The Backgammon Chronicles
Robert Wachtel
Mentioned 1 month ago
677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves?
Book Recommendations
Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engin...
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912
Books
635
Recently mentioned
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In the Game until the End Volume II
Robert H Wachtel
Mentioned 1 month ago
677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves?
"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!"
Richard P. Feynman
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The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
Madame Bovary
Gustave Flaubert
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What Do You Care What Other People Think
Richard P. Feynman
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The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
The Grasshopper - Third Edition
Bernard Suits
Mentioned 2 months ago
675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company?
Rules of Play
Katie Salen Tekinbas
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675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company?
Interaction of Color
Josef Albers
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675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company?
The Wealth of Nations (Modern Library)
Adam Smith
Mentioned 2 months ago
674. How Does a Composer Feel After the World Premiere?
Adam Smith’s America
Glory M. Liu
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674. How Does a Composer Feel After the World Premiere?
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte
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673. What Is Money?
Hard Times
Charles Dickens
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673. What Is Money?
Most Recommended
The Blind Side
Evolution of a Game
It was mentioned as a book that inspired the movie of the same name, and discussed the concept of the quarterback's blind side and the left tackle's role in protecting it.
"
Hey, a book before a movie. Yeah, the book. Yeah, the book. Sorry. Michael Lewis. Right. Yep.
— Episode: Extra: Full Interviews With Jimmy Garopp...
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Episode: Extra: Full Interviews With Jimmy Garoppolo, Joe S...
It was mentioned as a book that inspired the movie of the same name, and discussed the concept of the quarterback's blind side and the left tackle's role in protecting it.
"
Hey, a book before a movie. Yeah, the book. Yeah, the book. Sorry. Michael Lewis. Right. Yep.
The Premonition
A Pandemic Story
It was briefly mentioned as Michael Lewis's most recent book at the end of the podcast, with a focus on public health and the pandemic.
"
It is episode 63 of people I mostly admire and it's called the only Cove in 19 book worth reading
— Episode: 523. Did Michael Lewis Just Get Lucky wi...
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Episode: 523. Did Michael Lewis Just Get Lucky with “Moneyb...
It was briefly mentioned as Michael Lewis's most recent book at the end of the podcast, with a focus on public health and the pandemic.
"
It is episode 63 of people I mostly admire and it's called the only Cove in 19 book worth reading
Fear
Essential Wisdom for Getting Through the Storm
It was mentioned as a book that included Gary Cohn as a significant character. It detailed his time in the White House, particularly his actions related to trade agreements and conflicts with other officials.
"
This book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House.
— Episode: 371. A Free-Trade Democrat in the Trump...
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Episode: 371. A Free-Trade Democrat in the Trump White Hous...
It was mentioned as a book that included Gary Cohn as a significant character. It detailed his time in the White House, particularly his actions related to trade agreements and conflicts with other officials.
"
This book does not accurately portray my experience at the White House.
a professional liar
if you just shut the F up and listen, you might learn something.
Wall Street establishment idiot
Dark Money
The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right
Tara McGowan discussed reading it as inspiration for Acronym, a multi-headed organization she founded that has several companies and a super PAC, as it described the Koch brothers' playbook for investing in companies and nonprofits for political influence.
"
I read Jane Mayer's book Dark Money on the Koch brothers who have invested heavily for years in building for profit companies and nonprofit organizations and infrastructure on the rig...
— Episode: Why the Left Had to Steal the Right’s Da...
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Episode: Why the Left Had to Steal the Right’s Dark-Money P...
Tara McGowan discussed reading it as inspiration for Acronym, a multi-headed organization she founded that has several companies and a super PAC, as it described the Koch brothers' playbook for investing in companies and nonprofits for political influence.
"
I read Jane Mayer's book Dark Money on the Koch brothers who have invested heavily for years in building for profit companies and nonprofit organizations and infrastructure on the right.
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
And Other Clinical Tales (Everyman's Library Contemporary Classics Series)
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The Professor and the Madman
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The American Way of Death Revisited
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The Skeptical Environmentalist
Measuring the Real State of the World
It was a result of the author's personal journey, initially attempting to disprove Julian Simon's claims, but then found that many environmental factors had improved over time, prompting a more nuanced discussion about global priorities.
"
Fundamentally my book The Skeptical Environmentalist was really a result of my own personal journey.
— Episode: 181. Fixing the World, Bang-for-the-Buck...
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Episode: 181. Fixing the World, Bang-for-the-Buck Edition
It was a result of the author's personal journey, initially attempting to disprove Julian Simon's claims, but then found that many environmental factors had improved over time, prompting a more nuanced discussion about global priorities.
"
Fundamentally my book The Skeptical Environmentalist was really a result of my own personal journey.
I read an interview with an American economist called Julian Simon back in Wired Magazine in 1997 and he said, listen you think everything's getting worse with the environment but actually most things are getting better.
But he said one thing that really stuck with me, he said go check the data.
So I decided yeah okay I'm gonna check his data, I'm gonna you know get some of my smartest students together, we're gonna have a fun half year and prove him wrong.
That was the start of my point of saying well we should compare different priorities and of course I thought somebody else must have made this prioritization list, somebody else must have looked at that and nobody had.
Lean In
Women, Work, and the Will to Lead
It was discussed as a book that promotes strategic thinking and provides advice on how women can approach asking for a raise by using a specific approach.
"
You know how Sandberg says in her book, if you ask for a raise, don't go into your boss and say, hey, I need a raise. Say, actually one of my superiors, you know, your boss's boss told me I should com...
— Episode: 132. Jane Austen, Game Theorist
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Episode: 132. Jane Austen, Game Theorist
It was discussed as a book that promotes strategic thinking and provides advice on how women can approach asking for a raise by using a specific approach.
