CodeNow works with underrepresented youth to develop the next pioneers in technology by teaching foundational skills in computer science and programming to narrow the digital divide. Creating a fluency in this language spurs innovation and opens doors for our youth, while creating a pipeline of talent for American companies.
454:Mr. Daisey and the Apple Factory
Originally aired 01.06.2012Host Ira Glass speaks with an Apple device about its origin. (2 minutes)Share
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Act One. Mister Daisey Goes to China.
Mike Daisey performs an excerpt that was adapted for radio from his one-man show "The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs." A lifelong Apple superfan, Daisey sees some photos online from the inside of a factory that makes iPhones, starts to wonder about the people working there, and flies to China to meet them. His show restarts a run at New York's Public Theater later this month. (39 minutes)Share
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What should we make of what Mike Daisey saw in China? Our staff did weeks of fact checking to corroborate Daisey's findings. Ira talks with Ian Spaulding, founder and managing director of INFACT Global Partners, which goes into Chinese factories and helps them meet social responsibility standards set by Western companies (Apple's Supplier Responsibility page is here), and with Nicholas Kristof, columnist for The New York Times who has reported in Asian factories. In the podcast and streaming versions of the program he also speaks with Debby Chan Sze Wan, a project manager at the advocacy group SACOM, Students and Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior, based in Hong Kong. They've put out three reports investigating conditions at Foxconn (October 2010, May 2011, Sept 2011). Each report surveyed over 100 Foxconn workers, and they even had a researcher go undercover and take a job at the Shenzhen plant. (15 minutes)
Waterbear is a Scratch-like visual programming language for JavaScript. It was created by Dethe Elza, who gave a presentation on the project today at JSConf in Portland, OR. Waterbear brings the concepts of kid-friendly, educational programming languages, such as Logo and Scratch, to the modern, browser-oriented computer. Users can create programs by snapping together blocks.
In two recent CDC publications, when oil of lemon eucalyptus was tested against mosquitoes found in the US, it provided protection similar to repellents containing DEET, (N,N-diethyl meta-toluamide). Until now, DEET was the only repellent recommended by the CDC, and approved for individual use by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
This week, March 20-26, is National Poison Prevention Week. Ironically, this year’s poison-free celebration is blemished by the fact that Congress is considering a massive budget cut to local poison control centers across the United States. On Saturday, Feb. 19 The House of Representatives voted to cut $27.3 million, or about 93%, of federal funding for poison control centers across the U.S. via Measure H.R. 1.
