FT Alphachat

Angela Nagle, author of Kill All Normies: Online Culture Wars from 4chan and Tumblr to Trump and the Alt-Right, talks to FT Alphaville's Jemima Kelly about the online culture wars and the rise of the alt-right. 

 

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A number of geopolitical and financial risks are stalking the global economy, pointing to a possible recession in 2020. According to Nouriel Roubini, what is key among these risks is the US-China trade war and general protectionism in the global market. Izabella Kaminska talks to the economist and New York University Stern School of Business professor.

 

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The economist and Brookings Institution senior fellow talks to FT contributor Megan Greene about the fiscal policies that lawmakers could arrange now that would automatically kick in when some of the early signs of a slowdown start to appear.

 

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Man must work. But how man works matters. Brendan Greeley sat down with Joel Mokyr, an economist and economic historian at Northwestern University, at an event on the future of work at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. Policymakers tend to focus on the binary question of a job — do people have one, or not. But the quality of that work, the questions of meaning and satisfaction, are important to people, in a way that has political consequences. They wandered all the way back to Adam Smith, and eventually the curse of Adam himself, to talk about how the meaning and definition of "work" has changed, and why that matters now.

 

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The political economist sits down with Alphaville's Jamie Powell and Thomas Hale to discuss how we should think about expertise in a post-truth world.

 

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The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas sits down with Brendan Greeley to discuss what a tight labour market could mean for retraining workers, what fracking has done to the price of oil and why he prefers to keep an eye on credit spreads instead of equity markets.

 

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What if the vast majority of the high-growth tech unicorns emerging from Silicon Valley are not really technology or innovation companies? What if they are highly politicised, zero-sum enterprises? That's what Ajay Royan, the Indian-born Canadian who co-founded Mithral Capital, along with Peter Thiel, thinks might be the problem at the heart of the Silicon Valley investment proposition. Izabella Kaminska asks him how his fund is trying to differentiate itself from that model by focusing on unleveraged growth opportunities instead.

 

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How has banking culture changed since the global financial crisis and what areas still need work? Brendan Greeley talks with three economics experts who posed that question in a recent report put out by the Group of Thirty consultants. He is joined by Elizabeth St-Onge of Oliver Wyman, Nicholas Le Pan, former superintendent of financial institutions for Canada, and Stuart Mackintosh, executive director of the Group of Thirty.

 

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Economist Kimberly Clausing tells Brendan Greeley and Mark Blyth why greater trade, capital flows and immigration are the solution to more equitably dividing the economic pie. It's the subject of her book, "Open: The Progressive Case for Free Trade, Immigration, and Global Capital".

 

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Until recently, economists have ignored the idea that communities matter for economic outcomes, leaving those questions to sociologists. But there is too much evidence to ignore: where you live has a profound influence on how you turn out. In a live conversation recorded at Penn Social, a bar in Washington DC, Raghuram Rajan, former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund and Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, talks about his new book, "The Third Pillar: How Markets and the State Leave Communities Behind". He is joined by Ashley Putnam, director of the Economic Growth & Mobility Project at the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, who has run community-level economic growth projects in New York City and across Philadelphia's Fed district. Brendan Greeley hosts.

 

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Tobias Adrian, formerly of the New York Fed, runs the Monetary and Capital Markets Department at the International Monetary Fund. Brendan and Colby sat down with him after publication of the IMF's Global Financial Stability Report. They talked about collateralised loan obligations, of course, but also about China and how the US faces risks just like any other country when hot capital flows in. 

 

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On the occasion of the release of the International Monetary Fund's Fiscal Monitor, Brendan talked to Vitor Gaspar, who runs the fund's Fiscal Affairs Department. Mr Gaspar, formerly of the Banco de Portugal, the European Commission and the European Central Bank, drew a distinction between "good" and "bad" spending. He also argued that a "competitive" economy isn't just an economy that pays low wages, and threaded a fine needle on whether Europe needs more infrastructure investment. And he responded to the contention by his friend Olivier Blanchard, former chief economist of the IMF, that debt isn't necessarily always bad. 

 

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Law professor Odette Lienau joins Colby and Brendan on the sidelines of the IMF spring meetings in Washington, DC to discuss the sovereign debt crises in Venezuela, Argentina and Mozambique. They also discuss why vulture funds could do some good.

 

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Alphaville's Jemima Kelly and Izabella Kaminska sat down with Yanis Varoufakis, former finance minister of Greece and current organiser of a trans-European group of what he calls "radical Europeanists" — in favor of union, without deflation or austerity. Mr Varoufakis answers criticism from the left, pointing out that even if the euro or the EU were poorly conceived, leaving them now would have catastrophic consequences for the poor. He gives a brief history of economic thought, connecting Joseph Schumpeter back to Karl Marx, saying it's not so clear that leftists know what Marx, a globalist, would be saying today. Oh, and also: Pamela Anderson. 

 

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No matter what the British Parliament decides, for almost three years the UK, Ireland and the EU have been dealing with the reality of the Leave vote. Positions have hardened, investments have been foregone, and all the countries involved have become different places, in ways that cannot be undone. Brendan Greeley of FT Alphaville and Mark Blyth of the Rhodes Center at Brown discuss consequences with Stephen Kinsella, economist at the University of Limerick and Megan Greene, chief economist at Manulife Asset Management.

 

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Leah Boustan of Princeton and Maggie Peters of UCLA look at the wave of migrants to the US from Central America and compare it to the last great wave, from Europe in the late 19th century. Some things are the same: immigrant families are adopting "American" names at the same rates as before, for example. Some things are different: the speed of communication and container shipping mean that American companies prefer to get cheap labour through outsourcing, and won't lobby for increased immigration. 

 

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Andrew Keen, author of Cult of the Amateur and more recently How to Fix the Future, sits down with FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska. They both tell the history of their own disenchantment with the internet, and discuss why the Elon Musk story has turned into a Shakespearean tragedy, while Jeff Bezos is more of a Bond villain. "When you do away with gatekeepers you get anarchy," says Mr Keen, but dystopian misery isn't the answer, either. 

 

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Forget Brexit. Growth in the eurozone is slowing down, but not equally for all countries. Which leaves the continent with the same question it's had for a decade: is it capable of making policy flexible enough for all of its economies? Waltraud Schelkle of the London School of Economics argues that Europe's currencies always swung with the deutschmark, so the European Central Bank offers some level of control. Ashoka Mody of Princeton says the euro will never be flexible enough to let countries like Italy make adjustments. 

 

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Even if the trade talks are settled, long-term friction will remain between China and the United States. China has an industrial policy which will see it strive to make more advanced products, such as aircraft and medical devices. The US wants to keep selling these kinds of high-value manufactured goods to China. It remains a fundamental issue for the two world economic powers. FT Alphaville's Brendan Greeley speaks first with Brad Stetser, the former US Treasury economist and China watcher, and then is joined by Colby Smith to hear from Freya Beamish, China expert at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

 

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Answering the question of whether Germany's export-driven model will ever change, and whether Germany's obsession with saving and budget surpluses will ever change. And how to say "Groundhog Day" in German. Wade Jacoby of Brigham Young University and Megan Greene of Manulife Investments join FTAlphaville's Brendan Greeley and Mark Blyth from the Rhodes Center. 

 

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The United States may not have an infrastructure crisis. It may in fact have too much infrastructure. And what does that word "infrastructure" even mean, anyway? We talk about the history internal improvements, public works, and the power of a group that called itself The League of American Wheelmen.

