A lot of restaurants took a hit during the pandemic. And when they struggled to find workers, some found surprising solutions. On today's show, what happens when you offshore cashiers.

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There's an estimated $195 billion of medical debt in America. But just because a medical bill comes in the mail doesn't mean you have to pay that exact price. In this special episode from our friends at Life Kit, you'll learn how to eliminate, reduce or negotiate a medical bill.

If you liked this episode, you can check out more Life Kit here. They have episodes on how to choose a bank, and how to save money at the grocery store.

This episode of Life Kit was produced by Sylvie Douglis. Their visuals editor is Beck Harlan, and their digital editor is Danielle Nett. Meghan Keane is their supervising editor, and Beth Donovan is their executive producer.

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(Note: This episode originally ran in 2020.)

In the restaurant game, you need to make the most of every table every minute you are open. And you need to make sure your guests are happy, comfortable, and want to come back.

If you're a restaurateur, your gut tells you "more seats, more money," but, in this episode, restaurant design expert Stephani Robson upends all that and more. She helps Roni Mazumdar, owner of the casual Indian spot Adda in New York's Long Island City, rethink how a customer behaves at a table, and how small changes can lead to a lot more money.

It's a data-driven restaurant makeover.

This episode was originally produced by Darian Woods and Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi. James Sneed and Sam Yellowhorse Kesler produced this update. Engineering by Isaac Rodrigues and Maggie Luthar. Alex Goldmark originally edited the show and is now Planet Money's executive producer.

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There's a behind the scenes industry that helps big brands decide questions like: How big should a bag of chips be? What's the right size for a bottle of shampoo? And yes, also: When should a company do a little shrinkflation?

From Cookie Monster to President Biden, everybody is complaining about shrinkflation these days. But when we asked the packaging and pricing experts, they told us that shrinkflation is just one move in a much larger, much weirder 4-D chess game.

The name of that game is "price pack architecture." This is the idea that you shouldn't just sell your product in one or two sizes. You should sell your product in a whole range of different sizes, at a whole range of different price points. Over the past 15 years, price pack architecture has completely changed how products are marketed and sold in the United States.

Today, we are going on a shopping cart ride-along with one of those price pack architects. She's going to pull back the curtain and show us why some products are getting larger while others are getting smaller, and tell us about the adorable little soda can that started it all.

By the end of the episode, you'll never look at a grocery store the same way again.

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"Wanna see a trick? Give us any topic and we can tie it back to the economy."

That is the bold promise in Planet Money's tagline. And we believe the show does live up to it. Over the last year, we've told stories about breakdancing, rum, pagers, buffets, colors, and heartbreak.

But then one host wondered: what if we really held ourselves to that promise? What if we challenged ourselves to find economic meaning in the most esoteric and far-flung topics imaginable?

That's when we turned to you, our listeners. And boy did you deliver. You sent in ideas so obscure, so banananas, so guaranteed to stump and bamboozle that our host maybe started to regret her life choices...but she was resolved to give it a try.

This episode was hosted by Sally Helm and Keith Romer. It was produced by James Sneed. It was edited by Molly Messick and fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Engineering by Kwesi Lee. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.

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The lawyer commercial is almost an art form unto itself. Learned practitioners of the law doing whatever it takes to get your attention, from impressive dirt bike stunts to running around half naked. All so when you land in trouble, you don't have to think hard to remember their name. Odds are you can name one or two right now.

This world of law ads did not exist fifty years ago. Then, lawyers were not allowed to advertise. Not by law, by the exclusive organization that decides who gets to be a lawyer: state bars.

On today's episode, how that changed. How a couple of lawyers placing an ad in a local newspaper led to the inescapable world of law firm ads we know today. And, how the right to advertise got put on the same level as some of the most important, fundamental rights we have.

This episode was hosted by Nick Fountain and Jeff Guo. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler with help from Sean Saldana. It was edited by Jess Jiang. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Valentina Rodríguez Sánchez. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.

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From Hikaru Utada to imase, these tracks showcase the versatility found within Japanese pop music.

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The New York-based folk rock band perform songs from their latest album, Valley of Abandoned Songs.

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Lou Barlow and John Davis talk about what brought them together again, plus they perform live for World Cafe.

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The funk, soul and R&B band from Seattle explores the more complicated side of love on their latest album, Love Direction.

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This English indie rock band formed while studying at the Leeds Conservatoire in 2020. Four years laters, they won the Mercury Prize.

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The Montreal-based band blends together different influences, from japanese folk to J-Pop and Brazilian surf rock.

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The pop minimalists return with a record that feels like calling up an old friend.

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We need water to live. But with rising seas and so many lacking clean water — water is in crisis and so are we. This hour, TED speakers explore ideas around restoring our relationship with water. Guests on the show include legal scholar Kelsey Leonard, artist LaToya Ruby Frazier, and community organizer Colette Pichon Battle.

