Gideon Lichfield and Lauren Goode talk to the Mayor of San Francisco, London Breed, about how she plans to address the city’s problems, from homelessness to crime to abandoned downtowns, and how the changes she's proposing could shape not just

Ars Technica Live: The tech boom and the future of democracy

Apr 18th, 2018 1h 2m

Right now the U.S. tech economy is booming, but what will be the long-term effects of automation and AI? Are robots about to steal our jobs? Will Facebook throw the next election? Is social democracy doomed to be a casualty of the tech revoluti

You might say that you know me. (S01E07)

Jun 13th, 2017 48m 14s

In this week's podcast host Annalee Newitz talks with fantasy author Claire Light about this week's unusual subjects: Irish folklore, Mad Sweeney and historical figure (and possible ancestor of Laura Moon), Essie. Also in this podcast, Ars feat

You could use a blood sacrifice. (American Gods S01E06)

Jun 6th, 2017 1h 18m

In this week's double-mega-sized podcast, host Annalee Newitz first recaps episode six with Ars senior editor and gun enthusiast Lee Hutchinson. Then we join writer Genevieve Valentine in New York City for her interviews with actors Orlando Jon

Drengr! (American Gods S01E05)

May 30th, 2017 41m 41s

In this week's podcast, host Annalee Newitz talks with author and UC Berkeley / U. Colorado at Boulder professor Jackson Crawford, who writes, translates (e.g. "drengr" = "badass") and teaches old Norse. They talk viking lore, Odin and the gods

Definitely not light as a feather. (American Gods S01E04)

May 22nd, 2017 38m 16s

In this week's podcast, host Annalee Newitz talks with Paula Gaetos, author at The Tokusatsu Network, about American Gods episode 4. Subjects discussed: Laura's backstory and resurrection, her awful personality, her relationship with Shadow, th

I do not grant wishes. (American Gods S01E03)

May 16th, 2017 46m 7s

In this week's podcast, host Annalee Newitz talks with Locus and Rhysling award-winning writer and critic Amal El-Mohtar about episode 3 of American Gods. They also discuss the portrayal of middle-eastern characters in fiction/tv, and the integ

A man was f**ked. (American Gods S01E02)

May 9th, 2017 38m 47s

On this week's podcast, host Annalee Newitz talks with io9.com critic and comic book writer Evan Narcisse about how American Gods fits into a comic book tradition. Also discussed: Orlando Jones' incredible performance in this week's intro; the

I don’t believe in anything I can’t see. (American Gods S01E01)

May 2nd, 2017 37m 13s

The Ars Decrypted podcast continues with the new Starz series American Gods, based on Neil Gaiman's popular novel. In this week’s show, Ars Technica's tech culture editor/host Annalee Newitz talks with Ars culture reporter Sam Machkovech about

It's part of the equation now. (The Expanse S02E13)

Apr 22nd, 2017 36m 21s

In this week's podcast, Jonathan Gitlin talks with Ars Techinca culture editor Annalee Newitz about this season's finale: how the future of the series will relate to the books; what will Fred Johnson's next move be; what is Avasarala's fate on

Just get to the f***ing point. (The Expanse S02E12)

Apr 14th, 2017 33m 14s

In this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin talks with Ars Video Producer Jennifer Hahn about episode 12, "The Monster and the Rocket": Errinwright makes a bold move that can't be taken back; Avasarala tries diplomacy on Mao's fancy

Here there be dragons. (The Expanse S02E11)

Apr 6th, 2017 37m 20s

On this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin recaps The Expanse S02 Episode 11: things go from bad to worse for the Roci crew on Ganymede, Bobbi Draper takes a stand against Mars by defecting to Earth, as things heat up in the Mars/Ea

We can not afford to be enemies anymore. (The Expanse S02E10)

Mar 30th, 2017 46m 42s

On this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin talks with Ars Business Editor Cyrus Farivar, who is a huge fan of the show. Last year, Cyrus held a live talk with Nick Farmer, the linguist who invented the Belter language for the TV sho

Well, this is off to a good start. (The Expanse S02E09)

Mar 23rd, 2017 28m 33s

On this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin talks with actor Wes Chatham about his character Amos on The Expanse. Wes talks about being a fan of the books before being offered the role on the show, how he approaches this unusual char

The shout came from Ganymede. (The Expanse S02E08)

Mar 16th, 2017 32m 45s

In this week's podcast, Jonathan Gitlin talks with Ars Technica's space editor Eric Berger about NASA and the possibilities of space travel and colonization. Jonathan also recaps this week's episode: we meet Praxideke Meng, a refugee scientist

The truth is never what you expect it to be. (The Expanse S02E07)

Mar 10th, 2017 28m 14s

On this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin is joined by linguist Nick Farmer who created the spoken language of Belter for The Expanse. Last year, Nick was our first Ars Live guest at Oakland's Longitude bar, and he's back to speak

You have to pick a side. (The Expanse S02E06)

Mar 3rd, 2017 32m 18s

On this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin is joined by Ars' very own science editor John Timmer, as we discuss a particular science fiction trope he can't stand, and recap the latest goings-on with Eros, the UN on Earth, and the Ma

Ok, so we broke a few laws of physics. (The Expanse S02E05)

Feb 23rd, 2017 39m 13s

In this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin recaps season 2, episode 5 of The Expanse, as we follow Miller on his journey to stop Eros from hitting Earth with the help of an old "friend"; the UN puts their plan into action to stop Er

Oi, pampaw! You starting to like space now? (The Expanse S02E04)

Feb 17th, 2017 29m 45s

In this week's podcast, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin recaps season 2, episode 4 of The Expanse, as we join the crew as they commence their plan to take the Nauvoo on its mission to Eros, and the noose tightens on Protogen and its allies back

Miller finds his groove. (The Expanse S02E03)

Feb 8th, 2017 35m 14s

In this episode of Decrypted: The Expanse, Ars Technica's Jonathan Gitlin recaps season 2 episode 3: The Rocinante crew and Fred Johnson deal with the aftermath of Miller's decision, Mars soldiers gear up for a fight, and Earth's government tri

They gave the g*damn thing a name. (The Expanse S02E01-2)

Feb 1st, 2017 43m 30s

In this episode of Decrypted: The Expanse, we join the Syfy show in its second season. Ars Technica's Annalee Newitz and Jonathan Gitlin talk about the show's many layers, themes and the adaptation from the books. Jonathan also talks to Daniel

You really do make a terrible human being. (Westworld S01E10)

Dec 6th, 2016 44m 37s

Topics discussed: We just don't care that William and MIB are the same person (seriously why is this such a big deal); how Maeve's final revelation completely sold her character short (and also made no sense given her past actions); why Bernard

With all due respect sir, you broke into my mind. (Westworld S01E09)

Nov 29th, 2016 41m 14s

This week's guest is Norman Chan, co-founder of Tested, where he writes and makes videos about science, technology, and pop culture. He is a huge fan of Westworld, and has some fascinating observations about which robot characters are the most

I can change the rules of this world. (Westworld S01E08)

Nov 22nd, 2016 40m 39s

Topics discussed: Why the MIB is really looking for the maze (he wants a game with consequences), what makes the gameplay in Westworld so unsatisfying (there's no Minecraft element to it), Jane's so-crazy-it-just-might-work theory about who the

There has to be a blood sacrifice. (Westworld S01E07)

Nov 15th, 2016 32m 25s

Topics discussed: Metafiction (AKA fiction about fiction), what the hell with the Bernard reveal (really, what the hell), the challenge of telling a story that feels familiar yet surprising (and how Westworld did it), whether the robots are jus