Aspen Ideas to Go

Author and former labor union leader Andy Stern thinks universal basic income is the key to solving problems plaguing America’s economy. He wrote about it in his book Raising the Floor: How a Universal Basic Income Can Renew Our Economy and Rebuild the American Dream . As technology takes over jobs humans used to do, the old idea is gaining new attention. Universal basic income has been supported...

How are diet and lifestyle linked to bacterial communities in the gut? How can growing knowledge about gut health be used to develop new therapies? Researchers are learning how the gut microbiome responds to the food we eat, influencing obesity, autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular disease, and even mental health. Trillions of bacteria inhabit the human gut, working in close and complex symbiosis...

Those who study human behavior have learned that simply by encouraging—or “nudging”—individuals toward the right decisions for themselves, dramatic improvements can be made. Cultural commentator David Brooks and Cass Sunstein, legal scholar and the founder and director of the Program on Behavioral Economics and Public Policy at Harvard Law School, discuss the power of “nudge” and how, broadly impl...

In these final days of Barack Obama’s presidency, we consider how the future will view his leadership. Will economic recovery and health care victories at home be overshadowed by what many see as his failure to intervene meaningfully in conflicts abroad? Critics on the left wish the president had gone further on several key issues, while critics on the right have little good to say about Obama’s g...

What actually happens to the brain when we meditate? Published studies have documented the many physical and mental health benefits of meditation, including decreased pain, better immune function, less anxiety and depression, a heightened sense of well-being, and greater happiness and emotional self-control. Imaging studies show, with meditation there’s increased activity in brain regions associat...

“I spent the first half of my life being afraid,” says Jennifer Finney Boylan, author of the bestselling memoir of transgender experience, She’s Not There , “and the second half telling people to be brave.” In this episode, Boylan opens up about her battle with suicide, how society treats her differently as a female, and the power of love and family. She talks about living life as a father for six...

Author and New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman says the world has entered an age of dizzying acceleration, and in this episode, he explains how to live in it. His latest book Thank you for Being Late: An Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations delves into mega changes in terms of computing power, the global economy, and the environment. How do these changes interact? How d...

Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis was the greatest critic of big business and big government since Thomas Jefferson. He served in the early 20th century and was the Court’s first Jewish justice. In this lively conversation, Jeffrey Rosen of the National Constitution Center talks with Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic , about Brandeis’s relevance in today’s political climate, and...

Why do happily married couples cheat? Why does the modern egalitarian approach to marriage quash desire? Are the heightened expectations we bring to modern love combined with our pursuit of happiness directly related to infidelity? In this episode, author and couples therapist Esther Perel tackles the topic of infidelity. Perel is recognized as one of the most insightful and provocative voices on...

New York Times columnist David Brooks explores a life well lived. In this episode he examines happiness and commitments. In his book The Road to Character , he studies people who radiate an inner light. What work did they do to reach higher levels of happiness? A successful life usually depends on making four major commitments: to spouse or family, a faith or philosophy, a community, and a vocatio...

Mike Mullen, retired admiral and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the national security challenges the new Trump administration will face are plentiful. Mullen gives insight into President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for national security advisor, General Mike Flynn. What kind of leader will he be? And how will he guide Trump – who has no national security experience – on issues ce...

To find the path to long life and health, Dan Buettner and his team study the world’s “Blue Zones,” communities whose elders live with vim and vigor to record-setting age. In this episode, Buettner debunks the most common nutrition myths and offers a science-backed blueprint that outlines how the average American can live another 12 quality years. What are the diet and lifestyle habits that keep p...

Most people think that happiness has four sources: the sensory pleasures, material wealth, romantic relationships, and children. But recent research suggests that much of what people think about happiness is wrong. Daniel Gilbert, author of "Stumbling on Happiness," hosts this symposium in which experts discuss what science has discovered about each of these sources. The featured speakers are Paul...

When Amazon launched, it employed just ten people. Now it’s one of the largest retailers in the world. CEO Jeff Bezos describes what companies need in today’s fast-paced, high tech business environment. He explains how Alexa is different from Siri and why he decided to invest in the Washington Post and an aerospace company. AOL Cofounder Steve Case, Columbia Business School Dean Glenn Hubbard, and...

The countdown to Election Day is on, and political analysts are giving their predictions. In this bonus episode, Charlie Cook and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report weigh in on the outcome for the presidential race and contests in the US House and Senate. They spoke on Wednesday, October 26th as part of the Aspen Institute’s Washington Ideas Roundtable Series. aspenideas.org

Today, more than 200 known types of cancer exist, and it is the second leading cause of death in the US. In January 2016, President Obama announced a new effort to fight the disease: the Cancer Moonshot. Led by Vice President Joe Biden, the initiative is meant to accelerate research, broaden the number of therapies for patients, and find ways to prevent and detect cancer earlier. In this episode,...

The economy is a key issue for American voters. In July, more than 80 percent of registered voters polled by the Pew Research Center said the economy was the number one issue, right after terrorism. This episode examines the country's workforce and what's influencing job creation and job loss. Featured speakers include General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt, US Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez, US Senato...

Once the realm of science fiction, smart machines are rapidly becoming part of our world—and these technologies offer amazing potential to improve the way we live. Imagine intelligent, autonomous vehicles that reduce crashes and robots that can help your aged grandma move around safely. In this episode, Gill Pratt, CEO of the Toyota Research Institute, talks with John Markoff of The New York Times...

It’s difficult to ignore anger in the United States right now—talking heads battle on cable news, protesters get violent at campaign rallies, and families can’t talk politics around the dinner table. What’s fueling the anger? And how can it be managed? In this episode, panelists Mickey Edwards, Anne-Marie Slaughter, Stephen Carter, and Arthur Brooks explore the variables contributing to an angry A...

Author Jeff Chang says America has slid back toward segregation in our neighborhoods, schools, colleges and universities, and in our culture. In his new book “We Gon’ Be Alright: Notes on Race and Resegregation” he examines recent tragedies and protests. One chapter chronicles Chang’s visit to Ferguson, Missouri one year after Michael Brown was shot and killed by police. In this episode, Chang tal...

The average American spends a third of his or her life working. What is the secret to achieving happiness because of our work and not in spite of it? How can we make a job into a vocation? David Brooks and Arthur Brooks have both studied and written about these questions. They say, no matter what the job is, the answer is to find meaning in it. In this episode, the thought leaders discuss the elem...

The civil war in Syria has raged for five years and killed half a million people. Eleven million refugees have either fled to other countries or are displaced within Syria. In this episode, three survivors share their personal stories of strength and determination under intense and difficult circumstances. Syrian violinist Mariela Shaker says she “ran under bombs and mortars” to send applications...

In a rare interview, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency weighs in on the global security scene and explains the current risks to the United States. John Brennan is interviewed by Dina Temple-Raston, counterterrorism correspondent for NPR, at the Aspen Security Forum. Even though the Islamic State, or ISIL, has lost territory in the Middle East, it continues to be a “global menace,” ac...

Is America turning its back on the humanities? The declining enrollment in disciplines including history, literature, language, philosophy and the arts, at colleges and universities across the country, signals a significant cultural shift. In this episode, Leon Wieseltier, contributing editor for The Atlantic, and Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust unpack why the diminished appeal of the humaniti...

High-profile episodes of violence have highlighted excessive force and mistreatment of people of color by police. And this summer, police have become targets of violence with attacks in cities like Dallas and Baton Rouge. This episode examines the way forward for law enforcement and the communities they are duty-bound to “serve and protect.” We hear from law enforcement officials, including Attorn...