Week of December 19th, 2016

Amazon and other retailers have teamed up with Goodwill for a donation program

Congress hasn’t raised the federal minimum wage since 2009, but many states and localities have.

Trump has promised to lift environmental restrictions on the energy sector.

Don't call it a comeback (maybe)

Silicon Valley is well on its way toward a world of voice-activated interfaces.

Economists say we are already experiencing full employment.

The Stathatos family have been in the business of holiday decor for more than 50 years.

Chefs Steve Samson and Ray Garcia share holiday stories and recipes.

This week, Marketplace’s Sabri Ben-Achour and Raghu Manavalan go long and short on trade and millennials. Los Angeles based chefs Steve Samson and Ray Garcia talk about their favorite holiday foods. The BBC’s Nicola Stanbridge reports on the temporary closure of Big Ben, a London landmark and Marketplace Tech host Ben Johnson brings us a few stories from the latest Codebreaker episode all about encryption.

A mall developer landed on "experiences" as the way to compete for retail shoppers in an online world.

The thing about nuclear weapons is … they’re really expensive. On today’s Weekly Wrap Molly Wood talks to Nela Richardson from Redfin and Felix Salmon of Fusion about this week’s economic news. One of the biggest stories they discussed is Trump’s statement about expanding the United State’s “nuclear capabilities.” Also: A look at the coal industry. Coal mining firms have been in a significant slump, but now there may be signs of recovery. Finally: We hear from a shop owner in Southern California about the challenges of sustaining a a family-owned Christmas shop since 1962. 

The president-elect has chosen the majority of his administration already. What company connections do they bring with them?

Germany's coal country could support a far-right party.

Rite Aid is trying to fill more than the medicine aisles this season.

The fee for a naturalization application has increased by $45.

The new book "Rest" looks at the importance of relaxation time and why overworking can hurt employees in the long run.

A $12 billion fine for two European banks that reportedly foisted doomed debt onto others near the time of the great financial crisis; rising fees for filing certain immigration documents; and a conversation with a Stanford scholar about the importance of rest.

Trouble may be brewing at Twitter. Both the company’s chief technology officer and VP of product have revealed they’re leaving the company. We explore what an exodus like this means for the company. Plus: Uber’s announcement that it’s moving its self-driving car tests to Arizona, and a conversation with Malkia Cyril, executive director of the Center for Media Justice, about how encryption can protect activists — especially those in the Black Lives Matter movement.

A tale of two stock ticker symbols.

Latest GDP numbers show economy is performing better than thought

Almost a decade after the European financial crisis started to report the financial troubles that brought about the Crash of 2008, banks, governments, and people are again heavily in debt

Greece, Italy… We’re nearly a decade from the beginnings of the global financial crisis, and debt crises keep popping up. Then: the Commerce Department announced the economy grew even faster than we thought in the third quarter. We’re at a healthy 3.5 percent, and there’s still the fourth quarter to measure. Also President-elect Donald Trump will take office with a pledge to sharply raise tariffs. Will that expand the economy, or shrink it? Plus: The Navy’s fight against climate change and everything you’ve always wondered about return policies, just in time to wrap up your holiday shopping.

Artificial intelligence is improving Google Translate and there might be more to come.

The military has to act when climate change threatens its bases

The president-elect said he would cut off federal funding to sanctuary cities. So how much money could these cities lose?

Customers associate the quality of a return policy with the quality of the store

Encryption, voice commands and 'intelligent things' will be big in the new year.

A White House report suggests working with community colleges may help.

The Berlin site of Monday's attack has reopened.

There's been market strength since the presidential election.

Collins, author of "Born on Third Base," joined us to talk about the country's wealth gap.

There’s a lot of buzz surrounding Snapchat Spectacles, a set of eyewear that’ll let you record events throughout the day and play them back. We’ll check in with some consumers about why they’re planning to buy a pair, and look at whether the product will thrive or go the way of Google Glass.

The president-elect has chosen billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn to give advice on overhauling federal regulations, and tapped economist Peter Navarro as head of the new “National Trade Council.” We’ll dive into what they could bring to Trump’s White House. Plus: A conversation with the scholar Chuck Collins — a man who gave away all of his wealth when he was 26 — about income inequality and how he thinks society should tackle the issue. 

Rising mortgage rates may have pushed some buyers last month to close home deals but economists don't expect that to be a big thing in 2017

Including "Death by China" author Peter Navarro and billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn.

Research shows low-income children in NC have just a four percent chance of rising to the top

Years of cost-cutting have limited spending on new products and advertising, its CEO says

Is it even achievable?

Mark Bittman shares one of his easiest and most requested recipes

Kai and Molly share some of their favorite moments that you've never heard.

Ethan Diamond on the difference between "streaming" and "subscription"

Can audio go viral? It’s a tough nut to crack, but Facebook is trying. Then, Obama is shoring up his environmental legacy with a host of new drilling bans. What’s that mean for energy independence, and is that something the U.S. even wants? Plus, Big Food’s existential crisis and an interview with the CEO of Bandcamp.

The social media platform launched its Live Audio feature this week.

Some say the burger chain is overrated, but beloved because of its limited locations. We ask an expert.

The Department of Education reclaimed about $171 million from these checks.

The interactive dolls can be listened in on while children play with them.

The release coincided with a state judge’s ruling that Texas could not license two family detention facilities as child care centers.

The higher prices are an obstacle to people hoping to move up, keeping them from putting their houses up for sale.

