Podcasts about everyday things

Ian Silber is the head of product design at OpenAI, where he has led the design of ChatGPT, Codex, and all of OpenAI's product experience for the past three years. Before OpenAI, he was at Artifact, the AI-powered news app built by the founders of Instagram. Prior to that, he spent eight years at Instagram, where he worked on products including Reels. Ian is one of the most consequential designers working in AI today, and he takes us inside how OpenAI designs ChatGPT, Codex, and the future of how we will interact with AI.In our in-depth conversation, we discuss:1. Why Ian believes this is the best time in history to be a product designer2. Why engineers 10x'd with AI but design teams haven't3. What OpenAI looks for when hiring designers4. “Just do less”: Ian's counterintuitive advice to his designers5. The future of ChatGPT as a super app6. Where humans still win: user understanding, invention, and point of view—Brought to you by:WorkOS—Make your app enterprise-ready, with SSO, SCIM, RBAC, and moreMercury—Radically different banking, now with Command—Where to find Ian Silber:• X: https://x.com/iansilber• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iansilber• Website: https://iansilber.com—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Ian Silber(02:14) Why designers in general feel anxious about AI(09:01) What makes specific designers thrive in the AI era(13:41) Why Ian says it's the best time in history to be a designer(17:13) How product roles are converging(22:24) Can AI design great products?(23:54) Where human judgment still matters(27:34) What Ian looks for when hiring designers(30:20) Why systems thinking matters(32:53) Balancing speed and craft(38:05) Designing for vastly different audiences(41:57) Solving the blank-box problem(43:31) How ChatGPT is evolving beyond chat(46:07) The vision for Codex(49:07) What Ian wishes he knew on day one(51:40) Why humility matters in AI(53:41) Advice for designers who are feeling overwhelmed(55:16) AI corner(57:43) Failure corner(01:00:45) Lightning round and final thoughts(01:05:52) Lessons from Groupon—Referenced:• OpenAI: https://openai.com• How tech workers are feeling in 2026: a workforce splitting in two: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-tech-workers-are-feeling-in-2026• Marc Andreessen: The real AI boom hasn't even started yet: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/marc-andreessen-the-real-ai-boom• 3 Spiderman Pointing meme template: https://www.kapwing.com/explore/3-spiderman-pointing-meme-template• OpenAI Codex lead on the new shape of product work | Andrew Ambrosino: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/openai-codex-lead-on-the-new-shape• Notion: https://www.notion.com• The design process is dead. Here's what's replacing it. | Jenny Wen (head of design at Claude): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-design-process-is-dead• Joel Lewenstein on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-lewenstein• Anthropic's CPO on what comes next | Mike Krieger (co-founder of Instagram): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropics-cpo-heres-what-comes-next• ChatGPT Work: https://openai.com/chatgpt-work• OpenAI's CPO on how AI changes must-have skills, moats, coding, startup playbooks, more | Kevin Weil (CPO at OpenAI, ex-Instagram, Twitter): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/kevin-weil-open-ai• Please Stop the AI Confidence Theater: https://www.elenaverna.com/p/please-stop-the-ai-confidence-theater• The new AI growth playbook for 2026: How Lovable hit $200M ARR in one year | Elena Verna (Head of Growth): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-new-ai-growth-playbook-for-2026-elena-verna• Maybe Happy Ending: https://www.maybehappyending.com• The Invite: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14173636• Rivian: https://rivian.com• Waymo: https://waymo.com• Groupon: https://www.groupon.com• How a VC and a tech founder used AI to launch a brick-and-mortar business in their spare time | Andrew Mason (CEO of Descript) and Nabeel Hyatt (General Partner at Spark Capital): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-a-vc-and-a-tech-founder-used• Andrew Mason on X: https://x.com/andrewmason• Kevin Systrom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinsystrom• Sam Altman on X: https://x.com/sama—Recommended book:• The Design of Everyday Things: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465050654—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Will is joined this week by personal finance expert, speaker, business leader Jesse Mecham, founder of You Need A Budget (or YNAB if you are very busy and important). In this episode, to celebrate the release of his new book ‘Never Worry About Money Again', Jesse dives into how YNAB came to be, from spreadsheet to the interface it is today, the trials and tribulations the business went through over the years, before going into depth about why people are so scared of money. — Mentioned in the episode: Jesse's brand new book, 'Never Worry About Money Again' out now! Visit the YNAB website Jason Fried's ‘Getting Real' Richard A. Lanham's ‘Revising Prose' Eugene Schwartz's ‘Breakthrough Advertising' Donald A. Norman's ‘The Design of Everyday Things' Clayton Christiansen's ‘Jobs to be Done' Framework Our guest for this episode has been Jesse Mecham. If you'd like to get in touch with Jesse, or to keep up to date with his work, you can visit his website. Your host for this episode has been Will Larry, you can find and connect with Will over on LinkedIn. If you would like to support the show, head over to our GitHub page, or check out our website. Got a question or comment about the show? Why not write to our hosts: hosts@giantrobots.fm This has been a thoughtbot podcast. Stay up to date by following us on social media - LinkedIn - Mastodon - YouTube - Bluesky © 2026 Giant Robots Smashing Into Other Giant Robots Podcast

