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CTA Looks to Expand Its Collection of Public Art; Seeks Artist Qualifications for Four New Projects

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) announced today the kickoff of a search for artists and/or artist teams interested in creating new, one-of-a-kind artwork for four locations throughout the system, as part of its continued expansion of public art to all CTA locations.




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Banque Worms

Last year, one of the biggest banks accidentally paid off a client's loan to its lenders — a $900 million mistake. Some of the recipients wouldn't give the money back. And then a surprising court ruling affirmed their no give-back. | Subscribe to our weekly newsletter here.

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The story of "Monopoly" and American capitalism

Monopoly is one of the best-selling board games in history.

The game's staying power may in part be because of strong American lore — the idea that anyone, with just a little bit of cash, can rise from rags to riches. Mary Pilon, author of The Monopolists: Obsession, Fury, and the Scandal Behind the World's Favorite Board Game.
But there's another origin story – a very different one that promotes a very different image of capitalism. (And with two sets of starkly different rules.) That story shows how a critique of capitalism grew from a seed of an idea in a rebellious young woman's mind into a game legendary for its celebration of wealth at all costs.

This episode was made in collaboration with NPR's Throughline. For more about the origin story of Monopoly, listen to their original episode Do Not Pass Go.

This episode was produced by Emma Peaslee, mastered by Natasha Branch, and edited by Jess Jiang.

The Throughline episode was produced by Rund Abdelfatah, Ramtin Arablouei, Lawrence Wu, Laine Kaplan-Levenson, Julie Caine, Victor Yvellez, Anya Steinberg, Yolanda Sangweni, Casey Miner, Cristina Kim, Devin Katayama, and Amiri Tulloch. It was fact-checked by Kevin Volkl and mixed by Josh Newell.

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Your banking questions, answered

It's been a month since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank touched off the worst episode of banking turmoil since 2008. While the financial system appears to have stabilized, we're still reckoning with what happened. Regulators are getting dragged before Congress. The Federal Reserve and the FDIC have promised reports on what went wrong with bank oversight. And judging by our inbox, you, our listeners, have a lot of lingering questions.

Questions like: Was it a bailout? Where were the regulators? Is it over yet? And what about those other banks that were teetering on the edge?

Today on the show, some answers for you.

This episode was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler with help from Willa Rubin. It was engineered by Brian Jarboe. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and edited by Molly Messick. Jess Jiang is our acting executive producer.

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Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

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The quest for the factory-built house

Imagine if we built cars the same way we build houses. First, a typical buyer would meet with the car designer, and tell them what kind of car they want. Then the designer would draw up plans for the car.

The buyer would call different car builders in their town and show them the blueprints. And the builders might say, "Yeah, I can build you that car based on this blueprint. It will cost $1 million and it will be ready in a year and a half."

There are lots of reasons why homes are so expensive in the U.S., zoning and land prices among them. But also, the way we build houses is very slow and very inefficient. So, why don't we build homes the way we build so many other things, by mass producing them in a factory?

In this episode, the century-old dream of the factory-built house, and the possibility of a prefab future.

This episode was produced by Emma Peaslee. Molly Messick edited the show, and it was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Brian Jarboe mastered the episode. Jess Jiang is our acting Executive Producer.

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How to fight a squatting goat

Back in 2005, Burt Banks inherited a plot of old family land in Delaware. But when it came time to sell it, he ran into a problem: his neighbor had a goat pen, and about half of it crossed over onto his property.

Burt asked the goats' owner to move the pen, but when neighborly persuasion failed to get the job done, he changed his strategy. He sued her. And that is when things got complicated.

Protecting private property is one of the fundamental jobs of the American legal system. If you hold a deed saying you own a plot of land, it's your land. End of story. Right?

But, as Burt would soon learn, the law can get really complicated when it comes to determining who actually owns something. And when goats are involved ... anything can happen.

This episode was produced by Willa Rubin and Dylan Sloan and edited by Molly Messick. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Katherine Silva engineered this episode. Jess Jiang is Planet Money's acting executive producer.

Help support Planet Money and get bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+
in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

Always free at these links:
Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR One or anywhere you get podcasts.

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Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.

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Fruit Salad," "Keep With It" and "Purple Sun."

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The quest to save macroeconomics from itself

When it comes to big questions about the economy, we're still kind of in the dark ages. Why do some economies grow so much faster than others? How long is the next recession going to last? How do we stop inflation without wrecking the rest of the economy? These questions are the domain of macroeconomics. But even some macroeconomists themselves admit: While we have many theories about how the economy works, we have very few satisfying answers.

