I dunno, but it seems kind of extreme, not to mention risky, to bio-engineer a mass mosquito die-off. So Steve Paulson tracked down the world’s greatest living entomologist to see what he has to say. E. O Wilson is sometimes called “the ant man” – that’s the insect he studied most – but he’s best known as the evolutionary biologist and a champion of biodiversity. He’s 86 years old now, and has just finished what is probably his last book – called “Half Earth”. It’s a passionate plea to save humanity by dedicating half the planet to nature. You’d assume that Wilson would be happy to let mosquitos live in that half… but that’s not what he told Steve.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Elizabeth Little is a writer and editor who collects languages. She tells Jim Fleming about the perils of learning tonal languages.
Eugene Mirman is an indie comic and the author of an outlandish self-help send-up called "The Will to Whatevs." He tells Jim Fleming that school was horrible for him and gave rise to his nerd humor.
Not all cavemen are in the past. The Modern Caveman Movement involves men in urban gyms, grunting and sprinting on all fours, lifting heavy stones, and running barefoot.
Francine Segan, author of "The Philosopher's Kitchen", tells us of the importance of bread to the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.
More than 100 million people have Twitter accounts. Every moment, across the globe, they are posting thousands of short digital messages; that’s a lot of data.
Maybe it can help us keep an eye out for cultural change?
Barry Glassner tells Steve Paulson that Americans seem to think the value of a meal lies principally in what it lacks - no sugar, fat, carbs, calories, etc. He explores the myths that make us the food police.
Christopher Taylor talks with Jim Fleming about his recent series of concerts where he performed all 32 Beethoven Piano Sonatas, from memory.
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