Marketplace All-in-One

It’s the first part of our series on money, politics and big-spending, anonymous donors – seen through the lens of the election cycle in Arizona. China has a chip on its shoulder about U.S.-imposed tech export limits.

From the BBC World Service: It’s the latest from Britain’s central bank after unfunded tax cuts announced last month by the U.K. government sent shockwaves through financial markets. Plus, missile strikes in Kyiv have caused power and water outages in the Ukrainian capital, where life was starting to return to normal. And, what it’s like to get a call saying you’ve won the Nobel Prize for Economics.

Physicians and medical experts are starting to incorporate algorithms and machine learning in many parts of the health care system, including experimental models to analyze images from X-rays and brain scans. The goal is to use computers to improve detection and diagnosis of patients’ ailments. Such models are trained to identify tumors, skin lesions and more, using databases full of reference scans or images. But there are also potential biases within the data that could result in skewed diagnoses from these machine learning models. Marketplace’s Kimberly Adams spoke to María Agustina Ricci, a biomedical engineer who is pursuing a Ph.D. at the Hospital Italiano de Buenos Aires in Argentina. She has studied how the disparities between low-income and developed countries could worsen, or create, these biases.

While the backlog of ships at West Coast ports has mostly cleared, there’s a new log jam along the Mississippi River. We’ll talk about the effects it could have on our supply chain, food prices and inflation. Then, a look at the history behind the Supreme Court’s group photos. Plus, the hosts weigh in on Kim Kardashian getting a crypto fine, Black Friday and extra large skeleton Halloween decorations during a round of Half Full/Half Empty.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

If you have questions about the economy, business or technology you want answered on Whaddya Wanna Know Wednesday, leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email us at [email protected].

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The economy has made a remarkable recovery since the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, but where would we be without that downturn? On today’s show, we talk “what ifs” with economists. Plus: semiconductor demand, oversharing on LinkedIn and what to make of the September jobs report.

It’s Jobs Day, and Chris Low of FHN Financial helps us interpret the latest data. U.S. lawmakers aren’t pleased with the OPEC+ decision to cut down oil production. Millennials looking for housing will encounter a slew of inflation-triggered challenges.

U.S. lawmakers are exploring some options to counter the oil-producing cartel’s move to cut down production. The struggle to find and afford child care is stopping many mothers from returning to work. We scan some of the history of the bar code, which was patented 70 years ago on this day.

From the BBC World Service: While cyberspace defenses held up well in the days after Russia invaded Ukraine, Microsoft president Brad Smith told the BBC that attacks on internet infrastructure could increase as Moscow suffers setbacks in the war. Plus, Italy introduces new limits and times for gas heating. And, could a search engine from a former Googler’s start-up really rival the world search champion?

Much of the social media ecosystem — love it or hate it — has been made possible by a federal law from 1996 called the Communications Decency Act. Section 230 of that law shields online publishers like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube from liability for much of the content posted on their platforms. This week, the Supreme Court announced it will hear challenges to that law. One of the cases, Reynaldo Gonzalez v. Google LLC, questions whether Section 230 protects platforms that use algorithms to recommended content to users. Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Eric Goldman, a law professor at Santa Clara University School of Law. He said there are a few ways the decision could go.

What do oil and gas companies have to do with reproductive health care? Some of them are funneling donations to “pregnancy resource centers” that discourage abortion in exchange for a break on the energy producers’ taxes. Kimberly and guest host Janet Nguyen dig into an analysis from the Gulf States Newsroom. We’ll also talk about President Biden overhauling the country’s policy on marijuana. Plus, Fat Bear Week is here. And an Oregon Trail musical?

Here’s everything we talked about today:

If you’ve got a question about the economy, business or technology, let us know. We’re at [email protected] or leave us a message at 508-U-B-SMART.

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