The Curiosity Desk

July 9, 2026 First up, MIT economist Jon Gruber reflects on why independent government agencies matter, following the Trump v. Slaughter ruling by the Supreme Court.  Then, we're airing Edgar’s new Curiosity Desk feature on the deployment of Waymo taxis in Boston.  Afterwards, Animal behaviorist Jennifer Verdolin joins to discuss what humans can learn about friendship from elephants.  Finally, ATC...

July 8, 2026 Today, Edgar is joined by NPR World Cup correspondent Jasmine Garsd for "The World Cup Effect," a national special exploring how the World Cup is changing our perceptions of the rest of the world, and how the rest of the world’s perceptions of us are changing. The driving question: Can a global sporting event bring the US and the world closer together? And if so, can it last? Edgar &a...

July 7, 2026 It’s an AI news panel, this week focused on labor and workforce issues. We’ll hear from AI ethicists Nir Eisikovits & J. Hughes , and Boston Globe tech reporter Hiawatha Bray. It’s another round of Four Things to Know, with Aidan Connelly & Gal Tziperman Lotan .  Edgar ​meets Adam Golub from the Generations Project & Charlotte Tragard from the Ogunquit Heritage Museum for...

First up, Edgar talks with ReFED Executive Director Sara Burnett and John Hopkins researcher Roni Neff about what “sell by” labels on food packages actually mean, in light of California’s ban aimed at reducing food waste.  Then, we meet mentalist Tom Indigo , who reads the minds of our host Edgar and volunteer Eva Doyne. 

June 25, 2026  First up,  it’s the latest edition of “The Glitch Report," with Joan Donovan from the Critical Internet Studies Institute. She'll discuss what she calls the "Election Fraud Doom Loop", political conspiracy theories, and general distrust of government officials.  Ahead of the event Disability ReFramed: Celebrating Our Childhood on TV, we look back at disability-related programming of...

June 24, 2026  First up, how much of the lore around the historic liberty tree is real, and how much is myth carried out over centuries? That’s the focus of new reporting from GBH’s Hannah Loss. She joins alongside Arnold Arboretum director Ned Friedman , who was called to analyze a ​preserved sample of the tree’s roots. Then, with the Bourne & Sagamore bridges being offered up for “adoption,"...

June 23, 2026 It’s a Curiosity Desk faith leader news panel. We’ll talk World Cup, A.I. and trillionaires with B.U. Muslim Chaplain Naureen Mallick , Rev. Jessica Chicka , and Rabbi Charlie Schwartz from Lehrhaus.  Then we've got another round of Four Things to Know, with Gal Tziperman-Lotan from the GBH Daily newsletter and Curiosity Desk Producer Rachel Armany.  Lastly, Edgar meets Kristen Luise...

First up, Edgar meets Jennifer Felt from the Conservation Law Foundation + ​scientist Taylor Heyl at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, for a conversation about what’s to come of the Seamounts Marine National Monument following Trump administration de-regulations.  Then, in celebration of Pride, Joan Ilacqua from Queer History Boston takes us into some under-explored moments of LGBTQ history...

First up, i t’s ICYMI, our Friday menagerie of misfit news. Joining this week, we’ve got GBH’s Renuka Balakrishnan and Boston Globe higher-ed business reporter Diti Kohli . We’ll get their reactions to some lighter World Cup headlines (think: Merlin the duck & Scotts’ love for Irn-Bru.) We’ll also talk about the D.C. reflecting pool algae bloom, and if it’s indeed time for Waffle House to expa...

It’s another edition of “The Glitch Report” with Joan Donovan from the Critical Internet Studies Institute. She’ll talk about some implications of A.I. deepfake videos becoming indiscernible from the real thing, and the fun-house reality of right-wing podcaster Candace Owens – who’s been promoting a bizarre conspiracy theory about the death of Charlie Kirk.  Then, Neuroscientists Bob Datta and Dav...

First up,   Edgar talks with Abagael Giles from Vermont Public about her recent piece on scientists working to save the American Elm. Then, As the cost of groceries rises, why do bananas remain so cheap? We get a primer in food supply chains, ​grocery store business models and ​fruit engineering from Sean Cash, economist at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition & Policy.  Lastly, it’s the Jun...

First up, it’s the latest edition of our A.I. News panel, this week with Harvard humanist chaplain Greg Epstein, former Executive Director of the National AI Advisory Committee Kathy Pham, and AI Ethics Lab founder Cansu Cansa.   Then, we get caught up on Four Things To Know, with Gal Tziperman-Lotan from the GBH Daily Newsletter.  Lastly, URI Greenhouse Manager Benjamin Robbins joins with the lat...

