Questions of Travel

What happens to us when we travel? How do we get beyond the brochure (and should we)? Poets, a professor of ecology, an observer of the Malaysian meat market, and a researcher who studies sense of place work toward answers and share stories of discovery on the road.

Host: Elizabeth Bradfield

Producers: Elizabeth Bradfield, Daniel Hirsch

Featuring: Joshua Rivkin, John Evans, Laura McKee, Peter Vitousek, Nicole Ardoin, Samantha Wai, Michelle Traub, Selena Simmons-Duffin, Daniel MacDougall

Music: Volunteer Pioneer, Johnny Hwin, Natalie Dawn, Eli Herwitz, The Reiterators, and Midawe

URLs: Peter M. Vitousek, Nicole Ardoin

Release Date: 5 February 2009

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Story 1: Where Men Dance Wildly

We hear from three Stegner Fellows in Poetry who have lived and taught abroad. They share poems written from afar, and wrestle with how to see a foreign world without making oneself its center.

Story 2: Who’s a Tourist?

Peter Vitousek talks about bringing Stanford Students to Hawaii, and makes a compelling argument that tourism, the cheesy stuff, isn’t so bad.
image via flickr

Story 3: What’s Normal Becomes Strange

Samantha Wei guides us into the chaos of malaysia’s Pasar Pagi, and then returns to California with new eyes.
image via flickr

Story 4: Priceless People

Nicole Ardoin shares stories from her research on sense of place, and from her work as an educator on the Galapagos and the Grand Canyon.
image via flickr


The Novel

November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), a prize-less, month-long contest in which thousands around the world attempt to write their novel in one month. Thirty days, fifty thousand words minimum, and no prize at the end (save for their own satisfaction). On this week’s show we follow of National Novel Writing Month and learn a little about the novel while we’re at it. A class of Stanford students tries to finish their novels without flunking out, a San Francisco write-a-thon filled with wannabe novelists, and the elusive 150 thousand word woman. Plus interviews with a professor, a PhD, and a book critic on the history of the novel.

Host: Charlie Mintz
Producers: Lee Konstantinou, Charlie Mintz, Killeen Hanson, Dan Hirsch, Jonah Willihnganz
Featured: Emily Rials, Bianca Ceralvo, Mark McGurl, Emma Ziker, Chris Baty, Noam Cohen
Music: Max Citron
URLs: Chris Baty

Release Date: 29 December 2008

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Story 1: NaNoWriMo at Stanford

This story (which, if you listen to the show, will come in pieces throughout the hour) tracks the progress of a class-load of Stanford students writing their novels. Thirty days. Fifty-thousand words. Go.

Producer: Charlie Mintz

Story 2: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Novelist

Novels have always been important, but did they ever suddenly become self-important? We interview and author about the history of this monumental form of entertainment. Here is a clue: Henry James.

Producer: Lee Konstantinou

Featured: Chris Baty

image via wikipedia

Story 3: 150,000 Word Woman

Our narrator takes us into the heart of a write-a-thon, held in conjunction with NaNoWriMo. We hear plots, themes and ideas synthesized from every genre in the literary world, alongside the motivations behind the authors who take on the challenge, and some who exceed expectation.

Producer: Charlie Mintz

image via wikipedia

Story 4: The Novel Lives

In an interview with literary critic and founder of NaNoWriMo, we delve deeper than deeper into the question of the hour: exactly how dead is the novel?

Producer: Charlie Mintz

Featuring: Chris Baty

image via wikipedia

Story 5: The Death of the Death of the Novel

We interview a Stanford graduate student about his work in the story of stories. Does it ever end? He thinks so.

Producer: Lee Konstantinou

Featured: Noam Cohen

image via wikipedia


Serious Fun

We all do the things we do for fun a little bit seriously. Basketball, belly dancing, or playing in a band — these all take practice and hard work to be really fun. But some people take fun more seriously than the rest of us. Some of them are just more competitive. Some of them want to expand the arena of fine art. And some of them want to re-enchant the world. This episode has stories about a historical re-enactment society that has helped professors make new discoveries about medieval warfare, video games that are becoming professional sports, and the tragic tale of a fan club so obsessed with a character from a book that they got rid of the author. And finally, Ken Kesey reads the children’s story that he took seriously enough to say, “This was my best piece of work ever.”

