Couples know the frightening statistic: 50 percent of today’s marriages will fail. And the real victims are the children. As they grow up they are more likely to be aggressive or depressed, end up in mental health hospitals, or get divorced themselves. In this hour of To the...Read more
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Episode Archives
George Orwell wrote "1984" in response to two of the reigning ideologies of his day - fascism and communism. Does his dystopian story of Big Brother and Doublethink still matter today? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we'll talk with actor Tim Robbins, who recently staged a...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
In India he’s known as the giggling guru. In America Dr. Maden Kataria is famous in certain circles as the man who founded Laughter Yoga. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge the man who’s changing the world with chuckles, chortles and belly laughs. And, why more and more people...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
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
"History is a gallery of pictures in which there are few originals and many copies." -- Alexis de TocquevilleRead more
Is the NSA wiretapping story really new? Sure, whistle blower Edward Snowden is all over the news. But people were talking about federal surveillance ten years before leaked documents about “Prism.” In this hour, we take a look at what we know about government surveillance and when we knew it...Read more
For National Poetry Month, To The Best Of Our Knowledge celebrated poetry with original work by five leading American poets, written in response to current events.Read more
Have you ever heard of an “Uncreative Writing” course? In this class, students are penalized for showing any kind of originality. Instead, they’re rewarded for plagiarism, plundering and stealing. We’ll meet the man behind “Uncreative Writing” – poet Kenneth Goldsmith. Also,...Read more
Walk into the children's section of any bookstore and the magic wands and secret portals almost materialize in front of you. Wizards, witches, demons, time travel, dragons, orphans, orphaned dragons – doesn't anyone know how to write a non-magical book anymore?! In this hour of To the Best of...Read more
Sometimes all you really want to take to bed is a good book. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, meet some passionate readers. We’ll also try to find out if big time critics really hate books.Read more
Do you ever have the strange feeling that you've heard this promo before? Well, in this case, it's only fitting because we're going to explore deja vu on the next edition of To the Best of Our Knowledge. We'll try to find out what causes us to think we've already experienced the exact same...Read more
David Rothenburg is a philosopher and a jazz clarinetist, who also loves birds. So one day he sat down in the National Aviary in Pittsburgh and started playing music. Lo and behold, a white-crested laughing thrush started singing with him, riffing on the tunes he played. Since then Rothenburg...Read more
Poet Nick Lantz has a darkly satirical take on American culture. Lately, he’s been thinking about political spin and how politicians speak. In this interview—the third in our series ...Read more
What would a secular society really look like? We take an unconventional look at religion, the fiction it inspires, and reflect on why William James' classic book on mysticism, "The Varieties of Religious Experience," still matters.Read more
What are the great country music singles? Patsy Cline’s “Crazy,” probably. George Jones’ “slobbing tearjerker,” “He Stopped Loving Her Today.” What about the Rolling Stones’ “Honky Tonk Women”? and Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay? According to the book “Heartaches by the...Read more
We explore the frontiers of brain science, from the neurobiology of emotions to recent discoveries about autism. Renowned neuroscientists Richard Davidson and V.S. Ramachandran reveal new insights into the brain, and we'll hear the story of one marriage saved by a diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome...Read more
Ever dream of finding buried treasure? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, real-life treasure hunters like the two small-time prospectors who risked their lives in the Canadian tundra, and found one of the world’s biggest diamond mines. Also, hunting for dinosaur bones in the Gobi...Read more
America is famously a nation of immigrants, a melting pot of cultures. And yet, few subjects will be debated as passionately this year as immigration reform. What are we really talking about, when we argue about immigration? And, what's it like to be 'fresh off the boat" in a country that...Read more
What’s the best way to get someone to talk? NPR’s Terry Gross has done more interviewers than just about anyone else in public radio. But she prefers to talk to them long distance, with no eye contact. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, Terry Gross on the art of the interview.Read more
The Capitol Hilton. The Eve of then-President Clinton’s Alfalfa Club Speech, one of four humorous speeches of the so-called Washington “silly season.” In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the story of a White House joke-writer, a contentious egg-timer, and the night Bill Clinton...Read more
A rose is a rose is a rose... until it becomes perfume. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the power of the flower. A science journalist introduces us to Luca Turin, the most amazing nose in the business, with a new theory about how we smell. We’ll talk with photographer Joyce...Read more