A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, And Have We Really Thought This Through?
Attention Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos: What on earth are you thinking?! Settling in space is fraught with monumental challenges. Here, serious and funny spaceheads Kelly and Zach Weinersmith discuss some of them — the effects of partial gravity on sex and having babies, food and energy production, laws that govern space society, and more.
President of Rockefeller Foundation and Former Head of USAID Raj Shah on Big Bets and Transforming The Face of Human Poverty On The Planet
Imagine a world in which no child starves to death and electricity is available to just about all. Raj Shah, President of the Rockefeller Foundation, has a plan for making it happen: making big bets — the kind that have worked to vaccinate 900 million children and stop the spread of Ebola. Learn why thinking big is key to solving big challenges.
Why The Use Of Group Identity To Pursue Social Justice May Fail To Achieve Its Noble Goals
The attempt across much of America to achieve social justice by advantaging people based on their identity is noble and well-intended. It’s also misguided and destined to fail. So says Yascha Mounk, a professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Listen as he explains the need for a shared humanity.
How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die
Why does the feeling of inequality lead some people to make self-defeating decisions? Why does feeling poor sometimes have a more powerful effect on people than actually being poor? How can people avoid the damage caused by feeling “less than?” Keith Payne, a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina, has answers.
The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business: Setting the Table with Union Square Hospitality Group Founder & Chairman Danny Meyer
“Business, like life, is all about how you make people feel. It’s that simple, and it’s that hard. In the end, what’s most meaningful is creating positive, uplifting outcomes.”
Danny Meyer, founder and Chairman of Union Square Hospitality Group, whose restaurants have won an unprecedented 28 James Beard Awards, several three Michelin stars, and a Julia Child Award, says he once thought he was primarily in the business of serving good food but learned that food is secondary to something that matters even more. He shares on delivering uplifting outcomes and outstanding hospitality.
Learn The Latest Findings On How Working Remotely Effects Productivity, Hiring, Real Estate, And More
Working remotely is having a dramatic impact across a wide swath of society — including how and where we live, how business is run, real estate values, hiring practices, and more. But its impact on productivity is minimal. Here, Stanford’s Nick Bloom shares his latest findings on working from home and what we can expect in the future.
How An Innovative, Global Vaccine Alliance Accomplished What No Other Organization Could
Now for some wonderful news. There’s a global public-private alliance that has done what no other organization could: helped vaccinate almost half the world’s children, about a billion, against deadly and debilitating diseases. Learn about Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, from its CEO Seth Berkley, and the innovative funding mechanisms that have helped it succeed.
Livewired: Creating New Senses For Humans
A wristband that enables deaf people to “hear.” Brain implants that enable you to control a robotic arm. Neurotechnology that enables blind people to “see.” In this mind-boggling talk, Stanford neuroscientist David Eagleman reveals how the brain’s plasticity and breakthroughs in neurotech are enabling us to ask: How do you want to experience the universe? What kind of senses and body do you want to have?
Learning from the Best: A Nobel Laureate's Journey to Understand the Secrets of School Quality
Why do some schools routinely produce high-performing students? How truly important is class size? Why do charter schools typically outperform regular schools — is it the schools themselves, the students they attract, or a combination of both? Get ready to be educated on crucial issues of education by Nobel Prize laureate Joshua Angrist.
War In The Age of AI. A Chilling, Mind-Blowing Talk With A Former Pentagon Defense Expert
The transformation to AI-enabled warfare is happening at breakneck speed. The stakes are huge and — given the sophistication and vulnerability of the weapons systems — so are the risks. Former Pentagon defense expert Paul Scharre explains in chilling detail how the future of global security is at stake and how AI changes everything.
Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked
Tech companies, including Apple, Facebook, Netflix, and others, go to great lengths to hook us and keep us addicted to their devices and programs. The deliberateness and details of how they do it are shocking. And the addiction is so harmful, many tech execs (like Steve Jobs) don’t allow their own kids to use the devices. Listen, and learn from NYU’s Adam Alter.
Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders?
Why do we have so many incompetent male leaders in both government and the private sector? According to a University College London professor, we focus too much on stylistic indicators like charisma and confidence. What are the best traits for effective leaders? Are female leaders different? Who are examples of great leaders? Listen and learn.
Hear, Here: The President and CEO of NY’s Metropolitan Museum On Its Critical Role In Modern Life
New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is a beloved and important cultural icon. Here, its President and CEO, Dan Weiss, shares his brilliant insight into the essential role of art museums in contemporary life, the astonishing growth of the Met’s online audience, how technology helps satisfy the human need to connect with art, and more.
Learn Why A Nobel Prize Winning Economist Says Extreme Global Poverty Is “Entirely Solvable”
Now for some good news: According to Abhijit Banerjee, a Nobel Prize winner for his work fighting poverty, extreme global poverty is “entirely solvable.” Hear what this practical visionary says about the necessity and limitations of aid, why the poor often end up with harmful healthcare, and the surprising optimism of many who are impoverished.
Now Hear This: Non-Humans Communicate Highly Complex Information Through Sound
Breakthroughs in bio-acoustic technology are enabling scientists, including Karen Bakker, to “hear” an astonishing assortment of sounds made by animals, insects, and even plants. The implications are stunning, will impact environmental governance, and may fundamentally alter our relationships with other species.
Magic Words: Cutting-Edge Revelations on Language That Can Dramatically Increase Your Impact
Some words have extraordinary power to help us persuade others, build stronger relationships, improve customer satisfaction, and captivate audiences. Here, Wharton professor Jonah Berger reveals six key types of magic words that can dramatically increase your impact and help you get what you want. Words matter, especially these.
Airbnb Global Head of Hosting on Travel and Work, What Some Of The Most Fabulous Airbnbs Are, And Curiosity As A Core Value
Don't miss this wide-ranging conversation with Airbnb global head of hosting Catherine Powell on the blurring of business and leisure travel, what some of the most unusual and fabulous Airbnb experiences are, how a company actually executes on core values like curiosity and the keys to post-pandemic leadership.
A Former OSHA Head Exposes the Science of Deception That Allows Dangerous Chemicals To Go Unregulated
There is massive, well-funded deception that enables many toxic chemicals and products to go unregulated — says former OSHA head David Michaels. He calls it the science of deception and the manufacture of doubt. Listen, as he explains in shocking detail how corporations pay for corrupt science and disinformation to influence government agencies, and where it’s happening today.
“We have this image that the government is protecting us [from toxic chemicals] and I saw from the inside that this is not the case.”
A Noted MIT Dean on the Age of AI and the Rapidly Evolving Relationship Between AI and Humans
AI is transforming society. We can still determine how. Dan Huttenlocher, MIT dean and co-author with Henry Kissinger and Eric Schmidt of The Age of AI, discusses how and why we need to partner with this foundational technology. He also shares some surprising examples how AI is being integrated into the basic fabric of human activity.
“It’s critical that we do not interact with AI as if it were human.”
The Battle for Your Brain: The Emerging World of Neurotechnology, Brain Hacking and Thought Control
Brain sensors embedded in watches. Earbuds that decode our brainwaves. Neurotechnology that reads our emotions and thoughts, and can be used to manipulate them. It sounds like science fiction, but it’s science fact. Don’t miss this chilling and cautionary talk with Duke professor Nita Farahany, author of The Battle for Your Brain.