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...
Episodes
912
Books
635
Recently mentioned
Latest Recommendations
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
Mentioned 1 month ago
The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
Madame Bovary
Gustave Flaubert
Mentioned 1 month ago
The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
What Do You Care What Other People Think
Richard P. Feynman
Mentioned 1 month ago
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
Mentioned 2 months ago
675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company?
Interaction of Color
Josef Albers
Mentioned 2 months ago
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
Mentioned 2 months ago
674. How Does a Composer Feel After the World Premiere?
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte
Mentioned 2 months ago
673. What Is Money?
Hard Times
Charles Dickens
Mentioned 2 months ago
673. What Is Money?
Most Recommended
Horses at Work
Harnessing Power in Industrial America
The book was referenced as the source for Green's expertise on the role of horses in industrial America.
"
We wanted to speak with Green because of a book she wrote called Horses at Work, Harnessing Power in Industrial America.
— Episode: 651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
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Episode: 651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
The book was referenced as the source for Green's expertise on the role of horses in industrial America.
"
We wanted to speak with Green because of a book she wrote called Horses at Work, Harnessing Power in Industrial America.
The Horse in the City
Living Machines in the Nineteenth Century (Animals, History, Culture)
The book was cited as a way to think about horses functionally, positioning them alongside other energy sources.
"
That's a phrase that comes out of the work by two colleagues of mine, ClayMcShane and JoelTarr, who wrote a book called Horse in the City that makes you think about the horse functionally. And it brin...
— Episode: 651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
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Episode: 651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
The book was cited as a way to think about horses functionally, positioning them alongside other energy sources.
"
That's a phrase that comes out of the work by two colleagues of mine, ClayMcShane and JoelTarr, who wrote a book called Horse in the City that makes you think about the horse functionally. And it brings this kind of power, which humans have been using for centuries, into the same space as other kinds of energy sources.
The Flexner Report
Medical Education in the United States and Canada-A Report to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
The hosts highlighted the Flexner Report as a landmark 1910 publication that shaped medical education by recommending the closure of many lowquality schools and limiting the number of medical schools to a handful.
"
The Flexner Report is so important and has such a huge legacy. Everybody in medicine knows about The Flexner Report.
— Episode: 650. The Doctor Won’t See You Now
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Episode: 650. The Doctor Won’t See You Now
The hosts highlighted the Flexner Report as a landmark 1910 publication that shaped medical education by recommending the closure of many lowquality schools and limiting the number of medical schools to a handful.
"
The Flexner Report is so important and has such a huge legacy. Everybody in medicine knows about The Flexner Report.
I had heard about it a little bit. I knew that there was this report and a bunch of medical schools shut down.
The Flexner Report was published in 1910.
The Flexner Report didn't just shock people at the time. I found the fact that The Flexner Report recommends keeping only 31 medical schools, which it deemed would be enough to train enough doctors for the entire U.S., to be really radical.
Driven
The host highlighted that Alex Davies authored the book Driven, describing it as an excellent account of the race to create the autonomous car.
"
He wrote an excellent book called Driven, The Race to Create the Autonomous Car.
— Episode: Are Human Drivers Finally Obsolete?
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Episode: Are Human Drivers Finally Obsolete?
The host highlighted that Alex Davies authored the book Driven, describing it as an excellent account of the race to create the autonomous car.
"
He wrote an excellent book called Driven, The Race to Create the Autonomous Car.
The Making of Handel’s Messiah
The hosts announced that an audiobook titled Making Messiah had been published, describing how Handel regained his creative spark and produced his famous Messiah work.
"
We have just published an audiobook called Making Messiah. How Handel got his mojo back and created a masterpiece. The publisher is Simon & Schuster. And the audiobook is adapted from our recent Freak...
— Episode: 668. Do Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny Have...
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Episode: 668. Do Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny Have Blood on T...
The hosts announced that an audiobook titled Making Messiah had been published, describing how Handel regained his creative spark and produced his famous Messiah work.
"
We have just published an audiobook called Making Messiah. How Handel got his mojo back and created a masterpiece. The publisher is Simon & Schuster. And the audiobook is adapted from our recent Freakonomics radio series about the history, legacy, and economics of George Frideric Handel's Messiah.
Random Acts of Medicine
The Hidden Forces That Sway Doctors, Impact Patients, and Shape Our Health
They noted that in 2023 Bapu Jena released a book coauthored with Christopher Worsham titled Random Acts of Medicine, examining how random experiments inform medical practice.
"
In 2023, he published a book along with his co-author Christopher Worsham called Random Acts of Medicine.
— Episode: 668. Do Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny Have...
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Episode: 668. Do Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny Have Blood on T...
They noted that in 2023 Bapu Jena released a book coauthored with Christopher Worsham titled Random Acts of Medicine, examining how random experiments inform medical practice.
"
In 2023, he published a book along with his co-author Christopher Worsham called Random Acts of Medicine.
Doctored
Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer's
The book examined the decadeslong fraudulent research practices in Alzheimer's science, detailing how misconduct slowed progress toward a cure.
"
My name is Charles Piller. I am an investigative journalist with Science Magazine and author of the book Doctored.
— Episode: 671. Why Has There Been So Little Progre...
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Episode: 671. Why Has There Been So Little Progress on Alzh...
The book examined the decadeslong fraudulent research practices in Alzheimer's science, detailing how misconduct slowed progress toward a cure.
