Plastic is just about everywhere, and there’s going to be a lot more of it. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development expects global plastic use to triple by 2060. So what are we to do with all the waste?

Tossing empty iced coffee cups, peanut butter jars and blueberry containers into a recycling bin might seem like the obvious solution. But while the plastics industry has been working hard to promote recycling as a fix since the ’70s, it turns out our recycling systems are not equipped to handle the various plastics we use.

“Think of your own home. On top of your washing machine, you probably have a bright orange, hard plastic detergent bottle. And then in your refrigerator, you might have a squeezable clear ketchup bottle. Those two plastic containers cannot be recycled together,” said Judith Enck, founder of Beyond Plastics and former regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

On the show today: the fundamental problems with plastic recycling and the ubiquitous chasing-arrow symbol, and what we should do about it.

Then, we’ll discuss Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s visit to China, and why it may be time for Chinese officials to make a visit of their own. And is Yahoo is making a comeback?

Later, we’ll hear some listeners’ thoughts on robotaxis. And this week’s answer to the Make Me Smart question comes from one of the economists behind our favorite nerdy econ game, Tradle.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

We want to hear your answer to the Make Me Smart question. You can reach us at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART.