Polar Coal

When Coal Arrived In America

Clive Thompson | Smithsonian | 12th July 2022

Much as Americans are now being urged to shift from fossil fuels to renewables, so they were being urged two centuries ago to shift from wood-burning to coal-burning stoves. Trees were disappearing and coal was abundant. But most people resisted the new fuel and everything to do with it. "Coal merchants were all over the place in the late 19th century — and everybody hated them” (1,800 words)

Audio: South Pole Race | Cautionary Tales. The year is 1910. Two teams are racing to the South Pole. Captain Robert Falcon Scott heads a well-financed, technologically-advanced expedition. Roald Amundsen uses cheap sled dogs. Yet Scott is doomed to failure. Tim Harford explains why. (48m 08s)

Video: Change The Week | Ian Pons Jewell | Vimeo | 3m 43s  

Advocacy video from 4 Day Week, narrated by Stephen Fry, arguing that the world would be a happier and even a more productive place with a shorter working week