Eye in the Sky

Radiolab

WNYC Studios

History, Science, Documentary, Natural Sciences, Society & Culture

4.6 • 44.5K Ratings

🗓️ 9 June 2023

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Ross McNutt has a superpower: he can zoom in on everyday life, then rewind and fast-forward to solve crimes in a shutter-flash. But should he? In 2004, when casualties in Iraq were rising due to roadside bombs, Ross McNutt and his team came up with an idea. With a small plane and a 44 megapixel camera, they figured out how to watch an entire city all at once, all day long. Whenever a bomb detonated, they could zoom into that spot and then, because this eye in the sky had been there all along, they could scroll back in time and see—literally see—who planted it. After the war, Ross McNutt retired from the Air Force, and brought this technology back home with him. Manoush Zomorodi and Alex Goldmark (from the podcast Note to Self) give us the lowdown on Ross’ unique brand of persistent surveillance, from Juarez, Mexico to Dayton, Ohio. Then, once we realize what we can do, we wonder whether we should. Our newsletter comes out every Wednesday. It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up (https://radiolab.org/newsletter)! Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today. Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing radiolab@wnyc.org Leadership support for Radiolab’s science programming is provided by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Science Sandbox, a Simons Foundation Initiative, and the John Templeton Foundation. Foundational support for Radiolab was provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, lots of here. I am currently spolunking in the
0:05.1	Radio Lab archives. There are tons of gems in here
0:08.7	And I'm excited to tell you about the one we have resurfaced this week for your listening pleasure
0:14.9	But before I do a quick announcement our very own senior producer
0:20.3	Simon Adler is continuing his epic mix tape series with a live event in New York City in the green space
0:29.2	It is called mix tape to the moon how the cassette changed the world he's doing two performances the evening of June 22nd
0:37.1	I've already seen the show. It's great. It's so great in fact that I'm going to see it again
0:42.8	And if you're not in New York City, you can still see it. You can live stream it
0:46.5	Check it out at wnyc.org slash the green space green has an e at the end. So it's g-r-e-e and e
0:55.2	wnyc.org slash the green space. Okay
1:00.4	Let's talk about the episode shall we I feel like sometimes when I am
1:04.6	Introducing these reruns. It's like oh here is a lovely little piece of candy for you
1:10.8	Have fun, you know
1:12.8	This is not that this is not a fun sized candy bar
1:17.8	This is it feels more like I'm like
1:20.7	Unshi-thing a double edged sword for you to kind of
1:25.6	Marvel at and ponder over
1:28.4	um and and even though this double edged sword was produced in
1:33.0	2015 it is still now as sharp as ever the story was reported by
1:38.8	Manouche Summer Odie and Emils and Alex Goldmark. Here it is. I in this guy
1:50.6	I
1:53.3	Listening to radio lab radio from wnyc
	...

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