Testing 1, 2, 3 Podcast Season 1

You might not realize it, but everyday life isn't possible without test! Our podcast discusses some of the biggest challenges today and in the future.

Season 1 Overview

 

You drive your car, travel by plane, listen to music, read about the Mars Rover. And none of it would be possible without the constant evolution of test technologies. In this series, we'll connect you to tech leaders discussing some of the biggest challenges facing society today and in the future.

 

Listen to the episodes here on NI Perspectives or anywhere you listen to podcasts. Have an idea for a show, send us an email at podcast@ni.com.

How It Started, and How It’s Going

People may be reluctant to accept change; however, new inventions frequently transform society. Think about the evolution of the automobile. Testing plays a crucial role in bringing world changing technology to market and improving safety. Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway, and Kevin Cho, plasma and heating team manager at RFHIC Corporation, which explores new materials for electric vehicle batteries, discuss how test is always fostering a future of innovation.

25 min audio

How Tech Changes Lives

From the evolution of the automobile to disease curing inventions, it takes a village of diverse minds to solve technological challenges. Efosa Ojomo, global prosperity lead at the Clayton Christensen Institute, shares how inclusion invigorates the entrepreneurship and innovation processes. Learn how test refines solutions and plays a critical role in expanding access to products by tailoring them to serve the needs of more people as well as reducing costs and time to market.

26 min audio

Who Tests the Test?

COVID-19 has made one thing clear: testing saves lives. To increase testing for this virus, Australian company Ellume created the first low cost at-home rapid COVID test authorized by the FDA, which provides conclusive results in 15 minutes via a phone app. But how is this test tested? Scientist Harmony Douwes and Senior Test Systems Engineer Ruchira Gunatillake discuss the nondestructive and destructive tests they conduct and how to examine test failures in the most efficient way possible.

28 min audio

The Future of Mobility

Zero crashes, zero emissions, and zero congestion. How can we achieve Vision Zero? And how can we do it soon enough to address climate change and aging infrastructure that can’t support the predicted population growth? In this episode, Beth Osborne, director of Transportation for America, and Jason Marks from NI discuss how test and simulation can help ensure the safety and efficiency of Vision Zero technology, from self-driving cars to smart infrastructure.

25 min audio

Big Data

Big Data has the potential to answer many of life’s biggest questions, bring new products to market, and reduce costs for already existing inventions. However, without the right testing, this is just an unmanageable amount of data with nowhere to apply it. This episode welcomes Mike Santori from NI and Jennifer Stirrup of Data Relish to talk about best practices in data testing, how big data can help us, and why clean and accurate data is important to business.

27 min audio

5G Is Not For You

We know 5G as this super fast wireless network that some experts say will drive innovation in manufacturing, transportation, and other industries that might not even exist yet. There is a lot of hope for 5G and testing will play a critical role in getting it into our lives. This week, we explore the role testing plays in this 5G with Clarke Ryan, Senior Director of Product Development from Spirent, and Alexandra Hussenot, Founder of Immersionn.

26 min audio

How to Lose $50M in 50 Seconds

When you are bound for the moon, there are thousands of “glad we tested this” moments during all stages of space flight. If not, you’ve got some trouble. From NASA’s early days to the modern era, space exploration has led to some of the most spectacular and public test failures. This episode focuses on NASA’s rocket test of the mid-20th century, discusses the importance of Sputnik’s launch, new recent developments in private space travel, and why inclusiveness in space travel is still very much an issue.

22 min audio

Where Is My Self-Driving Car?

Most of us dream of a world where we can take a nap on our commute, but do so with the guarantee of safety, security, and peace of mind. The revolution will be driverless, but there is still much to learn about self-driving cars and the technology behind testing them that we need to know. In this episode, we welcome two experts that can help us understand how close we are to self-driving cars being a thing we see every day on our roads, and what challenges and barriers are holding us back.

19 min audio

How We Got Here

This episode illustrates the importance of test through legendary examples of failure—the sinking of the Titanic, the Hindenburg disaster, and the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. Our first guest, Melanie Cragnolin, discusses the negligence of each disaster and what could have been done to prevent them. The conversation then shifts to the value of test in aviation with former test pilot Chris Solan.

23 min audio