Host/Producer: Rachel Hamburg
Featured: Tony Ricciardi, Patrick Thill, Joshua Landy, Michael Saler, Ken Kesey, Arthur Maddox, Michael Lawrence
Music: Kevin Macleod, The Yeltsin Collective, Arthur Maddox, William McGlaughlin, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Release Date: 29 January 2009


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Story 1: Competitive Gaming

We explore the emerging world of competitive gaming, a not-so-distant reality where the gamers are superstars, on par with professional athletes for their prowess in the digital arena.

Producers: Tony Ricciardi and Patrick Thill
image via Wikipedia

 

Story 2: When Fiction is more Significant than Fact

Sherlock Holmes uses scientific reason to work through the mazes of mystical mystery. But he isn’t real. Right? For many of Arthur Conan Doyle’s readers, this truth isn’t so easy to accept.

Producer: Rachel Hamburg
Featuring: Michael Saler
image via Wikipedia

 

Story 3: Ken Kesey’s “Little Tricker The Squirrel Meets Big Double the Bear”

In a musically accompanied rendition of Ken Kesey’s self-acclaimed “best piece,” we find a seriously fun story of a crafty critter armed only with a good vantage point and a sly disposition.

Featuring: Ken Kesey, Arthur Maddox (composer/pianist), Steven Schuster (flute/clarinet/sax), and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center conducted by William McGlaughlin
Image via Wikipedia


Take It for Granite

When you live in a place, it’s hard not to take it for granted. But in California that’s almost impossible — the landscape is simply too striking to forget or ignore. Today’s show is about what happens when you attempt to really appreciate the place you call home. Two travelers spend five days retracing the historic and unmarked trail of the Buffalo Soldiers. Then a portrait of backcountry life in Yosemite. Finally, a poem about a wild tree with a universe inside it. And in this podcast, a supplemental interview between poet Peter Kline and Storytelling Poetry Editor, Elizabeth Bradfield.

Host: Bonnie Swift
Producers: Justine Lai, Killeen Hanson, Liz Bradfield, Bonnie Swift
Featuring: Shelton Johnson, Ward Eldridge, Peter Kline
Music: Noah Burbank, Mt. Eerie, The Microphones, Kate Wolf

Release Date: 27 November 2008

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Story 1: Defenders of a New Idea

Before the National Parks Service existed, the U.S. Army protected our first national parks. We trace the road that the Buffalo Soldiers once took from the Presidio of San Francisco to Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks. We don’t exactly find what we’re looking for, but the landscape reveals some unexpected clues.

Producers: Justine Lai and Bonnie Swift
Featuring: Shelton Johnson and Ward Eldridge

Story 2: The Yosemights

A student spends the summer in Yosemite National Park, far from her life at Stanford, and in that short time, discovers a new existence.

Producer: Killeen Hanson

Story 3: Manzanita

Peter Kline reads a poem about a Californian tree with a universe inside it. This tree has few practical uses.

Bonus Story: Interview with Peter Kline

Storytelling Poetry Editor, Liz Bradfield, interviews Peter Kline, Stegner Fellow at Stanford. He reads “The Almond Orchard,” and they discuss, among other things, the idea of West.


Impostor

It’s natural to want to be someone you’re not. So why demonize the impostor? Today we have three stories of people who tried to pass themselves off as someone they weren’t. First, a story about a degenerating mobster turned private investigator, with some very unorthodox ways of getting the job done. Then a story about a scientist who invented his data and got busted. Finally, a memoir about one woman’s longing to have curly hair. Each one recalls an oh-so-typical journey of self-deception: after attempting to recreate themselves from the outside-in, they deal with the consequences.

Host: Charlie Mintz
Producers: Charlie Mintz and Matt Larson
Featured: Lawrence Klein, Tommy Wallach and Maria Hummel
Music: Pascalle, George Pritzker and Andy Seymour

Release Date: 13 November 2008

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Intro Story: Poser

Failed attempts to be someone else can leave us stranded in the domain of the imposter. Fakes, frauds, phonies… what are they but attempts at change gone bad?

image via flickr

Story 1: The Case of the Degenerating Detective

Tommy Wallach spends a summer with the most unlikely Private Eye, whose approach to inquiry is more about making the facts than finding them. Is it possible that some lies are better than truth?

