Shows / The Curiosity Desk
The Curiosity Desk
Edgar B. Herwick III hosts GBH’s newest show, The Curiosity Desk, where he answers your questions and examines everyday mysteries hiding in plain sight. Tune in daily for conversations, insights and profundities about the world we live in.
Have something you’re curious about? Leave us a voicemail anytime at 877-301-8970, or submit questions via the form on our landing page at GBHNews.org.
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Episodes
The Curiosity DeskWill My Job Exist In 5 Years?
First up, It’s our AI news panel. We're talking about local and national job losses to AI, major security risks in Anthropic’s Mythos, and a few ethical…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Do We Think We Hate Small Talk?
First, we learn about the inner workings of debt court, and a deluge of under-prepared, under-resourced coverage attorneys working on behalf of debt collection…
The Curiosity DeskDo Monkeys Laugh?
Up first, Edgar learns about the history of Mashpee Wampanoags in the American Revolution, with Ava Costello & Richard DeSorgher from the Mashpee Historical…
The Curiosity DeskHow Can Climate Action Improve Your Health and Save You Money?
First up, we check in with NENC’s Cori Princell, who oversaw coverage across public radio newsrooms in New England. She’ll discuss a few standout stories for…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Do We Wait 'Til Spring To Clean?
Up first, MIT Economics Chair Jon Gruber breaks down the role and responsibilities of the Fed and its chair, in light of confirmation hearings this week for…
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What's A Rain Bomb? (And Should I Be Worried?)
First, we dive into the science of oil extraction with geoscientist Robert Buchwaldt. Next, Edgar visits Quincy Gas, where he speaks with owner Harvey Kertzman…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Made The News, 100 Years Ago Today?
When GBH Reporter Craig LeMoult found a 1926 copy of The Boston Post hidden in his home, he uncovered a forgotten piece of Boston history. What did the…
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Will Boston Marathon Runners Agree To A Live Interview?
It’s a Boston Marathon live-coverage, special edition of our show! We open with GBH’s Jeremy Siegel, describing his coverage of the marathon's opening & the…
The Curiosity DeskHow Does A Jester Perform On The Radio?
First up.... The Bad Fibs return! It’s our newsy spin on the classic Mad Libs format, with help from our live studio audience. This week Edgar is joined by our…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Does the Label on Your Egg Carton Mean?
First up, we're exploring how trainers & runners optimize a marathon performance, and what happens on a physiological level when our bodies are pushed to their…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Is It So Hard To File My Taxes?
First up, this Tax Day, we ask: why is it so hard to file my taxes? We’ll talk with Beverly Moran, a senior tax fellow at Boston College. Secondly we'll chat…
The Curiosity DeskIs My Pollen Allergy Getting Worse?
First up - Edgar decodes our paychecks, asking "what exactly happens with all the money taken out each week?” We’ll have some help from Steven Dean, a…
The Curiosity DeskHow Can I Score 654 Points In Scrabble?
First up, Edgar hosts an AI news panel with Reuters tech reporter Deepa Seetharaman and Shaleen Title, former chair Cannabis Control Board commissioner who…
The Curiosity DeskHow Many Frogs At Are Mount Auburn Cemetery?
First up.... With some help from our studio audience, we’re playing a game of “bad fibs” – that's news-inspired mad libs, with nightside anchor Tori Bedford…
The Curiosity DeskHow Do You Get A Species Named After You?
First, Edgar speaks with NASA flight director Rick Henfling, who is overseeing the Artemis II crew’s return this weekend. Next, shifting from outer space to…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Are "Ticked Off" Meat-Lovers Going Vegan?
First up.... Mass. is one week into a new system tracking Alpha-Gal syndrome across the state. The worst concentrations remain on Martha’s Vineyard – but not…
The Curiosity DeskNutella On The Far Side of The Moon: An Artemis ll Update
Edgar talks with GBH reporter Trajan Warren about his latest reporting on a lack of major protests over the killing of Stephenson King, and the state of police…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Is Enriched Uranium, Exactly?
First, we're going behind the scenes on how influencers make a living with Maddie Graves-Witherell, a Boston-based influencer known as Maddie GW, and creator…
The Curiosity DeskWhere's The Bathroom?