Emi Nakamura wants to change all that. She's a superstar economist who is a pioneer in the field of "empirical macroeconomics." She finds clever ways of using data to untangle some of the oldest mysteries in macroeconomics, about the invisible hand, the consequences of government spending, and the inner workings of inflation.

Recently we called her up to ask her why the economy is so difficult to understand in first place, and how she's trying to find answers anyway. She gets into all of that, and how Jeff Goldblum shaped her career as an economist, in this episode.

This show was hosted by Jeff Guo and Nick Fountain. It was produced by Dave Blanchard with help from Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was engineered by Josephine Nyounai and fact checked by Sierra Juarez. Keith Romer edited the show. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

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"Based on a true story"

When a group of amateur investors rallied around the stock for GameStop back in 2021, the story blew up the internet. News outlets around the world, including us here at Planet Money, rushed in to explain why the stock for this retail video game company was suddenly skyrocketing, at times by as much as 1700% in value, and what that meant for the rest of us.

When movie producer Aaron Ryder saw the GameStop story — an army of scrappy underdogs, banding together to strike back against a financial system they felt was rigged against them — he knew it had the makings for a great movie. The only problem: so did a bunch of other movie producers and Hollywood studios. So Aaron found himself in the middle of a fast and furious race to make the first Game Stop movie.

On today's show, one producer's quest to claim the hottest ticket in Tinseltown and the whole hidden machinery dedicated to turning a news story into box office gold. You'll never read the word 'based on a true story' the same way again.

Today's episode was reported and hosted by Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi. It was produced by Willa Rubin, edited by Jess Jiang, engineered by James Willetts, and fact-checked by Cooper Katz McKim and James Sneed. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

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A trucker hat mystery, the curse of September and other listener questions

Ba-dee-yah! Say do you remember? Ba-dee-yah! Questions in September!

That's right - it's time for Listener Questions!

Every so often, we like to hear from listeners about what's on their minds, and we try to get to the bottom of their economic mysteries. On today's show, we have questions like:

Why is September historically the worst month for the stock market?
How did the Bass Pro Shops hat get so popular in Ecuador?
Are casinos banks?
What is the Federal Reserve's new plan to make bank transfers faster?

Today's show was hosted by Sarah Gonzalez and produced by James Sneed. The audio engineer for this episode was Josephine Nyounai. It was fact checked by Sierra Juarez and edited by Dave Blanchard. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

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Morally questionable, economically efficient

There are tons of markets that don't exist because people just don't want to allow a market – for whatever reason, people feel icky about putting a price on something. For example: Surrogacy is a legal industry in parts of the United States, but not in much of the rest of the world. Assisted end-of-life is a legal medical transaction in some states, but is illegal in others.

When we have those knee-jerk reactions and our gut repels us from considering something apparently icky, economics asks us to look a little more closely.

Today on the show, we have three recommendations of things that may feel kinda wrong but economics suggests may actually be the better way. First: Could the matching process of organ donation be more efficient if people could buy and sell organs? Then: Should women seek revenge more often in the workplace? And finally, what if insider trading is actually useful?

This episode was hosted by Mary Childs and Greg Rosalsky. It was produced by Willa Rubin and edited by Jess Jiang. It was engineered by Cena Loffredo. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.

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in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

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The hidden world behind your new "banking" app

You might have seen ads for online banking services that seem to offer a lot of great stuff — accounts you can open in minutes and without a minimum balance or monthly fees. The ads seem to say: "These aren't your parents' boring old banks." But the truth is: Even though they might resemble banks, they aren't.

These "bank-like" companies are a type of "fintech" or financial technology company. And this is a story about the potential risks of putting your money into these apps.

Banks go through a whole regulatory gauntlet in order to exist. But, in the past several years, there has been a rise in fintechs that skirt regulations. And many of these pose a real threat to even the most savvy of depositors.

When a little known tech company filed for bankruptcy a few months ago, thousands of people couldn't access the millions of dollars they saved. On today's show, we meet some of the people affected and learn what the fintech industry reveals about banking regulation.

Today's show was hosted by Erika Beras and Sally Helm. It was produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler and Sofia Shchukina with help from James Sneed. It was edited by Jess Jiang and fact-checked by Kevin Volkl. It was engineered by Valentina Rodríguez Sánchez with help from James Willetts. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

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Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.

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American Aquarium on their latest album, 'Fear of Standing Still'

Frontman BJ Barham talks about working with producer Shooter Jennings and tackling the complexity of Southern identity on the band's new album.

