logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2019
31m 2s

La La Land: Galileo's Warning

Pushkin Industries
About this episode

Galileo tried to teach us that adding more and more layers to a system intended to avert disaster often makes catastrophe all the more likely to happen. His basic lesson has been ignored in nuclear power plants, financial markets and at the Oscars... all resulting in chaos.

Read more about Tim's work at http://timharford.com/

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Jan 9
Liar, Bigamist, Brute: How Isaac Singer Liberated Women
The sewing machine was once thought to be an impossible invention. It was such a complicated contraption that it would take more than one inventor, with more than one good idea, to make it work. Each of these inventors, including the notorious Isaac Singer, wanted the credit (and ... Show More
37m 30s
Jan 2
Fritterin' Away Genius (Classic)
Claude Shannon was brilliant. He was the Einstein of computer science... only he loved "fritterin' away" his time building machines to play chess, solve Rubik's cubes and beat the house at roulette.If Shannon had worked more diligently - instead of juggling, riding a unicycle and ... Show More
37m 20s
Dec 26
Photographing Fairies (Classic)
Sherlock Holmes is known for approaching all mysteries with cool logic - and yet when his creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle saw photographs taken by two young girls purporting to show real life fairies at play... he unwisely declared them genuine.How did Elsie and Frances fool so ma ... Show More
37m 44s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2017
The Eastland Disaster
<p>The Eastland disaster was one of the deadliest maritime disasters in American history. And in this particular case, safety regulations actually made things worse.</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartp ... Show More
30m 5s
Nov 2021
Rerun: The GE of Today
Tragedies and financial crises turned what used to be General Electric's strengths into liabilities. In this episode, we learn how the once dominant company began to struggle and why some think its heading for insolvency. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodc ... Show More
47m 31s
Dec 2020
How Did Galileo Become the First Superstar Scientist?
Galileo Galilei is famous today for defying the Catholic Church in the 1600s with his (correct) astronomical hypotheses. Learn more about his work and how he became famous in his own time in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcast ... Show More
7m 44s
Aug 2018
Galileo
Galileo Galilei is known as the father of modern science and the man whose work proved that the Earth orbits the sun. His scientific discoveries were in opposition of what the Catholic Church taught. But did you know that while he was a math professor at the University of Pisa, G ... Show More
53m 26s
Jan 2022
From the Vault: Sinkholes, Part 2
In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the science and history of sinkholes. How have these impressive geographic features impacted our world, and what can they reveal about the past? (originally published 1/19/2021) Learn more about your ad-ch ... Show More
44m 20s
Jul 2021
Part Two: How The Catholic Church Murdered Ireland's Babies
Robert is joined again by Sofiya Alexandra to continue to discuss one the darkest chapters in all of Irish history. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 
53m 27s
Jun 2021
The Carrington Event, Part I: The Sun is Acting Strange
<p>When amateur astronomer Richard Carrington gazed through his telescope on the morning of September 1st, 1859, he noticed something weird about the surface of the sun -- it seemed to have clusters of dark spots. Later historians would recognize this as the earliest observation ... Show More
25m 55s
Mar 2022
Part Two: How The Rich Ate Christianity
Robert is joined again by Dan and Jordan from knowledge fight to continue to discuss the plot to make Christianity capitalist. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 
1h 6m
Jul 2021
Earthquake Interview
Our family Earthquake is in the building telling us what the hell goin' on! He got a Netflix special with Dave Chappelle coming up. DAMN!!! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSteve Harvey Morning Show Online: http://www.steveharveyfm.com/See o ... Show More
15m 6s