Day 6with Brent Bambury
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Episode 534
Mars rover landing, Rush Limbaugh's legacy, soccer star Pelé, Zelda at 35, disrupting opera and more
Why landing a rover on Mars is so difficult, how Rush Limbaugh transformed AM radio, filmmakers explore the life of soccer legend Pelé, The Legend of Zelda soundtrack turns 35, meet the Canadian Opera Company's first disruptor-in-residence and more.
Rush Limbaugh's influence will stick with Republican Party as it reimagines itself post-Trump, says author
The shock jock radio host, whose irreverent, controversial, sometimes offensive approach was loved by fans and derided by critics, was a vocal advocate for conservatism. Limbaugh died Wednesday at age 70.
Netflix documentary Pelé seeks to humanize the Brazilian soccer star's rise from poverty to prodigy
In their documentary Pelé, filmmakers David Tryhorn and Ben Nicholas attempt to look past the statistics that make Pelé one of the world's greatest soccer players, and shine a light on the emotional side of the three-time FIFA World Cup winner.
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Why the Perseverance rover's Mars landing was so complicated — and why so many others have failed
On Thursday, NASA's Perseverance rover stuck its landing on the surface of Mars. Canadian science and space writer Elizabeth Howell takes us through years of Mars misses and crash landings, and tells us why landing on the red planet is still such a complicated thing to try to do.
Meet the upstart company working to disrupt the 'whitewashed' opera industry
Toronto-based Amplified Opera is the Canadian Opera Company's newly named "disruptor-in-residence". The group aims to bring performers from “equity-seeking” groups to opera stages — and they’re bringing that message to the COC.
The Legend of Zelda turns 35: Why music matters just as much as gameplay
As the Legend of Zelda franchise turns 35 on Feb. 21, musicians Tommy Tallarico and Eimear Noone shed light on a sometimes overlooked element that's contributed to the franchise's ongoing success: the music, which like its hero Link have stood the test of time.
Riffed from the Headlines: 20/02/2021
Riffed from the Headlines is our weekly quiz where we choose three riffs linked by one story in the news. Guess the story that links the riffs and you could win a Day 6 tote bag!
Episode 533
How Australia is tackling the pandemic, #FreeBritney, science fairs during COVID, B.C.'s Black pioneers & more
How Australia's lockdowns are beating back the pandemic, the #FreeBritney movement gets a boost from a new documentary, how high school students are handling science fairs during COVID, the Great Canadian Baking Show returns for season four, the hidden history of British Columbia's Black pioneers, and more.
Q&A
How Australia's strict pandemic strategy helps the country control COVID-19
Victoria, Aus., went into a five-day lockdown on Friday following a COVID-19 outbreak linked to a Melbourne airport hotel. But for the longest time, the state and much of Australia had done a phenomenal job controlling the virus — to the point where thousands of fans were allowed to watch the opening days of the Australian Open.
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What a new documentary has to say about Britney Spears' freedom
Framing Britney Spears, a new documentary from the New York Times, sheds light on the life, career and conservatorship of the Princess of Pop, as well as the #FreeBritney movement working to regain the singer's agency.
Four decades on, a book about B.C.'s centuries-old Black history is updated for the 21st century
42 years since it first hit bookshelves, Go Do Some Great Thing: The Black Pioneers of British Columbia — which is considered a foundational text on B.C.'s Black history — has been re-edited and re-released.
As science fairs go virtual, these students say their 'real-world' research is as important as ever
Last year’s Canada-Wide Science Fair, slated to be hosted in Edmonton, was cancelled as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in Canada. It has now been more than a year since Bruce Porter and Gavin Howells presented at a fair, and while both are excited to show projects virtually, they worry it won’t be the same.
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Keep calm and bake on: Why baking show fans are falling for The Great Canadian Baking Show
First foodies around the world fell in love with The Great British Baking Show, which had contestants baking and competing under a big white tent. Then came the The Great Canadian Baking Show, which returns for its fourth season on Sunday.
Riffed from the Headlines: 13/02/2021
Riffed from the Headlines is our weekly quiz where we choose three riffs linked by one story in the news. Guess the story that links the riffs and you could win a Day 6 tote bag!
Episode 532
Putin's palace, vaccine skepticism in marginalized communities, Superbowl Ads, Biden & China, and more
How Alexei Navaly's team found what they say is Vladimir Putin's $1.3 billion secret palace; what it's like to work in an auto plant during a pandemic; why suspicion of the medical system among Black, Indigenous and people of colour is a barrier to defeating COVID-19; how the pandemic threatens post-secondary institutions in Canada; why big companies aren't buying this year's Superbowl ads; how Biden will engage with China, and more.
Q&A
How Russian anti-corruption investigators revealed a $1.3 billion mansion allegedly linked to Vladimir Putin
The video investigation, which was released online late last month by Russian Opposition leader Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), has ignited some of the biggest protests in Russia’s history.
Thanks to the pandemic, Super Bowl ads will look a little different this year
Thanks to a slowing economy, sensitivity around COVID-19 and the ability to reach consumers in targeted ways through social media and podcasting, big name brands are spending less on — or cutting entirely — their advertising during Sunday’s big game.
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This volunteer is trying to get one of Toronto's most marginalized neighbourhoods to embrace COVID-19 vaccines
Dana McIntosh is a community outreach volunteer in the heart of Toronto's Jane and Finch neighbourhood — home to a large Black and low-income population. She says that even though she was born and raised there, trying to persuade her neighbours to overcome their fears and embrace the vaccine is a very difficult job.
'I don't want to die to build a damn minivan': Autoworker worries about workplace safety amid COVID-19
Kathy McKay has been an employee at the Stellantis Windsor Assembly Plant for over 25 years, but after living through almost a full year of the COVID-19 pandemic, her frustrations have reached a boiling point.
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How will Joe Biden respond to China?
U.S. President Joe Biden has been in office less than a month, and his administration is already facing a test on its approach to China — the ongoing military coup in Myanmar.
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As Laurentian files for creditor protection, pandemic puts financial strain on post-secondary institutions
While Laurentian University's problems are specific to its situation, COVID-19 has dealt a significant blow to many universities across Canada that were already struggling to adapt their revenue models amidst a decline in public funding.
Riffed from the Headlines: 06/02/2021
Riffed from the Headlines is our weekly quiz where we choose three riffs linked by one story in the news. Guess the story that links the riffs and you could win a Day 6 tote bag!
Episode 531
The meaning of GameStop, teaching Grade 1 online, watching Groundhog Day in 2021, Gandhi's assassin & more
How a subreddit of amateur day traders punked Wall Street by pumping up GameStop; a teacher shares how she manages 18 elementary students on a daily, four-hour video call; how the pandemic turned Groundhog Day from a classic comedy into a horror movie with life lessons; fixing long-term care in Canada; magic marks 100 years of sawing women in half; why Gandhi's assassin is now more popular than ever in India and more.
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How a subreddit of amateur day traders punked Wall Street by buying GameStop stock
To most investors, GameStop is a legacy retailer rapidly being usurped by better online alternatives, so some Wall Street hedge funds decided to short the company's stock. Instead, a bunch of bored amateur day-traders organized on Reddit to pump up the company's share price and teach the hedge funds a lesson.
Kicking out for-profit operators won't be enough to fix long-term care, says geriatrician
As advocates call for an end to for-profit long-term care homes in Ontario, geriatrician Samir Sinha says proper funding is a needed first step to stem widespread COVID-19 deaths.
