RECENT EPISODES
Sat 7 NovHow to build the next wave of clean energy | Jennifer Granholm, Ryan PanchadsaramJennifer Granholm says the clean-energy transition is shifting from invention to construction, with 50 gigawatts added to the U.S. grid by the end of 2024 despite reduced federal support for wind and solar. She discusses the Inflation Reduction Act’s role in attracting announced factory projects and investment, and argues that policy stability, domestic manufacturing and diversified supply chains are vital to building at scale. She also considers AI’s potential to accelerate construction and the need for guardrails around data-center growth.Fri 6 NovThe surprising beauty of mosquitos | Felix HolFelix Hol describes the intricate beauty of mosquitoes under magnification and explains how they track people using carbon dioxide, odor, heat and visual cues before tasting skin with receptors on their feet. He discusses how mosquitoes adapt to control measures, including insecticide resistance and shifts in biting times, and why relying heavily on insecticides is risky. His lab uses tools such as the bitoscope and BuzzWatch, alongside fieldwork in Uganda and Kenya, to study biting behavior and inform control strategies.Thu 5 NovWhy great art requires risk | Alex Van Halen, David Lee Roth, Robert VargasDavid Lee Roth argues that artistic risk works best after artists master the basics and prepare to adapt when things go wrong. The episode explores how Roth and Ed Van Halen combined distinct creative approaches, and how unexpected musical influences expanded their sound. Muralist Robert Vargas describes trusting observation and physical engagement with a place to make ambitious work without grids or stencils.Wed 4 Nov5 ideas for better government in the US | Jeff MaurerJeff Maurer argues that government should protect rights while remaining constrained, and offers constitutional changes aimed at privacy, accountability, and elections. His proposals include protecting bodily sovereignty and digital communications, requiring laws to renew support after 10 years, and tying congressional reelection eligibility to balanced-budget performance. He also favors ending midterm redistricting and letting voters recall federal officials, while urging neighbors to build trust through face-to-face organizing.Tue 3 NovWhat kids wish their parents knew about fun | Mila RojasMila Rojas explores why adults feel “play guilt” when fun seems less worthwhile than productive tasks, and how play can support learning, connection, and stress regulation. She suggests parents bring curiosity into ordinary routines instead of turning play into another obligation, from a quick dance break to making pizza together. Small, shared moments can help families connect more deeply.Mon 2 NovThe couples therapists who nearly got divorced | Harville HendrixAfter decades as relationship experts, Harville Hendrix and Helen nearly divorced, beginning legal proceedings in 1999. They paused the divorce to test their own approach: listening by mirroring, validating and empathizing, while seeking safety and “joyful aliveness.” Hendrix explains how the practice helped them feel seen, connect present conflict to childhood experiences, and turn recurring debates into decisions—and why he sees listening as the first act of love.Sun 1 NovSunday Pick: Do all my friends secretly hate me? | from Corner PieceAfter a small fight and a year of growing distance, Melissa is grieving a close friendship and wondering whether her other friends secretly dislike her. The Corner Piece hosts discuss why adult friendships need deliberate effort, why long gaps don’t necessarily mean a bond is over, and how people can value different kinds of closeness. They also explore the risks of reaching out and the uncertainty of repairing a friendship after it ends.Sat 31 OctZombie roaches and other parasite tales | Ed Yong (re-release)Ed Yong explores how parasites can redirect their hosts, from emerald cockroach wasps that use venom to steer live roaches to worms that drive crickets into water. These behaviors can help parasites reproduce and reshape food webs, with trematodes in three California estuaries weighing as much as all the fish. The episode also examines Toxoplasma gondii: its influence on rodents is documented, but claims that it alters human behavior remain inconclusive.Sat 31 OctThe haunting truth of ghost stories | Coya Paz Brownrigg (re-release)Coya Paz Brownrigg argues that ghost stories can preserve violent histories that official records and communities deny, including lynchings of Mexicans and other Latin Americans in Gold Rush California. She describes how such tales can lead researchers to archival evidence without serving as proof of the supernatural. From ghosts demanding remembrance to hauntings tied to contested places and beloved dead, these stories offer ways to discuss injustice, belonging, grief, and memory.Sat 31 OctZombie roaches and other parasite tales | Ed YongEd Yong explains how parasites commandeer hosts to serve their life cycles: an emerald cockroach wasp’s venom removes a roach’s motivation to walk, letting the wasp lead it to become food for its offspring. Tapeworms and Gordian worms likewise alter hosts to reach