
About this episode
This episode discusses Paul Ehrlich's failed predictions about a population explosion and highlights human ingenuity.
Paul Ehrlich was famous for predicting a population explosion that would destroy the planet, but he didn't count on human ingenuity. Guest: Bryan Walsh, Vox senior editorial director This episode was made in partnership with Vox’s Future Perfect team. For show transcripts, go to vox.com/unxtranscripts For more, go to vox.com/unexplainable And please email us! unexplainable@vox.com We read every email. Support Unexplainable (and get ad-free episodes) by becoming a Vox Member today: vox.com/members Thank you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
People in this episode
Guest: Bryan Walsh
Topics covered
- population explosion
- human ingenuity
- environmental predictions
- sustainability
- science
Keywords
- Paul Ehrlich
- population explosion
- human ingenuity
- environment
- Vox
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Vox, Vox’s Future Perfect team
More episodes of Unexplainable
- A new species in New York · June 10, 2026 · 26 min
- The disaster problem · June 8, 2026 · 1h 0m
- The lost Lyme vaccine · June 3, 2026 · 38 min
- The cells we share · June 1, 2026 · 36 min
- The aftermath · May 18, 2026 · 42 min
- A better Black Death story · May 13, 2026 · 32 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Unexplainable podcast page.