Full Show: Fragile Memories
Our memories are terrible, mice can lead us astray, and Americans didn't always love chicken. This week, we've got a show packed with surprising facts about both human brains and animal realities.
Apr 14, 2017•49 min
Innovation Hub
Innovation Hub looks at how to reinvent our world – from medicine to education, relationships to time management. Great thinkers and great ideas, designed to make your life better.
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Episodes
Tackling Public Problems With Private Strategies
What does social innovation look like? How about prisons in New Zealand that try to keep prisoners out, not in.
Apr 07, 2017•13 min
Why International Students Might Not Want to Come to the US
With President Trump in office, are international students turning away from the US? Inside Higher Ed’s Elizabeth Redden joins us to explain.
Apr 07, 2017•4 min
Saving Facts On The Internet
Brewster Kahle isn’t just a librarian, he’s the internet’s librarian. And it turns out, that’s a really important job.
Apr 07, 2017•15 min
Full Show: Between Private And Public
Internet librarian is a real job. And it’s real important. Plus, in 2016, two of the largest private prison companies made 4 billion dollars in revenue. But are they saving us any money. And finally, Social innovation looks like a lot of things. Among them, a prison in New Zealand that try to keep prisoners out, not in.
Apr 07, 2017•50 min
The Booming Business Of Private Prisons
Why do federal and local governments pay private contractors to lock inmates up? The answer is surprising.
Apr 07, 2017•19 min
The Newspaper That Moved America
From the Great Migration to President Obama’s political career, here’s how one newspaper saw - and shaped - history.
Mar 31, 2017•18 min
How Geography Made Us... Us
What made America great? Well, according to author Robert Kaplan is has a lot to do with our landscape.
Mar 31, 2017•16 min
Is The American Dream In Canada?
The American dream has found a new home: Canada. Author and former Canadian diplomat Scott Gilmore believes that Canada has become a more realistic setting for modern-day, rags-to-riches stories.
Mar 31, 2017•16 min
Full Show: You Are Here
The American Dream isn’t dead, it’s just found a new home. Plus, it's our geography that makes this country great, says Robert Kaplan. From the Great Migration to President Obama’s political career, here’s how one newspaper saw - and shaped - history.
Mar 31, 2017•49 min
The Complicated Story of Reading in America
Millions of American adults can’t read at a high enough level to keep track of their health care or help with their kids’ homework. Professor Mark Seidenberg says a disconnect between reading researchers and teachers is partly to blame.
Mar 24, 2017•13 min
When Women Entered The Ivies
What was it like when men and women started going to elite colleges together? Turns out… pretty awkward.
Mar 24, 2017•19 min
Full Show: The (Mis)Education of America
Academics skew liberal. Plus, forty percent of Americans read at -- or below -- a basic level. Finally, Going co-ed wasn’t easy for the Ivies. Just ask the Dartmouth alums who wrote this appeal in 1970: "For God’s sake, for Dartmouth’s sake, and for everyone’s sake, keep the damned women out."
Mar 24, 2017•50 min
Why Ideology Matters On Campus
Yes, liberal thought does dominate in academia, and professor Sam Abrams says it’s a problem for higher education.
Mar 24, 2017•17 min
Inequality's Terrible Cure
There’s a way to reduce inequality… but you aren’t going to like it.
Mar 17, 2017•17 min
What Inequality Looks Like Right Now
Beyond the headlines, beyond the soundbites, what is the state of inequality in America? Alan Berube of The Brookings Institution, and Harvard’s Alexandra Killewald joins us to answer that question.
Mar 17, 2017•16 min
How The New Health Care Bill Could Affect Your Uber Ride
The gig economy has exploded over the past decade. Could Paul Ryan's new health care proposal halt that progress?
Mar 17, 2017•6 min
The High Cost of Health Care Innovation
The innovations that have made our health care so effective also contribute to what makes it so expensive. MIT economist (who also worked on the Affordable Healthcare Actt) Jon Gruber says we should do a cost-benefit analysis on new drugs to keep costs low.
Mar 17, 2017•12 min
Full Show: Walking the Divide
How does inequality affect our lives? Alan Berube and Alexandra Killewald explain. Then, according to Walter Scheidel, there are ways to significantly reduce inequality. But they're all... uncomfortable. Then, why does America spend more on health care than any other country in the world. And finally, you can thank Obama for your next Uber ride. But don’t get too comfortable: here’s how the new health care proposal might affect the gig economy.
Mar 17, 2017•50 min
Full Show: Making Connections
Dating in the digital age equates to a slew of websites and apps that all purport to offer paths to love. But, while we may have more ways to find that special someone than ever before, actually forging those bonds isn’t quite as easy as swiping right.
Mar 10, 2017•50 min
Full Show: Mismanagement
Three things to know: Con men - and women - have been around for as long as we’ve been around. So why do we keep falling for their tricks? Maria Konnikova explains the science of the swindle. There’s no international law on time zones or daylight savings. And the result? Chaos. But Steve Hanke has a simple solution: universal time. Flint, Michigan, was just the beginning. Marc Edwards says that our country is relying on a network of very old pipes, many of them lined with lead.
Mar 03, 2017•50 min
Why Scheduling Your Free Time Might Ruin It
Americans are becoming increasingly dependant on our calendars. But what happens when you start to schedule free time? Bad things, says Selin Malkoc.
Mar 03, 2017•7 min
We're All Suckers
Should you respond to that suspiciously attractive suitor on OkCupid? Should you invest your money in a “too good to be true” land deal? Before you trust anyone, listen to Maria Konnikova talk about the history and psychology of cons.
Mar 03, 2017•18 min
Time for a New Time?
North Korea invented its own time zone. Arizona and Hawaii refuse to participate in daylight savings. Steve Hanke thinks it’s time to overhaul, well, time.
Mar 03, 2017•6 min
What Lurks In Our Pipes
Marc Edwards was one of the first scientists to confirm lead poisoning in Flint. But it’s the second time he found himself battling the EPA. He tells us why our country’s lead crisis will only get worse.
Mar 03, 2017•18 min
Treating Violence Like a Disease
What if the spread of violence was treated like the spread of a disease? University of Illinois at Chicago’s Gary Slutkin tells us why we need to take a public health approach to preventing violence in America.
Feb 24, 2017•20 min
Making A More Versatile Chocolate
Chocolate’s melting point makes it one of the most fickle sweets in the world. It also prevents manufacturers from transporting it to large swaths of the globe. But the discovery of one of its most important genes could make a big difference.
Feb 24, 2017•8 min
Paging Through History
From illuminated manuscripts to your dog-eared copy of The Hobbit, the book has had a tremendously important place in human history. Keith Houston talks about how books changed the world.
Feb 24, 2017•15 min
The Birth of a Chocolate Empire
One man’s life turns around because, of all things, nougat. We recount the surprising rise of a giant in the world of candy.
Feb 24, 2017•3 min
Full Show: The Network Effect
Violence is usually seen as some sort of moral failing. Gary Slutkin says we should instead treat it like a disease. As anyone who’s left a Hershey’s bar too long in their pocket can tell you… chocolate melts pretty easily. A scientist has uncovered the gene that could change that. The shape and form of the book hasn’t changed all that much since the Middle Ages. But it has definitely changed us.
Feb 24, 2017•50 min
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