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568: Human Spectacle
Oct. 2, 2015

Prologue

Ira talks to Joel Gold, a psychologist and author, about a strangely common delusion known as the "Truman Show Delusion," in which patients believe that they are being filmed, 24/7, for a national reality television program.
556: Same Bed, Different Dreams
May 1, 2015

Prologue

In order to maintain their status as the friendliest, calmest people on the plane, flight attendants bicker mercilessly behind our backs. Then they cuddle up and sleep right next to each other in the same bed.
556: Same Bed, Different Dreams
May 1, 2015

Act Two: Smell You Later

Lots of people in America share actual beds – but almost never see each other. Flight attendants have crash pads near airports, oil rig workers carry their own sheets and sleep in shifts in an RV – and Stephanie Foo has a profile of Mexican immigrants who share a few beds in a tiny trailer in upstate New York.
563: The Problem We All Live With - Part Two
Aug. 7, 2015

Prologue

Chana Joffe-Walt talks to Kiana, who went to a school that was overwhelmingly black and Latino, but when some white students showed up one day on an exchange program, she went up to them eagerly. And since then, has embarked on a one-woman school integration program.
560: Abdi and the Golden Ticket
July 3, 2015

Prologue

Ira talks to cyber cafe workers around the world about something that lots of Americans have never heard of, but that people in other countries know all about: a lottery run by the U.S. government where the prize is a visa to come to America. Each year people flock to cyber cafes to enter it, hoping for a lucky break that will change their life.
564: Too Soon?
Aug. 14, 2015

Prologue

When Jordan was going into his senior year of high school in small town Utah, he and his buddies all lived together in a house, daring each other into Jackass-style pranks and stunts. There's one particular thing Jordan did that he did not want to talk to Ira about.
550: Three Miles
Mar. 13, 2015

Act Two

The kids who traveled three miles up the road are in their mid-20s now. We hear how what they saw affected them for years, including at college.
559: Captain's Log
June 26, 2015

Act Two: Romancing the Phone

Comedian Aziz Ansari has been touring the country collecting people’s text messages from when they first say hi, and ask each other out. Sociologist Eric Klinenberg wanted to study this raw data of the initial approach a man makes to a woman over text.
546: Burroughs 101
Jan. 30, 2015

Act One: Burroughs, Part One

Iggy Pop, the documentary's narrator, begins by listing some of the artists and artistic movements influenced by Burroughs: Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Steely Dan, Kurt Cobain, Lou Reed; punk, heavy metal. We hear from director John Waters on the impact on him of Burroughs' open homosexuality and frankness about sex.

Act Three: Who Put the Face in Game Face?

Ira speaks with Mike Pesca, host of the sports podcast Hang Up and Listen and Slate's daily podcast The Gist about the whole concept of the game face in sports. What is it exactly? And who might be the best examples of athletes with incredible game faces? Then Ira speaks with writer David Dupuis about the athlete who may have the game face-iest game face in sports history – hockey goalie Terry Sawchuk.
554: Not It!
Apr. 10, 2015

Act One: Como Se Dice "Not It"?

Adriana's story continues, as she ventures deep into a mysterious world of heroin addiction treatment centers where no one seems to be taking responsibility for the people they're treating. Adriana is the editor of the bilingual newspaper The Gate.
557: Birds & Bees
May 15, 2015

Act Three: About that Farm Upstate

While it’s hard to explain to kids how babies come into the world, it might be harder to explain that people leave the world too — especially to a kid whose mom or dad or brother or sister has died. There are grief counseling centers all over the U.S. that cater specifically to children.
555: The Incredible Rarity of Changing Your Mind
Apr. 24, 2015

Prologue

Ira introduces “the backfire effect,” a phenomenon stating that when confronted with evidence disproving what we believe, most of us ignore that evidence, dig in and become more entrenched in our beliefs. Which just makes the recordings he plays more surprising—recordings of canvassers going door to door and effectively convincing people to completely flip their positions.