This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2017) |
50 Things That Made the Modern Economy | |
---|---|
Presentation | |
Hosted by | Tim Harford |
Format | Audio |
Production | |
Audio format | MP3 |
No. of episodes | 111 |
Publication | |
Original release | 2016 |
Ratings | 4.5/5 |
Provider | BBC |
Related | |
Related shows | A History of the World in 100 Objects |
Website | www |
50 Things That Made the Modern Economy is a radio show and podcast on the BBC World Service. It is presented by economist and journalist Tim Harford. The first series was broadcast between 5 November 2016 and 28 October 2017. A second series began on 30 March 2019.
Harford explained in a BBC interview in 2017 that his motivation for creating the show was "to paint a picture of economic change by telling the stories of the ideas, people, and tools that had far-reaching consequences". He was "fascinated" by the many unexpected outcomes, such as "the impact of the fridge on global politics, or of the gramophone on income inequality." [1]
Towards the end of the first series, a public call was made for suggestions of a "51st thing". Harford chose six submissions for an online vote. [2] The winning item was announced as the credit card in an episode on 28 October 2017. A bonus episode about Santa Claus was broadcast on 24 December 2018.
The first series was published in Britain as Fifty Things That Made The Modern Economy. [3] by Little, Brown, and as Fifty Inventions That Shaped The Modern Economy in the US by Riverhead. [4] Reviews of the book were mixed.
The show won a silver award for "Best Radio Podcast supported by UK Radioplayer" at the 2017 British Podcast Awards. [5]
Each of the nine-minute long programmes introduces the story of a product or invention that revolutionised the modern world.
Each episode was originally broadcast on BBC World Service, with a subsequent broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and distribution as a BBC podcast.
Episode | Title | Tagline | Broadcast Date |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Diesel engine | Rudolf Diesel died in strange circumstances after changing the world with his engine | 5 Nov 2016 |
2 | Haber-Bosch process | Saving lives with thin air - by taking nitrogen from the air to make fertiliser | 14 Nov 2016 |
3 | Shipping container | The boom in global trade was caused by a simple steel box | 19 Nov 2016 |
4 | Concrete | It's improved health, school attendance, agricultural productivity and farm worker wages | 26 Nov 2016 |
5 | iPhone | How Uncle Sam played an essential role in the creation and development of the iPhone | 3 Dec 2016 |
6 | Barcode | How vast mega-stores emerged with the help of a design originally drawn in the sand | 10 Dec 2016 |
7 | Banking | Warrior monks, crusaders and the mysterious origins of modern banking | 17 Dec 2016 |
8 | Lightbulb | Once too precious to use, light is now too cheap to notice | 24 Dec 2016 |
9 | M-Pesa | Transferring money by text message is far safer and more convenient than cash | 31 Dec 2016 |
10 | Compiler | Installing Windows might take 5,000 years without it | 7 Jan 2017 |
11 | Billy bookcase | Low cost, functional and brilliantly efficient, one is produced every three seconds | 14 Jan 2017 |
12 | Antibiotics | The tale of antibiotics is a cautionary one, and economic incentives are often to blame | 20 Jan 2017 |
13 | Paper | The Gutenberg press changed the world – but it could not have done so without paper | 28 Jan 2017 |
14 | Insurance | Insurance is as old as gambling, but it's fundamental to the way the modern economy works | 4 Feb 2017 |
15 | The words 'clever' and 'death' crop up less often than 'Google' in conversation | 11 Feb 2017 | |
16 | Clock | The clock was invented in 1656 and has become an essential part of the modern economy | 18 Feb 2017 |
17 | Disposable razor | King Camp Gillette created the disposable razor. But his influence extends beyond shaving | 25 Feb 2017 |
18 | Robot | Robots threaten the human workforce, but they are crucial to the modern economy | 4 Mar 2017 |
