Month: July 2016

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the memory palace - Episode 93 (Local Channels)

The Memory Palace is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX, a curated network of extraordinary, story-driven shows. Learn more at radiotopia.fm

SPOILERS BELOW

Notes * Much of what I read about Florence was pulled from old newspaper articles. * The biography in Notable American Women: Volume 5 does a nice, thorough job with Florence story. * I first stumbled on Florence Chadwick in a photo in a restaurant in Santa Barbara and was struck by, as the photo suggested, she went on a world tour, swimming local channels.

Music * First up is Solitude, from (delightfully named) Janis Crunch. * Then we’ve got Like a Bell to a Southerly Wind, by Chequerboard. * Modular Body #7 by Machinefabriek. * After Catalunya by Ephemetry and Richard J. Birkin. * Finishing up on The Old Favourite by The Gloaming.

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The Gist - The Little-Known Story of Sabotage in the New York Harbor

100 years ago, a man named Michael Kristoff strolled onto an island in the New York harbor armed with explosives cooked by German chemists. He was there to blow up a stockpile of munitions pledged to the Allied Powers. 

On The Gist, Chad Millman tells the story of the first major act of foreign terrorism on the United States. His 2006 book, The Detonators: The Secret Plot to Destroy America and an Epic Hunt for Justice, has just been released in e-book form to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the attack. 

The regular Spiel will be back next week -- get your fix by checking out out the past two weeks of a.m. Spiels on the Republican and Democratic conventions. 

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More or Less: Behind the Stats - The Supermarket Effect

Many news outlets have reported this week that a Waitrose supermarket pushes up house prices in the surrounding area. It?s based on research that also suggests that other supermarkets have a similar but smaller effect. We take a highly sceptical look at the correlation.

Statistics and the EU referendum campaign We look at how the two campaigns, the media, and the much-discussed ?experts? used statistics during the EU referendum campaign. Tim Harford interviews Will Moy, director of Fullfact, and Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

Antiques Roadshow BBC One?s Antiques Roadshow is a hugely popular television programme, where experts examine and value antiques and collectables. We ask whether the items featured really jump in value, or are we just seeing the price tag rise over the centuries in line with inflation? More Or Less reporter Charlotte McDonald heads down to the show to find out.

Computer Science and Socks Tim Harford speaks to Brian Christian, co-author of ?Algorithms to Live by: The Computer Science of Human Decisions?. How can the techniques of computer science help us in every-day situations? And, most importantly, which algorithm will help our reporter Jordan Dunbar sort out his socks?

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Stuff They Don't Want You To Know - Wikileaks and the DNC

Earlier this summer Wikileaks released a cache of internal emails from the Democratic National Committee. "Unnamed experts" trace this event back to Russian hackers. But who are these hackers? What proof exists? And, most importantly, who hacked democracy?

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They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/

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