Episodes

This episode tells the remarkable story of James Harrison, an Australian who began donating blood after lifesaving transfusions at 14 and went on to give plasma 1,173 times. His rare antibodies helped the Australian Red Cross produce Anti D, a preventative treatment that transformed outcomes for Rh-incompatible pregnancies. Over six decades Harrison quietly supplied plasma used in treatments that are credited with helping some 2.4 million babies in Victoria and drastically reducing newborn death...

Matthew McInnis explores whether rewards count as kindness, starting with a firm belief that they don’t and ending with a more complicated view. He traces everyday examples—treating yourself after a hard week, buying pizza for someone who helped you move, or thanking a generous blood donor—and shows how gratitude and reward can both be kind. But he isolates a troubling variant: warmth held back and offered only when someone complies. The episode outlines practical signs that separate genuine kin...