Brain Food Dude #34

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Niall Ferguson

Niall Ferguson did a TED Talk about what he calls the "6 killer apps" that have led to modern economic success. Check out the TED Talk below.

Francis Ford Coppola

Francis Ford Coppola did an excellent interview with the HBR Ideacast.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/29/11.

The virtues of drilling deeper

On All Things Considered they discuss the economic potential of oil and gas in the United States.

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The evils of drilling deeper

At the end of this episode of Fresh Air they have a great discussion about the potential evils of fracking, and drilling deeper.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/29/11.

A trust that could break the world economy

Check out this wild tale from Lapham's Quarterly about a trust that could break the world.

Brain Food Dude #33

The 33rd episode of our Brain Food Dude podcast is out now. Listen here, or subscribe to our podcast on itunes.

Genomics

Genomics is going to cure diseases, extend our lives, and change things we can't even imagine. Learn more on this TED Talk with Richard Resnick.

Willpower

In his new book Willpower, John Tierney, discusses how willpower actually works like a muscle. It can be strengthened over time, and if fatigued can lead to some bad decisions.

Listen here to learn more.

Should we end the war on terror?

This week on Intelligence Squared, a great debate on whether or not we should end the war on terror.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/14/11.

America Walks Into a Bar

Some of our nations most important conversations have taken place in a bar. Learn more in this Talk of the Nation interview with Christine Sismondo, author of America Walks Into A Bar: A Spirited History Of Taverns And Saloons, Speakeasies And Grog Shops.

Listen here.

Lincoln Beachey

Lincoln Beachey is perhaps the most famous person you've never heard of. Learn all about this flying daredevil on Radiolab.

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Maphead

If anyone wants to know what to get me for Christmas, I always love a great map. That's why I'm so stoked about this new book by Ken Jennings called Maphead. Last week on Fresh Air Jennings talked about the book, and about his 74-episode run on Jeopardy.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/21/11.

Brain Food Dude podcast #32

Brain Food Dude #32 is available now. Listen here, or subscribe to our podcast on itunes.

Richard Engel

Fresh Air did a great interview this week with foreign war correspondent Richard Engel.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date is 9/9/11.

The So-Called Student-Athlete

How should we view student Athletes? What is the future of college athletics? Learn all about it on NPR, and in The Atlantic Monthly.

History of Oktoberfest

This week on The Economist: The Week Ahead, a great 1-minute history of Oktoberfest.

Listen below, or subscribe to the week ahead on itunes.

Vasco da Gama

Vasco da Gama was a bad mammer jammer. Learn more on this episode of On Point where they interview Nigel Cliff, author of Holy War: How Vasco da Gamas Epic Voyages Turned a Tide in a Centuries Old Clash of Civilizations.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date is 9/13/11.

Predicting the future

People have been predicting the future for as long as we know, but how accurate have they been? From fortune tellers to wall street bankers to sports forecasters, I think it's safe to say one thing: it's very difficult to know what is going to happen in the future. Learn more on this episode of Freakonomics Radio.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/14/11.

When congress plays chicken

What exactly is going on in congress right now? Planet Money does a great job of laying it all out in an easy to understand way.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date is 9/13/11.

Brain Food Dude #31

Brain Food Dude podcast #31 is now available. Listen here, or subscribe on itunes.

Scientists who experiment on themselves

I once did a scientific experiment on myself in which I went an entire month without eating any Blue Bell Ice Cream. It was hell. But some other scientists out there have gone much, much further. Learn about 10 such scientists on this episode of Stuff You Should Know.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/6/11.

Nonviolence in Palestine

More journalists need to cover the nonviolence taking place in Palestine. Learn more on this Ted Talk with Julia Bacha

David Simon

If you haven't watched all 5 seasons of The Wire yet, do so. If you want to learn what The Wire is all about, check out this interview with David Simon on Bill Moyer's Journal, from back in 2009.

Watch now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 4/17/09.

How does information affect our brains?

This week on To the Best of Our Knowledge they discuss information, and how too much of it affects our brains for better and for worse. My favorite part is about halfway through when they interview Nicholas Carr, the author of The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/1/11.

3 firefighter's tales from 9/11

Last week on Fresh Air, an interview with three firefighters who survived 9/11, and the author of A Decade of Hope.

Listen to their tales now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 9/7/11.

Episode #30

Episode #30 of our podcast is now out. Listen here, or subscribe to our podcast on itunes.

This week's show features clips from the following podcasts:

Radiolab about games.
This American Life about gossip, aids, and Malawi.
Fresh Air about bananas.
Story Corps about learning to love reading.
2 clips about bees, from To the Best of Our Knowledge and Skeptically Speaking.

Bees

This week we found two great podcasts about the topic of bees.

The first is an episode of To the Best of Our Knowledge. Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date is 8/26/11.

The second is an episode about bugs from Skeptically Speaking. Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date is 8/21/11.

Learning the love of reading

Last week on the Story Corps podcast, a great tale about how a judge first fell in love with reading.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 8/26/11.

Gossip, Africa, aids, and prevention...

How do Africans talk about, and think about aids? Differently than most think. Learn more on This American Life.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 8/28/11.

Bananas

How did bananas get so darn popular, and why might they be a lot harder to find in a few years? Learn all about bananas on this episode of Fresh Air.

Listen now, or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 8/30/11.

Games

In the 1863 World Checkers Championships, the two best checkers players on earth went head to head in a series of 40 matches. The result...40 ties. Learn about how this ruined the world of professional checkers, and why this isn't likely to happen to chess anytime soon, on Radiolab.

Listen here:


Or download on itunes. The itunes release date was 8/23/11.