Best Scott Zurn Podcasts (2024)

1
Non-Invasive Brain-Controlled Robots: A Conversation with José del R. Millán 59:23

1d ago59:23

59:23

In this fourth episode of the series, we are joined by José del R. Millán. Dr. Millán is a professor at the University of Texas at Austin, where he runs the Clinical Neuroprosthetics and Brain Interaction Lab and holds the Linda Steen Norris & Lee Norris Endowed Chair in Neuroengineering in the Chandra Family Department of Electrical and Computer E…

1
The ADU Challenge & Opportunity 29:25

10d ago29:25

29:25

In today’s episode, we discuss the subtle effect Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) will have on communities, highlighting their potential benefits and challenges, including increased density and the need for careful planning to avoid overwhelming existing infrastructure. We discuss the cyclical nature of public perception towards infrastructure, the …

1
Rewiring Emotions: A Conversation with Steffen Steinert 1:01:31

19d ago1:01:31

1:01:31

In this third episode of our mini-series on brain-computer interfaces, we are joined by Steffen Steinert. Dr. Steinert is an Assistant Professor in the Ethics and Philosophy section at Delft University of Technology. His research focuses on fundamental theoretical issues of ethics and philosophy of technology - particularly the relationship between…

1
Your Role in the Design Industry is Changing Forever: Embracing Regenerative Practices and Purpose-Driven Paradigms with Trevanna Frost Grenfell 53:59

24d ago53:59

53:59

In this conversation, we’re joined by Trevanna Frost Grenfell. Trevanna is faculty at reNourish Studio as well as working with businesses and organizations independently on developing self-organizing potential through application of living systems thinking and developmental processes to their work. She has a background in nonprofit strategic consul…

1
A Different Path for Engineers & Architects 29:00

1M ago29:00

29:00

Today, Scott talks about 3 main career options you have as a design professional. He lays out his experience in both the corporate world (private, public etc) and in the entrepreneurial world, and his path to a more attractive career path for design professionals. Over the past 8 years, we’ve created a new way of working for A&E’s that combines the…

1
AI, Consciousness, and the Future Mind: A Conversation with Susan Schneider 1:20:53

1M ago1:20:53

1:20:53

In this second episode of our mini-series on brain-computer interfaces, we are joined by Susan Schneider. Dr. Schneider is the founding director of the Center for the Future Mind at Florida Atlantic University, where she is the William F. Dietrich Distinguished Professor of Philosophy. She specializes in the philosophy of mind, philosophy of artifi…

1
The Sustainability Problem No One is Talking About 35:36

2M ago35:36

35:36

In today’s episode, we dive into green infrastructure and sustainable materials, emphasizing the urgent need for eco-friendly practices to combat climate change. But, what if we’re talking about the wrong problem?We throw buzz words out there all the time…green infrastructure, sustainable materials, environmentally friendly infrastructure, renewabl…

1
Neuroimaging and Neurorights: A Conversation with Rafael Yuste 24:56

2M ago24:56

24:56

In this inaugural episode of our mini-series on brain-computer interfaces, we are joined by Rafael Yuste. Dr. Yuste is Professor of Biological Sciences and Neuroscience at Columbia University, where he directs the Neurotechnology Center. Dr. Yuste is known for his pioneering work on neural circuits and the development of cutting-edge neural imaging…

1
The Knowledge Gap and the Need for Mentorship in the Design Industry 29:08

2M ago29:08

29:08

In today’s episode, we explore the growing knowledge gap as well as the critical importance of mentorship for Architects and Engineers. We discuss why mentorship is baked into everything we do in our collaborative, Level Design Partners. We also address the challenges of climate change and how the built environment affects the planet. We explore th…

1
What’s Under Our Cities? 40:20

2M ago40:20

40:20

The conversation explores the history and challenges of underground infrastructure. From the complexity and challenges it presents today, the transition to clean energy, regulatory challenges, and the importance of planning for the future. It highlights the shortage of knowledge and expertise in maintaining these systems and the overwhelming amount…

