The Future of Everything
Stanford Engineering
Host Russ Altman, a professor of bioengineering, genetics, and medicine at Stanford, is your guide to the latest science and engineering breakthroughs. Join Russ and his guests as they explore cutting-edge advances that are shaping the future of everything from AI to health and renewable energy.
Along the way, “The Future of Everything” delves into ethical implications to give listeners a well-rounded understanding of how new technologies and discoveries will impact society. Whether you’re a researcher, a student, or simply curious about what’s on the horizon, tune in to stay up-to-date on the latest developments that are transforming our world.
Along the way, “The Future of Everything” delves into ethical implications to give listeners a well-rounded understanding of how new technologies and discoveries will impact society. Whether you’re a researcher, a student, or simply curious about what’s on the horizon, tune in to stay up-to-date on the latest developments that are transforming our world.
Episodes
Mentioned books
26 snips
Mar 27, 2026 • 36min
The future of learning
Candace Thille, a learning-science professor who founded the Open Learning Initiative, discusses how research, data, and AI can transform teaching. She explores tech that delivers timely feedback, personalized practice, and teacher-facing analytics. She imagines AI and educators working together to make learning active, scalable, and continuously improved.
Mar 20, 2026 • 31min
The future of fashion and dress codes
Richard Ford, Stanford law professor who studies civil rights, fashion, and dress codes, explores how clothing and grooming signal power, identity, and status. He traces sumptuary laws to modern unwritten norms. Topics include teens subverting rules, hair and racial politics, the masculine renunciation, workplace uniforms, and how fashion shapes respect and inequality.
Mar 13, 2026 • 34min
The future of vaccines
Yvonne Maldonado, a Stanford pediatrician and vaccine researcher, discusses how vaccines train immunity, why responses and booster needs vary, and how viruses evolve. She also explores herd immunity dynamics and the causes of declining public trust, arguing for better messaging and trusted messengers to restore confidence.
10 snips
Mar 6, 2026 • 37min
Best of: The future of sleep
Jamie Zeitzer, Stanford psychiatrist and neurobiologist who studies circadian rhythms and sleep, shares practical sleep science. He discusses how light timing shapes the body clock. He explains screens, blue light, and why content and stress often matter more. He covers wearables, CBT for insomnia, shift work strategies, melatonin use, and simple routines to protect sleep.
5 snips
Feb 27, 2026 • 36min
The future of coronary heart disease
Michael V. McConnell, a Stanford preventive cardiology professor known for coronary calcium scoring and AI retinal risk tools, argues for early detection and aggressive treatment of coronary disease. He discusses low-dose CT calcium scans, AI that mines routine imaging and retinal photos to predict risk, and how consumer-friendly screening could scale personalized prevention.
Feb 20, 2026 • 33min
The future of eating disorders
Jennifer Derenne, psychiatrist and Stanford professor who treats adolescent eating disorders, discusses how most cases start in adolescence and span diverse diagnoses. She covers family-centered, behavior-focused treatment, multidisciplinary medical stabilization and nutrition, the roles of genetics, social media and smartphones, and emerging research such as psychedelics paired with therapy.
16 snips
Feb 13, 2026 • 36min
Best of: The future of allergies
Sayantani (Tina) Sindher, a Stanford allergy and immunology professor focused on food allergy research. She discusses how immune responses and genetics shape allergies. She covers the microbiome, early food introduction, skin barrier roles, climate-driven pollen changes, emerging risks like alpha-gal, limits of testing, and new treatments such as oral immunotherapy and omalizumab.
37 snips
Feb 6, 2026 • 42min
The future of entrepreneurship
Chuck Eesley, a Stanford professor who studies how institutions shape entrepreneurship globally. He explores how policies and platforms alter startup paths, why export controls can spur foreign innovation, the role of data and compute in AI concentration, and how advertising and transparency affect misinformation and market responses.
Jan 30, 2026 • 34min
The future of substance abuse in youth
Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, a developmental psychologist who designs school prevention programs and advocates for nicotine and THC regulation. She discusses how teens prioritize immediate social rewards, the role of flavors and marketing in youth uptake, culturally tailored school curricula, rising cannabis potency and risks, and practical steps for families and policy to reduce youth substance use.
5 snips
Jan 23, 2026 • 30min
Best of: The future of depression care
Leanne Williams, a Stanford psychiatry professor who maps brain circuits to refine depression diagnosis. She discusses brain imaging and AI that identify distinct depression biotypes. Short talks cover matching treatments to biotypes, rapid-acting therapies like ketamine, and how objective brain data can reduce stigma and speed better care.
