Welcome to Podcast Friday!, a weekly compilation of some of the more interesting podcasts from around the web, listed right here for your listening pleasure!
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All Songs Considered from NPR
This Week’s Essential Listening: Jens Lekman, Amanda Palmer and More (Wednesday, August 15, 2012) — On this week’s show, hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton share some of their favorite new discoveries, including the Kate Bush-inspired Swedish duo Niki And The Dove, German experimental pianist Nils Frahm, the inimitable storytelling of Swedish pop singer Jens Lekman, and a surprising new album from singer Amanda Palmer.
Book Reviews from The New York Times
Book Review Podcast (Friday, August 17, 2012) — This week, Martin Amis discusses his new novel, Lionel Asbo; Julie Bosman has notes from the field; Deborah Solomon talks about the artist David Hockney; and Parul Sehgal has best-seller news. Sam Tanenhaus is the host.
Books Podcast from NPR
NPR Books Podcast (Thursday, August 16, 2012) — This week’s stories: 1) A Rainbow Of Happy Endings In Ethnic Romances 2) Sleuthing Through The Shadows In Sunny Honolulu 3) In The ‘Shadow’ Of Death, Stories Survive 4) Batman’s Biggest Secret (No, It’s Not Bruce Wayne) 5) ‘Age Of Desire’: How Wharton Lost Her ‘Innocence’
Brain Stuff from HowStuffWorks.com
How do self-cleaning ovens work? (Friday, August 17, 2012) — What does it take for an oven to clean itself? A whole lot of heat! Marshall Brain explains how these special ovens use intense temperatures to burn off baking spills and debris in this episode.
Why does hydrogen peroxide foam when you put it on a cut? (Wednesday, August 15, 2012) — Hydrogen peroxide’s foaming action is due to the catalase in blood and cells. Check out this HowStuffWorks podcast to learn how hydrogen peroxide interacts with catalase.
How big is the universe? (Monday, August 13, 2012) — If all the matter in the universe was pushed into one corner, how much space would it take up? Listen in as Marshall Brain explores the size of the universe in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.
The Coolest Stuff on the Planet
Cumberland Island, Georgia (Friday, August 17, 2012) — Cumberland Island is about the size of Manhattan but has hardly any residents. How did it manage to retain its natural beauty? How did the wild horses get there? What is its connection to the family of Thomas Carnegie and to John F. Kennedy, Jr.?
Culturetopia from NPR
Manifestations Of Grief And Extra Book Material (Friday, August 17, 2012) — This week on Pop Culture Happy Hour, NPR Monkey See’s Linda Holmes, Trey Graham, Glen Weldon and guest Barrie Hardymon talk about the evolution of public grief. From the newspaper obit to the tweet, how have remembrances changed? We also delve into the extra materials that are included in books that we either like or don’t like: epigraphs, acknowledgments, maps and more! All that, plus What’s Making Us Happy this week.
Film Junk
Episode 381: The Bourne Legacy (Tuesday, August 14, 2012) — We pop some chems while watching The Bourne Legacy and revisit the previous Bourne films, plus we also discuss the Ben Affleck / Justice League rumours, Grosse Pointe Blank, Three Days of the Condor, Singles, Godzilla and The Day After Tomorrow.
PopStuff from HowStuffWorks.com
Robots in Pop Culture (Wednesday, August 15, 2012) — From Rosie to Bender and far beyond, robots have been a part of the media we consume for decades. Tracy and Holly talk about R2D2, Wall-E, Terminators and a host of other mechanical pals, trying to figure out why we love them so.
How to Build a Critically Acclaimed TV Drama (Monday, August 13, 2012) — What does it take to make good television? Critical darlings on TV often share a lot of traits. Is it as easy as using Tracy’s three G’s: grim, gritty and gratuitous?
Science Talk from Scientific American
What’s Next for Curiosity on Mars (Tuesday, August 07, 2012) — Scientific American contributor David Appell talks with Mars Science Lab Project leader John Grotzinger, professor of geology at Caltech, about the plans for the rover on the Martian surface.
Curiosity Lands on Mars (Monday, August 06, 2012) — Less than an hour after NASA received confirmation that the Curiosity rover was safely on the Martian surface, some principal members of the mission briefed the press. This is an edited presentation of that briefing, which started at about 11:20 P.M. Pacific time on August 5.
Sound Opinions
Sound Opinions on 1977: The Year Punk Broke (Sunday, August 12, 2012) — In part one of our series “1977: The Year Punk Broke”, Jim and Greg explore the punk explosion in the U.K. with music writer Jon Savage. Later in the show, they review Researching the Blues, the new album from California rockers Redd Kross.
Stuff To Blow Your Mind from HowStuffWorks.com
The Amazing Minds of Infants (Thursday, August 16, 2012) — What goes on inside the minds of babes? Quite a lot, as it turns out. In this episode, Julie and Robert peer inside the infant brain to learn about their enhanced state of consciousness. Plus find out what baby brains have to do with alien abductions.
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Robot (Tuesday, August 14, 2012) — When it comes making art, most of us operate under a set of rules. So what happens when you feed machines code for churning out art? Plenty, as it turns out. And if creativity is the seat of the soul, what does that say about our uniqueness?
Stuff You Missed in History Class from HowStuffWorks.com
Lizzie Borden and her Axe (Update) (Wednesday, August 15, 2012) — In 1892, a Massachusetts couple was brutally murdered; the only serious suspect was their daughter, Lizzie Borden. Borden was acquitted, but people have speculated about the crime ever since. Tune in to learn how new evidence might shed light on her case.
The Bloody Benders (Monday, August 13, 2012) — The Bender clan settled in Kansas in 1870, building a combined store and inn. They weren’t popular. Only the comely Kate Bender drew admirers. When people began disappearing, the Benders weren’t suspects ‑‑ until a doctor vanished after visiting the inn.
Stuff You Should Know from HowStuffWorks.com
Did Reagan’s Star Wars program win the Cold War? (Thursday, August 16, 2012) — Putting lasers in space to blast Soviet missiles out of the air was a real part of Ronald Reagan’s defense policy. While his “Star Wars” program was derided at home and abroad, historians are beginning to wonder if it didn’t help win the Cold War.
The Shark Diaries (Tuesday, August 14, 2012) — In this special episode of Stuff You Should Know, Chuck and Josh tip their hats to Shark Week with an old-fashioned radio play. Join the guys (and a few guests) as they present a dramatization of the 1916 Jersey Shore shark attacks.
WNYC’s Radiolab
Shorts: Argentine Invasion (Monday, July 30, 2012) — From a suburban sidewalk in southern California, Jad and Robert witness the carnage of a gruesome turf war. Though the tiny warriors doing battle clock in at just a fraction of an inch, they have evolved a surprising, successful, and rather unsettling strategy of ironclad loyalty, absolute intolerance, and brutal violence.