Babbage from The Economist (subscriber edition)
The Economist
Babbage is The Economist’s weekly podcast on science and technology—named after Charles Babbage, the grandfather of computing. Explore the science changing the way we live from AI to genetics, particle physics and space travel with Alok Jha. This award-winning podcast features in-depth interviews with top scientists and special episodes investigating wellness trends. Published every Wednesday.If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you’ll have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription.For more information about Economist Podcasts+, including how to get access, please visit our FAQs page here https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts
Episodes
Mentioned books
Apr 6, 2016 • 13min
Babbage: Mark Zuckerberg's vision
An efficient, low-cost way to detect explosives, and our US technology editor analyses Facebook’s future after an interview with its boss, Mark Zuckerberg
Mar 30, 2016 • 13min
Babbage: What’s in a yeast?
New yeasts could open up new flavours for clever chocolate and coffee producers, and sonic booms may become less loud, unleashing faster private air travel
Mar 23, 2016 • 14min
Babbage: How to crack an iPhone
The FBI claims it may be able to bypass the privacy protections on a terrorist's Apple phone. But the broader dispute over balancing user privacy and national security remains.
Mar 16, 2016 • 11min
Babbage: Data heard, memories retrieved
Scientists find ways of analysing data sonically, not visually, and a new study suggests how memory problems in Alzheimer's disease aren't with storage, but with retrieval
Mar 9, 2016 • 14min
Babbage: The future of computing
In a milestone for artificial intelligence, a program designed to play the ancient Asian game of Go has won the first of its five games against a human champion. It's an example of how smarter software, not just more powerful hardware, will drive progress in the computer industry in future
Mar 2, 2016 • 13min
Babbage: From footies to selfies
Brain scans of American footballers reveal the darker side of contact sports and a new study on social media uncovers why we take selfies
Feb 24, 2016 • 9min
Babbage: Apple and the reason for sex
Apple clashes with the FBI over accessing iPhone data and scientists finally prove why we keep having sex
Feb 17, 2016 • 12min
Babbage: 5G to unite them all
The fifth generation of mobile network promises to take us one step closer to wireless paradise and researchers infect patients with modified viruses to fight cancer
Feb 10, 2016 • 12min
Babbage: Slimy, underwater light-eaters
This week we look at how selectively bred coral-dwelling algae might survive warmer waters and at how bacteria bend light to direct their tiny bodies toward the sun
Feb 3, 2016 • 13min
Babbage: Frosty organs and doped-up horses
A charity in America rallies transplant-organ preservation scientists, and researchers in Hong Kong think they've found a way to detect doping in racehorses
