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Could we use a space umbrella to cool down the planet?
Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall. A while ago, we asked...
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How will Providence make its buildings carbon neutral?
Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly. Where we take on huge problems, like the future of our planet, and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall. We’ve talked in past...
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How can buses become a climate solution?
Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall. When’s the last time...
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Why did I see a bunch of dead fish in the Providence River?
Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall. Today we’re answering a...
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What is Wilderness?
This episode is a rerun. It originally aired on February 27th, 2024. Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small...
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What are wilderness areas and why do they matter?
For decades wilderness areas have provided access and protection to millions of acres of land. Today, climate change is shifting how we think about the importance and management of these places. The...
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Are we close to 100% renewable energy?
For decades now, people have been installing solar panels, wind turbines and more to transition our energy to renewable sources – but we wondered, how’s it going? We turned to California's electric...
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Despite the name, flushable wipes are not flushable
Despite what the packaging says, flushable wipes should never be flushed down the toilet! They can cause blockages in the sewer system and create all kinds of problems. Just toss ‘em in the trash...
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Is climate change funny?
At Possibly we think a lot about how to make complicated climate science and policy easy to understand. And we’re not the only ones! Some comedians are playing an important role in re-thinking how we...
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How did the Narragansett Bay get so much cleaner?
During heavy rain, Providence's sewers used to get overwhelmed and dump untreated sewage into the Bay. But thanks to a project to increase the capacity of sewers, untreated sewage rarely makes it into...
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Are sewers the best way to deal with stormwater?
Paved surfaces like roads, sidewalks, and driveways send stormwater into our sewers, but engineering solutions that filter water through the ground can help keep our sewers and waterways clean. The...
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What can organisms that changed the world teach us about climate change?
A new book by Possibly’s founder Stephen Porder titled Elemental: How Five Elements Changed Earth’s Past and Will Shape Our Future, explores the rare times in Earth’s past when organisms changed the...
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Could we use gym equipment to make electricity?
Brown University's gym recently installed machines that turn kinetic energy into electricity. Could these machines put a dent in our energy needs? The post Could we use gym equipment to make...
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Should we use hydropanels to pull clean water out of thin air?
A new technology promises to suck water vapor out of the air and turn it into water that we can drink. How do they work and are these worthy investments? The post Should we use hydropanels to pull...
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What happened when young people sued Hawai’i’s Department of Transportation?
The two sides just reached a settlement that will have a major impact on the state's carbon emissions. The post What happened when young people sued Hawai’i’s Department of Transportation? appeared...
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Can a doctor give you a prescription for solar panels?
A new program at the Boston Medical Center says it prescribes solar panels to patients. But we wondered, what does that really mean? The post Can a doctor give you a prescription for solar panels?...
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How are doctors responding to climate change?
More medical schools are training their students on climate change. This week on Possibly we're taking a look at how your visit to the doctor might be changing. The post How are doctors responding to...
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Could we put solar panels on cars?
It turns out, student engineers, and one major car manufacturer are already trying the idea. But there are limits to how effective these panels can be. The post Could we put solar panels on cars?...
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Is climate change making turbulence worse?
Today we're taking a look at what causes in-flight turbulence and how rising temperatures might be making your flight bumpier. The post Is climate change making turbulence worse? appeared first on...
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Should I use a wooden pencil or a mechanical one?
Students at the Lincoln School have a question: should they be using wooden pencils or plastic mechanical ones? This week on Possibly we explain the answer, and how to find it. The post Should I use a...
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What happens to landfills when they close?
Rhode Island's biggest landfill is expected to fill up by 2043. And there are about 100 inactive landfills across the state. This made us wonder, what can be done with closed landfills? The post What...
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What is landfill gas and should we be using it as an energy source?
This week on Possibly we’re talking about landfills, the methane they create, and why some landfills are capturing it and using it as a source of energy. The post What is landfill gas and should we be...
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Why is it so cold in libraries?
If you’ve ever spent time in a library or art museum on a hot summer day, you might have felt way colder than you expected. On this episode of Possibly we break down the science of why libraries get...
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Where did all the plankton go?
Plankton form the basis of the food web in oceans and new research shows that the level of phytoplankton in Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay has dropped by half in the past 60 years. We wondered why....
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What is good gas mileage anymore?
There’s an urgent need to use less fossil fuels, and that includes cutting down on how much gasoline we put in our cars. Does that mean longstanding ideas about what counts as “good gas mileage” are...
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Why is using plastic a climate issue?
Everyone knows that plastic pollutes our environment. But it’s less obvious why plastic would create a lot of emissions. Today, we break down why plastic use is a climate change issue. The post Why is...
