Episodes

  • Saving Ketchup: The Race to Breed a Tomato for a Warming World

    Saving Ketchup: The Race to Breed a Tomato for a Warming World
    Jun 7 2024
    What good is a future without ketchup or pasta sauce? These are just two potential casualties of a changing climate, as tomato growers face shrinking harvests due to hotter and drier weather. WSJ reporter Patrick Thomas takes us behind the scenes of how seed breeders are trying to make a tomato that can thrive with less water, and how that highlights the efforts going into protecting crops against the effects of climate change. Sign up for the WSJ's free The Future of Everything newsletter. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Further reading: The Race to Save Ketchup: Building a Tomato for a Hotter World How to Eat Your Way to a Greener Planet Sustainable Agriculture Gets a Push From Big Corporations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    17 mins
  • Science of Success: Birkenstocks and the Promise of Healthy Feet

    Science of Success: Birkenstocks and the Promise of Healthy Feet
    May 24 2024
    How did a sandal that originally entered the U.S. market as a health product become a fashion staple and the crowning shoe of a multibillion dollar company? Margot Fraser originally brought Birkenstocks to the U.S. thinking that the comfort of the German sandal would appeal to women. But she couldn’t get shoe stores to sell them. They finally made it into the U.S. market through health food stores. Now, the seductively ugly shoe is a cultural icon and was valued at about $8.6 billion when the company went public last year. WSJ’s Ben Cohen explores the history of Birkenstock and how it paved the way for the future of women’s feet. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Further reading: Why Americans Are Obsessed With These Ugly Sandals A Key to Birkenstock’s Billion Dollar Success? Its Frumpiest Shoe A Visual History of Birkenstock’s Rise, From Insoles to IPO Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    11 mins
  • Will a Treatment Work? Try the 'Digital Twin' First.

    Will a Treatment Work? Try the 'Digital Twin' First.
    May 17 2024
    How does your doctor know that a drug or procedure will work to treat a condition before they try it? Often, they don’t. Researchers are looking to create “digital twins,” digital versions of individual organs, to see how a patient will respond. Eventually there could be digital twins of entire bodies that are updated in real time with patient data. WSJ’s Alex Ossola speaks with WSJ senior special writer Stephanie Armour about how that might change the way we treat diseases in the future. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify , or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Sign up for the WSJ's free The Future of Everything newsletter. Further reading: A ‘Digital Twin’ of Your Heart Lets Doctors Test Treatments Before Surgery Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    10 mins
  • Ultrasound Isn’t Just for Pregnancy. How It’s Helping Treat the Brain.

    Ultrasound Isn’t Just for Pregnancy. How It’s Helping Treat the Brain.
    May 10 2024
    Ultrasound is known for its use in imaging during pregnancy. But new advancements in the technology suggest that in the future, ultrasound could be used to disrupt the blood-brain barrier. This would allow doctors to more easily diagnose and directly treat illnesses like brain cancer without major surgery. WSJ’s Danny Lewis and Charlotte Gartenberg examine the new ways that ultrasound could be used more specifically and subtly to deliver accurate diagnoses and precise treatments. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Sign up for the WSJ's free The Future of Everything newsletter . Further reading: New Ultrasound Therapy Could Help Treat Alzheimer’s, Cancer Treatment Breakthrough for an Intractable Brain Cancer The ‘Mini Brains’ solving medical mysteries and raising concerns We Can Now See the Brain Like Never Before Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    23 mins
  • Chip in the Brain? How Brain-Computer Interfaces Could Change Medicine

    Chip in the Brain? How Brain-Computer Interfaces Could Change Medicine
    May 3 2024
    A day when people can interact directly with computers using their thoughts could be on the horizon. Several companies, including Elon Musk’s Neuralink, have begun preliminary human trials of brain-computer interfaces - devices that decode the electrical signals in their brain and translate them into digital bits. Neurosurgeon Benjamin Rapoport is a co-founder and chief science officer of Precision Neuroscience, a company working on brain-computer interfaces. He spoke with WSJ’s Danny Lewis about how the technology works and how these implants could improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of people who could gain the ability to independently engage with the digital world. Correction: Dr. Benjamin Rapoport is the co-founder of Precision Neuroscience. An earlier version misspelled his name Rapaport. (Corrected on May 3) What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Further reading: Inside the Operating Room: Doctors Test a Revolutionary Brain-Computer Implant Elon Musk’s Neuralink Wants to Make ‘The Matrix’ a Reality. It Has a Lot to Prove First. She Didn’t Speak for 18 Years. A Computer Helped Find Her Voice. The Devices That Will Read Your Brain—and Enhance It Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    21 mins
  • Science of Success: How Barnes & Noble Is Redesigning the Bookstore Chain

    Science of Success: How Barnes & Noble Is Redesigning the Bookstore Chain
    Apr 26 2024
    What does the brick and mortar bookstore of the future look like? For Barnes & Noble, it looks more like the indie bookstores they once threatened to put out of business 20 years ago. The company recently redesigned their national chain of over 500 bookstores, shedding the big box personality in favor of a look reminiscent of local bookshops. On this week’s Science of Success, WSJ columnist Ben Cohen speaks to Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt about the look, feel and idea behind Barnes & Noble’s new indie design. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Listening on Google Podcasts? Here's our guide for switching to a different podcast player. Further reading: That Cool New Bookstore? It’s a Barnes & Noble. New CEO Wants to Make Barnes & Noble Your Local Bookstore Barnes & Noble’s New Boss Tries to Save the Chain—and Traditional Bookselling Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    11 mins
  • Designing the Sneaker of the Future

    Designing the Sneaker of the Future
    Apr 19 2024
    Can technology help us design the perfect running shoe that’s stronger, faster and better for the environment? David Allemann, co-founder of On, thinks technology can get us part of the way there, but it’s not the whole story. The performance running shoe and sportswear company is experimenting with computer simulation and bio-based materials to design sneakers to advance both runners and sustainability goals. WSJ men’s fashion columnist Jacob Gallagher speaks with Allemann about the future of running shoe tech and how sneakers might redefine the design cannon. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Further reading: How On’s Running Sneakers Won Over Tech Bros and High Fashion Alike Where Did All the Crazy Sneakers Go? This Designer Knows What Sneakers You’ll Be Wearing Next Year These Grandpa Sneakers Are Made in America. They’re a Hit Overseas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    19 mins
  • How 3D Printing Could Drive the Factory of the Future

    How 3D Printing Could Drive the Factory of the Future
    Apr 12 2024
    3D printing isn’t just for hobbyists – it could be central to the future of manufacturing. Companies are turning to this technology to make everything from car and airplane parts to houses faster and cheaper than with traditional techniques. Now, as 3D printing – also known as additive manufacturing – is getting quicker, researchers are testing its limits. WSJ’s Alex Ossola and Danny Lewis take a look at how this tech is building the factory of the future. What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: FOEPodcast@wsj.com Listening on Google Podcasts? Here's our guide for switching to a different podcast player. Further reading: This 3-D Printed Icelandic Fish-Gutting Machine Contains the Secret of a Future, Less-Globalized Economy Venture Investors Are Pumping Capital Into 3-D Printing Startups. Here’s Why. Energy Companies Turn to 3-D Printing to Bypass Snarled Supply Chains 3-D Printed Houses Are Sprouting Near Austin as Demand for Homes Grows Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    22 mins