"
You know how Sandberg says in her book, if you ask for a raise, don't go into your boss and say, hey, I need a raise. Say, actually one of my superiors, you know, your boss's boss told me I should come and ask you for a raise.
And Sheryl Sandberg is asking me to ask you for a raise.
Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists
Unleashing the Power of Financial Markets to Create Wealth and Spread Opportunity
It was mentioned as Rajan's first book, and was the reason he got an interview for his first job at the IMF, as he had a finance background, something the IMF felt it lacked at the time.
"
I sent her my first book, Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists.
— Episode: 366. This Economist Predicted the Last C...
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Episode: 366. This Economist Predicted the Last Crisis. Wha...
It was mentioned as Rajan's first book, and was the reason he got an interview for his first job at the IMF, as he had a finance background, something the IMF felt it lacked at the time.
"
I sent her my first book, Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists.
Leonardo da Vinci
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A Curious Mind
The Secret to a Bigger Life
It was discussed in the context of Brian Grazer's approach to producing films and TV series. He mentioned the book as a synthesis of conversations he had with people he admires over 30 years.
"
For starters, there's the title that Grazer has given the book he just published, A Curious Mind.
— Episode: 214. How to Create Suspense
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Episode: 214. How to Create Suspense
It was discussed in the context of Brian Grazer's approach to producing films and TV series. He mentioned the book as a synthesis of conversations he had with people he admires over 30 years.
"
For starters, there's the title that Grazer has given the book he just published, A Curious Mind.
So I've done that with probably a thousand people, and the book itself is in some ways a synthesis of these over 30 years of meetings that I had.
The Last Whole Earth Catalog
Access To Tools
It was described as a "hippie Bible" that taught Kevin Kelly that he could invent his own life and do whatever he wanted, influencing his approach to life and work.
"
A man called Stuart Brand who taught me how to think honestly. He was the first publisher and creator of the Whole Earth Catalog which I read in high school. And the message of that kind of hippie Bib...
— Episode: 193. Someone Else’s Acid Trip
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Episode: 193. Someone Else’s Acid Trip
It was described as a "hippie Bible" that taught Kevin Kelly that he could invent his own life and do whatever he wanted, influencing his approach to life and work.
"
A man called Stuart Brand who taught me how to think honestly. He was the first publisher and creator of the Whole Earth Catalog which I read in high school. And the message of that kind of hippie Bible was you can invent your life to do whatever you want and that you don't need to ask permission.
Absalom, Absalom! (Modern Library)
It was mentioned as a book in which Quentin Compson also appears as a character, alongside the book 'The Sound and the Fury'.
"
In a chapter entitled June 2nd, 1910, a Harvard student commits suicide. The narrator is Quentin Compson, who also appears as a character in Absalom, Absalom. Name this classic in American literature...
— Episode: 35. Live From St. Paul!
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Episode: 35. Live From St. Paul!
It was mentioned as a book in which Quentin Compson also appears as a character, alongside the book 'The Sound and the Fury'.
"
In a chapter entitled June 2nd, 1910, a Harvard student commits suicide. The narrator is Quentin Compson, who also appears as a character in Absalom, Absalom. Name this classic in American literature penned by William Faulkner.
The Infidel and the Professor
David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought
It discussed the important friendship between Adam Smith and David Hume and how that relationship influenced modern thought and the development of ideas around economics and philosophy. It was described as a recently published book.
"
Dennis Rasmussen has published a book called The Infidel and the Professor. The subtitle is David Hume, Adam Smith and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought.
— Episode: 525. In Search of the Real Adam Smith
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Episode: 525. In Search of the Real Adam Smith
It discussed the important friendship between Adam Smith and David Hume and how that relationship influenced modern thought and the development of ideas around economics and philosophy. It was described as a recently published book.
"
Dennis Rasmussen has published a book called The Infidel and the Professor. The subtitle is David Hume, Adam Smith and the Friendship That Shaped Modern Thought.
Subprime Attention Crisis
Advertising and the Time Bomb at the Heart of the Internet (FSG Originals x Logic)
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Bananas
An American History
It was mentioned as a book about the history of bananas in America and its author was interviewed about the fruit's popularity and its journey from a luxury item to a common staple.
"
She's a cultural historian and the author of Bananas, An American History.
— Episode: The Most Interesting Fruit in the World...
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Episode: The Most Interesting Fruit in the World (Ep. 375 U...
It was mentioned as a book about the history of bananas in America and its author was interviewed about the fruit's popularity and its journey from a luxury item to a common staple.
"
She's a cultural historian and the author of Bananas, An American History.
The banana first gained popularity around the time people were just starting to learn about germs and food hygiene.
I found some very interesting menus for very fancy occasions that might have Bananas on the menu.
You take a peeled banana, you put mustard on it, you wrap it in a slice of ham and then you bake it in a cream sauce.
I've tried it on two husbands and neither of them could eat it. They thought that was just nasty.
The Power of Us
Harnessing Our Shared Identities to Improve Performance, Increase Cooperation, and Promote Social Harmony
In the book, studies showed that college students were more likely to identify with their football team after a win and distance themselves after a loss, illustrating how fandom affects our sense of belonging.
"
Last year, Van Bevel and his fellow psychologist Dominic Packer published a book called The Power of Us, harnessing our shared identities to improve performance, increase cooperation,...
— Episode: 521. I’m Your Biggest Fan!
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Episode: 521. I’m Your Biggest Fan!
In the book, studies showed that college students were more likely to identify with their football team after a win and distance themselves after a loss, illustrating how fandom affects our sense of belonging.
"
Last year, Van Bevel and his fellow psychologist Dominic Packer published a book called The Power of Us, harnessing our shared identities to improve performance, increase cooperation, and promote social harmony.
Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.