• Canada-U.S. relations, Embracing imperfection, Malcolm Gladwell
    Jan 5 2025

    Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with St. Francis Xavier University Research Chair in Canada-U.S. Relations Asa McKercher about what history can teach us about contending with Donald Trump's tariff threat, writer Oliver Burkeman makes his case for embracing imperfection as we embark on a new year, and author Malcolm Gladwell explores the darker sides of social epidemics.


    Discover more at cbc.ca/sunday

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    1 hr and 35 mins
  • Big money, big tech: The new rules of the political playbook
    Jan 1 2025

    As tech giants end the year by cozying up to Donald Trump, and TikTok faces the possibility of demise - 2024's biggest tech stories expose growing power alliances and global rivals in our digital and geopolitical landscapes. Tech journalists Louise Matsakis, Paris Marx and Nitasha Tiku join Piya Chattopadhyay to explore how the year's top tech developments are transforming relationships between Silicon Valley, elected officials and society.

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    31 mins
  • 2024's top tech stories, Words of the year, Connie Chung, Richard Powers
    Dec 29 2024

    Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with tech journalists Louise Matsakis, Paris Marx and Nitasha Tiku about the top tech stories of 2024, linguist Adam Aleksic breaks down what the words of the year reveal about us, veteran broadcaster Connie Chung looks back on her trailblazing career, and Richard Powers talks about his latest novel Playground, which ruminates on climate change, technological instability and the power of awe.

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    1 hr and 39 mins
  • At 30, Comic Sans keeps curving its way into our hearts and onto our nerves
    Dec 25 2024

    Do you have a type, when it comes to fonts? This year marks the 30th anniversary of what’s widely seen as both the most recognizable and most reviled typeface: Comic Sans. In the latest instalment of Word Processing, our ongoing look at language, Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with author Simon Garfield about how Comic Sans evolved from a playful, curved diversion from stern-looking serifs, to a laughing stock font... and why we just can't write off the sometimes off-putting form of expression.

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    22 mins
  • The wild week in Canadian politics, Indigenous astronomy, What makes Chrystia Freeland tick, Comic Sans at 30, True crime's real impacts
    Dec 22 2024

    Host Piya Chattopadhay speaks with the Toronto Star's Susan Delacourt and former Liberal strategist David Herle about the wild week in Canadian politics, "star guy" Wilfred Buck shares his mission to reclaim Indigenous perspectives in science, journalist Catherine Tsalikis talks about her new biography of Chrystia Freeland, author Simon Garfield traces the curved legacy of Comic Sans, and we hear about true crime's real world impacts.


    Discover more at cbc.ca/Sunday

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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • Katherine Rundell's case for cultivating wonder in a chaotic world
    Dec 18 2024

    It's a time of year when many of us try to recapture some of the wonder at the world we felt as kids... and Katherine Rundell has a special gift for doing just that. The British author and Oxford University fellow has drawn comparisons to J.R.R. Tolkein for her fantasy books beloved by younger and older readers alike. She joins Piya Chattopadhyay to talk about two of her latest – Impossible Creatures, which brings unicorns, dragons and griffins to life for children; and Vanishing Treasures, which reflects on animals threatened with extinction for adults – and why she thinks cultivating wonder in worlds both imagined and real is vital.

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    23 mins
  • Highlights and lowlights of 2024, Our relationship with buttons, A turning point in Syria, Katherine Rundell
    Dec 15 2024

    Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with Rob Russo, Stephanie Levitz and David Staples about the highlights and lowlights of the year in Canadian politics, researcher Rachel Plotnick explores what the rise, fall and return of buttons can teach us about the human-machine relationship, Bessma Momani and Kareem Shaheen discuss Syria's future after the Assad regime, and author Katherine Rundell makes her case for cultivating wonder in our chaotic world.


    Discover more at cbc.ca/Sunday

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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • What's lost in a bad translation – and what it takes to craft a great one
    Dec 11 2024

    Whether your holiday book wish list includes classics like The Nutcracker or works by contemporary authors like Jon Fosse and Elena Ferrante... if you want to read them in English, then you’ll have to thank a translator. But Damion Searls says that the work of translating is more complicated than simply converting words from one language to another. In the latest instalment of Word Processing – our ongoing look at language – David Common speaks with the noted author and translator about his book The Philosophy of Translation, the nuance needed to make a faithful translation and what gets lost when authors outsource that work to technology.

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    25 mins