1
How Our Roads Work & Which State Has the Best Roads 34:52

2M ago34:52

34:52

Many people aren't aware of how roads are designed, funded, or function. Road infrastructure is crucial in our society, connecting communities and enabling easy travel. In today’s episode, we dive into this topic to reveal insights about modern civil engineering and how we got here.We dive into the evolution of road construction materials and the s…

1
Minimizing Financial Waste with Whitney Pogue, P.E., Value Engineering & Estimates Coordinator 46:19

3M ago46:19

46:19

Scott talks a lot about how taxpayer dollars are actually being used (or misused) to support our infrastructure. Today, we get an inside look with guest Whitney Pogue, Civil Engineer, P.E., Value Engineering & Estimates Coordinator for ODOT (Oklahoma Department of Transportation) for 10 years and now with Level Engineering. Part of Whitney’s role i…

1
The Transportation Bill, The Water Challenge, and Life in the 1680s 34:55

4M ago34:55

34:55

“The bridges and highways we fail to repair today will have to be rebuilt tomorrow – at many times the cost.” - President Ronal Reagan. Our conversation begins with a story set in the 1680s, describing the simple life of a young woman named Abigail in the Connecticut colony. We explore the evolution from local self-reliance to national and internat…

1
The Negatives & Positives of Being a Civil Engineer in the 21st Century 28:48

4M ago28:48

28:48

Join us as we explore the state of infrastructure in the US, the cost and burden on taxpayers, the economic impact of infrastructure investment, and the need for increased investment. We dive into the political nature of infrastructure, the importance of infrastructure for competitiveness as a country, and the declining interest in civil engineerin…

1
Future-Proof Your Career: Top Skills for Engineers and Architects 30:49

5M ago30:49

30:49

In this conversation, Miles and Scott explore the technical and non-technical skills that design professionals should focus on, such as keeping up with technology and developing strong people skills. The conversation highlights the changing business model in the industry and the need for engineers and architects to adapt to new technologies like AI…

1
Scott’s Engineering Journey & Why Level Was Formed 34:28

7M ago34:28

34:28

Why are Architects & Engineers leaving the industry in the US while the market is increasing and our country is in dire need of more designers? Scott shares his journey in engineering, why many of his peers (especially younger generations) are leaving, the need to restore value to the profession, and what we’ve been working on for the past 10 years…

1
Fixing Existing Infrastructure, The Changing Regulatory Environment, AI, & Are Engineers & Architects Going Extinct? 25:04

7M ago25:04

25:04

In this conversation, Miles and Scott discuss the history of infrastructure in the US in the 1940s, increasing complexity of building regulations, AI’s impact on construction projects, improving existing buildings, and the shortage of engineers and architects in the US and the impacts of outsourcing. Where is there more opportunity and job security…

1
How We Got Here & Who's Responsible (We’re Back!) 32:06

9M ago32:06

32:06

After 17 episodes, we took a break to refocus on business. Now we’re back with a completely new format. You can expect 2 episodes a month (Audio + video) with a new cohost (Miles) and some incredible guests. We’ll be sitting down with engineers, architects, business leaders and entrepreneurs, city officials, and infrastructure experts to explore ho…

1
The Case for a UBI: A Conversation with Scott Santens 1:05:24

1y ago1:05:24

1:05:24

In our final episode in our mini-series on the future of work, we are joined by universal basic income (UBI) advocate and writer Scott Santens. Scott is the founder and president of the Income To Support All Foundation (ITSA Foundation), the Senior Advisor for Humanity Forward, and he also serves on the board of directors of the Gerald Huff Fund fo…

1
Breaking Things at Work: A Conversation with Gavin Mueller 53:37

1y ago53:37

53:37

Our fourth episode of our mini-series on the future of work features Gavin Mueller, Assistant Professor of New Media and Digital Culture at the University of Amsterdam and the author of Breaking Things at Work: The Luddites Are Right About Why You Hate Your Job. We speak with Gavin about the history of the Luddite movement, technological unemployme…

