Month: July 2014

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The Gist - Why Is Mike Pesca So Happy?

Today on The Gist, political analyst Jonah Blank from RAND explains how young democracies navigate fair elections. Plus, Mike speaks with Sonja Lyubomirsky, the author of The Myths of Happiness, about how we can make ourselves into happier people by doing the things that happy people do. For the Spiel, no, you probably won’t succumb to a brain-eating amoeba.

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The Gist - David Plotz Is Out, Panda Blogs Are In

Today at Slate, we announced a changing of the guard. Mike talks with David Plotz, who after 6 years as editor is stepping down, and Julia Turner, who just became Slate’s first female editor in chief. Plus, Mike gets help from memory champ Nelson Dellis in memorizing the rest of The Star Spangled Banner with help from Pauly Shore. For the Spiel, Mike vets stats with a stats vet—stat.

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More or Less: Behind the Stats - WS MoreOrLess: Golden Ticket

In Roald Dahl?s novel "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", Charlie Bucket wins a golden ticket to visit Willy Wonka?s factory. But one of our younger More or Less listeners in England wanted to find out what the chances would be of winning one of those Golden Tickets. So we sent maths book author Rob Eastaway to her school in Derby to explain the answer to her class-mates - a must-listen for anyone who struggles to get their head around probability. Also on the programme we look at whether the age of players makes a difference in World Cup football. This programme was first broadcast on the BBC World Service.

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The Gist - Her Husband’s Stupid Record Collection

Is not visiting the U.S.-Mexico border President Obama’s Katrina? Josh King from Polioptics explains how he would best position Obama if (slash when) he does makes a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border. Then Sarah O’Holla tells us about her blog My Husband’s Stupid Record Collection and plays a few recent finds. For the Spiel, Mike unwraps what 20,000 book sales really mean.

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The Gist - This Guy Killed Hitler. All He Wants Is a Thank-You.

Today on the show, writer Mike Sacks explains how it’s easier than ever to begin a career in comedy. In his book Poking a Dead Frog, Sacks asks comedians to explain their process without killing their humor. Plus, Dru Johnston reads his essay “I Think I Should Get More Credit for Killing Hitler” from the Occasional. And Ivan Oransky of MedPage Today and Retraction Watch unwraps the illicit world of peer-review fakery.

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The Gist - Inside the Principal’s Office

For what was Mike’s most enjoyable visit to the principal’s office, today’s Gist assembled a panel of educators to discuss teacher tenure. We’re joined by Alisa Algava, former director of the Randolph School, Ada Rosario Dolch, retired high school principal, and Margaret Ryan from the Harlem Link Charter School. Our panelists are all alumnae of Bank Street College. Plus, Slate’s Ken Early describes what it was like in the stadium when Brazil fans learned a hard truth. For the Spiel, the world through a lens of strong and weak. 

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