is that DB Cooper didn't even go by DB Cooper. His name was Dan Cooper and DB Cooper became his like name after they like started talking about him. So him later adopting D.B. Cooper would be a poor decision. Okay. Hey, I'm the zodiac killer. Is this like how assassins always get known by three names? Like John Wilkes Booth, me Harvey Oswald. Jordan Thomas Adico. Which I think is just the FBI give the full name out And the press just kind of latch on to that

Well, FBI is three names as well What the hell? That's true, that's true You said funny, ironic or anger-inducing, Rowan, I would go with funny and ironic Okay Probably anger-inducing for the guy who's had his business card posted But funny and ironic

Retail, so he works at a retail store And has a business card That presumably is related to another gig that he has and that induces it's hilarious. He's he's a magician mayhast. It's related to something, yes. I'm wondering if it's like he has a name that's like another store or like a competing store.

Yes, we're absolutely getting towards it now. Oh, good get, oh man. Oh, is his name Tim Horton? His first name is- Like if it's Canadian? And he's a Starbucks employee. Now, it's not that, but Tim Horton working at Starbucks, same gag, different names. And remember, the first name is Sam.

Sam's Club? Sam's Club. So, he's working at Costco. A guy named Sam working at Costco. It'd have to be Sam Club for that to work out. That's true, that's true. S Club. Is it S Club?

7. Oh, yeah, S Club 7 is, of course, short for Sam's Club 7. Sam's Club 7. That's a reference to, you have to know British and American trivia to get that joke. Ain't no party like a Sam's Club party. Because a Sam's Club party costs

two bucks, but has like five lanes of alcohol. The Sam's Club 7 is what I called me and my rag tag group of misfits when we go shopping. Hey, we're in the grocery store. Okay, not Sam's Club. I mean, is this a regional reference that... No, not...

In fact, it's a global reference. Sam. I don't think there's a... You know what? I actually don't think there's a country in the world where there isn't someone who'd get this reference. Is it McDonald's? It's a very high-end store that he works at.

High-end store. McDonald's. On that the mug rib? Retail store, high-end retail store. I was going to say Markson. And Sam's Club? His name's, his name's Marks and Sparks. Sam, short for Samuel, Samantha.

I'm trying to, Sammy. Sam Target. The only stores that I know that have Sam, and the name are Sam's Club and Sam Goody. Not a selling a store here. Oh, right. Like, it's retail them, right? He suddenly works in a retail store.

I see. The name is still ironic. I'm sure the other brand does have some retail stores somewhere, but this one's famous. So he's working at a retail store, but he has like a very hoity-toity, like, sounding, high-class sounding name. Oh, how do I phrase this? I think most people on this call will own one of these products. Knowing what I know about you all, I think most people on this call will have been.

will have walked into one of these stores. Does he work at an Apple store, but his name is like Johnny Android? His name starts with Sam. Samsung? Samsung? Samsung. Sam Song. Absolutely right.

Wow. His full name was Samsung, a customer found it amusing that he worked at an Apple store and posted his business card online with his phone number on it. Oh, no. That? Oh, poor Sam. I'm a little mad at myself. didn't put that together. But very funny. But don't docks people. Can we have this to be

TSA? Regardless of like, like, regardless of clout, like don't allow yourself to be blinded by clout. Think of, it's a human being, okay? A year later, Sam left retail, changed his surname to Strung and now works as a recruitment consultant. Oh, and where is that? And what's his phone number and address? Have you got the business card? He actually auctioned off the business cards for charity. Oh, that's great. Aww. By the way, I thought you were doing a bit, and you were going to say his name is Sam Strong,

and now he works at Guitar Center. Rowan, we will go to you for the next question, please. This question has been sent in by Rex S. Why did Carlos spend nine years wearing a shirt with his birthday on the back? Question again. Why did Carlos spend nine years wearing a shirt with his birthday on the back? What? That's all you're getting from me.

I'm just going, what? It should be on my soundboard. Final episode of the show ever. It's five seconds long. It just goes, what? And then it ends. You say what? And then the helicopter comes back and you grab the ladder.

