Podcasts by Raw Data

Technically Sweet from 2019-11-21T09:00

Chocolate is beloved by...well, most humans, it would seem. But this sweet treat that, for many of us, brings instant happiness, has a nasty secret: most of the world’s cocoa comes from a place ...

Training Computers to See from 2019-11-14T09:00

Over the past few decades, computer vision has held the promise of making the world a better place, from aiding the blind to helping doctors better analyze medical imagery. But as it turns out, ...

The Worst Cyber Attack (For now) from 2019-11-07T09:00

In June 2017, something weird — and very alarming — started happening at a company in Copenhagen. It seemed that hackers had shut down the company’s network, and were demanding a ransom. But it ...

How We Found Ourselves from 2019-10-31T19:30:45

Get out your smartphone, and you can almost instantaneously know where you are — and find out how to get where you want to go. Which, when you think back on the history of human navigation is......

About Us, But Not For Us (Repost) from 2019-10-29T08:00

Originally broadcast in April 2019. As we approach the end of 2019, the Financial Times recognizes Shoshana Zuboff's "The Age of Surveillance Capitalism" as one of the best business books of the...

Prediction (BYTE) from 2019-10-24T08:00

When humans predict something, it’s basically an educated guess, based on our experiences. When a machine makes a prediction, it uses data and math. And we are increasingly relying on machine pr...

The Digital Divide from 2019-10-17T08:00

Imagine a life without the Internet. No email, no Instagram, no texting, no Google maps, no Netflix...what would you do? A “normal” life would be next to impossible. But huge numbers of American...

Hacking (BYTE) from 2019-10-10T08:00

In the world of computer science, being a hacker means you know what’s up, and you have street cred. Outside of technology circles, though, hacking is more associated with things like data breac...

Machine Learning (BYTE) from 2019-10-03T08:00

It’s 2019, and machine learning is everywhere. It might not be Skynet, but it can still sound a little scary. If the robot apocalypse isn’t around the corner, what is? We talk to Kantwon Rogers,...

Memory (BYTE) from 2019-09-26T08:00

What exactly is memory? And why is it so important to how our devices work today? Friend of the show and Georgia Tech computing lecturer Kantwon Rogers breaks it down into bits and byte...

The Answer Machine from 2019-09-19T08:00

Google has become our yellow pages, our atlas, our library, our medical consultant, our shopping guide. Which means it is, basically, a giant, virtual confession booth. It knows our most intimat...

Algorithms (BYTE) from 2019-09-12T08:00

Simply put, we (humans) can’t possibly process all of the data in the world, which is why computers are so useful — and why algorithms have become so necessary.

In this mini-episode, we ...

Your Data Are Showing from 2019-08-29T08:00

What could someone learn about you from your location? What about your Facebook likes? What about just...your face? You’re probably thinking — not much. But Stanford researcher Michal Kosinski s...

Conspiracy Tyranny from 2019-07-04T08:00

If the rise of despots around the world seems bewildering, especially given our unprecedented access to information in 2019 — therein might lie the very problem. A new kind of propaganda has tak...

Kinetic Effects from 2019-06-27T08:00

We know that Russia has been honing its tools of disinformation since the Cold War, but how did Soviet Era sabotage make the jump into the digital age? How have imposters on social media caused ...

Dezinformatsiya from 2019-06-20T08:00

Russians posing as Americans. Wild conspiracy theories about political figures. Outright fabrications. All part of Russian efforts to interfere in the 2016 elections, certainly. But it turns out...

Climate and Behavior: Warmer Means Worse from 2019-06-06T08:00

Climate change is already reshaping the natural world, but how does it affect human behavior? Economist Marshall Burke is part of a growing field of scientists uncovering interactions between gl...

Power Lines from 2019-05-13T08:02

The United States is a pretty divided country; which may just feel like an inevitable product of our times. But it turns out there’s one partisan tool, in particular, that bears at least some of...

Power Lines from 2019-05-13T08:02

The United States is a pretty divided country; which may just feel like an inevitable product of our times. But it turns out there’s one partisan tool, in particular, that bears at least some of...

