Is the "Natural Resource Curse" Not Quite True?
Photo: John Foxx Accepted wisdom generally holds that the presence of natural resources in a developing country is bad news, a so-called “natural resource curse.” This view began to emerge…
The team that created the portable MRI: Clarissa Cooley, Jason Stockmann and Larry Wald. (Photo courtesy of the Martinos Center) MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) is the gold standard for soft…
Also: why do we hoard? (Rebroadcast From Ep. 28)…
Khan Academy grew out of Sal Khan’s online math tutorials for his extended family. It’s now a platform used by more than 115 million people in 190 countries. So what…
In the first of two episodes, Zachary Crockett digs into the strange and discomfiting history of cadavers, and the industry that has emerged around them.
We now have more access to TV, movies, and streaming entertainment than anytime in history. So what do we actually know about what all that screen time does to us?…
Could it be that cities are “our greatest invention” – that, despite their reputation as soot-spewing engines of doom, they in fact make us richer, smarter, happier and (gulp) greener?…
From politics and economics to psychology and the arts, many of the modern ideas we take for granted emerged a century ago from a single European capital. In this episode…
Curses and other superstitions may have no basis in reality, but that doesn’t stop us from believing.
Photo: John Foxx Accepted wisdom generally holds that the presence of natural resources in a developing country is bad news, a so-called “natural resource curse.” This view began to emerge…
The Norwegian government parleys massive oil wealth into huge subsidies for electric cars. Is that carbon laundering or just pragmatic environmentalism?
Every language has its taboo words (which many people use all the time). But the list of forbidden words is always changing — and those changes tell us some surprising…
Every language has its taboo words (which many people use all the time). But the list of forbidden words is always changing — and those changes tell us some surprising…
…commodity.” Ghana’s reaction no doubt surprised oil-starved observers in developed countries, but the Ghanaian officials were referring to the “resource curse” that has wreaked havoc in other resource-rich, developing countries….
…And even if you curse the war, you can still help the warrior. Sit was “very disappointed,” he told me, that no other states have set up funds similar to…
…is … Ronaldinho. Whether you want to call it a curse or just a choke, Ronaldinho gave a World Cup performance that was only slightly better than Bode Miller’s Olympics…
What’s the purpose of profanity? Why is cursing on the rise? And will Angela finally swear off swearing?…
He’s a professor of computation and behavioral science at the University of Chicago, MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient, and author. Steve and Sendhil laugh their way through a conversation about the…
Steve usually asks his guests for advice, whether they’re magicians or Nobel laureates. After nearly 60 episodes, is any of it worth following — or should we just ask listeners…
It facilitates crime, bribery, and tax evasion – and yet some governments (including ours) are printing more cash than ever. Other countries, meanwhile, are ditching cash entirely. And if Star…
…of the events they host. I wonder if anyone in those countries’ bid committees ever heard of the winner’s curse? I wonder because bidding for the World Cup is a…
There are 7,000 languages spoken on Earth. What are the costs — and benefits — of our modern-day Tower of Babel? (Part 3 of the “Earth 2.0” series.)…
Caitlin Doughty is a mortician who would like to put herself out of business. Our corporate funeral industry, she argues, has made us forget how to offer our loved ones…
Jim Yong Kim has an unorthodox background for a World Bank president — and his reign thus far is just as unorthodox.
You’ve seen them — everywhere! — and often clustered together, as if central planners across America decided that what every city really needs is a Mattress District. There are now…
Date Length What Exactly Is College For? We think of them as intellectual enclaves and the surest route to a better life. But U.S. colleges also operate like firms,…
We explore votes for English, Indonesian and … Esperanto! The search for a common language goes back millennia, but so much still gets lost in translation. Will technology finally solve…
Trump says it would destroy us. Biden needs the voters who support it (especially the Bernie voters). The majority of millennials would like it to replace capitalism. But what is…
Also: Angela accidentally discovers the secret to a good night’s sleep….
Trump says it would destroy us. Sanders says it will save us. The majority of millennials would like it to replace capitalism. But what is “it”? We bring in the…