I change my mind. Okay, birthday on the back of his shirt. His name is Carlos. That's probably not relevant. Carlos is not like the name of a month in a language I don't know, right? It's not like... Carlos isn't. That's a shame because if he was like a footballer and...

Like a footballer whose last name was March, say? And like they were born on March the 3rd? Yeah. Give him number three. Thomas? Thomas. Thomas. That's literally the answer. What? Yeah.

No, hold on. It can't be because it's got Carlos on the back. No, because Carlos is his first name. His name's Carlos football His name's Carlos football You quite literally It's so close as well The month was almost right

Because it's just the different M month It was just Carlos May May man Ain't nothing wrong with that May 5th baby 1992 and 94 May 5th Carlos was a May 17th

I feel like I've just destroyed the entire concept of this show I just I didn't It was It was Look sometimes you can't help it It's probably something stupid

like, and then says the exact answer. I know, is something so zilly. The thing is, is that in Tom's mind, he just left for like three hours into his mind palace. The question was short for the show, but I don't know if you knew this. Your eyes rolled back in your head,

and you started speaking in time. We've been waiting for you for so long to figure out that answer. Yeah, no, Carlos May spent nine seasons playing for the Chicago White Sox, and he chose the shirt number 17 so that he was able to wear May 17 on the back of his shirt.

That's so funny. That's like what children do. I love that also my favorite information here is that he is the only MLB baseballer to have been able to wear his birthday shirt to date. So there's still possible. Anyone with a month as a last name, we're looking for you to break that solo streak. Or we make up a new month. That's also possible. There is a genre of athletes having like fun phrases. or fun jokes in their number. I think of basketball players.

There's a Lakers basketball player named Dalton Connect, and his jersey says, Connect 4. That's good. That's good. It's fun. That's it.

Everyone, everyone, games over. He won, he won the game. Yeah, he cracked it. We take it back. Don't need to play anymore. If you like quizzes, and if you're a lateral viewer, you probably do,

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Back to the show. Thank you to Alex from Arkansas for this question. Which children's song starts with the head of an ox, a house, and a camel, and ends with a sickle. I'll say that again. Which children's song starts with the head of an ox, a house and a camel, and ends with a sickle. Ice club. Ain't no party like the head of an ox. Wait, I'm remembering that.

I always thought those were so strange. Strange. Okay, well, that's hieroglyphics, I'm assuming. Sickle Grim Reaper. Yeah. What's the one that's, um, pocketful of posies, ashes, ashes, they all fall down? Ring and ring of roses. Ring around the rosy.

Oxy, oxy, house camel, yep. Yeah. You know, it's actually a lot of people don't know this. That's a metaphor for having a house and a camel. There's an, is Ali Ali Oxenfree in a song? I found myself defaulting to nursery rhyme. but it may not be a nursery. Could be baby shark.

It could be baby shark. Yeah, it could be baby shark. Is it baby shock the answer, Tom? It's not. To avoid any parents who are starting to have flashbacks, I'll just move us on from that and say, no, absolutely. You should play it on the show a little bit. Yeah.

That does start and end with baby shark. I'm not head of an ox, house and a camel. What does the ox say? Mm-hmm. D-dox, side, side, side. Sickle, wait. Wait, okay, wait. So let's think laterally about this.

Because I've just been thinking it, that's, by the way, that's like the phrase that we always have to say before we give it. Yeah, it's like, and also with your spirit. Yeah. And then we all put our hands in the air and we like power ranges into one. Yeah, earth, air, wind, fire. Um, I, well, I was, I was thinking about it very linearly. And I was just thinking about lyrics to a song.

but in what way could this be could we think outside of the box? Yeah, I think it's fair to say that it doesn't start literally with these. They are ancient presentations of something. I suppose if it's ancient, then the song isn't going to necessarily like rhyme or resonate in English now.

Oh, it does now. Post-translation? Oh, okay. So it's still around, like as an active thing that people sing. Is it, is the idea of like, if you were to figure out what the modern day alternative, like the modern day alternative to like the ox head,

whatever camel was, that would be the lyrics. It's not necessarily that the song was like ancient and then has been translated. It's like when people do badly described movie plots, you're like, yeah, technically I guess that's what that movie is. Yeah. Yeah, like purple Josh Brolin makes Chris Hemsworth weak bad.

