Audiobooks narrated by Jonathan Todd Ross

The Shortest History of Music: From Bone Flutes to Synthesizers, Hildegard von Bingen to Beyoncé―5,0

No art form is as widely discussed—or as readily available—as music. With the click of just a few buttons, modern humans can decide what they think of the brand-new Beyoncé just as quickly as they can form opinions on Brahms or the Beatles or Bob Dylan. But things weren't always this way. In this brisk, breakneck history, award-winning musician and broadcaster Andrew Ford dives into the constant evolutions and reinventions that have led to the popularity and accessibility of modern music. Ford explores: ● Why playing history's earliest example of notated music—clay tablets from 1400 BCE Syria—doesn't produce a consistent sound ● How colonization and the slave trade led to one region in West Africa having an unparalleled influence on world music ● How clerical and royal support allowed early composers to invent the symphony ● What leads humans to make music in the first place—and why music plays such a massive role in our culture. The Shortest History of Music takes us on a lively tour through several thousands of years of music history, tracing our relationship with this essential art and allowing us to freshly appreciate and understand music today.

Andrew Ford (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Lost to Time: Unforgettable Stories That History Forgot

Stories that history forgot . . . but readers will remember 'The only thing new in the world,' said Harry S. Truman, 'is the history you don't know.' In this fresh and fascinating collection of historical vignettes, Martin W. Sandler (author of Resolute and Atlantic Ocean) restores to memory important events, people, and developments that have been lost to time. Though barely known today, these are major historical stories, from Ziryab, an eighth-century black slave whose influence on music, cuisine, fashion, and manners still reverberates, to Cahokia, a twelfth century city north of the Rio Grande, which at its zenith contained a population estimated to have been as high as 40,000 (more than any contemporary European city), to the worst peacetime maritime disaster ever, the explosion and sinking of the Sultana on the Mississippi in 1865. These tales are far from trivia; they illuminate little-known American and foreign achievements, ingenuity, heroics, blunders, and tragedies that changed the course of history and resonate today.

Martin W. Sandler (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Hollowed Out: Why The Economy Doesn't Work Without a Strong Middle Class

For the past several decades, politicians and economists thought that high levels of inequality were good for the economy. But because America’s middle class is now so weak, the US economy suffers from the kinds of problems that plague less-developed countries. As Hollowed Out explains, to have strong, sustainable growth, the economy needs to work for everyone and expand from the middle out. This new thinking has the potential to supplant trickle-down economics―the theory that was so wrong about inequality and our economy―and shape economic policymaking for generations.

David Madland (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Slither: How Nature's Most Maligned Creatures Illuminate Our World

A spellbinding scientific and cultural study of snakes, the fascination and fear they inspire, and how surprising new science is indelibly changing our perception of these stunning and frightening creatures. For millennia, depictions of snakes as alternatively beautiful and menacing creatures have appeared in religious texts, mythology, poetry, and beyond. From the foundational deities of ancient Egypt to the reactions of squeamish schoolchildren today, it is a historically commonplace belief that snakes are devious, dangerous, and even evil. But where there is hatred and fear, there is also fascination and reverence. How is it that creatures so despised and sinister, so foreign of movement and ostensibly devoid of sociality and emotion, have fired the imaginations of poets, prophets, and painters across time and cultures? In SLITHER, science writer Stephen S. Hall presents a naturalistic, cultural, ecological, and scientific meditation on these loathed yet magnetic creatures. In each chapter, he explores a biological aspect of The Snake, such as their cold blooded metabolism and venomous nature, alongside their mythology, artistic depictions, and cultural veneration. In doing so, he explores not only what neurologically triggers our wary fascination with these limbless creatures, but also how the current generation of snake scientists is using cutting-edge technologies to discover new truths about these evolutionarily ancient creatures-truths that may ultimately affect and enhance human health.