First,  Edgar talks with Massport CMO John Raferty about what could potentially be the world’s largest soccer ball, which arrived at a park in East Boston on Friday.  Then, This Wednesday will mark 251 years since the Battle of Bunker Hill. We explore the battle's legacy with Julie Hall from the Charlestown Historical Society, ahead of an event Tuesday with GBH’s The Forum Network. Julie will join...

First up misinformation researcher Joan Donovan joins with Craig Newmark – founder of Craigslist – on internet scams in the age of A.I. Craig’s heading the public service campaign Take9   with muppet Count von Count.  Then, we're learned about some under-explored Massachusetts and New England history with Greg Jackson, host of the podcast History That Doesn’t Suck, ahead of a show at the Wilbur. L...

First up,  50 years ago this month, a contentious Cambridge City Council meeting around the issue of recombinant DNA research would go on to shape the future of scientific research in Cambridge and beyond. We’ll discuss with GBH’s Craig LeMoult , and historian of science Luis Campos .  Then... what can we humans learn about leisure from the mighty gorilla? Edgar talks with Animal behaviorist Jenni...

First up, we check in with professor Rocky Weitz from the Tufts Fletcher School. Now that we are 5 months out from the US government overthrowing Maduro we ask - how are Venezuelans faring today, and how far off is true democracy?  Then, GBH’s Gal Tziperman-Lotan & Senior Producer Aidan Connelly return with Four Things To Know for June 9th. We round out our show with Pigeon Palooza! We’ll star...

First up, Edgar meets Clear Scientific’s Shekar Shetty & Winston Henderson to learn about their work developing the world’s first antidote to methamphetamine overdoses.  Then, we’re talking about the integral role alcohol played in the founding of our country with Brooke Barbier, author of the book Cocked and Boozy: An Intoxicating History of the American Revolution . Lastly, when did brands b...

It’s our Friday menagerie of misfit news. GBH’s Paris Alston & Jeremy Siegel join us to talk about the Nantucket school committee meeting gone awry, the enduring Allston snow pile, and if we’re being wimps about a little weekend rain. Then: Next week, the world will learn whether Rubato Chef Laurence Louie wins season 23 of Bravo’s Top Chef. He knows, of course, because filming wrapped month a...

It's The Glitch Report , with Joan Donovan from the Critical Internet Studies Institute. We cover former reality star Spencer Pratt using Trump’s social media playbook in his L.A. mayoral bid, Europe’s push to become less reliant on U.S. tech, and more.  Then: With a swipe of a magnet, microscopic “magno-bots” can perform complex maneuvers. Edgar meets MIT researchers Rachel Sun and Andrew Chento...

250 years ago,  Americans weren’t just fighting the British – they also had smallpox to contend with. Edgar talks with GBH’s Jennifer Moore and Kanisorn Wongsrichanalai from the Mass. Historical Society to talk smallpox in the time of the American revolution. Then: What makes New England ice cream stands the cream of the crop ? (Sorry.) Edgar meets Elijah & Kendra Richards, co-creators of the...

Edgar kicks us off with  another round of our A.I. news & ethics panel with Nir Eisikovits & J Hughes from the podcast Prosthetic Gods , and Harvard A.I. researcher Elena Glassman.  Then, GBH’s Gal Tziperman-Lotan returns with Four Things To Know for June 2nd, 2026. And ending our show, it’s the June edition of Stargazer’s Guide with astrophysicist Anjali Tripathi.

On Saturday, a meteor crashed into the ocean off the coast of Cape Cod. Sky & Telescope senior editor Kelly Beatty joins to explain what we know (and don’t) about what exactly happened, how rare this is, and other pressing meteor questions.  Then: Whoop has become a darling in the landscape of Boston tech startups, with a pre-IPO valuation of over 10 billion. How rare is their story, and how d...

First up, It’s ICYMI, our menagerie of misfit news week-in-review panel. We’ll talk with Axios’ Mike Deehan and freelance journalist Megan Johnson about the Enhanced Games in Vegas, a Bangladeshi buffalo that looks eerily like our 47th president, and if “you can’t beat Boston” is in fact the best promotional slogan for the city. Then, we talk about the new podcast Fighting Crime. The podcast detai...

First up, BU Misinformation Researcher Joan Donovan walks us through a few stories that've made headlines this week.  Then, Edgar chats with UMass Boston labor historian Nick Juravich and economist Elise Gould about how this current job market stacks up against others throughout history.  Lastly, we're peeking into the fitness programming of GBH past, with Sammy Driscoll & Peter Higgins from t...

First up, GBH’s Meghan Smith joins to talk about her reporting on why Malden has so many Chinese restaurants. She’ll join alongside Diana Jeong, a lifelong Malden resident and co-founder of the Greater Malden Asian American Community Coalition.  Then... ahead of The 98th Scripps National Spelling Bee is underway in Washington, D.C. Merriam Webster editor-at-large Peter Sokolowski is a judge. He’ll...