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Radiolab
By WNYC Studios
Radiolab is one of the most beloved podcasts and public radio shows in the world. The show is known for its deep-dive journalism and innovative sound design. Created in 2002 by host Jad Abumrad, the program began as an exploration of scientific inquiry. Over the years it has evolved to become a platform for long-form journalism and storytelling. Radiolab is co-hosted by Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser.
Radiolab is one of the most beloved podcasts and public radio shows in the world. The show is known for its deep-dive journalism and innovative sound design. Created in 2002 by host Jad Abumrad, the program began as an exploration of scientific inquiry. Over the years it has evolved to become a platform for long-form journalism and storytelling. Radiolab is co-hosted by Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser.
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Post Reports: Four Hours of Insurrection
We’re all still processing what happened on January 6th. Despite the hours and hours of video circulating online, we still didn’t feel like we had a visceral, on-the-ground sense of what happened that day. Until we heard the piece we’re featuring today. The Washington Post’s daily podcast Post Reports built a minute-by-minute replay of that day, from the rally, to the invasion, to the aftermath, told through the voices of people who were in the building that day -- reporters, photojournalists, Congresspeople, police officers and more. It’s some of the most visceral reporting we’ve heard anywhere on this historic moment. [Listen to their full episode here.] (https://www.washingtonpost.com/podcasts/post-reports/four-hours-of-insurrection/)
16 Jan 2021
39 MINS
39:20
16 Jan 2021
More Money Less Problems
Back in March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic was just beginning and the shelter-in-place orders brought the economy to a screeching halt, a quirky-but-clever idea to save the economy made its way up to some of the highest levels of government. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib proposed an ambitious relief [bill] (https://tlaib.house.gov/sites/tlaib.house.gov/files/Automatic%20Boost%20to%20Communities%20Act%20.pdf) to keep the country’s metaphorical lights on: recurring payments to people to help them stay afloat during the crisis. And the way Congress would pay for it? By minting two platinum $1 trillion coins. (You read that right).
In this episode, we take a jaunt through the evolution of our currency, from the gold-backed bills of the 19th century, to the most powerful computer at the Federal Reserve. And we chase an idea that torpedoes what we thought was a fundamental law of economics. Can we actually just print more money?
This episode was reported by Becca Bressler and was produced by Becca Bressler and Simon Adler.
Special thanks to Carlos Mucha, Warren Mosler, David Cay Johnston, Alex Goldmark, Bryant Urstadt, and Amanda Aronczyk.
To learn more about these ideas check out:
Stephanie Kelton's [book] (https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/stephanie-kelton/the-deficit-myth/9781541736184/) The Deficit Myth
Jacob Goldstein's [book] (https://www.hachettebooks.com/titles/jacob-goldstein/money/9780316417198/) Money: The True Story of a Made-Up Thing and the Planet Money [podcast] (https://www.npr.org/sections/money/)
Betsey Stevenson's [podcast] (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-like-an-economist/id1523898793) Think Like an Economist
This [website] (https://mintthecoin.org) for more about #MintTheCoin
And for a fun quick read, check out [this] (https://www.wired.com/2013/01/trillion-dollar-coin-inventor/) WIRED article about the surprising origin of the trillion dollar coin.
15 Jan 2021
28 MINS
28:13
15 Jan 2021
Sight Unseen
As the attacks were unfolding on the Capitol, a steady stream of images poured onto our screens. Photo editor Kainaz Amaria tells us what she was looking for--and seeing--that afternoon. And she runs into a dilemma we've talked about before. In December of 2009, photojournalist Lynsey Addario, in was embedded with a medevac team in Afghanistan. After days of waiting, one night they got the call - a marine was gravely wounded. What happened next happens all the time. But this time it was captured, picture by picture, in excruciating detail. Horrible, difficult, and at times strikingly beautiful, those photos raise some questions: Who should see them, who gets to decide who should see them, and what can pictures like that do, to those of us far away from the horrors of war and those of us who are all too close to it?
Episode Notes:
To hear Kainaz Amaria talk more about the filter, check out:
[this post on ethical questions to consider around the sharing of images of police brutality] (https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/6/11/21281028/before-sharing-images-police-brutality-protest-george-floyd-ahmaud-arbery-facebook-instagram-twitter) and her [interview] (https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/bloody-image-double-standard) on On The Media about the double-standard in many U.S. newsrooms when it comes to posting graphic images.
Special thanks to [Chris Hughes and Helium Records for the use of Shift Part IV from the album Shift] (http://www.heliumrecords.co.uk/releases/shift.php)
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
13 Jan 2021
36 MINS
36:54
13 Jan 2021
A Note from Radiolab
In the past few weeks, there have been a lot of conversations about the tolerance of harassment and bad behavior in our industry and in particular of a person who worked on our show five years ago, Andy Mills.
The Radiolab team wants to say to the people who were hurt, to anyone who has ever felt unwelcome at our show, and to the industry we helped shape: we are listening. We hate that this happened and we apologize to those we failed. At the time, show leadership initiated a response from WNYC to address Andy’s behavior, but it didn’t happen fast enough and it didn’t do enough.
