WNYC New York Public Radio

Orchid Hypothesis (The Brian Lehrer Show: Monday, 23 November 2009)

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:00 GMT

People get passionate about their handheld devices. WNYC staffers Jim Colgan, a producer for The Takeaway, and Mark Phillips, a producer with On the Media, debate the virtues of their machines. Atlantic Magazine contributor David Dobbs talks about the orchid hypothesis and why genetic vulnerabilities might actually be genetic benefits with the right kind of nurturing. Plus a call-in for everyone making the Hajj.

Coming Out Swinging (The Leonard Lopate Show: Monday, 23 November 2009)

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:00 GMT

On today’s show, New Yorker staff writer Michael Specter explains why so many Americans have come to mistrust science and major institutions. Then, biographer Wil Haygood describes the life of the great boxer Sugar Ray Robinson. And Thomas Keller the chef/owner of Per Se and The French Laundry, talks about his latest cookbook Ad Hoc at Home. Plus, Frontline correspondent Lowell Bergman discusses his new documentary "The Card Game," about the future of the consumer loan industry.

Requiem for the Mixtape (Soundcheck: Monday, 23 November 2009)

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:00 GMT

For a generation of Americans, nothing said love like a mixtape. But after iPods and file-sharing conquered the cassette, seduction was never quite the same. Today: an art form that combined DJ skills, amorous intentions -- and good penmanship. Plus: Haydn might be history's most underrated composer. We revisit his legacy with The Haydn Trio Eisenstadt and author Fred Plotkin.

Adventures in London and the Wild West (Selected Shorts: Sunday, 22 November 2009)

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:00 GMT

“North by Northwest isn’t a film about what happens to Cary Grant, it’s about what happens to his suit. The suit has the adventures, a gorgeous New York suite threading its way through America.”—Todd McEwen, “Cary Grant’s Suit.”
An émigré wanders through London, looking for home, and Cary Grant’s suit travels America, pursued by villains, in “North by Northwest.”

The Wingdale Community Singers Return (Spinning On Air: Sunday, 22 November 2009)

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:00 GMT

A community of Brooklyn-based songwriters, The Wingdale Community Singers continues the old folk tradition of keenly observed songs about the worlds around us and within us. Comprised of novelist Rick Moody, visual artist Nina Katchadourian, and composers Hannah Marcus and David Grubbs, the band, along with bassist Elyssa Linowes, returns to Spinning On Air to sing songs from their new album "Spirit Duplicator," and talk with host David Garland.

View photos of the session

The Wingdale Community Singers on Spinning On Air in 2005

MySpace

the album Spirit Duplicator