It's easy, actually: Be funny. Be confident. Be a bully. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Close with the emotion. Win.

Ep. 1: How Donald Trump hypnotized America

Or El Duderino, if you're not into the whole brevity thing

Ep. 2: Where did the word 'dude' come from?

Trapped on a boat during the War of 1812, lawyer Francis Scott Key was inspired to write a poem...


Ep. 3: How The Star-Spangled Banner went from battle poem to sporting-event mainstay

Parties still play a vital role in organizing political life and enabling people to understand the choices they have in a representative democracy

Ep. 4: Nobody reads party platforms. They're still really important.

Why we insist on saying things that make no literal sense


Ep. 5: 'I know, right?': The anatomy of a wonderfully nonsensical phrase

Victoria Woodhull notched several historic firsts before running for the country's highest political office

Ep. 6: This woman ran for president before women could even vote

The competition in Athens was a whole different experience

Ep. 7: The trials and triumphs of the first modern Olympics, in 1896

Jungle sounds? Chia pets? This is getting out of hand.

Ep. 8: How to create the perfect office, according to science

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This weekly series is your audio guide to everything you need to know about compelling and complex topics, from a variety of The Week's smart and witty writers, editors, and thinkers. Concise and entertaining, Seven-Minute Explainers packs a lot of information in a short amount of time.

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