We can’t change the past, but we can promise you that we are all holding this show, and each other, accountable for making sure that no person has to experience anything like that again.
We believe the best journalism demands an open, inclusive process and the widest possible range of perspectives and experiences. As individuals, we promise to put our full hearts to finding and nurturing stories that embrace that range of perspectives and experiences. Listeners: We hope that you’ll hear this commitment in our work ahead, and that you will let us know if you do not.
And to our fellow journalists: We love making this show, and we love the community of radio and podcast producers who make it possible for us to exist. Nineteen people work here right now. But over the past 19 years, hundreds of you have contributed stories, ideas, questions, criticism, notes or your ears as listeners. We are grateful to you.
Team Radiolab:
Jad Abumrad, Simon Adler, Jeremy Bloom, Becca Bressler, Rachael Cusick, David Gebel, Dylan Keefe, Matt Kielty, Suzie Lechtenberg, Tobin Low, Annie McEwen, Lulu Miller, Latif Nasser, Sarah Qari, Sarah Sandbach, Arianne Wack, Pat Walters, Molly Webster, Soren Wheeler
07 Jan 2021
00 MINS
00:00
07 Jan 2021
A Terrible Covid Christmas Special
This year was the worst. And as our staff tried to figure out what to do for our last episode of 2020, co-host Latif Nasser thought, what if we stare straight into the darkness … and make a damn Christmas special about it.
Latif begins with a story about Santa, and a back-room deal he made with the Trump administration to jump to the front of the vaccine line, a tale that travels from an absurd quid-pro-quo to a deep question: who really is an essential worker?
From there, we take a whistle-stop tour through the numbers that scientists say you need to know as you wind your way (or preferably, don’t wind your way) through our COVID-infested world. Producer Sarah Qari brings us her version of the Christmas classic nobody ever dreamt they’d want to hear: The Twelve Numbers of COVID.
You can check out Martin Bazant’s COVID “calculator” [here] (https://indoor-covid-safety.herokuapp.com/) .
This episode was reported by Latif Nasser and Sarah Qari, and was produced by Matt Kielty, Sarah Qari, and Pat Walters.
Special thanks to Anna Weggel and Brant Miller, Catherine, Rohan, and Finn Munro, Noam Osband, Amber D’Souza, Chris Zangmeister, John Volckens, Joshua Santarpia, Laurel Bristow, Michael Mina, Mohammad Sajadi, James V. Grimaldi, Stephanie Armour, Joshuah Bearman, Brendan Nyhan
And for more on the proposed Santa vaccine deal, see Julie Wernau and her colleagues' reporting at the Wall Street Journal [here] (https://www.wsj.com/articles/health-agency-scraps-coronavirus-ad-campaign-leaving-santa-claus-in-the-cold-11603630802) .
Original art for this episode by Zara Stasi. Check out her work at: [www.goodforthebees.com] (https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/g6t2CW6lYwi5RrXAi1tGY6?domain=goodforthebees.com) .
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
23 Dec 2020
49 MINS
49:36
23 Dec 2020
The Ashes on the Lawn
A global pandemic. An afflicted, angry group. A seemingly indifferent government. Reporter Tracie Hunte wanted to understand this moment of pain and confusion by looking back 30 years, and she found a complicated answer to a simple question: When nothing seems to work, how do you make change?
This episode was reported by Tracie Hunte, and produced by Annie McEwen and Tobin Low. Fact-checking by Diane Kelly.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
18 Dec 2020
51 MINS
51:59
18 Dec 2020
Enemy of Mankind
Should the U.S. Supreme Court be the court of the world? In the 18th century, two feuding Frenchmen inspired a one-sentence law that helped launch American human rights litigation into the 20th century. The Alien Tort Statute allowed a Paraguayan woman to find justice for a terrible crime committed in her homeland. But as America reached further and further out into the world, the court was forced to confront the contradictions in our country’s ideology: sympathy vs. sovereignty. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court heard arguments in Jesner v. Arab Bank, a case that could reshape the way America responds to human rights abuses abroad. Does the A.T.S. secure human rights or is it a dangerous overreach?
Additional music for this episode by [Nicolas Carter] (http://www.nicholascarter.com/) .
Special thanks to William J. Aceves, William Baude, Diego Calles, Alana Casanova-Burgess, William Dodge, Susan Farbstein, Jeffery Fisher, Joanne Freeman, Julian Ku, Nicholas Rosenkranz, Susan Simpson, Emily Vinson, Benjamin Wittes and Jamison York. Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr., who appears in this episode, passed away in October 2016.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from [Oyez®] (https://www.oyez.org/) , a free law project in collaboration with the Legal Information Institute at Cornell.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
10 Dec 2020
56 MINS
56:33
10 Dec 2020
The Great Vaccinator
Until now, the fastest vaccine ever made - for mumps - took four years. And while our current effort to develop a covid-19 vaccine involves thousands of people working around the clock, the mumps vaccine was developed almost exclusively by one person: Maurice Hilleman. Hilleman cranked out more than 40 other vaccines over the course of his career, including 8 of the 14 routinely given to children. He arguably saved more lives than any other single person. And through his work, Hilleman embodied the instincts, drive, and guts it takes to marshall the human body’s defenses against a disease. But through him we also see the struggle and the costs of these monumental scientific efforts.