Titan vs. Titan: A.I.&the Race for Global Supremacy from 2019-05-02T05:00

There’s an epic struggle under way: a challenge to lead the world in A.I. — artificial intelligence. But this space race for the 21st century doesn’t seem to be getting enough attention from at ...

Weaponized from 2019-04-25T04:00

When we think of killer robots, images of the Terminator, Robocop, and other dystopian movies often spring to mind. These movies usually don’t end well (for the humans, at least). So it seems cr...

About Us, But Not for Us from 2019-04-11T04:00

Shoshana Zuboff doesn’t mince words when it comes to the data economy. According to Zuboff, author of the recent book *The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, *our very souls are at stake. But the s...

Power from the People, Part II: A New Kind of Machine from 2019-04-04T04:00

At the start of the 20th century, the United States Census Bureau was in a bit of a pickle. The electric tabulating machines that had saved the census in 1890 worked beautifully — but they were ...

Power from the People from 2019-03-21T04:00

At the birth of the United States, the new nation faced a problem. How do you make a crazy new idea — power coming not from a king, but from the people — a reality? There was no handbook; the fr...

Power from the People from 2019-03-21T04:00

At the birth of the United States, the new nation faced a problem. How do you make a crazy new idea — power coming not from a king, but from the people — a reality? There was no handbook; the fr...

Meet Raw Data from 2019-03-07T21:18:08

On Raw Data, we take a look at the new source of power in the 21st century: data. Whoever controls data has power. But is this making things better? Worse? Raw Data is a show about how informati...

Reckoning from 2018-07-26T12:00

Silicon Valley and Washington DC have a showdown when Zuckerberg goes before Congress. Silicon Valley has grown powerful because it advances a vision for how technology will set us free. So what...

Inevitability from 2018-07-19T12:00

Technology is an almost god-like force that acts upon all of humanity. What does it actually want?

Democracy from 2018-07-12T12:00

Can democracy survive the internet? What country will take the lead in shaping our online environment – and how?

Gatekeepers from 2018-07-05T12:00

The tech giants that control the internet have destroyed 20th century institutions and challenged the role of an independent press. Whither the 4th estate? Susan Athey, Frank Foer.

All the World's a Stage from 2018-06-28T12:00

Within 15 years, social media has become the dominant force shaping the Valley. What does it mean for individuals around the world and for society at large to be publicly performing in so many a...

The Garage from 2018-06-21T12:00

Silicon Valley reveres garage start-ups and the myth of the entrepreneur. But, in the wake of the dotcom crash, power dynamics shift. Have the entrepreneurs, these quintessential American charac...

Land of the Free Dotcom from 2018-06-07T12:00

Netscape’s IPO electrifies the dotcom era, and “New Economy” proponents insist that cyberspace will redefine the rules of prosperity. The data economy is born. Guests: Fred Turner, Kevin Kelly, ...

The Triple Fence from 2018-05-31T12:00

In the post-Watergate era, two academics battle the NSA and establish the technology that protects our online information. Cryptography remains a fundamental tool, but can it save us from enteri...

The Looking Glass from 2018-05-24T12:00

The Valley comes of age as the center of innovation and personal computing. Doug Englebart delivers the Mother of All Demos. Steve Jobs makes a fateful visit to Xerox PARC. On The WELL, people l...

Drop City from 2018-05-17T12:00

Inspired by cybernetics and LSD, Stewart Brand creates the Whole Earth Catalog as a how-to manual for the commune movement. The catalog articulates a philosophy of tech idealism and individual e...

Valley of Heart's Delight from 2018-05-10T12:00

Before tech, there were orchards in the “Valley of Heart’s Delight.” Federal funding for Cold War research changes everything, and the semiconductor industry brings silicon to the Valley. The Tr...

Monument to a Dead Child from 2018-05-03T12:00

The seeds of Silicon Valley were sown long ago. The Gold Rush, the railroad barons, the founding of Stanford University, and myths of the American West still echo today.

Prelude from 2018-04-26T12:00

Introducing the series. Silicon Valley’s power: how did we get here?

Season Finale: The Legal Codes from 2017-06-27T00:00

How are algorithms and data science making their way into the American criminal justice system? The U.S. has the highest incarceration rate of any country in the world, and it’s clear from the s...

