Peter Sagal and Craig Mazin discuss the second episode of Chernobyl. With untold millions at risk after the explosion, nuclear physicist Ulana Khomyuk (Emily Watson) makes a desperate attempt to reach Valery Legasov (Jared Harris) and warn him about the threat of a second explosion that could devastate the continent. Mazin sheds light on the real-life scient ... Show More
Apr 2018
Nuclear War... Total Annihilation?
Nine countries, including North Korea, have nuclear weapons. What would happen if a nuclear bomb was dropped-- say, in New York City? We talk to nuclear historian Dr. Alex Wellerstein, nuclear engineer Dr. Tetsuji Imanaka, and epidemiologist Dr. Eric Grant. UPDATE 04/27: We've ad ... Show More
37m 4s
Jan 2023
The ‘Chernobyl’ Pod. Plus, ‘Succession’ Season 4 Trailer and Oscar Nom Reactions!
Chris and Andy talk about the trailer for ‘Succession’ Season 4 that was released this week (1:00), then react to the Oscar nominations that were announced this week (16:14). Then, at long last, they break down ‘Chernobyl,’ the 2019 series from Craig Mazin that dramatizes the Che ... Show More
1h 34m
Sep 2022
NBN Classic: Kate Brown, "Manual for Survival: A Chernobyl Guide to the Future" (Norton, 2019)
This episode proved remarkably popular, so we're reposting it as an NBN classic for those who missed it the first time.We cannot learn from disasters we do not yet understand. That conviction motivated historian Kate Brown to conduct groundbreaking research into nuclear energy’s ... Show More
47m 27s
Oct 2022
Secrets of Chernobyl: Valery Legasov
In April 1988, a top Soviet scientist, Valery Legasov, died by suicide. He was 51 years old. Before his death, he recorded a series of chilling deathbed confessions concerning one of the world's deadliest disasters: the Chernobyl nuclear explosion. Over four hours, Legasov confes ... Show More
44m 14s
Aug 2023
#330 — The Doomsday Machine
Sam Harris speaks with Carl Robichaud about the ongoing threat of nuclear war. They discuss the film "Oppenheimer," the ethics of dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the false lessons of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the history and future of nuclear proliferation, the l ... Show More
1h 35m
Apr 2023
Making Sense of Existential Threat and Nuclear War | Episode 7 of The Essential Sam Harris
In this episode, we examine the topic of existential threat, focusing in particular on the subject of nuclear war. Sam opens the discussion by emphasizing the gravity of our ability to destroy life as we know it at any moment, and how shocking it is that nearly all of us perpetua ... Show More
49m 38s
Jul 2023
Oppenheimer: The Genius, the Film, and the Project That Changed the World
Richard Rhodes, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 'The Making of the Atomic Bomb,' discusses the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the Manhattan Project, the history of nuclear weapons, and the new film on his life by Christopher Nolan.If you have questions, observations, or idea ... Show More
56m 46s