Yeah, exactly. Yes, but I think, Rowan, you are far more right than you think there. Like, it's not just a bad translation. Okay, so maybe it's, it's, what, aside from, uh, not the literal translation, how about the lateral translation? Thinking laterally. Whoa. Wow.

Well, wow. Let's think laterally about this. That's powerful. Yeah, yeah. Is it, what would, what would you represent with, uh, an ox, like I'm guessing kind of just defaulting to how like

unnecessary unnecessary macabre so many 200 songs are Right, that's what I'm thinking about too But I guess SIGL can also just be like you know Harvest or Trade or Craft You know

Rowan you said hieroglyphs earlier And you're making a hand gesture now Yeah To try and try and figure out How would you How would you draw the head of an ox How would you represent the head of an ox? Little little

Do they have horns? Is that what ox is out? Hey, it's your ox, you could choose. I would keep going with that hand gesture. That was pretty good. Like one of them? It's got little horns. Anyone do this for a song?

Anyone do a song like that? For those not watching in video, it's difficult to describe that as other than looking like both the head of an ox and the thing we're looking for. Yeah, maybe connect those horns at the top. Maybe a little horn. bits you've got at the bottom.

Is it? Maybe just... A, B, C? Yes, Jordan. You are absolutely right. Keep talking. So what children's song are we looking for? Oh man, probably the ABC song?

Yeah, the alphabet song. Spot on. The ABC song. I forgot the word for the alphabet. Yes, the letter A, or A-Lef, alpha, that was based on the pictogram for an ox's head. And you accidentally demonstrated that so well, Rowan. B, Beth, Betta, that was a house.

C, Gimel, that was a camel. And Zed, Zyan was a weapon like a sickle or a short sword. Those were the very, very early pictograms that over so many years became the modern alphabet. So the kid's song is the alphabet song. It kind of kept the A pretty solid. That wasn't too big of all the pieces of there, yeah. That was pretty good.

I've done, on some podcast I've ranted about the alphabet song and that I knew a different version of it when I was a kid, but I can't remember which podcast that was on. Have I told anyone here about that? No. You, what possible other alphabet

could there be, Thomas? This was, wherever I grew up, I think it must just have been the one of the teacher. I don't know. Allegedly that I grew up. Well, the reason I mention is, I don't know if this was local or regional or hyper-specific

is that I learned A, B, C, D, E, F-G-J-K-L-L-M an op-q R-S-T-U V-W-X-Y-Z They've changed it Dave changed it Tom

they have changed it there's like a new version of doing the alphabet that is that version that they've now done because too many kids don't actually understand

the L-M-N-O-P like that is too difficult for a lot of kids so they have now changed I don't know whether they've changed it back to your version of it or there's a new version of that

it's not that version either Oh it's a different one the version I got taught like the version I got taught slant rhymes M and Z and everything lines up better.

Anyway, it's the alphabet song. The answer to the question is the alphabet song. The version I learned was like, Ox Head, Seif, and that was kind of it. Yeah. Yeah, you were the Mesopotamia, right? Yeah, that was us.

Jordan, we're going to go to you for your question, please. Hello, hello. This question has been sent in by Jacob Starr. In Hanna-Barbera cartoons, you will often see the main cast inside a very, small box. When does it appear and why? In Hanna-Barbera cartoons, you will often see the main cast inside a very small box. When does it appear and why? Okay. This is like Flintstone's cartoon. Yeah. Yeah. Or like Tom and Jerry. Yogi Bear. Yogi Bear. I don't know if Tom and Jerry counts.

So I think those were Hannah Barbera. They're just not... I think those were made by... I think it's Joseph Hanna and William Barbera, I'm not sure on that. I think they were the animators, and then they formed their own company. Right. And Hannah Barberra is what we know from the Flintstones, the Jets, and that kind of more limited animation style. Yeah, Hannah Barbera is the production company. Yeah, but there were, yeah.

All the ones that are like plagiarized from comedians of the era. Right, yeah. So thinking outside the box. Wow. Wow. What do we... Wow. Wow.

That's pretty powerful. Yeah. No, I guess if it's... Is it the kind of thing where it's in everyone because it's one of the things that's in every one of these cartoons? Like it's a thing that happens before, after a break or within the title sequence or within the credits. Or is it something that's almost like an Easter egg that appears in all of the cartoons? Because it's not always the same every time, always in a specific place, but it's like a funny little bit that they show them because they always have like a box. somewhere within the show.

It is in the, it is related to the, you were correct, in that it is in the end credit sequence. Yeah, so I was going to say, if this was, like, Looney Tunes, they have those concentric circles that then shrink and they, like, play with them, you know, like, where they're, like, trying to, like, stay within the frame and then it, like, closes on them. But I don't know the box version of that.

We've previously had a question on Lateral about Hannah Barbera cartoons, all having, like, necklines. Yogi Bear wears a tie, so does Fred Flint, so they can swap out the heads? So I was trying to think, is this a money-saving thing,

the same kind of way? When you said it in a small box, I was thinking one of those scenes where it's all very dark, and all you can see is the cartoon eyes blinking, which is a really good way to save money on animation. Yeah.

But if it's the end credits... I'll say most people, in alignment with what you're saying, Jervis, as opposed to the Looney Tunes, like how prevalent it is, most people will not notice this. Is it because it's all the way at the end, like people have switched off or it's gone into the next program before it actually gets to the box bit?

Or is it so small or so like unnoticeable, I guess? Yes, in the latter. It is a very small box and it is amongst a pretty crowded. It's not the only thing on screen. You see the main cast inside a very small box. I think going back to Tom's thing about animation cost saving measures, I wonder if they do like a collage of characters that is like composited with like little boxes of each of the animation cells that are maybe just like, I don't know, reused or shrunk down or something.

Jordan didn't say characters. Jordan said cast. Cast, yeah. That's the humans doing the voices. I will say, Jervis, you are correct on assuming it is the characters. It is the cast within the universe, but... I was thinking it was some credits thing where technically they had to put the names in the credits, and so they just shrunk them down and down and down until it's legally okay.

It is tied to... It is a legal tool. This has a legal utility. So it's going to be the copyright. or something. Yeah, is this like a watermark for like preventing copying? You guys, honestly, you've all cracked it. It's essentially the equivalent of a little TM or copyright symbol, but with kind of an even greater amount of specificity.

So, Hanna-Bahara and their licensing partners registered trademarks of the character of the characters using outlined art of the core cast as an ensemble. And then that is plopped right next to 1989 Hanna-Barbera and the RCA label and the production and outfitting companies and stuff like that. And they're model sheets that would usually be used for like size comparison reference for staying on model and things like that. Because if you rip off a Hanna-Barbera cartoon, they can try and get you for copyright or they can try and get you for trademark abuse or both.

Yeah, yeah. So if you've copied that outline onto something, you are using a trademark, not just copyright infringement. Yes, and the trademarks are inherently very difficult to see on TVs of that era because small size, limited resolution, the analog signal itself is pretty limited. So really what you're looking at is to the, like I'd say, the average viewer that's become, so desensitized to seeing copyright symbols at the ends and in credits, it would all blur into a single line because it is,

it's bookmarked or bookended with super generic company name, 1989, Hannah-Barbera, and then there is just this tiny little image, same blue and white, but if you look in detail, it's the gang hanging out. And I mean, that ironically,

kind of does make meta sense in the famously cartoon characters from that era, the outline of them, the shadow form of them, is meant to be unique. Like, that is the thing that people often associate. That's, like, a marker of good character design within these cartoons. And so the idea of, like, using the silhouette itself, which is what they're using for the trademark within another character, would be a, like, particularly egregious, like, reuse of that kind of IP. I do enjoy the idea of somebody stealing the Flintstones. I'm pretty sure that was a part of one of the episodes.

Really, you stopped being stolen by the future. Literally there was a Jetsons meet the Flintstones. That's right. I remember that, yeah. Thanks to Hugh for sending in this question. In 1956, while test-flying a new F-11 tiger off the coast of New York, a pilot's windshield suddenly shattered and his engine failed completely. Investigators ruled out a bird strike. The real cause was far stranger.

