Akimbo: A Podcast from Seth Godin

Synecdoche

Apr 24, 2019
Explore the fascinating reasons behind the space shuttle's complexities and the political pressures that influenced its design. Discover how Spiro Agnew's committee created overly ambitious goals for shuttle missions. Learn about the unintended Soviet response with the Buran program. Delve into the flawed rational-actor model in economics and how it fails to capture true organizational behavior. Listen to insightful anecdotes on decision-making, including the balance between crafting quality products and mass appeal. Seth encourages listeners to take action on their ideas today!
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
INSIGHT

Words Hide Who Acts

  • Synecdoche is the use of a part to describe the whole, which makes headlines misleading.
  • A phrase like “Tehran backs off” masks which specific actors actually made the decision.
ANECDOTE

NASA's Wish List And The Budget Cliff

  • Seth recounts NASA’s post‑moon wish list that included ambitious projects like nuclear lunar shuttles and Mars trips.
  • Those plans stalled because Nixon refused more spending, forcing NASA to seek smaller, politically palatable options.
INSIGHT

Bad Math Drives Bad Design

  • Engineers reverse‑engineered shuttle economics by assuming very high flight rates to justify cost.
  • That assumption drove design compromises that made the shuttle expensive and fragile.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app