1
The Value of Idleness: A Conversation with Brian O’Connor 1:08:32

1y ago1:08:32

1:08:32

In the third episode of our mini-series on the future of work, we are joined by Brian O'Connor, Professor of Philosophy at University College Dublin. Brian and I discuss the value of idleness in our lives, the burnout caused by the work ethic, and the pressure to view oneself as a project to be continuously realized. We discuss the goods of learnin…

1
Meaningful Work: A Conversation with Andrea Veltman 58:50

1y ago58:50

58:50

In our second episode of our mini-series on the future of work, we are joined by Andrea Veltman, Professor of Philosophy at James Madison University. We speak with Andrea about what it takes for work to be meaningful, if meaningful work is available to all, and what kinds of economic and social changes are necessary to help others find meaningful w…

1
Making Light Work - A Conversation with David Spencer 1:10:02

1y ago1:10:02

1:10:02

In the first episode of our mini-series on the future of work, we are joined by University of Leeds economist David Spencer. We discuss the experience of alienated labor under contemporary capitalism, the importance of work for meaning and dignity in our lives, and the reduction of the working week. Spencer persuasively makes the case for less but …

1
Breaking up the United States: A Conversation with Chris Zurn 1:03:35

1+ y ago1:03:35

1:03:35

Political philosopher Chris Zurn has just published Splitsville USA, a bombshell book arguing for the dissolution of the US. We talk about why Chris thinks this has become necessary, how history unnecessarily prejudices us against such a split, and what a post Splitsville future might look like. Draw your own new national maps!…

1
Regulating Virtual Reality: A Conversation with J Hughes and Alec Stubbs 53:28

1+ y ago53:28

53:28

The IEET and the UMB Applied Ethics Center recently released a White Paper on the political, moral and psychological questions involved in regulating the metaverse. J Hughes is the Executive Director of the IEET. Alec Stubbs is the Future of Work Post Doc at the UMB Applied Ethics Center. We discuss the main findings of the paper. You can find the …

1
Home inspections – How did we get here? 54:52

2+ y ago54:52

54:52

Scott sits down with Wade Williamson and his team at Axium Inspections. Colorado's #1 inspection company and growing nationally. Over 20 Certified Home Inspectors who offer full-service home and commercial inspection services, including radon testing, sewer scopes, well & mold inspections, lead testing, asbestos inspections, drone inspections and m…

1
Report from Kyiv: A Conversation with Journalist Alisa Sopova 1:17:37

2+ y ago1:17:37

1:17:37

We continue our series on the war in Ukraine. In this episode Vlado and I talk to journalist and anthropologist Alisa Sopova about what everyday life feels like in Ukraine as the war passes the 100 day mark. We discuss the regional differences in how the conflict is perceived, we ask whether Ukrainians have different views about Russian politicians…

1
Reading Between The Lines in Russia and Ukraine: A Conversation with Ambassador Vesko Garcevic 52:29

2+ y ago52:29

52:29

We continue our series on the war in Ukraine. Our guest is Vesko Garcevic, former ambassador of Montenegro to NATO, OSCE, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Vesko is currently Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. We talk about what it means to diplomatically…

1
Making Russia Great Again? 1:01:39

2+ y ago1:01:39

1:01:39

Vladimir Putin wants to put Russia back on the map as a great power. But what does it even mean to be a great power in the nuclear age? Is that idea still coherent? If it is, can Russia be such a power? And how is Putin using history to frame this quest? What does his framing reveal about him and about contemporary Russia? The second in a series of…

1
Empires Strike Back - Did the “Balance of Power” Just Make a Comeback?: A Conversation with Vladimir Petrovic 1:07:21

2+ y ago1:07:21

1:07:21

For a while, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, we could tell ourselves that the American-led liberal internationalist order was on the rise. That story had some big holes in it, but if we squinted a bit it was almost believable. Not "the end of history", but maybe a long vacation from it. But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its insistence on de…

