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Ken Burns on the Complications of History
Episode 164
When it comes to history—particularly American history—nothing is ever definitive, says documentarian Ken Burns. Much of his work has focused on capt…
3 years, 4 months ago
Mary Gaitskill on Subjects That Are Vexing Everybody
Episode 163
Mary Gaitskill's knack for writing about the social and physical world with unapologetic clarity has led to her style being described both as "cold a…
3 years, 4 months ago
Reza Aslan on Martyrdom, Islam, and Revolution
Episode 162
Reza Aslan doesn't mind being called a pantheist. In his own "roundabout spiritual journey" and study of the world's religions, which has led him to …
3 years, 5 months ago
Walter Russell Mead on the Past and Future of American Foreign Policy
Episode 161
A leading expert in foreign policy, Walter Russell Mead believes his lack of a PhD—and interest in actually going places—has helped him avoid academi…
3 years, 5 months ago
Byron Auguste On Rewiring the U.S. Labor Market
Episode 160
When looking at the U.S. labor market, Byron Auguste sees too many job seekers screened out based on shallow signals like a bachelor's degree, and to…
3 years, 6 months ago
Vaughn Smith on Life as a Hyperpolyglot
Episode 159
Vaughn Smith is fluent in eight languages but with a beginner's grasp of at least thirty-six (and counting). His talents are so remarkable that the W…
3 years, 6 months ago
Shruti Rajagopalan talks to Daniel Gross and Tyler about Identifying and Predicting Talent
Episode 158
How can one identify and predict talent? On a search to answer this question and others like it, Tyler Cowen joined venture capitalist and entreprene…
3 years, 6 months ago
Cynthia L. Haven on René Girard, Czeslaw Milosz, and Joseph Brodsky
Episode 157
As a little girl, Cynthia Haven loved reading classic works of literature. At sixteen, she began her career as a reporter. And years later, those two…
3 years, 7 months ago
William MacAskill on Effective Altruism, Moral Progress, and Cultural Innovation
Episode 156
When Tyler is reviewing grants for Emergent Ventures, he is struck by how the ideas of effective altruism have so clearly influenced many of the sma…
3 years, 7 months ago
Leopoldo López on Activism Under Autocratic Regimes
Episode 155
As an inquisitive reader, books were a cherished commodity for Leopoldo López when he was a political prisoner in his home country of Venezuela. His …
3 years, 7 months ago