Start the Week - Rise and Fall of the City

What would the perfect city look like?

Today more people live in cities than ever before and that shapes the way we think, says sociologist Richard Sennett. He lays out a vision for a city of the future based not on ancient Greece but on new 'open' streets.

Structural engineer Roma Agrawal charts the growth of cities from simple mud huts to the modern metropolis. She tells Amol Rajan about the engineering magic that holds towering city skylines in place, and recalls the eccentric engineers whose visions called our cities into being.

The Chinese built a city for the dead more than two thousand years ago and now its relics are on display again. Historian Edward Burman describes how the Terracotta Army found in a necropolis shows a ruler planning for life after death.

David Farr depicts the siege and destruction of Troy, the great city of the ancient world, in his vast new BBC One drama. He explains how the Trojans coped under ten long years of siege.

Producer: Hannah Sander.

The NewsWorthy - First U.S. Gold, Flu Pill & Royal Wedding – Monday, February 12th, 2018

All the news you need to know for Monday, February 12th, 2018!

Today: a budget deal update, a new plan for the International Space Station and a possible one-day fix for the flu. 

Plus: the Winter Olympics weekend recap, new details about the Royal wedding and which movie won the weekend box office.

 All that and much more in less than 10 minutes!

Award-winning broadcast journalist and former TV news reporter Erica Mandy breaks it all down for you. 

For links to all the stories referenced in today's episode, visit https://www.theNewsWorthy.com and click Episodes.

Serious Inquiries Only - SIO119: Getting Satanic with Jex Blackmore

Jex Blackmore is the spokeswoman for the Satanic Temple! They've been responsible for a lot of provocative and effectively targeted public performances. Their target is very often Christian theocrats who either don't realize they're inflicting their religious views on everyone else, or they don't care. Jex takes us through the basics of the Satanic Temple and her experiences! Leave Thomas a voicemail! (916) 750-4746, remember short and to the point! Support the show at seriouspod.com/support! Follow us on Twitter: @seriouspod Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/seriouspod For comments, email thomas@seriouspod.com Direct Download

The Gist - Dumb About Deficits

On The Gist, it’s The $10,000 Pyramid with a budget deal twist.

Is it possible we don’t know enough about national debt to call our politicians when they’re peddling nonsense? New Yorker staff writer Adam Davidson addresses some common misconceptions and sums up the Republican tax cuts and spending bill this way: “Rich people are stealing the money.” 

In the Spiel, the Olympics are back, and the Russians got off easy.

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