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TechStuff

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TechStuff is getting a system update. Everything you love about Tech Stuff now twice the bandwidth with new hosts, Oz Woloshyn (Sleepwalkers) and Karah Preiss (Sleepwalkers). 

Oz and Karah bring humour and wit to the table as they break down what's happening in tech...and what it says about us. 

TechStuff is the podcast where technology meets culture. 

We speak to the folks building the future to understand what tomorrow will look like and how our technology is changing us: how we live, how we love, how we work and even how we die. With a healthy dose of drama, too, as tech titans clash over their interstellar ambitions. 

Get in touch here: [email protected]

Episodes

The Most Hated Buzzwords in Tech

The tech industry has no shortage of buzzwords and jargon. Some of the terms common in tech are ones that people have come to hate for various reasons. From AI to blockchain to the metaverse, we explore buzzwords that drive some people bonkers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May 01, 202447 min

High Frame Rates and the Soap Opera Effect

Why do some films shot in higher frame rates look so weird? We explore the history of the 24 frames per second standard, the filmmakers who are pushing the envelope on frame rates, and how those technological changes affect the viewing experience of film. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 29, 202441 min

Tech News: Tesla and Meta Investors are Not the Same

Several tech companies held Q1 earnings calls this week, with wildly different reactions from investors. Tesla profits are down, but investor hopes are high. Meta keeps spending money on the metaverse and investors are not happy about it. Plus an update on the Voyager 1 and much more! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 26, 202421 min

The US Passes the Anti-TikTok Bill

The thing I said probably wouldn't happened did happen -- the US Senate voted in favor of a bill that will force the Chinese company ByteDance to divest itself of TikTok or face a US-wide ban. But how the heck did we get here, and how does a political megadonor play into it? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 25, 202448 min

The Broken Arrow Episode

Officially, the United States has lost nuclear weapons in six incidents in which the nation couldn't retrieve or destroy them. We look at these six incidents and learn how nuclear weapons work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 22, 202442 min

Tech News: Anti TikTok Bill Inches Closer to Becoming Law

Some tweaks to the bill that would require TikTok parent company to divest itself of the app or face a US-wide ban could be closer to becoming a law. AI takes to the skies in simulated dogfights. And about half of all online traffic comes from bots. Plus lots more! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 19, 202429 min

It's Time to Light the Lights

How do theatrical lighting control systems work? From early attempts to automate lighting through mechanical systems to sleek computer-controlled rigs of today, we look at the evolution of concert lighting. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 17, 202447 min

TechStuff Classic: TechStuff Shreds on the Electric Guitar

While Jonathan works on a new episode about stage lighting systems, take a listen to this classic episode in which he and his old cohost Chris Pollette talk about the history and workings of electric guitars. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 15, 202426 min

Tech News: Crime, Punishment, and Generative AI

Our news stories today include SBF filing an appeal on his recent sentencing, a UK court denies Apple's request to dismiss a huge lawsuit and Microsoft may soon make the Copilot AI feature an auto-launch program in Windows 11. Plus much more! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 12, 202420 min

Smart Talks with IBM - The Power of Collaboration: How IBM Teams Up with Microsoft

Entire industries are being reshaped around the new capabilities of generative AI. In this special bonus episode of Smart Talks with IBM, Tim Harford leads a conversation between two leaders in the field. Srinivasan Venkatarajan is the Director of Global Partner Business at Microsoft, focusing on Azure Data & AI and Azure OpenAI. And Chris McGuire is the General Manager of the Global Microsoft Partnership for IBM. They discuss the efforts by IBM and Microsoft in the generative AI space, how ...

Apr 11, 202413 min

Faking a DMCA Takedown to Boost Search Rankings

Journalist Ernie Smith got an odd DMCA takedown notice for a picture he included in his tech newsletter. It turns out that the notice was a ploy to try and trick Smith into including a backlink to another site in an effort to boost that site's search rankings. What the what? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 10, 202441 min

The Sad Tale of Virtual Boy

The Nintendo Virtual Boy was one of the company's infamous flops, but why? Why did the system fail so hard that Nintendo killed it off after just one year? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 09, 202447 min

Tech News: The FCC Will Vote in Favor of Net Neutrality. Again.

Net neutrality goes through another flip in the flip-flop history with the FCC announcing it plans to vote to reinstate some of the rules established during the Obama administration but overturned during the Trump administration. Plus, Google agrees to destroy billions of data records and Ford decides to hold off on producing EVs for a bit. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 05, 202419 min

My Test Image is the Centerfold

My blood runs cold, my computer memory has just been sold -- my test image is the centerfold! Today, we look at the story of the "Lenna image," a scan of a Playboy model that has been used in countless papers and articles, and why there's a movement now to bring an end to that practice. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 03, 202435 min

Corporate Espionage in the Tech Sector

Sometimes, folks want to take a short cut. And sometimes that shortcut is illegal. This episode is about companies, managers, employees and others who engaged in some shifty behavior to get access to data that didn't belong to them. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apr 01, 202449 min

Tech News: TikTok Strikes Back, AI Poses Threats, and Butts!

