Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug

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 want to get rid of) and Kara makes the case for “good friction” in tech, work, and relationships. Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You can listen to Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Friction Matters: Resistance Is a Feature, Not a Bug is an episode from On with Kara Swisher by New York Magazine.

This episode is 53:53 long.

This episode was published on Mar 5, 2026.

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