The Veritas Lab

8. A History of Climate Catastrophe

Climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing our planet today. But this is not the first time Earth’s weather patterns have undergone cataclysmic disruptions. Just take a look at the global ice ages that occurred millions of years ago. These “Snowball Earths” likely had tremendous consequences: freezing the world over, triggering an upsurge of atmospheric oxygen, and maybe even giving rise to multicellular life. With near-record warming in the Arctic and environmental disasters ravaging the globe, understanding Earth’s geologic past may be crucial to ensuring that our planet even has a future. In this final episode of The Veritas Lab, Harvard geology professor Daniel Schrag discusses the tumultuous history of Earth’s climate and the preliminary steps we should take on the long road to decarbonization. Presented by the Harvard Crimson. Hosted by Katelyn Li and Sanjana Narayanan. Produced by Amanda Su. Podcast art by Margot Shang.

7. Building Ethics Into Education

The ongoing pandemic has forced us to take a closer look at the American education system. With many schools shuttering across the country, it has become clear that marginalized communities are less likely to receive safe, in-person education than historically privileged groups. Should schools reopen if it means exacerbating these already wide socioeconomic inequalities? The field of educational ethics — developed by Professor Meira Levinson from the Harvard Graduate School of Education — can help educators and policymakers answer moral quandaries like this one. In this episode of The Veritas Lab, Professor Levinson introduces educational ethics and its potential to remedy long-standing issues of injustice. Presented by the Harvard Crimson. Hosted by Katelyn Li and Sanjana Narayanan. Produced by Amanda Su. Podcast art by Margot Shang.

6. The Middle East: Beyond the Headlines

What are the real causes of instability and conflict in the Middle East? Why did some countries successfully transition to democracies after the Arab Spring uprisings, while other countries remain embroiled in violence? And what’s next for the future of American foreign policy in the region? In this episode of The Veritas Lab, Harvard Government professor Melani Cammett dives into the politics of development and destabilization in the Middle East, addressing these questions and many more. Presented by the Harvard Crimson. Hosted by Katelyn Li and Sanjana Narayanan. Produced by Amanda Su. Podcast art by Margot Shang.

5. Sovereignty, Indigenousness, and Defied Expectations

Indigenous people have played a crucial role in shaping modern culture — from art to athletics to automobiles — yet they have largely been excluded from the American narrative. In this episode of The Veritas Lab, we sit down with Professor Philip Deloria — the first tenured professor of Native American studies at Harvard — to learn more about how indigenous studies contributes to the rise of ethnic studies, and how it challenges our very understanding of the United States as a nation. Presented by the Harvard Crimson. Hosted by Katelyn Li and Sanjana Narayanan. Produced by Amanda Su. Podcast art by Margot Shang.

4. An Intelligent Economy

Computer algorithms can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they have the power to transform our understanding of economic policy and social phenomena — from ride-sharing technology, to election prediction, to YouTube recommender systems, to tax policies. Conversely, algorithms can harbor hidden biases. And since modern machine learning systems are often too complex for humans to understand, we may not even recognize when and how algorithms are discriminating against minority populations. In this episode, Harvard computer science professor David Parkes walks us through his research at the intersection of economics and CS, and explains how to leverage the benefits of algorithms without compromising on fairness. Presented by the Harvard Crimson. Hosted by Katelyn Li and Sanjana Narayanan. Produced by Amanda Su. Podcast art by Margot Shang.