The Most Important Question

Let's talk robots.But first: There’s a very particular bottleneck where groundbreaking science is more applicable than ever but inaccessible to many. The tools are unaffordable to the schools and groups who could use them to hook kids right when they’re most excited, kids with a huge variety of lived experienced, who have grown up in the climate era, and in the COVID era, who see and want to solve problems they can touch and feel – but because of costs and access, they never get to try.Or the bottleneck presents as being frustratingly inefficient, to the labs who actually do this stuff every day, the ones who see a peer’s research and try to replicate it, but don’t have the funding or people or bandwidth or all three to spend time filling test tubes.Building better processes isn’t the sexiest science you can do, but the science doesn’t happen, or nearly enough of it, or fast enough, without the help of someone who’s been affected by these inefficiencies.Someone who can see the whole journey and identify areas where existing ways of doing things and tools for doing things can be made more reliable, more useful, and more affordable, to more people.Enter: automated synthetic biology. Or, robots!Roya Amini-Naieni is my guest today, straight from her robot lab.This is another in our series of conversations with 776 fellows, a two-year program for young people who want to build a better future.Roya is not only a 776 fellow but also the co-founder and CEO of TriloBio, where she’s working on revolutionizing synthetic biology by changing the way synthetic biologists do science.Roya’s had an incredible journey so far, the child of Iranian immigrants, the child of engineers, and the apprentice to so many mentors who have seen her ambition and seem to understand that Roya has identified a way to stand up for better access to the tools of the future, and along the way, maybe even put a dent in the universe.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at importantnotimportant.com/podcast.-----------INI Book Club:The Mom Test by Rob FitzpatickThe Worm WebseriesFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Learn more about TriloBio on the website, LinkedIn, or TwitterFollow Roya on TwitterLearn more about the 776 Foundation Fellowship ProgramFind your iGEM teamFulfill your genetic engineering dreams with your own kit from The OdinGet your own Bento LabFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

How lucky are we?How lucky are we that we live in a time of such great opportunity – when, yes, we’re teetering on the edge of a global climate calamity, still reeling from a pandemic, knowing that our problems and challenges are not only enormous, but systemic, all-encompassing, and often linked together.How lucky are we to be able to say – look at all of this opportunity, look at all of the ways I could have an impact, need to have an impact, right now?How lucky are we that so many people, both scared for their futures and emboldened by a feeling of having both nothing to lose, and everything, all at the same time – that they are choosing not to go trade derivatives or build more ad tech, but instead dream?People, and especially young people, dreaming and actually designing, building, and testing innovative, groundbreaking solutions.This episode is another in our series of conversations with 776 Foundation fellows and I’m so excited to share it.Part of the reason I left California was because of the fire risk, to my home and family, the smoke risk, and the drought. I was lucky to be able to leave, but so many can’t. Over and over we have been forced to confront fires that are burning bigger and hotter in drier vegetation, closer to where people live. Fires fought by exhausted, underpaid firefighters.We need reinforcements, we need better ideas, and they need help.We need people like Valkyrie Holmes.Valkyrie is the co-founder of Project Firefly, a new company supported by the 776 Foundation that combines drone technology with pressurized air cannons to better contain wildfires. Yes, you heard that right.In her brief but wildly impressive time as a professional, she’s worked as an intern at SpaceX and in various roles at MIT, NASA, Google, and more. We get at everything from self-confidence to heat signatures and what the hell vortex cannons do – and how they could help alleviate the enormous strain drought and fire are putting on resources the world over.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at importantnotimportant.com/podcast.-----------INI Book Club:The Song of Achilles by Madeline MillerCan't Hurt Me by David GogginsFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Follow Valkyrie on Twitter and check out more of her work hereLearn more about Project Firefly on their website Follow Project Firefly on Twitter Learn more about the 776 FoundationFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

This week: What climate change means for insurancePregnancy and the COVID vaccineFood insecurity in AmericaWhat wildfire smoke means for air qualityInternet blackout in IranWhat we can doUnderstand your flood risk with Flood Factor, a free tool to learn if your property has flooded in the past, is currently at risk, and how that risk changes over time. Stock up on masks, get your boosters, and bring your parents, your kids, and your friends with you Feed people tonight (and every month, with a recurring donation) with our friends at Feeding America. Obviously numero uno is decarbonize everything everywhere all at once, but also: Know your daily risk. I use Purple Air outdoor monitorsFollow, amplify, and donate to the Center for Human Rights in Iran, a collection of journalists, researchers, lawyers, activists, writers, multimedia specialists and advocates based around the world who work to support the basic rights and freedoms of the Iranian peopleGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at importantnotimportant.com/newsletterGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve itAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

This week: It's hurricane seasonViral levels in wastewater spikingWhat the world might look like in 2050Results from the biggest-ever Alzheimer's studyAsking better questions about our appsAction StepsSend disaster recovery supplies to Florida, donate or volunteer with World Central Kitchen to feed people in Florida and/or Puerto Rico, help the Footprint Project spin up microgridsTell your city council about BioBot wastewater monitoringCheck out Vox's explainer video on how the remaining water in the West is distributedProtect your brain and heart with the Blue Zones cookbookRead this piece by WIRED about how to buy ethical and eco-friendly electronics, and this one about how to advocate for tech privacyGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at importantnotimportant.com/newsletterGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve itAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

For decades Americans have relied on wood, oil, and gas to power, heat, and cool our homes, and the water we use to drink, cool, and bathe in. But these things have helped fuel our climate crisis – by some estimates, residential energy use accounts for about 20% of US greenhouse gas emissions.That’s a lot.Not to mention, burning wood inside and using gas stoves and fireplaces, and water heaters are just straight-up terrible for our health. Great news though.An electric future awaits us, and now, having passed the IRA, there are a huge variety of rebates to help you electrify your home, to become less dependent on the grid, to save money over time, and breathe cleaner air inside AND outside.But where do you start? It’s a great question, and one I’ve been wrestling with recently.I want to make my home reliable, resilient, and healthier. And together, with you and millions of other Shit Givers, I want to take a huge chunk out of US emissions, to slow the climate crisis. But in order to do so, I needed some help. So I called John Semmelhack.John is co-owner, with Neil Comparetto, of The Comfort Squad LLC, a home performance contracting + consulting firm serving Charlottesville, VA, and Richmond, VA. John is a pioneering practitioner of the "electrify everything” movement and is the self-declared “Minister of Heat Pumps” for the Southeast U.S.And his company, The Comfort Squad, helps clients create healthy, comfortable homes that run on clean electricity. Today we’re going to take you on one of his standard home performance assessments and paint a picture for you of the healthier, all-electric home.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at importantnotimportant.com/podcast.-----------INI Book Club:All We Can Save edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katherine K WilkinsonFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Follow John on TwitterFollow The Comfort Squad on Twitter and check out their websiteCheck out the federal and state financial incentives to electrify your homeRead Rewiring America's guide to electrify your homeGet an Ecobee smart thermostatFind an induction cooktopFind an electric or heat pump water heaterElectrify your apartment building with Bloc PowerSave energy and money with Ohm ConnectBuy a solar powered battery with HumlessPre-order your smart home batteryFind your local solar farmGet solar power for your homeFollow Dr Leah Stokes on TwitterFollow Emily Grubert on TwitterFind out why SoCal Gas sucksFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

This week: The companies building a new clean economy (and the pretenders)The "I" in COVIDDefrauded pandemic funds for hungry kidsPreventing overdoses with safer supply programsIncreasing surveillance Action StepsRead Protocol's tips to make your company more sustainableIf it's been 3-6 month since your last infection or shot, get boostedFeed some families by donating to Feeding AmericaKnow someone dealing with opioid addiction? Find a related clinical trial near youRead share, and subscribe to The MarkupGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at importantnotimportant.com/newsletterGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve itAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

Let’s say you get sick. Diabetes. Cancer. Heart disease. Long COVID. PTSD. MS. Depression. Alzheimer’sDespite the best efforts of your physician, nothing’s working. They’re out of answers, and you’re out of questions. You might both be increasingly out of time. Where do you turn?There must be someone, somewhere, working on your problem. Working to better understand it, at least, maybe to treat it, maybe cure it, or prevent it for the next person who might be susceptible to getting it. How do you find out if they exist? And if they do, how do you find them? How could you volunteer for their work, knowing they might not have the answers – but knowing you won’t know and they won’t know – until you try?For almost twenty-five years the best answer has been to visit a government-run website called clinical trials dot gov. I know because I’ve sent tens of thousands of people to it, for help. But even if you are able to sort through a Windows 95-era database and find the trial that’s right for you – what if it’s hundreds of miles away?So many of us could benefit from better awareness and better access to cutting-edge research that could save the lives of people we love. And so many researchers are frustrated by the inability to sign people like you, your daughter, or your dad up for their trial.It’s 2022. We can Do Better Better.My guest today is Brandon Li.Brandon is the co-founder of Power, the new and arguably most patient-friendly platform for clinical trials ever made. Brandon and his team are making it easy for all patients to use Power to discover promising clinical trials and get in touch with the researchers – directly.My mission is outcome-based – to connect you with the most measurable ways to take action, feel better, and drive systemic change. There’s so much we can do to rebuild public health, to do the basic shit we need to do to take care of one another. But simultaneously, by increasing the success of vastly more inclusive clinical trials, we can accomplish all of those goals at the same time.-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at importantnotimportant.com/podcast.-----------INI Book Club:Open: An Autobiography by Andres AgassiFind all of our guest recommendations at the INI Book Club: https://bookshop.org/lists/important-not-important-book-clubLinks:Find a clinical trial near you with PowerFollow Brandon on TwitterAre you a PI, sponsor, or CRO looking to work with Power? Connect with Brandon.Factcheck:The following stat from the episode: "self-directed research into clinical trials has grown 22X in the last seven years" was determined using the web analytics tool, ahrefs.Follow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comArtwork by Amrit Pal

This week: What's happening with cars and micro-mobility in AmericaBrain fogA food system rundownThe corporations backing a national abortion banBorder agents are taking your phone dataAction StepsWatch this short about Statiq, the Indian startup electrifying transportation, then check out Ride Review to find an e-bike or scooter (here's Quinn's beloved e-bike)Read about the success of the new COVID boosters, then get boostedDonate to or volunteer with World Central KitchenRead this article listing the corporations backing a national abortion ban, then share it everywhereCall your senators and insist they support S.2957, Senator Wyden's "Protecting Data at the Border Act"Get more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at importantnotimportant.com/newsletterGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve itAdvertise with us: https://www.importantnotimportant.com/sponsors

Curious about the climate? Then there’s a show I want to tell you about—A Matter of Degrees, where Dr. Leah Stokes and Dr. Katharine Wilkinson tell stories about the powerful forces behind climate change — and the tools we have to fix it.You know climate change is a problem. So what can we do about it? The new season of A Matter of Degrees kicks off with a mini-series to answer that question. What can we do personally, professionally, and politically? Episode four is a favorite…it’s about coping with our emotions about the climate crisis. And there’ll be more expert interviews and compelling narratives that touch on everything from crypto to Indigenous stewardship. Find A Matter of Degrees wherever you listen to podcasts. The new season launches on September 15!-----------Have feedback or questions? Tweet us, or send a message to questions@importantnotimportant.comNew here? Get started with our fan favorite episodes at importantnotimportant.com/podcast.-----------Links:Listen to A Matter of DegreesFollow us:Subscribe to our newsletter at newsletter.importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter: twitter.com/ImportantNotImpFollow Quinn: twitter.com/quinnemmettEdited by Anthony LucianiProduced by Willow BeckIntro/outro by Tim Blane: timblane.comArtwork by Amrit Pal

This week: Corporate clean energy purchases go down as temperatures go upThe current status of COVID-19 vaccinesMoving towards a healthier, climate-friendly dietA promising new malaria vaccineBack to the drawing board for a federal online privacy billAction StepsLearn how to talk to kids about climate change with Science MomsGet BioBot to get your county's wastewater treatment plant access to free COVID-19 wastewater testingShare your ideas with the White House before the Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, and apply to submit your organization as a stakeholderDonate to Against MalariaRead and contribute to The MarkupGet more:Get more news, analysis, and Action Steps at importantnotimportant.com/newsletterGot feedback? Email us at questions@importantnotimportant.comFollow us on Twitter at @importantnotimpGet fun merch at importantnotimportant.com/storeTake a nap you deserve it