Persi Diaconis was a stage magician before he discovered probability theory and became one of the world's leading mathematicians. He tells us about some very powerful formulas derived from card shuffles and magic tricks.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
British actor Simon Callow is writing Orson Welles' biography. Volume 2 is called "Hello Americans."
Novelist Wesley Stace (AKA musician John Wesley Harding) tells Jim what the original novel, "Tristram Shandy," is all about.
Journalist William Claassen calls himself a nomadic pilgrim. He spent many years traveling to cloistered communities from various religious traditions around the world.
The former mayor of Madison, Wisconsin, take us on a walking tour of the neighborhood of one of his big heroes, the late urban thinker, Jane Jacobs.
Brendan Koerner talks about his book, "The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking."
Tom Wolfe talks with Steve Paulson, and explains why he's so fascinated by the connection between sex and social status.
Stephen Mitchell has composed a new translation of “Gilgamesh,” the epic poem of ancient Mesopotamia.
Pages
