On with Kara Swisher

Vox Media

It's on. Twice a week, award-winning journalist Kara Swisher gets to the heart of the story through no-holds-barred interviews with power players across business, tech, media, politics and beyond. So why do her guests show up? “Smart people,” says Kara, “like difficult questions.”Mondays and Thursdays from New York Magazine and the Vox Media Podcast Network.

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On with Kara Swisher

Episodes (367)

Thursday Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug
Monday Gavin Newsom on His Memoir, Trump, and Plans for 2028
Feb 26th Why ‘Playing It Safe’ In Your Career Doesn’t Pay with VC Bill Gurley

On with Kara Swisher

Mar 5, 2026
54 minutes
0

Friction gets an bad rap, according Jennifer Vail. As a tribologist, she studies interacting surfaces in relative motion, and she’s worked on everything from aerospace materials to syringes to dog food. Her new book, Friction: A Biography, explores the science of rubbing surfaces, the history of lubrication, and why “frictionless” is a dangerous fantasy. Kara and Jennifer unpack everything from Roman chariot “pit stops” to ball bearings and how tiny tweaks in texture and lubricant chemistry can save massive amounts of energy. They end with a discussion of behavioral friction (the kind tech companies w...

On with Kara Swisher

Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug

Vox Media

00:00 -53:53