Gist: Stylometry for Dummies

On The Gist, are we having a national crisis? The New York Times’ publication of an anonymous op-ed has sparked rounds of speculation as to who’s behind it—and the deep-state trappings it describes. Some see the word “lodestar” as signature Mike Pence, but as Sadia Afroz explains, stylometry—the analysis of prose to uncover its author’s identity—is a little more complicated than looking at individual words. Afroz is a senior research scientist at the International Computer Science Institute. In the Spiel, Serena Williams, sexism, and double standards. This episode is brought to you by Ben and Jerry's, try their new handheld frozen novelties, Pint Slices, today.