The Economist Radio (All audio)

The Greek government's massive debts are troubling Europe again; and does the quest for affordable housing trump the right to a holiday home? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week: Venezuela scrambles to keep its lights on, China tries to exterminate foreign names and media companies bet big on theme parks See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The pace of scientific advancement can seem relentless, and the ingenuity of scientists inexhaustible. But is there a finite amount of knowledge we can acquire about the universe around us? Mathematician Marcus Du Sautoy joins The Economist to discuss what we can never really know. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Surgical operations become more akin to driverless cars. And users try out IBM's quantum computer See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Craig Wright claims to have founded the cryptocurrency. Our technology and business affairs editors debate whether his 'proofs' add up. Plus China's looming debt crisis - and the economics of Game of Thrones See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week: how sharing power could free phone users from dead-battery tyranny, why the blue-sky thinking of billionaires should be welcomed and ready-made city centres pop up all over Florida See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Frank Trentmann discusses his history of consumerism "Empire of Things" with Anne McElvoy and Brooke Unger, our consumer expert, and reveals the guilty purchasing pleasures he can't resist See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We discuss the political and scientific impact of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster on its 30th anniversary, and a new way to protect cells from many different kinds of virus See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In ancient times — pre-2012, say — American presidential elections were often reasoned, somber affairs. The 2016 campaign will not be remembered that way. Combative candidates have channeled voters' anger and fear into a new strain of hypernationalism.In this, our first episode of Special Relationship, we examine how fear of terrorism is shaping the campaign — and whether what is happening in the U.S. is really so different from the politics of other countries. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Commodities, emerging markets and inflation expectations may all have reached a turning point. Is it 1999 all over again? And we explore whether China's strategic ambitions in Africa are overstated See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week: how to determine good jazz from bad, the reason people sleep badly in a new bed and why central banks might start dropping money from helicopters See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

"Holy Lands” by Nicolas Pelham and "Six Facets of Light” by Anne Wroe are two new books by Economist writers. Both look at contemporary questions through historical lenses See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mixing pop and politics: two veterans of The Economist's current affairs coverage select and explore music that has galvanised causes - or changed recent history See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Special Relationship is a podcast collaboration that examines the US presidential election from the characteristic perspectives of two leading news organizations. Hosted by The Economist’s John Prideaux and Mic’s Celeste Katz, Special Relationship grapples with the major themes and issues in a campaign that has been anything but predictable. Each episode is a conversation, fusing deep dives into specific themes with broader perspectives provided by global and historical comparisons from both sides of the pond. It’s a unique transatlantic partnership between two distinctive voices. It’s a special relationship. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week we discuss how to keep drones away from manned aircraft and talk to Vitalik Buterin, inventor of Ethereum See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Unmarried women are becoming an increasingly potent economic force and we check in with the author of our Special report on business in Africa See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week: some snippets overheard on America’s presidential campaign trail, running clubs take off in Cairo and some genetic superheroes emerge—though their identity remains a mystery See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The author of “Smarter, Faster, Better” boasts a way to make us more productive. Kenneth Cukier and Anne McElvoy quiz his findings on Economist Asks See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Researcher Simon Baron-Cohen joins our writers to discuss autism in the workplace. And our innovation editor on mapping technology in driverless cars. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The agile response of the Russian Central bank to the oil crisis caught many off guard; so, how did the organs of Russian finance weather the crash? And, as the Panama papers threaten global tax havens, where should privacy end and transparency begin? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.