WNYC - Radio Lab

There is a show on the radio that I never miss. Of course, saying "on the radio" doesn't mean what it used to. In fact, I guess I should say I almost always miss this show on the radio, but thanks to the magic of the podcast I can always hear it (and listen to it again...and again).

One of my new favorite shows is called
Radio Lab. It's from WNYC in New York. It is kind of difficult to describe the show, so I'll just use the summary from prx.org.

"Radio Lab is an investigation. Each episode is a patchwork of people, sounds, stories and experiences centered around One Big Idea. On Radio Lab, science bumps into culture...information sounds like music."

or, from their website

"Radio Lab is designed for listeners who demand skepticism but appreciate wonder, who are curious about the world but who also want to be moved and surprised."

Check it out. The way the show is edited together can be sonically overwhelming or off-putting to some at first. Give it a chance. I think that it's (usually) quite brilliant.

Subscribe to the podcast over at itunes. It's free! The latest episode is about music. It is fascinating stuff.

Note: If you have a music degree or two, you may a few small quibbles with terminology and historical facts in the music episode. Don't let it bother you. The information about perfect pitch is really interesting and there's a computer that writes some pretty good Bach (although I'm less convinced by it's Chopin).


Radio Lab