Entries in Innovation Hub by Kara Miller and Genevieve Gilson
Frederick Law Olmsted, who helped reshape America, is best known for designing Central Park. Filmmaker Lawrence Hott talks about Olmsted's troubled, fascinating, and powerful career. Read More...
Three things you should know about this week's show:
1. It’s possible to keep buildings cool in Zimbabwe -- without air conditioning. It’s simple when you take a tip from termites, says Frans Johansson, author of “The Medici Effect.” And it’s not just architecture -- applying knowledge from one field to another works in every area.
2. Got a bad knee? You might just need a hospital bed -- sans surgery. Anne Harrington, professor of the History of Science at Harvard, studies why the ritual of medicine creates a placebo effect and what the next frontier will be for this ancient phenomenon.
3. You can’t taste the difference between red wine and white wine. And that’s not all. To succeed, sometimes you have to quit. Stephen Dubner, co-author of “Freakonomics,” discusses research into why conventional thinking can be counterproductive.
Want to live like a Medici? Then it's time to stop listening to people just like you. Real innovation, says Frans Johansson, author of "The Medici Effect," comes from bringing ideas from one field into another - think doctors collaborating with teachers. Read More...
From eye of newt to sugar pills, placebos have always played a role in medicine. And now they have more applications than ever, including placebo surgery. Read More...
Cyber illusionist Marco Tempest turns magic into more than just rabbits and card tricks. He discusses how he started building things in his grandfather's workshop - and a shipment he once received from Steve Jobs. Read More...
Three things you should know about the small stuff.
1. Frank Gehry, Chris Rock, and Google all have at least one thing in common. They build on what works and aren’t afraid to let everything else fall by the wayside, says author Peter Sims.
2. Sharknado is a sign of things to come. Deb Roy, Chief Media Scientist for Twitter, sees a future in which mass & micro media come together to revolutionize news.
3. A new breed of philanthropists want to fund Indiana Jones reenactments and giant hammocks. In chapters around the world, the Awesome Foundation now doles out “micro-genius grants for flashes of micro-brilliance.”
In order to sell this everyday item, marketers mythologized it. And consumers happily paid excessive prices. What is it? Listen to find out. Read More...
Sometimes little bets are the ones that really pay off. Author Peter Sims talks about how surprisingly small moves have helped launch everything from Facebook to Pixar to the comedy routines of Chris Rock. Read More...
If you think there's been a major upheaval in media, buckle your seatbelt. According to Deb Roy, Twitters Chief Media Scientist, social sites are about to fundamentally change politics, entertainment, and much more. Read More...
Lavishing money on cool projects isn't just for billionaires - or millionaires - any more. We look at how the Awesome Foundation has grown so quickly by offering "micro-grants for flashes of micro-brilliance." Read More...
