Episode Archives

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To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Imagine a world where flying robots watch over our borders, assist with search and rescue missions, and survey roads and pipelines. Sounds like science fiction, but in many parts of the country it's a reality. This week, we explore the rise of drones, both as a military tool and a disruptive...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Fifty Years ago James Watson and Francis Crick made history when they cracked the code for DNA. Watson was only 24 years old, and by no means the smartest scientist around. So why do some scientists make great discoveries? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, James Watson talks about...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Everyone in your Facebook feed is falling for fake news–sharing it even when there's no way it can be true. They keep falling for it. But not you, right? You’re smart, well-educated. You can tell the difference. Or can you?Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

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

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

It’s been described as the Nobel Prize of motion pictures: the coveted Academy Award.  One billion people around the world watch the Oscars on TV every year.  In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the history and politics of the Academy Awards.  Is Oscar a white man’s award?  Also, Don...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

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

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

In the mid-80's the metal band Winger topped the charts with hits like "Seventeen." Then Grunge came along and left bands like Winger in the dust.  Now, Kip Winger is back on top with a new CD that debuted at #1 on the music charts.  Only this time, he's rocking the classical charts....Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

“The medium is the message.”  “We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us.” “We look at the present through a rear-view mirror.  We march backwards into the future.”   Those are just a few of Marshall McLuhan’s famous quotes.   McLuhan is one of the most influential media thinkers of...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Al Green is often referred to as the minister of L-O-V-E. You know, a couple of candles, a back-rub, and Al Green on the stereo. In 1976, Al Green put all that behind him and became a real minister – the Reverend Al Green of the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church in Memphis, Tennessee. But now he's...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Whittier called them "the saddest words: it might have been."  But turn it around and you'll find places we create to replace the world we live in -- past, present and future.  On To the Best of Our Knowledge, other worlds. Scientist Brian Greene looks at the physics of the multiverse, and...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

When the Taliban took control of Kabul, many Afghans destroyed their books and TV sets.  Belquis Ahmadi’s family left the country when women lost their rights.  Today, Ahmadi lives in exile, campaigning for women to play a major role in a new Afghan government.  Her story in this...Read more

crumpled pages from a book

Nobody wants to fail.  But maybe we’ve got the idea of failure all wrong.  Maybe it's not something to avoid, but something to strive for.  . Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Do you get eight hours of sleep a night?  If not, join the millions of sleep-deprived Americans stumbling through life half-awake.  Scientists say our national sleep debt may be behind the epidemics of diabetes and obesity – maybe even cancer.  In this hour of To the Best of Our...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Men are not really from Mars and women are not really from Venus.  But there are definite differences between the two genders.  Norah Vincent was curious about what a man's life was like.  So she spent eighteen months undercover...as a man.  In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, Norah...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Say you’re in Vegas playing high-stakes poker.  You haven’t slept in days.  To make matters worse, you’re being stared down by two of the best poker players in the world.  And...you’re bluffing.  So, you bet it all to bring the pot to well over a million dollars.  In this hour of To the Best of...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Science and the Search for Meaning: Five Questions, Part Two: What Does Evolution Want?

If there’s one strand of evolutionary theory that sticks in the craw of nearly every religious believer, it’s the idea that human beings are just an evolutionary accident.  But...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

A police officer's shooting of a young, unarmed Afrian American man here in Madison joins a long list of national tragedies.  So we devote this hour to conversations about race and justice.Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

A Swedish environmentalist believes we really should give back to the earth, even after we’ve died.  Her company is trying to replace cremation with a technologically-enhanced form of organic composting, and she’s already got the support of King Carl Gustav and the Church of Sweden.  In this...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Atheists are finally coming out of the closet, and in some cases denouncing religion.  Others still crave a sense of the sacred even though they don’t believe in God.  Do atheists have something to learn from religion?  Why do so many people call themselves "spiritual but not religious"?  And...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Today's entertainment industry is shrinking the gap between real life and fantasy. Popular television shows like Big Brother turn ordinary life into an engaging drama. Virtual worlds like Second Life give users a chance to recreate themselves with the click of a button. But how real is...Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

Violence may be a national scourge, but an awful lot of people devour shoot-‘em-up movies and video games.  In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the seduction of violence.   Why, for instance, four and five-year-old children love fantasy games where they kill each other.  Also, the...Read more

light streams into a cave

One of the biggest challenges a journalist can face is reporting a story when your connection to your source is compromised. They won't talk, or they can't talk, or it's your own father. Can anyone ever uncover the truth, the whole truth, about another person?Read more

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

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

a woman speaks her name

Your name is a collection of sounds and syllables that identify you. It's your tag, handle, label, second skin.  It's written on your birth certificate and it'll be inscribed on your grave.  But what does it actually mean?  Names carry family dreams, expectations and legacies....Read more

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