199. This Idea Must Die

That’s the question at the heart of a battle between Kalshi and state gambling regulators. As prediction markets boom, there are other questions, too — about insider trading, market manipulation, and whether the public has turned against them. (Part two of a two-part series.) SOU ... Show More

The promise is that they can beat the experts at predicting inflation, elections, and FDA approvals. But right now, roughly 90 percent of the action is sports. Is this a future we want to bet on? Stephen Dubner speaks with, among others, the C.E.O. of Kalshi. (Part one of a two-p ... Show More

He was thriving in the N.F.L., but then he decided to focus on mathematics — a subject he now teaches at M.I.T. John walks Stephen Dubner through the whole story, teaches him some blocking techniques, and explains why some infinities are bigger than others. If you'd like to see t ... Show More

Our space and physics editors go head-to-head over a classic mind-bending question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices 

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

Sure, we worked way too hard for that pun in the title, but it's a serious question: CERN, or the European Organization for Nuclear Research is one of the world's largest, most prominent centres for scientific research. The experts at CERN use the world's largest and most complex ... Show More

Progress versus preservation: It's one of the eternal dilemmas found throughout every instance of human civilization. Should we embrace disruptive thoughts and science that challenges our beliefs, or should we cling to the comfort of the status quo? Join Ben and Noel in this week ... Show More

Sam Harris speaks with Peter Singer, Francesca Minerva, and Jeff McMahan about the newly launched Journal of Controversial Ideas. They discuss the ethics of discussing dangerous ideas, the possibility of having a market in vaccines, the taboo around the topic of race and IQ, the ... Show More

Beards have been 'a thing' for a while. Is it now time to shave them off? 

Have to always say everything that pops up into your mind or never be able to say what you feel?  Give up air conditioning and heating for the rest of the year or give up the internet for the rest of the year?  Give up being married or give up your career?  Steve Harvey Morning S ... Show More

For centuries, scientists have grappled with the most fundamental question of them all - what is reality? Is it a matter of common sense? Or can God or some higher being only know? And what was there before the Big Bang created the world we live in? Einstein revolutionised our wa ... Show More

Sam Harris and Jordan Peterson discuss science, religion, archetypes, mythology, and the perennial problem of finding meaning in life. If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe ... Show More