reproductive hosts, sometimes redirecting substantial energy through food webs. Toxoplasma may make rodents approach cat odors, but evidence that it changes human behavior remains inconclusive.Sat 31 OctThe fascinating physics of insect pee | Saad Bhamla (re-release)Saad Bhamla explains how glass-winged sharpshooters, which continually drink and excrete nutrient-poor xylem fluid, use a spring-and-latch “butt flicker” to launch urine droplets at about 40 g. The droplets reach 150–200% of the flicker’s speed; surface tension and the timing of the flick help explain the boost, though surface tension also makes droplets cling to the insect. The mechanism could inform future water-ejection systems in small devices.Sat 31 OctThe razor-thin line between contagion and connection | Dan Taberski (re-release)Dan Taberski revisits the 2011 LeRoy school outbreak, where girls developed real tics and spasms without an identified organic cause, and explores how symptoms can spread through social ties amid stress and uncertainty. He also considers the razor-thin line between contagion and connection: people with Tourette’s may unconsciously pick up one another’s tics, yet find belonging in sharing them.Sat 31 OctWhat crows teach us about death | Kaeli Swift (re-release)Kaeli Swift discusses what crows’ responses to dead members of their species can—and cannot—tell us about animal understanding of death. Her experiments found that crows later treated people associated with dead crows as threats and avoided food at locations where corpses had appeared. These behaviors may reflect learning about danger, grief, or both; they do not prove crows experience death as humans do.Fri 30 OctHow to make friends (and keep them) | Sheridan VoyseySheridan Voysey argues that close friendships can support health and well-being, yet adult busyness and screen time make them harder to sustain. He explains how intentional time together, vulnerability and mutual giving and receiving help relationships deepen, and why friendship deserves to be treated as a meaningful commitment rather than an optional extra.Thu 29 OctHow fossil fuel companies keep your energy costs high | Jon PowersJon Powers argues that solar and storage, which supplied 70% of new electricity added last year, can help meet data-center demand and lower energy costs. He says fossil fuel interests fund local disinformation and efforts to block projects, while one in four U.S. counties restricts solar or wind construction. He discusses countering opposition with trusted local messengers, including firefighters, and better permitting practices.Wed 28 OctHow people are using AI to grieve, love and connect | Jennifer CearnsJennifer Cearns explores how people use AI to grieve, love and find support, arguing that emotional attachment does not mean users mistake AI for human. She cites hundreds of thousands of people maintaining AI relationships with the dead and more than 100 million engaging with AI as a romantic partner, friend or therapist. These connections can prompt reflection or cause distress, so she asks whether they help people flourish.Tue 27 OctHow video games can power up your parenting | Hannah Boquet (re-release)Playing Fortnite with her sons helped Hannah Boquet enter their online world, build connection, and understand the games they loved. She discusses how joining in can open conversations about online safety, and how eSports can develop teamwork, communication, strategy, and emotional skills. Her experience also led her to help launch an accessible, all-ages competition in Sioux Falls.Mon 26 OctUnions for climate action! | Payton M. Wilkins (re-release)Payton M. Wilkins argues that workers should not have to choose between a paycheck and a healthy environment as coal declines, increasingly due to falling renewable-energy costs and coal’s weakening profitability. He makes the case for unions to involve workers early in planning a just transition, securing retraining, federal support and fair terms for new jobs, and points to Denmark’s union-negotiated wind-energy transition as an example.Sun 25 OctSunday Pick: Unlocking Your Power at Work: Kara Swisher on how to get what you want | from FixableOn Fixable, Kara Swisher argues that workers can gain agency by asking for opportunities they want rather than limiting themselves to what’s offered. She explains how to weigh leverage and the costs of speaking up or leaving a job, and why frustration should prompt strategic reflection, not an impulsive exit. For technology leaders, she urges broader study of ethics, history and public policy to help temper the power they wield.Sat 24 OctThe pursuit of happiness requires free time | Danielle RobertsDanielle Roberts argues that free time is not a personal time-management problem but a matter of economic inequality, workplace design, and democratic participation. Productivity gains and technology often bring more work rather than more rest, while caregiving and multiple jobs further limit people’s control over their time. She proposes treating time and rest as rights, and discusses practical changes such as fewer meetings, protected focus time, four-day work weeks, and right-to-disconnect laws.Fri 23 OctCan you spot the lies in your news feed? | Laura