Cobalt is the most important mineral of the future. It’s a key part of lithium-ion batteries, which power cell phones and laptops, not to mention electric cars. That demand is giving rise to a mining industry in Idaho, which sits atop a giant cobalt deposit. But the environmental costs of extraction raise questions about what “clean energy” really means.
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What do university students in Britain and Trump voters in the United States have in common? They're lonely. In fact, Noreena Hertz says, loneliness is the defining feature of this century, thanks to a host of drivers ranging from the technological to the economic. The Progress Network founder Zachary Karabell joins Noreena, an economist and author of The Lonely Century, as she elucidates whether we're really more lonely than we used to be, what has led, pandemic aside, to our current state of hyper-loneliness, and which solutions—individual, governmental, and entrepreneurial—she thinks are the best bet for reconnecting us.
We are such stuff as griefs are made on, and our little play is rounded with some swelling music. We're discussing the rest of Station Eleven, and what it says about our relationship to the past.
Author Imani Perry is a child of the South. In her newest book South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation, she gives the reader a look at the South's complicated history, interwoven with her own personal anecdotes. Even though the South has a difficult history, Perry contends, it provides important context for America today. Perry told NPR's Mary Louise Kelly that in order to write this book she had to stop romanticizing the place she calls home – and, instead, look at it starkly.
In part 2 of our special Lunar New Years episode Mia is joined by JN and Jane once again to talk about the difficultly of maintaining Chinese leftist principles in broader left organizing spaces and also whether we should rt year of the tiger art before the Lunar New Year
Rob explores the joy, terror, and fulfillment of fatherhood through one of classic rock’s dynamic frontmen, Tom Petty. Rob runs down Petty’s career, including his MTV music video impact, the ‘Wildflowers’ standout “It’s Good to Be King,” and how Petty prepared him for the most transformative experience of his life. Plus, a big announcement about the future of the show.
This episode was originally produced as a Music and Talk show available exclusively on Spotify. Find the full song on Spotify or wherever you get your music.
We continue our mining of Gary Hart’s wisdom, as the former Senator, and Presidential candidate weighs in on the sort of questions a public and political intellectual confronts over a lifetime. How can we think about Ukraine and Russia in light of our past? Would tensions between the US and Russia today be particularly different if Gary Hart had won the presidency in 1988, given the story he tells about his prospective inauguration? The richness of a conversation with Gary Hart is such that even a passing reference produces a new insight on how the Cold War might have taken a different path. We hear inside references on what it’s like to run for President from a principal player in 3 presidential races: 1974, 1984, and 1988. Inevitably, stories never before heard emerge, and they are here for you to savor.
NFTs have exploded in popularity in the past year. But what are they, really?
“NFT All-Stars,” CoinDesk’s new animated series, brings together a star-studded panel of investors, curators and innovators to debate, explain and laugh about all things NFTs. The hosts are the true OGs of NFTs: Blockade Games CEO Marguerite deCourcelle, EDM innovator, DJ, and NFT artisan BT, ClubNFT CEO Artnome, and Highstreet co-founder Jenny Guo.
Joining this episode is Pete Holmes, stand up comedian well known for "The Pete Holmes Show" and "Crashing.” Holmes and the hosts imagine the possibilities for NFTs in the entertainment industry. Last year, Homes embarked on a NFT-comedy fusion exploration with "Non-Fungible Jokin'," the world's first live NFT comedy special.
NFTs were all the rage in 2021, with digital collectibles like Bored Apes and CryptoPunks rapidly becoming status symbols for the new rich. Then, the digital and traditional art worlds collided head-on when a Beeple collection sold for millions at Christie's.
NFT visionaries have since pushed the boundaries of what is possible with the new technology, creating NFTs for almost every creative project imaginable. What’s next?
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Part 2 of an interview with Professor Jonathan Gottschall who says Netflix is to narrative what the Golden Corral is to portion control. In the Spiel a listen to all 3 hours of Joe Rogan's most criticized interview, with insights on the Nuremberg Codes and the shocking accusation that Anthony Faucci conspired to quash evidence, which he definitely didn't do.
Ravi, Cory, and Rikki start things off with Spotify’s response to controversy over their top podcaster, Joe Rogan. We then discuss what’s behind an unsettling spike in book bans across the country. Americans are moving out of cities, but just how many? We delve into the urban exodus. Rikki walks us through a controversial criminal sentencing in Los Angeles that’s going underreported. And finally, a Twitter troll is tracking Elon Musk’s jet.
