Want a little romance in your life? A meal of monkey testicles should do the trick. That is, if you believe in their erotic powers. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, from aphrodisiacs to tattoos to sleep depravation, awaken your senses. Also why celibacy is the ultimate turn-on.

Novelist Isabel Allende has written a book about food and sex called "Aphrodite: A Memoir of the Senses." Allende tells Steve Paulson what she'd cook for an aphrodisiac dinner and that we should use all our senses to experience pleasure. Also, Thomas Moore tells Jim Fleming why he thinks it takes courage to live a sensual life. Moore is the author of "Care of the Soul" and "The Soul of Sex: Cultivating Life as an Act of Love."

Emily Jenkins is the author of "Tongue First: Adventures in Physical Culture." She tells Judith Strasser why she was impelled to experiment with tatoos, heroin, an isolation tank and more. Also, Benedictine priest Father Stephen Honeygosky tells Judith Strasser that while he is sworn to celibacy, he remains a sensual and sexual human being, maintaining a balance between restraint and release.

Mariana Caplan is a writer and former masseuse. She talks with Jim Fleming about the importance of touch, especially to infants. She says touch is a real physical need and that our society is increasingly touch-starved. Caplan's book is "Untouched: The Need for Genuine Affection in an Impersonal World."

Distribution dates:

• week of 08/02/98 - hour 3