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Sense of Place: This Colorado bluegrass quartet was only supposed to play once

Big Richard formed to play a one-off festival gig, then the quartet fell in love with playing together.

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Los Bitchos' 'Talkie Talkie' is a raucous 1980s discotheque

Heavily inspired by cumbia, the London-based band has a straightforward ethos: have fun.

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How our relationships are changing in the age of "artificial intimacy"

Early adopters are flocking to AI bots for therapy, friendship, even love. How will these relationships impact us? MIT sociologist Sherry Turkle delves into her new research on "artificial intimacy." Later in the episode, host Manoush Zomorodi speaks with Somnium Space founder Artur Sychov.

Note: A few weeks ago, we talked to Sherry Turkle in a Body Electric episode called "If a bot relationship FEELS real, should we care that it's not?" Today's episode is an even deeper dive into that conversation with Sherry. We hope you enjoy it!

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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L.A. asks how to equitably achieve 100% clean energy by 2035 – and UCLA answers

In a report released today, more than 20 researchers provide strategies that center equity and justice in LADWP’s transition.




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Challenge accepted: Graduate students answer call to help boost health equity

Finalists in the UCLA Health Equity Challenge proposed innovative measures to help those often underserved.




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4 UCLA grad students’ proposals to advance health equity in L.A. receive $50,000

Winning projects in the Health Equity Challenge support mental health and treating people experiencing homelessness.




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Q&A: How a second Trump term will impact environmental and climate policy

UCLA School of Law’s Cara Horowitz and Ann Carlson discuss regulations, litigation and California’s pivotal role.




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University of Toronto study finds high levels of equality for Muslim women in Canada

TORONTO, ON — A landmark study on gender equality among religious minorities in Canada sharply disputes the stereotype Muslim women are more repressed by men than other groups of immigrants. Sharia law, burqas, honour killings and overseas terrorism directed at girls and women grab headlines and shape public opinion, but workforce participation rates among immigrants […]



  • Arts
  • Social Sciences & Humanities

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Hummingbird metabolism unique in burning glucose and fructose equally

TORONTO, ON - Hummingbird metabolism is a marvel of evolutionary engineering. These tiny birds can power all of their energetic hovering flight by burning the sugar contained in the floral nectar of their diet. Now new research from the University of Toronto Scarborough shows they are equally adept at burning both glucose and fructose, which […]



  • Forestry
  • Health & Medicine
  • Science
  • Social Sciences & Humanities
  • University of Toronto Scarborough

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Ancient, hydrogen-rich waters discovered deep underground at locations around the world - A quantum change in our understanding of how much of Earth’s crust may be habitable

A quantum change in our understanding of how much of Earth’s crust may be habitableTORONTO, ON — A team of scientists, led by the University of Toronto’s Barbara Sherwood Lollar, has mapped the location of hydrogen-rich waters found trapped kilometres beneath Earth’s surface in rock fractures in Canada, South Africa and Scandinavia. Common in Precambrian […]




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Chief Shawn A‑in-chut Atleo appointed Distinguished Fellow of the W.C. MacDonald, Q.C. Fellowship and Adjunct Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

TORONTO, ON – Chief Shawn A‑in-chut Atleo has been named the first William A. Macdonald, Q.C Distinguished Fellow in Indigenous Education at the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). As a Distinguished Fellow, Chief Atleo will support OISE’s new Indigenous Education Initiative, a comprehensive five-year program to explore the educational needs and […]




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Chief Shawn A‑in-chut Atleo appointed Distinguished Fellow of the W.C. MacDonald, Q.C. Fellowship and Adjunct Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Chief Shawn A‑in-chut Atleo has been named the first William A. Macdonald, Q.C Distinguished Fellow in Indigenous Education at the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE). As a Distinguished Fellow, Chief Atleo will support OISE’s new Indigenous Education Initiative, a comprehensive five-year program to explore the educational needs and aspirations of Indigenous peoples […]




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U of T on Researchers at Risk and the detention of student Alexander Sodiqov

TORONTO, CANADA – The University of Toronto will host a panel of experts, featuring Chrystia Freeland (MP and author) and Ronald Deibert (Director of the Citizen Lab), to discuss the recent detention of Alexander Sodiqov. Since June 16th this year, Alexander Sodiqov, a young scholar and PhD student at the University of Toronto, has been […]




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Researchers identify major security and privacy issues in Popular China Browser Application, QQ

