Stuff Smart People Like

This week Ben, Ed and Dean reshape the 2012 Games as a way to deal with their collective athletic envy. Smart Suggestions included, as always. Download the .mp3 Smart Suggestions: Ben: The Shame of College Sports Ed: The Sound of Sport Dean: The Thrilling Adventure Hour Main Topic: NBC Olympic Coverage #nbcfail This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Jordan, Ben and Dean throw out some music suggestions, talk about Jordan’s unfortunate car wash and Dean’s inability to make people laugh. Ed took the week off to save koala bears or see a ballgame or something… Download the .mp3 Smart Suggestions (Spotify): Jordan: The Way We Move - Langhorn Slim Ben: Sing Along With Acid House Kings - Acid House Kings Dean: Mermaid Avenue | Mermaid Avenue II | Mermaid Avenue III (didn’t even know about this one!) - Billy Bragg & Wilco Main Topic: Daniel Tosh Apologizes - Jezebel.com Knuckle Ball (Shameless self-promotion.) Music this week provided by Birds of Tokyo - Wild-eyed Boy The Windy City  - Games We Are FM  - My World This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

We messed up. We owe everyone an explanation.  It is clear from the feedback over the past two months that many listeners felt we lacked respect and humility in the way we produce podcast content, and the lack of price for said content. That was certainly not our intent, and we offer our sincere apology. In all seriousness though. Here’s another free one, on us. While Jordan parties in a cornfield in Iowa, the rest of the guys go to work suggesting good books for summer reading, discussing the effect that Neflix has on people’s exposure to film, and playing a game that tests one’s knowledge of Garfield the Cat, the Actor, and the President.  Get your money’s worth. Listen to this podcast right away. Don’t leave it on your coffee table to collect dust for a month. Download the .mp3 Smart Suggestions (Books to Read this summer): Ed: I Love You More than You Know by Jonathan Ames | Bored to Death (TV Series)|Anything by David Sedaris Ben: Out of the Crisis by W. Edwards Deming Dean: Randy Riley’s Really Big Hit Main Topic (Netflix): Shawshank Redemption F for Fake The Netflix Debacle This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Bow tie not included. While Ed is away, the rest of the panel share a few Smart Suggestions and try to convince Jordan to become a rockstar scientist so he can educate the masses. Download the .Mp3 Smart Suggestions (Movies): Jordan: TasteKid Ben: Plume for Twitter Dean: Ask Me Another Main Topic: An Inconvenient Truth Bill Nye | Neil deGasse Tyson The West Wing - Season 7, Episode 4 “Mr Frost” (IMDb) “The Terrifying Texas GOP Platform” (Forbes) The Revisionaries This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

The podcast to have, when you’re having more than one! In this refreshing episode the guys make some cinematically smart suggestions and then reflect on how they respond to advertising. Then we revisit some predictions and see how clarevoyant the guys really are. Download the .Mp3 Smart Suggestions (Movies): Ben: The Rules of the Game (The Criterion Collection)(1939) Jordan: Zero Effect (1999) Ed: The Specials (2000) |Rubber (2010) DeanThe Believer (2004) Main Topic: Slate’s Ad report card The Atlantic’s The Science of Slogans Terry Tate Office Linebacker (Youtube) This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

In honor of the 100 year anniversary of Alan Turing’s birth, the gents discuss artificial intelligence, video games, and dystopian futures. Jordan elects to leave the main topic to the experts in favor of playing softball with a group of aging men. Download the .Mp3 Smart Suggestions: Ben: Plex (App) Jordan: Lowering the Bar (Website) Ed: Radiolab: The Turing Problem (Podcast Episode) Dean: Here’s the Thing: David Letterman Interview (Podcast Episode) Main Topic: 10-year-long video game creates ‘hellish nightmare’ world The Totalitarian Buddhist who Beat Sim City The Corrupted Blood Incident This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

If a train leaves Cupertino heading 45mph and a bus leaves the local elementary school driving 25mph, how long does it take your iPad to compute a collision? Nothing relating to the answer appears in this episode, but we do mine Ben’s expertise in educational tech. Also Smart Suggestions and making fun of Jordan! Download the .Mp3 Links from this episode: Smart Suggestions: Ed: TYWIKIWDBI Ben: Google Currents Dean: The Baseball Scorecard | iScore Baseball | MLB.com How to Keep Score Main Topic: iOS 6 Lifespans of Online Empires Infographic iTunes U History 7B, Berkeley via iTunes This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

