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This American Life

Kid Logic

2/15/20261 hr 1 min

Kids using perfectly logical arguments and arriving at perfectly wrong conclusions.

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Prologue: Ira talks with Rebecca who, using perfectly valid evidence, arrived at the perfectly incorrect conclusion that her neighbor, Ronnie Loeberfeld, was the tooth fairy. Ira also talks with Dr. Alison Gopnik, co-author of the book, "The Scientist in the Crib," about what exactly kid logic is. (6 minutes)Act One: More stories like the one in the prologue, where kids look at something going on around them, observe it carefully, think about it logically...

Clips

Ronnie Loberfeld, The Tooth Fairy
“Did They Kill Him, Too?”
Trained Monkeys Painted It
Starstruck By The Tooth Fairy
Babies Run Experiments On Us
Endangered… Unicorns?
The Monster-In-The-Box Test
The Nielsen Moment Of Shame
By Sixth Grade Standards…
From Sonnet Dreams To Strategy

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Alison Gopnik· Guest0:01

    Support for This American Life comes from Redfin. You're listening to a podcast, which, uh, means you're probably multitasking, maybe even scrolling home listings on Redfin, saving homes without expecting to get them. But Redfin isn't just built for endless browsing, it's built to help you find and own a home. Redfin agents close twice as many deals as other agents. So when you find the one, you've got a real shot at getting it. Get started at redfin.com. Own the dream. To make our newest bonus episode of This American Life, [door opening] Ira Glass went digging.

  2. Ira Glass· Host0:35

    Okay, we're in.

  3. Alison Gopnik· Guest0:36

    Digging for an old recording in a storage space with 70 boxes of old tapes.

  4. Ira Glass· Host0:41

    [laughs] Oh, my God.

  5. Alison Gopnik· Guest0:43

    And as luck would have it- I can't believe it.

  6. Ira Glass· Host0:45

    This is the one, two, three. This is the fourth box I'm opening, and literally right here, [boxes rattling] I think this is exactly what I was looking for. I- To hear what he found, plus dozens of other exclusive bonus episodes, and most importantly, to help us keep making the show, subscribe at thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners. Okay, I really am stunned.

  7. Alison Gopnik· Guest1:06

    That link is also in the show notes of this episode. Thanks.

  8. Speaker 21:10

    First floor.

  9. Ira Glass· Host1:12

    Rebecca remembers exactly when she learned the astonishing truth. She was in second grade and ran into her best friend Rachel at school one day.

  10. Rebecca· Guest1:24

    And she pulled me aside and, and said, "You know, last night I, you know, I lost a tooth and

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