This episode was reported by Matt Kielty and Heather Radke, and produced by Matt Kielty.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
03 Dec 2020
41 MINS
41:59
03 Dec 2020
Dispatch 13: Challenge Trials
What if someone asked you to get infected with the COVID-19 virus, deliberately, in order to speed up the development of a vaccine? Would you do it? Would you risk your life to save others?
For months, dozens of companies have been racing to create coronavirus vaccines. Finally, three have done it. But according to the experts, we’re not out of the woods yet; we’ll need several vaccines to satisfy the global demand. One way to speed up the development process is a controversial technique called a human challenge trial, in which human subjects are intentionally infected with the virus. Senior correspondent Molly Webster gets the lowdown from Public News Service reporter Laura Rosbrow-Telem and then tracks down some of the tens of thousands of people who have volunteered to participate in a challenge trial.
Special thanks to Jonathan Miller.
This episode was reported by Molly Webster and Laura Rosbrow-Telem and produced by Molly Webster and Pat Walters.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
25 Nov 2020
26 MINS
26:32
25 Nov 2020
Deception
Lies, liars, and lie catchers. This hour of Radiolab asks if it's possible for anyone to lead a life without deception.
We consult a cast of characters, from pathological liars to lying snakes to drunken psychiatrists, to try and understand the strange power of lying to yourself and others.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
19 Nov 2020
57 MINS
57:20
19 Nov 2020
Breaking Benford
In the days after the US Presidential election was called for Joe Biden, many supporters of Donald Trump are crying foul. Voter fraud. And a key piece of evidence? A century-old quirk of math called Benford’s Law. We at Radiolab know Benford’s Law well, and have covered it before. In this political dispatch, Latif and Soren Sherlock their way through the precinct numbers to see if these claims hold up. Spoiler: they don’t. But the reason why is more interesting than you’d expect.
This episode was reported by Latif Nasser.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
Links:
Walter Mebane, [“Inappropriate Applications of Benford’s Law Regularities to Some Data from the 2020 Presidential Election in the United States”] (http://www-personal.umich.edu/~wmebane/inapB.pdf)
13 Nov 2020
29 MINS
29:35
13 Nov 2020
Bloc Party
In the 1996 election, Bill Clinton had a problem. The women who came out in droves for him in ‘92, split their vote in the ‘94 midterms, handing over control of the House and the Senate to the Republican Party. As his team stared ahead at his re-election bid, they knew they had to win those women back. So, after a major polling effort to determine who exactly their undecided ladies were, Clinton turned his focus toward the most important swing vote in the election: the soccer moms.
The soccer mom ushered in a new era of political campaigning, an era of slicing and dicing the electorate, engineering the (predominately white) voting bloc characters that campaigns have chased after. Security Moms. Nascar Dads. Joe Six Pack. Walmart Moms.
But what about everyone else? What about the surprisingly swingable corners of this country without a soccer mom in sight? Inspired by this [exceedingly cool interactive map] (https://www.thinglink.com/scene/810170295397646337?buttonSource=viewLimits) from Politico, we set out on a mission to make an audio-map of our own. We asked pollsters, reporters and political operatives in swing states: what slice of your population is up for grabs? A slice that no one talks about? In this episode, we crawl inside the places that might hold our country’s future in its hands, all the while asking: are these slices even real? Are there people inside them that might swing this election?
This episode was reported and produced by Becca Bressler, Tobin Low, Sarah Qari, Tracie Hunte, Pat Walters and Matt Kielty, with help from Jonny Moens.
Special thanks to Darren Samuelsohn, Josh Cochran, Elizabeth Ralph, and the Politico team for the original reporting and map that inspired this episode.
Also thanks to: Elissa Schneider, Wisam Naoum, Martin Manna, Ashourina Slewo, Eli Newman, Zoe Clark, Erin Roselio, Jess Kamm Broomell, Will Doran, John Zogby, Matt Dickinson, Tom Jensen, Ross Grogg, Joel Andrus, Jonathan Tilove, Steve Contorno, Heaven Hale, Jeff Shapiro, Nicole Cobler, Marie Albiges, Matt Dole, Robin Goist, Katie Paris, Julie Womack, Matt Dole, Jackie Borchardt, Jessica Locklear, Twinkle Patel, Bobby Das, Dharmesh Ahir, Nimesh Dhinubhai, Jay Desai, Rishi Bagga, and Sanjeev Joshipura.
Christina Greer’s book is [Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream] (https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199989300.001.0001/acprof-9780199989300) , and Corey Fields book is [Black Elephants in the Room: The Unexpected Politics of African American] (https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520291904/black-elephants-in-the-room) .
Original art for this episode by Zara Stasi. Check out her work at: [www.goodforthebees.com] (https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/g6t2CW6lYwi5RrXAi1tGY6?domain=goodforthebees.com) .
