Innovation Hub
655 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 3 years ago - ★★★★★ - 310 ratingsInnovation 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
When Big Business Wades Into Big Social Issues
August 10, 2018 09:30 - 14 minutes - 16.6 MBIn April, a Starbucks employee in Philadelphia called the police on two black men standing in a store. It was a PR nightmare. So a month later, Starbucks employees underwent a mandatory racial bias training that closed thousands of stores across the country and cost the company millions of dollars. It goes to show that today, people want more from companies. They don’t just expect good products, and quality service — they want company leadership to take stances on major social issue...
When Science Goes To War
August 10, 2018 09:00 - 21 minutes - 24.3 MBGrowing up, Thanksgivings in Jennet Conant’s house were contentious. The Vietnam War was raging, and in Cambridge, MA, student protests were ubiquitous. But Conant’s family was especially combative. Her grandfather, James B. Conant, a former president of Harvard University, had both supervised the production of poison gas during World War I, and oversaw the development of the atomic bomb during World War II. And Conant’s father argued her grandfather wasn’t a scientist who had serve...
The Uncertain Business Of Clean Energy
August 10, 2018 08:30 - 12 minutes - 14.2 MBHybrid cars. Solar energy. Hydropower. In recent years, the federal government and private companies have both paid a lot of attention to clean energy. But, the future of the industry is uncertain — especially in the U.S. We talk with Carnegie Mellon University professor and Aquion Energy founder, Jay Whitacre, about the advancement of new energy technology.
Full Show: Bring On The Competition (Rebroadcast)
August 03, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.6 MBFirst, U.S. News releases its college rankings each year to much fanfare. But are they actually hurting higher ed? We ask journalist Scott Jaschik and U.S. News’ Robert Morse. Then, there will be 10 billion people on the planet by 2050. That’s a lot of mouths to feed. Can we do it without destroying Earth’s resources? We talk with science writer Charles Mann about the different approaches to tackling this problem. Finally, you’ve heard the name Martin Shkreli, but there are many...
Are College Rankings Actually Useful?
August 03, 2018 09:30 - 13 minutes - 15.4 MBIn 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.
Feeding A Growing Global Population
August 03, 2018 09:00 - 17 minutes - 19.9 MBThe global population is steadily climbing, and by 2050, scientists expect that 10 billion people will call Earth home. This got science writer Charles Mann wondering: How are we going to feed all of those mouths without completely destroying the planet? Mann explores this question in his new book, “The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow’s World.” We talk with him about whether innovation, conservation, or some mixture of th...
Why Americans Pay So Much For Drugs
August 03, 2018 08:30 - 16 minutes - 19.3 MBIn 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.
Full Show: Finding Order In Chaos
July 27, 2018 10:00 - 50 minutes - 45.8 MBFirst: 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?
From Scurvy to Surgery: The History Of Randomized Trials
July 27, 2018 09:30 - 20 minutes - 18.8 MBThink 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.
The Origin Of The Origin Of Species
July 27, 2018 09:00 - 17 minutes - 15.8 MBThis 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 “Darw...
When Your Schedule Sabotages You
July 27, 2018 08:30 - 10 minutes - 9.97 MBImagine 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.
Full Show: Watch What You Eat
July 20, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.7 MBToday, 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 kee...
How The Food Network Went From Bust To Big Time
July 20, 2018 09:30 - 18 minutes - 21.7 MBIf 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 a...
The Future Of Food Shopping
July 20, 2018 09:00 - 17 minutes - 19.8 MBWhen 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.
From Delmonico’s To Howard Johnson’s
July 20, 2018 08:30 - 12 minutes - 14 MB2015 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.
Full Show: Define The Relationship
July 13, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 68.2 MBFirst: 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 ...
The Benefits Of Big Business
July 13, 2018 09:30 - 20 minutes - 23.8 MBEver 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. ...
Precision Makes Perfect
July 13, 2018 09:00 - 20 minutes - 18.6 MBWe 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.
Friendly Minds Think Alike
July 13, 2018 08:30 - 7 minutes - 8.32 MBChoosing 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.
