Tagpodcasts(8)

A conversation with Dr. Georgia Lagoudas. Environmentalism has typically focused on outdoor air quality, but climate change is pushing more people indoors more of the time, even as airborne pathogens and wildfire smoke challenge indoor air quality. I discuss the fight for better indoor air with Dr. Georgia Lagoudas, who recently coordinated a global pledge

What does it take to “play 3D chess at 250 miles an hour”? And how far will $12.5 billion of “Big, Beautiful” funding go toward modernizing the F.A.A.? (Part two of a two-part series.)

Flying in the U.S. is still exceptionally safe, but the system relies on outdated tech and is under tremendous strain. Six experts tell us how it got this way and how it can (maybe) be fixed. (Part one of a two-part series.)

A 90-second failure of Newark Airport’s air-traffic safety systems, which blacked out communication to planes carrying thousands of passengers, has exposed a new level of crisis in air travel. Kate Kelly, an investigative reporter for The New York Times, explains what the problems at one of the country’s biggest airports tell us about air-travel safety

Is the F.A.A. really ensuring safety by disqualifying pilots who receive a diagnosis or treatment? Troy Merritt, a pilot, sought professional help for his mental-health challenges and then had to go through an arduous process to regain his certification to fly… Troy Merritt, a pilot for a major U.S. airline, returned from his 30th birthday

Although the article (and the evidence) on biofuels is clear, the subject of aviation comes up in the last eight minutes of the podcast. And it is agreed that aviation (and perhaps marine) are the only defensible uses of biofuels. However, there is a ceiling--the amount of biofuels that can be generated from waste materials. There is no, zero defensible use case for growing crops specifically for biofuels. In every such case, the net is a huge negative.

Arline Bronzaft is a leading expert on noise. Her research on noise and its impact on the reading scores of New York City school students led to positive changes in the city. From acoustical modifications in the classroom to improvements to the tracks on the New York City subways, Dr. Bronzaft succeeded in solving noise

A podcast series about what went wrong at BER, Berlin’s unfinished airport. Subscribe on Itunes here. Every Berliner knows the new airport is late. Few know exactly why. We’re here to explain. BER is the international airport code for Berlin Brandenburg Airport, nickname Willy Brandt. It has also become a signifier of failure, incompetence, corruption