 

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Armon Rezai of the Vienna University of Economics and Business and Lint Barrage of Brown University talk to Colby and Mark about how climate change will affect home values and retirement portfolios — you know, middle-class wealth. 

 

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Adam Tooze, economic historian and author of Crashed: How a Decade of Financial Crises Changed the World, joins the FT’s Brendan Greeley and Brown University’s Mark Blyth to discuss how our politics got us to where we are today, why our ideas about how the economy works may not be fit for purpose, and the key role that China played during the Great Recession and continues to play today. They also discuss the central importance of global capital flows for understanding our world and why global liquidity may be much more fragile than we like to think.

 

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The 2017 tax cut in the US included a provision that would forgive capital gains taxes, if invested for ten years in an "opportunity zone" — a low-income area designated by a state governor. But the idea of encouraging investments in poor and mostly black areas has a long history. We talk to Mehrsa Baradaran, a law professor at the University of Georgia and Andrew Schrank, a sociologist at Brown University. 

 

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Author of the standard textbook on macroeconomics, former head of research for the International Monetary Fund, currently at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, Olivier Blanchard works in the place where economists and politicians attempt to talk to each other. He talked to us about how the financial crisis changed his thinking on models, why state debt isn’t always and everywhere a bad thing and why the best forecasts in the future might come from artificial intelligence.

 

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The economist and president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics joins FT Alphaville’s Colby Smith and Brown University’s Mark Blyth to discuss the politicking of central banking, the hurdles to finding a US-China trade war resolution and how China can manage the financial risks building in its economy. They also touch on the enduring power of the dollar and US markets. 

Colby Smith is a writer for FT Alphaville and Mark Blyth is the director of the William Rhodes Center for International Economics and Finance at the Watson Institute at Brown University. 

 

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A bonus episode from the annual meeting of the American Economic Association in Atlanta this past weekend. Brendan Greeley caught up with Yale economist and Nobel laureate Robert Shiller, who argues that if you want to understand markets you have to understand stories — how they start and how they spread. They talked about the stories driving share prices down in December, about Jim Cramer and about the narrative power of Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. 

 

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Economists like to talk about the "slack" in the labour market. But how can we measure it, and what does it mean? The FT's Brendan Greeley hosts with guests Megan Greene, chief economist at Manulife Asset Management, Ioana Marinescu, economist and professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Mark Blyth, director of the William Rhodes Center for International Economics and Finance at the Watson Institute at Brown University. 

 

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The economist and University College London professor joins Alphaville's Jemima Kelly to discuss the question of value: who creates it and who makes use of it. She also lays out her argument for a rethinking of the relationship between markets and governments. It's the subject of her recent book, The value of everything: making and taking in the global economy. 

 

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Economist Gary Loveman was teaching at Harvard Business School when he went to consult for the Harrah's casino chain in Las Vegas in the late 1990s. Despite knowing nothing about gambling, his insights on customer loyalty earned him a promotion to the chief executive job at the casino group. He took a company that traded at $14 a share and a decade later sold it to private equity for $90 a share. Gary Loveman talks to the FT's Sujeet Indap about how data science is helping executives draw in customers across industries. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Academic and practicing capitalist Bill Janeway talks to the FT's Jamie Powell about the way government used to drive innovation, and his idea of the "three-player game" between government, capital and industry. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Alphachat is back, and with a new host, Brendan Greeley. Brendan is the new US editor of Alphaville, and in this episode, he talks to MIT economics professor David Autor about what economics got wrong about trade, how the profession is fixing itself and why policy is still catching up. 

Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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Alphachat is going on a brief hiatus. When we come back in a few weeks we're going to have some great new interviews. But before we take this short break, we wanted to share a new FT podcast called Behind The Money. Each week host (and Alphachat producer) Aimee Keane will take you inside the big business and financial stories of the moment, with the help of other FT reporters. You can subscribe to Behind The Money on all of the usual podcast platforms. 

 

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The economist and former deputy governor of the Bank of England joins the FT's John Authers to debate the power of government agencies and the unelected officials leading them, including those at the helm of institutions like the Federal Reserve. It's the subject of his recent book, Unelected Power: The Quest for Legitimacy in Central Banking and the Regulatory State. Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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In this encore episode, Dan Drezner, writer and professor of international politics, discusses his book, "The Ideas Industry: how pessimists, partisans and plutocrats are transforming the marketplace of ideas" with former host Cardiff Garcia. They also talk about the global populist wave, identity-based politics, and how to resist the temptation to say yes to everything. This episode was originally published on September 29, 2017.

Music by Podington Bear.

 

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The former chief restructuring officer of the US joins Lex's Sujeet Indap to talk about the financialisation of American businesses, the causes of the 2008 crisis and the outcomes of the government response and reforms. Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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Physicist Geoffrey West joins FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska to discuss his work on a universal theory of growth - or scaling - that extends beyond human lifespans to encompass the sustainability of corporations, cities and more, as detailed in his latest book "Scale". Music by Podington Bear.

This episode was originally published on June 9, 2017. 

 

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Economist Alice Rivlin discusses her storied Washington career, from roles in three different presidential administrations, to director of the Congressional Budget Office, Vice-Chair of the Federal Reserve and to her current post at the Brookings Institution. 

This episode was originally published on May 26, 2017. Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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Economist and award-winning author Benn Steil talks to Matt Klein about the history of the post-World War II European recovery plan, implemented by then secretary of state George C Marshall as a means of defending against communist authoritarianism. It's the subject of Steil's new book, The Marshall Plan: Dawn of the Cold War. 

Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Economist Andrew Lo talks to the FT's John Authers about his adaptive markets hypothesis, the idea that markets develop and adapt over time and should be modelled using concepts from biology instead of physics. It's the subject of his recent book, Adaptive Markets: Financial Evolution at the Speed of Thought. 

This interview was originally published on March 24, 2017. Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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Germany is often considered an economic role model for the rest of the world, with low unemployment, a strong welfare state, first-class manufacturing and government budget surpluses. But there's another side to the German economy. Economist Marcel Fratzscher of the German Institute for Economics Research joins Matt Klein to explain. 

Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Economist and Columbia University professor Emi Nakamura joins FT senior investment commentator John Authers to discuss the way inflation statistics are compiled, what the cost of inflation is to the economy and the current relationship between inflation and unemployment. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Economist Stephanie Kelton talks to Matt Klein about the way government budgets really work and what large-scale student debt forgiveness might do for the US economy. Music by Podington Bear. 

 

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Banker, business school professor and author Jonathan Knee joins Sujeet Indap to discuss his career, the evolution of modern investment banking and finding a way to be influential. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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In this encore episode, Tim Harford joins Cardiff Garcia to talk about the way 50 different inventions have shaped the way the economy works today, from video games to the tally stick. It's the subject of his book, "Fifty things that made the modern economy", and a BBC audio series. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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The North Korean economy was modeled off of Stalin's forced industrialisation of the 1930s. Many still think the country exists in a time warp -- a communist museum piece kept alive by Chinese subsidies. But the truth is more interesting. After the fall of the Soviet Union, North Korea's economy and society changed dramatically. Marcus Noland, economist and executive vice president of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, explains in the latest episode of Alphachat. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Economist Brad Setser and Alphaville's Matt Klein dig into the recent changes to corporate tax policy in the US, and what effect these will have on the global economy. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Thomas Wieser, one of the key figures in Eurozone policymaking since the European sovereign debt crisis, joins the FT's Jim Brunsden and Alex Barker to discuss his career, the crisis and more. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Author Sebastian Mallaby produced the definitive account of the former Federal Reserve chairman's life, career, and the context in which he operated in the book "The Man Who Knew". In this encore episode he joins Matt Klein to discuss. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Most of the things that hurt us are easy to identify and avoid in advance. Yet rather than deal with these problems, we tend to live in terror of inchoate and unpredictable dangers. Journalist and author Michele Wucker talks with Matt Klein about why this is and how to fix it.

