What does it take to win Olympic gold? To become "the world's fastest human"? This hour, Olympic fame, the politics of sports, and the science of running.Read more
Intelligent. Optimistic. Curious.
Episode Archives
From our narrow vantage point on Earth, how can we see what's out there, beyond our skies?
Original Air Date:
August 19, 2017
Previous Airdates:
August 19, 2017
August 18, 2018
August 03, 2019
April 04, 2020
July 31, 2021
When you’re hurt and the only way out of toxic bitterness and resentment is to let go, how do you summon the resolve to reach out to the person who hurt you most?Read more
Original Air Date:
May 21, 2017
Previous Airdates:
May 21, 2017
December 07, 2017
September 15, 2018
September 21, 2019
July 24, 2021
Science tells us mountains are giant piles of rock, formed millions of years ago. But that's not all they are — there was a time when mountains were gods.Read more
Original Air Date:
July 24, 2021
Previous Airdates:
July 24, 2021
Africans are moving into cities in unprecedented numbers. Lagos, Nigeria, is on track to have 100 million people. So how and why do cities thrive?Read more
Original Air Date:
December 14, 2019
Previous Airdates:
December 14, 2019
September 26, 2020
July 17, 2021
Bees are endangered, but all over the world, people are stepping up to save them — in backyards, science labs, and the abandoned lots of urban Detroit.Read more
Original Air Date:
July 28, 2018
Previous Airdates:
July 28, 2018
May 18, 2019
July 18, 2020
July 17, 2021
Reading books isn't always the best way to learn. Some things you need to learn from your elders, and their wisdom has often been passed down through the generations. Read more
Original Air Date:
January 31, 2016
Previous Airdates:
January 31, 2016
November 13, 2016
April 12, 2018
November 30, 2019
July 10, 2021
The pandemic, the protests, the President’s Twitter feed — everything is exhausting. But maybe it doesn’t have to be?Read more
Original Air Date:
October 24, 2020
Previous Airdates:
October 24, 2020
July 10, 2021
It doesn't matter whether you grew up going to Coney Island, Six Flags, or Pacific Park — to a kid, all amusement parks are magical. This hour we take a trip to the land of funnel cake, freak shows and fast rides.Read more
Original Air Date:
May 17, 2015
Previous Airdates:
May 17, 2015
August 26, 2017
May 26, 2018
May 25, 2019
July 03, 2021
One of the most fun things we get to do is bring the soundscape of a novel to life — cue the monsters, the storms, the footsteps of a creature emerging slowly from the ocean. This week, we listen to our favorite cinema of the ear.Read more
Original Air Date:
July 03, 2021
Previous Airdates:
July 03, 2021
Is there a book you can’t forget? A book that left a mark on you? We celebrate books and reading with an eclectic cast of writers from around the country.Read more
Original Air Date:
November 16, 2019
Previous Airdates:
November 16, 2019
September 12, 2020
June 26, 2021
Exchanging glances with the natural world happens more often than you’d think. It can be so profound, there’s a name for it: eye-to-eye epiphany.Read more
Original Air Date:
February 08, 2020
Previous Airdates:
February 08, 2020
October 03, 2020
June 26, 2021
You're thinking about hitting “delete” on all of it — Facebook, Twitter. But is that the answer, or should we resolve to stick around and make things better?Read more
Original Air Date:
December 22, 2018
Previous Airdates:
December 22, 2018
August 24, 2019
August 15, 2020
June 19, 2021
Is there a better way to talk about death? And to grieve? The pandemic has brought us a period of global mourning — and a new reckoning with loss.Read more
Original Air Date:
June 19, 2021
Previous Airdates:
June 19, 2021
Summer reading lists are full of so-called "beach books." But if you’ve got enough time to lounge by a pool or swing in a hammock, why not tackle something more substantial?Read more
Original Air Date:
July 13, 2019
Previous Airdates:
July 13, 2019
July 11, 2020
June 12, 2021
New experiences rewire the brain. So after all we’ve been through, are we different? We consider the "COVID brain" in both neuroscience and the arts.Read more
Original Air Date:
October 10, 2020
Previous Airdates:
October 10, 2020
June 12, 2021
Every night, millions of us turn out the lights hoping and praying for a good night’s sleep. And every night, millions of us lie awake in the dark.Read more
Original Air Date:
March 07, 2020
Previous Airdates:
March 07, 2020
August 29, 2020
June 05, 2021
We explore the ancient, obscure, occult science and art of alchemy — it turns out to be a lot more relevant to our lives than you’d believe.Read more
Original Air Date:
September 19, 2020
Previous Airdates:
September 19, 2020
June 05, 2021
Can we ever get inside the mind of an animal? Can we really know how an octopus or a parrot thinks? Also, the fascinating story of Charles Foster's attempt to act like a badger, when he lived in a hole in the ground and ate worms.Read more
Original Air Date:
April 07, 2018
Previous Airdates:
April 07, 2018
December 29, 2018
November 16, 2019
June 05, 2021
We surround ourselves with possessions, but at what point do they start to possess us?Read more
Original Air Date:
September 05, 2020
Previous Airdates:
September 05, 2020
May 29, 2021
The first birth is when you arrive here, as a wet, wiggling newborn. But there may be other transitions in your life that feel just as difficult and profound. Some people actually call those passages rebirth. Read more
Original Air Date:
September 15, 2018
Previous Airdates:
September 15, 2018
June 15, 2019
July 25, 2020
May 29, 2021
The pandemic has made clear that parents are walking a tightrope with no safety net. Is it time for a parenting revolution?Read more
Original Air Date:
May 22, 2021
Previous Airdates:
May 22, 2021
A new generation of Black farmers are working to reclaim land, hoping to grow justice along with vegetables and plants.Read more
Original Air Date:
August 22, 2020
Previous Airdates:
August 22, 2020
May 15, 2021
The virtues of transgressive, subversive, rule-breaking art, both as an aesthetic and as a way of life. Read more
Original Air Date:
June 04, 2017
Previous Airdates:
June 04, 2017
November 17, 2018
August 24, 2019
August 01, 2020
May 15, 2021
Are there new ways to treat depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder? We explore some unconventional treatments for mental illness, including exercise, psychedelics and even horror films.Read more
Original Air Date:
February 15, 2020
Previous Airdates:
February 15, 2020
August 15, 2020
May 08, 2021
We owe our past and future existence on Earth to fungi. Some can heal you, some can kill you, and some can change you forever.Read more
Original Air Date:
June 08, 2019
Previous Airdates:
June 08, 2019
May 02, 2020
May 08, 2021
Remember when reading still felt magical? We talk to authors about Wonderland, magic wands, unicorns and other children's stories that inspire.Read more
Original Air Date:
May 01, 2021
Previous Airdates:
May 01, 2021
They say "don't feed the trolls" — but why should sexist and racist trolls get to own the web? Was it built for them, or for all of us?Read more
Original Air Date:
March 23, 2019
Previous Airdates:
March 23, 2019
February 22, 2020
July 04, 2020
April 24, 2021
When things don't go the way they're supposed to — viruses, star systems, presidents, even fish — why do we so quickly seek order to explain the chaos?Read more
Original Air Date:
August 08, 2020
Previous Airdates:
August 08, 2020
April 24, 2021
What if the most unselfish thing you could do was to pursue pleasure and joy? We make the case for the transformative power of joy, pleasure and delight.Read more
Original Air Date:
October 12, 2019
Previous Airdates:
October 12, 2019
July 11, 2020
April 17, 2021