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Biotechnology

We talked to one of MIT’s best economists about the covid-19 recession

John Van Reenen says success in restarting our economy depends on trust in the government, the quality of our health care, and our ability to monitor those with covid-19.
April 13, 2020

Update: This episode has ended.

In this episode of Radio Corona, Jennifer Strong, our audio and live journalism editor, spoke with economist John Van Reenen about how to make effective policy to salvage the global economy. 

Reenen is a professor of Applied Economics at MIT and recently won the National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) research award for his paper “The Price Ain’t Right? Hospital Prices and Health Spending on the Privately Insured”. He is a member of the MIT Task Force on the Work of the Future.  He is also an officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to Economics and Public Policy Making and a recipient on Yrjö Jahnsson Award.

Our editor-at-large David Rotman advocated that we might be able to stop the spread of covid-19 and save the economy. We encourage you to read it before the live web show. 

This episode was recorded on April 14, 2020. You can watch it below.

Deep Dive

Biotechnology

The first babies conceived with a sperm-injecting robot have been born

Meet the startups trying to engineer a desktop fertility machine.

Doctors have performed brain surgery on a fetus in one of the first operations of its kind

A baby girl who developed a life-threatening brain condition was successfully treated before she was born—and is now a healthy seven-week-old.

A brain implant changed her life. Then it was removed against her will.

Her case highlights why we need to enshrine neuro rights in law.

The FDA just approved rub-on gene therapy that helps “butterfly” children

Biotech companies are getting creative with how they deliver DNA fixes into people's bodies.

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