19 | Public-key cryptography | Geeks versus government – the story of public key cryptography | 11 Mar 2017 |
20 | Battery | The story of the battery begins inside a dead murderer. It's a tale that's far from over | 18 Mar 2017 |
21 | Gramophone | "Superstar" economics – the story of how the gramophone led to a winner-take-all market | 25 Mar 2017 |
22 | TV dinner | The TV dinner, and other inventions from the same era, made a lasting economic impression | 1 Apr 2017 |
23 | Contraceptive pill | The pill wasn't just socially revolutionary, it also sparked an economic revolution | 8 Apr 2017 |
24 | Elevator | The safety elevator is a mass transit system that has changed the shape of our cities | 15 Apr 2017 |
25 | Air conditioning | Invented for the printing industry, air conditioning now influences where and how we live | 22 Apr 2017 |
26 | Cuneiform | Cuneiform, the earliest known script, was used to create the world's first accounts | 29 Apr 2017 |
27 | Video games | From Spacewar to Pokémon Go, video games have shaped the modern economy in surprising ways | 6 May 2017 |
28 | Intellectual property | Intellectual property reflects an economic trade off when it comes to innovation | 13 May 2017 |
29 | Passports | If anyone could work anywhere, some economists think global economic output would double | 22 May 2017 |
30 | Tally stick | The tally stick shows us what money really is: a kind of debt that can be traded freely | 27 May 2017 |
31 | Index fund | Warren Buffett is one of the world's great investors. His advice? Invest in an index fund | 3 Jun 2017 |
32 | Infant formula | For many new mothers who want, or need, to get back to work, infant formula is a godsend | 10 Jun 2017 |
33 | Tax havens | Gabriel Zucman invented an ingenious way to estimate how much wealth is hidden offshore | 17 Jun 2017 |
34 | Barbed wire | "Lighter than air, stronger than whiskey" – barbed wire wreaked huge changes in America | 24 Jun 2017 |
35 | Department store | Harry Selfridge pioneered a whole new retail experience with his London department store | 1 Jul 2017 |
36 | Leaded petrol | When lead was added to petrol it made cars more powerful – but it also poisoned people | 8 Jul 2017 |
37 | Dynamo | The big story behind the way dynamos made electricity useful | 15 Jul 2017 |
38 | Limited liability company | How some legal creativity has created vast wealth down the centuries | 22 Jul 2017 |
39 | Paper money | Currency derives value from trust in the government which issues it | 29 Jul 2017 |
40 | Seller feedback | Without seller feedback, companies like eBay might not have grown as they have | 5 Aug 2017 |
41 | Plastic | We make so much plastic these days that it takes about eight percent of oil production | 12 Aug 2017 |
42 | Market research | Market research marked a shift from a producer-led to consumer-led approach to business | 19 Aug 2017 |
43 | Radar | A high-tech 'death ray' capable of zapping sheep led to the invention of radar | 26 Aug 2017 |
44 | S-bend | The S-bend was a pipe with a curve in it, an invention that led to public sanitation | 2 Sep 2017 |
45 | Double-entry bookkeeping | Renaissance man Luca Pacioli wrote the definitive book on double-entry bookkeeping | 9 Sep 2017 |
46 | Management consulting | If managers often have a bad reputation, what should we make of the people who tell managers how to manage? | 16 Sep 2017 |
47 | Property register | Property rights for the world's poor could unlock trillions in 'dead capital' | 30 Sep 2017 |
48 | Welfare state | Do welfare states boost economic growth, or stunt it? It's not an easy question to answer | 7 Sep 2017 |
49 | Cold chain | Refrigeration revolutionised the food industry, and other industries too | 14 Oct 2017 |
50 | Plough | The plough kick-started civilisation - and ultimately made our modern economy possible | 21 Oct 2017 |
51 | Number 51 | Revealed – the winning 51st Thing! Which "thing" won the vote to be added to our list? | 28 Oct 2017 |
A bonus episode on Santa Claus was broadcast on 24 December 2018. This included the announcement of the series 2 for March 2019.
