Government ShutdownSkin in the GameI've Always Wondered ...How We Survive

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Kai Ryssdal

Host and senior editor

SHORT BIO

I speak my native tongue into a microphone.

What was your first job?

Lifeguard. (Well, that and mowing lawns.)

What do you think is the hardest part of your job that no one knows?

Staying calm.

What advice do you wish someone had given you before you started this career?

Don't think — just talk.

In your next life, what would your career be?

Helicopter pilot.

Episodes by Kai (5,702)

Make Me Smart | Episode 1014

The sliver of the federal budget Congress is fighting over

Sep 28, 2023
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Marketplace

$2 trillion in savings, spent

Sep 28, 2023
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Make Me Smart | Episode 1013

Musk and the military industrial complex

Sep 27, 2023
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Marketplace

Feeling the oil-flation?

Sep 27, 2023
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Make Me Smart | Episode 1012

The real problem with passing the federal budget

Sep 26, 2023
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Marketplace

Housing market role play

Sep 26, 2023
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Make Me Smart | Episode 1011

Why big GOP money matters less than ever

Sep 25, 2023
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Marketplace

The business of getting offices back in business

Sep 25, 2023
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Make Me Smart | Episode 1010

Corruption is a bipartisan problem

Sep 22, 2023
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Marketplace

The early bird gets the worm

Sep 22, 2023
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Latest Stories (5,702)

The monumental task of measuring the GDP over and over again

by Kai Ryssdal and Maria Hollenhorst
Sep 28, 2023
The keepers of GDP continually update their calculations as more information becomes available.
Measuring the economy requires continually revising data as more data becomes available.
Stephane de Sakutin/AFP via Getty Images
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Most millennials are homeowners now

by Kai Ryssdal and Sofia Terenzio
Sep 28, 2023
Millennials have faced challenges to homeownership for years. Now, a slim majority of millennials own a home.
As of 2022, the majority of millennials now own homes.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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Why does furniture fall apart so easily?

by Kai Ryssdal and Richard Cunningham
Sep 27, 2023
Furniture used to last a lifetime. Now, not so much. But how did we get here?
"A great place to buy long-lasting furniture is a vintage furniture store, right? The proof is in the pudding that it's well made because it's lasting long enough for you to be able to purchase it right now," said Washington Post reporter Rachel Kurzius.
jozzeppe/Getty Images
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Twenty years on, pumpkin spice still has a hold on autumn (and America)

by Kai Ryssdal and Sarah Leeson
Sep 26, 2023
"It's just sort of become part of the fabric of our lives. It's now vanilla and chocolate and peppermint... and pumpkin spice," says food writer Emily Heil.
Unlike short-lived food fads, pumpkin spice has hung on for 20 years.
Edward Berthelot/Getty Images
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A Warmer World

Climate change means more extremes for Washington hops farmer

by Kai Ryssdal and Richard Cunningham
Sep 25, 2023
After a cold spring and unseasonably hot and dry summer, Patrick Smith of Yakima is seeing some abnormalities in when his crops mature.
"Overall, I'd say that the apple crop statewide is looking quite good," Washington farmer Patrick Smith says.
Matthew Cavanaugh/Getty Images
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How the orange egg yolk trend was hatched

by Kai Ryssdal and Livi Burdette
Sep 22, 2023
With eggs a more costly commodity, yolks of a richer color have come to signify luxury, writer Marian Bull observes.
Richer-hued yolks are a feast for the eyes to some. They may also signify luxury and "almost purity," says writer Marian Bull.
Brent Lewin/Getty Images
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What a “de facto ban” on Airbnb means for New York City 

by Kai Ryssdal and Livi Burdette
Sep 21, 2023
Will housing prices go down with fewer short-term renters around?
Airbnb has a long history in New York City. But New York's stance towards short-term rentals has just gone from one of the most relaxed policies out there, to one of the strictest.
Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images
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Did Burger King tell a whopper? Why false advertising suits are on the rise

by Kai Ryssdal and Sofia Terenzio
Sep 20, 2023
Rebecca Tushnet of Harvard Law School explains the incentive behind companies making vague promises to consumers.
A class-action lawsuit accuses Burger King of falsely advertising the size of its Whopper.
Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP via Getty Images
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Where did all the G-rated blockbusters go?

by Kai Ryssdal , Livi Burdette and Sean McHenry
Sep 13, 2023
A look at why PG is the new G for family movies in theaters this year.
Even this year's sequel to the "Trolls" movie didn't pass the G-rated test.
Daniel Leal/AFP via Getty Images
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"People are feeling the pinch," Montana mall manager says

by Kai Ryssdal , Richard Cunningham and Andie Corban
Sep 12, 2023
We check in with Alana Ferko, manager of the Butte Plaza Mall, who tells us about vacancy rates and a few special guests.
"People are very good at patronizing, and I appreciate that. But it's not enough," says Alana Ferko of the Butte Plaza Mall's vacancies. "I mean, they're gonna put out the energy to come to the mall, we want it to be worth it." Above, a mall in Florida.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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