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With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration has committed a record amount of federal funds to encourage the advancement of clean energy, but myriad regulatory, political, and practical challenges remain to meet our climate goals. White House clean energy advisor John Podesta shares how the administration is implementing the IRA and work...
Human beings are the only mammals on the planet whose thinking, feeling and learning brain develops extensively after birth. Young brains are wired for growth but their anatomical structure is exquisitely sensitive to experience, shaped for good or bad by what children live through and the relationships they form. Nurture shapes nature as much, if not more, than nature sha...
We’ve gone way beyond fitness trackers to collect information about our bodies’ physiological processes. Wearables are being designed to detect early signs of Crohn’s disease and other inflammatory diseases, identify signals of insulin resistance, and warn of blood pressure changes that could signal pregnancy complications. Some devices don’t even have to be attached to th...
We're proud to announce the 2022 winners of The Aspen Challenge, four amazing teams of young people designing solutions to some of the most critical problems facing their communities.
Can the data collected through smartphones, wearable sensors, and passive monitoring devices be turned into actionable knowledge about the environmental impacts on our health? Meet three innovative researchers who are using these technologies to unlock the mysteries of Crohn’s disease and more. Presented by the Helmsley Charitable Trust.
Futurific Studios’ Kathryn Murdoch and Ari Wallach preview their new PBS docuseries, a government leader turned entrepreneur shares her plastic pollution idea, environmental justice leaders expand on solutions, and Invenergy’s CEO tells us how he built more than 200 clean energy projects. Mayors share ideas for rethinking the urban environment, an app designer talks person...
The pathway to health sometimes travels through a physician’s office, but economic stability, the physical environment, access to nutritional foods, adequate schools, and social support may be even more important way stations. These and other social determinants of health need to be considered in an integrated fashion, engaging collaborators across disciplines who have not...
The advent of NFTs as a means of selling artwork raises many questions about creative practice and the marketplace. Do NFTs as a category of collectables work in tandem with or replace three-dimensional art objects? What does it mean for traditional gatekeepers of artistic value, including art dealers and museum curators, to be faced with a new means of conveying work from...
For more than 130 years, the National Geographic Society has pushed the boundaries of science by engaging the average citizen in a deeper understanding of the planet. Join two Nat Geo Fellows, Joel Sartore, renowned animal photographer, and Scott Loarie, director of a plant and animal identification app, to learn about the tools and strategies they're using to connect peop...
Just 33 million miles away, and yet still so far. From Galileo to Carl Sagan, the quest for life on Mars has an extensive history that reflects not only our scientific ambitions but our deepest yearnings to find that we are not alone. In this conversation, planetary environments researcher Sarah Stewart Johnson talks about her own search for life on Mars, from working on N...
Urban areas around the world are growing at rates not seen since the throes of the Industrial Revolution, and they're facing pressures never experienced before.
The "Great Resignation" has impacted nursing and created a healthcare crisis for us all. What can be done to drive real change and create a supportive work environment where nurses can grow and thrive? Presented by Johnson & Johnson.
The threads that connect humans to their natural environments have frayed, and some have completely severed. In an attempt to mend those we still can, designers are forging meaningful connections with nature to make reparations. Their collaborative processes — working with nature and in teams across multiple disciplines — are optimistic, but urgent. In this session, learn...
How can we overcome our own biases and stop seeing the worst in others? Psychologists and bestselling authors Jennifer Eberhardt and Adam Grant, along with CBS News’ John Dickerson, use cutting-edge research and examples from their own lives to discuss whether there’s hope for our schools and workplaces to bring out the better angels of our nature.
The #MeToo movement has inspired a sister movement called #USToo, designed to expose and eliminate sexual harassment in the sciences. A sweeping new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine looks at the extent to which women in these fields are harassed on campuses, research labs, medical centers and other academic environments. The chillin...
Brain development during a child’s first five years forms the basis for lifelong learning and physical health, making enriched environments critical to success. Hospitals and clinics represent an untapped opportunity to contribute in this pivotal period. From a newborn’s first day of life to the many subsequent well-child and sick-care visits, the health care milieu offers...
Mental health disorders are rampant in America’s correctional facilities — in many cases, our prisons and jails are the main providers of mental health treatment in their municipalities. Furthermore, prisons and jails routinely subject people with mental illness to environments that radically exacerbate their condition, often to the point of suicide or self-harm. Why do so...
We're often taught that our surroundings are incidental to our well-being, but an emerging body of research shows that the physical world can be a powerful tool for cultivating happier, healthier lives. Studies show that workers in colorful offices are more alert, friendly, and confident than those in drab ones, that windows can speed healing, and children progress faster...
Design’s intrinsic motivation is to improve a user’s experience. There has been a surge of design with and by people with a wide range of physical, cognitive, and sensory abilities aiming to make the lives of those with special needs easier. Fueled by advances in research, technology, and fabrication, this proliferation of functional, life-enhancing products is creating un...