TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE
from Wisconsin Public Radio
October 27, 1996 Programs
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1100 - 1159 Hour #1 Inner Cities
1200 - 1259 Hour #2 Sleep
1300 - 1359 Hour #3 Magic and Belief
PROGRAM RUNDOWN Hour 1:Inner Cities
SEGMENT 1:
Eminent sociologist William Julius Wilson tells Steve
Paulson that the root problem in America's inner cities
is chronic joblessness which contributes to or creates
all the other social ills. He advocates WPA-type
programs as a temporary solution. Wilson teaches at
Harvard and is the author of "When Work Disappears: The
World of the New Urban Poor."
SEGMENT 2:
Reporter Leon Dash won a Pulitzer Prize for his
Washington Post articles about a drug and welfare
dependent woman. He's expanded her story into a book:
"Rosa Lee: A Mother and Her Family in Urban America."
Dash tells Jim Fleming that Rosa Lee regarded
prostitution, drug trafficking, and shoplifting as simple
survival skills which are now manifest in a fourth
generation of her family.
SEGMENT 3:
Geoffrey Canada grew up in the South Bronx. It was poor
and violent then -- it's much worse now. Canada tells
Steve Paulson about the codes of behavior he learned as a
child, and how he works with young people today to teach
them alternatives. Canada is president of the Rheedlen
Centers for Children and Families in Harlem, and the
author of "Fist Stick Knife Gun."
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
10-27-A.
PROGRAM RUNDOWN Hour 2:Sleep
SEGMENT 1:
Sleep deprivation can kill you! So says Stanley Coren,
neuropsychologist at the University of British Columbia,
in this conversation with Judith Strasser. Coren says
we're seriously sleep-deprived and should shut off
Letterman and go to bed! Coren is the author of "The
Intelligence of Dogs," and "Sleep Thieves: An Eye-Opening
Exploration into the Science and Mysteries of Sleep."
SEGMENT 2:
Stanford University researcher Joel Benington talks with
Jim Fleming about his (and colleague Craig Heller's)
theory about why we sleep. He thinks it's so the body
can feed the brain. Also, some sleep disorders can kill.
Neurologist Mark Mahowald of the Minnesota Regional Sleep
Disorders Center at Hennipin County Medical Center in
Minneapolis, tells Steve Paulson about some spectacular
cases of sleep-related violence and how little we
understand them.
SEGMENT 3:
Jungian analyst Robert Bosnak takes dreams seriously, but
he tells Steve Paulson that it was an aboriginal dream
doctor who taught him that dreams are real. Bosnak is
the author of "tracks in the Wilderness of Dreaming."
Also, poet, novelist and literary critic A. Alvarez tells
Jim Fleming that he was terrified of the dark as a child.
Now he's fascinated by the culture of night, which he
documents in his book "Night."
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
3-24-B.
PROGRAM RUNDOWN: HOUR 3: Magic and Belief
SEGMENT 1
Cultural critic Harold Bloom tells Judith Strasser that
angels are traditionally terrifying beings; today's
benign guardians are actually a debasement of an ancient
spiritual tradition. Bloom teaches Humanities and
English at Yale and New York University. His most recent
book is "Omens of Millenium: The Gnosis of Angels, Dreams
and Resurrection."
SEGMENT 2:
Anthony Aveni teaches astronomy and anthropology at
Colgate. He tells Steve Paulson that magical systems of
belief like astrology and alchemy were the common sense
science of their day. Aveni is the author of "Behind the
Crystal Ball: Magic, Science and the Occult from
Antiquity through the New Age." Also, Jonathan Cott tells
Jim Fleming that superstitions surrounding the number
thirteen go back to pre-Christian times. Cott is the
author of "Thirteen: A Journey into the Number."
SEGMENT 3:
Starhawk is a San Francisco based Wiccan (or witch.) She
tells Steve Paulson that Wiccan traditions have ancient
roots; that her rituals have a lot in common with those
of other religions; and that Wiccans are devoted to good.
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
10-27-C.
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Last modified: Friday October 25, 1996