Stephen S. Hall (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross, TBD (Narrator)

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The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies

A New York Times bestseller. A 'fascinating' (Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times) look at how digital technology is transforming our work and our lives. In The Second Machine Age MIT's Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee—two thinkers at the forefront of their field—reveal the forces driving the reinvention of our lives and our economy. As the full impact of digital technologies is felt, we will realize immense bounty in the form of dazzling personal technology, advanced infrastructure, and near-boundless access to the cultural items that enrich our lives. Amid this bounty will also be wrenching change. Professions of all kinds—from lawyers to truck drivers—will be forever upended. Companies will be forced to transform or die. Recent economic indicators reflect this shift: fewer people are working, and wages are falling even as productivity and profits soar. Drawing on years of research and up-to-the-minute trends, Brynjolfsson and McAfee identify the best strategies for survival and offer a new path to prosperity. These include revamping education so that it prepares people for the next economy instead of the last one, designing new collaborations that pair brute processing power with human ingenuity, and embracing policies that make sense in a radically transformed landscape.

Andrew McAfee, Erik Brynjolfsson (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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After Disney: Toil, Trouble, and the Transformation of America's Favorite Media Company

The untold succession struggle at Walt Disney Productions following the death of its founder, and the generational transformation which led to the birth of the modern multibillion-dollar animation industry. Walt Disney left behind big dreams when he died in 1966. Perhaps none was greater than the hope that his son-in-law, Ron Miller, would someday run his studio. Under Miller's leadership, Disney expanded into new frontiers: global theme parks, computer animation, cable television, home video, and video games. Despite these innovations, Ron struggled to expand the Disney brand beyond its midcentury image of wholesome family entertainment, even as times and tastes evolved. Tensions between Miller and Walt's nephew, Roy E. Disney, threatened to destroy the company, leading Wall Street 'Gordon Gecko' types to come after Mickey Mouse. At the same time, the aging Animation Department—once the core of Walt's business—was one memo away from shutting down forever. Rather, thanks to the radical efforts of Walt's veterans to recruit and nurture young talent, it was revived by this sudden influx of artists who would go on to revolutionize the film industry. Additionally, this new generation would prove over time that animation was so much more than just kids' stuff—it was a multibillion dollar industry. This is the upstairs-downstairs story of the executives and animators who clashed and collaborated to keep America's most storied company alive during the most uncertain period in its one hundred year history.

Neil O'Brien (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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On Privacy and Technology

Succinct and eloquent, On Privacy and Technology is an essential primer on how to face the threats to privacy in today's age of digital technologies and AI. With the rapid rise of new digital technologies and artificial intelligence, is privacy dead? Can anything be done to save us from a dystopian world without privacy? In this short and accessible book, internationally renowned privacy expert Daniel J. Solove draws from a range of fields, from law to philosophy to the humanities, to illustrate the profound changes technology is wreaking upon our privacy, why they matter, and what can be done about them. Solove provides incisive examinations of key concepts in the digital sphere, including control, manipulation, harm, automation, reputation, consent, prediction, inference, and many others. Compelling and passionate, On Privacy and Technology teems with powerful insights that will transform the way you think about privacy and technology. 'A deeply insightful look at myriad dimensions of information privacy. Paths a constructive way forward for effective privacy regulation of tech in our digital age.'—Paul M. Schwartz, Jefferson E. Peyser Professor of Law, Berkeley Law School

Daniel J. Solove (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: What Everyone Needs to Know®

No conflict in the world has lasted as long, generated as many news headlines, or incited as much controversy as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Yet, despite, or perhaps because of, the degree of international attention it receives, the conflict is still widely misunderstood. While Israelis and Palestinians and their respective supporters trade accusations, many outside observers remain confused by the conflict's complexity and perplexed by the passion it arouses. The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: What Everyone Needs to Know® offers an even-handed and judicious guide to the world's most intractable dispute. Writing in an engaging, jargon-free Q&A format, Dov Waxman provides clear and concise answers to common questions, from the most basic to the most contentious. Covering the conflict from its nineteenth-century origins to the latest developments of the twenty-first century, this book explains the key events, examines the core issues, and presents the competing claims and narratives of both sides. Listeners will learn what the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is all about, how it has evolved over time, and why it continues to defy diplomatic efforts at a resolution.

