2.5.15: Robots & Fast Food, John C. Reilly Explores His Inner Folk Musician, & The Uncommon Core

From hospitals to auto-plants, robotics has been embraced by many fields, making work environments safer and more efficient. On today’s show we look to the fast food industry and ask the question: would people eat burgers made by a robot?

And, he may be best known as a film actor, but John C. Reilly can add another role to his resume: folk singer. Later in the show we’ll talk to Reilly about his latest adventures in music.

Listen to the full show and click Read more for individual segments.

Is the Future of Fast Food Robots?

• Rob Fleischman is Chief Technology Officer at Xero-Cole, and our chief explainer of all things wired. He’s been thinking a lot about the future of automation and joined Taylor to discuss the future of fast food. 
• The company that's manufacturing the robot burger maker is Momentum Machines. This article from Business Insider from the summer provides a little more detail.

4H Enters The Robotic Age

• A few years ago at the Iowa State Fair, 4H changed things up with a robotics challenge. Kathleen Masterson brings us the story.
• You can listen to this story again at PRX.org.

The Uncommon Core: The American Vacation

• The Uncommon Core is a series that examines unusual college courses being taught in schools across the country. In this episode, we discover a class that's lends a serious approach to the history of leisure. In fact, studying how Americans relax can teach us a lot about the history of privilege and social class in the United States.
• You can find out more at this link.

John Reilly and Friends

• From Boogie Nights, to Chicago, to Wreck-It-Ralph, character actor John C. Reilly is known for his diverse acting chops – more recently though, he’s dropped his middle initial and begun performing folk music and country standards with his band, John  Reilly & Friends.
• You can hear more of John Reilly's music and see clips at this link.

Hungarian Blues

• Tanner Latham, of the podcast “Authentic South” bring us the story of a dedicated blues man who was born far away from the Memphis sound he’s come to love. 
• You can listen to this story again at PRX.org.