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
02 Nov 2020
50 MINS
50:37
02 Nov 2020
How to Win Friends and Influence Baboons
Baboon troops. We all know they’re hierarchical. There’s the big brutish alpha male who rules with a hairy iron fist, and then there’s everybody else. Which is what Meg Crofoot thought too, before she used GPS collars to track the movements of a troop of baboons for a whole month. What she and her team learned from this data gave them a whole new understanding of baboon troop dynamics, and, moment to moment, who really has the power.
This episode was reported and produced by Annie McEwen.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
31 Oct 2020
29 MINS
29:19
31 Oct 2020
What If?
There’s plenty of speculation about what Donald Trump might do in the wake of the election. Would he dispute the results if he loses? Would he simply refuse to leave office, or even try to use the military to maintain control? Last summer, Rosa Brooks got together a team of experts and political operatives from both sides of the aisle to ask a slightly different question. Rather than arguing about whether he’d do those things, they dug into what exactly would happen if he did. Part war game part choose your own adventure, Rosa’s Transition Integrity Project doesn’t give us any predictions, and it isn’t a referendum on Trump. Instead, it’s a deeply illuminating stress test on our laws, our institutions, and on the commitment to democracy written into the constitution.
This episode was reported by Bethel Habte, with help from Tracie Hunte, and produced by Bethel Habte. Jeremy Bloom provided original music.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
You can read The Transition Integrity Project’s report [here] (https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7013152/Preventing-a-Disrupted-Presidential-Election-and.pdf) .
23 Oct 2020
41 MINS
41:23
23 Oct 2020
Kittens Kick The Giggly Blue Robot All Summer
With the recent passing of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, there's been a lot of debate about how much power the Supreme Court should really have.
We tend to think of the Supreme Court justices as all-powerful guardians of the constitution, issuing momentous rulings from on high. They seem at once powerful, and unknowable; all lacy collars and black robes.
But they haven’t always been so, you know, supreme. On this episode of More Perfect, we go all the way back to the case that, in a lot of ways, is the beginning of the court we know today.
Also: we listen back to a mnemonic device (and song) that we created back in 2016 to help people remember the names of the justices. Listen, create a new one, and share with us!
[Tweet] (https://twitter.com/share)
The key links:
- Akhil Reed Amar's forthcoming book, [The Constitution Today: Timeless Lessons for the Issues of Our Era] (https://www.amazon.com/Constitution-Today-Timeless-Lessons-Issues/dp/0465096336)
- Linda Monk's book, [The Words We Live By: Your Annotated Guide to the Constitution] (https://www.amazon.com/Words-Live-Annotated-Constitution-Stonesong/dp/078688620X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1467405824&sr=1-1&keywords=Linda+Monk)
The key voices:
- Linda Monk, [author and constitutional scholar] (http://lindamonk.com/)
- Akhil Reed Amar, [Sterling Professor of Law at Yale] (https://www.law.yale.edu/akhil-reed-amar)
- Ari J. Savitzky, [lawyer at WilmerHale] (https://www.wilmerhale.com/ari_savitzky/)
The key cases:
- 1803: [Marbury v. Madison] (https://www.oyez.org/cases/1789-1850/5us137)
- 1832: [Worcester v. Georgia] (https://www.oyez.org/cases/1789-1850/31us515)
- 1954: [Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1)] (https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us483)
- 1955: [Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (2)] (https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/349us294)
Additional music for this episode by [Podington Bear] (http://www.podingtonbear.com/wpnew/) .
Special thanks to Dylan Keefe and [Mitch Boyer] (http://mitchboyer.com/) for their work on the above video.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
08 Oct 2020
39 MINS
39:36
08 Oct 2020
No Special Duty
What are the police for? Producer B.A. Parker started wondering this back in June, as Black Lives Matter protests and calls to “defund the police” ramped up. The question led her to a wild story of a stabbing on a New York City subway train, and the realization that, according to the law, the police don’t always have to protect us. Producer Sarah Qari joins Parker to dig into the legal background, which takes her all the way up to the Supreme Court... and then all the way back down to on-duty officers themselves.
This episode contains strong language and graphic violence.
Reported and produced by B.A. Parker and Sarah Qari, and produced by Matt Kielty and Pat Walters.
Special thanks to April Hayes and Katia Maguire for their documentary Home Truth about Jessica Gonzales, [Cracked.com] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAfUI_hETy0&ab_channel=Cracked) for sending us down this rabbit hole, Caroline Bettinger-López, Geoff Grimwood, Christy Lopez, Anthony Herron, Mike Wells, and Keith Taylor.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
02 Oct 2020
45 MINS
45:14
02 Oct 2020
Insomnia Line
[Coronasomnia] (https://health.ucdavis.edu/health-news/newsroom/covid-19-is-wrecking-our-sleep-with-coronasomnia--tips-to-fight-back-/2020/09) is a not-so-surprising [side-effect] (https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/09/03/coronavirus-sleep-insomnia/) of the global pandemic. More and more of us are having trouble falling asleep. We wanted to find a way to get inside that nighttime world, to see why people are awake and what they are thinking about.
