Listen to To the Best of our Knowledge on WNNZ 640 in Westfield, MA

TTBOOK: Future Perfect: Our Computers

Sat, Dec 5 Listen

Nicholas Negroponte is out to change the world by giving laptops to kids in places too remote to have electricity. Lawrence Lessig feels that our current copyright law is far too restrictive and stifles creativity. Jason Rohrer designed the game "Passage," which is about mortality, not just an adrenalin rush. Sherry Turkle details the ways in which we are already developing relationships with personal robotic devices from cellphones and iPods to toys like the Furby and My Real Baby. James...

TTBOOK: Changing Climate Change

Fri, Dec 4 Listen

Stewart Brand no longer opposes nuclear power and says it's time to get pragmatic about managing climate change. Paxus Calta disagrees with Brand and gives his reasons for his position. James Lovelock says that that it is too late to reverse global warming, our planet is a self-regulating system that will carry on without people. Margaret Atwood's book posits a new religion formed after most life on Earth has been obliterated. Andy Bichlbaum and The Yes Men pull off pranks as political...

TTBOOK: Food Stories

Sat, Nov 28 Listen

Chef Dan Barber comes to terms with basics of eating locally by raising and killing a boar named Boris. Jane Hamilton and her husband grow and sell apples; she explains how an apple from a small, family orchard may differ from what you'll find at the supermarket. Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva, NPR's Kitchen Sisters, introduce some "Hidden Kitchens." Ray Turner harvests and smokes eels in NY's Delaware River valley. Judith Jones describes her long friendship and partnership with Julia Child.

TTBOOK: Lost in the Supermarket: Consumerism

Fri, Nov 27 Listen

Rob Walker explains the background of advertising and branding. Chuck Klosterman considers the lure of advertising and the show "Mad Men." Ellen Ruppel Shell describes the cost of our obsession with low prices. Joel Waldfogel counts the real cost of a gift the recipient didn't want. David Dalton remembers Andy Warhol's big plans for marketing Pop Art.

TTBOOK: Channeling Creativity

Sat, Nov 21 Listen

Cartoonist Lynda Barry believes that everyone is an artist and has stories to tell. James Othmer describes life in that center of American creativity, the advertising agency. Pattie Boyd was the woman who inspired three of the most famous rock songs of all time. Geoffrey Colvin says great performance is within the grasp of anyone who's willing to put in the right kind of practice.

TTBOOK: Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq, Coming Home

Fri, Nov 20 Listen

Jim Sheeler wrote about Marine Casualty Notification Officer Major Steve Beck, the last person a Marine's family wants to see at their door. John McCary reads an e-mail he sent his family in 2004 about the brutal nature of the insurgency. Kyle Haussmann-Stokes struggled alone with his PTSD, but eventually got help and made a film about his experience. Brigadier General Loree Sutton is the military's top-ranking psychiatrist and Director of the Pentagon's Centers of Excellence for...

TTBOOK: Money, Debt & Unbridled Capitalism

Sat, Nov 14 Listen

Liaquat Ahamed draws parallels between the recent financial meltdown and the events that led up to the Great Depression. Woody Tasch touts the benefits of supporting locally produced agriculture and "green" companies. Margaret Atwood says it's a mistake to think about debt as simply a matter of money. Anne Heller's biography of Ayn Rand discusses the power of capitalism, and her appeal for young people.

TTBOOK: Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq, Covering the War

Fri, Nov 13 Listen

Mike Hoyt is Executive Editor of the Columbia Journalism Review, and he encouraged his staff to question embedded reporters about the embed system and the war. Brian Palmer was embedded with the First Battalion/Second Marines and made a documentary film about the experience. Philip Gourevitch has written a book that examines what really happened at Abu Ghraib. Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez served as Commander of Coalition Forces in Iraq from June 2003 to June 2004, during which period...

TTBOOK: Coming of Age Through Music

Sat, Nov 7 Listen

Lavinia Greenlaw explains how music helped her as she grew up. Ralph Stanley talks about his family, his music and his concern with death. Nick Hornby reveals his knowledge of obsessive music fan-dom in his new book, "Juliet, Naked." Geraint Watkins is a rock and roll pianist and accordionist who's doing his best work as he nears sixty.

