Host Aaron Mak discusses with journalist Nithin Coca his attempt to abstain from using any Google products in his daily life.  They discuss why he did it, the useful alternatives he found for specific apps, the quirks of using different tools abroad, and the surprising benefits he found in starting over.  They also speculate on whether or not a normal consumer could sustainably do the same thing, and what that means for the state of the industry.

After the interview, host Aaron Mak joins co-host Shannon Palus for this week’s edition of “Don’t Close My Tabs.”  Podcast production by Justin D. Wright.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Shannon Palus discusses how today’s vaping panic is connected to the rise of the cigarette with Jacob Grier, author of the new book The Rediscovery of Tobacco: Smoking, Vaping, and the Creative Destruction of the Cigarette. Grier argues for a nuanced view of tobacco and nicotine’s place in America, and just how much parents should worry if their teen comes home with a Juul. They’ll also discuss why Sweden’s solution for tobacco risk reduction serves as an enviable model.

After the interview Shannon Palus joins co-host Aaron Mak for this week’s edition of “Don’t Close My Tabs.”  Podcast production by Justin D. Wright.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York Times technology reporter Mike Issac discusses his new book Super Pumped: The Battle For Uber, which traces Uber’s rapid rise and fall under co-founder Travis Kalanick.  He and host Aaron Mak talk about Uber’s fraught relationship with the media, how public perception of the company enabled one of its competitors to stave off extinction, the necessary paranoia required to investigate the company, and how Kalanick’s particular style of leadership helped transform transportation around the world – for better or worse. 

After the interview Shannon Palus joins the show for this week’s edition of “Don’t Close My Tabs.”  Podcast production by Justin D. Wright.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Shannon Palus explores a future in which high school girls stay atop the social hierarchy by editing their genes, giving themselves purple eyes, and glittery skin. That’s what fiction author E. Lily Yu imagines 2060 is like in her short story, Zero In Babel, which was published on Slate as part of the Future Tense Fiction Series. Shannon and producer Cameron Drews read and excerpt of the story, and then Shannon speaks to Yu about her creative process. 

After the interview Aaron Mak joins the show for this week’s edition of “Don’t Close My Tabs.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aaron Mak learns about how law enforcement is using public genealogy websites to crack cold cases. His guest is Nila Bala, Associate Director of Criminal Justice Policy at the R Street Institute, which is a think tank whose mission is to find solutions to complex policy problems. Bala is also a former public defender. She says while it’s great that criminals are being brought to justice, there should be more rules in place to limit false positives and prevent privacy violations.  

After the interview, Shannon Palus joins the show for this week’s edition of Don’t Close My Tabs. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Shannon Palus learns about personalized guns, sometimes referred to as “smart” guns. Her guest is Cassandra Crifasi, Deputy Director at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy & Research. More specifically, Crifasi is an epidemiologist focused on policies, procedures, and practices that prevent injury. She says personalized firearms are great for keeping kids and thieves away from guns, but they do nothing to prevent homicides and suicides by gun owners themselves.

After the interview Aaron Mak joins the show for this week’s edition of “Don’t Close My Tabs.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Aaron Mak learns about all the ways China is using cyber warfare to disrupt the efforts of protesters in Hong Kong. His guest is Nick Frisch, a fellow at Yale’s Information Society Project and a scholar of media and technology in the Chinese speaking world. Frisch was recently in Hong Kong as a fellow at the Journalism and Media Studies Center at Hong Kong University. 

After the interview, Shannon Palus joins the show for this week’s edition of Don’t Close My Tabs. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Shannon Palus talks to Victoria Fu and Gloria Lu, co-founders of Chemist Confessions. Their goal is to help us all cut through the marketing buzzwords of the skincare industry, and understand some of the actual chemistry behind the products we use. 

After the interview, Aaron Mak joins the show for this week’s edition of Don’t Close My Tabs. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Aaron Mak looks into Facebook’s plan to create a global cryptocurrency called Libra. For an expert opinion, he turns to Chris Brummer, a law professor at Georgetown University Law Center and the host of the podcast Fintech Beat. Brummer testified before the U.S. House of Representatives last week to explain why Facebook is jumping the gun with its proposal.

After the interview, Shannon Palus joins the show for this week’s edition of Don’t Close My Tabs.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Shannon Palus talks about the journalistic ethics of Amazon affiliate links with Jacqui Cheng, former Editor-in-Chief of Wirecutter and current Editor-in-Chief of Music at WQXR in New York. As Cheng explains, it’s possible for news organizations to make money from Amazon links without turning into a shill for a giant company.  

After the interview, Shannon talks to Aaron Mak for this week’s edition of Don’t Close My tabs. 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices