Talk of the Nation

Monday- Friday, 1:00- 3:00pm
Neal Conan

Monday through Thursday, host Neal Conan invites callers to discuss areas of topical interest, including politics and public service, education, religion, music, and healthcare. Talk of the Nation goes behind the headlines with decision-makers, authors, thinkers, artists, and listeners around the world, who become part of the conversation by calling 1-800-989-TALK.

Each Friday, journalist Ira Flatow is joined by listeners and studio guests to explore science-related topics -- from subatomic particles and the human genome to the Internet and earthquakes. Flatow offers in-depth discussion with scientists and others from all walks of life, giving listeners the chance to hear from the people whose work influences their daily lives.

Genre: 
Composer ID: 
5187f364e1c8ae55ab3b89e9|5187f359e1c8ae55ab3b89d9

Pages

NPR Story
9:21 am
Fri April 26, 2013

The Bird That Struts Its Stuff

Transcript

IRA FLATOW, HOST:

Up next, it's our Video Pick of The Week. And here with me, as always, is our managing editor and correspondent for video, Flora Litchman. Hi, Flora.

FLORA LITCHMAN, BYLINE: Hi, Ira.

FLATOW: You went on a...

(APPLAUSE)

FLATOW: You went on a local expedition for us.

LITCHMAN: I love Salt Lake City.

FLATOW: Yeah.

LITCHMAN: I just want to...

FLATOW: They love you, it sounds like. Tell us about your expedition.

Read more
Economy
1:25 pm
Thu April 25, 2013

Signing Up For Food Stamps: The Choice And The Stigma

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Another promising report today suggests that the economy in general and employment in particular continue to improve, but there's another statistic that's more troubling. More Americans than ever participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps.

Read more
Digital Life
1:10 pm
Thu April 25, 2013

Tweeting Crime: Law Enforcement Adapts To Social Media

Originally published on Thu April 25, 2013 1:57 pm

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. Last Friday evening the Boston Police Department tweeted the news that the city and the nation had been waiting for. Captured. The hunt is over. The search is done. The terror is over and justice has won. Suspect in custody.

Read more
Arts & Life
1:06 pm
Thu April 25, 2013

Steadicam Inventor Joins Inventors Hall of Fame

Originally published on Tue April 30, 2013 10:32 am

Rocky Balboa's sprint up the stairs of the Philadelphia Art Museum in Rocky is a scene that would have once been impossible to film. Camera innovator Garrett Brown made it possible when he invented the Steadicam, a body-mounted camera that stabilizes handheld shots.

Brown has received three Academy Awards for his technical inventions and holds 50 patents for cinematography devices. The college dropout-turned-inventor will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in May.

Read more
Global Health
1:34 pm
Wed April 24, 2013

Deadly Strain Of Bird Flu Is 'Most Lethal' Flu Virus Yet

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

Read more
Around the Nation
1:29 pm
Wed April 24, 2013

Surviving Tragedy: The Various Paths Beyond

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. While funerals and memorial services continue for those killed by bombers in Boston and a fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, we want to talk today with survivors of traumatic events like those, from car accidents to hurricanes, and ask how you deal with the range of emotions and the range of questions - maybe newfound appreciation for life or survivor's guilt, maybe even blame.

Read more
Politics
1:13 pm
Wed April 24, 2013

When Conscience Conflicts With Constituents

Transcript

NEAL CONAN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan in Washington. Sanford trails in South Carolina, the Democrats get it on in Massachusetts, and the lady from Maine scoffs at sequestration. It's Wednesday and time for a...

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS: Manufactured crisis...

CONAN: Edition of the political junkie.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDINGS)

PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN: There you go again.

VICE PRESIDENT WALTER MONDALE: When I hear your new ideas, I'm reminded of that ad: Where's the beef?

Read more
Education
1:25 pm
Tue April 23, 2013

Making The Most Of MOOCs: The Ins And Outs Of E-Learning

Originally published on Tue April 23, 2013 3:30 pm

Transcript

JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden.

Read more
Around the Nation
1:16 pm
Tue April 23, 2013

Volunteer Firefighters: Facing The Flames And The Mundane

Originally published on Tue April 23, 2013 3:30 pm

Transcript

JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. When the West Fertilizer Company in West, Texas, exploded last week, many of the first responders on the scene were volunteer firefighters, and they make up most of the 14 known victims so far.

Read more
Middle East
1:02 pm
Tue April 23, 2013

How Chemical Weapons Could Change Strategy For Syria

Originally published on Sun April 28, 2013 8:51 am

Transcript

JENNIFER LUDDEN, HOST:

This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Jennifer Ludden in Washington. Neal Conan is away. Accusations that the Syrian government has repeatedly used chemical weapons against its own people are piling up. First were British and French officials who say they have credible evidence. Today, an Israeli military official joined the chorus.

The U.S. says it's evaluating the allegations. The stakes are high. Last year the Obama administration said the use of chemical weapons would be a game-changer that could provoke a stronger U.S. response.

Read more

Pages

Podcasts

  • Friday, May 17, 2013 12:00pm
    Generations of physicists have claimed that time is an illusion. But not all agree. In his book Time Reborn: From the Crisis in Physics to the Future of the Universe, theoretical physicist Lee Smolin argues that time exists--and he says time is key to understanding the evolution of the universe.
  • Friday, May 17, 2013 12:00pm
    Scientists reported this week in the journal Cell that they had used somatic cell nuclear transfer techniques to create a source of embryonic stem cells from the skin cells of a patient. George Daley, director of the stem cell transplantation program at Boston Children's Hospital, and Josephine Johnston of the Hastings Center discuss the research.
  • Friday, May 17, 2013 12:00pm
    A report from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization says insects offer a huge potential for improving the world's food security. Peter Menzel, co-author of Man Eating Bugs, describes some insect-based cuisine and the western aversion to creepy-crawly snacks.
  • Friday, May 17, 2013 12:00pm
    Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman is the latest subject in our Desktop Diaries series, although he has no desk. Kahneman, professor emeritus at Princeton University, won the Nobel Prize in economic sciences in 2002 for his research with the late Amos Tversky on our sometimes irrational intuitions and how they affect decision-making.
  • Friday, May 17, 2013 12:00pm
    In Brilliant Blunders: From Darwin to Einstein, astrophysicist Mario Livio explores the colossal errors committed by scientific greats, from chemist Linus Pauling's botched model of DNA, to Charles Darwin's failure to understand genetics--the very mechanism of natural selection.