The Inventor Who Almost Ended the World
Thomas Midgley’s inventions caused his own death, hastened the deaths of millions of people around the world, and very nearly extinguished all life on land. Midgley and his employers didn’t…
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Episode Four: The Tree Branch
This episode, the celebration of an anniversary — sort of. The anniversary of a dream. An alternate history: imagining what the world might be like if, fifty years ago, in…
Machiavelli’s Tips for Getting Ahead at Work
Stacey Vanek Smith is the author of Machiavelli for Women: Defend Your Worth, Grow Your Ambition, and Win the Workplace. Her problem is this: How do women get ahead in…
Episode 2: Becoming King
Host Barry Edelstein takes us into California’s Centinela State Prison for a one-of-a-kind production of Shakespeare’s English history plays performed by incarcerated individuals. What makes Shakespeare a force of transformation…
Episode 1: Is Shakespeare American?
The year is 1849, and a riot at a Shakespearean theater has left dozens of people dead. But as it always is with the Bard, there’s more here than meets…
Living Like Founding Fathers
A.J. Jacobs spent a month following the most conservative interpretation of the Constitution possible. One not far from how the current Supreme Court has been ruling. Host Joel Stein, talks…
John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers Returns, Part 2
Today we’re excited to bring you the next installment of our John Frusciante interview series. John first came on the podcast back in April to help celebrate the release of…
Brown Enough: Embracing The Middle Space
Actor, podcast host and author Christopher Rivas attributes his own racial awakening to the moment he learned the “real” James Bond was Dominican. Rivas tells the story of Porfirio Rubirosa…
E6: “The Lady” of Gosfield Street
Around Piccadilly she’s known as “The Lady” – a quiet, rather remote figure. Widow Margaret Lowe tries to keep herself to herself and stay out of trouble – but trouble…
When Surviving Is Enough
After Nora McInerny’s husband died of cancer in his thirties, Nora became well known for writing about the messiness of grief. She also led grief groups, launched a podcast about…
Happier Parents, Happier Kids Pt 2: Letting Children Try and Fail
It’s tempting to tie a child’s shoe lace, tidy their rooms or help with their science projects – to see that these tasks are done right – but parents are…
Writer George Saunders, Moment by Moment
Today, George Saunders returns! We discuss Liberation Day, his first short-story collection in nine years (3:40), the influence of Chekhov and Gogol (4:56), and a timely passage on democracy from “Love…
