30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Insects and mobile phone

S2 Ep 30. Smart phones could become even smarter – thanks to ants, beetles, moths and spiders! A multi-animal special episode, marking the season 2 finale. Patrick explores what could be an insect inspired phone of the future! There’s the story of the fire ants and bark beetles and a new camera lens with a much greater field of view. The hairs on butterflies, moths and spiders could help with an amazing new microphone. Moths might make it easier to look at our phones in bright sunlight. There’s also a waterproof, anti-bacterial cover which could be based on the wings of cicadas. Thanks for listening and please help us spread the word. #30Animals

30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Slug and surgical glue

S2 Ep 28. From goo to super glue! Slug slime may hold the key to mending wounds without stitches or staples. Scientists have developed new adhesives based on the properties of slug slime, that are as sticky as any glue, stretchier than a rubber band and aren’t toxic to humans. This sticky substance could be used to repair a delicate organ like the heart or lung without using methods that could damage the organ. Get in touch: www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals #30Animals

30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Dragonfly and sky spy

S2 Ep 27. The amazing agility of a dragonfly leads to the creation of a new spy drone. Their four wings can move independently of each other, enabling them to fly forwards, backwards, sideways, up and down and suddenly stop and hover like a helicopter. This caught the attention of engineers who wanted to develop a small drone that could be used by the military as a spying device. In the future, this sort of technology might send back pictures from areas where it’s too dangerous for humans to go. Get in touch: www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals #30Animals

30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Kingfisher and soil erosion

S2 Ep 26. A very clever solution to a significant environmental problem based on a kingfisher’s eyelids. When the brightly coloured bird dives for food, its eyes are covered in a way that protects the kingfisher’s eyeballs, rather like swimming goggles protect ours. Architects have copied this design to help prevent soil erosion on the banks of the huge Three Gorges Dam in China. Get in touch: www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals #30Animals

City of the Future - Episode 20: The ”S” in ESG

E-S-G. If you haven’t heard that term before, it stands for Environmental, Social, and Governance. It’s a framework that investors use to help them decide whether or not to put money into a company. Over the last 20 years, investors have increasingly embraced the “E” in ESG, and ESG funds are now consistently driving strong returns. In fact, 2020 was the biggest year for ESG-investing yet.  

With the events of 2020, the “S” of ESG — which includes some of society’s toughest problems, like economic opportunity and racial inequity — has come to the forefront. Investors are, more and more, pursuing socially-minded ESG investments. And this pivot has huge implications for real estate, as investors are now ready and willing to lend capital to real estate companies that are pursuing projects with real social and racial impact.

But what do those projects look like, and how can real estate transform the development process to achieve them? As we’ve explored throughout this season of City of the Future, developing socially-minded projects is a complex undertaking. Our season finale explores ways developers can begin to figure out what this “S” piece of ESG means. And if they can, it’s not just real estate that will benefit — our cities will, too.

In this episode:

  • [00:00 - 05:34] The founder and CEO of Green Generation, Brad Dockser, describes investors’ embrace of the “E” of ESG.
  • [05:35 - 8:29] Associate director of inclusive development at Sidewalk Labs, Chrystal Dean, explains why it’s time for development to tackle the “S” of ESG.
  • [08:30 - 15:07] The principal and CEO of Direct Invest Development, Carlton Brown, talks about the kinds of long-term, socially-minded metrics developers need to track.
  • [15:08 - 19:22] Director of development and external affairs for Farpoint Development, Morgan Malone, explains how to create social metrics in collaboration with communities.
  • [19:23 - 27:07] The hosts, Vanessa Quirk and Eric Jaffe, discuss the development business case for socially-minded projects with associate director of inclusive development at Sidewalk Labs, Chrystal Dean.

To see images and videos of topics discussed in this episode, read the link-rich transcript on our Sidewalk Talk Medium page at https://bit.ly/3GB3zoU.

