Make Me Smart

From restaurants to bars and gyms, more and more businesses are requiring customers to be vaccinated. Our listener Leila wants to know what exactly you need to show those businesses to get through the door. On today’s episode, we’ll dig into some of the options and do a little show and tell. Plus, we’ll answer one of the nerdiest questions we’ve received about taxes, along with others about no-needle vaccines and the history the Federal Reserve’s annual meeting in Jackson Hole.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

Read the transcript here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer! Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

We’ve seen plenty of companies make pledges to reduce emissions and increase investments in climate solutions. How real are these commitments?

Someone who has been thinking — and acting — on this topic is Michael O’Leary, managing director at Engine No. 1, the activist investment firm that won three seats on the board of Exxon Mobile.

“I think if we had made a purely environmental argument, kind of a save-the-polar-bears argument on why we need a new leadership at Exxon, I don’t think we’ve been successful. We had to make the economic argument, the argument that this is what what was best for the long term of the company,” O’Leary said.

On the show today, we’ll discuss the role of corporate America in the fight against climate change and what it really means to have environmental social governance goals incorporated into business strategies.

O’Leary, who is also the co-author of “Accountable: The Rise of Citizen Capitalism,” said there was a way to build an economy better prepared for climate change.

“Ultimately, our economy has transformed before it can transform again. But given the sort of capitalist society we live in, it’s going to require capitalists to require shareholders to be part of that movement, if not leading it.”

We’ll also discuss more dire news about how climate change threatens our food supply, and another sign that “capitalism doesn’t care if you live or die.”

Plus, listeners react to last week’s episode with social psychologist Amy Cuddy on “pandemic flux syndrome” and an answer to the “Make Me Smart” question that’s giving us all the feels.

When you’re done listening, tell your Echo device to “make me smart” for our daily explainers. This week, we’re explaining food deserts, bicycle commuting and the possible end of open office workspaces. You can hear all our explainers here. And don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter! You can find the latest issue here.

Here’s everything we talked about:

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Today, we’ve got Jerome Powell on the brain. As he prepares to make a major speech at the virtual Jackson Hole summit this week, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, a Democrat, has indicated that she’d like Powell, a Republican, to keep his job as Federal Reserve chair after his current term ends in February. Some Dems aren’t on board, and that’s causing a rift in the party. We’ll explain why. Plus, we’ll discuss what a California ruling could mean for ride-hailing companies like Uber and Lyft and close this Whaddya Miss Monday with a COVID-19 roundup.

Here’s everything we talked about:

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Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer! Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

As the delta variant spreads, Americans are once again in need of COVID tests. We’ll talk about one frustrating reason some of those tests are so hard to find. Plus, we can’t stop talking about Afghanistan, regarding the “Jeopardy!” host scandal, don’t say we didn’t tell you so! Then, we end this episode of Economics on Tap with a round of “Half Full/Half Empty.”

Here’s everything we talked about today:

Read the transcript here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer! Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

For our 500th episode, we’re doing a little rinse and repeat. In the news fix, we get March 2020 vibes as we discuss developments from Israel, which has one of the world’s highest vaccination rates, raising concerns that the coronavirus vaccines’ protection may wane over time. Plus, the Federal Trade Commission is re-upping its antitrust lawsuit against Facebook, and the controversy over the new “Jeopardy!” host escalates. Then, a special edition of our favorite game, “Half Full/Half Empty.”

Here’s everything we talked about:

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Join us on YouTube Fridays at 3:30 p.m. Pacific/6:30 p.m. Eastern for our live happy hour episode! Subscribe to our channel and sign up for notifications so you don’t miss it.

SPACs have been all the hotness on Wall Street this year. These special purpose acquisition companies help businesses sell shares to the public faster than the traditional IPO process and bypass some of the regulatory hurdles. But one listener wants to know, what can go wrong when you “SPAC it”? We’ll explain the upsides and downsides of SPACs. Plus, we’ll answer your questions about who’s making money on disinformation, China verus Big Tech and why canning lids are so hard to find right now.

Here’s everything we talked about:

Read the transcript here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer. Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

For some, life is starting to resemble something like normal. Kids are going back to school, some offices are welcoming back workers… so why are we still feeling stressed?

Social psychologist Amy Cuddy says there are a couple reasons. For one, the pandemic has gone on for so long, our coping system known as “surge capacity” is now depleted.

“We then move into this regression phase where we withdraw, we get sad, agitated, we don’t want to hang out with people, we’re done with Zoom meetings. So it’s not surprising that we don’t have the capacity to feel intense positive emotions right now when we go out to that live concert,” Cuddy said.

And when you throw the coronavirus delta variant into the mix, things get even harder. Cuddy says right now it’s common for people to experience spikes in anxiety, depression and have a desire to escape. She refers to this as “pandemic flux syndrome.” That’s not a clinical term. But it is real.

On today’s show, Cuddy explains the role employers can play to help workers through this chapter of the pandemic.

Later in the show, we’ll discuss how Facebook is dealing with the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan and MacKenzie Scott reshaping the nonprofit world. Plus, a longtime listener calls in with an update on paying for his twin sons’ college education.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

Read the transcript here.

When you’re done listening, tell your Echo device to “make me smart” for our daily explainers. This week, we’re explaining 747 jumbo jets, the Social Security System and Rosie the Riveter! You can hear all our explainers here. And don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter! You can find the latest issue here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer. Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

The United Nations report on the climate crisis may have fallen out of the headlines, but we’re still taking about it on the show. Today, we’ll dig into how the climate is behind a historic water shortage in the West affecting millions of residents and businesses. We’re also obsessing over today’s other big story: the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the rise of the Taliban. Plus, yay for reducing child hunger in America and congrats to USWNT legend Carli Lloyd on her retirement.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

Read the transcript here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer! Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

The delta variant might have some of us feeling like we’re reliving March 2020, but a new piece in The Atlantic is making us smart on how the COVID-19 pandemic might end. We’ll discuss what it’ll mean when the virus becomes endemic and blends into the background of our lives. Plus, people are getting vaccine boosters under the table, and it’s getting ‘hot in herre’: Earth just went though the hottest month on record! Then, we end Friday like we usually do, with a round of Half Full/Half-Empty.

Here’s everything we talked about:

Read the transcript here.

Our show needs your voice! Tell us what you think of the show or ask a question for our hosts to answer! Send a voice memo or give us a call at 508-82-SMART (508-827-6278).

The latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau might create the impression that America just became more diverse, but we may have been that way all along. We’ll break down some of the census numbers. Also, guest host Meghan McCarty Carino, who’s feeling a little less hollowed out today, discusses what we can learn from Native Americans’ high COVID-19 vaccination rates. Then, the hosts get all smiley and talk about LeVar Burton’s future post-“Jeopardy!” and what happened when a celebrity spotted a bear inside a grocery store.

Here’s everything we talked about:

Read the transcript here.

Join us on YouTube Fridays at 3:30 p.m. Pacific/6:30 p.m. Eastern for our live happy hour episode! Subscribe to our channel and sign up for notifications so you don’t miss it.