What happened? One more time in 1956, while test flying a new F-11 tiger off the coast of New York, a pilot's windshield suddenly shattered and his engine failed completely. Investigators ruled out a bird strike. The real cause was far stranger. What happened? Big sneeze. Huge. Strong guy, big sneeze. The plane had allergies. Yeah, so a bird strike, a bird strike is the aviation term for when a bird, like, flies into an engine or something like that. Yes. A sully style. It is not when the birds stop working to demand better.

Right, exactly, yeah. Their method of seeking guild representation is threatening to blow up every plane. That's a pretty big threat. So either it's that the thing that is causing it, the strangeness is from that being unusual, so you'd expect birds to be around. But if it was like, it was turtles that touched into it. Like, that's kind of strange. It's like the thing was stranger that did a similar thing to bird strikes.

Or that it's strange that this should happen. Like, they just sort of forgot to glue in the windscreen on the test. Like, there's some strange thing. I don't know where there's, like, I'm thinking there's different directions we could go with, like, what made it strange. Yeah, something being, like, it's not pressurized properly or something. It feels very normal, like, plain stuff, mainstream. And so I'm like... We've got to get more alternative with it.

Yeah. Did the engine fall off and then hit? hit the windshield. Oh, embarrassing. No, Jarvis, but surprisingly, a little closer than you might think. Okay. Did the wind screen fall off and hit the engine? If you just start guessing parts of an aircraft, you won't quite get this.

But you are closer than you might think. Was the pilot accidentally flying from the outside of the plane? And so when, you know, he's like, oh, Butterfingers, has to take the windscreen off to get the controls. And that's like, they don't even do that in Top Gun. You wouldn't want to do that in an F-11 Tiger. It's not going to be like ludicrously fast because of the era, but this is post-World War II innovation on, like, jet combat.

I don't know that point. Is it a... We've broken the sound barrier at this point, right? That is key. This is Grumman's first... The most supersonic jet fighter, the F-11 Tiger, and jet fighter. Jet fighter. So they did have to investigate.

It wasn't something like it riddled with bullets, so clearly there was like some kind of combat. Fighter is interesting specification, because where I was going to go, let me just get this out, maybe it's wrong, is like something about the like resonance or of going, like breaking the sound barrier, like a sonic boom or something could cause like the sonic boom like it wasn't it wasn't prepared for the the shock waves and then the shock waves caused it i think the speed is it it's a fighter and so it was meant to test its guns and the it was traveling faster than the bullet velocity yes it was so it fires out and just straight back it was made it that's so funny that's so funny Oh, my God.

That's so funny. It was a little more complicated than that, but I'm absolutely giving it to you. Yes, this was test pilot Lieutenant Thomas Atridge. He fired a four-second burst from the 20-mill cannons towards the ocean surface, and then descended rapidly along his flight path at near supersonic speed. The cannon shells slow down because of air resistance. The tiger caught up. And when you said riddled with bullets, Jordan,

Yeah. It became known as the plane that shot itself down. Oh no. Patrick was fine, by the way. He crashed landed me. He survived the accident with injuries. He returned to fly. I don't think I'd want to survive. I'm so humiliated. The bullet struck the windshield, pierced the airframe, damaged the engine, caused total power failure. There were not enough thumbs screws in the world to get that story out of me. I would be like, I just bumped into like, did you know a new wall? started?

We actually, it actually just started. I think aliens it was, actually. Look out, they're in the sea. I think it was so crazy. Like, the fish were coming with guns. Like, I didn't even know. I was playing a normal non-fighter plane. Don't worry, guys.

I killed all of them. So don't look into it. They're all gone, and it's all set. It tends to be quite difficult to lie to the air accident investigation branch. They tend to be quite good at figuring these things out. Yeah, they're so good at plane stuff. I really want anyone who is watching this to watch Tom's face, as Jordan said, the phrase riddled with bullets.

