Best How Things Were Invented Podcasts (2025)

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Exploiting John Candy 35:48

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10m ago35:48

35:48

TIFF turns 50 with celebs, controversy, and Carney suggesting that we’re the John Candy of global trade. As the Toronto International Film Festival struggles to find its way in a changing film landscape, it leans into Canadiana with buzzy premieres from Canadian directors. But with its mishandling of controversial documentaries the last two years, …

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What If Trump Shuts Off Canada's Data Servers? 37:34

9m ago37:34

37:34

While Donald Trump is bent on achieving and maintaining “unquestioned and unchallenged global technological dominance”, we’re just starting to gear up for the race. There are only about 300 data centres across Canada. And about HALF of them are run by American tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft. Host Noor Azrieh sits down with Don Lenih…

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ReThinking: Facing your fears with cliff diver Molly Carlson 38:49

2h ago38:49

38:49

Molly Carlson is a professional high diver, three-time runner-up at the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, and the founder of Brave Gang, an online community of people who encourage each other to face their fears together. In this episode, Molly and Adam reflect on anxiety and motivation, the functions and dysfunctions of fear, and how to harness …

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Ukraine, Taiwan, Canada 27:40

2d ago27:40

27:40

Mark Carney recently made noises about the future possibility of Canadian boots on the ground as part of an international “coalition of the willing” to help guarantee security in Ukraine. In the 1990s Canada had up to 3,000 peacekeepers around the world at any given time. Today we have less than 30. That’s one per cent of what we used to be able to…

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Nobody Wants to Lead the NDP 27:14

4d ago27:14

27:14

The race to succeed Jagmeet Singh has begun, but most of the NDP’s big names are steering clear. Post-election, vibes within the party have been bleak, mired with handwringing, infighting, and no clear guiding vision. One thing everyone seems to agree on is that any new leader needs to build a big tent. Bring back the labour vote. With Trump playin…

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The future of finding love with Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd | ReThinking with Adam Grant 36:29

4d ago36:29

36:29

What will dating look like in the age of AI? Whitney Wolfe Herd is the founder and CEO of Bumble, the popular dating app that has helped millions of people meet their match. In this episode, Whitney chats with Adam about her vision for the future of dating online and offline, her decision to take a break from leading Bumble, and the importance of p…

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The Bay has a Secret, Ancient Archive and it’s Being Sold off to Millionaires 25:42

6d ago25:42

25:42

The Hudson’s Bay Company is dead. While the Canadian media obsesses over the sale of The Bay’s retail properties, thousands of historical artefacts and artworks — including the original copy of the Royal Charter — sit concealed in the cockles of the company’s dustiest vault. Now, Canada’s oldest retailer is hemming and hawing over donating these cu…

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The Massive Airplane Canada Seized from Russia 32:03

7d ago32:03

32:03

Right now, a hulking Soviet-era Russian cargo plane is just parked at Toronto’s Pearson Airport. And Canada is trying to do something nobody has ever done before…pull off a legal heist. Host Noor sits down with IJF reporter Zak Vescera to talk about why that plane matters, and how far we’re willing to go to keep it. And the latest on US accusations…

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ReThinking: Fixing social media with Pinterest CEO Bill Ready 35:20

7d ago35:20

35:20

On social media, enragement is often used to drive engagement. But what if the algorithm was tuned to what makes us feel good? As the CEO of Pinterest, Bill Ready is leading changes to his platform in the hopes of inspiring change in the tech industry. He and Adam examine steps for improving online interactions, consider solutions for protecting ki…

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Paul Shaffer on the Toronto Play That Begat Comedy as We Know It 26:15

8d ago26:15

26:15

Three years before the first episode of SNL. Four years before the first episode of SCTV. Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner. Andrea Martin and later Dave Thomas, co-starred in a legendary production of a musical called Godspell at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto. The show that launched the careers of a whole generation of comedians is …

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Intruder! How Violently can we Defend Ourselves? 28:59

11d ago28:59

28:59

Doug Ford, Danielle Smith, and Pierre Poilievre all seem to want to make sure we have the right to beat people up in our homes. Only if they aren’t invited, of course. Following a case out of Lindsay, Ontario, the media is all abuzz with talk about the right to self-defence in the case of home invasions. But we have a right, within reason. So what’…

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A concrete plan for sustainable cement | Ryan Gilliam 10:43

11d ago10:43

10:43

Cement is one of the most-consumed materials on Earth — second only to water — and it accounts for a whopping eight percent of the world's carbon pollution. What if we could turn this climate villain into a hero? Clean tech innovator and serial entrepreneur Ryan Gilliam reveals his company's surprisingly simple process for transforming waste from t…

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The Return of Pierre 29:58

13d ago29:58

29:58

Pierre Poilievre won his byelection and will be returning to Parliament in September. He’s raring to go, and probably drafting a whole bunch of new catchphrases and slogans. He’s back and ready to try and convince conservatives he’s the right man for the job. But, in the media, the picture being painted is a little less clear. One poll shows the pa…

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Wait, We're Also in a Trade War with China? 35:21

14d ago35:21

35:21

China’s tariffs on canola seeds would cripple western Canadian farmers. But this tit for tat fight is about more than just canola. Host Noor Azrieh sits down with Vina Nadjibulla who thinks China’s playing us and we shouldn't take the bait. And the latest news on Carney’s elbows on Trump’s tariffs, Canada’s all boys trip to Berlin, and the secrets …

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ReThinking: How you can do more for others with Rutger Bregman 33:29

14d ago33:29

33:29

What are you doing to make the world around you better? Rutger Bregman is a Dutch historian and the author of the new book Moral Ambition. He joins Adam live in the Authors@Wharton series to discuss how to stop capable people from wasting their talents, lessons from great moral pioneers, and what it means to be a good person. They also consider how…

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Titanic Mystery! Who Spiked the Chowder? 18:14

15d ago18:14

18:14

Something wild happened in Nova Scotia during filming of the James Cameron film Titanic. Parts of the blockbuster were filmed in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, and on the last night of filming there, someone did something. Something that caused director James Cameron to question reality itself, something that resulted in the rest of the cast and crew bein…

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The Crockpot: Irving Naxon’s Slow-Cooked Revolution 42:24

17d ago42:24

42:24

Before the Crockpot became a kitchen icon, it started as the dream of an inventive mind who wanted families to come home to a hot meal. In this episode of What Were They Thinking?, we dive into the story of Irving Naxon, the man behind the humble slow cooker, and how his childhood memories of his grandmother’s stew inspired one of the most enduring…

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Are Carney’s Cuts “DOGE” Canada? 33:55

18d ago33:55

33:55

In July, Mark Carney made it clear to public workers that there would be a tightening of the belt. Ministers were told to save 15% from their departmental budgets over the next three years. The deadline to do so is next week, August 28th. What that looks like in practice is pretty bleak. By 2028, it has been estimated that over 57,000 full-time equ…

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A survival guide for musicians in the age of AI | Harvey Mason jr. 15:36

18d ago15:36

15:36

Artificial intelligence can write a song in seconds, but does that mean human songwriters will become obsolete? Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. doesn’t think so. A songwriter himself, he offers a four-step “survival guide” for human creators to endure the age of AI, urging musicians to embrace technology while preserving the emotional essenc…

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Why Does Labour Only Get Covered When There's a Strike? 29:20

20d ago29:20

29:20

The Air Canada strike this past weekend affected tens of thousands of Canadians and international travelers. The negotiations have been going on for eight months, the contract renewal was known about for ten years, so how did the Air Canada strike sneak up on Canadians so fast? Why were flight attendants, who are primarily women, not being paid for…

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Young People Can't Find Work and It's Messing Them Up 32:03

21d ago32:03

32:03

Our kids are broke and seriously unemployed. We're in the dog days of summer, and for generations, that marked the end of scooping ice cream at the corner shop, pulling espresso shots at the café, or lifeguarding at the local pool. But for many young Canadians, this isn't the end, cause there was no beginning. This episode, host Noor Azrieh unpac…

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ReThinking: The myth of genius with Helen Lewis 33:01

21d ago33:01

33:01

What does it mean to be a genius? Journalist Helen Lewis is the author of the new book The Genius Myth, which offers a provocative analysis of how we put brainiacs on a pedestal. In this episode, Helen and Adam unpack our cultural myths about geniuses and explore the dangers of treating them like demigods. They also discuss what Helen learned from …

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Ottawa Guy Invents World's Best/Worst A.I. Attack Bot 37:36

22d ago37:36

37:36

Singh built a bot. It’s a concoction of ChatGPT, Grok, and a handful of other advanced AI systems that might destroy truth-based civil discourse once and for all. Or. What if that same technology could be harnessed to champion the truth? To do what no human could possibly do to refute lies and misinformation? Today we talk to Singh about his creati…

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The Gutless Wonder of TIFF 35:44

25d ago35:44

35:44

TIFF’s whiff and the legacy of Trudeau’s media policies. Carney is reversing course on the Liberal’s approach to media, but can the Canadian media ecosystem exorcise the ghost of Trudeau? Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor and Technical Prod…

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Why your phone battery gets worse over time | George Zaidan 9:47

25d ago9:47

9:47

Almost all batteries, even single-use batteries, are theoretically rechargeable. That's because the metals and other chemicals are still there in the battery. So chemically speaking, a dead battery is actually not that different from a fresh one. Then why do batteries die in the first place? And what should you do with them once they're spent? Geor…

