Edward Castronova talks to Jim Fleming about M.M.O.R.P.G.'s, "Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games.
Edward Castronova talks to Jim Fleming about M.M.O.R.P.G.'s, "Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games.
Anne here. My conversation with Turkish writer Elif Şafak back in April still sticks with me as the year comes to a close. In many parts of the world, 2016 was the year of the populist leader—especially in Turkey, where Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a crackdown on free speech and all forms of opposition. 120 journalists have been jailed, more than 2,000 academics have been dismissed from universities, and more than 100,000 public workers have been fired. How did Turkey—once a model of new democratic nations—become such a different place? Not only did Şafak see this coming, she warned that the West should not consider itself immune.
Freakwater is an American country band. They're profiled by TTBOOK producer Veronica Rueckert. We hear lots of music from their new album, "Thinking of You."
Sheri Booker was terrified when she first started working at the Wylie Funeral Home at the age of 15. She was still grieving the death of a beloved aunt, and took the job in the hope of finding a sense of closure. After preparing her first client — a suicide victim with a gunshot wound to the head — something changed. As morbid as it may sound, she was hooked.
Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard recommends a chilling read: "The Flame Alphabet" by Ben Marcus.
Brad Kessler was a writer in New York City. He's still a writer, but now he lives on 75 acres in Vermont with a small herd of goats.
Choying Drolma began her life as a Buddhist nun in Nepal. As she tells Steve Paulson, Drolma is now bringing music to the West with American guitarist Steve Tibbetts.
Writer and activist Astra Taylor calls for a Jubilee to buy and abolish debt.