Best Stuart Alexander Podcasts (2025)

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Michael B. Cosmopoulos, "The World of Homer: Archaeology, Social Memory, and the Emergence of Greek Epic Poetry" (Cambridge UP, 2025) 1:22:08

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2d ago1:22:08

1:22:08

Epic poetry, notably the Iliad and the Odyssey, stands as one of the most enduring legacies of ancient Greece. Although the impact of these epics on Western civilization is widely recognized, their origins remain the subject of heated debate. Were they composed in a single era or over the course of centuries? Were they crafted by one or by many poe…

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Armchair Anonymous: Military 48:44

2d ago48:44

48:44

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy military story. Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visi…

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Stephen Dubner Returns Again 1:49:55

4d ago1:49:55

1:49:55

Stephen Dubner (Freakonomics, When to Rob a Bank, Freakonomics Radio) is an award-winning journalist, author, and radio host. Stephen returns once again to the Armchair Expert to discuss the power and necessity of disgust, the ethics of yelling at AI, and reflecting on the 20th publishing anniversary of Freakonomics. Stephen and Dax talk about bein…

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Mom's Car: Briegh Morrison 1:03:36

5d ago1:03:36

1:03:36

On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car, we welcome Dax’s former longtime partner and forever pal Briegh Morrison. Briegh, Dax, and Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through the harrowing story of her son’s near-drowning, breast cancer being the catalyst for her getting sober, BFAW’s memory of Briegh’s substance-tinged boat cleaning, she and Dax’s couples…

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Jennifer Aniston 2:10:20

6d ago2:10:20

2:10:20

Jennifer Aniston (The Morning Show, Cook with Clydeo, Friends) is an Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor. Jennifer joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the hidden messages in children’s literature, why doing podcasts can be like waking up from anesthesia, and the bait and switch of her actor dad deciding to train as a doctor in Greece. Jennif…

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Tech Paired Podcast | #1 | Birthdays Not Missed: Building Quorum Cyber with Federico Charosky, CEO 1:03:21

7d ago1:03:21

1:03:21

Federico, CEO of Quorum Cyber, traces his journey from Buenos Aires to building one of the UK’s fastest-growing cybersecurity firms. We dig into the brutal truths of leadership, AI’s real impact on security work, why SMBs are targets, and why your security program should favor platforms and simplicity. We end on quantum risk and a surprising metric…

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Angelos Chaniotis, "Age of Conquests: The Greek World from Alexander to Hadrian" (Harvard UP, 2018) 1:11:35

7d ago1:11:35

1:11:35

The world that Alexander remade in his lifetime was transformed once more by his death in 323 BCE. In Age of Conquests: The Greek World from Alexander to Hadrian(Harvard University Press, 2018), Angelos Chaniotis, Professor of Ancient History and Classics at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, examines how his successors reorganized Pers…

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David Stasavage, "The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today" (Princeton UP, 2020) 39:13

8d ago39:13

39:13

Historical accounts of democracy's rise tend to focus on ancient Greece and pre-Renaissance Europe. The Decline and Rise of Democracy: A Global History from Antiquity to Today (Princeton University Press, 2020) draws from global evidence to show that the story is much richer--democratic practices were present in many places, at many other times, fr…

1
Armchair Anonymous: Wedding II 43:04

9d ago43:04

43:04

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a wedding disaster. Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by vi…

1
Moudhy Al-Rashid, "Between Two Rivers: Ancient Mesopotamia and the Birth of History" (W.W. Norton, 2025) 43:42

10d ago43:42

43:42

In 1923, archaeologist Leonard Woolley stumbled upon a room that dated back to 530BC, the time of the Babylonians. Oddly, the room was filled with artifacts that were thousands of years older. A clay drum led Woolley to speculate that he might have stumbled across the world’s first museum. Whether that was really the case is still somewhat unknown.…

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Ranger Keeper - Frontier Principal 59:26

11d ago59:26

59:26

She’s a longtime senior leader of the Black Rock Rangers and the principal of the Gerlach K-12 School. Keeper lives year-round in Gerlach, one of the smallest and most remote towns in the US, and the closest community to Black Rock City. In this storytelling episode, she shares her unique perspective on blending the worlds of Burning Man and rural …

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Andy Roddick (former professional tennis player) 1:48:28

11d ago1:48:28

1:48:28

Andy Roddick (Served) is a Grand Slam-winning tennis champion. Andy joins the Armchair Expert to discuss when his tennis rankings weren’t as good as his older brother’s until the day it flipped, whether he thinks you’re born or made with the disposition of an elite athlete, and how undervalued a skill it is to get beat and go to work the next day. …

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Mom's Car: Nate Tuck 51:30

12d ago51:30

51:30

On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car, we welcome West Coast Best Friend Nate Tuck. Dax, Nate, and East Coast Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through the deep evolutionary significance of a tribe chief embarrassing himself, Nate’s wasted and naked black ice car crash, BFAW’s handsome, mustachioed dad, woes of a sludgy summer job, a particularly loud J…

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Justin Stover and George Woudhuysen, "The Lost History of Sextus Aurelius Victor" (Edinburgh UP, 2023) 1:24:47

13d ago1:24:47

1:24:47

This book rediscovers a lost history of the Roman Empire, written by Sextus Aurelius Victor (ca. 320-390) and demonstrates for the first time both the contemporary and lasting influence of his historical work. Though little regarded today, Victor is the best-attested historian of the later Roman Empire, read by Jerome and Ammianus, honoured with a …

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Sharon Horgan 1:54:39

13d ago1:54:39

1:54:39

Sharon Horgan (The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox, Bad Sisters, Catastrophe) is an Emmy Award-nominated actor, writer, and producer. Sharon joins the Armchair Expert to discuss being one of three middle children, growing up with a tough publican father that went into the turkey trade, and an early approach by a famous director in a café to audition fo…

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S5 Ep10: The importance of heritage vegetables with Raymond Blanc OBE 1:07:03

16d ago1:07:03

1:07:03

In this month’s episode, we're joined by Raymond Blanc OBE from his kitchen garden at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons. We toured the garden, which is home to over 100 heritage vegetable varieties. Raymond talks about his own gardening heritage, and how growing with his mother and father in France influenced the direction he's taken with Le Manoir's kitc…

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Armchair Anonymous: Moving 51:58

16d ago51:58

51:58

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a crazy moving story. Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by …

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Karen Pechilis ed., "A Cultural History of Hinduism: Volumes 1-6" (Bloomsbury, 2024) 59:55

17d ago59:55

59:55

In this episode, Raj Balkaran speaks with Karen Pechilis, Jarrod Whitaker, and Valerie Stoker about A Cultural History of Hinduism (Bloomsbury, 2024), a landmark six-volume series that traces Hindu traditions from the ancient world to the present. Each volume is organized around eight core themes—Sources of Authority; Body and Mind; Social Organiza…

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Toby Stuart (on social status) 1:36:12

18d ago1:36:12

1:36:12

1M ago54:47

54:47

On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car we welcome none other than the Duchess of Duluth, Monica Padman. Dax, Monica, and Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through the most tempted they’ve been to sample their own wares, a definitely real, meet-cute write-in question that could have been a full-circle big twist, why Monica’s kink is sick men and tasty foo…