Show for July 25, 2010. And Death Shall Have no Dominion: No One Dies in Lily Dale
A new documentary film depicts life—and afterlife—in Lily Dale, New York. Founded in 1879, Lily Dale is the “world’s largest spiritualist community,” home to dozens of mediums and a destination for bereaved people hoping to contact deceased loved ones. No One Dies in Lily Dale is a fascinating and poignant look at love, loss and belief. We talk to the director, Steven Cantor, and three people depicted in the film.
No One Dies in Lily Dale is now playing on HBO. Read more about the film.
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Show for July 18, 2010. Lives in Art: Harvey Pekar and Jonathan Ames.
In part 1, a 2006 interview with Harvey Pekar, who died this past week on July 12. We talked about his brawling youth, his autobiographical comics American Splendor and The Quitter, the impact of fame, his run-ins with David Letterman and other topics. In part 2, a 2009 interview with Jonathan Ames, discussing his own semi-autobiographical graphic novel The Alcoholic, the movie adaptation of his novel The Extra Man and his HBO comedy series Bored to Death.
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Show for July 11, 2010. Suffering for Science: Rebecca Herzig and Sandra Tsing Loh
Historian Rebecca Herzig describes a time in turn-of-the-century America when scientists were expected to lay down life and limb for their calling. Many did—but was it really necessary? Then, writer and performer Sandra Tsing Loh accentuates the fun side of science, but knows a thing or two about suffering for it, too.
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Show for July 4, 2010. Lift Every Voice and Sing: the Story of an Anthem. Frank Kameny: Gay Rights Before Stonewall.
Two stories for the 4th of July: In part 1, we listen to performances of Lift Every Voice and Sing, sometimes called the black national anthem, as historian Imani Perry discusses its meaning and importance to the civil rights struggle. In part 2, Frank Kameny recalls the early days of the gay rights movement. Kameny, now 85, led some of the key battles for gay equality, picketing the White House and staging 4th of July protests in the mid-1960s.
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Show for June 27, 2010. On Being Wrong: Kathryn Schulz on “Wrongology”
Writer Kathryn Schulz considers what it means to be wrong, how we feel about it and how we deal with it. In her new book “On Being Wrong,” Schulz examines the sources of human error, and says that rather than try to perfect ourselves, we need to embrace our fallibility.
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Show for June 20, 2010. The Computer As Creator: David Cope’s Algorithmic Music
It’s been almost 30 years since composer David Cope began teaching computers to write music. His experiments remain some of most startling examples of machine intelligence treading on traditional human turf. Cope’s programs can analyze and replicate the styles of actual composers, from Bach to Rachmaninoff, and also create original modernist pieces. His experiments have delighted some listeners and enraged others, who say he is mechanizing music. In any case, his work raises serious questions about creativity, inspiration and human uniqueness. In this interview, Dave Cope shares his music (including his latest CD), describes his methods and aims, and speculates on why some people find it all so very unsettling.
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Show for June 13, 2010. Psychologist Paul Bloom: How Pleasure Works
Developmental psychologist Paul Bloom investigates the nature of human pleasures, from sex and food to art, music and fantasies. He says that what we like depends on what we think, and there may be no such thing as purely physical pleasure. He discusses his new book, How Pleasure Works: The New Science of Why We Like What We Like.
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Wes Moore was a Rhodes Scholar on his way to a successful career when he learned of another Wes Moore, wanted by police for murder. He discovered surprising parallels in their early lives, before their paths diverged. He tells their two stories in his book, “The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates.”
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Show for May 30, 2010. Satiristas and the Art of Comedy: Interview with Dan Dion and Paul Provenza
Photographer Dan Dion and comic/actor Paul Provenza (director of The Aristocrats) take a searching look at the craft of contemporary comedy in their new book Satiristas. It features photos of and interviews with many of the leading satirists today—including comics, comedy writers and songwriters. Judd Apatow, George Carlin, Stephen Colbert, Randy Newman, Mike Nichols, Bob Odenkirk, Trey Parker and many, many more…
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Show for May 23, 2010. The Moral Life of Babies: Interview with Psychologist Paul Bloom; Aging and Happiness: Psychologist Arthur Stone
Yale University psychologist Paul Bloom discusses recent research on infant morality. He says babies may not be saints, but they’ve got a much more developed sense of right and wrong than previously thought. Then, is youth wasted on the young? A large-scale study indicates that people get happier as they age, especially after 50. Psychologist Arthur Stone of Stoney Brook U. describes the findings.
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Show for May 16, 2010. Witness to Extinction: Biologists Barry Sinervo, Donald Miles and Raymond Huey
In a new study that’s making headlines around the world, biologists Barry Sinervo, Donald Miles and colleagues report that lizards worldwide are dying off, apparent casualties of rising temperatures. The study suggests that an era of climate-driven mass extinctions may have already begun, sooner than many scientists expected. I spoke to Sinervo, Miles and fellow biologist Raymond Huey last week, just after the news broke. They described the research and the implications in detail. The show’s well worth a listen: this is not only a potentially game-changing piece of research (if correct), but also a dramatic story of accidental discovery.
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Lizard extinction risk under some temperature scenarios. (Sinervo, et. al.)
Show for May 9, 2010. The Philosophical Baby: an Interview with Alison Gopnik
Well, we wanted to dish up something new on Mother’s Day this
year, but stuff happened. So instead: a second helping of a show from last year—one we’re pretty sure moms will like. Developmental psychologist Alison Gopnik has spent decades studying the minds of infants and young children. Her conclusion: babies are smarter, more aware and more caring than scientists previously realized. Also, inventor Joshua Klein on the surprising intelligence of crows.
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Show for May 2, 2010. Political Scientist Brendan Nyhan; Wealth Reporter Robert Frank
Two entertaining, eye-opening and unsettling conversations highlight the shaky relationship between reality and perception. Political scientist Brendan Nyhan studies the impact of facts on political views, and finds that often, information doesn’t change minds. Wall Street Journal reporter Robert Frank says that despite fears that they’d lose their fortunes during the financial crisis, many of the wealthiest Americans are doing better than ever, the gap between rich and poor has grown and a new class divide may be emerging—between the rich and super-rich.
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Visit Brendan Nyhan’s blog.
Read The Wealth Report by Robert Frank
Show for Apr 25, 2010. Spoon Jackson and Judith Tannenbaum: By Heart
He’s serving life in prison. She’s a poet and teacher. Spoon Jackson and Judith Tannenbaum discuss how they met, discovered a mutual love of writing, and forged a 25-year friendship. Their new memoir is By Heart: Poetry, Prison, And Two Lives.
Spoon Jackson at New Folsom Prison
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Show for Apr 18, 2010. Leonard Susskind: The Black
Hole War
This is a rebroadcast (with a new postscript) of an interview originally aired in 2009. Leonard Susskind—theoretical physicist, one of the fathers of string theory—describes some of the extraordinary, mind-blowing implications of black holes. E.g., the holographic theory of the universe. Some of these implications touched off a long-running debate between Susskind and Stephen Hawking. Susskind gives us blow-by-blow account.
