Road salt helps us get around safely during snowy, Chicago winters. But salt is corrosive and harmful for the environment. Could the city ever go without road salt?
Has the US really sent Ukraine $350 billion for its war effort? Is a $500billion cut of Ukraine?s rare earth minerals a good deal? How will the UK fund the governments ambitions to raise defence spending to 3%? But most important of all - how many muscles are in an elephant?s trunk?
Presenter: Tim Harford
Series Producer: Charlotte McDonald
Reporter: Lizzy McNeill
Producers: Nathan Gower and Josh McMinn
Sound Mix: James Beard
Editor: Richard Vadon
Production Co-Ordinator: Brenda Brown
Who pays to use the Panama Canal and how much? These questions are part of the tensions between the U.S. and Panama after President Trump threatened to take over the canal. We look at the global shipping lane's fee structure in light of the president's claim that the U.S. is getting ripped off.
In Europe, Vice President J.D. Vance issued speech-threatening and trade-restricting demands for future American AI systems. Matt Mittlesteadt comments.
President Trump has been on an executive order-signing spree since returning to office, with 76 so far. Today we look at two of them. Can the Fed really split up independent and non-independent roles? And what does DOGE's cost-cutting streak add up to?
Related episodes: Slender Starbucks, Medicaid at risk, and the gold card visa (Apple / Spotify) What happens with billions in research funding goes away (Apple / Spotify) Should presidents have more say over interest rates? (Apple / Spotify)
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