1
Change, disconnect, and responsibility as Architects, Engineers, and Designers 57:26

2+ y ago57:26

57:26

A lot is changing in our industry. One thing we know won't work is to fight that change. Instead, how do we use technology and model changes to our advantage? What issues com from the old model? What can we learn from the Surfside condominium collapse in 2021? What needs to change, what's changing, and how can we evolve as Architects, Engineers, an…

1
School Integrations and Equal Education: A Conversation with Larry Blum 57:20

3y ago57:20

57:20

How should we understand efforts at school integration? And how are they related to the idea of equal education? Larry and I consider different historical understandings of integration and the problematic idea of integration as a vehicle for gaining social capital. Larry and Zoë Burkholder just published Integrations: The Struggle for Racial Equali…

1
Harvard‘s Galileo Project: A Conversation with Avi Loeb 51:15

3y ago51:15

51:15

The New York Times 2017 front page story about UAP's (Unexplained Aerial Phenomena) spotted by Navy pilots, and the recent report to Congress by The Office of the Director of National Intelligence have generated tremendous public interest. I talk to Professor Avi Loeb about Harvard's new Galileo Project. We discuss what it means to explore UAP's sc…

1
Bridge Engineering & Infrastructure Challenges with Ben Kenney, P.E. Owner of Engineering Operations 47:55

3y ago47:55

47:55

617,000 bridges across the United States. Currently, 42% of all bridges are at least 50 years old, and 46,154, or 7.5% of the nation's bridges, are considered structurally deficient, meaning they are in “poor” condition. Ben Kenney, P.E. owner of Engineering Operations joins Scott and Murray to discuss some fascinating topics Corporate barriers Bri…

1
Wait, but why? (flipping the business model on its head) 1:12:59

3+ y ago1:12:59

1:12:59

Join Scott Zurn and Murray McBride as they discuss: Update on LDPI Flipping the business model on its head Outsourcing and the race to the bottom Entrepreneurship Personal growth and success Collaboration Peace of mind $2 Trillion infrastructure bill What’s right for our community? The zero-emission marketing lie And much more... Sign up for our ex…

1
Institutional Corruption and Psychiatric Drugs: A Conversation with Lisa Cosgrove 47:50

3+ y ago47:50

47:50

What happens when the ties between the people who study psychiatric drugs and the companies who make them become too cozy? A discussion with UMass Boston psychology professor Lisa Cosgrove. Lisa Cosgrove, PhD is a Clinical Psychologist and Professor at the University of Massachusetts, Boston where she teaches courses on psychiatric diagnosis and ps…

1
Long-term care of our built environment (most important + least celebrated) 52:21

3+ y ago52:21

52:21

In this episode, Scott & Murray discuss: Environmental consciousness Half of our environment impact is just “building stuff” Let’s take a conscious look at what we’re doing Is money always the driver for the design community Free, independent & flexible thinking Picking up where we left off in the early 1500s Climate change Greed and power, taking …

1
My Favorite Passage: A conversation with Adam Beresford about Iliad, Book 24 1:01:51

3+ y ago1:01:51

1:01:51

Adam and I discuss the famous, moving passage at the end of the Iliad describing the meeting between Achilles and Priam. We talk quite a bit about Achilles' curious account of how Zeus determines humans' fate by doling out happenings from jars of joy and misfortune. Adam Beresford teaches philosophy and classics at the University of Massachusetts a…

1
Are Architects & Engineers going extinct? 51:11

3+ y ago51:11

51:11

Can we maintain our human conveniences and have less adverse impact on our planet? Are Architects & Engineers going extinct? What do we need to revive in our industry? Join Scott Zurn and Murray McBride as they discuss In this episode, they discuss: The human convenience Cost of infrastructure Communication challenges today Why we need more Archite…

1
Brilliant Infrastructure of the Indigenous people 40:27

3+ y ago40:27

40:27

Sixty million Indigenous People lived throughout the Americas before European expansion. In a short amount of time, 90% of those people were lost to European disease and violence. An estimated loss of 55 million people; a 10% reduction of the world's population at that time. What happened to the infrastructure of each of these ancient people and wh…