On today’s podcast: Jeremy Siegel guest hosts! First, we dive into Anime Boston with chair Omega Au and researcher Mel Stanfill, exploring the world of…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Does an Ant's Organs Look Like?
We’re learning about the wild world of ants, and a new research project documenting the morphology of over 2,000 ant specimens. Helping us along is Evan…
The Curiosity DeskWhat's So Funny?
First up, we’re learning the latest on the launch of Artemis II with Andrea Leinfelder, a space reporter with the Houston Chronicle – on site in Florida! Then…
The Curiosity DeskGot Goat?
We explore the short and long-term economic consequences of going to war – with Iran or otherwise – with MIT Economics Chair Jon Gruber. Plus listeners'…
The Curiosity DeskHow Do You Get a Dog Out of a Sinkhole?
We get a crash course into the science around DNA testing – and how data can be misconstrued – from Boston Globe reporter David Scharfenberg. Edgar meets Sarah…
The Curiosity DeskNorth Shore: Who's Got the Best Beef?
We dig into a new book with a provocative title, To Catch a Fascist: The Fight to Expose the Radical Right. Edgar talks with author Christopher Mathias and…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Stops An Asteroid From Smashing Into Earth?
Asteroids careening toward Earth – not ideal. MIT Professors Julien de Wit, Richard Binzel, and research scientist Artem Burdanov explain how their work will…
The Curiosity DeskHow Was the "Codfather" Caught?
The GBH podcast Catching the Codfather tells the story of Carlos Raphael, a fishing tycoon whose empire ended with his arrest in an elaborate sting operation…
The Curiosity DeskWho's In Charge of Outer Space?
Outer space is vast, but it’s not a lawless frontier. Ely Sandler is a Harvard fellow behind a report calling for updates to rules and guidelines around space…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Makes Finland So Happy?
Year after year, Finland gets crowned the “happiest” country on the planet. But if we dig into the methodology of the survey, does the result hold up? We talk…
The Curiosity DeskWho You Gonna Call?
On Comm Ave, a public phone is now a hotline to “Call a Boomer”, dialing direct to residents at a senior living facility in Reno, Nevada. Calla Kessler is part…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Are Boston Common Squirrels So Fat?
An official Scottish tartan memorializes thousands of women who were executed over accusations of witchcraft. Claire Mitchell and Zoe Venditozzi from the…
The Curiosity DeskWhy is Winnie the Pooh a Symbol for Chinese Dissidents?
Chinese political dissidents use memes and creativity to evade censors and communicate about their activism. Disinformation expert Joan Donovan discusses how…
The Curiosity DeskHow Do Immigrants Prop Up U.S. Health Care?
The U.S. health care system relies heavily on immigrants to provide essential patient care. MIT economist Jonathan Gruber dives into what happens to care and…
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What's the Skinny on GLP1 Body Image?
The GLP1 boom and spurred a resurgence of the "skinny culture" of the 1990s-2000s. We talk about the impact that has on body image and mental health with…
The Curiosity DeskWhat is My Gen Z Friend Even Saying?
Racial disparities in kidney transplants have been a persistent problem, but a change to a key algorithm that measures kidney function is yielding important…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Did That Short-Wave Message From Iran Mean?
A mysterious short-wave radio broadcast from Iran sent out a series of number sequences, when the US and Israeli attack on Iran began. Reporter Shane Harris…
The Curiosity DeskWhat's It Like Inside a Wildfire?
Wildfire smoke from Canada is increasingly part of our summer experience in New England. Writer John Vaillant chronicled one of the most destructive fires that…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Do Basketball Sneakers Squeak?
Some birds are doing better than others, and there are plenty of factors in the mix. John Hebert and Lyra Brennan from Mass Audubon join to explain why some…
The Curiosity DeskHow Much Cocaine are Nantucketers Using?
Nantucket’s wastewater is revealing a not-so-hidden secret: people on the island are consuming noteworthy amounts of cocaine. Axios reporter Mike Deehan and…
The Curiosity DeskHow is AI Being Used in the Iran War?
AI is being used in modern kinetic wars and in cyberwarfare. We learn how, and how to understand the risks of it, with cybersecurity professor Josephine Wolff…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Can Chess Teach Us About Life?