This week we talk about Evo 2, bacteriophages, and antibiotics.We also discuss AI models, medical innovations, and the Red Army.Recommended Book: The Design of Everyday Things by Donald A. NormanTranscriptA bacteriophage, sometimes just called a phage, is a type of virus that only infects bacteria. “Phage” means to devour, and that's what bacteriophages do—they infect and replicate within bacteria that they target, injecting their own genome into that target's cytoplasm, which are all the materials contained within the bacteria's cell membrane.Phages are super-abundant, by some measures more abundant than every living organism, including bacteria, on earth, combined. And they're interesting in that they range from incredibly simple to quite complex, and have at times been used as alternatives to antibiotics, because they attack and feed on bacteria.The use of phages to counter bacterial infections was all but abandoned in the mid-20th century when antibiotics were discovered and commercialized, their production industrialized and the substances themselves proving a lot easier to mass-produce, and a lot more predictable in their utility than phages. Phages were kinda sorta almost understood, but we didn't really get what they were doing or why, so their application often felt more like folk remedies than real-deal science, despite the actual science underlying the practice.Also, phages were primarily used as antibiotic treatments by the Red Army, the Soviet Union's military. So throughout the West, which was rapidly scaling its production of antibiotic treatments, the use of bacteriophages was associated with Stalinist communism, and so the Red-scare, the demonization of anything associated with the Soviet Union, was partially responsible for the shelving of this approach and this realm of research, at least for a while.Much of that existing research was also done in the Soviet Union, and the published documents were thus published in Russian or Georgian languages. And because much of the rest of the scientific publishing world was reorienting around English at this time, that meant these published works were often either ignored or unintelligible to the rest of the scientific community.As with much of our microbiota, the invisibly small viruses, bacteria, archaea, and so on that make up the human microbiome, we have a general sense of how bacteriophages interact with some of what makes us, us, but only a general sense. We know that healthy individuals tend to contain a host of bacteriophages that people who have chronic conditions, like Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis are less likely to have, for instance, and there's a chance that this lack is associated with those conditions—though each person's body composition is unique, and this facet of biology is still relatively obscure; we really don't know for certain what does what, because of how complex these interactions are.What I'd like to talk about today is a recent development in the world of bacteriophages, and why the researchers behind it are both celebrating their accomplishment, and warning about potential dangers associated with the same.—Back in 2025, a nonprofit called the Arc Institute, which has a stated goal of accelerating scientific progress and understanding the root causes of complex diseases, announced the release of a new language model, a new AI system, called Evo 2.The Evo family of foundation models—a foundation model being a type of AI model that's been trained on a huge corpus of data, but which is applicable for all sorts of purposes, including serving as the foundation of large-language models like ChatGPT or Claude—this family of foundation models is open-source and trained on raw genetic sequences, something like nine trillion nucleotides-worth of such sequences, making it distinct from other models in this space that have been trained on descriptions of biological systems, using human language.The initial version of Evo was released in early 2024, and the newest version, Evo 2, which is an upgraded version of the Evo 2 model that is more efficient, so it can be run on less powerful hardware, was released in February of 2026.So while many of the AI systems that non-biologists interact with on a regular basis have been trained on human language-based libraries, showing relationships and interactions between the words we use to communicate, these models have been trained on the fundamental building blocks of life; the nucleotides, Adenine, Thymine, Cytosine, and Guanine, ATCG of DNA, if you remember that from biology class, that are strung together into 64 different possible three-letter combinations. Chains of these nucleotides instruct cells to build proteins out of amino acids, and from that baseline, we get life.We also get non-living things like viruses, which have no cells, metabolism, or independent reproduction, and phages are viruses.And while other AI models have been shown to be great at designing proteins, before 2025 there was little evidence that such systems could design viable genomes: the combination of genetic information that makes up a complete, fully functional organism.That's what Arc decided to tackle with this Evo AI model. And back in 2025, Arc announced that it had successfully validated the first viable genome designs, created using generative AI.These designs were for 16 bacteriophages, which were modeled on a virus that infects E. coli bacteria, and some of them worked just as well or better at infecting E. coli when compared to the actual, real-world phage they were modeled on. They were produced in the real world, a bacteria coaxed into producing them, and then they went on to successfully gobble up the E. coli test subjects they were meant to gobble up, demonstrating that they worked in practice, not just theory.And a new paper published in early August of 2026 by the Arc Institute and Stanford University expounds upon this research, showing the results of an attempt to create entirely new viruses, not just altered existing viruses.Rather than mutating that E. coli gobbling phage, as with the last experiment, tweaking an existing virus, this time they tasked Evo 2 with modeling how that E. coli attacking and eating process works, and then told it to come up with entirely new viruses that operate on the same premise, but which are structured differently; new viruses that eat the same thing in a similar way, but which are distinct from the original model.Ultimately, it gave them 16 viable viruses of very different sizes and structure, all of which were created in a lab and successfully ate the targeted E. coli strain, as intended.This is being seen as a pretty big deal, because while creating viruses in a lab is very modern technology, and mutating those viruses shows a lot of potential for manipulating what we already know works and then tweaking virus behaviors to, perhaps, help us create new medical treatments, the ability to generate, from scratch, entirely new viruses that hold together, with genomes that don't just fall apart when they come into contact with the real world, and which can still do things, like attack bacteria—that opens a lot of new doors, potentially giving us the ability to say, okay, this bacteria is no longer responding to antibacterial drugs that we have available, so let's make a virus that will kill the bacteria instead, and let's make one that won't harm the human that's housing that bacteria.We might also be able to create phages that eat other things, or which in some other way help the human body, or other biological entities, fight off chronic conditions, or recover or rebalance; there's a lot of potential here, because this suggests AI systems trained on the right materials, on the building blocks of life, could generate all sorts of viable biological systems that we can then actually create. It's a huge step forward, compared to systems that are also impressive, but which mostly help us understand the biological world better—like Alphafold, which solved the protein folding problem.Those involved with this research have also been been flagging potential dangers with this development, though, including the potential for creating new viruses and other biological systems that could trigger unpredictable outcomes in other biological systems. There are a lot of potential hazards with this sort of research, and they've been very careful up till this point, sticking with test subjects that only target E. coli, but not everyone will necessarily be so careful, which might mean accidents, or it could mean people with less than benevolent intentions using these techniques to develop highly infectious viruses or other such pathogens; starting from smallpox to produce even more contagious and deadly ailments, for instance.The optimistic view of this research is that it could contribute to the surge in new discoveries and technologies that we're seeing around the world right now, that are resulting in new medical approaches and in some cases entirely new medical fields, which could help us do all sorts of things, including big-sky ambitions like curing cancer and doing away with chronic illnesses entirely.Like most major scientific developments, though, these are also big developments for those who might want to do harm, and it also creates new opportunities for very serious, dangerous, deadly accidents, which means we'll probably have to develop and implement more stringent safety protocols and regulatory efforts if we want to enjoy the full benefits of these innovations, without suffering significant new downsides, in the process.Show Noteshttps://press.asimov.com/articles/ai-phageshttps://arcinstitute.org/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/aug/06/safety-fears-as-scientists-make-first-viruses-designed-by-aihttps://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y3j3ngevmohttps://www.cnn.com/2026/08/06/health/ai-viruses-bacteriophageshttps://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-07/ai-models-design-viruses-not-found-in-nature-for-first-time/107007854https://www.wired.com/story/scientists-used-ai-to-create-16-new-viruses/https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aec2657https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacteriophagehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evo_(AI)https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/06/science/ai-viruses-bacteria-arc.html This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club.http://gotopia.tech/bookclubElisabeth Hendrickson - Advisor, Coach, Speaker & Co-Author of "Signals & Levers"Joel Tosi - Co-Founder & CTO at Dojo & Co & Co-Author of "Signals & Levers"Charles Humble - Freelance Techie, Podcaster, Editor, Author & ConsultantCheck out more here:https://gotopia.tech/episodes/448RESOURCESElisabethhttps://ruby.social/@testobsessedhttps://github.com/testobsessedhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/testobsessedhttps://curiousduck.ioJoelhttps://mastodon.social/@joeltosihttps://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-tosi-531a3bCharleshttps://bsky.app/profile/charleshumble.bsky.socialhttps://linkedin.com/in/charleshumblehttps://mastodon.social/@charleshumblehttps://conissaunce.comLinkshttps://ruthmalan.comhttp://www.ask-force.org/web/Discourse/Rittel-Dilemmas-General-Theory-Planning-1973.pdfDESCRIPTIONElisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi open by explaining why systems thinking is having a moment right now: organizations that went all-in on Agile and DevOps are finding those returns plateauing, and the rise of AI is forcing engineering teams to reexamine where their real bottlenecks are. The book, Signals & Levers, gives software engineers a practical vocabulary and toolkit for that examination. A core insight is that most organizational dysfunction isn't caused by bad people or bad intentions, but by systems that produce bad outcomes predictably and structurally. The named archetypes in the book — over 20 of them, covering patterns like escalating technical debt, the "fixes that fail" loop, and the boiling frog — give teams a shared language to recognize and reason about those patterns without having to discover them from scratch.The most practically actionable section of the conversation covers signals versus levers: understanding the difference between information (a signal) and an intervention point (a lever) is the foundation for making changes that actually work rather than changes that feel productive and achieve nothing. On AI, both authors are cautious in the right ways: Elisabeth uses it daily as a thinking partner but keeps herself firmly at the steering wheel. Joel's warning is starker — AI amplifies whatever is already true about your organization, including dysfunction, and if it lets you ship faster than you can learn, the consequences may be severe. The book closes with an exercise for the reader: if AI doubles your delivery speed, what happens when you can ship faster than you can adapt?RECOMMENDED BOOKSElisabeth Hendrickson & Joel Tosi • Signals & Levers • https://amzn.to/4g6Fb3CDiana Montalion • Learning Systems Thinking • https://amzn.to/3ZpycdJDon Norman • The Design of Everyday Things • https://amzn.to/4fV6QVlGene Kim • The Unicorn Project • https://amzn.to/3woXQDzGene Kim, Kevin Behr & George Spafford • The Phoenix Project • https://amzn.to/3X9cYxaPeter Degrace & Leslie Hulet Stahl • Wicked Problems, Righteous Solutions • https://amzn.to/3ScP0D9Frederick Brooks Jr. • The Mythical Man-Month • https://amzn.to/4gd10OVGerald Weinberg • An Introduction to General Systems Thinking • https://amzn.to/4dZCsaODonella H. Meadows • Thinking in Systems • https://amzn.to/3XtqYCVBlueskyInstagramLinkedInFacebookCHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUSJoin this channel to get early access to videos & other perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/joinLooking for a unique learning experience?Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket: gotopia.techSUBSCRIBE TO OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL - new videos posted daily!

What happens when the founder of Mint.com takes on one of healthcare's most broken experiences—patient communication? In this episode of Bright Spots in Healthcare, Eric Glazer sits down with Aaron Patzer, Founder and CEO of Vital, to explore how simplicity, clarity, and human-centered design can drive real impact in healthcare. Drawing from his journey building Mint, Aaron shares why most healthcare technology misses the mark, how better communication improves outcomes and ROI, and what leaders must do to design experiences people actually use. The conversation goes deep on: Why simplifying complexity—not adding more tech—is the real innovation How better patient communication drives measurable ROI for hospitals What healthcare leaders can learn from consumer tech about trust, adoption, and engagement The leadership principles Aaron relies on when innovating inside highly regulated, slow-moving systems If you're a healthcare leader navigating digital transformation, AI investment decisions, or experience strategy, this episode offers clear thinking, hard-earned lessons, and proof that when you make it easier for people to understand what's happening, everything works better.   References: Book Reference - The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman About Aaron: Aaron Patzer is a renowned entrepreneur, engineer, and innovator best known as the founder of Mint.com, the personal finance platform that revolutionized money management for millions of users. After launching Mint in 2007, Patzer led it to rapid success, growing the user base to over 25 million and overseeing its acquisition by Intuit in 2009. A passionate advocate for user-centered design and simplicity in complex systems, Patzer built Mint.com by combining his technical acumen with a deep understanding of user experience and behavioral finance. He holds degrees in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and a Master's from Princeton University. Following Mint, Patzer continued to push boundaries in tech and health innovation. He co-founded Vital, a healthcare startup focused on improving hospital emergency room, urgent care, and inpatient experiences using AI and design thinking. Ranked by KLAS as #1 in patient experience, Vital achieves concrete results: 30–50% fewer LWOBS/AMA, 10–15% higher NPS, stronger HCAHPS scores, reduced ED bounce- back, and 10% lower 30-day readmissions. Designed to integrate seamlessly with existing EHR systems, Vital provides a user-friendly interface that engages patients, resulting in 60%+ adoption rates, 5-10x higher than the competition. View our product overview. Partner with Bright Spots Ventures: If you are interested in speaking with the Bright Spots Ventures team to brainstorm how we can help you grow your business via content and relationships, email hkrish@brightspotsventures.com   About Bright Spots Ventures: Bright Spots Ventures is a healthcare strategy and engagement company that creates content, communities, and connections to accelerate innovation. We help healthcare leaders discover what's working, and how to scale it. By bringing together health plan, hospital, and solution leaders, we facilitate the exchange of ideas that lead to measurable impact. Through our podcast, executive councils, private events, and go-to-market strategy work, we surface and amplify the "bright spots" in healthcare—proven innovations others can learn from and replicate. At our core, we exist to create trusted relationships that make real progress possible. Visit our website at www.brightspotsinhealthcare.com. Visit our website:  www.brightspotsinhealthcare.com. Follow Bright Spots in Healthcare: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shared-purpose-connect/  

In this episode, hosts Lee-Sean Huang and Giulia Donatello sit down with Ian Bogost, a writer, designer, media scholar, contributing writer at The Atlantic, and professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Together, they explore the concept of "dematerialization" and the core ideas behind his latest book, This Small Stuff: How to Lead a More Gratifying Life. Ian shares how his multifaceted career, navigating both software design and cultural criticism, functions as a dialectical machine for understanding how human meaning is constructed. He challenges contemporary design dogmas around "frictionlessness" and outcomes-based UX, offering a refreshing invitation for designers to embrace mundane constraints, celebrate accidental experience, and reconnect with the sensory enchantment of everyday life.In This EpisodeThe designer-critic dialectic. Ian describes his career as a perpetual cycle between making and criticizing. For him, creating an object or game is a method of asking a question, while writing criticism is a vehicle for answering it—both serving the ultimate mystery of how humans derive meaning. Happiness vs. satisfaction vs. gratification. Ian breaks down three tiers of contentment. While happiness looks at long-term macro circumstances, satisfaction focuses on the pride of completing a project, and gratification is the fleeting, immediate sensory enchantment of the present moment—like ice clinking in a water bottle. The "wicked problem" of the modern door. Revisiting Don Norman's famous concept, Ian argues that modern doors don't fail due to bad design, but from an accumulation of competing successes. Fire codes, ADA compliance, and motorized automation layer, so many good intentions that the physical object ends up resisting us. The outcome trap of experience design. Ian observes that as design became heavily filtered through the computing sector, fields like interaction and UX design slowly stopped prioritizing actual experience. Instead, they focused intensely on business outcomes and optimized targets for organizations. Why "meaningful friction" is the wrong answer. Addressing the push to bring back "meaningful friction" to combat ultra-smooth glass screens, Ian calls the trend wrongheaded. Users don't want a task to be harder; they want a tactile loop of sensory connection to the machine, like a knob turning in defined physical increments. The vicarious gratification of ASMR. Reflecting on digital phenomena like ASMR and online "drain-clearing" videos, Ian views these creators as heroes. By treating ordinary objects with deep respect, they model a curiosity that can transform how viewers interact with their own everyday environments.  Living life sideways through orthogonality. Ian advocates for "orthogonality"—diversifying one's diet of sensory encounters by crossing boundaries into entirely different fields. True innovation arises from deeply exploring secondary constraints and productively marrying two completely unrelated domains. ResourcesIan Bogost's Official Website – https://bogost.com/This Small Stuff: How to Lead a More Gratifying Life by Ian Bogost – https://amzn.to/4ypiHBRThe Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman – https://amzn.to/4gWhSd8 Persuasive Games: The Expressive Power of Videogames by Ian Bogost – https://amzn.to/4p5IQBf Play Anything: The Pleasure of Limits, the Uses of Boredom, and the Secret of Games by Ian Bogost – https://amzn.to/4eZwgyD Julian Bleecker – https://julianbleecker.com/ Bruce Sterling – https://bruces.medium.com/ Listener feedback and voicemails – podcast@aiga.org 

