Water and Dams

Water and Dams

Top of Mind with Julie Rose - Radio Archive, Episode 117 , Segment 6

Episode: Gun Crime Data, Big Families Sick More, Disruptive Technology

  • Aug 11, 2015 9:00 pm
  • 15:07 mins

Guest: Daniel Beard, Ph.D., Former Commissioner of the US Bureau of Reclamation.  As drought continues its grip on much of the Western United States, communities are being forced to rethink their ideas about water. Daniel Beard says we’ve too long taken for granted the availability of cheap, abundant water. And he says our national policies of damming and diverting rivers are partly to blame for that mindset.  During a recent visit to BYU, he spoke with Marcus Smith, host of Thinking Aloud on BYU Radio.

Other Segments

Governments Better Prepare Now

15 MINS

Guest: Kevin Desouza, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Research at Arizona State University.  Imagine for a moment that you’re the mayor of a city. Could be any city, really. And you’re thinking about the not-too-distant future, when driverless cars will be commonplace on your city streets. What we know about these cars so far suggests we’ll see fewer accidents due to things like drunkenness or distraction. Roads will be less congested because cars will drive more efficiently than we humans. Even street lights could be programmed to work optimally with the automated vehicles. Sounds great, yeah?  But if you’re a mayor, this change probably ought to bring with it a sense of foreboding. All the revenues you’ve been collecting for your city budget from parking and speeding tickets? Wave goodbye to them.

Guest: Kevin Desouza, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Research at Arizona State University.  Imagine for a moment that you’re the mayor of a city. Could be any city, really. And you’re thinking about the not-too-distant future, when driverless cars will be commonplace on your city streets. What we know about these cars so far suggests we’ll see fewer accidents due to things like drunkenness or distraction. Roads will be less congested because cars will drive more efficiently than we humans. Even street lights could be programmed to work optimally with the automated vehicles. Sounds great, yeah?  But if you’re a mayor, this change probably ought to bring with it a sense of foreboding. All the revenues you’ve been collecting for your city budget from parking and speeding tickets? Wave goodbye to them.