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.
In 1983, U.S. News & World Report began to rank America’s colleges. More than 30 years later, they continue to release yearly lists of the “best” schools in the U.S. We talk with Inside Higher Ed’s Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse about how these rankings have shaped how students select colleges in America.
First: Scurvy. Website design. Store promotions. Turns out, randomized trials affect many parts of our daily lives. Then: “The Origin of Species”… actually has a pretty interesting - and unexpected - origin. Finally: In news that shouldn’t shock anyone who has ever been to a meeting, they can make you less productive. But how about the toll they take even before they start?
Think of the last impulse buy you made at the grocery store. Maybe the item was placed at eye level. Or perhaps it was a Snickers bar you saw in the checkout line. Either way, that product was put there by design, not dumb luck, and most of these placements were decided through randomized trials. We talk to with Andrew Leigh, author of “Randomistas: How Radical Researchers Changed Our World,” about how these tests affect everyday life and impact the decisions we make.
This summer, 160 years ago, it dawned on Charles Darwin that he might have to go public with the theory of evolution. He had been working on his theory slowly, gradually building it out for decades. And Darwin probably would have kept working on it, if not for a letter he received from English naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace, which outlined Wallace’s own ideas about natural selection; ideas that, unfortunately for Darwin, were very similar to his own. Iain McCalman, author of “Darwin’s Armada: ...
Imagine you have a meeting in 30 minutes. Are you more likely to spend that half hour A) catching up on email and the news or B) getting a start on that report you’ve been putting off? If you answered A, you’re not alone. It turns out that people aren’t very productive in the time before a scheduled activity. We talked with Rutgers Business School professor Gabriela Tonietto about why free time feels diminished when we have an upcoming task.
Today, the Food Network is a touchstone of the entertainment industry. But it took a decade for the channel to make money. Chef Sara Moulton and author Allen Salkin tell us about the rise and influence of the cooking channel. Plus: If you use Uber Eats more than you use your stove, you're in good company — 90 percent of Americans either don't like to cook or are on the fence about it. With cooking becoming more hobby than necessity, we look at how the food industry is trying to keep up. Finally:...
If you knew what was going on behind the scenes at the Food Network during the ‘90s, you might have placed a hefty wager that it would fail. Chefs were cooking in incomplete kitchens, and couldn't stop filming — even if they got hurt. It was a mess. Even Sara Moulton, one of the Food Network’s earliest stars, didn’t think the channel would survive. But not only did it survive — it thrived. We talk to Moulton about her early days at the Food Network, and with author Allen Salkin about his book, “...
When we sit down to binge watch a season of Chopped , we rarely do it to learn a new cooking technique. In fact, the Food Network might actually discourage us from trying our hand in the kitchen. We speak with industry analyst Eddie Yoon about the future of grocery stores and food companies, in a world where cooking is no longer considered an indispensable skill.
2015 was the first year that Americans spent more money on bars and restaurants than on groceries. And with attention-grabbing chefs and buzzy new places to eat, it feels like restaurants have never been more central to American life. But how did we get there? Paul Freedman, Yale historian and author of the book “Ten Restaurants That Changed America,” charts the course from Delmonico’s to Howard Johnson’s.
First: Americans love small businesses, but economist Robert D. Atkinson says that big business is better for workers, consumers, and the world. Then: From standard measurements to interchangeable parts, precision engineering created the modern world. Author Simon Winchester explains how the precision revolution got started in the first place. Finally: We tend to become friends with people who share our interests and passions. But the connections don’t stop there—new research now shows that the ...
Ever since Thomas Jefferson championed the “yeoman farmer,” Americans across the political spectrum have romanticized small businesses. Politicians tout Mom-and-Pop companies as the backbone of the economy. But, if you run the numbers, small businesses don’t live up to the hype, according to economist Robert D. Atkinson, co-author of the book “Big is Beautiful: Debunking the Myth of Small Business.” Atkinson says that we should take a size-neutral approach to regulating businesses.
We rely on precision in every part of our lives. We take for granted the fact that if our car breaks down, we can buy a replacement part, instead of a whole new car. But there was a time before standardized car parts, standardized batteries, and standardized shoe sizes. In his new book “The Perfectionists,” author and journalist Simon Winchester set out to learn how the concept of precision came to be, and how it changed the world.
Choosing Friday night plans. Deciding what to wear to work. Selecting a new Netflix show to binge-watch. People are influenced by the tastes and opinions of their friends, and vice versa. But that doesn’t mean you’re a carbon copy of your social network— or does it? We talk with Carolyn Parkinson, an assistant professor of social psychology at UCLA, about why our brains might be more similar that we think.
We’re always so concerned about how to do something, but we don't always consider when we should do it. When should we start a new project? When should we take a nap? We talk to author Daniel Pink about why timing is everything. Even though beards are currently in style, there was a time when being clean shaven was the way to go. We take a look at the man who revolutionized the shaving industry. Plus, if it seems like food allergies are on the rise, they are. One in every 13 children in America ...
Does it matter when you go in for an operation? When a jury hears your case? What year you're born in? The answer in all three of these cases: yes. Dan Pink took a deep dive into the science behind how timing affects our lives. He's author of the new book, "When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing."