Get the free Core Drives in the Wild guide, behavioral design applied to real products: professorgame.com/WildCD Episode Summary Tetiana Kobzar, product designer with 18 years of experience and creator of the Comportance Framework, joins Rob to share how behavioral design turns clinical and educational software into products people actually want to use. She walks through the seven steps of Comportance (goal, baseline, emotion, hypothesis, minimum validation, cadence, and iteration) and shows how it shaped a gamified speech therapy app for Alder Hey Children's Hospital and a mini-game replacement for 27 cognitive assessment tests. The conversation covers why founders overload products with functionality, why Duolingo's Black Hat motivation works for some users and burns out others, and how Octalysis fits inside a wider behavioral design practice. Listeners leave with a practical structure for designing engagement and a sharper read on when game-based beats gamified. About the Host Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at The Octalysis Group (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A globally recognized gamification strategist and TEDx speaker, he founded and hosts Professor Game, the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global experts. He designs evidence-based engagement systems that drive motivation, loyalty, and results, and teaches LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® and gamification at top institutions including IE Business School, EFMD, and EBS University across Europe, the Americas, and Asia. Key Takeaways The Comportance Framework runs seven steps in order: define the goal, set the baseline metrics, design the emotion (motivation and positioning), state one hypothesis, build the minimum validation, set the measurement cadence, and iterate. Most founders skip the goal and emotion steps and jump straight to functionality. Tetiana's team at Alder Hey Children's Hospital replaced weekly-only speech therapy with a gamified app where clinicians set tasks as mini games, letting kids practice pronunciation between sessions while the therapist tracks progress. A separate Tetiana project replaced 27 pen-and-paper cognitive assessment tests with mini games on tablets, capturing extra signal (timestamps, finger tremor, voice recordings) that paper tests cannot measure. Most products fail not because users are irrational but because founders treat them as rational agents. Behavioral biases and cognitive overload kill engagement faster than missing features. The Pareto trap in client work: founders spend 80% of their attention on the 20% of clients who complain, while the 80% of healthy clients who quietly bring most of the revenue get under-served. Reverse the ratio to protect recurring revenue. Duolingo's streak mechanic is heavy Black Hat motivation. It drives high retention but creates rage-quit risk: a user who loses a 4,000-day streak rarely returns. The near-miss has to threaten loss without delivering it. Game-based design (where the experience itself feels like a game) opens more creative options than gamification (points, badges, leaderboards bolted onto a non-game product), but both belong inside a wider behavioral design practice. Topics Covered 0:00 — Why Duolingo's Black Hat motivation backfires 0:24 — Rob's intro and the Core Drives in the Wild guide 2:47 — Daily life after the acquisition 4:14 — Favorite fail: design for the end game 8:16 — Alder Hey speech therapy app and 27 cognitive tests as games 11:26 — Game-based versus gamified, and where the line blurs 15:44 — Where Octalysis fits inside the Comportance Framework 17:11 — The seven steps of Comportance, walked end to end 23:50 — Cognitive overload and treating users as humans 27:24 — Duolingo streaks, near-miss design, and rage-quit risk 31:42 — Book picks: Cialdini, Yu-kai Chou, Don Norman 33:29 — Civilization, board games with the kids, final advice Get the free Core Drives in the Wild guide, behavioral design applied to real products: professorgame.com/WildCD About Tetiana Kobzar Tetiana Kobzar is a product strategist and behavioral designer with 18 years of experience building software for healthcare, wellness, and education. She is the creator of the Comportance Framework, a seven-step methodology that brings behavioral science structure to product design. Her recent work includes a gamified speech therapy app for Alder Hey Children's Hospital and a tablet-based replacement for 27 cognitive assessment tests, and she shares behavioral design ideas through her #BehaviouralDesignThursday LinkedIn series and industry talks. Find the Guest Online LinkedIn Tetiana-kobzar.com Instagram TikTok Mentioned in This Episode Proposed guest: someone from Duolingo Recommended book: Actionable Gamification by Yu-kai Chou Recommended book: Influence by Robert B. Cialdini Recommended book: The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman Favorite game: Civilization series Duolingo Is Not A Free Language Learning App, It Is... (The Octalysis Group) Alder Hey Children's Hospital speech therapy app (Tetiana's project) Comportance Framework (Tetiana's seven-step methodology) Octalysis Framework by Yu-kai Chou Free Resources and Get in Touch Core Drives in the Wild: Professor Game Free Guide Get Daily Value on Your Email Let's chat about your gamification project YouTube LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Start Your Community on Skool for Free Ask a question

"The cognitive psychology of good design"

Today’s podcast covers a wide range of topics, starting with the Pakistani “Peace Talks”, China’s motives in the Iran conflict, hacking China, a few China travel related stories including the longest flight in the world, comparing the cost of “everyday” items in China vs. US, China’s take on Taiwanese “independence”, and finallyall the Chinese cities to pray for this week. Welcome to China Compass on the Fight Laugh Feast network! I'm your China travel guide in exile, Missionary Ben. Follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I share a new Chinese city or county to pray for every single day. Feel free to write anytime: chinacompass@privacyport.com. All my books, substack, patreon, and everything else can be easily found at PrayGiveGo.us! The Autobiography of John G. Paton (JohnGPaton.com) Borden of Yale: The Millionaire Missionary (BordenofYale.com) Unbeaten: Arrested, Interrogated, and Deported from China (Unbeaten.vip) The Memoirs of William Milne: First Protestant Missionary to Malaysia (PrayGiveGo.us) The World's Longest One-Stop Flight Is Up To 29 Hours https://simpleflying.com/worlds-longest-one-stop-29-hours-flight-explained/ 20 flights: Some Chinese travellers stockpiled air tickets before fuel surcharge hike https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/he-booked-over-20-flights-some-chinese-travellers-stockpile-air-tickets-before-fuel-surcharge-hike The Cost of Everyday Things in China vs. the U.S. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/cost-of-living-in-china-vs-us/ Xi declares Taiwan independence a threat to peace https://www.malaymail.com/news/world/2026/04/10/beijing-ramps-up-pressure-as-xi-declares-taiwan-independence-a-threat-to-peace/215822 Xi Jinping meets new face of Taiwan's opposition as US and Japan watch https://asia.nikkei.com/politics/international-relations/taiwan-tensions/xi-jinping-meets-new-face-of-taiwan-s-opposition-as-us-and-japan-watch This coming week's Pray for China (PrayforChina.us) cities… https://chinacall.substack.com/p/pray-for-china-apr-12-18-2026 Thank you for listening! Subscribe + leave a review on your preferred podcast platform! If you’d like to support our China ministry, that, and everything else can be found @ PrayGiveGo.us. Luke 10, vs 2: the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few, so let's ask the Lord for more!

Today’s podcast covers a wide range of topics, starting with the Pakistani “Peace Talks”, China’s motives in the Iran conflict, hacking China, a few China travel related stories including the longest flight in the world, comparing the cost of “everyday” items in China vs. US, China’s take on Taiwanese “independence”, and finallyall the Chinese cities to pray for this week. Welcome to China Compass on the Fight Laugh Feast network! I'm your China travel guide in exile, Missionary Ben. Follow me on X (@chinaadventures) where I share a new Chinese city or county to pray for every single day. Feel free to write anytime: chinacompass@privacyport.com. All my books, substack, patreon, and everything else can be easily found at PrayGiveGo.us! The Autobiography of John G. Paton (JohnGPaton.com) Borden of Yale: The Millionaire Missionary (BordenofYale.com) Unbeaten: Arrested, Interrogated, and Deported from China (Unbeaten.vip) The Memoirs of William Milne: First Protestant Missionary to Malaysia (PrayGiveGo.us) The World's Longest One-Stop Flight Is Up To 29 Hours https://simpleflying.com/worlds-longest-one-stop-29-hours-flight-explained/ 20 flights: Some Chinese travellers stockpiled air tickets before fuel surcharge hike https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/he-booked-over-20-flights-some-chinese-travellers-stockpile-air-tickets-before-fuel-surcharge-hike The Cost of Everyday Things in China vs. the U.S. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/cost-of-living-in-china-vs-us/ Xi declares Taiwan independence a threat to peace https://www.malaymail.com/news/world/2026/04/10/beijing-ramps-up-pressure-as-xi-declares-taiwan-independence-a-threat-to-peace/215822 Xi Jinping meets new face of Taiwan's opposition as US and Japan watch https://asia.nikkei.com/politics/international-relations/taiwan-tensions/xi-jinping-meets-new-face-of-taiwan-s-opposition-as-us-and-japan-watch This coming week's Pray for China (PrayforChina.us) cities… https://chinacall.substack.com/p/pray-for-china-apr-12-18-2026 Thank you for listening! Subscribe + leave a review on your preferred podcast platform! If you’d like to support our China ministry, that, and everything else can be found @ PrayGiveGo.us. Luke 10, vs 2: the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few, so let's ask the Lord for more!

