# Katherine Dunn on ‘How GPS Shaped the Modern World’

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/kqed-s-forum-910728/katherine-dunn-on-how-gps-shaped-the-modern-world
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/kqed-s-forum-910728/katherine-dunn-on-how-gps-shaped-the-modern-world.md
Podcast: [KQED's Forum](https://stenobird.com/podcast/kqed-s-forum-910728)
Published: 2026-06-22T18:29:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/KQINC5363909251.mp3
Audio file: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/KQINC5363909251.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/kqed-s-forum-910728/episodes/katherine-dunn-on-how-gps-shaped-the-modern-world
Duration seconds: 3282

## Resource

We rely on the Global Positioning System for so much — mapping our commutes, tracking our runs, hailing ride shares, matching with dates and more — that it can be hard to remember life before it. The U.S. military sent the first GPS satellite to space in 1978, and journalist Katherine Dunn says remembering those military roots can help us understand of how enemy actors today are distorting, blocking and threatening GPS around the world. Dunn says it’s time we address our global dependency and rethink how we’ve phased out many GPS alternatives. We’ll talk with Dunn about how GPS works, the types of attacks we’re seeing and what can be done about them. Do you remember a time before GPS? Guests: Katherine Dunn, author, “Little Blue Dot: How GPS Shaped the Modern World"; journalist who specializes in covering the intersection between climate change, the energy transition, and business Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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## Transcript

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