Month: May 2025

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The Indicator from Planet Money - It’s actually really hard to make a robot, guys

Robots have been a thing for a long time, but they've never quite met expectations. While AI has changed the game for chatbots, it's not quite so clear for robots. NPR science desk correspondent Geoff Brumfiel spoke to our colleagues over on our science podcast Short Wave on how humanoid robots are actually developing with the help of artificial intelligence. It was a fascinating discussion and so we are sharing that conversation with you today on the Indicator.

Related episodes:
Is AI underrated? (Apple / Spotify)
Is AI overrated? (Apple / Spotify)
Dial M for Mechanization (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

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NPR's Book of the Day - Isabel Allende’s latest historical novel draws from her time at a women’s magazine

While crafting her latest novel, Isabel Allende says she wanted to tell the story of the Chilean Civil War of 1891 from the perspective of a neutral party. She decided to make her protagonist a female writer who uses a male pen name and convinces an editor to hire her as a war correspondent. In today's episode, Allende joins Here & Now's Deepa Fernandes to talk about My Name is Emilia Del Valle. They discuss the feminist spirit throughout the author's body of work, their shared interest in pushing back against dominant narratives, and Fernandes' personal relationship to Allende's work.

To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - The War Over Pete Hegseth

Despite being perhaps the least experienced person to ever hold his position, Pete Hegseth has set about dramatically reforming the Department of Defense to Donald Trump’s specifications—which seem to have less to do with creating a more effective fighting force, and more to do with window dressing.

Guest: Tom Bowman, Pentagon reporter for NPR.

Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther.


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What Could Go Right? - Introducing The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women (HERO)

Today we’re sharing an episode of a podcast from our friends at Foreign Policy called The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women (HERO).


It’s a series about women creating change through economic empowerment and it features female leaders from across the world. This episode was recorded live at this year's Munich Security Conference and focuses on the economic and security implications of halting overseas development assistance, especially on women and girls around the globe. Foreign Policy editor-in-chief Ravi Agrawal hosts this important conversation.


If you like it, you can listen to more episodes of The Hidden Economics of Remarkable Women (HERO) at https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-economics-of-remarkable-women-hero/id1572532247

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It Could Happen Here - The Irish Far Right/Neo-Nazi Movement

Robert sits down with Irish author Padraig O Ruairc to discuss the growth of Ireland's far right anti-immigrant movement since COVID, and what can be done to stop it.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Good Bad Billionaire - Strive Masiyiwa: Connecting a continent

Telecoms magnate Strive Masiyiwa escaped kidnap to become Zimbabwe’s first billionaire.

BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng tell Masiyiwa’s story from a youth fleeing post-colonial conflict, through education in the UK, to enormous wealth delivering mobile phone and internet technology across Africa.

The podcast that tells tales of titans of technology, Wall Street moguls, pop stars, sporting legends, CEOs and entrepreneurs also details Masiyiwa’s many court battles and run-ins with Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe. Then Simon and Zing decide if Masiyiwa is good, bad, or just another billionaire.

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The Economics of Everyday Things - 92. Data Centers

Where is “the cloud,” anyway? It’s in a bunch of nondescript warehouses all over the country. Zachary Crockett serves up the story.

 

  • SOURCES: 
    • Chris Kimm, senior vice president of global customer care and customer experience at Equinix.
    • Raul Martynek, C.E.O. of DataBank.
    • Clayton Rosati, associate professor of geography at Bowling Green State University.

 

 

 

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PBS News Hour - Science - One woman’s mission to help save cheetahs from extinction

Cheetahs, the fastest mammals on Earth, are now in a race against extinction. It’s estimated that fewer than 7,000 exist in the wild. John Yang speaks with Laurie Marker, a woman who has already helped dramatically reduce one threat to cheetahs and is tackling new ones that have emerged, for our Weekend Spotlight. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders