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Are We Doomed?

Are We Doomed?

By: NPR Network
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Is the world ending, or does it just feel like it?

"Are We Doomed?" investigates the greatest risks facing society, the planet, and our species. What’s real? What’s hype? And how do we actually make it out alive?

Nukes. Asteroids. Autocracy. Rogue AI. Climate-driven pandemics. Angry hippopotamuses. Teeth clenched, curiosity engaged, quips ready, this “slightly narrative” podcast explores everything from the existential and the unexpected to the overblown.

Award-winning public radio journalist Ben Bradford brings you wild true stories, high-production sound design, and world-class experts answering the questions they never prepared for (“Why is the Earth doing this to us?”). From NuanceTales and distributed by the NPR Network, this show delves into history, science, technology, and the natural world, to help you separate legitimate world-changing risks from doomsday fantasies.

Come for the supervolcano under Yellowstone National Park (real), stay to learn why the post-apocalyptic wasteland won’t look like the movies (sorry, you won’t be wandering with a shotgun and a dog), and leave with a better understanding of how our brilliant, bumbling species can chart a path through our current, terrifying adolescence.

2026 NuanceTales Science Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Our Vision of the Post-Apocalypse Is Wrong

    Our Vision of the Post-Apocalypse Is Wrong
    Jul 7 2026

    What would it take to survive after "the end of the world?" A whole culture of prepping often focuses on a familiar fantasy: grab the gear, flee the city, defend the bunker, survive alone. Anthropologist and survival instructor Chris Begley thinks that’s probably the wrong movie. Ben walks through what history and math show people actually do when civilizations break down — and what they need, from dodging poisonous acorns to forming new communities. Also: luxury bunkers, survival sporks, and the unfortunate role of politics in a world of ruin.

    Guest:

    Chris Begley, author of The Emergency Playbook: A Bunker-Free Guide to Disaster Preparation.

    Support Are We Doomed?, get bonus episodes, and more: https://doompod.com/support/

    Watch earlier episodes on Youtube! https://www.youtube.com/@arewedoomedpod

    Also, see our episode: "How To Survive a Nuclear War"



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    34 mins
  • Is Geoengineering A Good Idea?

    Is Geoengineering A Good Idea?
    Jun 30 2026

    The planet is heating up, every plan to stop it has fallen short, and growing group of scientists has started to ask a stranger question: what if we grabbed the thermostat ourselves? Ben Bradford investigates geoengineering — the science of deliberately manipulating Earth’s climate — from space mirrors and ocean fertilizers to fleets of planes mimicking a volcano. Some of it sounds like cartoon villainy. Some of it might actually work. And that raises the thornier question: if humans can cool the planet on purpose, who decides whether we should?

    Guests:

    Kate Ricke, climate change scientist at UCSD

    Alan Robock, atmospheric scientist at Rutgers

    Support Are We Doomed?, get bonus episodes, and more: https://doompod.com/support/

    Watch earlier episodes on Youtube! https://www.youtube.com/@arewedoomedpod



    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

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    39 mins
  • The True AI Threat is People

    The True AI Threat is People
    Jun 23 2026

    Imagine a friendly assistant that can help you build a bioweapon. Or a chatbot in the nuclear weapons chain, cheerfully hallucinating an attack. AI national security expert Hamza Chaudhry worries this is the biggest threat right now — not “killer robot,” but humans being humans. Because whether AI becomes dangerously smart or confidently dumb, people will find face-palming ways to abuse it. From deranged cultists and rogue states, to stockbrokers and the most evil version of Ben’s little cousin, handing everyone a powerful technology with few guardrails could end badly. Or, is there a path to convince companies to add their own?

    Guest:

    Hamza Chaudhry, AI national security expert, Future of Life Institute

    This episode was edited by Annie Russell.

    Support Are We Doomed?, get bonus episodes, and more: https://doompod.com/support/

    Watch earlier episodes on Youtube! https://www.youtube.com/@arewedoomedpod

    Listen to our episode about rogue AI: We Design the AI That Kills Us All
    And our episode about nuclear oopsies: How to Start a Nuclear War



    To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    36 mins
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