So what’d Radiolab decide to do?
Open up the phone lines and talk to you.
We created an insomnia hotline and on this week’s experimental episode, we stayed up all night, taking hundreds of calls, spilling secrets, and at long last, watching the sunrise peek through.
This episode was produced by Lulu Miller with Rachael Cusick, Tracie Hunte, Tobin Low, Sarah Qari, Molly Webster, Pat Walters, Shima Oliaee, and Jonny Moens.
Want more Radiolab in your life? [Sign up for our newsletter] (http://radiolab.org/newsletter) ! We share our latest favorites: articles, tv shows, funny Youtube videos, chocolate chip cookie recipes, and more.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
25 Sep 2020
34 MINS
34:30
25 Sep 2020
More Perfect: Sex Appeal
We lost a legend. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died on September 18th, 2020. She was 87. In honor of her passing we are re-airing the More Perfect episode dedicated to one of her cases, because it offers a unique portrait of how one person can make change in the world.
This is the story of how Ginsburg, as a young lawyer at the ACLU, convinced an all-male Supreme Court to take discrimination against women seriously - using a case on discrimination against men.
This episode was reported by Julia Longoria.
Special thanks to Stephen Wiesenfeld, Alison Keith, and Bob Darcy.
Supreme Court archival audio comes from [Oyez®] (https://www.oyez.org/) , a free law project in collaboration with the Legal Information Institute at Cornell.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
19 Sep 2020
53 MINS
53:17
19 Sep 2020
Falling
There are so many ways to fall—in love, asleep, even flat on your face. This hour, Radiolab dives into stories of great falls.
We jump into a black hole, take a trip over Niagara Falls, upend some myths about falling cats, and plunge into our favorite songs about falling.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
17 Sep 2020
56 MINS
56:27
17 Sep 2020
Bringing Gamma Back, Again
Today, we return to the lab of neuroscientist Li-Huei Tsai, which brought us one of our favorite stories from four years ago - about the power of flashing lights on an Alzheimer’s-addled (mouse) brain. In this update, Li-Huei tells us about her team’s latest research, which now includes flashing sound, and ways in which light and sound together might retrieve lost memories. This new science is not a cure, and is far from a treatment, but it’s a finding so … simple, you won’t be able to shake it. Come join us for a lab visit, where we’ll meet some mice, stare at some light, and come face-to-face with the mystery of memory. We can promise you: by the end, you’ll never think the same way about Christmas lights again. Or jingle bells.
This update was reported by Molly Webster, and produced by Rachael Cusick. The original episode was produced by Annie McEwen, Matt Kielty, and Molly Webster, with help from Simon Adler.
Special thanks to Ed Boyden, Cognito Therapeutics, Brad Dickerson, Karen Duff, Zaven Khachaturian, Michael Lutz, Kevin M. Spencer, and Peter Uhlhaas.
Support Radiolab by becoming a member today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=wnyc&utm_medium=radiolab-redirect&utm_campaign=pledge&utm_content=show-notes) .
Molly's note about the image:
Those neon green things in the image are microglia, the brain’s immune cells, or, as we describe them in our episode, the janitor cells of the brain. Straight from MIT’s research files, this image shows microglia who have gotten light stimulation therapy (one can only hope in the flicker room). You can see their many, super-long tentacles, which would be used to feel out anything that didn’t belong in the brain. And then they’d eat it!
Further reading:
Li-Huei and co’s gamma sound and light [paper] (https://www.cell.com/cell/pdf/S0092-8674(19)30163-1.pdf) : Multi-sensory Gamma Stimulation Ameliorates Alzheimer’s-Associated Pathology and Improves Cognition
11 Sep 2020
36 MINS
36:47
11 Sep 2020
Fungus Amungus
Six years ago, a new infection began popping up in four different hospitals on three different continents, all around the same time. It wasn’t a bacteria, or a virus. It was ... a killer fungus. No one knew where it came from, or why. Today, the story of an ancient showdown between fungus and mammals that started when dinosaurs disappeared from the earth. Back then, the battle swung in our favor (spoiler alert!) and we’ve been hanging onto that win ever since. But one scientist suggests that the rise of this new infectious fungus indicates our edge is slipping, degree by increasing degree.
This episode was reported by Molly Webster, and produced by Molly and Bethel Habte, with production help from Tad Davis. Special thanks to Julie Parsonnet and Aviv Bergman.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
Further Fungus Reading:
[NYTimes feature] (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/06/health/drug-resistant-candida-auris.html) on the mysterious rise of Candida auris.
Arturo's [paper] (https://mbio.asm.org/content/10/4/e01397-19#:~:text=Candida%20auris%20is%20a%20new,exhibiting%20nonsusceptibility%20to%20antifungal%20agents.) : “On the emergence of Candida auris, Climate Change, Azoles, Swamps, and Birds”, by Arturo Casadevall, et al.
