Alexander McCall Smith, was born in Africa and has written the immensely popular “No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency” series of novels.
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Audio
Anthony Doerr wrote a stunning book of short stories, “The Shell Collector.” Doerr talks with Anne Strainchamps and we hear readings from the title story.
Not all architecture in the Arab world glitters like a golden dome. Some are being shelled to dust by war. Such is the horrifying story of Homs, Syria. Once a cosmopolitan and tolerant city of more than one million, Homs has hosted clashes between rebel groups and President Bashar Assad’s forces since 2011. Those clashes have mortared and shelled the city into an oblivion. Thousands of residents have been killed. Most of the remaining have fled. But not all.
Marwa al-Sabouni and her family have stayed. Marwa al-Sabouni has her PhD. in Islamic architecture and wrote a compelling memoir about architecture and destruction in Homs called “The Battle for Home.”
Marwa al-Sabouni spoke with Anne Strainchamps via Skype from her apartment in Homs, Syria.
Poet Anna Rabinowitz found a shoe box full of old letters and photos of family and friends killed in the Holocaust. She wrote the poem "Darkling" to feature their voices. We also hear excerpts from the opera "Darkling."
Former Vice President Al Gore helped bring global warming into public consciousness. Despite the dire projections of rising temperatures, he says he's still an optimist.
Though names like Mother Ann Lee and Charles Fourier are not names that ring a bell for most today, they founded two of the most influential utopian movements in US history. 19th Century communes like the Shakers and Brook Farm are gone today their legacy – politically and culturally, are all around us. Chris Jennings is the author of “Paradise Now: The Story of American Utopianism.” Steve Paulson sat down with Jennings and asked him about what is now a dirty word, utopia.
Philosopher Alva Noe says it's a mistake to regard consciousness as strictly a product of our brain. He says consciousness is something we do.
Andrew Solomon talks with Steve Paulson about his own experience with depression, and why depressive illness is becoming more common.
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