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the memory palace - Nate’s Episode of the Year: 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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50 Things That Made the Modern Economy - Lightbulb

Once too precious to use, now too cheap to notice – the significance of the lightbulb is profound. Imagine a hard week’s work gathering and chopping wood, ten hours a day for six days. Those 60 hours of work would produce light equivalent to one modern bulb shining for just 54 minutes. The invention of tallow candles made life a little easier. If you spent a whole week making them – unpleasant work – you would have enough to burn one for two hours and twenty minutes every evening for a year. Every subsequent technology was expensive, and labour-intensive. And none produced a strong, steady light. Then, as Tim Harford explains, Thomas Edison came along with the lightbulb and changed everything, turning our economy into one where we can work whenever we want to. Producer: Ben Crighton Editors: Richard Knight and Richard Vadon (Photo: Electric lightbulb, Credit: Science photo library)
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the memory palace - Episode 101 (Promise)

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

SPOILERS BELOW

Notes

Music

  • Starts with Christope Beck and DeadMono's theme to Charlie Countryman.
  • Prelude for HS by Hakon Stene.
  • Tezeta (Nostalgia) from Malatu Astatke, from Ethiopiques vol. 4, one of my favorite pieces of music in the world.
  • Marian Lapansky plays Camille Saint-Saens "Le Sygne."
  • Which fights with Piero Umiliani's Danza Primitiva.
  • Warren Ellis rounds it out with his Lale's Theme from his terrific score to Mustang (which you should totally see).
  • The Hazel Scott pieces can be found here and here.
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Crimetown - S1 E06: Gerald and Harold

Police discover a bullet-riddled body in the backseat of a car. Jerry Tillinghast and his brother Harold are arrested. But doubts are soon raised about Harold’s involvement. And now, Jerry has a choice: break the mob’s code of silence, or allow his brother to join him in prison.

For a full list of credits, and for more information about this episode, visit crimetownshow.com.

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50 Things That Made the Modern Economy - Banking

Warrior monks, crusaders and the mysterious origins of modern banking. You might think banks are so central to every economy that they have always existed. And they have, sort of. But the true story of the origins of modern banking is – as Tim Harford explains – as surprising and mysterious as the plot of Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code. (Photo: Temple Church in London. Credit: Kiev Victor/Shutterstock)
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Crimetown - S1 E05: The Art of the Deal

Buddy Cianci, the popular mayor of Providence, runs for governor. But he knows something the people of Rhode Island don’t. And when they discover Buddy’s secret, it threatens to derail his political career. So what does Buddy do? He picks a fight.

For a full list of credits, and for more information about this episode, visit crimetownshow.com.

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50 Things That Made the Modern Economy - Barcode

How vast mega-stores emerged with the help of a design originally drawn in the sand in 1948 by Joseph Woodland as he sat on a Florida beach, observing the furrows left behind, an idea came to him which would – eventually – become the barcode. This now ubiquitous stamp, found on virtually every product, was designed to make it easier for retailers to automate the process of recording sales. But, as Tim Harford explains, its impact would prove to be far greater than that. The barcode changed the balance of power between large and small retailers. (Image: Barcode with red laser line, Credit: Jamie Cross/Shutterstock)
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Crimetown - S1 E04: The Bonded Vault Heist

August 14, 1975. A ragtag crew of crooks holds up a fur company. But it’s not just a fur company. It’s the Patriarca crime family’s secret bank. And now, the thieves not only have to run from the law—they have to run for their lives.

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