405. Policymaking Is Not a Science (Yet)

The Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jennifer Egan talks about confidence, luck, and why it takes 35 drafts to get to the finish line. If you'd like to see the video version of Better in Person, you can watch it on YouTube or Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz compan ... Show More

The world’s great museums are full of art and artifacts that were plundered during an era when plunder was the norm. Now there’s a push to return these works to their rightful owners. Sounds simple, right? It's not. (Part 2 of an updated series originally published in 2023.) SOUR ... Show More

When he joined the Del Fuegos, his big brother’s band, all Warren knew how to play was a record player. Things went great for a while — and then it all fell apart. So how did he wind up writing definitive books on Springsteen and Tom Petty? If you'd like to see the video version ... Show More

Falsifying results, skipping tests, and ignoring scientific protocols -- why weren’t these concerns addressed by the Virginia state crime lab? Whistleblower Gina Demas finds herself caught in a clash between science and office politics. 

Ideas are currency. This couldn't be more true in academia, where it's the job of researchers to think of questions and, hopefully, find answers. Bapu talks with economists Steve Levitt and Emily Oster about how they come up with ideas for studies, why most never make it off the ... Show More

As anti-science leaves research reeling, does evidence-based policy in a scientific society have much of a future? Michael Mann, Naomi Oreskes, Angie Rasmussen and Deb Houry discuss some of the sources and motivations that perhaps belie the current state of scientific affairs. Pr ... Show More

Why haven’t our climate policies been more effective at stopping carbon emissions, and what kinds of policies would work better? 

<p>Lots of psychology studies fail to produce the same results when they are repeated. How do scientists know what's true?</p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use ... Show More

British progressives have suffered major setbacks in recent years, in both public opinion and court rulings. Was a backlash inevitable, and are new tactics needed? By Gaby Hinsliff. Read by Carlyss Peer. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod 

The path to discovery is paved with bureaucracy. Einstein was a patent clerk when he first proposed his famous equation that explained our universe…something that could never happen today. This week, we’re calling out the slow, tangled mess that is academic science. Why do some o ... Show More

Getting solid answers in medicine can be hard — especially when the normal tools are off-limits. Dr. Bapu Jena discusses a research method that’s helping to solve some of science’s most challenging questions. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for infor ... Show More

<p>Why are humans so eager for magic-bullet solutions? Can you explain how a pen works? And how does Angela feel about being forever branded “the grit lady”?</p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for inform ... Show More