Nicholson Baker

Nicholson Baker appears in the following:

Nicholson Baker Goes Back to School as a Substitute Teacher

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

In his latest book, "Substitute: Going to School With a Thousand Kids," Nicholson Baker deconstructs gets an education in the classroom. 

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Nicholson Baker’s Musical New Novel

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Novelist Nicholson Baker’s new book, Traveling Sprinkler, is about a fairly well regarded poet named Paul Chowder who is having a hard time writing a new book. So he picks up a guitar...

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James Murphy On Broadway; Nicholson Baker’s Musical Novel; Sarah Jarosz Plays Live

Thursday, September 26, 2013

In this episode: Former LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy discusses his latest project: composing music for the Broadway revival of Harold Pinter's drama "Betrayal."

Plus: Nicholson Baker’s new novel, Traveling Sprinkler, is about a man who is having a hard time writing a new book — so he picks up a guitar instead. Baker discusses the book and the real-life companion album he recorded.

And: Sarah Jarosz is just 22, but she’s already made a mark on the folk and bluegrass scene thanks to her deep bluegrass knowledge and exceptional instrumental skills. The Grammy nominated singer-songwriter from Texas plays live.  

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Do We Really Need to Learn Algebra?

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Nicholson Baker makes a case against requiring algebra 2 and asks “why, if math is so great and timeless and beautiful, do millions of people hate it so much?”

During his conversation with Leonard brought up a 2002 survey that found a very high correlation between people who took and succeeded algebra 2 and those who made money and were successful later in life. Baker said, “It isn’t more than a statistical correlation, but people pounced on this and said, my god! Algebra 2! It’s the mystic door! If we force every child go through this door successfully, if we make them do it and we make them succeed, then they’ll all be above average and the world will be a better place.” But he argues, that making it a requirement for everyone for college admission is “not just a waste of time but a real source of suffering for many people.” Baker noted that it shouldn't be removed entirely from the high school curriculum, but that it shouldn't be required for every student, especially for otherwise good students who are struggling to pass it. "I think kids should be compelled to take some algebra...so you get a sense of what's out there and whether you have a head for it," he said.

Many callers and commenters defended algebra, saying it teaches problem-solving and intellectual discipline, but a number of people agree with Baker that not every student should be forced to take algebra 2 if they're struggling to pass it.

Nicholson Baker's article “Wrong Answer” is in the September 2013 issue of Harper’s Magazine.

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Nicholson Baker's Literary Porn

Friday, July 29, 2011

He’s written books about World War II, poetry, the fate of newspapers. But as a novelist, Nicholson Baker has another side. Back in the 1990s, he published two R-rated works of fic...

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Writer Meets Kindle

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Author Nicholson Baker took the Kindle 2 out for a spin, and he wrote about the experience in the latest issue of The New Yorker. Will he be "pulled into a world of compulsive, demonic book consumption?" Tune in to find out! Kindle owners: What's ...

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Debating the Internet

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Lee Siegel, author of Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob, and Nicholson Baker, author of Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, the End of Civilization, preview their debate at the New York Public Library over whether the internet offers more ...

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Where There's Smoke...

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

The Olympics are meant to bring the world together. And so, as the Summer Games approach, the world unites… in protest against China. We go live to San Francisco for the Olympic torch’s bumpy journey through the Bay Area. And writers Lee Siegel and Nicholson Baker preview their debate at ...

Is War Ever Good?

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Nicholson Baker asks if there’s ever such a thing as a "good war" and makes a strong case for pacifism. His new book is Human Smoke: The Beginnings of World War II, the End of Civilization.

Event: Nicholson Baker will be in conversation with Simon Winchester
Thursday, March ...

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Good War

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Is there ever such a thing as a good war? Guest host Julie Burstein talks to Nicholson Baker about the uses of war, and the case for pacifism in our modern world. Also: poet Mark Doty. Then Ceridwen Dovey's debut novel. And Underreported looks into how women care ...

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Nicholson Baker

Friday, March 07, 2008

According to Nicholson Baker, we’ve got World War II all wrong. For his new book Human Smoke, Baker scoured newspaper articles, interviews, and accounts of atrocities, and he tells Kurt that the case for the "good war" just doesn't add up.

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Broadsheets, E-Ink, Redford

Thursday, January 19, 2006

This week in Studio 360, the novelist Nicholson Baker gets passionate about paper, and Robert Redford stops by to talk about acting, directing, and 25 years of Sundance.

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