Meddling from 2017-05-19T00:14:07

There are A LOT of unanswered questions right now about Russia’s role in the 2016 election. Whether it’s actually hacking into the DNC servers or more subtly spreading misinformation online, the...

Newer Money from 2017-04-02T00:00

It's been a minute since we've checked in on the world's favorite cryptocurrency – Bitcoin! And man oh man is there a lot of upheaval in Bitcoin-land. The price is soaring, the SEC is debating, ...

Propaganda Armies from 2017-02-24T20:22:09

Let’s face it – there’s a lot of bulls**t flying around on the Internet. But where is it all coming from? This week, we tackle fake news, propaganda, and misinformation from a few different angl...

A New Day in Hollywood from 2017-01-30T22:42:35

There are massive changes underway in Hollywood – and a lot of the disruption is being driven by big data. In this week’s episode, we’re taking a deep dive into the ways companies like Netflix a...

Attention is Money from 2016-12-20T10:40:27

On the Internet there’s a never-ending, epic battle to catch – and keep – your attention. We don't really think about it much, but attention is a precious and personal resource, and these days t...

Data Confidential from 2016-12-13T14:05:55

It’s nearly impossible to know if you're having a truly private, unmonitored conversation today. Big data and online communications open the door for widespread surveillance. But even if you fee...

Gold or Pyrite? from 2016-11-29T15:16:28

Welcome to Season 2 of Raw Data! There's been a lot of buzz about big data in the past few years. The success of companies like Google, Facebook, and Amazon has helped fuel the growth of second ...

Upon Reflection: Season 1 from 2016-05-24T22:11:53

We’ve reached the end of Season 1 of Raw Data! (Don’t worry, there’s a second season coming soon.) In this episode, producers Mike and Leslie break from the usual format, and sit down in studio ...

Episode 11: So... What's On Your Mind? from 2016-04-05T16:04:58

Language is a window into our minds. So with all the digital text trails we're creating these days, what can we learn about our inner psychology, mental health, and well-being? In this episode: ...

Episode 10: Love from 2016-03-21T23:09:02

LOVE!! Why is it so hard to find?! The seemingly endless options of online dating should make it easy, right? Is there data that can predict lasting love? Argh!! Maybe we just haven’t digitized ...

Episode 9: The Digital Afterlife from 2016-03-03T01:11:21

What happens to our data when we die? Digital estate planning is becoming an increasingly important topic, though many of our laws have not yet caught up. These days, we leave behind entire hist...

Episode 8: All the News That's Fit to Feed from 2016-02-11T19:41:06

How do you get your news – and how do you think your news gets to you? The pathway of information flow involves layers of decisions that in many ways are opaque. So are we achieving the universa...

Episode 7: The Big Data of Nature from 2016-01-27T23:10:45

As we hear over and over again, environmental issues are mounting, and the stakes are huge. So how might big data be used to tackle the issues of sustainability, climate change, habitat loss, an...

Episode 6: Under the Influence from 2015-12-21T14:11:54

Are we addicted to the Internet? Is it even appropriate to use the language of addiction about smartphones and other digital devices? After all, tech companies intentionally appeal to human natu...

Episode 5: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Data from 2015-11-24T00:00

Elections and political messaging are changing in the new media landscape. Campaigns are using big data to target voters with better precision, and tech companies are making decisions behind the...

Episode 4: New Money from 2015-11-03T20:03:24

Cryptocurrencies could revolutionize money and finance. But even more than that, they symbolize how trust is changing as we increasingly rely on technology rather than traditional institutions -...

Episode 3: The Hippocratic Algorithm from 2015-10-20T00:00

Big data is revolutionizing health and medicine, from genomics to wearable technologies to precision health. But is our medical care system prepared for algorithms that can diagnose us and make ...

Episode 2: Work in the Crowd from 2015-10-06T00:00

What is the future of work? Today, all of our careers are being transformed by big data, from how we find it, to how we collaborate with others, to how our professional reputations are shaped. W...

Episode 1: Uploaded from 2015-09-16T00:00

Welcome to Raw Data! In this first episode, hosts Mike Osborne and Leslie Chang explore how normal, everyday digital footprints can reveal surprisingly intimate facts – like whether your parents...