Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Traffic Debt, Almonds, Friday Movies, and Artificial Intelligence
A new study by a coalition of groups shows traffic fines in California affect low income residents the most, trapping them in a cycle of violations and fines. And have we been too hard on almonds?
By Madeleine Brand • • 51m ListenA troubling trend is happening in California: low income Californians get expensive traffic tickets they can’t afford to pay, they get caught in a vicious cycle of violations and fines, often leading to lost driver’s licenses and even lost jobs. Have we been too hard on almonds? They’re an $11 billion business in California, but have suffered a lot of criticism during the drought for being water hungry crops. We rundown the new movies coming out this week, including a new Nicholas Sparks adaptation and a smart sci-fi thriller about artificial intelligence. And, speaking of artificial intelligence in movies, we talk to a researcher to help us sort fact from fiction.
Banner Image: traffic ticket issued by police officer
In this episode
4 storiesTraffic Debt
A troubling trend is happening in California: traffic tickets are funding the court system. A new study by a coalition of legal aid and civil rights groups finds that low income Californians are the most affected. They get caught in a vicious cycle of violations and fines, often leading to lost licenses.
Read the story15 minAlmonds
Almonds are an $11 billion business in California, but they’ve come under scrutiny for being water intensive to grow. They’ve become like the Hummer during times of high gas prices: a symbol of waste or extravagance that might not make sense during drought conditions. But have almonds been unfairly-maligned?
Read the story9 minMovies
Our Friday round-up of movies finds a strange mix of choices. A new movie, based on a book by Nicholas Sparks, delivers a similar setup to one of his more famous works, “The Notebook.” It’s called The Longest Ride. It’s a love story divided between the present and the 1940’s.
Read the story14 minArtificial Intelligence
Filmmakers have always been fascinated by artificial intelligence. These sentient man-made beings range from the cold and sinister -- think HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey -- to the warm and intimate -- like Samantha, the operating system in Her. But AI is a growing business that’s pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.
Read the story9 min