It was one of the funniest. It was like, if you look to dictionary definition of the opposite of a poker face, that was what Tom was doing at that moment. And it was very funny to watch. At Medcan, we know that life's greatest moments are built on a foundation of good health, from the big milestones to the quiet winds. That's why our annual health assessment offers a physician-led, full-body checkup that provides a clear picture. of your health today and may uncover early signs of conditions like heart disease and cancer. The healthier you means more moments to cherish. Take control of your well-being and book an assessment today. Medcan. Live well for life. Visit medcan.com slash moments to get started.

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Get insurance that's really big on care. Find an agent today at Dejardin.com slash business coverage. Jarvis, it's your question whenever you're ready, please. This question has been sent in by Anonymous. Opened in 2021, the Cozengoula Bridge was the first direct connection between Zambia and Botswana that didn't require a ferry. Why is the bridge curved, even though a straight bridge would have been shorter and cheaper? Opened in 2021, the Cozangula Bridge was the first direct connection between Zambia and Botswana that didn't require a ferry. Why is the bridge curved, even though a straight bridge would have been shorter and cheaper?

That's fun, isn't it? I think I actually know this one, so... Okay. I might have to bow out, at least until I definitely know whether I do know the right answer. I have a guess, but I've already suddenly got one question in this one. All right, no, I'm going to go for it. Okay. Is it near a famous waterfall?

Because I'm thinking that it's a horseshoe falls. It's not going to be angel falls, it's going to be some big famous waterfall. and while technically the best route is over the falls, that would ruin the falls. So they put a curve round there. That is not. There is no waterfall to be seen here, to my knowledge. Okay. What is it, is it, I guess in that vein, did they do this to preserve some kind of like national tourist attraction, something that they, it wasn't like a logistical requirement, but they didn't want to.

screw up some good thing they had. No, this is not to avoid some sort of attraction or not like a waterfall or any other sort of thing. That's not why they

curved the bridge. Okay. Zambia and Botswana. If you were a geogessor right now. Yeah, I start saying that. I know very little about either of those countries. It's good to like, it's like your manifesto. You're seeking the inspiration. You're in your mind palace again with the cork board.

What is the killer's motivations? Since it probably won't help anyway, I'll give you the clue that this is a normal bridge over the Zambezi River. Oh, it's not a normal bridge. It's weird. It's a wonky. I was going to phrase it's got a wonk in it, which I don't think is how that word works. It's a real wonker. You guys sound like you've never seen a curved one.

bridge before. Also, it's on a border. So there's got to be customs controls and I don't like how Rowan nodded during that. It is on a border. It is on a border. It's on a border of the place. Customs and passport checks. Do they happen on the bridge? No. Not to my knowledge. Is there like a legal distinction between what they would be allowed to do at that part of the water, like the moment they hit that point, you're not allowed to smoke in your car or something? Zambia only allows bridges that are strictly east, west or north south. It's funny because there is a legal reason that it's not straight, but it's not, it would be lateral of me to say that it's a legal reason. So I'm being a little cute when I say that.

From Javis saying this, I, yeah, 1,000% know what this bridge is. Oh, damn it. Me too. Yeah, no, I just don't want to mess up. Right, you just don't want to ruin it. Zambia, you said? Mm-hmm, yeah. Right, right, right, right.

Why would you curve a bridge over a river that's a border? Has the river moved? That happens a lot. Like, there are plenty of borders in the world which follow the river and follow the river's movement, but there are also borders that were laid down in law, and as the river moves, the borders do not. So maybe the bridge has...

But why would you not just build a straight bridge anyway? Right. So I will say that the border between these countries of Zambia and Botswana is only 150 meters. There's no intersection with another country, is there? It's nearly a tri-point, but it isn't. If they were to cross it directly,

it would also... They would go into a third country. Oh! And I know geography well enough. Let's think about it. Africa, Africa, Africa. Those are the three countries. Is it my dad's house in Nairobi?

I'm going to guess Namibia? Well, Namibia is there. Like, and Namibia is actually to the west. So you're in the right geographical area. but you are also right in that this is a diplomatic solution. So the only way that they can avoid the third country is to put a curve in the bridge? That's right. That's got to feel bad for the other country.

It's going to feel we don't like you, man. Yeah, they went out of their way to avoid me. Nobody wants to hang out anymore. That's truly like inviting somebody's roommate to a party. they'd be like, don't talk about it. So does Zambia and Botswana, like, do they only have like a 150-meter border? It's Zimbabwe, right? It's the other country that they have to avoid, if I'm remembering it, right?