Strategy, tactics, reading the room – all skills that Jennifer Shahade says we can learn from chess. She would know best, she’s a three-time national chess…
The Curiosity DeskCan You Actually Catch 'Em All?
Pokemon has been delighting fans for 30 years, becoming a cultural and financial behemoth in the process. Edgar talks to Daniel Dockery, a freelance writer and…
The Curiosity DeskWho Doesn't Love to Eat Spam?
MIT Economist Jon Gruber explains the factors that determine the U.S. poverty line, a rubric that impacts trillions in federal aid. Then, Wikipedia is full of…
The Curiosity DeskWho Declares War?
The US and Israel attacked Iran this weekend, and fake images, videos and disinformation about it immediately spread across the internet. We talk with…
The Curiosity DeskHow Do You Stop a Glacier From Melting?
Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica has been called "the Doomsday Glacier," a reference to the rise in sea level that would results if Thwaites melts. Brent…
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Do Ads Ruin AI Search Results?
Advertising in ChatGPT was the last straw for Zoë Hitzig. She quit her job as a researcher at OpenAI, saying that ads inject a troubling incentive structure…
The Curiosity DeskHow Did Montreal Get So Good at Plowing Snow?
Put aside your space savers, and take a look up north: Montreal Gazette transportation reporter Jason Magder describes his city's ingenious method of removing…
The Curiosity DeskAre We Wimps in Snow?
As we all dig out from the blizzard, we talk to meteorologist Dave Epstein about this storm and this winter generally compare to the historical record. The…
The Curiosity DeskSnow Day Special!
Massachusetts is getting pummeled with wind and snow in a genuine blizzard today, so we have a snow-themed special to keep you company. Under the ice: Jason…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Are You Backing Into That Parking Spot?
In a parking lot, everyone has a go-to method -- you either pull into a parking space, or back into it. Practitioners of each method tend to outrage the other…
The Curiosity DeskCould a Figure Skater Land FIVE Turns?
First up, President Trump's proposed “Board of Peace” has its first meeting today. We ask Abiodun Williams to explain the traditional structures of…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Don't We Have More Saunas?
It's National Sauna Week, and we stoke the fires of sauna envy in a conversation with Mark Babson, owner of Got Sauna, and Saana McDaniels, former president of…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Does an International Border Go Through This Library?
Winter Olympics has us hooked, and today we spotlight the one sport the US has never won an Olympic medal in: biathlon. Susan Dunklee is a multi-Olympian…
The Curiosity DeskWhat About Teddy Roosevelt?
It's President's Day and we're all about Americana and the executive branch today. First up, a musical spin on our America 250 series with a listen back to De…
The Curiosity DeskHow Do You Avoid Bad Luck?
Valentine's Day isn't just for people - coyotes are getting it on this time of year too. Meghan Crawford is a biologist with Mass Wildlife and talks us through…
The Curiosity DeskHow Close Are We to Curing Ovarian Cancer?
Our 'How Close We Are We?' series looks at big-picture problems and the people moving us towards solutions. Today, Sangeeta Bhatia and Angela Belcher -- both…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Does Everyone Hate Ticketmaster?
Ticketmaster is the service that music fans love to hate, blaming the industry titan for exorbitant prices and concert tickets that are impossible to get. We…
The Curiosity DeskCould You Judge a Figure Skating Competition?
Buy-now-pay-later programs are gaining popularity. Matthew Schulz helps break down who benefits and who takes a risk with BNPL. Matthew is Chief Consumer…
The Curiosity DeskWhat Happens in the River Under the Ice?
The Patriots lost in the Super Bowl, but there is more to say than just the score. GBH's Esteban Bustillos recaps the odd and interesting moments of his…
The Curiosity DeskWhy Is Gillette Stadium in Foxborough?
It's almost Super Bowl Sunday, and the Patriots are in it to win it. We look at why the hometown stadium is actually out of town, in Foxborough, and the…
The Curiosity DeskWhy did John Urschel Leave the NFL for MIT?
ChatGPT has some ideas about which cities are smarter than others. Boston University researcher Joan Donovan explains an new AI tool that may be relying too…