“On the Origins of a Species: What Might Explain the Rise of Candida auris?”, a [report from the CDC] (https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/5/3/58/htm) .
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04 Sep 2020
31 MINS
31:48
04 Sep 2020
Translation
How close can words get you to the truth and feel and force of life? That's the question poking at our ribs this hour, as we wonder how it is that the right words can have the wrong meanings, and why sometimes the best translations lead us to an understanding that's way deeper than language. This episode, a bunch of stories that play out in the middle space between one reality and another — where poetry, insult comedy, 911 calls, and even our own bodies work to close the gap.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
Special thanks for the music of [Brian Carpenter's Ghost Train Orchestra] (http://ghosttrainorchestra.com/)
27 Aug 2020
1 HR 05 MINS
1:05:09
27 Aug 2020
Lebanon, USA
This is a story of a road trip. After a particularly traumatic Valentine's Day, Fadi Boukaram was surfing google maps and noticed that there was a town called Lebanon... in Oregon. Being Lebanese himself, he wondered, how many Lebanons exist in the US? The answer: 47. Thus began his journey to visit them all and find an America he'd never expected, and the homeland he'd been searching for all along.
This episode was made in collaboration with Kerning Cultures, a podcast that tells stories from the Middle East and North Africa. The original "Lebanon USA" story was reported by Alex Atack with editorial support from Bella Ibrahim, Dana Ballout, Zeina Dowidar, and Hebah Fisher. Original sound design by Alex Atack.
The new update of the story was produced and reported by Shima Oliaee.
We had original music by Thomas Koner and Jad Atoui.
Be sure to check out Kerning Cultures at their website [www.kerningcultures.com] (http://www.kerningcultures.com) , instagram [@kerningcultures] (https://www.instagram.com/kerningcultures/) , or twitter [@kerningcultures] (https://twitter.com/kerningcultures) . You can read more about Fadi’s trips and see his photographs at [lebanonusa.com] (http://www.lebanonusa.com) or on his Instagram at [@lebanonusa] (http://www.wnyc.org/instagram.com/lebanonusa) .
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
Editor's Note: In an earlier version of this episode, we inaccurately described a grain elevator. We have updated the audio to reflect the correction.
---
If you would like to donate to Beirut at this time, we have links here (from NYT):
The [Lebanese Red Cross] (https://www.supportlrc.app/donate/) dispatches every ambulance from North Lebanon, Bekaa, and South Lebanon to Beirut to treat the wounded and help in search-and-rescue operations. You can make a [contribution here] (https://www.supportlrc.app/donate/donate.html) .
The United Nations’ [World Food Program] (https://www.wfp.org/) provides food to people displaced or made homeless after the blast. Lebanon imports nearly 85% of its food, and the port of Beirut, the epicenter of the explosion, played a central role in that supply chain. With the port now severely damaged, food prices are likely to be beyond the reach of many. [You can donate here] (https://secure.wfpusa.org/donate/urgent-support-emergency-humanitarian-response-lebanon?ms=2008_UNR_LebanonEmergency_NYT_WEB) .
The NGO [Humanity and Inclusion] (https://twitter.com/HI_UnitedStates/status/1291039281037926400) has 100 workers in Lebanon, including physical therapists, psychologists and social workers. They are focusing on post-surgical therapy in Beirut following the explosion. You can make a [contribution here] (https://www.hi-us.org/beirut_explosion) .
[International Medical Corps] (https://internationalmedicalcorps.org/) is deploying medical units and will provide mental health care to those affected in Lebanon. The humanitarian aid organization also provides health services to Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and vulnerable Lebanese. You can [donate here] (https://give.internationalmedicalcorps.org/page/65328/donate/1?ea.tracking.id=DP~LB21~DPHPL2108) .
[Islamic Relief] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=18&v=1Z-eqCGUm68&feature=emb_title) , which specializes in food aid and emergency response, is helping to put a supply chain in place for emergency aid in Beirut. You can [donate here] (https://irusa.org/middle-east/lebanon/?utm_source=Website&utm_medium=Social%20Media&utm_campaign=Lebanon%20Emergency) .
Save the Children have launched a Lebanon’s children relief fund, to which you can [donate here] (https://support.savethechildren.org/site/Donation2?df_id=4450&4450.donation=form1) .
[UNICEF] (https://www.unicefusa.org/stories/deadly-blast-rocks-lebanon-already-crisis/37528https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-sad-and-shocked-beirut-explosions-concerned-about-wellbeing-children-and) , the United Nations agency specializing in aid to children, is providing medical and vaccine supplies in Beirut, and supplying drinking water to rescue workers at the Beirut port. Its on-the-ground team is also counseling children traumatized by the blast. You can [donate here] (https://www.unicefusa.org/?form=LebanonEmergency&utm_campaign=20200805_Emergencies&utm_medium=Referral&utm_source=PRGeneralOnline+Broadcast&utm_content=LebanonDonate&ms=Referral_PRL_2020_Emergencies_20200805_PRGeneralOnline+Broadcast_LebanonDonate_none_none&initialms=Referral_PRL_2020_Emergencies_20200805_PRGeneralOnline+Broadcast_LebanonDonate_none_none) .