SmytheLaura Smythe explains why familiar influencers and viral posts can feel credible without being reliable, and how to check sources, visuals, framing, funding, and omissions before trusting a claim. With 86% of Gen Z getting news through social media and no U.S. national media-literacy standards, she argues verification skills should reach beyond newsrooms. Finland’s K–12 approach offers one model for building those skills and resilience to AI-generated material and deepfakes.Thu 22 OctI can't speak. Here's how I get people to listen | Jessica IrwinJessica Irwin explains how cerebral palsy affects her ability to speak, while leaving her intelligence intact, and why her device’s roughly seven-word-per-minute pace captures only about a quarter of what she wants to say. She shares practical ways to communicate when devices aren’t usable, including agreed yes-or-no signals, and describes training hospital staff to listen rather than misread or overlook nonverbal patients.Wed 21 OctHow would you design your dream city? | James RojasUrban planner James Rojas explains how his “place it” method uses recycled objects and hands-on model-building to help residents share memories, negotiate differences, and imagine their ideal cities. Across workshops, people often prioritize public spaces, transit, gardens, parks, and nature; examples in Tijuana and Phoenix show how community ideas can inform real projects, from a community center to an accessible light rail station.Tue 20 OctWhy the best learners talk to themselves | Tania LombrozoTania Lombrozo explains how talking through a problem and explaining ideas to yourself can deepen learning, help apply knowledge, and expose the illusion of understanding. Explanation can even change how learners interpret information, without adding new facts. As AI tools make answers easier to find and synthesize, she argues that reflection remains essential for spotting what you don’t know and making new information meaningful.Mon 19 OctWhat if you could read the DNA of your future child? | Noor SiddiquiNoor Siddiqui explains how Orchid sequences all three billion DNA bases in IVF embryos to estimate inherited disease risks that chromosome-focused testing can miss. The company combines genomic data with medical records to compare embryos, and Siddiqui says screening five embryos can reduce disease risk by 30% to 50%. The conversation also considers unresolved questions about access and the ethical limits of genetic selection.Sun 18 OctSunday Pick: How to reclaim your narrative (w/ Monica Lewinsky) | from How to Be a Better HumanMonica Lewinsky recounts how the 1998 scandal became a landmark Internet-driven news story, as online judgment and misogynistic abuse turned her into a public caricature. After years away from public life, her 2014 Vanity Fair essay helped her reclaim her narrative—not by reinventing herself, but by making room for who she had been and who she hoped to become. She also discusses nonlinear healing, resilience, and how accountability can coexist with dialogue and redemption.Sat 17 OctInside Venezuela's uncertain path to freedom | Leopoldo LópezLeopoldo López says Venezuela has begun a transition with an uncertain destination: influence has shifted toward the United States from China, Russia, Iran, Cuba and criminal networks, but the country is not fully sovereign. He outlines stabilization, economic recovery and political transition, warning that oil investment must benefit ordinary Venezuelans and the military cannot be excluded. Negotiations over electoral institutions could clarify election milestones by early 2027.Fri 16 OctIs your body language working against you? | Cara Hale AlterCara Hale Alter explains how posture, facial expression, gaze, and voice can undermine the confidence and credibility someone intends to convey. She focuses on posture and speaking volume, showing how small, learnable adjustments can change how others interpret a person. Examples from her coaching illustrate how outside feedback and video can reveal habits that make someone seem less confident or more judgmental than they feel.Thu 15 OctHow to stop homelessness before it starts | Jen LovingJen Loving argues that homelessness prevention starts before eviction, when missed work, illness, or another crisis puts housing at risk. She describes Destination Home’s Silicon Valley model, which combines vulnerability assessments with flexible rent help, landlord coordination, and caseworker support; it has helped more than 44,000 people stay housed. University of Notre Dame research found the model effective and estimated $2.47 in public savings per dollar invested.Wed 14 OctAI brain fry is real. Here’s what leaders can do | Julie BedardJulie Bedard explains why AI “brain fry”—acute mental strain that can bring fog, slower decisions, and more errors—is distinct from burnout, and why rising output can still make work harder and weaken team cohesion. She discusses how leaders can redesign workflows, support employee learning, and keep accountability clear as AI agents take on tasks, while preserving opportunities for junior employees to build judgment.Wed 14 OctAI brain fry is real. Here’s what’s causing it | Julie BedardJulie Bedard describes “AI brain