The conversation starts off with a discussion of eco-friendly cooking methods for hot environments, takes a detour through dental hygiene, and finally settles on a somewhat lengthy discussion of the movie Prometheus and of technology in Sci-Fi films. We think it goes without saying, but we will say it anyway: this podcast may contain some SPOILERS. If you do not want us to spoil any part of Prometheus, do not listen to the podcast between the 23:51 - 48:10 marks. Just to be clear, we will reiterate: SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! You’ve been warned. Download .Mp3 Links from this Episode: Smart Suggestions: Ben: Neflix Classic Albums (requires netflix subscription) Ed: In my G4 Over Da Sea Jordan: Books by Ray Bradbury Dean: Colors Episode of RadioLab (and just RadioLab in general) This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Download the .mp3 While Dean is away in the field the rest of the gang discuss the Chicago’s Ambitious plan to eliminate traffic fatalities, Ed’s terrifying yet adorable baby cousin, whether academics are too uptight about grammar, and their ambivalence toward a movie that stars both Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron. Featuring the songs “Pull Yourself Together and Fall in Love with Me” by Cold Mailman and “Chocolate and Cocaine” by Lorenzo’s Music. Links from this Episode: Smart Suggestions: Ben: The Humble Indie Bundle V Ed: (The Awl | Splitsider | Today’s Best Tweets by Comedians) Jordan: A special message to the listeners (from Jordan) Main Topic: Chicago’s Ambitious Plan for Zero Traffic Fatalities Journals need to ease up on “data is”/”data are” Ebert’s Snow White and the Huntsman Review This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

This week the fellows ditched the comfort of video conferencing for actual human interaction and all recorded in Dean’s living room. So live in person, but not streaming live. It’s kind of echo-y, but oh the fun that was had discussing Tebowing at graduation, movies, television, twitter feeds and Jordan’s qualifications for his PhD (show off).  Download the .Mp3 Links from this episode: Boy Denied Diploma After Tebowing IBM Shushes Siri Parody Twitter Accounts: @drunkhulk @TheTweetofGod @big_ben_clock @NotTildaSwinton This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

The panel discussion revolves around the monster that super PACs have become, the definition of “well-read,” and the value of collecting an analyzing self-data. Jordan makes a music recommendation…again. And the guys lament the missed branding opportunities in the hunger games.   Download the .Mp3 Links from this episode: Smart Suggestions Ed: Now I Know Ben: Vice Videos (Guide to North Korea) Jordan: Imagine Dragons Dean:  Flipboard Main Topic Well-Read Cities Quantified Self The Feltron Reports Romney Attack Ads This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Communication is key folks. Case in point, poor communication between panel members this week resulted in the loss of one third of the audio stream of an epic podcast. We discussed Obama’s new stance on gay marriage, provided insight into the Dickensian aspects of the Avengers, compared The Cabin in the Woods and Grindhouse, and revealed the secret to the meaning of life. Alas, that podcast has been lost to the wind. Not wanting to deny our fans of content for a week we hastily recorded this “podcast” — essentially a half hour smart suggestion segment that we recorded in despair once it was determined that the original was lost. All in all, we thought it was pretty good, but pale in comparison to what came before it. The final “podcast” features educational videos, information graphics, and a reflection on the life and impact of Maurice Sendak. Download the .Mp3 Links from this episode: Ed: Chartsnthings Ben: Crash Course Jordan: Nuts (turntable.fm) Dean: Maurice Sendak Remembrance  NPR remembers Maurice Sendak Colbert Report Interview: Part 1 | Part 2 Tell them anything you want (documentary) This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Ed makes a triumphant return. The guys do a PBS-style rapid fire roundtable discussion of the week’s events including rampant speculation about the causes of Junior Seau’s untimely death, the impact (or lack thereof) of Facebook’s new organ donation feature, and Newt Gingrich’s campaign “suspension.” And, as always, the panel provides you with their weekly “smart suggestions.” Download the .MP3 Links from this episode: Ed: Song Time Machine Ben: Magic: The Gathering Jordan: Rock, Paper, Shotgun Dean: Google Doodles This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes,click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

Ed decides to take a week off to hang out with his girlfriend. In the meantime the guys discuss the reason why some of them didn’t have many girlfriends in high school: video games. There may also be mention of some tabletop games. For those of you who don’t know what tabletop games are, congratulations, you probably had more friends than we did growing up. Not to mention more exposure to sunlight and less exposure to Mountain Dew and Cheetos as primary food sources. Download the .Mp3 Links from this episode: Dean: CCleaner Ed: Hanging out with the woman.      Ben: Valve Employee Handbook Jordan: Topless Robot This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).

In this slightly more freeform episode, the smartest guys in the room discuss what they expect in the Presidential race; including wedge issues and appeals to different demographics. As always, there are smart suggestions and then we wrap up with some fun at Edgar Allan Poe’s expense. Download the .mp3 Links from this episode: Dean: “Why Americans Hate the Media”, The Atlantic Ed: The Cabin in the Woods (in theaters)| Primer (free on youtube)     Ben: Synthesizer stuff Moog documentary(Netflix), (IMDB) Korg IMS-20 iPad app Its The Arps Jordan: The Elements of Style | Grammar girl (podcast) This is a podcast post: click here to download the MP3 audio, click here to subscribe via iTunes, click here to visit our blog, and click here to show us some love. Have feedback or suggestions? Then click here (your mouse must be getting tired).