Hour 2 In a world that celebrates the loudest, most outlandish, extroverted personalities, a new book makes the case for quieter types – those who shy away from the limelight and who like to spend time alone. Writer SUSAN CAIN says there are advantages to being an introvert, including being a reflective thinker and a [...]

Filed under: author, culture, psychology, science, social issues |

Hour 2 Many people think that our genes tell the story of who we are. But a group of researchers believe that the wiring in our brain may be even more revealing and they’ve set out to make a map of it. Mapping the neural pathways in the brain is an enormous task – a [...]

Filed under: author, health, medicine, science, technology |

Hour 2 Just over a hundred years ago, Roald Amundsen and four companions were the first human beings to stand at the South Pole. Using skis and dog sleds they beat Robert Falcon Scott’s British expedition by just a few weeks. Scott and his men reached the South Pole only to find Amundsen’s Norwegian flag [...]

Filed under: animals, author, environment, history, science, world |

Hour 2 [REBROADCAST] We like to think we’re in charge of ourselves but neuroscientist DAVID EAGLEMAN says that have a lot less self-control than we think. In his fascinating book "INCOGNITO: The Secret Lives of the Brain," Eagleman describes the leading role that our unconscious mind plays in our daily lives, commanding our instincts, emotions, [...]

Filed under: author, crime, criminal justice, health, medicine, science |

Hour 2 2012 is upon us, and if you thought the end-of-the-world hysteria was insane last year, just you wait for the end of this year. Hollywood helped kick the doomsday hype last year with its disaster movie titled “2012.” And interpretations – experts say misinterpretations – of the Mayan Long Count calendar supposedly predict [...]

Filed under: psychology, religion, science, world |

Hour 2 [REBROADCAST] The ability to recognize oneself in the mirror is considered a sign of high intelligence and is relatively rare in the animal world.  Humans can do it and so can great apes.  But DR. DIANA REISS has shown that dolphins can do it too.  Reiss, a professor of psychology at Hunter College [...]

Filed under: animals, author, environment, science |

Hour 2 It’s not only kids who are captivated by dinosaurs – the idea that gigantic reptiles walked the Earth over 65 million years ago is pretty awe inspiring. Of course, they weren’t all giants – some were only the size of chickens. Today we’re talking about dinosaurs and highlighting some fascinating recent finds. We’ll [...]

Filed under: animals, author, science |

Hour 2 THOMAS THWAITES was a graduate art student in London when he hatched upon a slightly crazy idea: He decided he wanted to see if it was possible to build, from scratch, an everyday household object. He settled on the apparently humble toaster, but looks can be deceiving. Thwaites’ new book, “The Toaster Project: [...]

Filed under: Philadelphia, author, culture, science, technology |

Hour 1 Last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius overruled a recommendation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that would have allowed the emergency contraceptive Plan B One-Step to be sold over-the-counter, including to girls under the age of 17.  Women 17 and over will now still need to go to the [...]

Filed under: family issues, health, medicine, politics, science, teens |

Hour 2 In the effort to give kids a leg up in life, parents bombard them with educational toys, rush them to chess, fencing, and piano lessons, and place them in preschool programs that stress academics in the earliest years. But is any of this stuff really good for kids and what does it do [...]

Filed under: author, culture, family issues, parenting, psychology, science |