Episode Archives

Filter episodes by the year they originally aired.
sunflower

Experts agree, gratitude is good for you.  It lowers stress, increases happiness, improves physical health, decreases depression and even helps you sleep better.  So while it's great to celebrate a day of Thanksgiving, you'll feel even better if you cultivate an attitude of gratitude...Read more

Original Air Date:

November 22, 2015

typewriter

Short stories can be harder to write than novels, but just as great.Read more

Original Air Date:

November 08, 2015

Cthulu

H.P. Lovecraft's weird tales of cosmic horror loom large 125 years after his birth. His literary tentatcles have oozed their way into movies, books, games and graphic novels. We explore Lovecraft's life, work and legacy.  Was he a literary master or a monster?Read more

Original Air Date:

October 25, 2015

Mr. Moneybags Monopoly graffiti

Checking someone else’s privilege can be a form of hostility. Checking your own can be an act of humility. Does anyone actually benefit from talking about privilege? This hour, the benefits and drawbacks of talking about privilege.Read more

Original Air Date:

October 18, 2015

David Foster Wallace

David Foster Wallace changed the landscape of American writing. His novels dissect our media-saturated culture in unflinching detail. And his essays are passed around to friends with the words, “You have to read this.” He became a literary rock star in his early thirties for his...Read more

Original Air Date:

August 07, 2015

TTBOOK
Original Air Date:

August 02, 2015

reading a story

It used to be easy to get lost in a good book, but now lots of people say reading is boring. Scientists say all that skimming and surfing on electronic screens is actually rewiring our brains. So we examine the new science of reading.Read more

Original Air Date:

July 26, 2015

TTBOOK

We talk to two other septuagenarian musicians in addition to Moroder who are still productively making music: the 74-year-old political folk singer Buffy Sainte-Marie, and the 78-year-old minimalist composer Philip Glass.Read more

Original Air Date:

July 19, 2015

A healing hand

As terrible as it sounds, most of us will go through something traumatic at some point in our lives. The experience can be deeply isolating and crushing, but it doesn't have to be. Read more

Original Air Date:

July 05, 2015

Price is right

You score a royal flush in poker!  Do you credit your skill? Or luck?  We talk with a poker champion, a game designer, an investment banker and a choreographer about how to untangle skill from luck.Read more

Original Air Date:

June 07, 2015

It doesn't matter whether you grew up going to Coney Island, Six Flags, or Pacific Park — to a kid, all amusement parks are magical. This hour we take a trip to the land of funnel cake, freak shows and fast rides.Read more

Original Air Date:

May 17, 2015

boxer

We explore the popularity and enduring appeal of combat sports.Read more

Original Air Date:

May 03, 2015

shame statue

Social media has brought us all closer together. Sometimes that's a good thing. But when it comes to online shaming, it's a bad thing. Read more

Original Air Date:

April 18, 2015

Needle and vial

If there isn't any evidence that vaccines cause autism, then why is anti-vaccination on the rise? Read more

Original Air Date:

March 29, 2015

Fermented tea

Fermentation revivalists share a slow food philosophy, a DIY approach to foodcraft, and a deep interest in the health of the American gut.Read more

Original Air Date:

March 15, 2015

skeleton

Our planet is facing a mass extinction crisis. By the end of the century, we could lose up to half of all living species. But people are working hard to save endangered species and habitats, and a few scientists are even trying to bring lost species - like passenger pigeons and woolly mammoths...Read more

Original Air Date:

January 25, 2015

TTBOOK

We take a closer look at negative stereotypes about African American men, how those biases affect our justice system, and what we might be able to do about it.Read more

Original Air Date:

December 21, 2014

TTBOOK

Walk long enough and far enough, and you will never be the same.  This week, stories of people who transformed their lives by picking up their feet, blazing trails, enduring blisters and frostbite and bad trail food. Read more

Original Air Date:

December 21, 2014

ghostly hands

Does death gives life meaning? You might think so, looking at the prominence of death and the afterlife in so many religions. In this hour, we explore the philosophical and religious dimensions of mortality and the afterlife.Read more

Original Air Date:

December 07, 2014

Graveside service

How do we mark death and celebrate lost lives around the globe?Read more

Original Air Date:

November 30, 2014

candle in hand

In this hour, we explore the medical, spiritual and psychological questions about the moment of death.Read more

Original Air Date:

November 23, 2014

cemetary

We live much longer than we used to, thanks to medical advances, but what are the emotional and financial costs of extending life? Read more

Original Air Date:

November 16, 2014

skull

We talk with experts about how to begin difficult conversations about making death a greater part of life, and how they can transform both the dying and the surviving.Read more

Original Air Date:

November 09, 2014

Why do Americans suck at math? And why do so many claim to hate it?Read more

Original Air Date:

August 10, 2014

Pages