If you're the type of person who shaves, you've probably used a disposable razor at least once. But where did this seemingly ubiquitous part of American life come from? It all goes back to the late 19th century, and a man with the absolutely incredible name of King Camp Gillette.
Did you ever trade lunches at school when you were a kid? Maybe you gave away your peanut butter sandwich in exchange for some chocolate pudding. With rampant food allergies, a trade like that probably wouldn't happen today. And while schools and other organizations are very aware of the increased number of people who have allergies, we know little about what causes them. We talk to Dr. Wayne Shreffler, the director of the Food Allergy Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and Dr. Katie Allen...
Rats: The bane of any city-dweller’s existence. We spend millions of dollars each year trying to kill these pests, putting out poison and traps. But new research poses the question: Should we be killing rats at all? Innovation Hub producer Marc Filippino reports on what could be a surprising new solution to rat control.
First, we talk with Kurt Beyer about the Queen of Software, Grace Hopper, and how her new ideas changed the tech world forever. Next, we give you Kisses. And Reese’s. And Kit Kats. We take a look at how Milton Hershey built one of the biggest chocolate empires the world has ever seen. Then, we’re all wondering when we can hop into our self-driving cars and watch Netflix on our way to work. But Rodney Brooks says: don’t expect it to happen tomorrow.
She’s been called “the first lady of software.” A conference named after her attracted over 18,000 attendees last year. She had her own Google doodle. She was even on Letterman. It’s fair to say that Grace Hopper is one of the most celebrated coders ever. But, behind all the accolades, who was she? And how exactly did she change technology? We talk with Kurt Beyer, author of “Grace Hopper and the Invention of the Information Age.”
Americans absolutely adore chocolate. The average American consumes 11 pounds of the stuff per year. But when did this love affair with chocolate start? Back in the 19th century, sugar was a luxury good, and chocolate was mostly for the rich. Milton Hershey, and his Hershey bar, changed all that. Historian Nancy Koehn, author of “Forged in Crisis: The Power of Courageous Leadership in Turbulent Times,” has written about Hershey’s life and company. She walks us through who he was, and how he gave...
If you could talk to some folks who attended the 1964 World’s Fair, they might be a little disgruntled. After all, they were promised jetpacks, flying cars, and vacations to Mars in the near future. Alas, we have none of those things, and yet we still expect transformative technologies like self-driving cars to be part of our lives soon. This week, we talk with robotics pioneer Rodney Brooks about the art of predicting when new technology will go mainstream.
First: We ask UCLA history professor Katherine Benton-Cohen how America transformed from a country with open borders to one - by the 1920s - with a strict quota system. Next: Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris explains the science behind how childhood trauma permanently impacts children’s mental and physical health. Then: Remember that whole “all men are created equal” thing? We investigate how the end of the 18th century brought about a new discussion of human rights - one that forever changed hi...
It might seem like America’s massive immigration system has always been around. But it hasn’t. Indeed, up until the early 20th century, America’s immigration system was so different it would be unrecognizable from a modern perspective. For the backstory of how the U.S. has approached immigration, we talk with Katherine Benton-Cohen, an associate professor at Georgetown and author of “Inventing the Immigration Problem: The Dillingham Commission and Its Legacy.”
In May and June, the United States separated more than 2,000 children from their families at the southern border. Caving to pressure, President Trump signed an executive order stopping the policy. But, experts say the damage has already been done. Nadine Burke Harris is the CEO of San Francisco’s Center for Youth Wellness and the author of the new book “The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity.” She says these experiences can lead to serious mental and physical heal...
We all know Thomas Jefferson’s famous words immortalized in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” But when did the world start thinking about equality? Lynn Hunt a distinguished research professor at UCLA, and author of the book “Inventing Human Rights,” says we haven’t always recognized basic human rights, and the very concept wasn’t spoken much about until the end of the 1700s. We explore its origins.
First: How do America’s child welfare services respond to a call about a child who could be in trouble? We look at the inner workings of the system and how algorithms might help. Next: People often yearn for a simpler time. That nostalgia isn’t uncommon, and depending on the scenario, it could be healthy. Le Moyne College psychology professor Krystine Batcho explains why. Then: Local news outlets are struggling financially, and national outlets are losing people’s trust. How do we restore journa...
When a call comes in to a child welfare hotline, how should the call-taker react? Is the complaint significant enough to merit an investigation? Should caseworkers be sent to the child’s home? Or is the call frivolous? And would the stress of an investigation do more harm than good? These are tough questions and ones that counties and states throughout the country are trying their best to answer. One of them, Allegheny County, which surrounds Pittsburgh, has turned to an algorithm for help....
Playing hide-and-go-seek with your best friend. Opening up fresh supplies on the first day of school. Going on your first date. People get nostalgic about the personal relationships they’ve had, and the experiences they can’t get back. But that doesn’t mean they’re living in the past. Nostalgia can, in fact, be a good thing. We talk with Le Moyne College psychology professor Krystine Batcho about how our perspective on bygone days actually affects our present.
It’s a rough moment for journalism. Newspapers across the country have been closing at an alarming rate. And many of the media outlets that remain are under attack for allegedly peddling fake news. It’s a problem that journalists alone cannot fix. Luckily for them, local libraries are pushing to restore people’s faith in the media — and sometimes even picking up the slack in places where news coverage is hard to come by. Innovation Hub producer Marc Filippino reports on how libraries are gradual...