TTBOOK: Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq, Esprit de Corps

Fri, Nov 6 Listen

Toby Nunn was a Sergeant First Class in Iraq who currently works for the nonprofit group Soldiers' Angels. Tyler Boudreau is a twelve year veteran on the Marine Corps who resigned his commission over reservations about the legitimacy of the Iraq War. John Wrobleski, Sr. relates the story about the death of his son, Marine 2nd Lt. John "JT" Wrobleski, Jr. in Iraq. Jonathon Pieslak describes how U.S. forces use music and who they listen to. Helen Benedict discusses the heavy toll sexual...

TTBOOK: Fonts

Sat, Oct 31 Listen

Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones designed Gotham, the font of Hope and Change. Nicholson Baker reviewed the Kindle, Amazon's electronic reading device. Matthew Carter designed Verdana, the internet font, and co-designed Helvetica. Tracy Honn takes us on a tour of a working museum of letterpress printing. Kitty Burns Florey says handwriting is the original font.

TTBOOK: Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq, Architects of Wa

Fri, Oct 30 Listen

Douglas Feith was Under Secretary of Defense for Policy under Donald Rumsfeld, and one of the architects of the Bush Administration's war on terrorism. Col. David Lapan was one of the architects of the Defense Department's Embedded Media Program. David Kilcullen was a top military advisor to General Petraeus during the troop surge in Iraq. Ali Allawi was Minister of Trade and Minister of Defense in the Interim Iraqi Governing Council in 2003 and 2004. Thomas Ricks recalls how close the U.S....

TTBOOK: Ethics of Western Aid

Sat, Oct 24 Listen

Dambisa Moyo makes the case that Western aid to Africa has been a disaster. Peter Singer lays out the argument that virtually everyone in America has a moral obligation to give money to help the desperately poor. Jacqueline Novogratz combines capitalism and charity to apply business principles to philanthropy. Abraham Verghese talks about his own experience with the mission hospital system in Africa.

TTBOOK: Boots on the Ground: Stories from the War in Iraq, April 6, 2004

Fri, Oct 23 Listen

Donovan Campbell commanded a platoon of Marines in Ramadi on April 6, 2004. Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez served as Commander of Coalition Forces in Iraq from June 2003 to June 2004. Steve Levin is the producer of a documentary film, "Jerabek," which follows the family of a young Marine killed in the ambush at ar-Ramadi on April 6, 2004. David Swanson was an embedded journalist in ar-Ramadi with Ryan Jerabek's unit the day Ryan died.

TTBOOK: The World According to Pop Culture

Sat, Oct 17 Listen

Richard Poplak describes the ill-fated attempt to adapt The Simpsons for the Arab world. Daniel Radosh's friends took him to a Christian rock festival and introduced him the world of Christian pop culture. Pagan Kennedy has written an essay about Dr. Alex Comfort, the pioneering sex researcher behind the book "The Joy of Sex." Nathan Rabin explains the pivotal role popular culture has played throughout his life.

TTBOOK: Making Words

Fri, Oct 16 Listen

Patricia O'Conner says that what Americans think of as a British accent is a fairly recent development. Roy Blount Jr. is a humorist, word maven and author. Dan Everett went to the Amazon as a young Christian missionary and became captivated by the Indian people and their totally unknown language. Arika Okrent tries out her Klingon, and explains why people make up languages. Irene Pepperberg teaches animal cognition at Harvard and worked with a remarkable grey parrot named Alex.

TTBOOK: Searching for Shangri-La

Sat, Oct 10 Listen

Michael Wood describes his journey through the Himalayas in search of Shangri-La. Ian Baker describes his eight separate trips to find the hidden waterfall at the end of the Tsangpo Gorge. Amy Tan takes on the comic misunderstandings that arise when Americans seek enlightenment in China. Caitlin Matthews relates various myths of a lost paradise and how we can find it within ourselves. Salman Rushdie wrote about Kashmir, an earthly paradise combining great physical beauty with a tolerant...

TTBOOK: U.S. vs. Them

Fri, Oct 9 Listen

Jonathan Nossiter talked with people all over the world who make and sell wine. Rachel DeWoskin became a TV star as the American vixen in "Foreign Babes in Beijing." John Perkins was recruited by the NSA and lived a life of privilege in the foreign aid business. Patrick Neate explains how young people from around the world adapt hip-hop to address their own concerns. Penny Von Eschen relates how the State Department used jazz musicians as a weapon in the cold war.

TTBOOK: Re-Considering Crafts

Sat, Oct 3 Listen

Richard Sennett makes the case that our definition of craft should be expanded to include any job a person commits to executing to the best of their abilities. Betsy Greer talks about the resurgence of interest in knitting and crafts. Jessica Helfand collected antique scrapbooks, unique personal narratives made out of whatever materials were at hand. Kelly Lambert researched how using both hands on crafts projects can be as beneficial to the body as taking psychoactive medication. Leonard...