Yes, that's correct. And then Namibia is like just there. Right. Namibia is just there. And then Botswana and Zimbabwe are right next to each other. And if you were to draw a straight line across this border between Zambia and Botswana, it would cross into Zimbabwe. So they curve ever so slightly to avoid Zimbabwe.

Oh, pardon me. Sorry. Just if you don't mind, a little scooch. Oh, thank you for the net. Yeah. It's very polite of them. The border between Botswana and Zambia is only about 150 meters in length. So any bridge between the two countries has to be at this one spot.

But due to the geography of the area, the shortest possible bridge across that border is curved. A straight bridge would be cheaper to construct, but would have gone through Zimbabwe, and they didn't want to involve a third country. That's got to genuinely be so strange for Zimbabwe. Just be like, wait, where'd the bridge come from? Why is it a little wonky? Like, oh, no reason, don't worry about it.

Which means there is only one question left, and it's the one I asked at the start. Thank you to both Brian and Ayyasa for sending this in. And Rowan, your face did light up when I said this. So perhaps hold back for just a moment, for what purpose does Disney use colors called Go Away Green and blending blue. On the assumption that Rowan, who is giggling

already knows this, Jarvis or Jordan, do you want to take a shot at that before Rowan tells the audience? Go away green made me think of Monsters, Inc. Oh. Wait, is it Disney, Disneyland? Yeah, this is at the theme parks. Okay.

Oh. We could take a real quick drive to Anaheim and just check this out. Yeah, I mean, it's like, they've psychologically engineered colors that they use to, like, dis-sendive. incentivize people from entering certain areas and incentivize people in going along the like path that they want them to. Kind of. It's not necessarily entering areas.

Rowan, do you want to kick it home? I was going to say it literally is to stop people noticing things. So often on the back side, because the parks, the way they're oriented, you'll have, you know, the front of a beautiful set piece, but the back, they don't necessarily want to do the back, because no one's technically needing to look at it. And so they'll paint it these colors that are meant to blend in with the kind of average colors of the foliage and sky within these particular parks. And it's so wild when you look at examples

because you'll suddenly realize there's just like a massive, like, electrical unit and a water tower that you've never seen before because it's just painted this magical color. And you're like, oh, yeah. And it's like, yeah, this is the back of Big Thunder Mountain. Don't even question it. Don't worry about that. Rowan, I didn't notice before,

but I do think. that you're wearing a sweater that's go away green and your hair that's... You haven't seen me this whole time. Yeah, I actually have just been seeing a floating face this whole time. This is, what's so, so funny about this is my dad accidentally not knowing this, chose this exact color green paint because, and he said to me, I'm going to paint the fence in the garden this color because I really feel like it blends in and I had to be like, are you, Walt, does it, they froze him and he became my dad.

Like, how did this happen? That's incredible. Father Imagineer. I know, right. Thank you very much to all of our players for running the gauntlet one more time. Where can people find you, what's going on your lives?

We'll start with Rowan. Yeah, you can find me online. Just search for Owen Ellis. I'll be there. I have a bunch of videos come up, including one around the politics of rest. So everyone go, have a snooze after this. You deserve it.

We all do. Jordan. Hello. Sad Boys Podcast, Sad Boys with a Z. Don't mess it up or we'll be angry. It's the motto. And then also my channel, Jordan Adika, A-D-I-K-A. You can say it however you want, I don't care.

And Jarvis. You can find me in the woods behind your house, painted in Go-A-Head, Blue. You can also find me on the Savoy's Podcast and on YouTube, if you just search Jarvis Johnson or Jarvis on the Global pop-up. And if you want to know more about this show, you can do that at lateralcass.com. We can also send in your own ideas for questions. We are at Lateralcast, basically, everywhere. And there are weekly video episodes on Spotify.

Thank you very much to Jarvis Johnson. Bye-bye. To he said I could say it however wanted. Jordan Adi-Car! Finally someone gets it. Thank you. And Rowan Ellis. Thanks.

I've been Tom Scott and that's been Latrin.