With all its idiosyncrasies, some might argue it’s a wonder that the English language actually exists as a working language. But how did the language develop? We’ll spend this hour with bestselling author, linguist, and Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow, John McWhorter. His new book is “Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue: The Untold History of English” (Gotham, […]
Do you love your car but hate traffic, the expense of your vehicle and the environmental damage it does? According to Brian Ladd, this love-hate relationship is nothing new. We’ll talk with Ladd, author of “Autophobia: Love and Hate in the Automotive Age” (University of Chicago Press, 2008) this hour.
Many are familiar with poet Walt Whitman’s work as a nurse to the wounded soldiers of the Civil War. But did you know about the roles his brothers played? We’ll explore the Civil War through the lens of one family this hour with Robert Roper, author of “Now the Drum of War: Walt Whitman and […]
What role did the Indian Nations of the Southern Plains play in America’s 19th Century conflict with Mexico? We’ll talk this hour with University of Colorado historian Brian DeLay. His new book on the subject is “War of a Thousand Deserts: Indian Raids and the U.S.-Mexican War” (Yale, 2008).
What does “biologically normal” really mean and what can we learn from abnormalities? We’ll spend this hour with the University of Iowa’s Professor Mark S. Blumberg, author of the new book “Freaks of Nature: What Anomalies Tell Us about Development and Evolution” (Oxford 2008).