Music by Podington Bear.

 

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In this encore episode, writer Nicholas Wapshott talks to Cardiff Garcia about his 2011 book "Keynes Hayek: The Clash that Defined Modern Economics". The two discuss which economist's ideas are ascendant in the post-crisis cycle, and why both will matter during the Trump administration. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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How do societies help people fulfill their potential? And how do you make sure the programs meant to help people grow - like education and job retraining - are actually working? Nobel Prize-winning economist James Heckman joins Alexandra Scaggs to discuss this and more. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Economist Hernando de Soto joins the FT's John Authers to discuss his work documenting property rights in developing countries, the philosophical influences on his thinking and a lofty goal to create a global property rights registry using blockchain technology. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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What happens when you take the principles of finance and use them to answer some big philosophical questions? Author and Harvard business and law professor Mihir Desai joins Matt Klein to talk about this and more. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Author and crowd-funded economist Steve Keen joins Izzy Kaminska to talk about his criticism of neoclassical economics, and whether the global financial system can avoid another crisis.

Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Historian and biographer Jeremy Adelman joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the life and ideas of economist Albert O. Hirschman one last time. In this episode, the two cover Hirschman's "The Rhetoric of Reaction" and his assessment of argumentative styles that emerge in times of progress. Music by Podington Bear.

 

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Alphachat is taking a break this week for the US Thanksgiving holiday. We will be back next week with a brand new episode.

 

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With the help of economist and Bucknell University professor Nina Banks, host Cardiff Garcia tells the story of the first African American economist, Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander.

Music by Podington Bear

 

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Economist Kim Rueben joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the fiscal effect of immigration in the US, specifically on education, employment and wage outcomes. It’s the third episode in our series on the impact of immigration.

 

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The former chair of the UK's Financial Services Authority and current chair of the Institute for New Economic Thinking talks to Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska at INET's recent festival in Edinburgh, Scotland. The two cover Turner's views on peer-to-peer lending, the role of banks in money creation, the cryptocurrency scene and much more. 

 

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Historian Stephen Kotkin joins Alphaville's Matt Klein to discuss how Joseph Stalin's violent commitment to Marxist-Leninism shaped Soviet society in the 1930s. It's the subject of Kotkin's latest book, Stalin: Waiting for Hitler.  

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Economist Sebastian Edwards joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the modern emergence of populism, and how his research of populist economics can be applied to Donald Trump's economic agenda.  

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Urban studies theorist Richard Florida joins Aimee Keane to discuss his latest book, "The New Urban Crisis".  

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Historian and biographer Jeremy Adelman joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the life and ideas of economist Albert O. Hirschman once again. In this episode, the two cover Hirschman's most famous treatise, "Exit, Voice, and Loyalty".  

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Dan Drezner, writer and professor of international politics, joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss his latest book, "The Ideas Industry: how pessimists, partisans and plutocrats are transforming the marketplace of ideas". They also talk about the global populist wave, identity-based politics, and how to resist the temptation to say yes to everything.  

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Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist and author known for his work on the addictive properties of sugar and its effect on the brain, joins Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska to discuss his latest book, which applies his work on addiction to the technological realm. The book is called The Hacking of the American Mind.  

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Economist Jennifer Hunt joins Cardiff to discuss the findings of a major study on the economic impact of immigration on the US.  

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When electronic trading was introduced on the floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange, volumes handled by traders in the open-outcry pits were quickly overshadowed by those done by computers. Many of the floor traders soon found themselves out of work, and without proper training to find other jobs in finance. But one of those traders, Tom Gordon, embarked on a second act in his career, one that, for now, can’t be done by an algorithm or a robot. This podcast was produced as part of an FT Health at Work special report. Read more at FT.com/health-work. Music courtesy of Dave Depper, Podington Bear, Pure Grease and Peter Sandberg  

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Economist Ricardo Hausmann joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the historical foundation of Venezuela's current macroeconomic and humanitarian crisis, what may happen with its debt and what the future holds for the country.  

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Lina Khan, a writer and fellow at New America, joins FT Alphaville's Alex Scaggs to discuss how the tech company's unique organisational structure and business strategy raise possible antitrust issues that current law isn't particularly well designed to address. It's the subject of Khan's paper, "Amazon's antitrust paradox", recently published in the Yale Law Journal.  

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Harvard sociologist Mary Waters, who chairs the National Academy of Sciences Panel on The Integration of Immigrants into American Society, talks to Cardiff Garcia about the findings of a massive study conducted and published by her panel.  

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Lee Buchheit and Mitu Gulati, two of the world's foremost experts on sovereign debt restructuring, join the FT's Robin Wigglesworth to explain Venezuela's looming debt crisis and options for solving it, while the country's economic collapse and humanitarian problems continue to worsen.  

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Scott Galloway, professor of marketing and founder of brand think tank L2, joins the FT's Shannon Bond to talk about the death of advertising as we know it, how Amazon is changing the way we consume and why he is betting on voice technology.  

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Economist Gabriel Zucman joins the FT's Matt Klein to talk about the use of tax havens and the effect tax evasion has on inequality and other macroeconomic measurements, which is the subject of his book "The Hidden Wealth of Nations".  

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In the second of a two-part series, economist Michael Pettis joins the FT's Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein to discuss the state of the Chinese economy.  

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Economist Michael Pettis joins the FT’s Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein to discuss the macroeconomic framework he introduced in his book The Great Rebalancing.  

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Angus Deaton, the 2015 winner of the economics Nobel Prize, tells host Cardiff Garcia about his early influences and the work for which he won the award.  

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Tim Harford joins Cardiff Garcia to talk about the way 50 different inventions have shaped the way the economy works today, from video games to the tally stick. It's the subject of his latest book, "Fifty things that made the modern economy", and a BBC audio series.  

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The 2015 MacArthur Genius Grant recipient and MIT professor joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss her work on the incentive systems that drive innovation in medical technology, including the effect of patents on the development of early stage cancer drug treatments.  

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In light of Amazon's $13.7bn Whole Foods takeover, Cardiff Garcia talks with the FT's Shannon Bond and Anna Nicolaou about the state of the US retail industry.  

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Economist Michael Mandel joins Cardiff Garcia to talk about the research that he and co-author Bret Swanson have published on "the coming productivity boom" -- an optimistic case for productivity growth based on the application of information technology in physical industries such as manufacturing and healthcare.  

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Economist Stephen Kinsella joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the right lessons from Ireland's experience of crisis, austerity, and recovery -- and a few of the wrong lessons as well.  

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Physicist Geoffrey West joins FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska to discuss his work on a universal theory of growth - or scaling - that extends beyond human lifespans to encompass the sustainability of corporations, cities and more, as detailed in his latest book "Scale".  

