Works in Progress Podcast

Scientists speed up Darwin’s clock by watching microbes evolve in hours. Lab experiments recreate natural selection, from Dallinger’s heat-tolerant flagellates to Lenski’s long-term E. coli project. Visual mega-plate tests show how antibiotic gradients steer resistance. Frozen samples and genomes let researchers trace genetic changes through time.

Judge Glock, a public policy commentator who writes on local government and infrastructure, gives historical and policy analysis. He discusses how local incentives built Loudoun County’s data‑center boom and France’s nuclear rollout. They cover when local provision outperforms national control, special tax districts and their risks, and why local competition shapes public‑goods provision.

A lively tour of how scouring sand, wood ash and early soaps evolved into mechanized dishwashing. Stories of 19th-century crank-and-tub contraptions lead to Josephine Cochrane’s pressurized-water breakthrough. The narrative traces electrification, infrastructure and market forces that made dishwashers common. It ends with data on how the machine changed household labor and saved water and energy.

A tour of how English prose became clearer through shifts in syntax and plain style. They challenge the idea that shorter sentences equal better writing. You hear how Bible translations, public ritual, and 18th-century writers shaped modern sentence patterns. The piece traces a move from rhetorical periods to logical, speech-like prose and considers how media made writing more conversational.

Ruxandra Teslo, Fellow at Renaissance Philanthropy and regulatory policy analyst, discusses why drug development is slowing despite better science. Short conversations cover surrogate endpoints like bone mineral density, why companies shift trials to Australia, regulatory drag from IRBs and opaque FDA guidance, and reforms such as platform trials, safe harbors, and surrogate validation funding.

A deep dive into new ways to measure competition and spot monopolies. Shortcomings of traditional metrics like concentration and markups get challenged. A breakdown of the Oli-Pekas decomposition shows how markets reallocate customers to more productive firms. Historical examples include auto, telecoms and Colombia’s liberalisation to illustrate real-world effects on competition.

They explore using germicidal ultraviolet light to disinfect indoor air like water is treated. History of waterborne disease control and why airborne infections were neglected. The rise, fall, and comeback of UV technology, including safer far-UVC. Real-world trials, alternatives like ventilation and filtration, and challenges around deployment and standards.

They talk about why freezing eggs in your twenties changes the math on fertility decisions. They debate how Australia cut boat arrivals and whether Europe can copy those tactics. They unpack why ASML dominates extreme-ultraviolet chipmaking and how policy, labs and supply chains shaped that lead. They also trace Britain’s nuclear rise and fall and the quirky origins of the public bus.

A look at why artificial gravity is crucial for long-term living in space. Short history of rotating wheel ideas and how early programs shaped station design. Trade-offs between spin rate, size and engineering limits are unpacked. The case for inflatable habitats, packing on big rockets, and remaining material and policy challenges are explored.

A deep dive into AI's real-world impact on medical imaging and why early benchmark wins did not equal clinical dominance. Discussion of commercial tools, narrow automation for single findings, and why models stumble outside test conditions. Coverage of data limits, training biases, regulatory lanes for assistive versus autonomous tools, and how institutional incentives shape adoption.