Timing Is Everything (Rebroadcast)
July 06, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.9 MBWe’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 ch...
When To Do Everything
July 06, 2018 09:30 - 20 minutes - 23.1 MBDoes 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."
A Closer Look At Shaving History
July 06, 2018 09:00 - 3 minutes - 4.29 MBIf 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.
Fighting Food Allergies
July 06, 2018 08:30 - 18 minutes - 20.9 MBDid 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...
Is Our Approach To Handling Rats All Wrong?
July 06, 2018 08:00 - 6 minutes - 7.22 MBRats: 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.
Full Show: Red, White, And New
June 29, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 57 MBFirst, 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.
The Life And Legacy Of Grace Hopper
June 29, 2018 09:30 - 16 minutes - 19.1 MBShe’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.”
The Birth Of Chocolate In America
June 29, 2018 09:00 - 15 minutes - 18.3 MBAmericans 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, an...
Rodney Brooks Predicts The Future (Kinda)
June 29, 2018 08:30 - 16 minutes - 18.4 MBIf 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.
Full Show: Crossing Boundaries And Borders
June 22, 2018 10:00 - 50 minutes - 57.2 MBFirst: 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 for...
How Did It Come To This? The Evolution Of Immigration
June 22, 2018 09:30 - 16 minutes - 19.4 MBIt 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.”
The Lasting Trauma From The Border
June 22, 2018 09:00 - 15 minutes - 17.3 MBIn 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 ...
The Invention Of Human Rights
June 22, 2018 08:30 - 16 minutes - 19.1 MBWe 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.
Full Show: History Repeats
June 15, 2018 10:00 - 50 minutes - 57.4 MBFirst: 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...
Can An Algorithm Keep Kids Safe?
June 15, 2018 09:30 - 20 minutes - 23.1 MBWhen 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 ...
Why Nostalgia Is Healthy
June 15, 2018 09:00 - 19 minutes - 21.9 MBPlaying 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.
When Libraries And Journalism Collide
June 15, 2018 08:30 - 9 minutes - 10.9 MBIt’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 librari...
Full Show: A Game Of Wits
June 08, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 39.3 MBFirst: American universities minted hundreds of thousands of savvy professionals in the latter half of the 20th century. We explore how those educated, creative thinkers may have - inadvertently - caused America’s decades-long decline. Next: We talk with Harvard University professor Elizabeth Hinton about whether free education for people in prison makes sense. Then: Do you think you’re smart? Probably. But are you rational? There’s a difference between the two, and it matters mo...
The Unexpected Reason Behind America’s Decline
June 08, 2018 09:30 - 18 minutes - 14.4 MBOur trust in government is at historic lows. Inequality is at historic highs. Americans are more pessimistic about the future. It can seem like the United States is in decline. And Steven Brill, author of “Tailspin: The People And Forces Behind America’s Fifty-Year Fall - And Those Fighting To Reverse It.” says that’s true… though not for the reasons you might think.
Should Prisoners Have Access To A College Degree?
June 08, 2018 09:00 - 15 minutes - 12.1 MBDespite having less than 5 percent of the world’s population, the United States has nearly 25 percent of the world’s prison population. According to Elizabeth Hinton, an associate history professor at Harvard University, America’s prison system is unlike anything the world has ever seen. She says it’s crucial that we focus on rehabilitating inmates through educational activities inside prisons. We talked with her about the past, and the uncertain future, of prison education in Ameri...
Rationality vs. Intelligence
June 08, 2018 08:30 - 14 minutes - 11.8 MBHave you ever taken an IQ test? Think about the results. Did you do well? You might have gotten a high score, but, often, intelligence doesn’t have anything to do with rationality. There is a marked difference between the two, although we often conflate them. We talk with York University associate professor Maggie Toplak and Boston University professor Carey Morewedge about why even smart people do irrational things.
Full Show: A Numbers Game
June 01, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.9 MBFirst: We ask a couple of public opinion experts how technology has made polling more convenient but less consistent - and what they see coming in 2018. Then: Have you ever wondered who really owns that quaint craft beer you love? We investigate why large corporations often buy out their smaller, less-efficient competitors - and how limiting competition is bad news for both consumers and workers. Finally: Economist John Quiggin tells us why he thinks generational labels like baby...
