{"id":76014,"date":"2026-08-28T08:02:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T12:02:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=76014"},"modified":"2026-08-28T15:33:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T19:33:38","slug":"research-matters-season-two","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/research-matters-season-two\/","title":{"rendered":"Tune In to the Podcast Devoted to Big Red Faculty Discoveries"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In its second season, Research<\/em> Matters<\/em> delves into procrastination, robotics, tipping, eldercare, the urban-rural divide, and much more<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s note: This story was adapted from <\/em>a feature<\/em><\/a> in the <\/em>Cornell Chronicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Chronicle<\/em> staff<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In spring 2026, Research Matters<\/em><\/a> set out to show how Cornell scholarship routinely bursts out of the lab and library. Now the video podcast series, back for a second season, ranges even further, from an emergency room to a courtroom, from a basketball court out to the universe itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 18-episode season\u2014which includes appearances by several Big Red alumni\u2014launches with \u201cWhy Don\u2019t We Do the Things We Know We Should?<\/a>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In it, Cornell professor Suzanne Bliven Shu \u201990, MEng \u201992\u2014an electrical engineer turned behavioral economist\u2014breaks down the psychology behind procrastination, overspending, and our strange attachment to stuff in order to illustrate why willpower isn\u2019t the problem, and what actually helps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In another episode, robotics researcher Angelique Taylor of Cornell Tech\u2019s AIRLab joins to talk about what happens when a robot enters the chaos of a hospital emergency department. <\/p>\n<\/div>

\"The<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cosmologist Michael Niemack traces the technology used to listen for the universe\u2019s oldest light, and electron microscopist David Muller, PhD \u201996, explains how a machine that resolves single atoms is reshaping what materials scientists thought was possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other episodes trace money, power, and belonging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the first episide, Prof. Suzanne Bliven Shu \u201990, MEng \u201992, breaks down the psychology behind procrastination, overspending, and our strange attachment to stuff.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hospitality scholar Michael Lynn breaks down the strange economics of tipping, an American habit few can explain and fewer can escape. Economist Eswar Prasad takes on global economic instability and what it means for ordinary savers, while health economist Colleen Carey untangles the sometimes-absurd design choices baked into the health insurance market. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

New ideas for combating climate change and improving the health of our planet are part of this season as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biogeochemist Benjamin Houlton, dean of CALS, makes the case for soil and trees as climate infrastructure, and architect Felix Heisel shows how buildings can be designed for a second life instead of a landfill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Prof.
Sreang Hok \/ Cornell University<\/figcaption>
A future episode will feature AAP’s Felix Heisel.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The season also digs into questions of care and belonging. An eldercare-focused conversation with Jenna Wells and Adriana Reyes examines who is designated to care for a rapidly aging population. Political scientist Rachel Beatty Riedl looks at the warning signs of democratic backsliding, while her colleague Suzanne Mettler, PhD \u201994, traces the widening political divide between rural and urban America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Says the show\u2019s host, Laura Reiley: \u201cIf you\u2019ve ever wondered how academic research connects to the choices you make, the systems you rely on, or the future you\u2019re inheriting, take a listen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New episodes of Research Matters<\/em> will post every Tuesday at noon through the semester on the Cornell Chronicle<\/em> website and everywhere podcasts are found, including Spotify<\/a> and Apple Podcasts<\/a>, with video on YouTube and clips on LinkedIn and Instagram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top: Host Laura Reiley (right) interviews Prof. Suzanne Bliven Shu \u201990, MEng \u201992. (Jason Koski \/ Cornell University)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Published August 28, 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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