The Received Wisdom

Shobita Parthasarathy & Jack Stilgoe
  • 4.8 (22)
  • SOCIAL SCIENCES
The Received Wisdom

Are robots racist? Should we regulate gene editing? Have people stopped trusting experts? Does scientific research make the world a more unequal place? The Received Wisdom is a podcast about how to realize the potential of science and technology by challenging the received wisdom. Join Shobita and Jack as they talk to thinkers and doers from around the world about governing science and technology to make the world a better place.

  1. APR 22

    Episode 39: The Politics of Air Pollution, Ozempic, and Luddism ft. Brian Merchant

    In this episode, Shobita and Jack tackle the EPA's recent efforts to increase monitoring of air pollutants, Jack's new documentary on existential risks, and the Ozempic craze. And Jack chats with Brian Merchant, a freelance journalist who focuses on tech who recently wrote Blood in the machine: The origins of rebellion against big tech about the history of Luddism.

    1h 11m

  2. FEB 2

    Episode 38: CRISPR therapies, Boeing, and reconnecting with Alondra Nelson

    In the first episode of 2024, Shobita and Jack reflect on the first CRISPR therapy approved by drug regulators around the world, for sickle cell disease. We also talk about the safety issues plaguing Boeing, and the Post Office scandal roiling the UK and why it matters for regulating AI. And, we reconnect with Alondra Nelson, one of The Received Wisdom's first guests! Alondra Nelson is the Harold F. Linder Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study and previously as deputy assistant to President Joe Biden and acting director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).

    1h 16m

  3. 12/09/2023

    Episode 37: Climate Change Realpolitik, Following the Sams, and Evaluating Research ft. Sarah de Rijcke

    This month, Shobita and Jack reflect on the recent COP meeting in the United Arab Emirates, recent AI news including the Biden Administration's Executive Order, the UK summit, and the fates of the two Sams: Altman and Bankman-Fried. And they chat with Sarah de Rijcke, Professor in Science, Technology, and Innovation Studies and Scientific Director at the Centre for Science and Technology Studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands.

    1h 7m

  4. 10/18/2023

    Episode 36: Electric Cars, the Problems with Tech Biographies, and Against Technoableism ft. Ashley Shew

    In this episode, Shobita and Jack discuss the United Auto Worker strike, facial recognition technology in schools, and the recent biographies of Elon Musk and Sam Bankman-Fried. And, they interview Ashley Shew, author of Against Technoableism and Associate Professor of Science, Technology, and Society at Virginia Tech.

    1h 15m

  5. 09/13/2023

    Episode 35: The Long, Hot AI Summer, India's Space Mission, and Addressing Inequality through Innovation ft. Richard Jones

    Jack and Shobita are back after a summer hiatus! We return talking about--of course--ChatGPT and other generative AI, the problem at Fukushima, and India's Chandrayaan Rover. Then we chat with Richard A.L. Jones, professor of material physics and innovation policy . He is also the Vice President for Regional Innovation and Civic Engagement at Manchester University.

  6. 05/31/2023

    Episode 34: The Importance of the Humanities, Tech Politics, and Equity in Science ft. Cassidy Sugimoto

    Jack and Shobita discuss the decline in humanities majors as the number of computer and data science majors rise, and why this is will have very bad consequences. Then they chat about emerging efforts to regulate both in vitro gametogenesis (creation of eggs and sperm using pluripotent stem cells) and generative AI. Finally, they talk to Cassidy Sugimoto, Professor and Tom and Marie Patton School Chair in the School of Public Policy at Georgia Institute of Technology, about her new book, Equity for Women in Science: Dismantling Systemic Barriers to Advancement.

    1h 15m

  7. 04/26/2023

    Episode 33: Abortion Politics, a Moratorium on Generative AI, and the Meaning of Emergency ft. Elizabeth Ellcessor

    What makes an emergency? This month, Jack and Shobita talk to Elizabeth Ellcessor, Associate Professor in the Department of Media Studies at University of Virginia, who studies how emergency alert systems shape our understanding of crisis, how this has changed with the rise of new consumer technologies, and the implications especially for communities who are marginalized. They also wrestle with the politics of science in US court decisions about abortion drugs, and recent calls for a moratorium on certain types of artificial intelligence.

    1h 6m

  8. 03/20/2023

    The Politics of Expertise and Retelling the Story of Racism in the Pulse Ox. ft. Amy Moran-Thomas

    This month, Jack and Shobita talk about the challenges of ensuring that AI and gene editing reflect human values, and reflect on what the recent train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio tells us about the politics of knowledge. And they chat with Amy Moran-Thomas, Associate Professor of Anthropology at MIT, about her clarion call to address the racial biases embedded in the pulse oximeter, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in August 2020.

    1h 7m
See All (40)

4.8
out of 5
22 Ratings

About

Are robots racist? Should we regulate gene editing? Have people stopped trusting experts? Does scientific research make the world a more unequal place? The Received Wisdom is a podcast about how to realize the potential of science and technology by challenging the received wisdom. Join Shobita and Jack as they talk to thinkers and doers from around the world about governing science and technology to make the world a better place.

Information

  • Creator
    Shobita Parthasarathy & Jack Stilgoe
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2024
  • Episodes
    40
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    The Received Wisdom

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