Why Polling Matters
June 01, 2018 09:30 - 18 minutes - 21.4 MBIf you ever watch, listen, or read the news, you’ll hear about political polls. There are polls for almost everything: Special congressional races, the popularity of the Iran Nuclear Deal, and, of course, the president’s approval rating. According to polling experts Courtney Kennedy and Fred Yang, the barriers to conducting wide-reaching polls have diminished over the past several years, allowing new pollsters to enter the fray. We look at why not all polls are created equal.
From Beer To Airlines, Corporate Consolidation Is All Around Us
June 01, 2018 09:00 - 15 minutes - 18.1 MBIf you go to your local liquor store or beer cellar, it may seem like you have thousands of options. And there’s certainly a lot of beer on the shelves. Not just Michelob or Miller Lite, but smaller-batch brews with names like Spitting Hobo or Dead Dragon. But though there might be a huge number of beer varieties, the American beer industry is mostly controlled by a handful of breweries that control nearly 90 percent of the American beer market. And this consolidation isn’t only a ...
Kids These Days...And Yesterday, And Tomorrow
June 01, 2018 08:30 - 13 minutes - 15.6 MBEconomist John Quiggin wants to change the way we talk about millennials. That is, he thinks we should stop talking about them altogether. In a recent New York Times editorial, Quiggin argued that the notion of generations is a pop-culture myth. He thinks we should focus on how people are affected by more significant traits like class, gender, and age.
Full Show: Life’s Tangled Web
May 25, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.4 MBFirst up, our family tree; or rather, our family web. According to geneticist Adam Rutherford, investigating the human genome can answer a lot of questions about human history. And the answers aren’t always expected. From mixing our genes with Neanderthals, to genetic lineages that would make Jaime Lannister proud, to the link (or lack thereof) between race health, Rutherford tells us all about the surprising secrets of our species. Then: The modern workplace wasn’t designed for wo...
The Human Story Behind Our Genes
May 25, 2018 09:30 - 18 minutes - 21.4 MBAs scientists apply our new understanding of the human genome to genetics, we’re getting answers to big-picture questions about our species. What is race? How did humanity spread around the globe? How should we pick a mate (genetically speaking)? We talk with Adam Rutherford, geneticist and author of “A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived: The Human Story Retold Through Our Genes,” about the history of our genes, and what they reveal about our species.
The Conversation High-Powered Couples Need To Have
May 25, 2018 09:00 - 13 minutes - 15.7 MBThe number of women running Fortune 500 companies is higher than it’s ever been. And yet, there are only 32 female CEOs on that list. So… why aren’t there more high-powered women in positions of power? There are a multitude of reasons, but according to Avivah Wittenberg-Cox, author of the article “If you Can’t Find a Spouse Who Supports Your Career, Stay Single,” part of the issue lies with the support these women are receiving.
Designing Your Life
May 25, 2018 08:30 - 15 minutes - 18 MBWe all want fun and rewarding careers and personal lives. But, we never really learn how to achieve our life goals in college. Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, Stanford professors and co-authors of “Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived, Joyful Life,” invented a college course to change just that.
Full Show: Workplace Connections
May 18, 2018 10:00 - 49 minutes - 56.9 MBYou don’t have to fish for tuna to have a dangerous job. Stanford’s Jeffrey Pfeffer tells us why toxic workplaces lead to an enormous number of health problems. How weaving rugs can empower Afghan women. Everything is online nowadays. But what does that mean for the one in five Americans who can’t reliably access the internet?
The Health Risks Of A Toxic Workplace
May 18, 2018 09:30 - 18 minutes - 21.4 MBWhen you think of dangerous work, you probably conjure up images of crab fishermen braving the frigid Atlantic, lumberjacks operating chainsaws, or truckers navigating icy roads. You probably don’t think of late nights at the office, or working overtime at the cash register. But maybe you should. Jeffrey Pfeffer, a professor of organizational behavior at Stanford University, argues that seemingly-innocuous workplaces have become increasingly bad for our health over the past few de...