Is Jennifer Egan's book, "A Visit from the Goon Squad," a novel or is it a series of entangled stories? It's a fair question because this polyphonic narrative covers a lot of territory – from satire to tragedy told from a wide range of characters' points of view. And one chapter...Read more
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Episode Archives
Once upon a time, not so long ago, the classroom filmstrip was everywhere. They taught us to change our underwear at least twice a week, among other things. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we’ll revisit the golden age of classroom filmstrips. So sit up straight.Read more
Tragedy struck Ron Mallett when he was ten years old. His beloved father died and he wanted to bring him back. So he dreamed of building a time machine. Ron Mallett grew up to become a theoretical physicist. Now he studies quantum mechanics and he's still trying to figure out how to go back in...Read more
Do you ever think about the way you think? Lately, we've been doing a lot of thinking about what we think about when we think about thinking. Join us as we explore the life of the mind.Read more
A little laugh goes a long way. This week, we’re taking a crash course in how to be funny.
From Chicago’s famous Second City, to a humor research lab, this hour's a laugh riot. We also talk with a laughter coach, Canadian comic Mary Walsh, and longtime New Yorker humorist Ian...Read more
Are you afraid of getting old? Most people are, but studies show we're usually happier in our 60s and 70s. Aging often brings wisdom and resilience - and a new creative spark. We celebrate the fine art of aging - and hear about some artists who remade their careers late in life.Read more
The most mysterious musical instrument in the world lives inside your body. Your voice. You can’t see it, can’t touch it, and yet – it expresses all of who you are. On this episode of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we’ll explore they mysteries of the voice. We’ll hear from soprano Renee...Read more
Ever get the feeling that nothing’s original these days, that every new song that comes out is just a rehash of another? This hour, we’re looking at the fine line between inspiration and imitation, and finding out what separates an original work from a bland copy.Read more
While the debate about how to fix America’s schools rages on, millions of parents have their own solution – opting out of the system. Homeschoolers in America usually make the choice for two reasons – to invest more religion in the curriculum or to embrace the vales of progressive education. ...Read more
Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq
Part Two
On March 20, 2003, the U.S. invaded Iraq. More than 6 years later, we're still there. What happened? Were we prepared? We'll talk with the planners of the War in Iraq. From...Read more
Selling out: we talk with two people who’ve vowed never to sell out: Ralph Nader, and Congressman Joe Walsh. Walsh says the Tea Party must be the party of no compromise. Also, someone often accused of selling out: Shepard Fairey; he went from making street art to designing an iconic Obama poster...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
Do you think your memory is a record of what actually happened? Chances are, it's not. New scientific findings show that with every act of remembering, our brains...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
Wallace Stegner put it this way. “National Parks are the best idea we ever had.” This weekend, the National Park Service celebrates its birthday by making the parks free for a day. We're celebrating with an hour on the history and politics of national parks. And we'll meet some folks whose...Read more
With the help of a smartphone app, you can now order dinner, hire a driver, or even schedule a housecleaner. Whatever it is you need, there's probably an app for that. But does all this convenience come at a cost? This hour, the rise of the on-demand economy, and how it's changing the nature of...Read more
“Gifts make slaves, like whips make dogs” is a saying from Greenland’s Inuit culture.
How do you feel when someone gives you a gift? Grateful? Uncomfortable? Indebted?
Our guests weigh in on how major philanthropy could change the world, and the donors themselves. And one woman's...Read more
Subdivisions. Industrial Parks. Strip Malls. Gridlock. Sprawl is socially unequal, environmentally irresponsible, and aesthetically ugly. Right? We'll look at the costs and, YES, the benefits of suburban sprawl. Because maybe, just maybe, sprawl is a good thing.Read more
Many people treat it as a national holiday, more Americans watch it than vote in presidential elections, and it leaves an economic footprint larger than the Gross Domestic Product of 49 countries: it's Super Bowl Sunday. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll go behind the scenes of...Read more
Imagine the world as we know it, only without us. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, a writer imagines a world reinventing itself without human beings. He sees the New York subway system returning to its watery origins. The re-absorption of carbon into the earth, and endangered...Read more
“Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.”
-- Mark TwainRead more
Charles Monroe-Kane grew up hearing voices in his head. For years he tried to drown them out with potentially lethal quantities of hard drugs and alcohol. Lithium saved his life but coming clean about his past hasn't been easy. How do you admit, as a public radio producer, that for years you had...Read more
If there's one sweeping societal change that we've failed to put our finger on, it may be this: more people than ever before in America are living alone. And loving it. And, far from being dysfunctional neurotics - people who live alone are happy, socially involved and solvent. In...Read more
The Bible and the Quran are some of our most sacred and revered texts. They're also full of violent passages. Is religion the source of violence and intolerance around the world? We look at how sacred texts inspire both violence and liberation.Read more