There's something about the desert. Its uncompromising climate makes it a place of thirst and death. But it's also site of myths and vision quests. In this hour of To The Best Of Our Knowledge we'll explore the passion and power of the desert. We'll celebrate the desert's poets. And commemorate...Read more
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Episode Archives
We know the story of our 16th president – born in a log cabin, taught himself to read, led us through the bloodiest war ever fought on our soil, wrote the Gettsyburg address and freed the slaves. What don't we know? We celebrate Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday with a look at the man as well...Read more
Trick or Treat! These days, that means handing out candy, but once upon a time Halloween revelers often played nasty tricks. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the real history of Halloween. Also, why stories about monsters, ghouls and the supernatural keep popping...Read more
E’len see la luma nomih tyelvoh. That’s Elvish for “A star shines upon the hour of our meeting.” Even if you don’t believe in Elves it’s hard to resist the enchanting languages J.R.R. Tolkien created for the creatures of Middle Earth. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we find out...Read more
Do you believe that the government is keeping secrets from us? That the military is hiding evidence of alien visitations? Maybe you have a hard line to the truth -- or maybe you're a sucker for conspiracy theories. Today, we explore why we love conspiracy theories and why we believe them.Read more
It sounds like a deal in the ads - submit your poems, have them set to music, and start a fascinating new career as a hit songwriter. Of course your chance of success is slim to none and you have to pay for the privilege. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the strange subculture of...Read more
Some critics call V.S. Naipaul the world’s greatest living writer. But his harsh views on Islam and the Third World have sparked enormous controversy. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, Naipaul talks about his life as a writer. Also, poetry for the ages: we’ll hear Yeats, Auden and...Read more
Here’s the bad news. You can get the thing you most want - a BMW, the winning lottery ticket, and you still won’t be any happier. The good news? You can survive the most devastating catastrophes and you’ll be back on your feet in less time than you think. Next time on To the Best of Our...Read more
Who doesn’t love a good book? We all know a great novel can change the way we see the world, but what about the way we treat each other? This week, we explore the benefits of reading fiction, and find out if it makes us more moral.
And if you're wondering if movies can make us more...Read more
Double-crossin’ dames. Grifters on the make in sleazy dive bars. Dead men that are heavier than broken hearts. Some think his novels are just pulp fiction, but to others Raymond Chandler is one of the greatest American writers of the 20th Century. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge...Read more
What's the hot new thing in fiction? Fire! Today, novelists Jesse Ball and Joe Hill talk about their incendiary new fiction. And we meet a pyromaniac-turned-firefighter who can really light up a page. Join us for an hour of flammable fiction.Read more
Want to improve your mood? Just dance. This hour we’re talking with people who’ve found an easy way to keep themselves happy, to build friendships, and make art. We’re checking in with neuroscientists too, to hear just what happens in our brains when we’re dancing. Also, how dancing...Read more
In this hour, we find ourselves surrounded by sound. The sounds of nature, cosmic horror, capitalism, and experimental electronics.
If you want to give our theme remix a whirl, you can download files here and ...Read more
Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya, Jordan, Oman, Syria even Madison, Wisconsin, and the list grows day by day. People are filling the streets and demanding change. They want different things, but their protests have one thing in common: they have no leaders. They're organizing without...Read more
Sales clerks at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon, reportedly call the best-selling "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo", "the girl who pays our paychecks". The award-winning Swedish crime thriller has sold so many copies, publishers are racing to find the next Scandinavian best-seller. We meet...Read more
Is Jennifer Egan's book, "A Visit from the Goon Squad," a novel or is it a series of entangled stories? It's a fair question because this polyphonic narrative covers a lot of territory – from satire to tragedy told from a wide range of characters' points of view. And one chapter...Read more
Is it any wonder boys don’t read? Too often they’re assigned the books their female teachers loved. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the man behind the GuysRead website says forget “Little House on the Prairie” and bring on Stinky Cheese Man! And we’ll hear what happened when the...Read more
There’s no English translation for the Dutch word “Gezellig."
Are there things that can never be understood, expressed or experienced outside their home culture?
We’re wandering the unmarked maps of cultural translation!Read more
It’s the only musical instrument that’s played without being touched – the theremin. You’ve probably heard its eerie sound in movies like Hitchcock’s “Spellbound” or on the Beach Boys’ hit “Good Vibrations.” In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, the intriguing life of the instrument’s...Read more
Let boys be boys. It's a hard thing to do today with concern over violence in schools and the seeming violence of boys' play. But what if, thanks to our culture of fear, boys are slipping through the cracks? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we take a look at the inner world of...Read more
How many ways can you imagine the end of the world? To celebrate the end of 2012, we've gathered some of our favorite apocalyptic fiction. Doomsday scenarios from award-winning novelists and short story writers, featuring zombie invasions, mutant plagues, fire and...Read more
Once upon a time, not so long ago, the classroom filmstrip was everywhere. They taught us to change our underwear at least twice a week, among other things. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge we’ll revisit the golden age of classroom filmstrips. So sit up straight.Read more