TikTok is turning up the heat on the US Senate to get a proposed bill that would ban the service tossed out. The US government announces new policies relating to the use of AI in federal agencies. And a streaming service tries to clamp down on butts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 29, 202421 min

Did In-N-Out invent the Intercom?

Is it true Harry Snyder, founder of In-N-Out, invented the intercom? Not quite. But he was the first credited with using a system to create what would become the model for the modern drive-thru. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 27, 202435 min

The Weaponization of EULAs

The End User License Agreement is that thing you click "I agree" to without having read the whole thing. But you can be forgiven -- some companies make their EULAs freakishly long, hiding some nefarious terms in the process. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 25, 202438 min

Tech News: Tech Companies in the Hot Seat

The US government is cracking down on Big Tech. From a House bill that would make it illegal for data brokers to sell American citizen info to foreign adversaries to a massive monopoly lawsuit against Apple, we look at some of the battles the Tech industry faces in the near future. Plus more! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 22, 202429 min

The Rooster Teeth Story: The End?

After navigating numerous controversies and setbacks, Rooster Teeth attempted to return to a more stable existence. But it was not to be. The corporate overlords at Warner Bros Discovery have decided to shut down the company after it reportedly spent a decade being unprofitable. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 20, 202446 min

Smart Talks with IBM - AI in Healthcare: How Generative AI Is Expanding Fertility Treatment

As artificial intelligence progresses, healthcare providers are exploring how the technology can be used to offer personalized care at scale. In this episode of Smart Talks with IBM , Dr. Laurie Santos sits down with Alice Crisci, co-founder and CEO of fertility-care provider Ovum Health. They discuss the barriers to healthcare access, the ways in which AI can be leveraged to expand the reach of healthcare providers, and how Ovum Health’s partnership with IBM and their use of watsonx has been en...

Mar 19, 202435 min

The Rooster Teeth Story: The Middle Bits

Fullscreen's acquisition of Rooster Teeth would bring with it new challenges, including corporate bureaucracy, a push for new kinds of monetization, and changes in company culture. Meanwhile, the folks at Rooster Teeth kept making content. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 18, 202444 min

Tech News: US House of Reps Votes to Ban TikTok

This week, the House of Representatives in the US voted overwhelmingly in support of a bill that would force TikTok owner ByteDance to divest itself of the app or else face a national ban. What's going on, where does the bill go from here and why am I so exasperated by it all? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 15, 202447 min

The Rooster Teeth Story: The Beginning

Warner Bros Discovery is shutting down the online media company Rooster Teeth just as it nears its 21st anniversary. We look back on the history of the company, how it made an impact on internet culture, and where things went wrong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 13, 202446 min

Better Offline: A conversation with Ed Zitron

Ed Zitron of the Better Offline podcast joins the show, and boy is he mad! Ed and Jonathan get angry over the state of the tech industry, the focus on short term gains at the cost of long term benefits, and why the tech we have at our disposal sometimes just feels like it's not as good as it should be. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 11, 202440 min

Tech News: OpenAI Spills the Tea on Elon Musk

OpenAI said they didn't wanna do it, but they're sharing emails written by Elon Musk that imply he was totally okay with OpenAI making a ton of money if it also was part of Tesla. Plus the US President speaks out against AI. And much more! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 09, 202433 min

A Holographic Wedding

Artist Alicia Framis plans to wed an AI "hologram" this summer. Before the wedding bells chime, we have some questions. We explore holograms, artificial intelligence, and technical, social, ethical and cultural conundrums. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 06, 202446 min

What's Your Problem? with Jacob Goldstein: Using AI to Help Doctors Save Lives

Every year in the U.S., tens of thousands of hospital patients die of preventable causes. For many of these patients, warning signs are subtle and easy for doctors to miss. Suchi Saria is the founder and CEO of Bayesian Health, and a professor at Johns Hopkins where she runs a lab focused on machine learning and healthcare. Suchi’s problem is this: How can you use AI to detect when hospital patients are at risk of potentially deadly complications – and how can you get doctors to listen? See omny...

Mar 04, 202442 min

The Tech Pioneers

Sometimes, an invention comes along that defines a new function, form factor, or fashion. In this episode, we celebrate some of these inventions by exploring the stories behind them. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 01, 202432 min

Big Apps that Flopped

The Silicon Valley dream is to come up with an app and make a billion dollars. But not every app hits such heights. And some briefly touch the stars but then plummet back to Earth. This episode is dedicated to the failures! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feb 28, 202444 min