logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2025
1h 32m

Nate Silver (statistician)

Armchair Umbrella
About this episode

Nate Silver (On the Edge, The Signal and the Noise, Baseball Between the Numbers) is a statistician, author, and founder of FiveThirtyEight. Nate joins the Armchair Expert to discuss his youthful aspirations for a starter job as US president with a promotion to baseball commissioner, how code-switching as a gay man of his cohort can translate to success, and defying the odds by quitting his first job to play online poker. Nate and Dax talk about learning statistical models as a hobbyist because academics don’t have the street smarts, the phenomenon of sore winners in tech, and the adage that the more shabbily you show up for your first meeting the more trustworthy you are. Nate explains that the dopamine felt especially by men during a winning streak is effectively a narcotic, how figures like Sam Bankman-Fried are kind of degenerate gamblers at heart, and why the new alpha move in industry is just to trust your gut.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Yesterday
Toby Stuart (on social status)
Toby Stuart (Anointed: The Extraordinary Effects of Social Status in a Winner-Take-Most World) is an organizational theorist, professor of business administration at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, and author. Toby joins the Armchair Expert to discuss attending Harvard Bus ... Show More
1h 36m
Oct 7
Mom's Car: Jackie Tohn
On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car, we welcome longtime pal and Nobody Wants This supporting star Jackie Tohn. Jackie, Dax, and Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through comparisons between the smells of broccoli and feet, being a part of the most streamed comedy of all time, getti ... Show More
54m 49s
Oct 6
Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen (The Book of Sheen, Two and a Half Men, Platoon) is a Golden Globe Award-winning actor. Charlie joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the lore of having not one but two of his cars stolen and pushed into a ravine, a two-decades-delayed apology to Dax, and why hiring ... Show More
2h 8m
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2024
Smart vs. Stupid Risk Taking — with Nate Silver
Nate Silver, the founder of FiveThirtyEight and Substack writer of “Silver Bulletin,” joins Scott to discuss his latest book, “ON THE EDGE: The Art of Risking Everything.” We hear about the role of risk in shaping modern life, his background in election forecasting, and his thoug ... Show More
46 m
Aug 2024
285 | Nate Silver on Prediction, Risk, and Rationality
Being rational necessarily involves engagement with probability. Given two possible courses of action, it can be rational to prefer the one that could possibly result in a worse outcome, if there's also a substantial probability for an even better outcome. But one's attitude towa ... Show More
1h 11m
Oct 2024
#846 - Nate Silver - How Will The 2024 Election Play Out?
Nate Silver is a statistician, writer of Silver Bulletin, and Founder of FiveThirtyEight.No one truly knows who will win an election, but if anyone does, it's Nate. He is the man behind the most accurate, sophisticated polling data assessments in America and has an insight into m ... Show More
1h 10m
Feb 2024
The Signal and The Noise - Nate Silver
Making good predictions is tough. We think we know more than we do and let emotions and biases creep in. How do some forecasters beat the odds? Our hosts, Nico and Sam, chat about the book "The Signal and the Noise" by Nate Silver exploring why predictions fail and uncovering pra ... Show More
35m 44s
Sep 2024
Nate Silver: Do risk-takers run the world?
Big stakes poker player and elections analyst Nate Silver is no stranger to a calculated risk. In his new book, On The Edge, he makes the case that people willing to take massive calculated risks are winning in the modern economy. Tim Harford talks to Nate about the mindset that’ ... Show More
8m 59s
Sep 2024
Can you predict an election? With Nate Silver…
This week is all about predictions, polling and risk taking - what do current polls tell us about who might win the 2024 presidential race? We get a behind the scenes look at how statisticians make their predictions, and how accurate they are. Our guest Nate Silver developed a fo ... Show More
27m 54s
Aug 2024
The Habits of Highly Effective Risk-Takers
You may know Nate Silver as an election forecaster. But he’s a poker player as well. And his experiences operating in a world of competition and risk led him to explore what his fellow gamblers, as well as hedge fund managers, venture capitalists, and many other kinds of maverick ... Show More
43m 24s
Sep 22
Andrew Caspersen: Rich People Problems | 178
Andrew Caspersen seemed to have it all: Ivy League credentials, athletic talent and a trust fund that fueled his reputation as a rising star in finance. But behind his polished image was a spiral of drinking, gambling, and reckless bets on the stock market. Soon, his risky trades ... Show More
53m 48s
Jan 2024
BREAKING NEWS: Dave Portnoy Now Part Owner of Rumble w/ CEO Chris Pavlovski | PBD Podcast | Ep. 354
Patrick Bet-David, Adam Sosnick, Tom Ellsworth, and Vincent Oshana are joined by Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski. Chris Pavlovski is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Rumble. As a three-time successful entrepreneur, Mr. Pavlovski has over 20 years’ experience in the online ma ... Show More
2 h
Mar 2025
"The REAL Reason You're Dying" – Gary Brecka SLAMS Corporate Scams, Genetic Tests & Health Myths | PBD Podcast | Ep. 557
Patrick Bet-David sits down with Gary Brecka to discuss the science behind predicting life expectancy, his journey from the life insurance industry to health optimization, and the groundbreaking methods he uses to help people, including UFC's Dana White, extend their lifespan ... Show More
2h 14m