TTBOOK: Back To The Farm

Fri, Oct 2 Listen

*Bright young men and women used to graduate and head for Wall Street or a top corporate law firm. Today ? more and more of them are heading back to the land. After all, which would you rather do ? wear a suit and slave in a cubicle ? or spend your days on your own land, growing food for yourselves and your neighbors. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, America's small farm renaissance. The lure of the pastoral life and the vision of a new agrarian culture.

TTBOOK: What is Normal?

Sat, Sep 26 Listen

Stephen Kuusisto remembers visiting the seashore and a stable in Finland as a blind child. Emily Rapp was a poster child for the March of Dimes. Harriet Brown describes her experience discovering her daughter had anorexia. Tom Shachtman explains Rumspringa, when sixteen year olds experience the temptations of the world before they choose the strictures of a traditional Amish life. Alan Berliner is a chronic insomniac who goes for days without sleeping.

TTBOOK: National Parks

Fri, Sep 25 Listen

William Cronin says national parks intended for the masses are a 19th century American invention. James Mills investigates the Buffalo Soldiers and looks into the issue of why so few African-Americans visit the national Parks today. Mark Dowie provides examples of conservation projects involving native peoples that actually work. Richard Nelson hikes through the Alaskan wilderness recording sounds you can't hear anywhere else. Nevada Barr writes mystery novels that are set in a number of...

TTBOOK: The Future of Science Fiction

Sat, Sep 19 Listen

George R.R. Martin thinks all fiction is about ideas and that only the furniture changes. Ursula K. Le Guin says science fiction is a literature of ideas. S.T. Joshi wrote a biography of H. P. Lovecraft, who he says was always interested in pure science. Istvan Csicsery-Ronay outlines several of his "Seven Beauties of Science Fiction."

TTBOOK: Africa at the Crossroads

Fri, Sep 18 Listen

Melissa Faye Greene introduces a remarkable woman who saved dozens by opening her home to them after the death of her adult daughter from AIDS. Mandeza Kandemwa considers himself a spirit medium and that his powers are a gift from the Creator. Derick Burleson was evacuated from Rwanda just ahead of the genocide and couldn't believe the atrocities that occurred. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie says that only now are Nigerians willing to face up to their recent history. John Carlin wrote about the...

TTBOOK: Modern Music

Sat, Sep 12 Listen

Alex Ross describes how modern music has used other forms to develop, including rock and film music. Tyley Ross and Peter Kiesewalter of The East Village Opera Company give the traditional operatic repertory an extreme musical make-over. Ben Ratliff learns from talking with jazz greats like Pat Metheny and Ornette Coleman as they listen to music they admire. Syd Straw talks about her album "Pink Velour," and we hear examples from it.

TTBOOK: Poetry Instead

Fri, Sep 11 Listen

Patricia Smith is the four-time champion of the National Poetry Slam. Jay Parini discusses the power of poetry and how it especially empowers young people in troubled times. Gioia Timpanelli uses her poetic sensibility to write prose novels and talks about the two kinds of writing. Les Murray is considered by many literary critics to be the greatest living poet in English today.

TTBOOK: The Sacred and the Profane

Sat, Sep 5 Listen

Reverend Al Green recalls his life as the Minister of S-E-X, and talks about his subsequent career as a real minister. Mamak Khadan sings Persian music to stay connected to her homeland. Li-Young Lee writes poetry about the power of love. Michael Reilly made a recording at Mount Mariah Church in Como, Mississippi, and it changed his life.

TTBOOK: Welcome to the Working Week

Fri, Sep 4 Listen

Douglas Rushkoff talks about the way our lives have become like corporate culture. Matthew Crawford explains why manual work matters. Candacy Taylor illustrated the lives of career waitresses. Charles Wilkins wrote a memoir about his summer job as a gravedigger.

TTBOOK: Libraries

Sat, Aug 29 Listen

Maryanne Wolfe considers the science of reading and worries about the state of reading in our culture. Ursula Le Guin believes books will always endure. Geraldine Brooks created a fictional history for a real book, the Sarajevo Haggadah. Alberto Manguel assembled a personal library of some thirty thousand volumes, housed in a barn in a village in France. Children's book editor Susan Hirschmann talks about some of the famous authors she worked with.

TTBOOK: Religion 2.0