The melted snow has certainly raised water levels on the Charles, but I was able to mostly avoid flooding during a long run while I listened to talks for my #AcademicRunPlaylist!

First was an important talk by Corinne Low on career family tradeoffs at the Women and Public Policy Program at the Harvard Kennedy School. Low shows surprising trends around parental childcare time, unsurprising division of other household labor, and discusses implications for parental careers. Highly recommend https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtIXdWyFfYc

Next was an interesting talk by Oussama Khatib on designing human-robot systems for new types of work at MIT Robotics https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6baiESk-04

Next was a great talk by Fabian Stephany on experimental evidence for recruiter valuations of AI skills at PLAMADISO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa5GnPAiVzo

Next was the National Bureau of Economic Research economics of aging symposium. I particularly liked the talks by Nick Papageorge (economic losses prior to dementia diagnoses) and Todd Morris (welfare effects of protecting older workers) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkvhwJNZYU8

Next was a compelling talk by Teresa Hirzle on XR for behavior change at the UCL Interaction Centre (UCLIC) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abvYp5Cnc4I

Next was "For the Common Good" by Alex John London. This is a thorough exploration of research bioethics, methodically working through the biggest issues in the space. London does a good job surfacing more recent concerns in the field, particularly around research in low and middle income countries, as well as confronting practical issues that can confront researchers. I wish there were more empirical data on some of the theoretical philosophical and economic models that are described here, since in these sections it's impossible to judge the accuracy of his claims. Overall, this is a deep and rewarding dive into research ethics, and even researchers outside the field will learn a lot from the issues analyzed here. Highly recommend https://global.oup.com/academic/product/for-the-common-good-9780197534830

Last was "Stolen Fragments" by Roberta Mazza. This book is a riveting, informative, academic mystery, with Roberta Mazza taking us on a mind-boggling tour of the tangled world of trade in ancient artifacts. Starting with what can only be described as a jaw-dropping, brazen destruction of an ancient artifact, Mazza then combines a rich explanation of the field of papyrology, how and why academics and institutions engage with papyrus scroll dealers, and the norms of the field and grey industry supporting collectors and researchers alike. She then takes us through a scandalous network of trades and actors that surround the Green family's (Hobby Lobby's owners) rapid procurement of artifacts to fill their politically-inflected "Museum of the Bible." While I would've liked a bit more economic details on the scale and volume of this market, that's a minor quibble. This book is an absolute page-turner. Highly recommend https://www.sup.org/books/history/stolen-fragments