Author: Tommy Wallach

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Story 2: Scientist vs. Scientist

In pursuit of acclaim, and under pressure, even the brightest can succumb to the follies of pride. Matt Larson depicts a face-off between two scientists: one who can resist the temptation to cheat, and one who cannot.

image via Wikipedia

Story 3: Waves

Maria Hummel inherited her mother’s straight hair, and along with it she inherited her mother’s disdain for straight hair. As she prepares to give birth to a child of her own, Hummel reflects on her lifelong envy of curls.

image via Wikipedia


Smallitics

A Mississippi county fair, the real deal on Sarah Palin, high school elections, campaign calls to grandparents, and what happens when one same-sex couple finds their fate tied to the opinions of an entire state. In this show we look at the small side of big politics, “smallitics,” or how the national stage is truly made up small actors with big roles.

Host: Dan Hirsh
Producers: Jonah Willihnganz, Clare Bennett, Charlie Mintz, Micah Cratty, Lee Konstantinou, and Dan Hirsch
Featured: Bridget Whearty, Ronnie Musgrove, Jenna Reback, Allison Fink
Music: Nimbleweed

Release Date: 29 September 2008

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Intro Story: Joe the Plumber

All politics are local politics. In 2008, this has never been more true.

Story 1: Mississippi on My Mind

The Neshoba County Fair is one of the lesser-known and most important stops in the national political campaign tour. Saturated with southern cooking and carnival colors, this is a story of big politics with a local, southern twist.
Producer: Dan Hirsch
image via Wikipedia

Story 2: Yukon Home

Determination and independence are ingrained in the individuals and communities that call Alaska home. This year mainland politics have invaded their frontier. A Stanford student gives us an Alaskan’s take on Sarah Palin.
Producer: Clare Bennett
image via Wikipedia

Story 3: Capturing the Friedmans’ Vote

Itʼs harder than you think to discuss politics with Grandma. A group of Jewish students at Stanford pick up their phones, call their ‘Bubbies’ and get more than they bargained for.
Producer: Charlie Mintz
image via Wikipedia

Story 4: Perfect Record

In high school, failure is typically met with more failure. This student’s political struggle shows us how it takes more than gimmicks and gall to win an election.
Producer: Micah Cratty
image via flickr

Story 5: Those Women

Following a surprising decision by the California Supreme Court, one couple decides to put their reservations aside and use the ‘M’ word. At the time, they had no idea that this very personal decision could turn into a discussion for an entire state.
Producer: Lee Konstantinou
Featuring: Bridget Whearty
image via flickr


Epiphony

This week, we have three stories about the life-changing, transformative power of sound. First, we look at brain activity during moments of silence in music. Then, a student investigates the healing powers of traditional Cambodian chants. Finally, a class of Stanford students led by John-Carlos Perea find a new community while learning the art of the powwow drum.

Host: Hannah Krakauer
Producers: Angela Castellanos, Bonnie Swift, Hannah Krakauer 
Featured: Trent Walker, Vinod Menon, Daniel Levitin, Jonathan Berger, Chris Chafe, Gabe Turow, Pat Moffitt Cook, Sherwood Chen, John Carlos-Perea, Michaela Raikes, Ben Burdick, Luke Taylor, Jidenna Mobbison 
Music: Chloe Krakauer

Release Date: 26 May 2008

 

 

Story 1: Silence Speaks Volumes

We take a look at how our brains are able to process the huge number of sounds we hear every day. Turns out that if noises are interspersed with a few moments of silence, we may be much better off.

Producer: Angela Castellanos

 

Story 2: Healing Sounds

 

After a long, stressful day, listening to music can make us feel more relaxed. But there’s a traditional form of Cambodian chanting, called Smote, that claims to be able to do much more than relax us. A Stanford student recounts his experiences with the music, and how his skepticism about its healing power changed.
Producer: Trent Walker

 

 

Story 3: People Find the Drum Who Need the Drum

John-Carlos Perea came to Stanford for 10 weeks to teach Stanford students the art of Native American pow-wow music. They learned how the music has served as a bond within the Native American community, and created a new community of their own.

