A few years ago, the notion of the "quantified self" was the domain of a relatively small group of hackers, engineers, and computer enthusiasts. Now, under its many names—lifelogging, self-tracking, fitness monitoring—it's become one of the fastest growing segments of the technology...Read more
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Episode Archives
Is religion dangerous? Sam Harris blames the violent verses in the Koran and the Bible for inciting religious conflict around the world. Renowned religious historian Karen Armstrong says the core message of the major religions is the Golden Rule. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge,...Read more
There’s an old joke from the former Soviet Union. Roughly translated it goes like this. The communists were liars. Everything they said about communism was untrue. Unfortunately, everything they said about capitalism was true. Next time on To the Best of Our Knowledge, considering...Read more
It's been said that "Writing about music is like dancing about architecture." But the rock critic Robert Palmer didn't have any trouble. Palmer wrote effortlessly about all kinds of music – rock and roll, blues, jazz and world music. The fact that Palmer was also a musician didn't hurt. In...Read more
Red roses, chilled champagne, a candlelight dinner for two. Who cares?!?
This is the 21st century. We’ve got 30 million potential dates online. We’ve got every imaginable type of pornography at our fingertips. Odds are each of us could hook up with someone new tonight.
...Read more
Picking up a bottle of wine for dinner used to be simple. It pretty much depended on how much you wanted to spend, since everything came from France. Not anymore! We'll look at what happened to the wine world in 1976, when wine from the Napa Valley won a blind tasting and turned the industry...Read more
Imagine a farm five stories tall, powered by the sun, watered by the rain. Cabbage and carrots, tomatoes and eggplant grow on living walls. Tens of thousands of fish swim in aquaponic tanks. In this hour, the urban farm of the future gets real. Also, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,...Read more
He was the most surprising Booker Prize winner in years. DBC Pierre had been a con man and a drug addict before he became a writer. Now he’s won one of the world’s great literary prizes. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we’ll talk with some award-winning writers including DBC...Read more
Thousands of the world's languages are disappearing in the wake of globalization. And because language is the DNA of culture, a lost language is a lost culture. Today, stories from the frontlines of the language revitalization movement. Also, Dr. Larry Brilliant's improbable journey from...Read more
Survival.
The oldest living things on the planet and a list of everything you’ll need to know after the apocalypse.
But there’s one thing no one can survive. And that’s death. Or maybe not...Read more
Space, the final frontier. But is science fiction the final frontier when it comes to being a literature of ideas? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll wax philosophical about science fiction with two of the genre's greatest writers -- George R.R. Martin and Ursula K. Le Guin....Read more
Electrons to Enlightenment
Part Five
In the real world where we take out the garbage, we sometimes brush up against wonder and awe. We all look for it in different places. Some of us find it in God, like the great mystic poet...Read more
He’s been called the “Godfather of hip-hop.” He rose from selling drugs on the streets to running a Fortune 500 company. He founded Def Jam Records and produced acts like Run DMC, Public Enemy, and LL Cool J. Next time on To the Best of Our Knowledge, Russell Simmons and hip-hop. Also, the...Read more
Being a kid has never been cooler. In fact, it’s SO cool, it’s not just for the twelve and under set anymore. These days more adults watch the Cartoon Network than CNN, Care Bears are making a comeback, and Scoobie-Doo underpants come in grown-up sizes. In this hour of To the Best of Our...Read more
John Brown was a terrorist, a man who led a raid in Kansas that butchered five unarmed men. He was also, arguably, of the few white people in 1850s America who was totally color blind. According to a new book he was "the man who killed slavery and sparked the Civil War." So, was John Brown a "...Read more
"Music can change the world." It's been said so many times - I wonder if it means anything anymore. Can it? Really, can music change the world? Can a song bring about peace? Or, overthrow a government? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll listen in on the soundtrack to war and...Read more
Couples know the frightening statistic: 50 percent of today’s marriages will fail. And the real victims are the children. As they grow up they are more likely to be aggressive or depressed, end up in mental health hospitals, or get divorced themselves. In this hour of To the...Read more
Ok, you choose: endure traditional strict religious strictures and a life of hard labor or, fully indulge in the pleasures of today? Amish youth are given that choice. When they turn 16 they're let loose to experience all the temptations the world. Then, they have to decide between the world and...Read more
George Orwell wrote "1984" in response to two of the reigning ideologies of his day - fascism and communism. Does his dystopian story of Big Brother and Doublethink still matter today? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we'll talk with actor Tim Robbins, who recently staged a...Read more
The US will pull troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2016, leaving behind an enemy they've fought for more than a decade. This week, we explore Afghanistan's Taliban insurgency and find out what motivates them.Read more
Parents worry that their kids spend too much time playing video games, but according to one new study, if you need surgery, you want the surgeon who grew up with a game controller in one hand. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, why the future belongs to gamers. Imagine a...Read more
In the early 1950's two-year-old Jacqueline Henley in New Orleans became darker. After the neighbors complained, her aunt turned her over to New Orleans authorities. A black couple wanted to adopt Jacqueline but -- she had the word “white” stamped on her birth certificate. Next time on To...Read more
Of all the days in the life of Nelson Mandela - the days in jail, awaiting sentence and his election in 94 - one day stood out as the most nerve-wracking. The day of the Rugby World Cup in 1995 - South Africa versus New Zealand. But it was much more than a sports match. It was the chance to...Read more