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Original broadcast date: August 7, 2020. We need water to live. But with rising seas and so many lacking clean water — water is in crisis and so are we. This hour, TED speakers explore ideas around restoring our relationship with water. Guests on the show include legal scholar Kelsey Leonard, artist LaToya Ruby Frazier, and community organizer Colette Pichon Battle.

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We need water to live. But with rising seas and so many lacking clean water — water is in crisis and so are we. This hour, TED speakers explore ideas around restoring our relationship with water. Guests on the show include legal scholar Kelsey Leonard, artist LaToya Ruby Frazier, and community organizer Colette Pichon Battle.

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As a special bonus, we're sharing an episode from a new TED podcast, ReThinking with Adam Grant. Adam joins neuroscientist Chantel Prat, who dispels what you thought you knew about your brain.

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In the interest of New Year's resolutions, we're bringing you this bonus episode from our friends at the Ten Percent Happier podcast. Host Dan Harris speaks with meditation expert Jon Kabat-Zinn about starting a practice and being more mindful in our everyday lives.

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Writer Anne Lamott has garnered a cult following with her shockingly honest prose on love, death, faith, writing and more. This hour, her wisdom from a career that has spanned 20 books and 40 years.

TED Radio Hour+ subscribers now get access to bonus episodes, with more ideas from TED speakers and a behind the scenes look with our producers. A Plus subscription also lets you listen to regular episodes (like this one!) without sponsors. Sign-up at plus.npr.org/ted.

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Thirty years into the opioid crisis, we still struggle to find other options for pain relief. This hour, TED speakers explain new understandings of how the brain interprets pain and new ideas to cope. Guests include equestrian Kat Naud, physician and researcher Amy Baxter and opioid reform advocate Cammie Wolf Rice.

TED Radio Hour+ subscribers now get access to bonus episodes, with more ideas from TED speakers and a behind the scenes look with our producers. A Plus subscription also lets you listen to regular episodes (like this one!) without sponsors. Sign-up at plus.npr.org/ted.

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Sometimes, the only way to make an impact is to be loud. This hour, three female performers talk about the rewards — and consequences — that come from speaking out and making people feel uncomfortable. Guests include comedian Lilly Singh, Pussy Riot co-founder Nadya Tolokonnikova and actor, playwright and director Sarah Jones.

Original Broadcast Date: October 20, 2023.

TED Radio Hour+ subscribers now get access to bonus episodes, with more ideas from TED speakers and a behind the scenes look with our producers. A Plus subscription also lets you listen to regular episodes (like this one!) without sponsors. Sign-up at plus.npr.org/ted.

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Wong was recognized for his work bringing people together “to stand up for social justice, fair wages, and humane working conditions.”

Practices to protect public health, including high-risk groups, are featured in an expansive program.

Students in the Tribal Legal Development Clinic work on behalf of Indian Country to advance tribal sovereignty and secure Indigenous rights.

The newly constructed six-story, 62-unit apartment building in West Los Angeles adds 142 beds to UCLA’s inventory. Move-in begins Oct. 1.

A new study finds higher temperatures increase evaporation enough to cause drought without any reduction in precipitation.

The composition was performed at the “Prelude to Juneteenth Day Celebration” event held earlier this year at Royce Hall.

Toronto, ON – Current faculty members and a former doctoral student from the areas of accounting, organizational behaviour and strategic management have received awards for their research papers from academic associations and publications. A paper published in Administrative Science Quarterly was honoured with two top awards last month. Whitened Résumés: Race and Self-Presentation in the Labor […]

Toronto, ON — On Friday, October 10, the University of Toronto will host a visit by His Excellency Sauli Niinistö, President of the Republic of Finland. The President will present scholarships to Finnish Studies students and participate in two separate discussions with University of Toronto experts. The first discussion, “The Future of Finnish Studies in […]

Saving the planet from climate change with a grain of sandToronto, ON – Every year, humans advance climate change and global warming – and quite likely our own eventual extinction – by injecting about 30 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into the atmosphere. A team of scientists from the University of Toronto (U of T) […]

Toronto, ON – Paleontologists at the University of Toronto (U of T) and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) have uncovered a new fossil species that sheds light on the origin of mandibulates, the most abundant and diverse group of organisms on Earth, to which belong familiar animals such as flies, ants, crayfish and centipedes. The […]

The following is a list of University of Toronto experts who can comment on the CPP deal with the provinces. Keith Ambachtsheer, Adjunct Professor Director Emeritus of the Rotman International Centre for Pension Management Expertise: Canadian Pension Plan, How changes will affect Canadians Tel: (905) 892‑5054 Email: keith@kpa-advisory.com Nelson Wiseman, Professor of Political Science and Director […]

TORONTO, ON – The University of Toronto is very pleased that Toronto city councillors re-affirmed the city’s commitment to renewed fields on the university’s historic back campus. City council voted in favour of the University’s plan to proceed with the project, which will involve creating two artificial turf fields. The fields will provide a venue […]

TORONTO, ON — A moral story that praises a character’s honesty is more effective at getting young children to tell the truth than a story that emphasizes the negative repercussions of lying, according to research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The findings suggest that stories such as “The […]