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Sociologist Richard Ocejo joins Cardiff Garcia to talk about the way educated urbanites have upscaled and transformed traditionally low-income manual jobs from bartending to butchery, and what it suggests about the evolution of the labour market in the age of automation. It is the subject of Ocejo's most recent book, Masters of Craft.  

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This is a bonus episode featuring parts of Cardiff Garcia's interview with economist Anne Case that did not make it into the episode published on April 21. In this Alphachat extra the two discuss Anne's experience dealing with bloggers and other commentators who react to her work, how her research in South Africa shaped her approach to health economics and why height turns out to be such a useful variable in her research.  

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Economist Alice Rivlin joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss her storied Washington career, from her roles in three different presidential administrations, to the first director of the Congressional Budget Office, to Vice-Chair of the Federal Reserve, to her current post at the Brookings Institution.  

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Maria Konnikova, a writer and author of “The Confidence Game: Why We Fall For It… Every Time” talks to host Cardiff Garcia about her work and the challenge of judging the quality of social-science research. The two also discuss big data, open-plan offices, sleep and the psychological effects of pornography. Maria also describes the methods and traits of con artists, and explains why everyone is susceptible to being a victim.  

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Historian and biographer Jeremy Adelman joins Cardiff Garcia to survey the life and philosophy of economist Albert O. Hirschman, from his work on development economics to "The Passions and the Interests", his book about the forgotten intellectual history behind the emergence of capitalism.  

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Jason Furman, economist and former chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the way economic policy was made and framed during the Barack Obama administration. Jason also talks about his background and the economists who influenced him, and he gives his thoughts on a few salient economic issues.  

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Economist and polymathic author Tyler Cowen talks to Cardiff about his essay, "Stubborn Attachments", in which he shares his vision for a free and prosperous society - and the philosophical foundations necessary to build it.  

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Economist Anne Case joins Cardiff Garcia to talk about her trilogy of research papers that revealed the stunning reversal of mortality trends among certain groups of Americans. The two also discuss the methodology used in the papers and her comprehensive theory behind the causes of these trends.  

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Short seller Jim Chanos talks to the FT's Matt Klein about his illustrious career in investment management, including his bet against Enron before it went bust in 1999. Mr Chanos also discusses the mechanics of short selling, his research process, and some of the opportunities he said he missed.  

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Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond explore how companies have tried to capitalise on the politically charged climate that has developed since the campaign and election of Donald Trump, and how it has backfired for some of them. Plus the FT's Anna Nicolaou and Hearst's Troy Young join as guests.  

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Social-psychologist Robert Cialdini joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the psychology of influence and the importance of what you do before attempting to persuade someone, which is the subject of his latest book "Pre-suasion". The two also cover the role of persuasion in politics, specifically the way it has been used by Donald Trump and Barack Obama.  

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Cardiff Garcia talks to Alphaville's Matt Klein and FT senior investment commentator John Authers about the consequences and lessons of a famous call to sell stocks. Then, MIT economist Andrew Lo talks to John about the adaptive markets hypothesis, the subject of his forthcoming book. Clip courtesy of NBC.  

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Economist and writer Noah Smith joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss how the economics profession reacted to the financial crisis and the questions that economists are now asking, perhaps belatedly.  

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Writer Erica Grieder joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss what the rest of America can learn from the economic model of Texas, and how the state will be affected by the Trump administration's trade and immigration policies.  

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Writer Annie Lowrey joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss a pilot project to implement UBI in more than 100 African villages. Then, Alphaville's Matt Klein stops by to debate whether the concept of full employment is complete nonsense.  

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Economist Sebastian Edwards joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the modern emergence of populism, and how his research of populist economics can be applied to Donald Trump's economic agenda.  

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FT economics writer Martin Sandbu joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss economic ideas that would have been considered unthinkably radical or excessive a few years ago, but which are now generating serious discussion.  

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Writer Leigh Gallagher joins Cardiff and Shannon to discuss the founders, the controversies and the future of the tech company that transformed the hospitality industry. It's the subject of Leigh's latest book, out on Tuesday.  

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From fashion to music to drinking in pubs, the activities we do for delight and wonder have led to some of history's greatest innovations. Steven Johnson, author of Wonderland: How play made the modern world, joins Cardiff Garcia to discus how what we do for pleasure often has astonishing effects on the serious parts of our lives, much later on.  

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Michael Mauboussin, author of "The Success Equation" and head of global financial strategies at Credit Suisse, talks to Cardiff Garcia about his recent paper, "Thirty Years: The Ten Attributes of Great Investors".  

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Nicholas Sargen, senior investment advisor and chief economist at Fort Washington Investment Advisors, joins the FT's John Authers to discuss his recent book, Global Shocks: An Investment Guide for Turbulent Markets, and to offer some insight on planning for the Trump era.  

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Long before the US presidential election, Twitter attracted vitriolic conversation and internet trolls. In this episode, writer Emily Parker joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the challenges of running an alternative social media platform for civil discussion, and why some people will always be drawn to the virality Twitter affords.  

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From drug pricing to corporate debt and the much-anticipated Snap IPO, hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia talk with fellow FT journalists about the stories they'll be watching this year.  

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Izabella Kaminska and a panel of trading and markets experts analyse the film which launched thousands of trading careers and made frozen orange juice futures a household name, the 1983 classic Trading Places. Music credit: "The Marriage of Figaro", composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. Published by Musopen, 2012.  

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What do some people misunderstand about the white working class in the US and UK? Law professor and author Joan Williams explains. Then, Alphaville's Alex Scaggs and Matt Klein join host Cardiff Garcia to review the year in finance and economics.  

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The investment consultant and author of "Winning the Loser's Game" joins the FT's John Authers to debate the merits of index investing, the subject of his latest book "The Index Revolution: Why Investors Should Join It Now".  

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Journalist and television anchor Joe Weisenthal joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the way social media has heralded a new era for language that resembles Homeric Greece more than the age of enlightenment.  

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Cardiff Garcia sits down with Nicholas Wapshott, author of Keynes Hayek: The Clash that Defined Modern Economics, to discuss which economist's ideas are ascendant in the post-crisis cycle, and why both will matter during the Trump administration. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Cuban dissident and independent journalist Miriam Leiva speaks with Cardiff Garcia about the death of Fidel Castro, the reaction of Cubans, and her hopes for the economic and diplomatic relationship between Cuba and the US.  

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In the second edition of Alphachat's movie review, Izabella Kaminska leads a panel in discussing the economic and financial themes buried in Charlie Chaplin's most iconic films: The Gold Rush, City Lights and Modern Times, and the parallels between the economic landscape then and now.  

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The US Alphaville team breaks down the potential macroeconomic and financial-market effects of a Trump presidency, with special guest Aswath Damodaran, professor of finance at New York University.  

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Cardiff Garcia visits co-host Shannon Bond on maternity leave to dig into the real and intangible costs of child rearing, with an assist from some recent data. Then, Catherine Rampell stops by the studio to explain the new economics of marriage.  

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Researchers Colin Camerer and Cary Frydman recently uncovered new facts about the psychological and neuroscientific processes that influence our financial decision making habits. They join host Cardiff Garcia to discuss further.  

