Weird Things

WT: One Weird Trick That Solves Climate Change (Russia HATES It!)


Listen Later

The episode opens with a climate-change segment centered on an MIT Sensible City Lab concept for a large reflective structure in space at the L1 point to reduce incoming sunlight. The hosts treat it as an emergency, temporary geoengineering idea rather than a real near-term fix, emphasizing that it would be extremely expensive, politically difficult, and unable to solve the broader problems of climate change such as ocean acidification and overfishing. Andrew argues that nuclear power and carbon sequestration would be more practical uses of resources, and the discussion broadens into nuclear power, waste, population, and the complexity of climate systems. The second half moves through several tech stories: researchers in Australia experimenting with tire-based concrete, a programmable resistor aimed at AI hardware, a Black Hat presentation about hacking a Starlink terminal, and a broader conversation about service theft versus responsible security research. The episode closes with a discussion of dependence on Google and other major services after an outage, then finishes with TV recommendations and reactions, especially Westworld and Bryce's pick of Better Call Saul. Key topics Solar geoengineering as an emergency response: The hosts discuss an MIT proposal for a giant reflective membrane or 'space bubble' at L1 to block some sunlight. They frame it as a temporary 'something now' measure that might cool the planet but would not address the larger climate problem. Why large-s
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Weird ThingsBy Andrew Mayne

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

329 ratings


More shows like Weird Things

View all
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! by NPR

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

38,950 Listeners

Stuff To Blow Your Mind by iHeartPodcasts

Stuff To Blow Your Mind

5,667 Listeners

Fat Man Beyond by SModcast Network

Fat Man Beyond

3,930 Listeners

Big Picture Science by Big Picture Science

Big Picture Science

945 Listeners

Film Sack by Scott Johnson

Film Sack

1,377 Listeners

This Week in Tech (Audio) by TWiT

This Week in Tech (Audio)

3,059 Listeners

MacBreak Weekly (Audio) by TWiT

MacBreak Weekly (Audio)

2,013 Listeners

Our Fake History by PodcastOne

Our Fake History

3,482 Listeners

Stuff They Don't Want You To Know by iHeartPodcasts

Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

10,365 Listeners

Ridiculous History by iHeartPodcasts

Ridiculous History

4,561 Listeners

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum by Dan Carlin

Dan Carlin's Hardcore History: Addendum

8,312 Listeners

The Michael Shermer Show by Michael Shermer

The Michael Shermer Show

941 Listeners

The Political Orphanage by Andrew Heaton

The Political Orphanage

982 Listeners

How We Survive by Marketplace

How We Survive

1,377 Listeners

OpenAI Podcast by OpenAI

OpenAI Podcast

59 Listeners