
What Happens Next in 6 Minutes
What Happens Next offers listeners an in-depth investigation of the most pressing issues of the day. Visit https://www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/ for all the links and to subscribe www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com
Latest episodes

Dec 3, 2022 • 49min
Are You White?
Our speakers will be Dan Bouk, who is the Department Chair of History at Colgate University and the author of the new book called Democracy’s Data: The Hidden Stories in the US Census and How to Read Them. Dan will speak about our ongoing governmental data collection to determine race, gender, and other personal information. The search for these answers and ethnic classification informs us about who we are as a society. The downside is that these questions highlight differences in our national identity.Our second speaker is George Mason Law Professor David Bernstein who is the author of the book Classified: The Untold Story of Racial Classification in America. The answer to the question whether you are White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, or other has consequences. It can determine who gets a government contract, a job or is admitted to a select college. Should the government be in the racial classification business, and do government imposed racial classifications undermine our societal objective to live in a multi-racial society? Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Nov 25, 2022 • 56min
CRISPR and The Ethics of Genetic Engineering
Our first speaker is Stanford Law Professor Hank Greely who is the author of the book CRISPR People: The Science and Ethics of Editing Humans. A Chinese scientist recently edited the genes in a human embryo with the purpose of improving that child’s defense to the HIV virus. Three children were born with these genetic enhancements and their progeny will carry those genetic changes in their germline. Hank will discuss whether the science is sufficiently advanced and that the risk/reward makes sense for babies and can the scientific community police itself to adopt appropriate safety procedures before doing this genetic manipulation again. Our second speaker is Jacob Appel who is making his third appearance on What Happens Next. Jacob teaches medical ethics at Mt. Sinai Medical School, and he will provide us with an ethical framework to evaluate human genetic testing. Genetic engineering on babies is coming soon, now what? Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Nov 19, 2022 • 36min
Food Porn
Our speaker is Rebecca Halpern who is the writer and director of a new documentary film Love Charlie that will be released in theaters and available for streaming on Apple and Amazon on November 18th. The film is about the life of Top Chef Charlie Trotter who revolutionized American cuisine. Charlie was a creative genius who used a different 10-course menu each day for 25 years. He introduced us to farm to table, placed table in the restaurant’s kitchen, and eliminated hard liquor and foie gras from the menu. Charlie Trotter influenced many of the great top chefs of his generation and demanded excellence from everyone around him. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Nov 12, 2022 • 41min
Game Theory and Sports
Today’s first guest is Stanford Economics Professor Paul Oyer who has written the book An Economist Goes to the Game: How to Throw Away $580 million and Other Surprising Insights from the Economics of Sports. Paul will discuss which sports your kids should play. Why South Koreans dominate women’s golf? And how does game theory inform us whether Michael Jordan should take the last shot or pass the ball to another player?Our second speaker will be University of Michigan economist Stefan Szymanski who is the author of Soccernomics. Our discussion will focus on the economics of all thing’s soccer including why European soccer owners lose money, and why do certain soccer positions take most of the earnings. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Nov 4, 2022 • 39min
How Team Owners use Sports Analytics
Today’s guest is Jeff Luhnow the former General Manager of the Houston Astros and the current owner of soccer teams in Mexico and Spain.Jeff will explain how owners use sports analytics to draft and trade players. How to use game theory to improve strategy for penalty kicks. And how to use metrics to improve player development. The Moneyball culture has changed sports and you will hear from a leader in the field what goes on behind the scenes. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Oct 29, 2022 • 43min
Regime Change at the FED
Today’s podcast is a conversation that includes former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh and my old boss Nobel Prize winner Myron Scholes. There is no free lunch and Kevin will explain how excessive government spending has resulted in a surge in inflation and changed the behavior of ordinary Americans on how they spend, save, and take risks. The inflation genie is out of the bottle, and to get inflation under control will require a regime change at the Fed. This will not be an easy battle to fight, and you should expect chaotic market movements. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Oct 21, 2022 • 48min
Building the Perfect Stock Portfolio
Today’s podcast was recorded previously at Stanford at an event to honor my old boss and close friend Myron Scholes who won the Nobel Prize in Economics. Our first speaker will be Andy Lo who is a Finance Professor at MIT, and he will discuss his book In Pursuit of the Perfect Portfolio. Andy interviewed a dozen leaders in academic finance and top practitioners about how to design a portfolio balancing risk and reward by maximizing diversification.Our second speaker will be Jonathan Levin who is the Dean of Stanford’s Graduate Business School. Jon will explain how Myron Scholes’ ideas have shaped academic research in finance and how his models have been applied by investment professionals.Our third speaker is Victor Haghani. Vic and I worked together at Salomon Brothers before he left to be one of the founding partners at Long-Term Capital Management. Vic will answer the question, how much should you gamble when you have an excellent investment. Vic’s ideas are very important, because most of us focus on what to invest in and spend little time wondering how big to bet? And whether to increase or decrease the wager when uncertainty and volatility increases or decreases over time.Our fourth speaker is my good friend Bruce Tuckman who teaches at NYU’s Stern Business School and is the former Chief Economist of the CFTC. Bruce will discuss the benefits that derivatives like interest rate swaps and commodity futures provide hedgers and investors.Our final speaker today will be Myron Scholes who will discuss the best ways to adjust your portfolio if you are concerned about ESG. Some market participants who are concerned about carbon emissions are selling shares in their polluters, but Myron thinks that investment managers should first optimize the portfolio and then buy carbon credits to maximize returns while minimizing carbon in the environment. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Oct 15, 2022 • 41min
There is No Free Will
Our speaker will be Robert Sapolsky who is a Professor of Biology and Neurology at Stanford as well as the author of numerous books including Why Zebra Don’t Get Ulcers and Behave. Robert believes that you do not have any free will. That instead your behavior is dictated by a complex combination of factors that include genes, environment, hormones, glucose levels, and epigenetic events. It is complicated, but Robert will argue that there is no little man in your head making the decisions. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Oct 8, 2022 • 19min
The Future of Working From Home
Our speaker will be Nick Bloom who is a Stanford Professor of Economics. Nick is a leader in the research on working from home. Nick will explain the growing dominance of hybrid work for certain segments of our economy. It turns out that hybrid work increases productivity for some employees, and it makes them happy.Technologists are aware that work from home has changed the nature of employment, and substantial R&D is being to improve the zoom experience with dozens of cameras to make it seem like we are together. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe

Oct 1, 2022 • 40min
Paul Kennedy: Allies Conquer Japan
Our speaker will be Yale historian Paul Kennedy who is well known for his classic book The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers. This will be the final podcast of his four-part podcast series on the history of World War 2. Today’s podcast will focus on the battles beginning in 1944 and ending with Japan’s unconditional surrender. Get full access to What Happens Next in 6 Minutes with Larry Bernstein at www.whathappensnextin6minutes.com/subscribe