View all cards mentioned in this episodeIn the third book club Episode, Anthony and Parker talk about Donald Norman's The Design of Everyday Things. Originally published in 1988, the book was an influential criticism of the built world and interfaces establishing many concepts fundamental to user interface and industrial design today. It also introduces a metric ton of jargon per page.Our book club members talk about how these concepts apply to game and Cube design and their thinking about things more broadly.Discussed in this episode:The Design of Everyday Things by Donald NormanEnshittification concept and book by Cory DoctorowStatus and Culture: How Our Desire for Social Rank Creates Taste, Identity, Art, Fashion, and Constant Change by W. David MarxBlank Space: A Cultural History of the Twenty-First Century by W. David MarxBlood In the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech by Brian MerchantOther Book Club EpisodesIf you'd like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.You can find the hosts' Cubes on Cube Cobra:Andy's “Bun Magic” CubeAnthony's “Regular” CubeYou can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:Lucky PaperPO Box 4855Baltimore, MD 21211Musical production by DJ James Nasty.Timestamps0:00 - Intro2:42 - The Design of Everyday Things7:43 - Mental Models12:04 - Trouble With Mapping16:58 - Cube REL/Humility19:40 - Don Please Turn off the Podcast21:03 - Types of Errors26:30 - Games are Intentionally Bad Design32:04 - Constraints34:55 - Knowledge in the World42:28 - Learned Helplessness48:20 - Neologisms50:59 - Choosing the Next Book

Send us Fan MailSome things disappear with a bang. Everybody notices. Everybody talks about it.But then there are other things that just slowly fade away.No big announcement. No farewell tour. No official last day. They're just there one year, less common the next, and then one day you realize they're basically gone.That's what happened to a lot of the little everyday things many of us grew up with. Not giant historic moments. Not major inventions. Just regular pieces of life that used to be woven into our routines. They were in our homes, our cars, our stores, our neighborhoods, and our weekends. They helped shape the look, sound, and feel of ordinary life.Some of them were practical. Some were fun. Some were tacky. Some probably needed to go. But taken together, they gave everyday life a texture that feels very different from the world we live in now.Here are 25 everyday things that have quietly disappeared.Support the show

We all love a good secret, and luckily, it turns out the objects we use every day are absolutely full of them! From Coke's biggest secret to how batteries really work, join me for yet another dive into some of the most amazing secrets hidden in everyday things. Our Sponsors:* Check out BetterHelp: https://www.betterhelp.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Hello, Puzzlers! Puzzling with us today: host of "The Economics of Everyday Things," Zachary Crockett!Join host A.J. Jacobs and his guests as they puzzle–and laugh–their way through new spins on old favorites, like anagrams and palindromes, as well as quirky originals.Subscribe to Hello, Puzzlers! wherever you get your podcasts! And come join our growing puzzle community over on Patreon, where you can find bonus episodes and other exclusive content!Our executive producers are Neely Lohmann and Adam Neuhaus of Neuhaus Ideas.The show is produced by Claire Bidigare-Curtis.Our Chief Puzzle Officer is Greg Pliska. Our associate producer is Andrea Schoenberg.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you're considering gamification for engagement, retention, or loyalty, I'm happy to compare options with you: professorgame.com/chat What if gamification isn't about rewards at all? James Portnow joins the Professor Game Podcast to explain why intrinsic engagement, thoughtful iteration, and strong design goals matter more than mechanics. From YouTube education to tabletop games, this conversation is packed with insights on building experiences people truly care about. James Portnow is a Game Designer by trade, who's worked on games ranging from the Call of Duty Series to League of Legends to Farmville. His latest project, Cyberpunk Legends (the official Cyberpunk co-op card game), Kickstarted for over a million dollars, putting it in the top 1% of kickstarters ever created. He is also the creator of one of the most popular YouTube channels on history, Extra History. He's spoken at universities and corporations around the world and at conferences ranging from GDC to PAX to SXSW. He's been quoted in the New York Times and Time Magazine, published by Oxford University Press and has taught at the Masters and Bachelor's level. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at The Octalysis Group (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A globally recognized gamification strategist and TEDx speaker, he founded and hosts Professor Game, the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global experts. He designs evidence-based engagement systems that drive motivation, loyalty, and results, and teaches LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® and gamification at top institutions including IE Business School, EFMD, and EBS University across Europe, the Americas, and Asia.   Guest Links and Info Website: nightcrewgames.com LinkedIn: James Portnow Instagram: @night.crew.games @extracredits TikTok: @night.crew.games Facebook: nightcrewgames ExtraCredits Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/nightcrewgames.bsky.social YouTube: Extra Credits Extra History Other links: kickstarter.com/projects/cyberpunklegends/cyberpunk-legends-into-the-night   Links to episode mentions: Proposed guest: Richard Garfield of Magic The Gathering Designer on Candy Crush - Perhaps David Darabian? Jonathan Blow The Slay the Spire guys - Mega Crit Recommended book: Poetics by Aristotle Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard Favorite game: Magic The Gathering

What happens when the founder of Mint.com takes on one of healthcare's most broken experiences—patient communication? In this episode of Bright Spots in Healthcare, Eric Glazer sits down with Aaron Patzer, Founder and CEO of Vital, to explore how simplicity, clarity, and human-centered design can drive real impact in healthcare. Drawing from his journey building Mint, Aaron shares why most healthcare technology misses the mark, how better communication improves outcomes and ROI, and what leaders must do to design experiences people actually use. The conversation goes deep on: Why simplifying complexity—not adding more tech—is the real innovation How better patient communication drives measurable ROI for hospitals What healthcare leaders can learn from consumer tech about trust, adoption, and engagement The leadership principles Aaron relies on when innovating inside highly regulated, slow-moving systems If you're a healthcare leader navigating digital transformation, AI investment decisions, or experience strategy, this episode offers clear thinking, hard-earned lessons, and proof that when you make it easier for people to understand what's happening, everything works better.   References: Book Reference - The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman About Aaron: Aaron Patzer is a renowned entrepreneur, engineer, and innovator best known as the founder of Mint.com, the personal finance platform that revolutionized money management for millions of users. After launching Mint in 2007, Patzer led it to rapid success, growing the user base to over 25 million and overseeing its acquisition by Intuit in 2009. A passionate advocate for user-centered design and simplicity in complex systems, Patzer built Mint.com by combining his technical acumen with a deep understanding of user experience and behavioral finance. He holds degrees in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and a Master's from Princeton University. Following Mint, Patzer continued to push boundaries in tech and health innovation. He co-founded Vital, a healthcare startup focused on improving hospital emergency room, urgent care, and inpatient experiences using AI and design thinking. Ranked by KLAS as #1 in patient experience, Vital achieves concrete results: 30–50% fewer LWOBS/AMA, 10–15% higher NPS, stronger HCAHPS scores, reduced ED bounce- back, and 10% lower 30-day readmissions. Designed to integrate seamlessly with existing EHR systems, Vital provides a user-friendly interface that engages patients, resulting in 60%+ adoption rates, 5-10x higher than the competition. View our product overview. Partner with Bright Spots Ventures: If you are interested in speaking with the Bright Spots Ventures team to brainstorm how we can help you grow your business via content and relationships, email hkrish@brightspotsventures.com   About Bright Spots Ventures: Bright Spots Ventures is a healthcare strategy and engagement company that creates content, communities, and connections to accelerate innovation. We help healthcare leaders discover what's working, and how to scale it. By bringing together health plan, hospital, and solution leaders, we facilitate the exchange of ideas that lead to measurable impact. Through our podcast, executive councils, private events, and go-to-market strategy work, we surface and amplify the "bright spots" in healthcare—proven innovations others can learn from and replicate. At our core, we exist to create trusted relationships that make real progress possible. Visit our website at www.brightspotsinhealthcare.com. Visit our website:  www.brightspotsinhealthcare.com. Follow Bright Spots in Healthcare: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shared-purpose-connect/

The Economics of Everyday Things is going on an indefinite hiatus. SOURCES:Zachary Crockett, host of The Economic of Everyday Things. RESOURCES:Zachary Crockett on Substack.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Womanhood Wellness is where functional medicine meets feminine wisdom—guiding you to balance hormones, awaken libido, and prepare for pregnancy with intention. Join today.What if the everyday things touching your skin were quietly working against your hormones and fertility?Are there products lurking in your home, messing with your hormones, fertility, and even your kids? In this episode, you're going to learn how something as simple as underwear, leggings, lube, or your favorite scent can shift your entire vaginal microbiome, change the pH in that delicate ecosystem, and ripple into things like infections, discharge, odor, and trouble conceiving.Most of us were raised to assume that if a product is on the shelf, it must be safe, and no one ever sat us down to explain how to spot the things that are the least like nature in our environment. Things like hidden plastics, fragrances, and chemicals might be sneaking into your daily routine, and there are simple swaps that can dramatically lower the load without making you feel like you're living in a bubble. You'll Learn:[00:00] Introduction[06:50] How the wrong underwear disrupts your vaginal microbiome and fertility[12:05] What tight, synthetic leggings do to moisture, bacteria, and hormone balance[17:14] Why most personal lubricants damage sperm, and what to use instead[21:12] The everyday plastic exposures are silently lowering fertility[25:20] The hidden hormone disruptors in candles and home fragrances[28:17] How laundry detergents and dryer sheets flood your body with hormone disruptors[34:24] Why shower products may be a daily source of toxins you don't realizeResources Mentioned:Auden Underwear | WebsiteCountry Save Laundry Detergent | AmazonMolly Suds Laundry Detergent | AmazonBranch Basics Laundry Detergent | WebsitePyrex Food Storage | WebsiteFind more from Dr. Leah:Dr. Leah Gordon | InstagramDr. Leah Gordon | WebsiteWomanhood Wellness | WebsiteFind more from Dr. Morgan:Dr. Morgan MacDermott | InstagramDr. Morgan MacDermott | WebsiteUse code HEALTHYMOTHER and save 15% at RedmondFor 20% off your first order at Needed, use code HEALTHYMOTHERSave $260 at Lumebox, use code HEALTHYASAMOTHER

The iconic department store calls the parade its “gift to the nation.” With 30 million TV viewers, it's also a big moneymaker — at least we think it is: when it comes to parade economics, Macy's is famously tight-lipped. In this 2024 episode, we try to loosen them up. (Part one of a two-part series.) SOURCES:John Cheney, carpenter at Macy's Studios.Will Coss, vice president and executive producer of Macy's Studios.Jeff Kinney, author, cartoonist, and owner of An Unlikely Story Bookstore and Café.Kevin Lynch, vice president of global helium at Messer.Jen Neal, executive vice president of live events and specials for NBCUniversal Entertainment.Tony Spring, chairman and C.E.O. of Macy's Inc.Jessica Tisch, New York City police commissioner, former commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation.Dawn Tolson, executive director of Citywide Event Coordination and Management and the Street Activity Permit Office for the City of New York. RESOURCES:Macy's: The Store. The Star. The Story., by Robert M. Grippo (2009).History of Macy's of New York, 1853-1919: Chapters in the Evolution of the Department Store, by Ralph M. Hower (1943).Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. EXTRAS:"Helium," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2024). Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

"Remixed: The Unexpected Side of Science" is a full dome show, produced by the Museum of Science, Boston in partnership with the Dope Labs Podcast team.

