Sustainability
88 episodes · Page 2 of 4
#4286: How Print Reading Changes Your Brain vs. Google News
Print readers understand news better. Here's what the research says about how the medium shapes your comprehension.
#3982: Can AliEver Be Ethical?
Why a package from China arrives faster than one from 20km away — and what that says about sustainable shopping.
#3969: Socotra: Can You Actually Visit Yemen's Alien Island?
Dragon blood trees, war zone sovereignty, and an Israeli passport — the real questions about visiting Socotra in 2026.
#3963: The Eurobox Dilemma: Best Available vs. Good
Is durable plastic a genuine sustainability win or just slower waste? A deep dive into Euroboxes, supply chains, and material lock-in.
#3660: From Tweak to Revolution: Fixing Capitalism
A spectrum of proposals from better disclosure to degrowth — mapping every idea for fixing or replacing capitalism.
#3606: The Secret World of Dumpster Diving
What people really find in dumpsters—from $4,000 espresso machines to historical love letters.
#3580: The Fish That Changed Israel's Coastline
From psychedelic bream to invading rabbitfish — a tour of Israel's underwater world and the dinner plate.
#3429: IKEA's Hidden Waste: When Storage Bins Don't Fit
IKEA changes product dimensions every nine days. The environmental cost of those missing millimeters? Nobody's measuring it.
#3324: How Companies Actually Measure Their Carbon Emissions
Spreadsheets, supplier calls, and accounting choices that can change your reported emissions by 10x.
#3256: The Seasteading Dream That Sank
Silicon Valley tried to build floating nations. The ocean and the law had other plans.
#3205: Why Pomegranate Wine Isn't Everywhere
Pomegranate wine is 8,000 years old—older than the pyramids. So why can't you find it in stores?
#3143: How a Swiss Sub "Sank" a US Carrier
Inside the adjudication pipeline that turned a simulated torpedo into a real Navy crisis.
#3115: How Many Scientists Actually Live at the Poles?
The surprising answer: ~850 in Antarctic summer, ~400 in winter, and effectively zero at the North Pole.
#3102: Fighting at -40°C and +55°C
What happens to soldiers and equipment when the environment is the real enemy.
#3069: Why UV Index and Temperature Don't Match
Why Israel hit a UV index of 11 while the thermometer barely reached 28°C.
#3005: The Zoo Question: 4,000 Years of Captivity
31 sloths died at Sloth World. The USDA knew. The facility stayed open. A look at 4,000 years of zoos and whether they can ever be ethical.
#3000: The 94%: Canada's Empty North
94% of Canadian territory has zero permanent residents. How does a modern state govern the other 97%?
#2992: The Three Lives of Za'atar: Plant, Spice, Identity
A wild herb became a global spice blend. Now overharvesting threatens the hillsides where it grew for millennia.
#2979: How a Leaky Pipe Revolutionized Global Agriculture
The most transformative agricultural invention of the 20th century was a plastic tube with holes. Why does it still only cover 10% of irrigated land?
#2978: Wine from the Desert and the Latitude of Greenland
How 80 countries now make wine — including desert vineyards and farms near the Arctic Circle.
#2967: Concessional vs Catalytic Capital Explained
Development finance isn't charity or capitalism — it's the messy middle. Here's how DFIs, concessional loans, and catalytic capital actually work.
#2922: The Milk That Never Touched a Cow
Precision-fermented dairy is on shelves. But is it milk? And is it kosher? Three rabbinic positions, one yeast strain.
#2879: Are Most Chinese People Actually Atheist?
Only 14% of Chinese adults identify as atheists. The reality of belief in China is far more complex.
#2866: What Happens to Jerusalem's Unsorted Trash?
Jerusalem doesn't ask you to sort your trash. The machines do it instead — with hyperspectral cameras and air jets.