An elephant’s trunk is amazing. Imagine a robotic arm with the same capabilities. Not only does a trunk have the strength to topple trees and lift hundreds of kilograms in weight, it can also perform precise and delicate movements. These unique capabilities inspired engineers to create a ‘bionic handling assistant’, which can be used for all sorts of complex tasks. Thank you to Pranav, a 7-year-old listener from India, for suggesting the first story of the new season.
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Fellow officers long suspected a veteran detective in Antioch, Calif., was leaking operational police secrets to a drug dealer. For years, the department didn't act on their concerns. Even after the detective was finally fired in 2017, his record remained secret. In episode six of On Our Watch we look at the incentives departments have to investigate dishonest cops and what the secrecy around police misconduct means for criminal defendants who are prosecuted on their testimony.
Restaurant delivery apps have made it possible for many of us to order pretty much anything we want to eat with the click of a button. And during the pandemic that convenience became even more valuable. But at what cost? Some restaurant owners say they now need the apps to survive, but resent what they feel to be forced partnerships. And other restaurant owners are finding ways to take the power back. From Recode and the Vox Media Podcast Network in partnership with Eater.
Get ready to meet 30 more amazing animals. From cats to camels, ants to elephants, discover the unexpected things they can do that have inspired new technologies that make us smarter. Season 2 begins on 28 June.
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An officer is repeatedly disciplined for not turning in his police reports on time. A mom goes to the police asking for help with her missing daughters. In the fifth episode of On Our Watch, we look at what can happen when police don't follow through on reports of victimization, and an accountability process that doesn't want to examine those failures.
Big tech is changing every aspect of our world. But how? And at what cost? In this special four-part series, Recode teams up with Eater to unbox the evolving world of food delivery. Find out how the rise of investor-backed third-party delivery apps has dramatically changed consumer behavior, helped create a modern gig workforce, disrupted small businesses, and potentially changed our relationship with food forever. New episodes every Tuesday starting June 22. From Recode, Eater, and the Vox Media Podcast Network, and hosted by Ahmed Ali Akbar.
A 16-year-old Black kid walks into a gas station in Stockton, Calif. to buy gummy worms for his little sister. When the teen gets in an argument with the clerk over a damaged dollar bill, a white officer in plainclothes decides to intervene — with force. In the fourth episode of On Our Watch, we trace the ripple effects of this incident over the next 10 years in a department trying to address racism and bias. But can the chief's efforts at truth and reconciliation work when the accountability process seems to ignore the truth?
Join us as we explore the reasons and decisions that ultimately left millions of Texans in the dark during the crippling winter storm of February 2021. KUT’s Mose Buchele reports on what happened, how we got the electric grid we have today and what could be done to fix it in this limited series podcast.
After his son is shot and killed by a Richmond, Calif. police officer, a father looking for answers becomes a police transparency advocate. When the files about his son's death are released, they show an accountability system that seems to hang on one question: did the officer fear for their life? And in a rare interview, we hear from the officer who pulled the trigger.
One officer in Los Angeles used car inspections to hit on women. In the San Francisco Bay Area, another woman says an officer used police resources to harass and stalk her. The California Highway Patrol quietly fired both of them for sexual harassment, but never looked into whether their misconduct was criminal. The second episode of On Our Watch examines the system of accountability for officers who abuse their power for sex and exposes where that system falls short.
