Photographers capture heartache and agony. What does it mean for them? And what does it mean for us, those viewing the photos? Do these images create empathy? Compassion? Or something else?Read more
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Episode Archives
Every person on earth is unique and special, but some people – maybe one in a hundred – are autistic. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we get to know a few autistic people with Asperger's Syndrome. We'll hear what it's like to try to live in the world when you have visionary...Read more
They weren’t exactly the Marx brothers, but Groucho had more in common with Karl Marx than you might think. Both had minds that were lightning fast, and both were professional provocateurs. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we’ll reassess these two legendary figures – the...Read more
It’s a mob scene in Madison, Wisconsin as novelist Mark Winegardner reveals the new Godfather. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge our yearly stage show at the Wisconsin Book Festival. Guests also include singer/songwriter Jane Siberry and the humor writers from The Onion.
This...Read more
When’s the last time you were wonderstruck? Would your life be richer for more wonder? What wonder is, how to make it, where to find it and what it does for us... we all get gently awed in this hour.Read more
There are many ways to live dangerously. Sure, you can take part in a death defying feat like skydiving, but living dangerously also sometimes involves taking intellectual risks, opening up, and being honest with yourself. To the Best of Our Knowledge recently travelled to Salt Lake City to...Read more
When disaster strikes, photojournalists run toward it instead of away. Usually, with a camera in hand. Their job is to get up close to tragedy and danger, to document things we need to see, in the hopes of somehow making a difference. This hour we’re talking with some of the world’s great...Read more
The scene is a gritty punk club. Dark and smoky with sticky floors. A crowd shuffles and talks, waiting for the music. One man takes the stage. He sits down and plays – not rock, not techno, but the solo cello suites of J.S. Bach. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, breaking the...Read more
Maybe it hits you the first time you get a mailing from AARP – all of a sudden, getting older isn't just about other people. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we spend time with some people who've chosen to face the rest of their lives in some unusual ways. Poker columnist James...Read more
You’ve seen the Olympics on TV, but do you want to know what’s really happening in Utah? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, a special program recorded in front of a live audience at Red Butte Garden in Salt Lake City. From the culture of snowboarding to past Olympic scandals. Plus...Read more
Forty years ago the streets of Chicago exploded as police clashed with anti-war protesters at the Democratic National Convention. It's one of the momentous events that defined the Sixties. Or is it? Some historians now say the rise of the conservative movement is what truly made history in the...Read more
Have you ever wondered why Homer’s “Iliad” is still so popular? Bestselling writer Thomas Cahill says it’s because it’s a real boy’s story. On this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, our enduring fascination with the Ancient Greeks. Also, an archaeologist who’s excavating the real Troy. ...Read more
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
Filmmaker Ken Burns calls the national parks "America's best idea." We'll take you to Yosemite,Denali and Carlsbad Caverns. We'll also explore some forgotten parts of our history: how the "buffalo soldiers" helped create America's first parks, and why the very idea of protecting nature has...Read more
The past is nebulous - a place no one can go. When we try to get our bearings there, we often find more than one truth. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we’ll go back to Vietnam with Senator Bob Kerrey. And, one woman pieces together her past in war-torn Liberia. Also, paying...Read more
Shortly after her mother died of ovarian cancer, Jessica Queller had herself tested for the dreaded BRCA gene mutation. She tested positive, which meant she had an 87 percent chance of developing breast cancer, and a nearly 50 percent chance of ovarian cancer. So Queller did the unthinkable: at...Read more
As the Dalai Lama turns 80, we reflect on his legacy and remarkable personal history. Also, how various Eastern spiritual traditions have taken root in the West - from yoga to meditation. And the legacy of California's famous utopian experiment at Esalen and its "religion of no religion."Read more
For decades “imperialism” was a dirty word, and all talk of empire seemed old-fashioned. Now some people say a new empire has emerged – the American Empire. But is America’s unrivaled power good for the world? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the debate over American supremacy. ...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
Tenzin Palmo isn’t your ordinary Englishwoman. For twelve years she boiled snow for drinking water, lived without heat and electricity, and spent 12 hours a day propped up in a wooden box. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, a Buddhist nun recalls her years of meditation in a lonely...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
Are we running out of water? Science writer Fred Pearce thinks so. He's traveled the world to investigate the current state of crucial water sources. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge Pearce talks about the defining crisis of the twenty-first century. Also, we'll explore the social...Read more
Are you living the American Dream? Or just struggling to get by? Changing the minimum wage, cuts to food stamps, and health care coverage have been all over the news. What does it take to “make it” in America today?
Also, On Our Minds this week, Swedish crime fiction writer Jens Lapidus...Read more