This is your Podcast Recommendation Post. I have a half hour commute every morning and evening, and I almost always listen to books on Audible. But between books, I usually plow through a bunch of podcasts. For a while I was listening to the History of Rome podcast, which I thoroughly enjoyed. But since the Roman Empire ended, so too did the podcast. So here’s your first tip: history podcaster Mike Duncan is back at it with Revolutions, “a weekly podcast series examining great political revolutions.”
The second tip also has a Roman connection: you should be listening to 99% Invisible with host Roman Mars. I just did a ten-show binge, and they were all good and getting better. As a product of the 1980s, I especially liked the show he did with the Planet Folks on Trading Places, the Dan Aykroyd/Eddie Murphy movie. If you don’t have time to listen to the podcast, here’s a written version of the basic story: What Actually Happens At The End Of ‘Trading Places’?
It’s really staggering how many good podcasts there are.
Rambles Blog at Star Chamber 
Here’s one I like: The BBC Radio program “In Our Time” with cantankerous but charming polymath Melvyn Bragg. Each week is a panel discussion on a topic from “the history of ideas.” Recent topics have included Pascal, the Mamluks, the War of 1812, Gnosticism, and Exoplanets.
Speaking of podcast recommendations, Podcast Thing is a site that shares people’s favorite podcasts. ( via SwissMiss)
I have a very boring 80 to 90 minute exercise session five days a week. The way I justify the time and deal with the boredom is by listening to podcasts. A few I sample are CBC’s Quirks and Quarks (one of the best science news programs), This American Life (Ira Glass says it all), Escape Pod (science fiction generally well read), Decode DC (Andrea Seabrook’s look behind the news – run by her), WNYC’s Radiolab, Radio Open Source (Christopher Lydon on arts, humanities and global affairs).. there is so much good stuff out there these days…