1440 Explores

A planet that learned to burn. A century of fire suppression. A warming world primed to ignite. 1440 Explores host Sony Kassam sits down with fire historian Stephen Pyne to trace how humans turned fire from our greatest tool into our most dangerous threat—and what it would take to live with fire again.Guest: Stephen J. Pyne, fire historian and emeritus professor at the Center for Biology and Society at Arizona State UniversityCredits: A production of Rhyme Media for 1440 MediaHost: Sony KassamProducer: Kim Nederveen PieterseEditor: Dan BobkoffFact-Checker: Sanam SkellySound Designer: Jay CowitExecutive Producers (1440): Sony Kassam and Drew SteigerwaldExecutive Producer (Rhyme): Dan BobkoffAbout 1440:1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed that helps curious people stay informed and inspired on a daily basis. We live in an age of limitless information but limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than truth. And the tools meant to expand knowledge now distort it. Join the knowledge collective: https://www.join1440.comFollow us:https://youtube.com/@1440exploreshttps://www.instagram.com/1440dailyhttps://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/https://www.tiktok.com/@1440daily Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A battle with a telecom giant. A stunt call on a New York sidewalk. A forgotten memo that rewired the world. Host Sony Kassam sits down with Marty Cooper, the father of the cell phone, and Arlene Harris, the first lady of wireless, to explore the innovation, politics, and high-stakes battle that pried connectivity out of corporate control and built the always-on world we live in today.Guests: Marty Cooper, engineer, entrepreneur, and "father of the cell phone."Arlene Harris, wireless entrepreneur, pioneer of prepaid cellular, and the "first lady of wireless.”Credits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media. This episode was produced by Nicolo Majnoni and edited by Dan Bobkoff. Our fact-checker is Meher Qazilbash, and our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Follow us for more curiosity-driven stories:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@1440daily and https://www.youtube.com/@1440exploresInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spend 6 years of our lives dreaming. But what if someone else is controlling what you dream about? With help from pioneering sleep scientist Dr. Bob Stickgold, 1440 editor-in-chief and host Sony Kassam unpacks what dreams really are, why the brain spins up these nighttime storylines, how memories and emotions shape them, and why certain dreams feel like we’re suddenly in the driver’s seat. Plus, the new frontier of dreams: how companies and researchers can control them. Guest: Dr. Bob Stickgold, a professor of psychiatry at the Harvard Medical School and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and a visiting professor at M.I.T. Media LabBackground reading: https://join1440.com/t/dreamsCredits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media, hosted by Sony Kassam. This episode was produced by Dan Bobkoff and Sony Kassam. It was fact-checked by Meher Qazilbash. Our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Follow us for more curiosity-driven stories:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever asked ChatGPT a question and felt like it understood you? Or marveled at how AI can write, explain, or even argue convincingly? With help from legendary computer scientist and Mathematica creator Stephen Wolfram,1440 editor-in-chief and host Sony Kassam unpacks how large language models really work—how they predict the next word, why they sometimes hallucinate, and what the mechanics reveal about intelligence, language, and humanity. Guest: Stephen Wolfram, founder and CEO of Wolfram Research and creator of Mathematica, Wolfram|Alpha, and Wolfram LanguageCredits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media, hosted by Sony Kassam. This episode was produced by Nicolo Majnoni. Our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Background reading: What is ChatGPT doing and why does it work? https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/02/what-is-chatgpt-doing-and-why-does-it-work/Will AIs take all our jobs and end human history—or not? https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/03/will-ais-take-all-our-jobs-and-end-human-history-or-not-well-its-complicated/Generative AI space and the mental imagery of alien minds: https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/2023/07/generative-ai-space-and-the-mental-imagery-of-alien-minds/All the best resources on the internet about LLMs: https://join1440.com/t/large-language-modelsFollow us for more curiosity-driven stories:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@1440dailyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every culture has them—restless spirits, haunted houses, things that go bump in the night. But why do we believe in ghosts? Psychologist and skeptic Dr. Chris French joins host Sony Kassam to explore the science behind the supernatural, from sleep paralysis and hallucinations to the brain’s pattern-making instincts. Together, they uncover why our minds see meaning—and sometimes ghosts—where none exist, and what that reveals about fear, memory, and our need to believe in something beyond the grave.Guest: Dr. Chris French, head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit in the Psychology Department at Goldsmiths, University of London.Credits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media, hosted by Sony Kassam. This episode was produced by Nicolo Majnoni. It was fact-checked by Meher Qazilbash. Our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Background reading: https://join1440.com/t/ghostsFollow us for more curiosity-driven stories:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@1440dailyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alcohol is the world’s most popular drug—a molecule that can calm or excite and bond communities or tear them apart. We trace alcohol’s journey from ancient rituals to modern hangovers, uncover how it shaped civilizations, and dive into the neuroscience of how it affects your brain and body. With insights from leading experts, we ask: Given all that we know, why do humans continue to drink?Guests:David Nutt, psychiatrist and professor of psycho-pharmacology at Imperial College in London, author of Drink? The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health, and cofounder of Sentia Spirits.Edward Slingerland, professor of philosophy at the University of British Columbia and author of Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization.Credits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media, hosted by Sony Kassam. This episode was produced by Dan Bobkoff and Kim Nederveen Pieterse. It was fact-checked by Sanam Skelly. Our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Follow us for more curiosity-driven stories:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@1440dailyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Credit cards feel like magic—tap, swipe, approved. But behind that split-second ding is one of the most complex financial systems ever built. We unpack how your $5 latte triggers a global relay between banks and networks like Visa and Mastercard, trace the 1958 campaign that jump-started the credit card revolution, and reveal how a trillion-dollar system quietly shapes the way we spend. From interest rates to rewards points, this is the hidden story of money in motion—and how a small piece of plastic changed the world.Guest:Sean Vanatta, senior lecturer in financial history and policy at the University of Glasgow and author of Plastic Capitalism, Banks, Credit Cards, and the End of Financial Control.Background reading:https://join1440.com/t/credit-cardsCredits: 1440 Explores is a production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media, hosted by Sony Kassam. This episode was produced by Nicolo Majnoni. It was fact-checked by Sanam Skelly. Our sound designer is Jay Cowit. The executive producer at Rhyme is Dan Bobkoff, and the executive producers at 1440 are Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald.Follow us for more curiosity-driven stories:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@1440dailyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/1440dailyFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/1440Daily/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@1440dailyAbout 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed, helping curious people stay informed and inspired daily. We live in an era of limitless information, yet limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than the truth. The tools meant to expand knowledge often distort it. Enter 1440: a knowledge collective built on curiosity, connection, and care for the truth. Here, facts matter, thinking is valued, and people come together to understand the world. Curiosity isn’t just a trait—it’s a muscle. Exercised daily, it sharpens the mind, fuels discovery, and drives lifelong growth.Join the movement: https://www.join1440.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1440 Explores dives into the most fascinating topics of our time—why we dream, how AI thinks, the magic (and consequences) of credit cards, and more—blending science, history, and expert insights to make sense of the world. Produced in collaboration with Rhyme Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.