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Alan Greenspan's reputation over five decades in public life has gone through wilder swings than the value of technology stocks or Las Vegas real estate during his tenure as Federal Reserve chairman. Author Sebastian Mallaby has produced the definitive account of Mr Greenspan's life, career, and the context in which he operated in a new book, The Man Who Knew. He joins FT Alphaville's Matt Klein to discuss.  

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Buried deep in this week's US election news was a fresh analysis of the candidates' tax plans from the Tax Policy Center. Cardiff Garcia is joined by the FT's Mary Childs and Alex Scaggs to discuss the inverse impacts of the two economic proposals. The three also discuss what triggered the flash crash of the pound. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Tim Harford tells Cardiff Garcia how disorder, messiness and confusion can have surprising benefits, often making us more creative and resilient. It is the subject of Tim's latest book titled Messy: The power of disorder to transform our lives. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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The FT's Cardiff Garcia talks to writer Ryan Avent about the importance of social capital in an increasingly digitised and labour-abundant economy. The two also discuss recent shifts in global monetary policy. Ryan is a columnist at The Economist and author of the new book, "The Wealth of Humans". Visit FT.com/Alphachatfor show notes and links.  

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Citi's chief global political analyst Tina Fordham joins Cardiff Garcia for a trip around the global economy to discuss the economic risks of either a Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton victory in November. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Forecasts about geopolitics and economics are often distorted by flawed institutional incentives and a range of cognitive biases. Dan Drezner, a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, tells Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs how forecasters typically go wrong, and he outlines what he calls the five "known unknowns" that will frame the political economy of the next generation. The three also discuss the foreign policy views of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Sociologist Arlie Hochschild spent five years in the Louisiana bayou as part of her study of the American right. Hochschild tells host Cardiff Garcia how Donald Trump's nomination has appealed to the Louisiana residents who feel their story has increasingly been ignored. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Corporate villains are sometimes behind sudden increases in drug prices, but these unwanted surprises are often the result of a complicated and opaque healthcare system. The FT's David Crow joins Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs to discuss in this snack-sized episode of the weekly podcast. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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The price of milk in Canada is disproportionately higher than it is in the US or even France, thanks to a government policy known as Supply Management implemented in the 1970s to protect dairy farmers from market instability. What does this policy mean in practice and how does it affect Canada's involvement in global trade? FT Alphaville's Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein discuss with guest George Pearkes, Canadian expat and macroeconomic strategist at Bespoke Investment Group. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Alphaville's Izzy Kaminska leads a rousing panel analysing the economic and financial themes as well as the two visions of the tech industry portrayed in the Tron movies.  

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The 2015 MacArthur Genius Grant recipient and MIT professor joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss her work on the incentive systems that drive innovation in medical technology, including the effect of patents on the development of early stage cancer drug treatments. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes.  

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FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska leads Gavyn Davies, chairman of Fulcrum Asset Management and an FT blogger, and Tyler Cowen, professor of economics at George Mason University, in a discussion on the forces causing productivity stagnation. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. This conversation was recorded at the FT Festival of Finance on July 1, 2016  

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What are the economic and social tradeoffs of deciding where to live and how can one measure these? An economist at the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis joins Cardiff Garcia and Kara Scannell to discuss a system he developed for this exact purpose. Then, how did a failing business promoting mixed martial arts grow to become a global brand valued at $4bn? Cardiff talks the economics of the sport with John S. Nash, a writer for the UFC and MMA industry website Bloodyelbow.com. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Economists, analysts and bloggers in attendance at the FT's Festival of Finance weigh in on the global economic activity we might be missing because of Brexit-myopia. Then Cardiff Garcia quizzes Tyler Cowen, blogger and economist at George Mason University, in a game of "Overrated, Underrated", and guest co-host Kara Scannell discusses JP Morgan's lift in bank teller wages. Visit FT.com/Alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Tim Harford joins host Cardiff Garcia to discuss the potential economic effects of the UK leaving the EU. The referendum campaigns that preceded Brexit included a number of exaggerations and, in some cases, outright lies. But there are also nuanced and difficult questions that cannot be answered definitively, and deserve careful scrutiny. Music by Minden.  

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During normal economic cycles, increasing credit hides an economy's deeper problems, but when a financial crisis hits, all of that credit flips from shock absorber to shock multiplier. Professor of economics Alan Taylor explains his research. Then, FT journalists discuss some of the biggest shocks of 2016, including the change in perception at the Fed over what type of monetary policy would benefit the US economy. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Across the US, McDonald's restaurants serve an underappreciated role: as defacto community centres for people at the margins of society. It's a story chronicled by bond trader-turned-journalist Chris Arnade, who talks to the FT's Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs about why this happened. They also discuss how access to education shapes modern American society, and whether Wall Street employees have been punished enough for the role played by their industry in the 2008 financial crisis. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Finding a balance between work and your personal life matters not just to you and your family; it can also make companies and the economy in general more productive. Economist and author Heather Boushey joins Cardiff Garcia and Mary Childs to discuss the many policy provisions, from paid family leave to flexible work schedules, that could improve this productivity, and Cardiff and Mary dive deeper into hedge fund culture. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Maria Konnikova, a writer and author of “The Confidence Game: Why We Fall For It… Every Time” talks to host Cardiff Garcia about her work and the challenge of judging the quality of social-science research. The two also discuss big data, open-plan offices, sleep and the psychological effects of pornography. Maria also describes the methods and traits of con artists, and explains why everyone is susceptible to being a victim.  

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Many investors are questioning the benefit of allocating chunks of their money to hedge funds after recent bouts of financial market turbulence and poor performance. The FT's US financial correspondent Mary Childs joins Cardiff Garcia to discuss the big players and their idiosyncratic personalities, contentious issues like fees and benchmarking metrics, and the institutional lack of diversity among top fund managers. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Guy Debelle, assistant governor at the Reserve Bank of Australia, discusses with Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein how decisions by the Federal Reserve have an effect on Australian monetary policy (and how they don't), Australia's experience with capital account liberalisation, fluctuations in the Chinese economy, and the foreign exchange code of conduct from the Bank of International Settlements.  

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The former chairman of the Federal Reserve talks to host Cardiff Garcia about the years prior to his inflation-fighting days of the 1980s, including his economics education, early career at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and US treasury, and his role in ending the Bretton Woods system of global finance. Visit FT.com/alphachat for a full transcript of the interview.  

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In the second half of the extended interview, former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker discusses his appointment as president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank of New York, his famous tenure as Fed chair in the 1980s, and some of his thoughts on the current financial system. Hosted by Cardiff Garcia. Visit FT.com/alphachat for a full transcript of the interview.  

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What does it mean for a private equity firm to value its investments accurately? FT Alphaville's Matt Klein joins host Cardiff Garcia to address this surprisingly tricky question. Then, anthropologist Tassie Hirschfeld discusses the political economy of the criminal underworld, a topic rarely examined in conventional economics. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Why do many Americans have trouble saving money for emergencies? Economist Allison Schrager debates this question and the impact of oil prices on spending with hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond. Then, the FT's Kara Scannell explains why foreigners are sending their money to South Dakota to set up family trusts. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show links and notes. Music by Minden.  

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Economist turned author Caroline Webb joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to talk about her new book How To Have a Good Day, in which she dissects 25 years worth of behavioural science research to explain everything from productivity to our most personal relationships. Caroline sticks around to discuss the dilemma of how to quantify the impact on the economy of status-seeking behaviour.  