Toronto, ON – A study by researchers at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto shows that four-year-olds with average and lower vocabulary skills learn more effectively with an adult reading an eBook to them versus relying solely on the eBook’s voiceover. Adult reader versus e‑book voiceover In the study, […]

TORONTO, ON — The G20 Research Group at the University of Toronto and the International Organisations Research Institute of National Research University Higher School of Economics (IORI HSE) presented their seventh G20 interim compliance report. At the halfway point between the St. Petersburg Summit in September 2013 and the Brisbane Summit in November 2014, the […]

TORONTO, ON — On Friday, October 10, the University of Toronto will host a visit by His Excellency Sauli Niinistö, President of the Republic of Finland. The President will present scholarships to Finnish Studies students and participate in two separate discussions with University of Toronto experts. The first discussion, “The Future of Finnish Studies in […]

TORONTO, ON — Media are invited to take photos on Tuesday, November 18, of Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, as Christina Cameron, President of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO, presents to her the University of Toronto’s Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library’s Discovery of Insulin Collections. Last year the Library’s collections—only one of four in Canada […]

Other findings: Non-perpetrators in the home act as a buffer and “youngest old” experience most severe forms of abuseToronto, ON – A new study examining elder abuse–released today by researchers at the University of Toronto, Cornell University, and Weill-Cornell Medical College–has found that older adult victims living alone with their abuser were up to four times more likely to endure more […]

Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, in collaboration with Cancer Care Ontario, Launches New Oncology Program for Pharmacists Toronto, ON – The Office of Continuous Professional Development at the University of Toronto’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, in collaboration with Cancer Care Ontario, is introducing the first comprehensive program in the province for pharmacists focused on […]

In this re-launch of the podcast, we take a spring stroll in unexpected places with author and urban enthusiast, Shawn Micallef. He writes about city explorations for The Toronto Star, Spacing Magazine and in his books, The Trouble With Brunch, and Stroll, from Coach House Books. For more, visit http://news.utoronto.ca     Transcript: Strolling with Shawn […]

Patricia McCarney (World Council on City Data, U of T’s Global Cities Institute) explains how making a first-ever international standard for cities is helping urban centres to grow, improve and take on a transformative role for citizens. Learn more at http://news.utoronto.ca TRANSCRIPT The Cities Podcast – Ep. 2 The Power of Numbers with Patricia McCarney […]

Richard Sommer shares his vision for 1 Spadina — future home of the Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape & Design — as a transformative space, stepping in to foster urban innovations where municipal governments cannot.   Learn more at https://soundcloud.com/the-cities-podcast and news.utoronto.ca .   TRANSCRIPT The Cities Podcast Ep 3 Transforming 1 Spadina with Richard Sommer […]

Poet laureate George Elliott Clarke discusses The Poetry Map from Toronto Public Libraries, diversity and police culture, and more. Also, Roman Mars from 99% Invisible shares his opinions on the greatest libraries in North America. Original music by Jay Ferguson and Kris Magnuson. More about The Cities Podcast: http://news.utoronto.ca/podcasts Explore The Poetry Map from Toronto Public Libraries: http://www.torontopoetry.ca/ TRANSCRIPT The Cities Podcast […]

Author John Lorinc shares stories from The Ward: The Life and Loss of Toronto’s First Immigrant Neighbourhood (Coach House Books). He co-edited the collection that revives a demolished area bounded by College, Queen, Yonge and University — now the realm of City Hall. More about The Cities Podcast http://news.utoronto.ca/podcasts More about The Ward: The Life and Loss of Toronto’s […]

How can Torontonians learn to adore their city in the midst of the 2015 Pan Am & Parapan Am Games? Shawn Micallef writes about Toronto and urban issues for Spacing Magazine and the Toronto Star. He’s also authored The Trouble With Brunch and Stroll from Coach House Books. Micallef brings his own experiences from exploring […]

TORONTO, ON — Norton Rose Fulbright and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law (U of T Law) are pleased to announce their collaboration in the Innovation Law Clinic (ILC) at MaRS Discovery District. The ILC is a unique student clinic dedicated to providing high quality business and IP legal services to start up and early-stage businesses. Students’ […]

Toronto Community Foundation award recognizes leaders in community-buildingTORONTO, ON — Sarah Pole, director of the groundbreaking Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS) program, received a Vital People Award from the Toronto Community Foundation. These awards, announced today, offer grants in recognition of valued community leaders who are making outstanding contributions at not-for-profit organizations. Grants are […]

TORONTO, ON — The International Human Rights program (IHRP) has received a $75,000 grant from the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) to launch a project exposing the negative impact of Canada’s refugee policies on some of the world’s most vulnerable claimants—people with HIV or at-risk of HIV due to rampant violence, discrimination based on sexual […]

TORONTO, ON — Media are invited to attend “International Criminal Law at the Crossroads,” an intimate conversation with Canadian James Stewart, Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, together with Richard Dicker, Director of International Justice for Human Rights Watch. More than 10 years after the ICC began hearing cases, two of the world’s most prominent […]