View all cards mentioned in this episodeIn preparation for this year's CubeCon, Andy and Anthony dive through some of Andy's collection to put together a Stone Soup card pool for Andy to bring to the event. In this format, each player brings 45 cards of their choice. All the cards are combined and shuffled up and drafted like a collaboratively built cube. They talk about considerations for the kinds of cards to include while exploring stacks of cards, and ultimately picking out the 45 to bring.Discussed in this episode:Episode 265: Stone Soup, A Magical Community Stew with D.S.B.Cube Will Outlive Magic, Second Run Playmat Preorders on Stitcher's SupplyThe Design of Everyday Things by Don NormanIf you'd like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.You can find the hosts' Cubes on Cube Cobra:Andy's “Bun Magic” CubeAnthony's “Regular” CubeYou can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:Lucky PaperPO Box 4855Baltimore, MD 21211Musical production by DJ James Nasty.Timestamps0:00 - Intro3:00 - What is a stone soup draft10:55 - Choosing lands for the soup16:09 - Removal for the soup25:54 - 10 cool cards38:14 - Anthony critiques the soup45:58 - Full soup contribution recap50:36 - Addressing color imbalance in the soup54:41 - Second run of "Cube Will Outlive Magic" playmat preorders

Robby Stein is VP of Product at Google, where he oversees the core products of Google Search—including the new AI Overviews, AI Mode, search ranking, Google Lens, and more. Previously, he led consumer products at Instagram, where he and his teams built Stories, Reels, Close Friends, and other key features now used by billions.What you'll learn:1. Why Google's AI products are suddenly taking off after years of perceived stagnation2. How AI is expanding Search rather than replacing it, contrary to what many predicted3. The three core product principles that have helped Robby build multiple billion-user products4. Inside Instagram's decision to build its own version of Snapchat Stories5. His mantra of “relentless improvement”6. How Google developed AI Mode from concept to launch in just one year7. Why most teams give up too early on potentially transformative products—Brought to you by:• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny• Jira Product Discovery—Confidence to build the right thing: https://atlassian.com/lenny/?utm_source=lennypodcast&utm_medium=paid-audio&utm_campaign=fy24q1-jpd-imc• Orkes—The enterprise platform for reliable applications and agentic workflows: https://www.orkes.io/—Transcript: ⁠https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-google-built-ai-mode-in-under-a-year⁠—My biggest takeaways (for paid newsletter subscribers): ⁠https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/i/175041217/my-biggest-takeaways-from-this-conversation⁠—Where to find Robby Stein:• X: https://x.com/rmstein• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbystein/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Robby Stein(04:46) Google's recent success with AI(06:08) The evolution of Google Search(09:41) AI Mode and its impact(15:30) The rise of AEO(18:50) Building successful AI products(21:31)   Embodying relentless improvement(30:10) Lessons from Instagram Stories(35:20) Driving growth in established products(40:08) Balancing optimization and innovation(43:39) The journey of AI Mode: From launch to expansion(48:05) Organizational changes and urgency(49:51) AI Mode vs. competitors(51:35) Core product principles(57:07) Instagram's Close Friends feature(01:03:01) The importance of resources in development(01:06:39) AI corner(01:11:19) Curiosity and learning(01:15:01) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• Google Gemini: https://gemini.google.com/app• Nano Banana: https://aistudio.google.com/models/gemini-2-5-flash-image• Chat GPT: https://chatgpt.com/• Perplexity: https://www.perplexity.ai/• Google Lens: https://lens.google/• AI Google search: https://www.google.com/ai• Why ChatGPT will be the next big growth channel (and how to capitalize on it) | Brian Balfour (Reforge): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/why-chatgpt-will-be-the-next-big-growth-channel-brian-balfour• Alex Rampell on X: https://x.com/arampell• A 4-step framework for building delightful products | Nesrine Changuel (Spotify, Google, Skype): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-4-step-framework-for-building-delightful-products• Look broader, look closer, think younger: Tony Fadell speaks at TED2015: https://blog.ted.com/look-broader-look-closer-think-younger-tony-fadell-speaks-at-ted2015/• Jobs to Be Done: https://www.christenseninstitute.org/theory/jobs-to-be-done/• The ultimate guide to JTBD | Bob Moesta (co-creator of the framework): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-ultimate-guide-to-jtbd-bob-moesta• Rinstagram or Finstagram? The curious duality of the modern Instagram user: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/sep/26/rinstagram-finstagram-instagram-accounts• V03: https://v03ai.com/• Pirate GPT: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/silentmeditation/pirate-gpt/• The Bear on Hulu: https://www.hulu.com/series/the-bear-05eb6a8e-90ed-4947-8c0b-e6536cbddd5f• Dune on HBO Max: https://www.hbomax.com/movies/dune/e7dc7b3a-a494-4ef1-8107-f4308aa6bbf7• Top Gun: Maverick: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1745960/• Purple pillows: https://purple.com/pillows• Avocado pillow: https://www.avocadogreenmattress.com/products/green-pillow• Justin Bieber's website: https://www.justinbiebermusic.com/• Scooter Braun's website: https://scooterbraun.com/—Recommended books:• Competing Against Luck: The Story of Innovation and Customer Choice: https://www.amazon.com/Competing-Against-Luck-Innovation-Customer/dp/0062435612• The Design of Everyday Things: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expanded/dp/0465050654• Aurora: https://www.amazon.com/Aurora-High-Stakes-Survival-Navigate-Darkness/dp/0062916475• Project Hail Mary: https://www.amazon.com/Project-Hail-Mary-Andy-Weir/dp/0593135202—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

Tue, 07 Oct 2025 18:30:00 GMT http://relay.fm/focused/240 http://relay.fm/focused/240 David Sparks and Mike Schmitz David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. clean 5165 David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. This episode of Focused is sponsored by: Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code FOCUSED. Incogni: Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code FOCUSED with this link and get 60% off an annual plan. Gusto: Payroll, HR, Benefits. Simplified. Get 3 months free. HelloFresh: Get 10 Free Meals + a Free Item for Life! Links and Show Notes: Deep Focus: Extended ad-free episodes with bonus deep dive content. The Personal Retreat Planner The 2026 Focused Calendar Mike's essay on Cranking vs. Creating Productivity Field Guide 2025 (Standard Edition) Mike's Personal Book Notes Obsidian Vault Content Entrepreneur Expo Lulu | Online Self-Publishing Book & Ebook Company Tilt Publishing Bookworm #232: Published by Chandler Bolt Anderson Pens Closing Announcement | YouTube Cardinal Pens & Paper (formerly Anderson Pens) Plotter Quartet app iReal Pro The Beauty of Everyday Things by Soetsu Yanagi Time

Tue, 07 Oct 2025 18:30:00 GMT http://relay.fm/focused/240 http://relay.fm/focused/240 Q4 Planning 240 David Sparks and Mike Schmitz David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. clean 5165 David & Mike attempt to end 2025 on a high note by reviewing the last quarter and planning the next one. Also, Mike made a planner. This episode of Focused is sponsored by: Squarespace: Save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code FOCUSED. Incogni: Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code FOCUSED with this link and get 60% off an annual plan. Gusto: Payroll, HR, Benefits. Simplified. Get 3 months free. HelloFresh: Get 10 Free Meals + a Free Item for Life! Links and Show Notes: Deep Focus: Extended ad-free episodes with bonus deep dive content. The Personal Retreat Planner The 2026 Focused Calendar Mike's essay on Cranking vs. Creating Productivity Field Guide 2025 (Standard Edition) Mike's Personal Book Notes Obsidian Vault Content Entrepreneur Expo Lulu | Online Self-Publishing Book & Ebook Company Tilt Publishing Bookworm #232: Published by Chandler Bolt Anderson Pens Closing Announcement | YouTube Cardinal Pens & Paper (formerly Anderson Pens) Plotter Quartet app iReal Pro The Beauty of Everyday Things by Soetsu Yanagi Time Anxiety

In his 2023 book The Entanglement, UC Berkeley philosopher Alva Noë argues that human nature is not a fixed phenomenon, and that art acts as a kind of “strange tool” that actively changes us. “Life and art are entangled,” says Noë, who spoke about his research at a Berkeley event in June 2023. “To say that life and art are entangled is to say not only that we make art out of life, all the habits and systems and meanings and certainties, but that art then works these raw materials over — art works us over, art makes us new. Art makes us.”In this Berkeley Talks episode, Noë discusses how humans are in a constant state of becoming, and that art works to unveil us to ourselves in ways that empirical inquiry common in scientific fields cannot. By removing an object, like a photo, from its normal setting, he says, it allows us to reflect on what we normally take for granted about the object and presents an opportunity to make new meaning from it. “We are makers,” he continues. “We are put together, literally made up, by the habits and skills of making that constitute us. So by making, and thus exposing what our lives as makers take for granted, art puts us on display … in ways that hold out the opportunity of changing us, of liberating us. Liberating us precisely from the bonds of habit which our activities consist in.”Noë's lecture was part of the 2023 Berkeley Art, Law and Finance Symposium, presented by the Berkeley Center for Law and Business. Watch a video of Noë's talk on UC Berkeley Law's YouTube page.Listen to the episode and read the transcript on UC Berkeley News (news.berkeley.edu/podcast/berkeley-talks).Music by HoliznaCC0.Photo via Unsplash. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