fry” as acute mental strain from overseeing AI, distinct from burnout, and associated with more errors and greater intent to leave—not proof AI causes either. It can arise when review duties are added without redesigning workflows or removing existing tasks. Bedard discusses how managers can ease strain through support, clear accountability and team-level workflow changes, while preserving the experience junior employees need to build judgment.Tue 13 OctWhy it's so hard to listen when you disagree | Emily KasrielEmily Kasriel explains why listening to views we find unacceptable can feel like surrender—and why understanding someone need not mean agreeing or abandoning moral convictions. Drawing on journalism and coaching, she outlines deep-listening practices that begin with noticing our own reactions, and reflects on their value in difficult conversations, from holding a leader to account to navigating political mistrust in Latvia. The episode explores how feeling heard can make reflection possible.Mon 12 OctHow to make parenting less lonely | Stacey McLachlanStacey McLachlan discusses why parenting can make people feel isolated and how close relationships support happiness and well-being. Drawing on her experience creating Witching Hour, family-friendly gatherings at cocktail lounges, she argues that multigenerational “third spaces” can help parents maintain adult friendships while children are included. She also urges businesses and city planners to make ordinary social spaces more welcoming to families.Sun 11 OctSunday Pick: Can AI really teach your kids? with Leah Belsky | from WorkLife with Molly GrahamOpenAI education lead Leah Belsky discusses AI’s promise as a patient, personalized tutor—and why answering questions is not the same as learning. She describes shifting from helping her son use AI to study toward using it to build projects, and argues schools should make room for creation while guarding against cheating and lost practice. Teachers and schools still provide motivation, structure, and relationships AI cannot replace.Sat 10 OctWhy the future is human ... plus AI | Sal Khan and Esther PerelSal Khan warns that AI could compress decades of workplace disruption into a few years, raising the stakes for education built around mastery and durable human skills. Esther Perel argues for “human plus” AI while exploring how technology and changing expectations reshape intimacy, commitment, and connection. Together, they ask how people can adapt without treating learning, work, or relationships as problems to optimize for predictable returns.Fri 9 OctThe three words that saved my life | Blake MycoskieAfter building TOMS into a global brand, Blake Mycoskie says he became depressed and planned to end his life; telling friends and family he was not okay helped save him. He recounts his personal experience tapering off medications after a bipolar misdiagnosis and repeating “I am enough” as part of his recovery. Now, through the We Are Enough Giving Chain, he aims to challenge the shame around mental illness and encourage honest conversations.Thu 8 OctHow imaginary worlds help kids learn | Anna RainioAnna Rainio explains how shared imaginary worlds can help children with different needs participate in learning without having to contribute in the same way. Through stories such as Baba Jaga and the puppet Ruben, adults can turn unexpected behavior into meaningful roles and connect classroom activities to relationships children care about. Rainio argues that this kind of play can open routes into learning that quick refusals or exclusion might close.Wed 7 OctWhat my politically divided family teaches me | Tami PyferTami Pyfer describes how political differences across her family’s five children and parents became manageable when they focused on dignity rather than trying to erase disagreement. She argues that contempt undermines trust, relationships, communities, and democracy, while listening and recognizing others’ humanity make debate possible. Pyfer also explains the Dignity Index, a tool that rates political language from contempt to dignity and can help people notice and reconsider their own words.Tue 6 OctThe wonder of weightlifting | Jaime Seeman (re-release)Jaime Seeman makes the case for weightlifting as a health measure, not a route to a particular appearance, arguing that building muscle can help counter age-related muscle loss and support women’s health. She discusses evidence that resistance training improves strength and functional fitness, including beginner-friendly body-weight and resistance-band exercises. Seeman also challenges cultural fears that lifting will make women excessively muscular and shares how training helped her regain strength and confidence.Mon 5 OctThe secret to lasting love | Eli J FinkelEli Finkel argues that lasting love is built not just on finding a compatible partner but on creating a shared private world of rituals, inside jokes, and meanings—a “love motif.” His research suggests that preferred traits and resemblance do not reliably predict attraction, while couples who leaned more into their distinctive shared experiences reported greater happiness. He advises partners to notice and protect the moments that feel uniquely theirs.