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In the final episode of a four-part series on sovereign bankruptcy, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth tells the story of Jamaica's fiscal turnaround, which took a punitive austerity programme and a dose of good luck.  

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In the third of a four-episode series, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth examines the novel but controversial way Greece restructured €200bn of its debts, which demonstrated potential improvements to the messy sovereign debt restructuring process.  

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In the second of a four episode series the FT's Robin Wigglesworth examines what happened when Argentina defaulted on $80bn of its bonds in 2001, at the time the biggest sovereign default in history.  

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In the first episode of a four part series on sovereign bankruptcy, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth looks at how and when countries fall into distress, and examines whether Italy's debts are sustainable.  

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Economist Brad DeLong examines three key but underappreciated events in economic history with host Cardiff Garcia. Then, author and former banker Satyajit Das discusses a variety of stagnationist trends that he says could yield an economic disaster worse than the Great Recession if something doesn't change, as outlined in his recent book The Age of Stagnation. Plus a conversation about starting a new career at middle age. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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In an episode dedicated to investing and quantitative analysis, hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia are joined by US markets editor Robin Wigglesworth to discuss quirky new alternative data that money managers use to make investment decisions. Robin also offers some insight into what first quarter earnings indicate for corporate performance in 2016. Then, the FT's John Authers talks to Meb Faber of Cambria Investment Management about cloning the strategies of the world's most famous and aggressive active investors, the subject of Faber's recent book Invest with the House. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Minden.  

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Psychologist Anders Ericsson, author of Peak: Secrets from the new science of expertise, joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to discuss his career's findings in the way people become experts in their fields. Then, the FT's Matt Garrahan discusses who could become the next leader of Disney, where the question of who would succeed Bob Iger as CEO has been thrown wide open by this week's exit of chief operating officer Tom Staggs. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Wearable technology, including the Apple Watch and Google Glass, has been limited in appearance and functionality, but Amanda Parkes, chief technologist at Manufacture NY, thinks it has a promising future. She joins hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond to discuss the relationship between technology and fashion and the privacy issues for the wearables of the future. Then, the FT's David Crow explains the latest developments in the Valeant and Theranos sagas. Plus a quick debate about executive pay and the public humiliation premium. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes.  

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In light of US president Barack Obama's historic trip to Havana co-hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond discuss the state of the Cuban economy, including the evolution of the dual currency system, new opportunity for foreign investment and Mr Obama's attempt to claw away at the trade embargo. Then, economist Caroline Freund describes the relationship between the emergence of billionaires in poor countries and the ability of those countries to move quickly up the development ladder, the topic of her new book Rich People, Poor Countries. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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David Burkus, author of Under New Management, joins co-hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia to debate the merits and pitfalls of open-plan offices, transparent salary structures and unlimited vacation policies. Then, Citi's chief global political risk analyst, Tina Fordham, discusses the extent to which the economy effectively prices in political risk, and reveals the findings from her recent paper on the missed potential of women in the global economy. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Economist David Beckworth discusses his case for measuring the economy with nominal GDP targetting as well as a recent op-ed in which he blames the Federal Reserve for the severity of the 2008 recession. Then, FT equities correspondent Nicole Bullock breaks down the war between the IEX trading venue made popular in Michael Lewis's Flashboys, and the incumbents, NYSE and Nasdaq. Plus, a look inside the corporate jet scene at top US companies, as well as long form reading and listening recommendations. Visit FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Just as the US 2016 election race is heating up, Gary Johnson, former governor of New Mexico and Libertarian candidate making his second bid for the White House, discusses his immigration, fiscal and monetary policy, as well as legalising marijuana. Then, hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond take a deep dive into the world of campaign finance. Tracking the funding of the 2016 campaign, the Center for Responsive Politics looks at who can spend money on political campaigns, how much they can spend, and more about the dark money. FT reporters also provide despatches from the Democratic and Republican primary races. Go to FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Author and hedge fund manager Jeff Gramm talks to the FT's John Authers about the biggest boardroom battles of the last century, from the proxyteers of the 1950s, to the corporate raiders of the 80s and the hedge fund activists of today. Then, in an excerpt from the FT's Alphachatterbox podcast, writer and NYU Shanghai professor Clay Shirky outlines the rise of Chinese phone maker Xiaomi, a company considered to be the most valuable startup of all time. Go to FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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A thinking, learning and trading computer could one day outwit the brightest fund manager. US markets editor Robin Wigglesworth explains how hedge funds are turning to artificial intelligence and computer scientists to develop algorithms that can spot market trends with break-neck speed. Then, Mohamed El-Erian discusses his new book "The Only Game in Town" as well as his roadmap for avoiding the next market collapse, with the FT's senior investment commentator John Authers. Plus a proposal for a new hemp derivatives market is examined by commodities reporter Greg Meyer. Go to FT.com/alphachat for show notes.  

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More than 30 years after China instituted the one-child policy to temper population growth, the country's demographics have greatly transformed. Author Mei Fong joins hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia to talk about the societal and economic implications of the policy, the subject of her book "One Child". Later, the blood testing device developed by Theranos was expected to disrupt the healthcare sector, but that seems less likely now that it has run into regulatory trouble. FT journalists David Crow and Sujeet Indap discuss. Go to FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links.  

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Peking University professor Michael Pettis visits the FT to discuss the role that debt plays in the rebalancing of the Chinese economy. Then, Trump's bombastic stump speeches and interviews have been a ratings boon for US media. Global media editor Matt Garrahan joins hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia to explain how the 'Trump Effect' has impacted conservative talk radio and television shows. Go to FT.com/alphachat for show notes and links. Music by Yeyey and Minden. Clips courtesy of The Laura Ingraham Show and The Rush Limbaugh Show.  

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Corporate short-termism, or a company's tendency to reduce internal investment and focus on share price and dividend payments, is widely criticised by economists and politicians for its effect on the stock market. Michael Mauboussin, head of global financial strategies at Credit Suisse, explains his skepticism about this consensus. Then, a recent Goldman Sachs report suggests more millennials lived in their parents' homes in 2015 than the year before, despite a strengthening jobs market. The FT's Anna Nicolaou joins Cardiff and Shannon to discuss what's holding millennials back despite the fact that they are not unemployed. Finally, Lex writer Sujeet Indap shares a tale of two Wall St bankers. Music by Podington Bear and Broke For Free.  

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As malware becomes easier for even non-technical bad actors to use, the risk of sensitive information being compromised becomes ever greater. FT investigations correspondent Kara Scannell sheds light on some of the biggest security threats facing companies in 2016. Then, Alphaville's Matt Klein offers some explanations on the new year market jitters. Finally, the clash between Detroit's automakers and Silicon Valley's tech giants in the race to create the smartest vehicle. The FT's US industry correspondent Robert Wright explains how they might end up working together. Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia host. Go to ft.com/alphachat for show notes. Music by Podington Bear and Kevin MacLeod.  

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The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum kicks off in Davos next week, replete with captains of industry and world leaders. The FT's US managing editor Gillian Tett and Fusion's senior editor Felix Salmon join host Cardiff Garcia to debate the merits of the gathering of the rich and powerful in the Swiss Alps. They also discuss the theme of privacy in an age of enhanced security measures and new technology. Finally, with the workforces of several developed countries expected to shrink in the near future, Alphaville's Matt Klein dissects the economics of ageing populations. Go to ft.com/alphachat for show notes. Music by Podington Bear and Kevin MacLeod.  

