

#356
Mentioned in 46 episodes
Silent Spring
Book • 1962
Published in 1962, 'Silent Spring' by Rachel Carson is a seminal work in environmental science.
The book documents the harmful effects of DDT and other pesticides on the environment, including their impact on bird populations, other wildlife, and human health.
Carson argued that these substances should be called 'biocides' due to their broad impact on ecosystems.
The book was serialized in 'The New Yorker' before its full publication and generated significant public and scientific debate.
It led to a reversal in U.S.
pesticide policy, the banning of DDT for agricultural use in 1972, and the establishment of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency in 1970.
Carson's work challenged the prevailing attitudes towards scientific progress and human control over nature, advocating for responsible and careful use of pesticides and highlighting the need for environmental stewardship.
The book documents the harmful effects of DDT and other pesticides on the environment, including their impact on bird populations, other wildlife, and human health.
Carson argued that these substances should be called 'biocides' due to their broad impact on ecosystems.
The book was serialized in 'The New Yorker' before its full publication and generated significant public and scientific debate.
It led to a reversal in U.S.
pesticide policy, the banning of DDT for agricultural use in 1972, and the establishment of the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency in 1970.
Carson's work challenged the prevailing attitudes towards scientific progress and human control over nature, advocating for responsible and careful use of pesticides and highlighting the need for environmental stewardship.
Mentioned by





























Mentioned in 46 episodes
Mentioned by 

when referencing systems thinking problems.


Will Larson

507 snips
The engineering mindset | Will Larson (Carta, Stripe, Uber, Calm, Digg)
Mentioned by 

as being about how the government is mismanaging ecology.


Ezra Klein

403 snips
Build, Interrupted: A Conversation with Ezra Klein
Mentioned by 

as the author of "Silent Spring", a book that influenced the ban on DDT.


Nick Gillespie

260 snips
Libertarian Says What? with Nick Gillespie
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

in the context of historical examples of societal responses to industrial harms.

Daniel Barcay

196 snips
Weaponizing Uncertainty: How Tech is Recycling Big Tobacco’s Playbook
Mentioned by 

when discussing the wisdom of warning about the over-specialized, reductionist approach to science.


Helena Norberg-Hodge

146 snips
Globalization End Game: How Localization Builds Resilient Communities & Economies with Helena Norberg-Hodge
Mentioned by 

as an example of writers between 1955 and 1965 who wrote big, ambitious books.


David Brooks

107 snips
CNLP 740 | Overpoliticized and Undermoralized: David Brooks on the American Church, Culture, Becoming a Christian and Being Pastored By Tim Keller
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

as an example of a book that highlighted a large problem and led to improved governance mechanisms.

Michael Nielsen

82 snips
Could Powerful AI Break Our Fragile World? (with Michael Nielsen)
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

in the context of growing environmental awareness in the 1970s.

John Biewen

80 snips
S7 E9: At the Tipping Point
Mentioned by 

when discussing the consequences of DDT and biomagnification.


Cameron Meyer Shorb

77 snips
#210 – Cameron Meyer Shorb on dismantling the myth that we can’t do anything to help wild animals
Mentioned by 

in the context of the harmful effects of pesticides and the impact of Carson's book.


Rick Rubin

59 snips
Woody Harrelson
Mentioned by 

as a book that impacted him and his understanding of environmental toxins.


Mark Hyman

58 snips
Environmental Toxins: The Health Crisis You Can't Ignore | Dr. Joseph Pizzorno
Erwähnt von ![undefined]()

im Zusammenhang mit DDT und den Gefahren dieses Pflanzenschutzmittels für die Vogelpopulation.

Thomas Kestler

43 snips
Auf Kernkraft gegründet
Mentioned by 

as a book that led to the founding of the EPA.


Elizabeth Cox

43 snips
#208 – Elizabeth Cox on the case that TV shows, movies, and novels can improve the world
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

while discussing the environmental awakening of the early 1970s.

Nick Mott

38 snips
The Wide Open
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

when discussing the impact of DDT on bird populations and the awakening of public awareness to environmental issues.

Nick Mott

23 snips
The Wide Open
Mentioned by Secretary Kennedy, as he read it and it influenced his views on the dangers of pesticides.

23 snips
Why Our Food Is Full of Pesticides—Is The GOP Betraying MAHA? | @glyphosategirl
Mentioned by 

as a nonfiction book that raised awareness of the negative impacts of pesticides and semi-directly led to the founding of the EPA.


Spencer Greenberg

22 snips
A story can change the world (with Elizabeth Cox)
Mentioned by 

as the spark for the first Earth Day.


Heather Cox Richardson

21 snips
April 22, 2025
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

when discussing environmental concerns and their impact on human survival.

Henry Gee

20 snips
Humanity’s Past Suggests We Only Have 10,000 Years to Change or Go Extinct
Mentioned by ![undefined]()

when discussing the harmful effects of pesticides.

Lia Leendertz

19 snips
May