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Why is it so hard for factories to reach net zero emissions?
On Possibly, we've talked about how we can cut out greenhouse gas emissions from our homes and cars. But we wondered, how are factories and manufacturers working on this problem? The post Why is it so...
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Why are hospitals switching anesthesia?
Hospitals can be hotspots for greenhouse gas emissions. But Boston Medical Center is part of a movement of hospitals changing their anesthesia to cut their footprint. The post Why are hospitals...
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Can we count the number of people who die because of coal powerplants?
You probably know that coal power plants are bad for the climate, and for your health. But how do we know how much of an impact one coal power plant can have? Where does its pollution go? The post Can...
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Wild turkeys were locally extinct for decades. How did they come back?
Turkeys are more than just a Thanksgiving meal, they're part of forest ecosystems across the country. In this episode of Possibly, we take a look at how they made a major comeback in New England after...
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Can a game help you take effective climate action?
We played a climate game that is supposed to help you find the highest-impact changes you can make in your life to take effective climate action. Could games like this actually help address the...
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What do the numbers on the bottom of your plastic products mean?
If you've ever looked at the bottom of a plastic item, you may have seen a number surrounded by three arrows around it. Today we take a look into the meaning behind the numbers, and how they actually...
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No more coal for stockings in the UK
Britain recently announced the closure of the country’s last coal-fired power plant, as well as an ambitious new energy plan. This week on Possibly, we break down what happened. The post No more coal...
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Our resolutions for 2025
As we head into a new year, our Possibly team decided to think about all of our episodes, and how they might inspire our resolutions for 2025. Here’s what some of us had to say. The post Our...
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Could we just fire our trash into the sun?
We asked our listeners to send in their wildest ideas for addressing climate change. And one listener, thinking about all of the trash Americans throw into landfills, asked if we could send it...
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What happened to the Inflation Reduction Act?
In the summer of 2022 President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law. The law was the US’s largest investment in climate and clean energy ever. But what’s happened since then? Who has...
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What is the Conservative Climate Caucus?
With the second Trump administration underway, the Possibly team takes a look at a group hoping to shape the country's energy policy: a Republican caucus in the House of Representatives. The post What...
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How can hospitals cut their plastic waste?
Hospitals have to use a lot of single-use plastics to deliver care for patients. In today’s episode, we look at how one hospital is cutting down through their medical plastics recycling initiative....
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Are geothermal networks the future of heating and cooling?
A new program in Framingham, Massachusetts is leading the transition from gas to geothermal heating and cooling. The post Are geothermal networks the future of heating and cooling? appeared first on...
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When should I charge my electric car?
If you have an electric car, and you want to try to reduce the greenhouse gases that are created in order to power that car, when should you charge it? The post When should I charge my electric car?...
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How can schools fight food waste?
Wasted food takes up lots of space in landfills and, while getting a compost bin at home is great, it isn’t enough to solve the problem. This week, we investigate how schools are taking big steps...
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What can we learn from France about food waste?
Possibly’s founder and the Provost for sustainability at Brown University Stephen Porder recently visited a supermarket chain in France that sells products other stores would have thrown away. The...
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What does the Air Quality Index really mean?
Air pollution results in over 7 million deaths each year. In this episode of Possibly, we look at the most common way to measure air quality, the Air Quality Index, and what it means for you. The post...
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Are people moving because of climate change?
We hear a lot about climate migration—the idea that people will have to move as climate change makes some places unlivable. But is this something we’re still waiting for, or is it already happening?...
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Can we use ocean water to fight wildfires?
After fire hydrants ran dry during the wildfires in Los Angeles, listeners wondered why firefighters didn't just use ocean water to begin with. On this episode of Possibly, we explain the tradeoffs of...
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How can a lake contribute to climate change?
On this episode of Possibly, we’re taking a look at the Great Salt Lake. The lake has been shrinking for years, but it’s also doing something strange- it’s creating more greenhouse gas emissions than...
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How is climate change affecting home insurance?
Recent reports by the Senate Budget Committee and the Treasury found that climate change is already upending the US’s home insurance industry. The post How is climate change affecting home insurance?...
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Climate change is messing up our home insurance prices. What can states do?
Home insurance is supposed to help us recover from natural disasters, but climate change is disrupting the industry. This week on Possibly, we look at how states are responding to this problem. The...
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How do we solve the climate change home insurance crisis?
This week on Possibly, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse helps explain what options we have to address climate change’s impact on the home insurance industry. The post How do we solve the climate change home...
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Good News Abroad – China
The news about climate change efforts in the US hasn't been great lately. So Possibly is launching a new occasional series to highlight advances against climate change around the world. Up first:...
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