Jesse Ventura, a former Navy Seal and fan of Aristophanes' play "The Birds," went into pro wrestling because he loved drama and competition. For Ventura, the political ring seemed like a reasonable next step. But for those in the two-party establishment, his victory in Minnesota's 1998 gubernatorial election came as a total shock. How'd it happen?

Nate Silver, the data guru behind FiveThirtyEight.com, has answers. He spoke with Radiolab's own Robert Krulwich about the cause of Ventura's improbable rise. This discussion followed a screening of FiveThirtyEight's short documentary, Shock the World.