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President Barack Obama intends to expand background checks on gun sales and target online firearm marketplaces like Armslist.com that have created a loophole for people prohibited from purchasing guns. US policy correspondent Barney Jopson explains. Then, as the Consumer Electronics Show wraps up in Las Vegas, correspondents Leslie Hook and Tim Bradshaw talk about the latest tech gadgets on display at the conference, including new developments in virtual reality and a smart phone-controlled running shoe. Finally, hosts Shannon Bond and Cardiff Garcia offer a few predictions for 2016. Music by: Blue Dot Sessions, Minden and Kevin MacLeod. Go to ft.com/alphachat for show notes.  

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In a year when the Federal Reserve announced the first interest rate rise since the financial crisis, mergers and acquisitions activity brought record-breaking deals, Silicon Valley's unicorn companies continued to raise large rounds of funding, and property tycoon Donald Trump topped the polls in the Republican primary race, US reporters and editors at the FT discuss how the biggest stories of 2015 will impact what is to come in 2016. Music by Minden and Kevin MacLeod.  

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Cuban dissident Miriam Leiva speaks with Cardiff Garcia in Havana about the life of her late husband, Oscar Espinosa Chepe, an economist with an irrepressible instinct to tell the truth to a government that did not want to hear it – for which he was repeatedly and severely punished. Then Gary Silverman on a trip to Arizona, where he discovered a free travel zone for Mexican shoppers who want to cross the border. Finally, a review of “Hamilton”, the hip-hop Broadway musical depicting the life of US founding father Alexander Hamilton, which has become a cultural phenomenon. Music credits: Boom Boom Beckett, Blue Dot Sessions, A Ninja Slob Drew Me, Nick Jaina, Will Bangs, The Womb, Kevin MacLeod. Hamilton musical credits: Original Broadway cast/Warner Music  

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Economists widely agree that Janet Yellen and the Fed board will lift interest rates at the December 16 meeting but expectations vary just as much when it comes to longer term monetary policy. Capital markets correspondent Eric Platt joins Shannon Bond to discuss. Then, a shrinking in America's middle class to less than 50 per cent of the population for the first time since the early 1970s comes under examination from Washington-based FT correspondents Sam Fleming and Shawn Donnan. Finally, economist Claudia Goldin explains a theory about narrowing the gender pay gap in certain occupations. Music by Salmo and Kevin MacLeod.  

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Author Sean Silcoff calls in from Toronto to discuss the rise and fall of BlackBerry, the topic of the book he co-wrote, "Losing the Signal". Then, Patrick Chovanec of Silvercrest Asset Management discusses the IMF's plan to include the renminbi in its basket of reserve currencies. Finally, why is one Chicago group pushing back against George Lucas's gift of a museum for the city? Neil Munshi discusses with host Shannon Bond. Music by Kevin MacLeod, The Womb and Kai Engel.  

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Car sales in the US are set to hit a record high this year, helped by the post-recession resurgence of the sport utility vehicle. As President Barack Obama prepares to visit Paris next week for the UN climate change conference, host Shannon Bond asks FT journalists Ed Luce and Robert Wright what the SUV boom means for the government's efforts to steer Americans toward more fuel-efficient vehicles. Then, the FT's Robin Wigglesworth and Matt Klein examine how a $2bn IMF-led bailout program is helping to right the Jamaican economy, and Shannon previews the latest episode of Alphachatterbox. Music: "Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod.  

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The Rise of the Robots author Martin Ford stops by to discuss his pessimistic outlook on the future of automation after winning the FT-McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award this week. Then, San Francisco correspondent Hannah Kuchler breaks down how Facebook is turning to user data to power its artificial intelligence products. Finally, US retail sales are lagging in advance of the critical holiday shopping season, even as total consumer spending grows. FT correspondents Lindsay Whipp and Eric Platt offer some explanations. Music: "Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod.  

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When "Reclaiming Conversation" author Sherry Turkle sat down with co-host Shannon Bond, she had more to say than could fit in this week's episode of Alphachat. Ms Turkle talks about the effect of screens and smart phones on office conversation and productivity, and how to create device-free zones at work.  

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Sherry Turkle, clinical psychologist and MIT professor, stops by to speak with host Shannon Bond on how our addiction to our tech devices has stunted our ability to converse with friends, family and colleagues - the topic of her new book "Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age". Then, FT journalists break down the differences in valuing public and private tech companies, especially the so-called unicorn startups. Finally, a preview of the latest Alphachatterbox episode featuring development economist Esther Duflo. Music: "Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod.  

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HBO announced this week that the company will embark on a four year production deal with the former Comedy Central star, beginning with short-form content for the channel's digital platforms. Co-hosts Cardiff Garcia and Shannon Bond discuss how Stewart's new role signals HBO's move to focus on growing its online-only audience. In the latest sign of the mounting difficulties faced by Bill Gross, George Soros has pulled $500 million from Janus Capital. What's going on with the former Pimco bond king? FT financial and investment correspondents explain. Then, Joseph Coughlin of the MIT Age Lab says the future of aging is about to become more enjoyable. Cardiff travels to the lab to find out more. Music: "Plain Loafer" by Kevin MacLeod.  

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Alphachat went on the road this week to visit Angus Deaton at Princeton University. Host Cardiff Garcia previews a few excerpts from his conversation with the 2015 Nobel Prize in economics winner. Then, the rush of activity in the pharmaceutical sector, including a potential Pfizer and Allergan mega-deal, is discussed by pharma correspondent David Crow.  

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The new memoir of former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, titled The Courage to Act, is discussed by US economics editor Sam Fleming and Cardiff Garcia, and how Mr Bernanke's legacy might affect the way in which the current Federal Reserve board decides to raise interest rates. Then a debate about the future of video content creators as streaming services take the place of traditional television with media editor Matt Garrahan and correspondent Shannon Bond. Finally, the surprisingly global reverberations of the Canadian federal election and the rise of Justin Trudeau's Liberal party is examined by reporters Matt Klein and Anna Nicolaou.  

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Guest host Shannon Bond speaks to FT correspondents about the blockbuster AB Inbev deal with SABMiller and what it will mean, if approved by regulators, for the beer market. Then, Matt Lieber of podcast network Gimlet Media stops by to talk about the company behind the popular StartUp podcast. Finally, Shannon previews an excerpt from the Alphachatterbox conversation with economics commentator Greg Ip on his new book Foolproof: Why safety can be dangerous and how danger makes us safe.  

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Media correspondent Shannon Bond asks San Francisco correspondent Hannah Kuchler and management editor Andrew Hill what Jack Dorsey's dual CEO roles at the messaging company and payments group Square mean for both companies' future. Producer Aimee Keane reports from the annual #FTPubQuiz in New York. Finally, Cardiff Garcia previews one more excerpt from his long-form Alphachatterbox interview with chief economics commentator Martin Wolf.  

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In this episode of Alphachat, Cardiff Garcia previews an interview with Anne-Marie Slaughter about her newly released book, Unfinished Business, on gender equality in the workplace and at home. Shannon Bond calls in from Washington to explain how the visit to the US of President Xi Jinping of China was eclipsed in US media by coverage of Pope Francis, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Finally, author Emily Parker stops by to discuss the political and societal implications of expanding internet access in Cuba.  