View all cards mentioned in this episodeAndy and Anthony co-draft Anthony's Turbo Cube, talking through each of their picks as they navigate putting a deck together in this novel environment. In the Turbo Cube, all spells and activated abilities cost 2  mana less. While they draft, they discuss how the rules change effects each pick and their overall strategy.Because of the unique environment, our hosts collaborativly draft with eight real players rather than separately drafting the same simulated seat as they have in previous draft along episodes.Follow along with their draft on the cards mentioned page to see the full set of cards in each pack.Discussed in this episode:Turbo CubeNext “Book Club” Read: The Design of Everyday Things, by Donald NormanRecross the Paths, Episode with Andy Discussing the Cube FellowshipCube FellowshipPrevious open drafting episodes:The Bun Magic CubeRegular CubeNeoclassical CubeIf you'd like to show your support for the show, please consider backing Lucky Paper on Patreon or leaving us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.Check us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.You can find the hosts' Cubes on Cube Cobra:Andy's “Bun Magic” CubeAnthony's “Regular” CubeYou can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:Lucky PaperPO Box 4855Baltimore, MD 21211Musical production by DJ James Nasty.Timestamps0:00 - Intro5:27 - Book Club - The Design of Everyday Things6:59 - Cube Fellowship9:11 - Turbo Cube Draft Along14:29 - Draft Pack 126:38 - Draft Pack 237:06 - Draft Pack 345:11 - Draft Pack 454:10 - Deck Build58:02 - Deck Review and Grade

In this episode, Chris chats with guest Jim Remsik, Founder of Flagrant, on the significance of Ruby and Rails conferences. They discuss the nuances of organizing and attending such events, including the challenges and rewards of emceeing, the importance of community guidelines, and the value of having diverse participation. Jim shares insights into the upcoming XO Ruby Conference Series, their strategy behind choosing cities, and ensuring meaningful, smaller-scale interactions among attendees. They also touch on the intersection between design and development, the role of junior developers in the evolving tech landscape, and the importance of building relationships within the community. Additionally, the conversation delves into practical advice for aspiring developers about engaging with the community and leveraging meetups and smaller conferences to launch their careers. Hit the download button now to hear more!LinksJudoscale- Remote Ruby listener giftJim Remsik LinkedInFlagrantXO RubyThe Artist's Way by Julia CameronThe Design of Everyday Things by Don NormanAgile Web Development with Rails 6 by Sam Ruby with Dave ThomasRuby CentralRocky Mountain Ruby-Oct 6-7, Boulder, COBlastoff Rails-June 11-12, 2026, Albuquerque, New Mexico Chris Oliver X/Twitter Andrew Mason X/Twitter Jason Charnes X/Twitter

How does a museum place a value on a priceless work of art? And how much does it cost to keep it safe? Zachary Crockett appraises the situation. SOURCES:Glenn Lowry, director of the Museum of Modern Art. RESOURCES:"Why Climate Activists Are Still Throwing Food and Paint at Famous Artworks," by Tala Ansari (Wall Street Journal, 2023)."The Woman Who Made van Gogh," by Russell Shorto (New York Times, 2021)."The Lillie P. Bliss collection," (MoMA Collection, 1934)."May Belfort," by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (Cleveland Museum of Art, 1895)."Still Life with a Bottle," by Paul Cézanne (Pola Museum, 1890)."The Starry Night," by Vincent Van Gogh (MoMA Collection, 1889)."Portrait of Victor Chocquet Seated," by Paul Cézanne (1877). EXTRAS:"Hotel Art," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2025)."The Hidden Side of the Art Market," by Freakonomics Radio (2021). 

When you're naturally curious, every day's a school day - but I'll bet you didn't realise just how much there is to learn about the seemingly mundane items we see and use on the daily. From deceptive store displays to the secret messages hidden in fast food, let's take a look at yet another batch of amazing secrets hidden in everyday things! Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

If you have been following me for a while you will know that I come from an engineering and product design background. I view the world through the lens of product design where you are designing a specific product for a specific customer. If you buy a rental apartment building and decide you are going to lease it out to tenants, this is still a product designed with a specific customer in mind. It is human centred design. Our book this month is all about human centred design."The Design of Everyday Things” by Don Norman. The Design of Everyday Things, is not merely a book about industrial design; it is a profound philosophical treatise on the relationship between humans and the objects that populate their world. First published in 1988 and revised in 2013, the book's core message remains as relevant and powerful today as it was over three decades ago. Norman argues that the fault for our daily struggles with technology—from fumbling with confusing remote controls to battling poorly designed doors—lies not with the user, but with the designer. This simple yet revolutionary premise forms the backbone of a text that has become essential reading for anyone involved in product design.-------------**Real Estate Espresso Podcast:** Spotify: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://open.spotify.com/show/3GvtwRmTq4r3es8cbw8jW0?si=c75ea506a6694ef1)   iTunes: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-real-estate-espresso-podcast/id1340482613)   Website: [www.victorjm.com](http://www.victorjm.com)   LinkedIn: [Victor Menasce](http://www.linkedin.com/in/vmenasce)   YouTube: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](http://www.youtube.com/@victorjmenasce6734)   Facebook: [www.facebook.com/realestateespresso](http://www.facebook.com/realestateespresso)   Email: [podcast@victorjm.com](mailto:podcast@victorjm.com)  **Y Street Capital:** Website: [www.ystreetcapital.com](http://www.ystreetcapital.com)   Facebook: [www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital](https://www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital)   Instagram: [@ystreetcapital](http://www.instagram.com/ystreetcapital)  

Send us a textWe start this show with the 5 most underrated everyday things!!!!Vic thinks he might be too dumb to be offended by some things. Sydney Sweeney collab with American eagle stirs controversy and Vic struggles to understand why... and is it necessarily a bad thing to not understand?ICYDK: longest fart ever recorded was almost 3 min. WHATHulk Hogan died at 71. He looked like he was 71 for 30 yearsBReATHING IS COOLSTFU of the week - people saying, "FOOTBALL IS BACK!" no, no its not.TRIVIA: 19% of Americans admit they still get nervous doing THIS. What is it?Find Vic: @vicdradioFind the pod:@ilysayitbackpod

They say you should always try to see the beautiful in the everyday, but I'll bet you didn't realise just how many beautifully brilliant secrets are hidden in the items you use every day. From classified cookie symbols to the reason green gummi bears aren't what you think, here are some more amazing secrets hidden in everyday things!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

What goes into creating an episode of The Economics of Everyday Things? And how do shows like this one make money? Zachary Crockett turns the mic on himself. SOURCES:Gabe Tartaglia, vice president of podcast and satellite monetization at SiriusXM.Gabe Roth, editorial director of the Freakonomics Radio Network.Sarah Lilley, senior producer of The Economics of Everyday Things.Jeremy Johnston, audio engineer at the Freakonomics Radio Network.Daniel Moritz-Rabson, fact-checker at the Freakonomics Radio Network. RESOURCES:"Digital Ad Revenue Surges 15% YoY in 2024, Climbing to $259B, According to IAB," (International Advertising Bureau, 2025)."Cost per Thousand (CPM) Definition and Its Role in Marketing," by Will Kenton (Investopedia, 2024)."Podcast Statistics You Need To Know," (Backlinko). APM Music — Licensing  .

Peter Deng has led product teams at OpenAI, Instagram, Uber, Facebook, Airtable, and Oculus and helped build products used by billions—including Facebook's News Feed, the standalone Messenger app, Instagram filters, Uber Reserve, ChatGPT, and more. Currently he's investing in early-stage founders at Felicis. In this episode, Peter dives into his most valuable lessons from building and scaling some of tech's most iconic products and companies.What you'll learn:1. Peter's one‑sentence test for hiring superstars2. Why your product (probably) doesn't matter3. Why you don't need a tech breakthrough to build a huge business4. The five PM archetypes, and how to build a team of Avengers5. Counterintuitive lessons on growing products from 0 to 1, and 1 to 1006. The importance of data flywheels and workflows—Brought to you by:Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers wantPragmatic Institute—Industry‑recognized product, marketing, and AI training and certificationsContentsquare—Create better digital experiences—Where to find Peter Deng:• X: https://x.com/pxd• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterxdeng/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Peter Deng(05:41) AI and AGI insights(11:35) The future of education with AI(16:53) The power of language in leadership(21:01) Building iconic products(36:44) Scaling from zero to 100(41:56) Balancing short- and long-term goals(47:12) Creating a healthy tension in teams(50:02) The five archetypes of product managers(55:39) Primary and secondary archetypes(58:47) Hiring for growth mindset and autonomy(01:15:52) Effective management and communication strategies(01:19:23) Presentation advice and self-advocacy(01:25:50) Balancing craft and practicality in product management(01:30:40) The importance of empathy in design thinking(01:35:45) Career decisions and learning opportunities(01:42:05) Lessons from product failures(01:45:42) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• OpenAI: https://openai.com/• Artificial general intelligence (AGI): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_general_intelligence• Head of ChatGPT answers philosophical questions about AI at SXSW 2024 with SignalFire's Josh Constine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgbgI0R6XCw• Professors Are Using A.I., Too. Now What?: https://www.npr.org/2025/05/21/1252663599/kashmir-hill-ai#:~:text=Now%20What• Herbert H. Clark: https://web.stanford.edu/~clark/• Russian speakers get the blues: https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn11759-russian-speakers-get-the-blues/• Ilya Sutskever (OpenAI Chief Scientist)—Building AGI, Alignment, Future Models, Spies, Microsoft, Taiwan, & Enlightenment: https://www.dwarkesh.com/p/ilya-sutskever• Anthropic's CPO on what comes next | Mike Krieger (co-founder of Instagram): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/anthropics-cpo-heres-what-comes-next• Kevin Systrom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinsystrom/• Building a magical AI code editor used by over 1 million developers in four months: The untold story of Windsurf | Varun Mohan (co-founder and CEO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-untold-story-of-windsurf-varun-mohan• Microsoft CPO: If you aren't prototyping with AI, you're doing it wrong | Aparna Chennapragada: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/microsoft-cpo-on-ai• The rise of Cursor: The $300M ARR AI tool that engineers can't stop using | Michael Truell (co-founder and CEO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-rise-of-cursor-michael-truell• Building Lovable: $10M ARR in 60 days with 15 people | Anton Osika (CEO and co-founder): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-lovable-anton-osika• Granola: https://www.granola.ai/• Inside Bolt: From near-death to ~$40m ARR in 5 months—one of the fastest-growing products in history | Eric Simons (founder and CEO of StackBlitz): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/inside-bolt-eric-simons• OpenAI's CPO on how AI changes must-have skills, moats, coding, startup playbooks, more | Kevin Weil (CPO at OpenAI, ex-Instagram, Twitter): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/kevin-weil-open-ai• Fidji Simo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fidjisimo/• Airtable: https://www.airtable.com/• George Lee on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geolee/• Andrew Chen on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewchen/• Lauryn Motamedi on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurynmotamedi/• Twilio: https://www.twilio.com/• Nick Turley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholasturley/• Ian Silber on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iansilber/• Thomas Dimson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasdimson/• Joey Flynn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joey-flynn-8291586b/• Ryan O'Rourke's website: https://www.rourkery.com/• Joanne Jang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jangjoanne/• Behind the founder: Marc Benioff: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/behind-the-founder-marc-benioff• Jill Hazelbaker on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-hazelbaker-3aa32422/• Guy Kawasaki's website: https://guykawasaki.com/• Eric Antonow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonow/• Sachin Kansal on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sachinkansal/• IDEO design thinking: https://designthinking.ideo.com/• The 7 Steps of the Design Thinking Process: https://www.ideou.com/blogs/inspiration/design-thinking-process• Linear's secret to building beloved B2B products | Nan Yu (Head of Product): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/linears-secret-to-building-beloved-b2b-products-nan-yu• Jeff Bezos's quote: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27778175• Friendster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friendster• Myspace: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myspace• How LinkedIn became interesting: The inside story | Tomer Cohen (CPO at LinkedIn): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-linkedin-became-interesting-tomer-cohen• “Smile” by Jay-Z: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSumXG5_rs8&list=RDSSumXG5_rs8&start_radio=1• The Wire on HBO: https://www.hbo.com/the-wire• Felicis: https://www.felicis.com/—Recommended books:• Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind: https://www.amazon.com/Sapiens-Humankind-Yuval-Noah-Harari/dp/0062316095• The Design of Everyday Things: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expanded/dp/0465050654• The Silk Roads: A New History of the World: https://www.amazon.com/Silk-Roads-New-History-World/dp/1101912375—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

