Public Radio Redux

The year was 1991. The Soviet Union was on the verge of collapse, neon sunglasses were all the rage, and some scientists in Arizona thought it would be a great idea to lock eight researchers in a giant biosphere for two years. This closed ecosystem was supposed to be a test run for future space colonies. Just one problem: there wasn't enough food... or oxygen.

B-Side's Rene Gutel caught up with two of these "biospherians" to find out what happened when a handful of scientists spent two long years trying to complete a series of experiments - all while battling oxygen deprivation. Sure, team building exercises fell by the wayside once they couldn't breathe, but was anything accomplished? More than a decade later, eve the scientists themselves aren't sure.

(photo by: Ryan Thomas)

When Tarak McLain was six years old, his kindergarten group celebrated their 100th day of class by bringing 100 items to share. What Tarak brought was, he admits, a bit different from his classmates. Instead of things, he came with a list of 100 beliefs. From "love is everywhere" to "we are all equal" to "I should not whine," Tarak shares 30 of them with Jay Allison in his essay for "This I Believe."

Have a listen to Tarak and let what he says soak in. It's easy to feel cynical and skeptical, living in the world that we do. But Tarak exemplifies the hope I think most of us feel at the end of one historic and uplifting week.

Photo credit: flickr member alykat

Hand a kid a microphone and you never know what you'll hear. Generation PRX's Jones Franzel has put together a list of the best youth radio pieces of 2008. Some are heartbreaking, others are simply cute, but every story in this playlist shines a light on the challenges and triumphs of an emerging generation.

My personal favorites include:

- Jordan Teklay's reflections on becoming legally emancipated at age 15. Thoughtful, funny, and utterly compelling with an outstanding audio mix by the Radio Rookies team.

- Day-in-the-life of Wisconsin's youngest super delegate, reported by 13 and 18 year old Y-Press journalists. Strong writing, interesting interviews, and the young reporter's comfort and poise behind the mic make this piece shine.

Check out the list and weigh in on your favorite youth radio pieces of '08.

(photo by sugar pond)

Everybody knows a wine connoisseur and a cheese snob or two, but have you ever met a serious coffee aficionado? High end coffee shops are encouraging patrons to develop more sophisticated coffee palates through in-store "cupping" events. New Hampshire Public Radio's Word of Mouth lets us Folgers drinkers in on the trend by interviewing Seattle Weekly food editor Jonathan Kauffman and barista Ian McCarthy who recently returned from the Mountain Regional Barista Competition in Denver.

After some good natured back-and-forth over just how subtle these flavors really are, independent producer Dale Short holds his microphone up to his new cappuccino machine to show us what perfect froth really sounds like - delicious.

(photo by JcOlivera)

Cold, gray January days require their own kind of music - simple and haunting with a distinct sense of yearning. Music that tells us to stop, sit down with a cup of tea, and dream of warmer weather. Bon Iver kept us company through the last year's long, cold winter and Peasant's new album On The Ground is in the running for this year's melancholy album of the season.

Peasant (aka Damien DeRose)'s WOXY Lounge Act has a bit too much insider label/promotion talk and not enough music for my taste, but later in the conversation Damien raises some interesting questions about how much control a musician truly has over his or her image. So don't call Peasant a "blossoming troubadour." Just appreciate him for a "guy with a guitar" who will sit by your side as the snow falls.

(photo by Jan Wittkopp)

Inauguration day has been hectic for DC Central Kitchen founder Robert Egger ever since he started delivering inauguration leftovers to homeless shelters twenty years ago. There may not be many extra steaks or shrimp cocktails to cart away this year, but Egger still has plenty to be proud of.

Hundreds of DC Central Kitchen's culinary students are trading in lives of crime and instability for flour and rolling pins. NPR's Pam Fessler follows students into the kitchen as they place the final pistachios on 8,000 of Michelle Obama's favorite shortbread cookies.

(photo by the scott)

If you've always wondered what Peter Sagal is really like, you're in luck. Chicago Public Radio finally revealed the wacky backstage antics of its weekly quiz show Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me on its blog today. Events Coordinator/Celebrity Food Fetcher Don Hall divulged salacious behind-the-scenes details including:

- Who ate a chocolate popsicle shaped like Barack Obama's head (creepy)

- Why Peter Sagal thinks Carl Kasell's name is Charlie (senility)

- Which staff member dreams of Drew Carey (creepiest. thing. ever.)

Chances are, your favorite bar will ask you these very questions at trivia night, so start taking notes.

Staying positive is no easy task in this economy. Looking for work in a world that needs far fewer auto workers and print journalists than ever before can be frustrating. Throw in a few hungry children and a mortgage, and finding a new career can feel nearly impossible.

It's encouraging to know that not everyone feels this way. Every day, people go back to school to embark on new careers. Minnesota Public Radio's News Cut blog is tracking down dozens of Minnesota students to find out how they see their future careers working out. News Cut's Bob Collins sat down with future nurses, IT workers, veterinarians, and even a future priest at Century College, a community and technical college in White Bear Lake, Minnesota.

Many are older students and most work part or full-time jobs. Some are raising kids too. In spite of their hectic schedules, these students are surprisingly optimistic. Their interviews and photographs reveal a calculated determination to become professionals in fields that will grow instead of shrink in the 21st century. They are on the front lines of optimism and hard work, and I for one, salute them.

In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania you can buy a buggy with a cup holder carved out of maple. You can also drive that buggy right up to a bank's specially sized drive-thru window. And if you're Amish and looking to buy a farm, you'll likely get to know Bill O'Brien.

O'Brien spends much of his time lending money to people who don't have credit scores. His Amish customers don't have electricity or driver's licenses either. What they do have is pride. In O'Brien's 20 years at Hometowne Heritage Bank, he says he's never lost money on an Amish deal. It's simply too shameful to fall behind on your payments.

NPR's Adam Davidson follows O'Brien to a buggy auction, a slew of family farms, and even gets him to tell a dirty Amish joke. Davidson's keen observations and clever writing make you feel like you're riding through Amish country right beside him. Now if only I had a buggy...

photo by cindy47452

Sometimes you hear something that stops you in your tracks. It's that moving, that different, that inspiring. Charles Spearin's The Happiness Project is all three. (Thanks, Sue Schardt, for discovering this in the WMBR music library and sharing it with me.)

Charles takes interviews with his neighbors about happiness and brings out the natural cadence of their speech with music. It's too hard to explain in a way that captures how great this stuff is. Just have a listen.