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Host Cardiff Garcia previews an in-depth interview with the FT's chief economics commentator, Martin Wolf, who has just finished a new afterword for his book, The Shifts and the Shocks; Business correspondent David Crow discusses the sharp falls in biotech stocks following Hillary Clinton's pledge this week to crack down on the growing cost of prescription drugs; John Authers speaks to Nobel Laureate Robert Shiller about his new book, Phishing for Phools. Plus, Cardiff reveals details of a new FT podcast.  

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In this episode of Alphachat, host Cardiff Garcia and FT media correspondent Shannon Bond assess the winners and losers of a disappointing debate among Republican candidates for the White House. Then, San Francisco correspondent Hannah Kuchler calls in to discuss the growing success of YouTube video stars. Finally, Cardiff and fellow Alphavillian Matt Klein reflect on the much anticipated rate decision from the Federal Reserve board.  

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The Federal Reserve board meets next week to decide on whether or not it will raise US interest rates. Host Cardiff Garcia speaks to US markets editor Robin Wigglesworth and US economics editor Sam Fleming about the potential implications. Then, John Authers sits down with Andrew Ang, head of factor investment at Blackrock and business professor at Columbia University, to discuss sovereign wealth funds and much more.  

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Host Cardiff Garcia is joined by Ella Atkins, professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan, to discuss the technology, regulatory issues and potential risks of the commercial use of unmanned aerial vehicles.  

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Host Cardiff Garcia sits down with Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel Prize-winning economist and professor at Columbia University, to discuss a new report from the Roosevelt Institute titled “Rewriting the rules of the American economy: An agenda for growth and shared prosperity”. Mr Stiglitz answers listener questions on the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Greek economy.  

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This week's episode features two very different topics. Patrick Chovanec of Silvercrest Asset Management joins Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein to discuss devaluation of the renminbi and other imbalances in the Chinese economy. FT correspondents Shannon Bond and David Crow examine concerns raised over Flibanserin, the newly approved drug for hypoactive sexual desire disorder.  

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Host Cardiff Garcia is joined by fellow Alphavillian Matt Klein to discuss "People's QE", a plan proposed by Jeremy Corbyn in his campaign for UK Labour Party leadership; John Authers discusses the rise of index providers and the potentially destabilising consequences for financial markets; Shannon Bond examines the values placed on digital media groups Buzzfeed and Vox.  

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Hosts Cardiff Garcia and Matt Klein respond to listener questions about young people and monetary policy; Sujeet Indap investigates the fate of bank analysts 15 years after their start; Robin Wigglesworth guides us through Puerto Rico's showdown with creditors; and Anna Nicolaou previews the Canadian elections.  

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In this episode of Alphachat, host Cardiff Garcia is joined by Gillian Tett and Ben McLannahan to discuss the future of the FT under new ownership; Gillian offers a preview of The Silo Effect, her forthcoming new book; and Alphaville writer Matt Klein reflects on a hassle-free trip to Greece despite the country's economic upheaval.  

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On this episode of FT Alphachat, Shannon Bond and Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson discuss the fallout for Gawker after a bad editorial decision; Lex's Rob Armstrong guides listeners through the tech sector; and Kara Scannell and Matt Garrahan reflect on the Fifa scandals. Cardiff Garcia hosts.  

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Shannon Bond explains why presidential campaigns are spending so much on social media platforms, Allison Schrager predicts how men will cope with a post-industrial economy, and Joe Rennison guides listeners through the Treasury flash crash of October 15th. Cardiff Garcia hosts. Credits: Rickperry.org and will.i.am Music Group.  

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Alphaville's Cardiff Garcia talks to FT media reporter Shannon Bond and Buzzfeed's Nick Quah about the podcast renaissance, and they also recommend a few of their favourite podcasts to FT listeners  

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The FT Alphaville team reviews the key stories of the year, from the Russia crisis and the oil crash, to the company known as Quindell and the rise of secular stagnation theory.  

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In this episode of FT Alphaville's semi-frequent podcast, Cardiff Garcia hosts Diane Coyle and Tyler Cowen to discuss their economics books of the year.  

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In this episode of FT Alphaville's semi-frequent podcast, Cardiff Garcia hosts Diane Coyle and Tyler Cowen to discuss their economics books of the year.  

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Izzy Kaminska and David Keohane talk to Anat Admati and Frances Coppola about banking fragility, capital requirements, and banks crying wolf.  

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In this episode of Alphachat, Alphaville reporters Izabella Kaminska and David Keohane chat to repo market specialist Scott Skyrm about the fall of MF Global.  

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In this edition of Alphachat's painfully regular podcast Cardiff Garcia and Izabella Kaminska are joined by Illah Nourbakhsh, Professor of Robotics at The Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University to discuss a very robot future.  

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In this edition of Alphaville's exceedingly regular podcast, Cardiff Garcia, Kate MacKenzie and David Keohane chat to Michael Pettis Professor of Finance at Peking University about China's growth rate, the Shibor spike and associated drive to constrain credit growth, the risk of social unrest and the dangers of social control, and the state of the Chinese music scene... naturally.  

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In this episode of FT Alphaville's bizarrely regular podcast, Cardiff Garcia and Izabella Kaminska are joined by Manmohan Singh, a senior economist and collateral specialist at the IMF.  

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FT Alphaville's frankly frequent podcast continues with another look at Abenomics. This episode features Alphaville's Cardiff Garcia and Izabella Kaminska alongside guest Noah Smith.  

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In which Alphaville's David Keohane and Kate Mackenzie chat about Abenomics -- its progress, goals and endgame -- with Citi's G10 chief FX strategist Steven Englander.  

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FT capital markets correspondent Robin Wigglesworth and FT Alphaville reporter Joseph Cotterill talk to Lee Buchheit, Cleary Gottlieb lawyer and sovereign debt restructuring expert.  

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FT Alphaville's Izabella Kaminska, David Keohane and Simon Hinrichsen spent some time rambling about negative rates, that most curious of potential policy moves being considered by the European Central Bank.  

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It's another Alphachat, our now reasonably frequent podcast. This time Izzy, Cardiff and David meander from gold and bitcoin, via the Bank of Japan all the way to Slovenia.  

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Alphaville chats about Cyprus, capital controls, Argentina's ongoing sovereign debt restructuring trial of the century and the Fed.  

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FT Alphaville hosts a free-wheeling podcast to discuss currency wars, debt monetisation, the G20, mobile payments, and US immigration. They also answer readers' questions. Featuring turns by Lisa Pollack, Izzy Kaminska, David Keohane, Joseph Cotterill and Cardiff Garcia  

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Jan Hatzius, the chief US economist for Goldman Sachs, explains to FT Alphaville’s Cardiff Garcia why he expects US growth to slow in the first half of 2012. Mr Hatzius says the US economy is particularly vulnerable to European banks with significant US holdings.  

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In this edition, Cardiff Garcia talks with Sal Arnuk, co-head of Themis Trading, about high frequency trading and the fragmented trading infrastructure in the US. Among the topics covered are the regulatory and technological reasons for the dramatic changes of the last decade, high frequency traders' role in the flash crash and how they might contribute to another, and why academic support for HFT falls short.  

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In this edition, Cardiff Garcia talks with Peking University finance professor Michael Pettis about the limits of China's economic model, why we shouldn't trust the country's growth numbers, and the state of its banking system. Pettis also shares what it's like to run a nightclub and manage an indie record label in Beijing.  

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