[Impact Lebanon] (https://www.impactlebanon.org/initiatives/disaster-relief-after-explosion-in-beirut?event=false) , a nonprofit organization, has set up a [crowdfunding campaign] (https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/lebanon-relief?utm_term=PYp7gXzyD) to help organizations on the ground, and is helping to share information about people still missing after the explosion. The group had raised over $3 million as of Wednesday and donated the first $100,000 to the Lebanese Red Cross.
The health care organization [Project HOPE] (https://www.projecthope.org/explosion-in-beirut/) is bringing medical supplies and protective gear to Beirut and assisting the authorities on the ground. A donation page is [available here] (https://secure.projecthope.org/site/SPageNavigator/2020_02_Main_lightboxupdate.html?autologin=true&mfc_pref=T&s_subsrc=rd1&utm_source=fundraising&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=evergreen) .
Over 300,000 people in Beirut were displaced from their homes by the explosion. [Baytna Baytak] (https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/impact-lebanon) , a charity that provided free housing to health care workers during the coronavirus pandemic, is now raising funds with Impact Lebanon to shelter those who have been displaced.
For those in Beirut, here is [a list of urgent blood needs] (https://www.daleelthawra.com/category/urgent-needs/) . Several social media accounts have also been set up to [help locate victims] (https://www.instagram.com/locatevictimsbeirut/) .
21 Aug 2020
42 MINS
42:21
21 Aug 2020
The Wubi Effect
When we think of China today, we think of a technological superpower. From Huawei and 5G to TikTok and viral social media, China is stride for stride with the United States in the world of computing. However, China’s technological renaissance almost didn’t happen. And for one very basic reason: The Chinese language, with its 70,000 plus characters, couldn’t fit on a keyboard.
Today, we tell the story of Professor Wang Yongmin, a hard headed computer programmer who solved this puzzle and laid the foundation for the China we know today.
This episode was reported and produced by Simon Adler with reporting assistance from [Yang Yang] (https://yang-yang.space/) .
Special thanks to Martin Howard. You can view his renowned collection of typewriters at: [antiquetypewriters.com] (http://www.antiquetypewriters.com)
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
14 Aug 2020
55 MINS
55:02
14 Aug 2020
Uncounted
First things first: our very own Latif Nasser has an exciting new show on Netflix. He talks to Jad about the hidden forces of the world that connect us all.
Then, with an eye on the upcoming election, we take a look back: at two pieces from More Perfect Season 3 about Constitutional amendments that determine who gets to vote.
Former Radiolab producer Julia Longoria takes us to Washington, D.C. The capital is at the heart of our democracy, but it’s not a state, and it wasn’t until the 23rd Amendment that its people got the right to vote for president. But that still left DC without full representation in Congress; D.C. sends a "non-voting delegate" to the House. Julia profiles that delegate, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, and her unique approach to fighting for power in a virtually powerless role.
Second, Radiolab producer Sarah Qari looks at a current fight to lower the US voting age to 16 that harkens back to the fight for the 26th Amendment in the 1960s. Eighteen-year-olds at the time argued that if they were old enough to be drafted to fight in the War, they were old enough to have a voice in our democracy. But what about today, when even younger Americans are finding themselves at the center of national political debates? Does it mean we should lower the voting age even further?
Music in this episode by [Carling & Will] (https://carlingandwill.com/#eluidae6de72f)
This episode was reported and produced by Julia Longoria and Sarah Qari.
Check out Latif Nasser’s new Netflix show Connected [here] (https://www.netflix.com/title/81031737) .
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
07 Aug 2020
50 MINS
50:35
07 Aug 2020
Invisible Allies
As scientists have been scrambling to find new and better ways to treat covid-19, they’ve come across some unexpected allies. Invisible and primordial, these protectors have been with us all along. And they just might help us to better weather this viral storm.
To kick things off, we travel through time from a homeless shelter to a military hospital, pondering the pandemic-fighting power of the sun. And then, we dive deep into the periodic table to look at how a simple element might actually be a microbe’s biggest foe.
This episode was reported by Simon Adler and Molly Webster, and produced by Annie McEwen, Pat Walters, Simon Adler, and Molly Webster, with production help from Tad Davis.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
31 Jul 2020
41 MINS
41:59
31 Jul 2020
Baby Blue Blood Drive
Horseshoe crabs are not much to look at. But beneath their unassuming catcher’s-mitt shell, they harbor a half-billion-year-old secret: a superpower that helped them outlive the dinosaurs and survive all the Earth’s mass extinctions. And what is that secret superpower? Their blood. Their baby blue blood. And it’s so miraculous that for decades, it hasn’t just been saving their butts, it’s been saving ours too.
But that all might be about to change.
Follow us as we follow these ancient critters - from a raunchy beach orgy to a marine blood drive to the most secluded waterslide - and learn a thing or two from them about how much we depend on nature and how much it depends on us.