City of the Future is hosted by Eric Jaffe and Vanessa Quirk, and produced by Guglielmo Mattioli. Story editing by Rough Cut Collective and Benjamin Walker. Mix is by Andrew Callaway. Art is by Tim Kau. Our music is composed by Adaam James Levin-Areddy of Lost Amsterdam. Special thanks to Brad Dockser, Carlton Brown, Chrystal Dean, and Morgan Malone.

30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Bees and fast deliveries

Sweet moves! Honey bees have developed an extraordinary form of communication known as the “waggle dance”, which directs other bees to where the best nectar can be found. As more and more bees explore the area, their directions become more refined. This method of refining information has been copied into an algorithm to help delivery drivers save time and fuel, without the need to plot journeys by hand. Get in touch: www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals #30Animals

City of the Future - Episode 19: Next-Gen Manufacturing

In the early 20th century, many U.S. factories were located in urban cores, where workers could easily access their jobs. But the benefit of proximity also meant workers lived near loud, polluting factories. And as we know from the history of zoning in the U.S., low-income people frequently had no option but to live in neighborhoods built around intense industrial use.

The consequences of those land use decisions are felt most severely today by communities of color, who continue to suffer from higher rates of health issues like asthma and cancer. So bringing manufacturing back to urban neighborhoods — especially neighborhoods that may have been exposed to the harms of the industry — may seem fraught. But it also offers an opportunity to right some of these historic wrongs.

In this week’s episode of City of the Future, we explore the idea of bringing a new generation of cleaner, greener manufacturing facilities back into our urban cores. We talk to folks at Buffalo’s Northland Workforce Training Center, the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and the Boston-based development Indigo Block. We also consider the potential for next-gen manufacturing to create wealth-generating opportunities for people who need it, jumpstart development in disinvested communities — and even provide a new, more resilient economic model for our cities.

In this episode:

  • [00:00 - 1:33] A brief history of urban manufacturing in the U.S. from World War II to present.
  • [1:34-5:32] We interview an expert in workforce development, Stephen Tucker, in Buffalo, New York about Northland Workforce Training Center, an organization with a mission to prepare local residents for careers in advanced manufacturing and clean energy.
  • [6:44 - 8:56] Hosts Vanessa Quirk and Eric Jaffe discuss how the 20th-century history of zoning and land-use decisions around manufacturing negatively impacted low-income and Black neighborhoods.
  • [8:57 - 16:24] The Brooklyn Navy Yard’s chief development officer Johanna Greenbaum introduces us to different folks who work at the Yard’s next-gen manufacturing companies, including Nanotronics’ chief operating officer, James Williams.
  • [16:25 - 25:50] We talk to Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation’s director of real estate, Beth O’Donnell, and director of strategy and development, Kimberly Lyle who show us around one of their most recent projects, Indigo Block — a real live next-gen manufacturing ecosystem!

To see images and videos of topics discussed in this episode, read the link-rich transcript on our Sidewalk Talk Medium page at https://bit.ly/3rSbrys.

City of the Future is hosted by Eric Jaffe and Vanessa Quirk, and produced by Guglielmo Mattioli. Story editing by Rough Cut Collective and Benjamin Walker. Mix is by Andrew Callaway. Art is by Tim Kau. Our music is composed by Adaam James Levin-Areddy of Lost Amsterdam. Special thanks to Stephen Tucker, Johanna Greenbaum, James Williams, Beth O’Donnell, Kimberly Lyle, Alison Novak, Jesse Shapins, and Chrystal Dean.

30 Animals That Made Us Smarter - Jellyfish and underwater robot

S2 Ep 24. The world’s most efficient swimmer is the moon jellyfish! It’s the inspiration for a soft underwater robot that is safe enough to use in fragile environments like coral reefs and aquatic archaeological sites. By contracting a ring of muscle, the jellyfish can push water out of their bell-shaped bodies, thrusting them forwards without using much energy at all. Get in touch: www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals #30Animals