The Best Paragraph I've Read...

Zac & Don
  • 4.9 (34)
  • EDUCATION
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

A podcast that discusses an interesting article or concept.

  1. 6D AGO

    Nuclear Prediction Markets Canceled! Work Harder Now? Is Bitcoin Uncool? Education Tech Failure? US Gov. Unconcerned of TikTok! Single Earning Homes in Decline! Is Russian Economy in the Death Zone?

    The Best Paragraph I've Read: comes from the following articles that Zac & Don discuss: Nuclear Predictions Markets Are Canceled Should You Work Harder Now? Bitcoins Vibe is Off Education Tech Doesn't Show Gains No One Cares About Tik Tok Anymore Single Earning Households On the Decline The Russian Economy Is Dying

    47 min

  2. MAR 12

    Do We Need New Cities? Would Building on Open Land Escape Current City Problems? Or Will People Being People Ruin New Cities? Do Irvine, CA & Walt Disney Have the Solution to the Housing Shortage?

    The Best Paragraph I've Read: "Open land represents the future in its purest form — after all, every place was no place at some point. The quest for resources, escaping bondage or seeking places to worship freely have all motivated new settlements and fresh modes of living. Buildings, sure, but also a chance to improve society in a place where the future looms larger than the past." This paragraph comes from the New York Times. The article is titled: "Maybe America Needs Some New Cities." The article is written by Conor Dougherty. You can read the full article here. Zac & Don discuss the idea of building cities from fresh land. They wonder what the pros and cons are. They also wonder if they will just become the same places with the same problems once people move in.

    30 min

  3. MAR 5

    Are Schools the Problem? Are Phone Unfairly Blamed When It Comes to Student Stress & Anxiety? Should the Correlation of NCLB/Common Core & Increases in Student Anxiety Be Considered? Dave Mckay Joins!

    The Best Paragraph I've Read: "By turning childhood into a thing that can be measured,adults have managed to impose their greatest fears of failure onto the youngest among us. Each child who strays from our standards becomes a potential medical mystery to be solved, with more tests to take, more metrics to assess. The onlything that seems to consistently evade the detectives is the world around that child — the one made by the grown-ups." This article comes from the New York Times. The title is: "Are Schools a Problem?" The author is Sam Sifton. You can read the full article here. Zac & Don are joined by their good friend Dave McKay. The three discuss whether schools and their system of standards should be blamed for the rise in childhood anxiety. They wonder if it is possible phones are being unfairly blamed.

    31 min

  4. FEB 26

    What's the Urgency Thinking Level: Robots taking Amazon Jobs? The Southern Cone Thesis? More Aircraft Carriers for China? Greenland's Subsidized Population? The Dollar's Declining Value?

    Don tells Zac whether he needs to stop or keep thinking about the following issues: Robots taking Jobs The Southern Cone Thesis China's Growing Aircraft Carrier Collection Greenland's Subsidized Population The Dollars Declining Value

    35 min

  5. FEB 12

    The Most Interesting Things Kent Hendricks Learned in 2025: Hot Dogs In W. Virginia, Decline in Male Hand Strength, Mexican School Hours & Divorce Rates, Billion Dollar Birders, Adult Diapers & More!

    The Best Paragraph this week comes from Kent Hendrick's Blog Post on 52 Things I Learned in 2025. You can read the entire blog here. Zac and Don discuss their favorite facts and statistics that Mr. Hendricks shares in his article.

    42 min

  6. FEB 5

    Football! Why So Popular When So Few Play & Actually Understand It? The Perfect TV Product or A Distraction from Real Issues? Is Jim Thorpe Greatest Ever with No Video Evidence? Is it Applied Track?

    The Best Paragraph I've Read comes from the new book by Chuck Klosterman, "Football." Zac & Don discuss the first half of the book. They wonder about why so few people play the game, if it's the perfect TV product, whether the game is applied track, and more!

    42 min

  7. JAN 29

    Young Adults Have Given Up On Home Buying! Does this Trend Lead to Less Effort at Work & More Sushi & Crypto Consumption? New Trend? Or Delayed Behavior that Will Fall In Line with Historical Norms?

    The Best Paragraph I've Read: "With home affordability increasingly out of reach, many young adults are making choices that are reshaping the economy — and mostly for the worse — a new research paper says. They don’t think they’ll ever be homeowners. So they stop trying, and focus on the here and now. That’s the interpretation put forth by economists Seung Hyeong Lee and Younggeun Yoo — doctoral candidates at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago,respectively — who built a mathematical model of consumer behavior. When people conclude that they will never be able to afford a home, they put less effort into their jobs, tend to spend more on luxuries and do less long-term saving, and are more likely to invest in riskier assets such as cryptocurrencies, the economists’ findings suggested." This paragraph comes from the Washington Post. The article is titled: "Abandoning home ownership may be changing how people behave at work and home." The author is Julie Zauzmer Weil. You can read the full article here. Zac and Don discuss whether it is a big deal if younger adults have given up on home buying. They wonder if it's better to spend disposable income on eating out more and purchasing crypto instead of saving for a house. They also wonder if eventually younger home buyers will come into the market just later in life.

    32 min

  8. JAN 22

    Should Parents Tell Children How Much Money they Make? What Are the Benefits? Any Drawbacks? Is this the Ultimate Personal Finance Lesson? Or Should No Swipe November Become A Trend for Everyone?

    The Best Paragraph I've Read: "Money is a source of mystery to children. They sense its power, so they ask questions, lots of them, over many years. Why isn’t our house as big as my cousin’s? Why can’t I have a carnivorous plant terrarium? Why should I respect my teachers if they earn only $60,000 per year? (Real question!) Are we poor? Why didn’t you give money to the man who asked you for some? If my sister can have Hello-Kitty-themed Beats by Dre headphones, why won’t you get me the Bluetooth-enabled Lego Mindstorms set? (It’s only $349, and it’s educational, Mom!) We adults, however, tend to do a miserable job of answering. We push our children’s money questions aside, sometimes telling them that their queries are impolite, or perhaps worrying that they will call out our own financial hypocrisy and errors. Sometimes we respond defensively and viscerally, barking back, “None of your business,” unintentionally teaching our children that thetopic is off limits despite its obvious importance. Others want to protect their children from a topic many of us find stressful or baffling: Can’t we keep them innocent of all of this money stuff for just a little bit longer? But shielding children from the realities of everyday financial life makes little sense anymore, given the responsibilities their generation will face, startingwith the outsize college tuitions they will encounter while still in high school." This paragraph comes from the New York Times. The article is titled: "Why You Should Tell Your Children How Much You Make." The author is Ron Lieber. You can read the full article here. Zac & Don discuss whether it is a good idea to tell your children how much money you make. They wonder what the benefits are and if there are any problems with the issue. They also reference the following Wall Street Journal article about No Swipe November.

    34 min
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A podcast that discusses an interesting article or concept.

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