"
My name is Charles Piller. I am an investigative journalist with Science Magazine and author of the book Doctored.
The full title of Piller's book is Doctored, Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer's.
The book that Charles Piller wrote is called Doctored, Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer's.
Pests
How Humans Create Animal Villains
Brookshire released the 2022 book that examined how humans label certain animals as pests and explored the cultural roots of that vilification. The discussion highlighted its relevance to the rathate narrative.
"
She recently published a book called Pests, How Humans Create Animal Villains.
— Episode: Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update)
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Episode: Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update)
Brookshire released the 2022 book that examined how humans label certain animals as pests and explored the cultural roots of that vilification. The discussion highlighted its relevance to the rathate narrative.
"
She recently published a book called Pests, How Humans Create Animal Villains.
I'm the author of the 2022 book Pests, How Humans Create Animal Villains.
Talk about just the title itself and what kind of work you're asking that word Pests to do.
Triumph of the City by Glaeser, Edward (2012) Paperback
Glaeser authored a book that argued cities are humanity's greatest invention, shaping prosperity, health, and sustainability. The host cited it while discussing how urban environments intertwine with rat ecology.
"
Glaser is the author of a book called Triumph of the City, how our greatest invention makes us richer, smarter, greener, healthier and happier.
— Episode: Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update)
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Episode: Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update)
Glaeser authored a book that argued cities are humanity's greatest invention, shaping prosperity, health, and sustainability. The host cited it while discussing how urban environments intertwine with rat ecology.
"
Glaser is the author of a book called Triumph of the City, how our greatest invention makes us richer, smarter, greener, healthier and happier.
Adam Smith’s America
How a Scottish Philosopher Became an Icon of American Capitalism
The episode mentioned Glory Liu's nonfiction book, Adam Smith's America, which examines how the 18thcentury economist became an emblem of American capitalism.
"
author of a book called Adam Smith's America, how a Scottish philosopher became an icon of American capitalism.
— Episode: 674. How Does a Composer Feel After the...
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Episode: 674. How Does a Composer Feel After the World Prem...
The episode mentioned Glory Liu's nonfiction book, Adam Smith's America, which examines how the 18thcentury economist became an emblem of American capitalism.
"
author of a book called Adam Smith's America, how a Scottish philosopher became an icon of American capitalism.
Rules of Play
Game Design Fundamentals (Mit Press)
The conversation highlighted Zimmerman's book Rules of Play as the defining textbook of game design, emphasizing its influence on the field.
"
Zimmerman's book, Rules of Play, is now considered a defining textbook of game design.
— Episode: 675. Has the New York Times Become a Gam...
Listen on Audible
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Episode: 675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company...
The conversation highlighted Zimmerman's book Rules of Play as the defining textbook of game design, emphasizing its influence on the field.
"
Zimmerman's book, Rules of Play, is now considered a defining textbook of game design.
Interaction of Color
50th Anniversary Edition
Albers was mentioned as the author of Interaction of Color, described as an amazing book on color theory that the host had read during art school.
"
Joseph Albers was a German artist who came to the United States and taught at Yale University. He wrote this amazing book called Interaction of Color.
— Episode: 675. Has the New York Times Become a Gam...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: 675. Has the New York Times Become a Games Company...
Albers was mentioned as the author of Interaction of Color, described as an amazing book on color theory that the host had read during art school.
"
Joseph Albers was a German artist who came to the United States and taught at Yale University. He wrote this amazing book called Interaction of Color.
What Do You Care What Other People Think
Further Adventures of a Curious Character
The episode identified it as the second book cowritten by Feynman, describing it as a further collection of his adventures.
"
The second book was called What Do You Care What Other People Think? Further Adventures of a Curious Character.
— Episode: The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
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Episode: The Vanishing Mr. Feynman (Update)
The episode identified it as the second book cowritten by Feynman, describing it as a further collection of his adventures.
"
The second book was called What Do You Care What Other People Think? Further Adventures of a Curious Character.
The Backgammon Chronicles
A Pro's Adventures on Tour Volume 1
The book was referenced as a chronicle of the backgammon scene, with Wachtell using it to compare past and present eras of the game.
"
Here's how Bob Wachtell described it in his book The Backgammon Chronicles, A Pro's Adventure on Tour, Volume 1.
— Episode: 677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselv...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: 677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves?
The book was referenced as a chronicle of the backgammon scene, with Wachtell using it to compare past and present eras of the game.
"
Here's how Bob Wachtell described it in his book The Backgammon Chronicles, A Pro's Adventure on Tour, Volume 1.
In the Game until the End Volume II
Ace-Point Endgame Analysis--the Next Generation
The title was mentioned as the name of the first volume focusing on a tiny segment of the bearoff situation in backgammon.
"
Yes, but only a tiny segment of the bear-off. The first volume, I decided to name it In the Game Until the End, because back in the day at the Mayfair Club in New York, the marks or pigeons, when they...
— Episode: 677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselv...
Listen on Audible
7-day free trial
Episode: 677. Can Backgammon Save Us from Ourselves?
The title was mentioned as the name of the first volume focusing on a tiny segment of the bearoff situation in backgammon.
"
Yes, but only a tiny segment of the bear-off. The first volume, I decided to name it In the Game Until the End, because back in the day at the Mayfair Club in New York, the marks or pigeons, when they got in these positions, would say, at least I'm in the game until the end.
Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.