Grid Locked
99% Invisible22 Mar 2022

Grid Locked

In February 2021, it began to snow in Austin, Texas, which was unusual, and exciting for some, at least until the power dropped out for millions of people. To many, this came as a shock – how could a state known for its energy production have such widespread, prolonged power outages? To understand the situation, one has to look at the history of the grid, and how Texas came to be what we call an “energy island.” It's the only state in the lower 48 that operates its own independent electric grid.

For more on the Texas grid by Mose Buchele, be sure to check out The Disconnect.

Grid Locked

Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early.

Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episoder(776)

Matters of Time

Matters of Time

For the most part, we take time for granted; maybe we don’t have enough of it, but we at least know how it works --- well, most of the time. A lot of what we think about time is relatively recent, and...

19 Mai 202153min

Tanz Tanz Revolution

Tanz Tanz Revolution

Today, Berlin is one of the premier destinations for techno music fans. People come from all over the world to party all night to the rhythmic beat of Berlin's club scene. And this music that the city...

11 Mai 202144min

Abandoned Ships

Abandoned Ships

If you look around you right now, about 90% of what you’re looking at came to you onboard a cargo ship—your television, your sofa, most of the stuff in your kitchen. But as the number of these cargo s...

4 Mai 202128min

Curb Cuts (Repeat)

Curb Cuts (Repeat)

If you live in an American city and you don’t personally use a wheelchair, it's easy to overlook the small ramp at most intersections, between the sidewalk and the street. Today, these curb cuts are e...

28 Apr 202148min

La Brega in Levittown

La Brega in Levittown

On the show this week, we’re bringing you an episode of a new podcast called, La Brega. And to tell us all about the series is Alana Casanova-Burgess. Casanova-Burgess traces back the story of the boo...

20 Apr 202151min

Welcome to Jurassic Art Redux

Welcome to Jurassic Art Redux

Kurt and Roman talk about icebergs and how we visualize them all wrong. Plus, we visit a classic 99pi story by Emmett FitzGerald about visualizing dinosaurs. At least for the time being, art is the pr...

14 Apr 202135min

The Real Book

The Real Book

Since the mid-1970s, almost every jazz musician has owned a copy of the same book. It has a peach-colored cover, a chunky, 1970s-style logo, and a black plastic binding. It’s delightfully homemade-loo...

7 Apr 202141min

Science Vs Snakes

Science Vs Snakes

More than 100,000 people die every year from snake bites. Snake venom can have up to 200 different toxins inside it and each toxin has a different horrible effect to your body. Some attack your muscle...

30 Mar 202137min

Populært innen Business og økonomi

stopp-verden
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
dine-penger-pengeradet
e24-podden
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
rss-borsmorgen-okonominyhetene
utbytte
pengepodden-2
finansredaksjonen
pengesnakk
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
morgenkaffen-med-finansavisen
okonomiamatorene
rss-sunn-okonomi
tid-er-penger-en-podcast-med-peter-warren
lederpodden
rss-markedspuls-2
rss-andelige-tanker-med-camillo
rss-impressions-2
rss-fa-makro