The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is making its way up the best-seller lists for a reason — it's a fascinating blend of magic and art, with the allure of the circus and the tempered reality of dreams.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Jennifer Jacquet explains how public shaming can be used to promote political change and social reform.
Star gazing may be the most universal moments of wonder. Neil deGrasse Tyson says he's been awed by outer space since he first went to a planetarium. He's been hooked on science - and wonder - ever since.
You can also hear the extended interview with deGrasse Tyson here.
Ruth Padel is an acclaimed British poet and a direct descendent of Charles Darwin. She’s now written “Darwin: A Life in Poems,” having grown up hearing stories about her famous ancestor.
Roger Ebert won the Pulitzer Prize in 1975 and is probably the most famous movie critic in America. He talks with Steve Paulson about the movie genre known as film noir.
The common wisdom is that we’re getting more violent all the time. Witness the genocides and world wars of the last century. But cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker says we have it all wrong. And in his 800 page book “The Better Angels of Ourselves” he makes the case for how violence has declined.
Sharon Lovejoy tells Anne Strainchamps about sunflower houses, the giant’s garden, and why she sends kids into the garden with stethoscopes.
Late in lafe, former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara admitted the Vietnam War was a huge mistake, but he always avoided questions of personal responsibility. Docmentary filmmaker Errol Morris reflects on McNamara's struggle with his own conscience.
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