Producers: Bonnie Swift and Hannah Krakauer
Featuring: John-Carlos Perea, Michaela Raikes, Ben Burdick, Luke Taylor and Jidenna Mobbison


Science and the Supernatural

Where does the physical end and the metaphysical begin? This week’s show is about scientists who use traditional methods to investigate untraditional questions. We start in Special Collections of the Stanford Libraries, with a brief history of para-psychology and spiritualism at Stanford, and continue with the story of three contemporary researchers who study psychic phenomena. Today’s one-hour journey reveals some of the social aspects that come into play in the pursuit of scientific knowledge.

Host: Bonnie Swift
Producer: Bonnie Swift
Featured: Margaret Kimball, Robert Jahn, Brenda Dunne, Helen Longino and Dean Radin
Music: Noah Burbank, Ambika, Jimi Hendrix, Thelonius Monk, and Frank Zappa and the Mothers

Release Date: 5 May 2008

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Story 1: Seeds, Rocks, Ink Blocks

In the early 1900s Stanford had a special fellowship dedicated to ‘psychical’ research. Money was donated by Leland Stanford’s younger brother, Thomas Welton. Besides money, Welton also sent his collection of ceremonious objects, mysterious items purported to have appeared, or been altered during seances.

Featuring: Margaret Kimball

Story 2: They Proved It?

The Thomas Weltons of the world have largely disappeared. At least from the academy… But not entirely. At the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratories, or PEAR, decades of research, and thousands of experiments may have demonstrated evidence for the existence of psychic phenomena.

Featuring: Robert Jahn and Brenda Dunne

Story 3: The Guards at the Gates

After PEAR decided it had found evidence of psychic phenomena, researchers needed to generate a theory for how the mind could influence the physical world. To do that they probed the nooks of physics, quantum mechanics and neuroscience. What happens when a body of evidence doesn’t fit within a dominant framework? How are theories made?

Featuring: Helen Longino and Robert Jahn

Story 4: Vibration Isolation

A visit with Dean Radin at his current headquarters at the Institute of Noetic Sciences in Petaluma, California. Also, a discussion about the nature of scientific fraud, and what is consciousness?

Featuring: Helen Longino and Dean Radin

Story 5: At the Margins

As Shakespeare wrote, “There are more things under heaven and earth, then are dreamt of in your philosophies.” It’s a fitting quote for our last story, a consideration of what science can and can’t answer. Institutions like PEAR expand our notion of what is science and what questions science should be asking.

Featuring: Helen Longino, Robert Jahn and Dean Radin


Telling Other People’s Stories

What’s at stake when we try to tell another person’s story? We explore this question in two parts. First, a class at Stanford works to tell a real woman’s tragic life story in graphic novel form, discovering huge challenges collaborating as a group and getting the story right. Second, Emily Prince takes on the overwhelming and somber task of drawing a portrait of every American soldier who has died in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Host: Micah Cratty
Producers: Dan Hirsch, Hannah Krakauer
Featured: Emily Prince, Tom Kealey, Adam Johnson, Eric Pape, The Stanford Graphic Novel Project
Music: Dengue Fever, Cambodian Cassette Tapes vol.1, Brother
URLs: Emily Prince, Shake Girl

Release Date: 12 May 2008

Story 1: Doing Justice for Shake Girl

A class at Stanford has 10 weeks to tell a real woman’s tragic life story in graphic novel form. They discover the huge challenges of collaborating as a group and getting the story right.

Producers: Dan Hirsch, Lee Konstantinou
Featuring: Tom Kealey, Adam Johnson, The Stanford Graphic Novel Class.
URL: Shake Girl

Story 2: A Portrait of War

Emily Prince is an artist who took on an enormous and somber task: drawing portraits of every American soldier who died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Producer Hannah Krakauer visited Emily to learn why she decided to do this, and what she learned in the process.

Producer: Hannah Krakauer
Featuring: Emily Prince