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The Gist - Spotlight on a (Very) Close Race

A look inside one of the closest congressional races this year, New York’s 19th. Former Gist guest and Bernie Sanders–favorite Zephyr Teachout takes on Republican state Assemblyman John Faso for an open seat. The race is one of the few that the Cook Political Report has labeled a toss-up, and it’s a microcosm for lots of American anxieties. Teachout opposes fracking and supports carbon pricing in a district that relies heavily on cars, while Faso is a Trump-ambivalent Republican who hasn’t even said who he’ll be voting for come Election Day.

In The Spiel, the antics of James Comey, explained. 

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The Goods from the Woods - Episode #114 – “Coen Brothers” with John Ungaro

In this episode, the Goods from the Woods Boys welcome comedian John Ungaro to Disgraceland to talk about the absolutely amazing films of Joel and Ethan, the Coen Brothers! From 'Raising Arizona' to 'Hail Caesar', from 'Fargo' to 'Big Lebowski'. These guys have made some of the best films of all time and we're gonna run 'em down! Side tangents this episode include game shows, adult video games, and the oppressiveness of the 'I Am Sam' soundtrack. Welcome to November, y'all! This is a great episode.  Song of the week this week: "There is No Place from This To Go" by Furturebirds.  Follow the show @TheGoodsPod  Rivers is @RiversLangley  Dr. Pat is @PM_Reilly  Mr. Goodnight is @SepulvedaCowboy  Pick up a Goods from the Woods t-shirt at: http://prowrestlingtees.com/TheGoodsPod

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Social Science Bites - Anna Machin on Romance

Imagine if we could find the secret to romance and love, the real secret, one vetted by science. Wouldn’t that be … well, what would that be. According to Anna Machin, an anthropologist who actually does study romance, it would be disheartening.

“I don’t want to find the formula for love,” she tells interviewer Dave Edmonds in the latest Social Science Bites podcast. “I think that would be incredibly depressing.”

But Machin, a professor at the University of Oxford and part of an experimental psychology research group run by another Social Science Bites alumnus, Robin Dunbar, is nonetheless fascinated by how evolution has created this thing we call love, using the tools of neurochemistry and qualitative social science. Her research ranges from “our primate cousins” to popular dating sites. And before you insert your own joke here, know that these two examples have more in common than you might think.

Distinct primate-centric patterns quickly emerge in dating site profiles, Machin explains. For men, it’s displaying their value – their status, resources and good genes. For women, it’s their fertility, including youth, and good genes – regardless of their own wealth or status.

Not, she cautions, that we’re exactly like the rest of the menagerie. “The relationships we build, the reproductive relationships, our romantic relationships, are categorically different to those in other animals,” she says. “They persist for much longer, the cognition involved is much more complex,” and the neurochemistry doesn’t explain how we can stick together for such an incredibly long period of time.

Machin’s own academic background is varied, beginning with bachelor’s work in anthropology and English and leading to a PhD, in Archaeology, from the University of Reading (her thesis was on Acheulean handaxes). As an academic, she delights in explaining her work to the public, an avocation that has including working with the TV show Married at First Sight, where she’s used her own scholarship to help participants find life partners.

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Opening Arguments - OA20: What Happened With Ammon Bundy? SPECIAL EDITION

PLEASE PLEASE fill out a very brief survey for us!!! https://survey.libsyn.com/openargs In this special episode, we look at breaking news:  the jury verdict in United States v. Ammon Bundy et al., a federal case brought in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon as a result of the armed takeover of the Malheur National … Continue reading OA20: What Happened With Ammon Bundy? SPECIAL EDITION →

The post OA20: What Happened With Ammon Bundy? SPECIAL EDITION appeared first on Opening Arguments.

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The Gist - The Problem With Mark Kirk

Eric Zorn from the Chicago Tribune joins Mike to discuss two contentious races happening in Illinois this year that could swing the balance of power in Congress. Incumbent Republican Sen. Mark Kirk is trailing badly to his Democratic opponent, Tammy Duckworth. And in the 10th congressional district, Rep. Bob Dold is facing a tight battle against his predecessor, Brad Schneider. Both races showcase an increasingly rare breed in Congress: the moderate Republican. In The Spiel, what Halloween can tell us about partisan politics. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

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African Tech Roundup - The Kenya Revenue Authority Says Uber Will Not Be Subject To Value-Added Tax

In this week’s African Tech Round-up, we ask the question, “Should Uber’s wings be clipped before they change the world as we know it?” Lawmakers on the continent appear torn between adopting the pragmatic approach of embracing technological innovation and actively resisting the very real threat of change bringing with it the decimation of the traditional livelihoods of thousands of people who are simply not prepared or willing to adapt. In the past week, the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has declared that for tax purposes, it will treat Uber as a technology company, rather than a transport company (meaning Uber needn't pay Value-added Tax), while in South Africa, the Competition Commission has dismissed complaints brought against Uber by the SA Meter Taxi Association who accused the ride-hailing service of anti-competitive behaviour. But in Nigeria on the other hand, Lagos State politicians are reportedly putting pressure on Uber to operate based on the old taxi franchise system in a bid to protect incumbents within the existing taxi business from disruption. Who’s got it right, do you think? Also in this week’s podcast, Nick Saunders of email security firm, Mimecast, joins Andile Masuku to discuss the recent hacking allegations at Kenya Commercial Bank that we covered in last week’s show, as well as to unpack the diabolical DDoS attack that ground Twitter, Spotify, Amazon, Netflix and others to a halt in the US last week. Music Credits: Music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Music licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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The Stack Overflow Podcast - Stack Overflow Podcast #93 – A Very Spolsky Halloween Special

In this week’s frightening episode, Joel gets a visit from his very own Annie Wilkes, er, number one fan: Genius.com CEO Tom Lehman. Meanwhile, it wouldn’t be a Halloween show without something dying: This year, it’s the Experts Exchange paywall. Finally, David forgets to turn off his phone and gets called mid-recording by a recruiter, and we decide to tape their increasingly odd conversation so we can share it with you, our listeners.

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Start the Week - Alan Bennett

On Start the Week Andrew Marr talks to the writer Alan Bennett about his life and work. As he publishes his third and, he says, final selection of his diaries, Keeping On Keeping On, Bennett reflects on his reputation for tweeness, his radical politics and sexuality. He writes, "Nothing is ever quite so bad that one can't write it down or so shameful either, though this took me a long time to learn with my earliest diaries reticent and even prudish." Producer: Katy Hickman.