Deborah Madison talks with Anne Strainchamps about the growing popularity of farmers’ markets.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
According to historian Thomas Laqueur, neither sanitation nor the soul fully explain the rang of rituals we've developed for caring for dead bodies. For him, there is a deeper anthropological truth at work: caring for the dead marks the human transition from nature into culture.
One of the enduring ideas – and an everyday saying – is that it’s possible to “pull yourself up by your bootstraps.” Of course, it’s physically impossible, but producer Sara Nics thought there had to be a way to do it with some engineering know-how and well-built boots.
Dr. Catherine Lord tells Anne Strainchamps that there is a ten fold reported rise in the incidence of autism but no one knows what accounts for the dramatic rise.
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.
Caitlin Matthews is a Celtic scholar and storyteller. She talks with Anne Strainchamps about the various myths of a lost paradise and how we can find it within ourselves.
Chris Bachelder is the author of "Bear v. Shark: The Novel." He reads excerpts and talks with Anne Strainchamps about the wacky future world he's created.
Daphne Merkin responds to Hilary Clinton as a cultural symbol and public personality.
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