Canal Street flooded with so much water it looks like an actual canal. People mourning the loss of their homes and loved ones. The Gulf Coast will never be the same after the devastation that Hurricane Katrina has caused. In this hour of the Peabody-Award-Winning program To the Best of Our...Read more
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Episode Archives
A poster at Starbucks asks customers to focus on the world water crisis. A congregation asks the faithful to go on a carbon diet. The local grocery now charges for a plastic bag. We've got green cars, green clothing, green investments, and even green weddings. In this hour of To the Best of Our...Read more
What's the centerpiece of the American Dream? Is it our belief that you can pull-yourself-up-by-your-boot-straps? Maybe it's our rugged individualism? Or maybe, just maybe, it's the lawn. In this hour of To The Best Of Our Knowledge the obsessive quest for the perfect lawn. Also, a little bunny...Read more
In America’s struggle with race, one man is trying to keep it real. His website dares to post the questions we’re afraid to ask out loud. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the quest for racial understanding from the founder of the Y-Forum. Also, the sweet and sorrowful history of...Read more
Oliver Sacks has an unusual problem. He can't recognize other people's faces. In fact, he doesn't always recognize himself when he's looking in the mirror. Sacks is also a neurologist who's fascinated by brain disorders. We'll talk with Sacks and with the painter Chuck Close, who also...Read more
If you live in Wisconsin, chances are you've heard of the Wisconsin Idea. It's the century-old dream of sharing the best of higher education with the entire state -- bringing the values of the liberal arts, scientific knowledge and search for truth to everyone. It's a cherished tradition,...Read more
Scientists tell us optimistic people are happier, healthier and even live longer than pessimists. But it's hard to maintain an optimistic frame of mind in the face of daily reports of war, famine, disease and injustice. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, evidence that the world is...Read more
Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq
Part Four
President Obama says our combat mission in Iraq will end by August 31, 2010. This leaves many unanswered questions. What was our mission in Iraq? Did we succeed? What will...Read more
How does creative work get done? When the answer finally comes to a question that's dogged you for weeks or years, where is it coming from?
In this special hour, Nathan Englander - acclaimed novelist, short story writer, playwright - is our guest...Read more
Pragmatic.Problem-solving. And non-partisan -- Mayors just might be the next best hope for democracy.Read more
Future Perfect: Dreamers, Schemers & Visionaries
Part One
Imagine a poor child in Uruguay. Now imagine giving that young girl a hundred-dollar laptop computer. Imagine the educational opportunities that this laptop will provide...Read more
Despite the refinancing frenzy, the American Dream isn’t about real estate. It means being free to make a new life for yourself. Regardless of the place or the circumstances of your birth. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we celebrate the American Dream. We’ll meet a man who...Read more
When Charles Mingus died, his widow took his ashes to India and scattered them in the Ganges. But that wasn’t the end. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, Sue Mingus talks about the legacy of her late husband’s music: his spirituality, his anger, and his love. Also, a conversation...Read more
When suicide bombers blow up crowded marketplaces, or a lone shooter attacks a nightclub, one question we’re always left with is why. What ideology or belief or loyalty would compel someone to do something so horrific? This hour, a look at the underlying psychology of political violence.Read more
In case it’s not obvious: we LOVE books on TTBOOK. But we’re also incredibly picky about which books we choose for interviews.Read more
Valentine's Day is coming up and we're re-thinking romance. Do you appreciate flowers, champagne and candlelight dinners? Or is it time to toss the old scripts and redefine romance?Read more
We sang it during the civil rights movement, on marches, on buses, and in the face of violence. We sang it for workers rights, and to protest the war in Vietnam, on the mall in Washington. Sometimes, we sang it hand in hand, our arms criss-crossed across our bodies, swaying. More than any...Read more
A collection of all of Barbara Ehrenreich's interviews on "To The Best Of Our Knowledge" over the years. Read more
Betsy Lerner was a chubby kid. Then an overweight teenager. Then, a compulsive eater with a secret food life. Binging and dieting consumed her life – until the day she tried to kill herself. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge the story of Betsy Lerner’s struggle with weight. And,...Read more
Imagine a scenario where universes bubble up out of black holes. Space itself can boil, and humankind may have to fight for survival by building gigantic atom-smashers the length of several star systems. That future may be closer than you think. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge,...Read more
What do you do if you're a struggling artist in search of recognition? Well, if you're Lynn Hershman Leeson, you write reviews of your work under pseudonyms and get them published in local newspapers. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll find out how Hershman Leeson uses her art...Read more
The idea of creative collaboration is a relatively new one. For centuries, science and culture focused on the self self-expression, self-realization. But two is the magic number. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll explore creative partnerships. Joshua Wolf Shenk talks about...Read more
Scientists are launching one of the most audacious projects ever conceived: a detailed map of the human brain, neuron by neron, synapse by synapse. For some scientists...Read more
The US is in the middle of its longest and most expensive war to date. Not the war in Iraq – the war on drugs. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge – we’ve spent hundreds of billions of dollars fighting for a “drug-free” America, yet heroin, cocaine and other illegal drugs are cheaper...Read more