Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchValerie Fridland: Yes, you have an accent
Season 33
Whether it’s the accent that hints at your hometown, your group, your social status or your ethnicity, the sounds we say reveal a lot about who we ar…
4 months, 2 weeks ago
David Haskell: When the world burst into bloom
Season 33
Flowering plants were late to evolve, but once they did, they took over most of the planet, connecting and communicating with a network of other livi…
4 months, 3 weeks ago
Michael Pollan: The mystery and marvel of consciousness
Season 33
Best known for his writings on food – and for his crisp summation of advice for healthy eating – “Eat food. Not too much. Mainly plants” – he has now…
5 months ago
Edda Fields-Black: The Harriet Tubman you didn’t know
Season 33
The remarkable and little-known story of how Harriet Tubman played a critical role in a daring raid that in 1863 freed some 700 slaves from rice plan…
5 months, 1 week ago
Gary Marcus: Is AI mostly hype?
Season 33
For over 20 years he has been a relentless critic of the extravagant claims made for the current generation of AI based on Large Language Models, or …
5 months, 2 weeks ago
Shermin Kruse: When empathy becomes a strategy
Season 33
Her mother’s skillful use of empathy to defuse a potentially dangerous encounter on the streets of Tehran when she was nine has stayed with her ever …
5 months, 3 weeks ago
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda: Season 33 Trailer
Season 33
Alan and Executive Producer Graham Chedd look ahead to the new season with clips from episodes on empathy – both helping defuse a dangerous situation…
6 months ago
Carol Burnett: A favorite conversation
Season 32
At age 92, Carol Burnett still graces our screens with her presence and humor. Alan revisits a 2019 conversation that explores with her what made The…
6 months, 1 week ago
Adam Frank: Are there aliens out there? Probably. But UFOs – not so much
Season 32
It’s highly likely that life – maybe even intelligent life – has evolved elsewhere in the universe. But that aliens bother to hang out in our skies, …
6 months, 2 weeks ago
David Baron: When Martians were real
Season 32
…at least according to a bold-face December 1906 headline in the New York Times. This was in the middle of a decades-long fascination with the idea t…
6 months, 3 weeks ago