Dov Waxman (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Late Ottoman Gaza: An Eastern Mediterranean Hub in Transformation

In contemporary public discourse, Gaza tends to be characterized solely as a theater of the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. However, little is known about Gaza's society, politics, economy, and culture during the Ottoman era. Drawing on a range of previously untapped local and imperial sources, Yuval Ben-Bassat and Johann Buessow explore the city's history from the mid-nineteenth century through WWI. They show that Gaza's historical importance extends far beyond the territory of the 'strip' since the city was an important hub for people, goods, and ideas in the Eastern Mediterranean from Antiquity until the twentieth century. Using new digital methodologies, Ben-Bassat and Buessow introduce listeners to the world of Gazans from various walks of life, from the traditional Muslim elites to the commoners and minority communities of Christians and Jews. In so doing, they tell the lively story of this significant but frequently misunderstood city.

David M. Glick, Johann Buessow, Katherine Levine Einstein, Maxwell Palmer, Yuval Ben-Bassat (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Against the Grain: How Farmers around the Globe Are Transforming Agriculture to Nourish the World an

Farmers in some of the world's oldest agricultural areas were toiling year after year, only to find that modern industrial agriculture was turning on itself. Industrial agriculture's effects on our climate and environment were multiplying and worsening, until the very families growing the world's food were starving. They terraced the land to catch more rainwater and prevent soil runoff; they planted a diverse range of vegetables that would balance the nutrients in the soil; they replaced commercial fertilizers with organic matter from their own farms; they planted more trees and drought-resistant grains; and, perhaps most importantly, they taught their communities by example that these regenerative farming methods paid off—both in nourishing their families and in bringing their land back to life. Award-winning author and journalist Roger Thurow has traveled to Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, India, Guatemala, Peru, and the United States to share their stories, highlighting the conflicts inherent in our most important human endeavor: feeding the world using the methods of industrial agriculture is stripping the land of its ability to feed future generations. But these farmers are starting a new kind of revolution, nourishing both humans and the land, and following their lead could help us solve one of the great crises of our time.

Roger Thurow (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Israel-Palestine: Federation or Apartheid?

What kind of political structure might one day enable Israelis and Palestinians to overcome the seemingly interminable cycle of violence and live in peace with one another? For many years, politicians and citizens have called for a two-state solution—two independent states, Israel and Palestine, coexisting side by side. This was Shlomo Sand's view too, but as more settlements were built in the occupied West Bank and millions of Palestinians were forced to live in a situation of de facto apartheid, deprived of their basic civil rights and political freedoms, he came to the conclusion that the two-state solution had become an empty formula that no one seriously intended to implement. It was in this context that Sand sought to find an alternative way out of the Israeli-Palestinian imbroglio. He discovered that some Zionists and other Jewish intellectuals had rejected the idea of an exclusive Jewish state and had supported moves to create a binational federation. They believed that only egalitarian integration within the framework of a common state would ensure that Israel could be a safe haven for all of its inhabitants. While the chances of realizing this egalitarian vision may seem remote in the current hostile context, it may well be that a binational state in which Israelis and Palestinians are treated as equals is the only realistic solution in the end.

Shlomo Sand (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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The Best of All Possible Worlds: A Life of Leibniz in Seven Pivotal Days

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was a 'universal genius' who ranged across many fields and made breakthroughs in most of them. Leibniz invented calculus (independently from Isaac Newton), conceptualized the modern computer, and developed the famous thesis that the existing world is the best that God could have created. Historian and Leibniz expert Michael Kempe takes us on a journey into the mind of a man whose contributions are perhaps without parallel in human history. Structured around seven crucial days in Leibniz's life, Kempe's account allows us to observe him in the act of thinking and creating, and gives us a deeper understanding of his broad-reaching intellectual endeavors. On October 29, 1675, he is in Paris, diligently working from his bed amid a sea of notes, and committing the integral symbol—the basis of his calculus—to paper. On April 17, 1703, Leibniz is in Berlin, writing a letter reporting that a Jesuit priest living in China has discovered how to use Leibniz's binary number system to decipher an ancient Chinese system of writing. One day in August 1714, Leibniz enjoys a Viennese coffee while drawing new connections among ontology and biology and mathematics. The Best of All Possible Worlds transports us to an age defined by rational optimism and a belief in progress, and will endure as one of the few authoritative accounts of Leibniz's life.

Michael Kempe (Author), Jonathan Todd Ross (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Jonathan Todd Ross