The world’s oceans are emptying at an alarming rate. Fish populations are dwindling and dozens of species are going extinct. Is this something to worry about? Not as long as you like plankton stew. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we’ll meet the controversial scientist who jump-...Read more
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Episode Archives
Supersized slabs of juicy ribs cooked over a wood fire until the meat slides right off the bone. Food doesn't get more American than barbecue. It's part of our roots. And it's tangled up in our racial history. In this hour, we celebrate barbecue and explore its secret history.Read more
The downhill skiers in Sochi know cold weather, but for real cold -- try diving into freezing water above the Arctic Circle! In this hour, some sports too cold even for the Winter Olympics.Read more
These days, we're becoming more and more like corporations. We outsource our individual needs for everything from dating to weight loss. We brand ourselves. We behave like individuals in competition with each other rather than people with an opportunity to collaborate. But it doesn't have to be...Read more
“Lets Make Our Own Movie!” That was a wild idea back in the days of young Mickey Rooney, but today, anyone can do it. Next time on To the Best of Our Knowledge, how digital cameras make us all directors, and why movies may never be the same. Also, screenwriter Andrew Davies...Read more
Consider this future world: a vaccine that makes you continually happy. A chip in your brain that lets you communicate telepathically with your spouse. Human lives that span hundreds of years. Sound far-fetched? Not according the James Hughes of the World Trans-humanist Association. He says...Read more
You're driving along a dark road when you're distracted by what appears to be a flight of arrows. You crash into a ravine and suffer horrible burns over most of your body. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll talk to Andrew Davidson about his debut novel "The Gargoyle." It's been...Read more
Everything you know about Indians is wrong. That's the starting point for Paul Chaat Smith, who says it's time to hit the reset button and re-think everything we know about Native American culture. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, Comedian Howie Miller says that's what he does as a...Read more
New York Times columnist David Brooks is best known for his political writing, but he's also fascinated by recent findings in psychology and neuroscience. In fact he says many of our public policies fail because we're not actually the rational decision makers we think we are. In this hour of...Read more
As soon as you, or someone you love, has that first "senior moment" – you start to worry. Is this the beginning of the slippery slope of Alzheimer's Disease? Relax! There's something you can do. The good news is that most of us won't live long enough to get Alzheimer's. And the rest of us...Read more
Nelson Algren said “Never play cards with a man called Doc. Never eat at a place called Mum’s. And never go to bed with a woman whose troubles are greater than your own.” In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we’ll catch up with Studs Terkel to talk about why an American master like...Read more
America was once a nation of readers, but now experts warn that reading is in decline as our cultural life moves online. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, an hour in praise and defense of the book. Ursula Le Guin takes book publishers to task and a beloved children's book editor...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
After World War Two, existentialism was all the rage in the U.S.A. College students rebelled by smoking European cigarettes and wearing black clothes and berets. Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus felt that Americans were too self-confident and superficial to accept this dark, brooding...Read more
Patty Loveless is a coal miner’s daughter. And a country singer, just like her distant cousin Loretta Lynn. When Patty Loveless’ father contracted black lung disease the family had to move to Louisville, Kentucky – so Patty’s dad could receive medical attention. In this hour of To the Best of...Read more
Do you remember the first time you saw a piece of art or heard a piece of music that shocked you? Something you immediately knew your parents would hate? Remember how good it felt, to like something bad? In this show, we're talking about shock value — the virtues of transgressive, subversive...Read more
Trayvon Martin’s death and George Zimmerman’s acquittal has sparked a debate over race this country hasn’t seen in many years. So, whose America is it? The young black teen in a hoodie? The illegal immigrant who’s been living here for twenty years? Muslims? Native Americans? You?Read more
What animals will still be living in the year 3000? Forget about tigers, rhinos and pandas. They’ll go the way of the dodo bird. But scientist Peter Ward says rats and coyotes will flourish. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge the future of evolution. Also, best-selling novelist...Read more
Bottle caps, coins, dolls, rocks. My Aunt Mary’s ceramic chickens. Most of us collect something. It seems to be in our genes. And for most of us it’s a fun hobby. For others, it can get a little time consuming. But for a few, collecting is an total obsession.
Amanda Petrusich is a music...Read more
Jane Scott keeps strange company. While other women her age spend their time in knitting circles, Scott’s still hanging out with rockers like Lou Reed and Alice Cooper (and showing off her backstage pass.) It’s her job. Or at least it was until she retired as rock critic for the Cleveland...Read more
Spiderman had a pretty good summer last year, but J.K. Rowling wasn’t worried. When the sixth Harry Potter book came out, children trampled the web-slinger in their rush to bookstores and libraries. Which makes perfect sense to author and Arthurian scholar Jane Yolen. She says it’s all about...Read more
Bombay is the largest city in the world. And one of the most confounding. Bar dancers, gangs, and Bollywood all call Bombay home, for better or worse. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, a Bombay-native takes us inside this Maximum City. Also, the writer of the hit movie "Monsoon...Read more
If you find Shakespeare a bit intimidating, you might want to check out the Reduced Shakespeare Company. Its actors do a version of “Hamlet” forward and backwards – all in two minutes. Next time on To the Best of Our Knowledge, Shakespeare as you’ve never heard him before. Also, the great...Read more
Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Brittney Spears – divas? Nah. Maria Callas – now she was a diva! In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, two great ladies with leather lungs – Maria Callas and Judy Garland – their triumphs and tragedies from Onassis to Oz. And other...Read more