Episode | Title | Tagline | Broadcast Date |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Langstroth Hive | The Langstroth Hive: a wooden box that made the industrialisation of the bee possible | 30 Mar 2019 |
2 | Cellophane | Cellophane transformed how consumers purchased food, as well as how producers sold it | 6 Apr 2019 |
3 | Gyroscope | The gyroscope: a remarkable device used to guide everything from submarines to satellites | 13 Apr 2019 |
4 | QWERTY | From the early typewriters, the QWERTY keyboard layout has stood the test of time | 20 Apr 2019 |
5 | Bicycle | Has the bicycle had its day, or is it a technology whose best years lie ahead? | 27 Apr 2019 |
6 | Mail order catalogue | How the Montgomery Ward shopping catalogue transformed the middle-class way of life | 4 May 2019 |
7 | Brick | The humble brick has housed us for thousands of years, but how much longer will it endure? | 11 May 2019 |
8 | Spreadsheet | How a grid on a computer screen gives us a glimpse of the future of automated work. | 18 May 2019 |
9 | Recycling | Could recycling save cash, as well as the planet? | 25 May 2019 |
10 | Pornography | Did pornography help develop the internet? | 1 Jun 2019 |
11 | Dwarf wheat | Feeding a hungry world – how Norman Borlaug used genetics to tackle predicted famines | 8 Jun 2019 |
12 | "Like" button | Are we addicted to getting 'likes' on social media? | 15 Jun 2019 |
13 | Pencil | Is the pencil underrated? | 22 Jun 2019 |
14 | Blockchain | How powerful could the technology behind Bitcoin be? | 22 Jun 2019 |
15 | Factory | Have factories made workers' lives better? | 29 Jun 2019 |
16 | CubeSat | How a student engineering challenge has changed the way we use space | 6 Jul 2019 |
17 | Rubber | An everyday substance with a bloody past | 13 Jul 2019 |
18 | Postage stamp | How a disgruntled customer revolutionised the postal service | 20 Jul 2019 |
19 | RFID | Radio frequency identification is the foundation of many contactless technologies | 27 Jul 2019 |
20 | Fire | Does the story of economics really begin with a spark? | 3 Aug 2019 |
21 | Cassava | A toxic plant that sheds light on hidden social forces | 10 Aug 2019 |
22 | Solar PV | How important is solar power to the future of the planet? | 17 Aug 2019 |
23 | Chatbot | Can a computer convince you that it's human? | 24 Aug 2019 |
24 | Oil | How did the price of oil become so important? | 31 Aug 2019 |
25 | Interchangeable parts | The manufacturing revolution that started with a gun | 9 Sep 2019 |
26 | Canned food | The surprising lessons lurking under the lid | 16 Sep 2019 |
27 | Interface Message Processor | The big metal box that made the internet possible | 22 Sep 2019 |
28 | Prohibition | How much does it cost to outlaw something? | 29 Sep 2019 |
29 | Bonsack Machine | Why did a machine for making cigarettes transform the advertising industry? | 6 Oct 2019 |
30 | GPS | What would happen if GPS stopped working? | 13 Oct 2019 |
31 | Vickrey Turnstile | How did an invention that was never built help make the modern world? | 20 Oct 2019 |
32 | Glasses | A vital aid for many, but billions don't know they need them | 27 Oct 2019 |
33 | Wedgewood | What does the fashion industry owe to an 18th-century potter? | 3 Nov 2019 |
34 | SWIFT | A system that solved big problems is now facing its greatest challenge | 10 Nov 2019 |
35 | Fundraising appeal | What's the best way to get people to give to charity? | 17 Nov 2019 |
36 | Stock option | An incentive for good performance, or another way to boost executives' pay? | 24 Nov 2019 |
37 | Hollerith punch card | The machine that turned data into money | 1 Dec 2019 |
38 | Sewing machine | A device that changed women's lives was designed to make a man very rich | 8 Dec 2019 |
39 | Santa | Why does Father Christmas wear red and white? | 16 Dec 2019 |
40 | Retirement | How should we treat our elders? | 23 Dec 2019 |
41 | CCTV | How do we feel about being watched? | 4 Jan 2020 |
42 | Fast Food Franchise | Why the franchising model is such a success | 11 Jan 2020 |
43 | Wardian Case | The economic effects of a miniature greenhouse | 18 Jan 2020 |
44 | Sanitary Towel | The controversial history of a quietly revolutionary product | 25 Jan 2020 |
45 | Tulips | The Tulip-mania Bubble popped in 1637 but there were other financial bubbles | 1 Feb 2020 |
46 | Dams | How these massive structures have changed the world for many, but led to catastrophe for others | 8 Feb 2020 |
47 | Auctions | Are things only worth what people are willing to pay for them? | 15 Feb 2020 |
48 | Chess Algorithms | The history and nature of computer algorithms | 22 Feb 2020 |
49 | Slot Machines | What slot machines reveal about the business of addiction | 29 Feb 2020 |
50 | The Gutenberg Press | Why did Johannes Gutenberg struggle to make money from his invention? | 7 Mar 2020 |
The series 1 episode on the index fund was re-released with additional comments by Harford in the podcast feed to commemorate the death of John C. Bogle.[ citation needed ]
A number of episodes of the parallel BBC radio documentary series 30 Animals That Made Us Smarter were included as bonuses in the podcast feed of early episodes of series 2.[ citation needed ]
The shortlist selected by Harford for public vote as the 51st thing was:[ citation needed ]
The item selected by public vote was the credit card, announced by Harford in the episode entitled "Number 51".
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