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In the conclusion of this series, we peer into the future of human-robot combinations on the waterfront and in the rest of the supply chain. We’ll hear about the strange future of cyborg trucking and meet the friendly little helper bots in warehouses. The view of automation that sees only a battle between robots vs. hu... more
It’s 1979 and containerization is sweeping through the San Francisco waterfront, leaving the old docks in ruins. As global trade explodes, a group of longshoremen band together to try to preserve the culture of work that they knew. They take pictures, create a slide show, and make sound recordings. Those recordings lan... more
It started with a puzzle: why were people in West Oakland dying 12-15years earlier than their counterparts in the wealthier hills? Thepeople in the flatlands were dying of the same things as the people inthe hills, just much younger. Meet the doctor who helped make the casethat air pollution from cargo handling was... more
American companies pioneered container shipping, but now the ocean freight business is dominated by foreign firms. Thanks to the Jones Act, a 1920 law, all cargo between American ports must be carried on American-made ships, so we do still have a fleet. But the ships are old and outdated. In episode five, we explore th... more
The coffee world has changed since Starbucks rose to prominence. Notonly has the sourcing of beans acquired wine-like precision, but nowthere are many small, local roasters. How'd this all happen? Episode 4brings you into the infrastructure underpinning third-wave coffee froma Kenyan coffee auction to a major coffe... more
You know you’ve always wanted to ride in a tugboat as it pushes around a huge cargo ship, right? Well, that’s what we do in Episode 3. We go inside working life on the San Francisco Bay to see how brutal competition among shipping companies threatens the viability of the small businesses that ply the waters. Meet a tug... more
What is life like as a modern sailor, a tiny person on a huge ship in a vast ocean? Here is your answer. Episode 2 brings you a rare look into the lives of two Filipino sailors, fresh off a trip across the Pacific Ocean. These are regular people doing heroic work to support their families. And without them, the global ... more
Alexis Madrigal brings you the gripping story of how a new way of shipping stuff across the ocean fed the Vietnam War, destroyed America's great port cities, and created global trade as we know it.... more
Containers provides an illuminating, deep, and weird look at how capitalism works now. It's about huge ships and global trade and the work people do to bring you the stuff you buy from all over the world.... more