Wanna start a side hustle but need an idea? Check out our Side Hustle Ideas Database: https://clickhubspot.com/thds Tariffs are causing companies like Walmart and Target to raise prices, but what about another huge American institution? Fireworks are also set to take a hit from tariffs as most of them are produced in China. Zachary Crockett joins us from The Economics of Everyday Things podcast to break down if you can expect less fireworks on your 4th of July this year. Plus: Klarna gets a debit card and Spirit Halloween cancels its opening celebration. Join our hosts Jon Weigell and Mark Dent as they take you through our most interesting stories of the day. Follow us on social media: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thehustle.co Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehustledaily/ Thank You For Listening to The Hustle Daily Show. Don't forget to hit subscribe or follow us on your favorite podcast player, so you never miss an episode! If you want this news delivered to your inbox, join millions of others and sign up for The Hustle Daily newsletter, here: https://thehustle.co/email/  If you are a fan of the show be sure to leave us a 5-Star Review, and share your favorite episodes with your friends, clients, and colleagues.

Would you prefer to have someone break into your home while taking a dump or mid-orgasm? A University of Buffalo graduate is chased by the cops while receiving his diploma. Charlie is annoyed by people doing everyday things with their kids. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Would you prefer to have someone break into your home while taking a dump or mid-orgasm? A University of Buffalo graduate is chased by the cops while receiving his diploma. Charlie is annoyed by people doing everyday things with their kids.

Send us a textIn this episode of Navigating the Customer Experience, we're joined by Eric Karofsky, an award-winning expert in customer experience (CX), user experience (UX), and employee engagement, and the founder of VectorHX, a human experience agency. Eric shares his professional journey—from decades in agency and consultancy work with major brands like Michelin and Royal Caribbean, to leading UX at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and now building his own company focused on creating seamless customer interactions across digital and physical touchpoints.Eric discusses how AI is rapidly reshaping the customer experience landscape, emphasizing that it's a powerful tool—not a solution on its own. He shares both the promise and the current limitations of AI, particularly in customer support scenarios, likening poorly designed chatbots to frustrating call center loops from the 1980s.A major theme in the episode is understanding customer behavior through cultural, situational, and demographic lenses. Eric cautions against forcing users into preferred communication channels and instead advises companies to map the ideal journey for different personas and optimize each channel for a frictionless experience.He offers a powerful case study from the pharmaceutical industry, where AI is being used to transform labor-intensive literature reviews—cutting timelines from six months to potentially two weeks. This not only boosts business efficiency but also accelerates drug development, delivering life-saving treatments to patients faster.Eric also touches on:AI leadership and how it should drive business strategy by identifying areas for efficiency and innovation.Tools he can't live without, like Claude AI and Notion, which he uses to manage his business and ideas.His excitement about no-code tools like Bolt.new and Lovable, which allow rapid prototyping of full-stack apps without technical skills.The enduring value of classic books like Getting to Yes and The Design of Everyday Things, which shaped his thinking around negotiation and customer-centric design.The importance of motivation and resilience, fueled by the exciting pace of innovation and meaningful human connections with clients and team members.He closes with a favorite quote by Benjamin Franklin:"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." A reminder of the value of active learning and mentorship in building strong, collaborative teams.You'll leave this episode with fresh insights on CX, AI strategy, and how to build human-centered experiences in a rapidly evolving digital world.

View all cards mentioned in this episodeIn the second episode of the Lucky Paper Radio Book Club, Andy, Anthony, and Parker discuss Playing Oppression by By Mary Flanagan and Mikael Jakobsson. The book explores the history of colonialism in games - the many roles games have played inculcating explicit propaganda or normalizing colonial value systems in their aesthetics and mechanics. Our club members, including call ins from listeners, talk about what they took from the book and whether it's changed their perspective on games.Discussed in this episode:Playing Oppression by By Mary Flanagan and Mikael JakobssonFree PDF of the BookThe First Book Club EpisodeNose DiveA Pattern LanguageThe DoughboysUntitled Goose Game‘Kriegsspiel! How Napoleon Accidentally Invented Strategy Games' on YouTubeWingspanPhotosynthesis (board game)Spirit IslandA People's History of the United StatesCole WehrleRootMolly House (concept)Molly House (board game)Citizen GameRusty Cash Box of GoblinPolytopiaOgre Battle Tactics: March of the Black QueenThe Design of Everyday Things by Don NormanCheck us out on Twitch and YouTube for paper Cube gameplay.You can find the hosts' Cubes on Cube Cobra:Andy's “Bun Magic” CubeAnthony's “Regular” CubeYou can find both your hosts in the MTG Cube Talk Discord. Send in questions to the show at mail@luckypaper.co or our p.o. box:Lucky PaperPO Box 4855Baltimore, MD 21211If you'd like to show your support for the show, please leave us a review on iTunes or wherever you listen.Musical production by DJ James Nasty.Timestamps0:00 - Intro1:26 - Pickle Corner Returns5:15 - First impressions of Playing Oppression11:05 - On the format of the book and whether it's the best means to convey the message16:28 - Getting on board with the core conceit of Playing Oppression19:41 - Are games descriptive or prescriptive of our culture?25:07 - What is a “Goose Game”30:42 - Are video games to blame for gun violence?'37:02 - The German Colony Game and why rehearsing violence is perhaps more visceral than witnessing it42:23 - How are colonial and violent values baked into games that don't have explicitly colonial flavor?45:26 - How post-war Germany gave rise to the modern Eurogame52:22 - How do you subvert these colonial themes in game design?57:14 - Our experience playing the ‘anticolonialist' games mentioned in Playing Oppression1:15:01 - Fascism as colonialism and imperialism turned inward1:16:29 - How does all of this relate to Magic1:20:42 - Polytopia and whether or not a better skin would make a difference

The Journey Beyond Death continues with Part 9, diving into the extraordinary topic of After Death Communication. In this powerful episode, we explore how contact between the living and the spirit world is not only possible—but often happening in ways most people overlook: through dreams, symbols, synchronicities, and even cutting-edge technology. Featuring internationally renowned psychic mediums Lisa McGarrity and Joyce Keller, astrologer Constance Stellas, and tech visionary Robert LoCascio, this episode offers diverse insights into how the boundary between life and death is far more permeable than we imagine. Lisa McGarrity shares how departed loved ones often reach out with subtle signs—like feathers, birds, or coins—and explains how writing letters to the deceased or placing water near your bedside can invite dream encounters. Joyce Keller adds that while some souls transition easily, others may remain in a sleep-like state until they're ready to fully cross over. Both mediums emphasize that death is not a disappearance, but a transformation into a new, liberated form of existence. Astrologer Constance Stellas brings a deeper, cosmic lens to the conversation, showing how soul contracts, karmic patterns, and even death transitions are visible in a birth chart. And Robert LoCascio introduces Eternos, a groundbreaking AI platform designed to preserve human consciousness—allowing future generations to interact with digital avatars of loved ones long after their physical passing. ------------------------------ Featuring in order of appearance 03:00 - Psychic Medium Lisa McGarrity 14:53 - Psychic Medium Joyce Keller 37:03 - Astrologer Constance Stellas 48:44 - Robert LoCascio, CEO of Eternos ------------------------------ Lisa McGarrity – Psychic Medium Lisa McGarrity is a seasoned psychic medium with over 25 years of experience. She offers intuitive sessions that address past, present, and future issues, and she communicates with ancestors in spirit. Lisa is the owner of Envision Crystal, a metaphysical store on Long Island, and provides services including psychic readings, spiritual mediumship, shamanic healing, soul retrieval, past life regression, and custom spell services. Website: ------------------------------ Joyce Keller – Psychic Medium, Author, and Radio Host Joyce Keller is an internationally respected intuitive counselor, healer, lecturer, and hypnotherapist. She hosted "The Joyce Keller Show," America's longest-running live intuitive advice show, beginning in 1987 on New York's WGBB 1240 AM. Joyce has authored seven international best-selling books, including the Angel Series, "Seven Steps to Heaven," and "The Complete Book of Numerology." Website: ------------------------------ Constance Stellas – Astrologer and Author Constance Stellas is an astrologer of Greek heritage with more than 25 years of experience. Practicing mainly in New York City, she serves clients in the arts, academia, and business. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Marie Claire, and other major media outlets. She has authored several books, including "The Hidden Power of Everyday Things," "The Astrology Gift Guide," and "Advanced Astrology for Life." Website: ------------------------------ Robert LoCascio – CEO of Eternos Robert LoCascio is the co-founder and CEO of Eternos, an AI-powered legacy platform that preserves individuals' life stories through interactive AI avatars. Before launching Eternos, he founded LivePerson in 1995, which became a leader in web chat and AI messaging platforms. Robert is also the founder of EqualAI, a nonprofit organization focused on reducing bias in artificial intelligence development. Website:

In your day-to-day life, you probably use an astounding array of different items without stopping to think much about them. But, turns out, many of them actually have secret uses and crazy reasons for their designs that you'd never have guessed! From your phone to your bank card, get ready to uncover some of the best-kept secrets in everyday things!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Those tiny treats that predict your future may come free at the end of a Chinese meal, but they're big business (and not Chinese). Zachary Crockett will go on a long journey. SOURCES: Jennifer 8. Lee, documentarian and author of The Fortune Cookie Chronicles.Norman Wong, C.E.O. of Wonton Food. RESOURCES: "Canadian Influencer's Amazement at Absence of Fortune Cookies in China Restaurants Triggers Amusing Online Discussion About Origins of Snack," by Yating Yang (South China Morning Post, 2024)."Fortune Cookies: They're Japan's Best-Kept Secret!" by Thalia Harris (Sakuraco, 2023)."What I Learned Eating at 8,000 Chinese Restaurants," by Zhaoyin Feng (BBC News, 2021).The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, by Jennifer 8. Lee (2008)."Lottery Winners Find Good Fortune in Cookies," (NBC News, 2005). EXTRAS: "Girl Scout Cookies," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2023).

A fast-food burger has to taste the same — and cost the same — thousands of times a day at restaurants across the country. Zachary Crockett mans the fryer. SOURCES:John Karangis, vice president of culinary innovation at Shake Shack.Walter Zuromski, owner and chief culinary officer of the Chef Services Group. RESOURCES:"How Shake Shack's New Test Kitchen Is Shaping the Future of the Brand," by Stefanie Tuder (Eater, 2018). EXTRAS:"Truffles," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2023).

Nan Yu is the head of product at Linear, one of the most beloved and fastest-growing B2B SaaS products out there today, and the gold standard for high-performing tech teams. In our conversation, we discuss:• Why speed and quality aren't actually at odds• Linear's unique approach to product development• Nan's systematic approach to creativity• Linear's philosophy on deadlines• The “double triangle” framework for product management• Nan's approach to landing his dream product roles• Much more—Brought to you by:• Sinch—Build messaging, email, and calling into your product• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want• Wix Studio—The web creation platform built for agencies—Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/linears-secret-to-building-beloved-b2b-products-nan-yu—Where to find Nan Yu:• X: https://x.com/thenanyu• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thenanyu/—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction to Nan Yu and Linear(04:54) Survey insights: Linear vs. Jira(07:51) The speed vs. quality myth(09:24) Building and iterating quickly(15:31) Avoiding bloat in enterprise software(23:57) Understanding user needs deeply(30:09) How to approach customer calls(34:10) Creating strong emotional hooks(40:31) Managing the product backlog(44:46) Systemizing creativity(48:16) Demo: Saving drafts in Linear(51:38) Breaking constraints and building at extremes(54:15) Adopting new tools(58:22) The “double triangle” framework for product management(01:04:23) Effective job-hunting strategies for PMs(01:09:15) Thoughts on deadlines(01:14:15) Lightning round—Referenced:• Jira: https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira• Linear: https://linear.app/• Patrick Collison's post on X: https://x.com/patrickc/status/1869422495985750459• Magnus Carlsen on X: https://x.com/magnuscarlsen• Hikaru Nakamura on X: https://x.com/gmhikaru• Geoffrey Moore on finding your beachhead, crossing the chasm, and dominating a market: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/geoffrey-moore-on-finding-your-beachhead• Customer Request feature on Linear: https://linear.app/customer-requests• Everlane: https://www.everlane.com/• Schlep Blindness: https://paulgraham.com/schlep.html• Linear's triage tool: https://linear.app/docs/triage• Patrick Collison's post about mental models on X: https://x.com/patrickc/status/1443215022029619200• Brian Chesky's new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach• Unpacking Amazon's unique ways of working | Bill Carr (author of Working Backwards): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unpacking-amazons-unique-ways-of• Mode: https://mode.com/• The Diplomat on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81288983• Sakura Micron pens: https://www.amazon.com/SAKURA-PIGMA-MICRON-ESSENTIAL-COLORS/dp/B07VJFXT3C/—Recommended books:• Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers: https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Chasm-3rd-Disruptive-Mainstream/dp/0062292986• The Design of Everyday Things: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expanded/dp/0465050654/—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

A watercolor of a harbor? A black-and-white photo of a pile of rocks? Some hotels are trying to do better. Zachary Crockett unpacks. SOURCES:Melanie Kettring, director of studio design at Best Western Hotels.Jessica Poundstone, visual artist. Gavi Wolf, founder and C.E.O. of Indiewalls. RESOURCES:Indiewalls.Best Western. EXTRAS:"Used Hotel Soaps," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2023)."The Hidden Side of the Art Market," series by Freakonomics Radio (2021).

Incarcerated people grow crops, fight wildfires, and manufacture everything from prescription glasses to highway signs — often for pennies an hour. Zachary Crockett takes the next exit, in this special episode of The Economics of Everyday Things. SOURCES:Laura Appleman, professor of law at Willamette University.Christopher Barnes, inmate at the Franklin Correctional Center.Lee Blackman, general manager at Correction Enterprises.Gene Hawkins, senior principal engineer at Kittelson and professor emeritus of civil engineering at Texas A&M University.Renee Roach, state signing and delineation engineer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation.Brian Scott, ex-inmate, former worker at the Correction Enterprises printing plant.Louis Southall, warden of Franklin Correctional Center. RESOURCES:“Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways, 11th Edition,” by the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (2023).“Prisoners in the U.S. Are Part of a Hidden Workforce Linked to Hundreds of Popular Food Brands,” by Robin McDowell and Margie Mason (AP News, 2024).“Ex-Prisoners Face Headwinds as Job Seekers, Even as Openings Abound,” by Talmon Joseph Smith (The New York Times, 2023).“Bloody Lucre: Carceral Labor and Prison Profit,” by Laura Appleman (Wisconsin Law Review, 2022).“The Road to Clarity,” by Joshua Yaffa (The New York Times Magazine, 2007).Correction Enterprises. EXTRAS:“Do People Pay Attention to Signs?” by No Stupid Questions (2022).The Economics of Everyday Things.

The 166-year-old chain, which is fighting extinction, calls the parade its “gift to the nation.” With 30 million TV viewers, it's also a big moneymaker. At least we think it is — Macy's is famously tight-lipped about parade economics. We try to loosen them up. (Part one of a two-part series.)Please take our audience survey at freakonomics.com/survey. SOURCES:John Cheney, carpenter at Macy's Studios.Will Coss, vice president and executive producer of Macy's Studios.Jeff Kinney, author, cartoonist, and owner of An Unlikely Story Bookstore and Café.Kevin Lynch, vice president of global helium at Messer.Jen Neal, executive vice president of live events and specials for NBCUniversal Media Group.Tony Spring, chairman and C.E.O. of Macy's Inc.Jessica Tisch, commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation; incoming commissioner of the New York City Police Department.Dawn Tolson, executive director of Citywide Event Coordination and Management and the Street Activity Permit Office for the City of New York. RESOURCES:Macy's: The Store. The Star. The Story., by Robert M. Grippo (2009).History of Macy's of New York, 1853-1919: Chapters in the Evolution of the Department Store, by Ralph M. Hower (1943).Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. EXTRA:The Economics of Everyday Things. 

Today, we're sharing an episode of a podcast that we've enjoyed, and think you will, too! It's called The Economics of Everyday Things. It's made by the Freakonomics Radio Network and on each of its episodes, host Zachary Crockett uncovers the hidden stories behind ordinary things! Stock photos, girl scout cookies, and cashmere sweaters, you name it. In this episode, you're about to hear Zachary crack the lid open on ... the humble pizza box.For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

A single company, EssilorLuxottica, owns so much of the eyewear industry that it's hard to escape their gravitational pull — or their “obscene” markups. Should regulators do something? Can Warby Parker steal market share? And how did Ray-Bans become a luxury brand? (Part one of a two-part series.) SOURCES:Neil Blumenthal, co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker.Dave Gilboa, co-founder and co-CEO of Warby Parker.Jessica Glasscock, fashion historian and lecturer at the Parsons School of Design.Neil Handley, curator of the British Optical Association Museum at the College of Optometrists.Ryan McDevitt, professor of economics at Duke University.Cédric Rossi, equity research analyst at Bryan Garnier.Tim Wu, professor of law, science and technology at Columbia Law School. RESOURCES:"Leonardo Del Vecchio Dies at 87; Transformed Eyeglass Industry," by Jonathan Kandell (The New York Times, 2022).Making a Spectacle: A Fashionable History of Glasses, by Jessica Glasscock (2021)."Dave Gilboa and Neil Blumenthal: ‍A Vision for Business," by Lucy Handley (CNBC, 2020)."The Roots of Big Tech Run Disturbingly Deep," by Tim Wu and Stuart A. Thompson (The New York Times, 2019)."The Spectacular Power of Big Lens," by Sam Knight (The Guardian, 2018).The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Gilded Age, by Tim Wu (2018)."Statement of the Federal Trade Commission Concerning the Proposed Acquisition of Luxottica Group S.p.A. by Essilor International (Compagnie Generale d'Optique) S.A.," FTC File No. 171-0060 (2018).Cult Eyewear: The World's Enduring Classics, by Neil Handley (2011).A Far-Sighted Man, by Luca Goldoni (1991). EXTRAS:"Direct-to-Consumer Mattresses," by The Economics of Everyday Things (2024)."Are Two C.E.O.s Better Than One?" by Freakonomics Radio (2023).“Are We in a Mattress-Store Bubble?” by Freakonomics Radio (2016).