Show Notes
Every day, we throw things away. But "away" isn't a place, it's a system.
From curbside pickup to landfills, trash shapes cities, public health, and the environment in ways most of us never see.
Host Sony Kassam sits down with anthropologist Robin Nagle, who spent years riding garbage trucks in New York City, to help trace the hidden life of what we throw out—and asks the question that's harder to answer than it sounds: if garbage tells the story of who we are, what does ours say?
Guest:Robin Nagle, anthropologist, clinical professor at New York University, and author of Picking Up: On the Streets and Behind the Trucks with the Sanitation Workers of New York City
Join the knowledge collective:https://www.join1440.com
Credits:A production of Rhyme Media for 1440 MediaHost: Sony KassamProducer: Nicolo MajnoniEditor: Dan BobkoffFact-Checker: Alice JonesSound Designer: Jay CowitExecutive Producers (1440): Sony Kassam and Drew SteigerwaldExecutive Producer (Rhyme): Dan Bobkoff
About 1440: 1440 is a community for the knowledge-obsessed that helps curious people stay informed and inspired every day. We live in an age of limitless information but limited understanding. Algorithms decide what we see. Misinformation spreads faster than truth. And the tools meant to expand knowledge now distort it.
More from 1440 Explores
Plastic is in our clothes, our homes, our food packaging, and even our bodies. But just over a century ago, most of it didn’t exist.
Coffee was once put on trial. In 1511, the governor of Mecca brought it before the city's religious scholars to settle a single question: Is this drink dangerous?
Strength training prevents frailty as we age. Wards off cognitive decline. Improves glucose control, and more. But what is actually happening inside our bodies when we lift weights? And why is everyone suddenly talking about getting strong?
One of host Sony Kassam's earliest memories is witnessing an armed robbery at her family's convenience store. For nearly 30 years, she believed she knew exactly what happened—until she asked her mother to tell the story.
Congress is the first branch of the US government. The Constitution gives it the power to write laws, control federal spending, and declare war. So how did it become one of America's least trusted institutions, and why do presidents increasingly govern without it?