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Lynn CoxGone Swimming
Neurologist Oliver Sacks shares his latest book, Vintage Sacks. Then Lynne Cox, one of the world’s best long-distance swimmers, is here to explain why she’s chosen to swim around the shark-infested Cape of Good Hope and across the Bering Strait from Alaska to the Soviet Union. She’s also swum in Antarctic waters, across the English Channel, and through the sewage-infested Nile. Plus, another neurologist, Alice Flaherty, talks about the physiology of the writing impulse. And a discussion with Dr. Katherine McCaffrey on what’s been going on lately in Vieques.
Oliver Sacks
Physician, neurologist, and writer Oliver Sacks previous books include Awakenings, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, and Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood.
Visit Oliver Sacks’ website
Music: Awakenings Soundtrack composer Randy Newman
Lynne Cox
Lynne Cox is the author of Swimming to Antarctica: Tales of a Long-Distance Swimmer. By age 16, she had broken
both the men’s and women’s records for swimming across the English Channel.
Music: Oscar and Lucinda Soundtrack composer Thomas Newman
Alice Flaherty
Alice Flaherty looks into the physiological bases for hypergraphia - the overwhelming desire to write. Her book
is The Midnight Disease: The Drive to Write, Writer's Block, and the Creative Brain.
Music: Carrington Soundtrack composer Michael Nyman
Katherine McCaffrey
Katherine McCaffrey has been tracking societal changes in Vieques, Puerto Rico since the U.S. Navy left Vieques in May 2003.
Music: A Civil Action Soundtrack composer Danny Elfman
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Tributes: Jeanne-Claude
The Leonard Lopate Show
Jeanne-Claude created environmental works of art with her husband and fellow-conspirator/collaborator Christo. Together, they wrapped the Reichstag in Berlin, the Pont-Neuf in Paris, and created The Gates, with billowy orange drapes, in Central Park. Jeanne-Claude just died at the age of 74. You can hear Leonard Lopate’s last interview with them both, from July 19, 1999.
Video Pick: David Chang on Momofuku
The Leonard Lopate Show
Recent Videos:
- Arthur Schwartz on The Southern Italian Table
- David Plouffe on The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory
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- Gail Collins on When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of Women from 1960 to the Present
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Let’s Go Swimming!
The Leonard Lopate Show
According to the Centers for Disease Control, bacterial, viral, and parasitic organisms found in recreational water in the United States sicken thousands of people every year, and even result in deaths. We’ll speak with chemist and industrial hygienist Monona Rossol about the protozoa, amoebas and other things that love to go swimming with us. Monona is also founder and President of Arts, Crafts and Theater Safety.
- Comments [33]
Frank McCourt
The Leonard Lopate Show
Frank McCourt has been a guest many times on this show over the years, starting in 1996 for the memoir, Angela’s Ashes, that would earn him a Pulitzer Prize. Fame came to him late in life, after he’d retired at the age of 65 from teaching English and creative writing at public schools here in New York. He was a sweet, eloquent man who spoke with grace and humility; he just died at the age of 78 after a battle with cancer. You can hear him speaking with Leonard Lopate for his Survival Kit in 2000, and in 2005, for his memoir, Teacher Man.
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Science and Faith
The Leonard Lopate Show
Earlier this week, Pres. Obama announced that he plans to nominate geneticist Dr. Francis Collins to lead the National Institutes of Health. You can listen to Leonard’s 2006 conversation with Dr. Collins about how he reconciles his personal faith with his professional scientific knowledge.
FDA to Regulate Tobacco?
The Leonard Lopate Show
May 14, 2009
Congress is getting ready to a vote on whether to make tobacco subject to FDA regulation. You can listen to a segment we did in May about the bill and what it would mean for the cigarette companies.
- Comments [9]
Our 3-ingredient Challenge wins a James Beard Award
The Leonard Lopate Show
On May 3, the Lopate Show won its third James Beard Award for our 3-ingredient challenge. In August, we asked our listeners to call in and name 3 ingredients and then challenged New York chef and 3-ingredient expert Rozanne Gold to whip up a recipe! You can listen to the 3-ingredient challenge and get some inspiration for simple, delicious, and unexpected dishes.
Leonard is on Facebook
Now Leonard is on Facebook! We’re posting photos, status updates, links to notable interviews, and lots more. Check it out.
Barack Obama, Circa 2004
The Leonard Lopate Show
Listen to President-Elect Barack Obama on the Leonard Lopate Show in November 2004. He had recently won a seat in the U.S. Senate, and only a few months before, his rousing speech during the 2004 Democratic National Convention catapulted him into the national spotlight.
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