Toronto, ON — A new study from the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab identifies security and privacy issues in QQ Browser, a mobile browser produced by China-based Internet giant Tencent, which may put many millions of users of the application at risk of serious compromise. Citizen Lab researchers identified problems in both the Android and […]




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Fujitsu Laboratories and University of Toronto Enter Strategic Partnership - Fujitsu Laboratories establishes new research center in Toronto to accelerate Quantum-Inspired Computing

Fujitsu Laboratories establishes new research center in Toronto to accelerate Quantum-Inspired ComputingToronto, ON – Kawasaki, Japan and Toronto, Canada, September 20, 2017 Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. and the University of Toronto have entered into a new partnership, with Fujitsu Laboratories establishing a new research center in Toronto focused on bolstering R&D into breakthrough quantum computing technologies. In […]




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Is the municipal electoral system in need of reform? - As voters in Alberta and Quebec head to the polls, and a year before municipal elections in Ontario and through much of the rest of the country, a new paper looks at the potential for electoral reform

As voters in Alberta and Quebec head to the polls, and a year before municipal elections in Ontario and through much of the rest of the country, a new paper looks at the potential for electoral reform and its consequences Toronto, ON – With municipal elections in Ontario, British Columbia, Manitoba, PEI, and the Territories just […]




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Rotman MBAS Win International Private Equity Competition

Toronto, ON – For the second week in a row a team of Full Time MBA students from the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management have won a prestigious international competition. On Saturday, the Rotman students won the Rotterdam School of Management Private Equity Competition in Amsterdam defeating teams from INSEAD, IESE and Georgetown University […]




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Canada Should Implement Alternatives to Immigration Detention of Children, Family Separation - In recent years, hundreds of children have been housed in immigration detention with detrimental consequences for their mental health

In recent years, hundreds of children have been housed in immigration detention with detrimental consequences for their mental healthToronto, ON – Canada should urgently implement alternatives to detaining children rather than housing them in immigration detention facilities or separating them from their detained parents, the University of Toronto’s International Human Rights Program (IHRP) said in a […]




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The Moth Radio Hour: Squeaky Wheels

In this episode, we take a look into the people and things that flash into our lives, and the indelible mark they leave behind. Hosted by Jenifer Hixson, The Moth’s Senior Director. The Moth Radio Hour is produced by The Moth and Jay Allison of Atlantic Public Media.

Hosted by: Jenifer Hixson

R. Eric Thomas pens a satire for his college paper with unintended consequences.

Annie Tan stokes the fire of her curiosity, but uncovers a dark moment in her family’s history.

Morely McBride comes across a stroke of luck when wandering the streets of New York City.

Warren Dahlin makes a friend who stays with him in life and in death.




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The Moth Radio Hour: Punks, Blessings, Burlesque and Lotus Flowers

In this episode, five strangers redefine themselves and family in the face of their past. This episode is hosted by Moth Senior Curatorial Producer, Suzanne Rust. The Moth Radio Hour is produced by The Moth and Jay Allison of Atlantic Public Media

Hosted by: Suzanne Rust

Eddy Laughter sees her future at her first concert.

Christopher Brune-Horan finds sanctuary in an unlikely location.

Louise Newton-Keogh learns an important lesson about controlling the universe.

Pauline Nguyen reconciles with a harbinger of fear.

Denise Bledsoe Slaughter gets a second mother when she needs it most.




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Risqué Business: Whitney Connolly and Caroline Woodward

We’ve got two SLIGTHLY spicy stories. Don’t worry nothing untowards happens, but if you’re listening with kids, you might want to wait on this one. This episode is hosted by Michelle Jalowski.

Storytellers:

Whitney Connolly shares a photo without realizing what else is in the background.

A trip to Brazil provides a great teaching moment for both Caroline Woodward and her 3 year daughter.




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When Does Dr. Fauci Think "Normal" Will Happen?

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert in the U.S., returns to HBR Now to discuss the latest coronavirus surge, his expectations for a more effective vaccination roll-out, and when we can expect to restart our normal lives.




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The Covid-19 Pandemic is Forcing Companies to Build AI Skills Quickly

A huge digital transformation is gaining speed, and to succeed firms must focus on their digital core.




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How to Quit Your Job: The Harvard Business Review Guide

Here’s how to figure out if it’s time to move on to the next phase of your career--and if it is, how to do it right.




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Cirque du Soleil's Daniel Lamarre on How to Put Creativity at the Center of Your Strategy

"There is no excuse. Creativity has to be at the forefront.” If not, one day you'll wake up and discover your competitors have the edge.