1
Our current infrastructure was shaped by deer 42:12

3+ y ago42:12

42:12

There is an impact to our world for every human convenience. Those conveniences are built around our infrastructure, but it’s not in the public’s consciousness. Why should we care? Because infrastructure is the most important thing in our world. Our economy, quality of life, and the future of humanity and our planet is intricately tied to infrastru…

1
Empowering A&E Women with LDPI Owners Anya Zurn & Karen Ashworth (Women’s History month) 54:25

3+ y ago54:25

54:25

Engineers are traditionally men. Why? 30% of women who have left the engineering profession cite organizational climate as the reason. Only 30% of women who earn bachelor’s degrees in engineering are still working in engineering 20 years later. Source We need to empower A&E women if we want to build a thriving industry and future. We must evolve ou…

1
Engineers are fleeing the industry at record numbers 48:30

3+ y ago48:30

48:30

Engineers are fleeing the industry at record numbers, unhappy with the status quo...so what? Why should we, and everyone else care? The bulk of human convenience relies on the intellect of the A&E community. But there’s a gap. A gap between the unique genius that goes into our infrastructure by A&E professionals, and the general public. In this fas…

1
How you can keep a bigger piece of the pie 27:23

4y ago27:23

27:23

With a combined 70 years of design experience under their belts, Scott and Murray discuss a few common paths that design professionals have today and the future of our industry. In this fascinating episode, they cover… Environmental changes & our responsibility What's currently available as far as design career paths today The business model we’re …

1
We’ve gotten lazy. What we can do moving forward. 42:01

4y ago42:01

42:01

Most of our modern human conveniences are designed and produced by a community of brilliant but unseen professionals, and the public doesn’t know it. Why? Join Scott Zurn and co-host Murray McBride as they discuss their professional backgrounds and why communication and trust are imperative to understanding our failing infrastructures, and how the …

1
A Three-Way Peace Deal in the Middle East: A Conversation with Ehud Eiran 48:15

4y ago48:15

48:15

Israel has signed normalization agreements with the UAE and Bahrain. These are the first Middle East peace agreements in two and a half decades. Why now? What does each of the main actors in this drama stand to gain from these accords? Can Middle East diplomacy really bypass the Israeli Palestinian conflict as these agreements attempt to do? And do…

1
Civic Dialogue in a Polarized Society: A Conversation With Lauren Barthold 59:51

4y ago59:51

59:51

The US seems more polarized than it's been in decades. Can we communicate across ideological and political chasms? What does it mean to have a dialogue with someone we profoundly, even vehemently disagree with? If we do have such a dialogue, does it make us any less polarized? Do the effects last? We talk with Professor Barthold about her new book:…

1
Monuments, Racism and The Ethics of Public Memory: A Conversation with Dana Miranda 55:15

4+ y ago55:15

55:15

In the last few months, in the wake of recent protests against systemic racism, Confederate and other monuments have been torn down and defaced. What are these monuments supposed to convey? What's the argument for taking them down? Dana and I revisit our conversation about the ethics and politics of monument removal in light of recent events. Take …

1
The Rise of Robot Overlords? A Conversation with Dan Feldman 48:43

4+ y ago48:43

48:43

Before Covid 19 turned the world upside down we worried about Artificial General Intelligence and, ultimately, Super-intelligence - the moment when our machines, powered by sophisticated AI, catch up with us and, ultimately, out-perform us. But how coherent, how pressing, are these concerns, really? Dan Feldman is a senior research fellow at the UM…

1
Thucydides and the Plague: A Conversation with Greg Fried 55:29

4+ y ago55:29

55:29

In the History of the Peloponnesian War, Thucydides provides a vivid description of the physical and social toll that a terrible plague took on Athens, a year or so into its war with Sparta. What explains the staying power of Thucydides' account? And what can we learn from it as we grapple with our own (albeit far less deadly) Covid 19 crisis? Greg…

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Scott Zurn Podcasts

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