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BONUS: Why Canadaland Doesn’t Have Interns 2:20

26d ago2:20

2:20

Last year Canadaland launched a new initiative called the Canadalabs Audio Journalism Fellowship programme, where we hired two young reporters to come and produce a story with us and learn from our team. This week, we caught up with past Canadaland fellows to see how they’ve fared. Was their time at Canadaland worth it? And we are talking about tha…

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Evan Almighty: Our A.I. Minister is Glitching 40:13

27d ago40:13

40:13

Is Evan Solomon a chatbot? Deciphering the Minister of AI’s jargon-filled tech-speak. Canada is going all in on AI, but what is the plan, exactly? Plus, new Trudeau tea and a controversial National Post headline. Clarification: A previous version of this episode implied that Cohere was both Canadian and American-owned. It is the data centre that is…

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The Productivity Crisis: are Canadians Just Lazy? 38:27

28d ago38:27

38:27

Apparently, the reason you’re broke isn’t just because of your questionable shopping addiction, it’s because Canada has a full-blown productivity crisis… To host Noor Azrieh, that seems dramatic. She says she’s actually quite productive at work. But economists Brian Lewis and Philip Cross say this isn’t about how hard you grind, it’s about how the …

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ReThinking: The future of finding love with Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd 35:37

28d ago35:37

35:37

What will dating look like in the age of AI? Whitney Wolfe Herd is the founder and CEO of Bumble, the popular dating app that has helped millions of people meet their match. In this episode, Whitney chats with Adam about her vision for the future of dating online and offline, her decision to take a break from leading Bumble, and the importance of p…

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How Carney Can Get You to Serve in the Military 30:09

29d ago30:09

30:09

Mark Carney is nation building. To do that, he needs to rebuild the Canadian Armed Forces. Between decades of neglect and the forces’ own goals by way of bad headlines that’s no mean feat. Rebuilding the military, from new recruits to new fighter planes, will take more than promising government money. There’s a pitch that needs to be made to the Ca…

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I Was Wrong About The Freedom Convoy 34:35

1M ago34:35

34:35

The sentencing of Convoy leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber gets political. Poilievre and other Conservative MPs are outraged about the Crown’s requested sentences for Convoy Leaders. Looking back, was the convoy a violent uprising or an act of political protest? Plus, sunny skies for solar and the battle over Toronto’s hot dog throne. Host: Jess…

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Will AI make humans extinct? | Yoshua Bengio 15:42

1M ago15:42

15:42

Yoshua Bengio — the world's most-cited computer scientist and a "godfather" of artificial intelligence — is deadly concerned about the current trajectory of the technology. As AI models race toward full-blown agency, Bengio warns that they've already learned to deceive, cheat, self-preserve and slip out of our control. Drawing on his groundbreaking…

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BONUS: The Most Powerful Tool in Media 1:50

1M ago1:50

1:50

It’s not a secret that music makes us feel things, but how does it do it? How do composers create music that makes us happy, sad, confused, emotional, hopeful, scared, and perhaps even make us laugh from time to time? This week on Off The Record, producer Tristan Capacchione chats with his old colleagues and associates about the secrets of music an…

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Is Trump Winning Against Canada? 30:22

1M ago30:22

30:22

Canada can’t cut a deal, but Carney’s political honeymoon continues. Should Carney take some blame for the ongoing trade war? Plus, why real estate developers in BC apparently need foreign money and a misleading image on the New York Times front page causes controversy. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associa…

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Full Mental Jacket 26:46

1M ago26:46

26:46

The Canadian Armed Forces has an extremism problem, and that story has fallen out of the news cycle way too quickly. Just recently, four men have been arrested in an alleged violent extremist plot to reclaim land near Quebec City. Plus, the CAF is investigating a private Facebook group where active members shared content deemed “abhorrent” by milit…

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ReThinking: Ed Helms on growing through failure 27:12

1M ago27:12

27:12

You may know Ed Helms from his roles on The Office or in The Hangover, but building his career as a successful comedian required many moments of failure and embarrassment. In this episode, Ed joins Adam live at the Authors@Wharton series to discuss his new book, SNAFU: The Definitive Guide to History’s Greatest Screwups, look back on what Ed learne…

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Live and Let Die - The Battle Over MAID 41:56

1M ago41:56

41:56

Canada is now the number one provider of medical assistance in dying in the world per capita. The latest stats, from 2023, show that MAID accounted for almost 5% of all deaths in Canada, or around 15,000 people in that year. And it’s only been legal since 2016. MAID was introduced for patients who were experiencing intolerable suffering, irreversib…

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No Penalty for Hockey Goons 35:07