BONUS: If you want to know more about how miraculous horseshoe crabs are, here's a bunch of our favorite reads:
Alexis Madrigal, ["The Blood Harvest"] (https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/02/the-blood-harvest/284078/) in The Atlantic, and Sarah Zhang's recent follow up in The Atlantic, ["The Last Days of the Blue Blood Harvest" ] (https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/05/blood-in-the-water/559229/)
Deborah Cramer, [The Narrow Edge] (http://www.deborahcramer.com/books/the-narrow-edge-red-knot/)
Deborah Cramer, ["Inside the Biomedical Revolution to Save Horseshoe Crabs"] (https://www.audubon.org/magazine/summer-2018/inside-biomedical-revolution-save-horseshoe-crabs) in Audubon Magazine
Richard Fortey, [Horseshoe Crabs and Velvet Worms] (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/54786/horseshoe-crabs-and-velvet-worms-by-richard-fortey/9780307275530/)
Ian Frazier, ["Blue Bloods" ] (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/04/14/blue-bloods) in The New Yorker
Lulu Miller's short story, ["Me and Jane" ] (https://catapult.co/stories/me-and-jane) in Catapult Magazine
Jerry Gault, ["The Most Noble Fishing There Is" ] (http://eureka.criver.com/the-most-noble-fishing-there-is/) in Charles River's Eureka Magazine
or check out Glenn Gauvry's horseshoe crab [research database] (http://www.horseshoecrab.org/research/)
This episode was reported by Latif Nasser with help from Damiano Marchetti and Lulu Miller, and was produced by Annie McEwen and Matt Kielty with help from Liza Yeager.
Special thanks to Arlene Shaner at the NY Academy of Medicine, Tim Wisniewski at the Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives at Johns Hopkins University, Jennifer Walton at the library of the Marine Biological Lab of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and Glenn Gauvry at the Ecological Research and Development Group.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
24 Jul 2020
1 HR 06 MINS
1:06:45
24 Jul 2020
Dispatches from 1918
It’s hard to imagine what the world will look like when COVID-19 has passed. So in this episode, we look back to the years after 1918, at the political, artistic, and viral aftermath of the flu pandemic that killed between 50 and 100 million people and left our world permanently transformed.
This episode was reported and produced by Rachael Cusick, Tad Davis, Tracie Hunte, Matt Kielty, Latif Nasser, Sarah Qari, Pat Walters, Molly Webster, with production assistance from Tad Davis and Bethel Habte.
Special thanks to the [Radio Diaries] (http://www.radiodiaries.org/) podcast for letting us use an excerpt of their interview with Harry Mills. You can find the original episode [here] (http://www.radiodiaries.org/conrads-garage/) . For more on Egon Schiele’s life, check out [the Leopold Museum’s biography] (http://www.schiele-dokumentation.at/home_en.php) , by Verena Gamper.
Support Radiolab today at [Radiolab.org/donate] (https://pledge3.wnyc.org/donate/radiolab-it/onestep/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=notes&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=radiolab) .
17 Jul 2020
1 HR 10 MINS
1:10:31
17 Jul 2020
The Flag and the Fury
How do you actually make change in the world? For 126 years, Mississippi has had the Confederate battle flag on their state flag, and they were the last state in the nation where that emblem remained “officially” flying. A few days ago, that flag came down. A few days before that, it coming down would have seemed impossible. We dive into the story behind this de-flagging: a journey involving a clash of histories, designs, families, and even cheerleading.
This episode was reported and produced by Shima Oliaee, with production assistance from Annie McEwen and Bethel Habte.
It was a collaboration between OSM Audio and Radiolab. You can check out upcoming releases from OSM at: [https://www.osmaudio.com/] (https://www.osmaudio.com/)
To read or listen to Kiese Laymon's memoir Heavy: [https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Heavy/Kiese-Laymon/9781501125669] (https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Heavy/Kiese-Laymon/9781501125669) .
To visit the Hospitality Flag website: [https://declaremississippi.com/] (https://declaremississippi.com/) .
12 Jul 2020
1 HR 13 MINS
1:13:24
12 Jul 2020
The Third. A TED Talk.
Jad gives a [TED] (https://www.ted.com/talks/jad_abumrad_how_dolly_parton_led_me_to_an_epiphany) talk about his life as a journalist and how Radiolab has evolved over the years.
Here's how TED described it:
How do you end a story? Host of Radiolab Jad Abumrad tells how his search for an answer led him home to the mountains of Tennessee, where he met an unexpected teacher: Dolly Parton.
Jad Nicholas Abumrad is a Lebanese-American radio host, composer and producer. He is the founder of the syndicated public radio program [Radiolab] (http://radiolab.org/) , which is broadcast on over 600 radio stations nationwide and is downloaded more than 120 million times a year as a podcast. He also created [More Perfect] (https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolabmoreperfect) , a podcast that tells the stories behind the Supreme Court's most famous decisions. And most recently, [Dolly Parton's America] (https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dolly-partons-america) , a nine-episode podcast exploring the life and times of the iconic country music star. Abumrad has received three Peabody Awards and was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2011.
25 Jun 2020
18 MINS
18:06
25 Jun 2020