Larry Brilliant joined us to talk about his new memoir, "Sometimes Brilliant."

Though the U.S. housing market has improved in recent years, experts say there are too few homes for sale. And that means prices are rising — maybe a little too quickly. Next, we’ll look at the troubles hounding Italy’s Monte dei Paschi, the world’s oldest bank, and interview physician Larry Brilliant about getting rid of smallpox. 

Need a hand with shipping over the holidays? The new startup Shyp is combining an app, data-combing software, and a fleet of pickup vehicles to get your stuff where it needs to go. The company’s CEO, Kevin Gibbon, joined us to talk about how it all works. We’ll also look at the European Union’s claims that Facebook misled officials when it acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion. Facebook has connected user accounts across the two platforms — a move the EU says Facebook indicated it wouldn’t do. Now the social network could face a fine of 1 percent of its total revenue. And finally, we’ll visit Curran Theatre in San Francisco, where a bunch of employees from major Silicon Valley tech companies gathered to sing — a cappella style. 

How encryption hides all around us, how it was used in 18th century Paris to separate merchants from their money and the difference between your brain and your fingertip.

With a $20 billion bailout.

Loyalty will be the key for a new year-round channel of Olympic competition.

It doesn't usually pay off to be on the sidelines, he told employees.

Consumers are shifting gears away from compact cars as gas prices remain low.

Donald Trump doesn't seem to care for big global institutions. What happens if we leave one behind?

Ann Drake says things are getting better for women in the workplace, but there's more to be done.

Manhattan department stores update window displays to lace nostalgia with attitude.

Donald Trump has made it clear that he doesn’t like our current trade agreements, and he’s not fond of big international institutions. So what happens if the U.S. leaves the World Trade Organization? We’ll look into that, plus we’ll go behind the scenes of New York’s famous holiday window displays, and chat with DSC Logistics CEO Ann Drake about how being a woman in the C-suite has changed.

Canada tested the basic income in Dauphin, Manitoba, in the 1970s.

New York’s Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is set to announce Tuesday that several shopping mall staples are joining the move away from what’s called “on-call scheduling,” which requires hourly employees to be on standby just in case they have to work. That can throw off planning for child care and finances for workers, who don’t […]

Uber is continuing to operate self-driving cars in San Francisco without a permit to test autonomous vehicles, despite a DMV order to stop.  Uber’s refusal to get a permit could be a play to change the laws for autonomous cars. Many companies have a permit to test self-driving cars in California, among them Tesla, Honda […]

President-elect Trump's pick for Education Secretary is a fan of school choice.

On today’s show, we’ll talk about Uber’s self-driving experiments in San Francisco — without a permit; retail’s move away from “on-call” scheduling; and the push for charter schools from Betsy DeVos, Trump’s nominee for Education Secretary.

The company’s expertise in designing mobile operating systems translates well to cars.

How the online lender SoFi wants to make borrowing more social.

On today’s show, we’ll talk about a personal finance company — Social Finance — that focuses on your personal life; BlackBerry’s venture into self-driving technology; and Uber’s conflict with California over putting autonomous cars on the road. 

The president-elect thinks so.

The law requires trans people to use bathrooms corresponding to their sex.

The runner-ups include "bigly", "deplorables" and "irregardless".

A Reuters investigation found thousands of areas with higher lead levels.

Physician's gender has impact on care, a new study shows.

President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for director of the Office of Management and Budget is House Representative Mick Mulvaney from South Carolina. He’s a deficit hawk who came into office with many other Tea Party candidates back in 2010. He has a long history of budget cutting, even embracing the term “shutdown caucus” because of his willingness […]

An EU dispute over Ireland’s tax treatment of Apple is really about who gets Apple’s taxes.

Ramin Djawadi, composer of Game of Thrones, Westworld, and Iron Man soundtracks talks about the creative process.

A virtual reality app gamifies surgery to help train medical professionals.

Following the theme of his administration so far, President-elect Donald Trump (it’s official now) has named a budget hawk to the budget office. Also, we continue our coverage of Dayton, Ohio with two small business owners who have very different takes on Trump. Plus, why women may make better doctors and the taxes Apple doesn’t want to pay a country that doesn’t want them.

Rep. Mick Mulvaney, staunch fiscal conservative, will head the Office of Management and Budget.

In suburban Ohio, some see a windfall with his election, while others fear the worst.

A new report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center shows enrollment is down 1.4 percent since last fall. For-profit institutions were hit the hardest, with enrollment down 14.5 percent. Experts say that’s partly to do with the big players in the industry — ITT Tech and Corinthian — closing their doors, but it also […]

A special presentation of Marketplace that asks "what if…"

A store-shelf view of the presidential transition.

We hear a lot about the income gap between top executives and workers, and it turns out that gap continues after retirement, too. The Institute for Policy Studies reports the 100 CEOs with the biggest retirement plans each have anywhere from $25 million to nearly $1 billion set aside by their employers in individual pension […]

Cash-strapped Italy hopes Chinese investors will help pay for upkeep.

On today’s show, we’ll talk about Ireland’s decision to appeal the EU’s order that Apple pay the country $14 billion in back taxes; the disparity in retirement savings between top-earning CEOs and many Americans; and Italy’s struggles to conserve its architectural heritage. 

On today’s show, we’ll look at a simulation center in New York that helps medical professionals hone their skills. Plus: we’ll travel back in time to 1999 to check out the very first emoji, which are now on display at the Museum of Modern Art.