1M ago35:07

35:07

An update on Canada’s approach to Palestine and an in-depth discussion of the Hockey Canada Trial and why the coverage isn’t reckoning with the deeper issues within our national sport. Arshy Mann co-hosts. Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), Lucie Laumonier (Associate producer and Fact Checking) Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor …

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Is AI your next hire? | Fixable 30:45

1M ago30:45

30:45

What do you do when there’s too much work but not enough people to do it? Bring in some support! This week, Anne and Frances talk to a listener whose expert sales team can no longer keep up with everything the company offers. Together, Anne and Frances outline ways to simplify work for a stressed out team—including the use of AI to reduce complexit…

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BONUS: The American Who Built Canada’s Car 0:55

1M ago0:55

0:55

When working on one of our episodes of the Politics edition about tariffs, senior producer, Aviva Lessard wondered why there are no Canadian car companies. This question felt like too much of a digression for the episode about tariffs, but in doing some research on it, Sam learned that we actually used to have Canadian car companies going all the w…

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Would We Interview Netanyahu? 44:37

1M ago44:37

44:37

More statements about Israel/Palestine from Carney’s government, but does Canada have the courage to take action? Arshy Mann joins Noor Azrieh to assess Canada’s rhetoric on Gaza. Plus, Netanyahu sits down with Canada’s Nelk Boys. Would Noor or Arshy interview him, if they had the opportunity? Host: Noor Azrieh Credits: James Nicholson (Producer), …

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Celebretizing 1:20:07

1M ago1:20:07

1:20:07

This week, Busy is shooting a comedic horror movie in Oklahoma and Caissie’s family had another hard goodbye. To keep things light, they discuss Hollywood’s newest possible power couples! SPONSORS: http://ThriveCausemetics.com/BEST for 20% off your first order of innovative cosmetics, including Busy’s fave Liquid Lash Extensions Mascara and Bigger …

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BATTLE RIVER – Could Pierre Lose Again? 34:38

1M ago34:38

34:38

Over 200 candidates, a riding bigger than Switzerland and an immense amount of pressure on the leader of the opposition. To find out who (and what) Pierre is up against, host Sam Konnert travels to the riding to meet the candidates taking him on. Host: Sam Konnert Credits: Sam Konnert (Host/Producer), Noor Azrieh (Producer), Caleb Thompson (Audio E…

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ReThinking: The truth about the attention crisis with historian Daniel Immerwahr 35:25

1M ago35:25

35:25

In the age of social media and short-form content, many people insist that our attention spans are getting shorter. But historian Daniel Immerwahr reminds us that people have cried wolf for centuries about technology hijacking our attention. In this episode, Adam and Daniel dive into evidence that what’s changing is not our attention spans, but the…

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Terror and Awe in Ed Burtynsky's Canada 31:27

1M ago31:27

31:27

For over 40 years Burtynsky’s camera has captured mountain ranges scarred and scooped from mining operations, roiling tar sand tailing ponds, and fractal river systems alight with red industrial sludge. His work is a catalogue of the awesome destructive power at the root of our industrial culture. And yet, Burtynsky’s images are beautiful. That con…

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Jordan Peterson’s Globalist Plot to Rule the World 36:26

2M ago36:26

36:26

Jordan Peterson sold his Toronto home, but what’s the next move for Canada’s biggest media export? Tracing the arc of Peterson’s ambitions from media-hungry U of T prof to global media personality. J.J. McCullough joins to explain why Peterson is leaving Canada and trying to take over the world. Host: Jesse Brown Credits: James Nicholson (Producer)…

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Why AI is our ultimate test and greatest invitation | Tristan Harris 18:40

2M ago18:40

18:40

Technologist Tristan Harris has an urgent question: What if the way we’re deploying the world’s most powerful technology — artificial intelligence — isn’t inevitable, but a choice? In this eye-opening talk, he calls on us to learn from the mistakes of social media’s catastrophic rollout and confront the predictable dangers of reckless AI developmen…

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BONUS: Justin Ling and Canadaland — What Happened? 2:24

2M ago2:24

2:24

Some of you had simple questions about our office space, and what Victoria's non-profit campus & community radio station does for Canadaland. And some of you wanted to know what happened with former shows and hosts at the company. Plus did Jesse Brown FORCE Noor to work while sick? Today on Off The Record, an “Ask Me Anything” with the Canadaland s…

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This Is Our Best This Week 1:02:23

2M ago1:02:23

1:02:23

This week, Busy and Caissie are a little bit late because of…everything? In the world? But they wanted to get the podcast out to celebrate the fact that their guest for the summer finale of Busy This Week QVC+ is Caissie’s first boss, David Letterman! PLEASE WATCH IT! They also discuss the Coldplay concert moment and the cancelation of Colbert. Ugh…