[Swprograms] Podding Along - Issue 184

[John Figliozzi <jfiglio1@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Most radio listening takes place in the car or while doing other things that allow freedom for the ear, but not the eyes and hands.  Podcasts permit a shift of listening time from a set appointment to virtually any convenient occasion.  I do it while âpower walkingâ (most) every other day (when itâs not cold and wet or I havenât succumbed to laziness).  The âartâ of putting one foot in front of the other can be pretty monotonous and by âpodding alongâ while plodding along the mind also gets something useful to do. 

Some of the best radio comes from the public networks of the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and the U.S.  Apart from the originating programâs web site, most programs are made available through any number of other amalgamation sources such as iTunes and TuneIn. 

Admittedly, these are thoroughly subjective recommendations, but my interests and tolerance for incompatible views are pretty wide-ranging. Hereâs another in a continuing series of small samplings, offered in a 90 minute scope (more of less):

ââ

"The Invention of Numbersâ
THE FORUM - BBC World Service 
Try and imagine a world without numbers. Telling people how many siblings you have, counting your wages or organising to meet a friend at a certain time would all be much more difficult. If youâre reading this on a digital screen, even these words are produced through a series of zero and one symbols. We take them so much for granted yet some cultures donât count and some languages donât have the words or symbols for numbers. This programme looks at when and why humans first started start to count, where the symbols many of us use today originate from and when concepts like zero and infinity came about. Joining Bridget Kendall to explore the history of numbers and counting are anthropological linguist Caleb Everett from the University of Miami, writer and historian of mathematics Tomoko Kitagawa, and Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at Warwick University in the UK, Ian Stewart. (42â)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3cswps5

âThe Life and Works of William Blakeâ
THE FORUM - BBC World Service
William Blake is now one of Englandâs best-loved poets and artists, associated with the well-known poem âThe Tygerâ and the hymn âJerusalemâ, regularly coined Englandâs unofficial national anthem. But in his time he was an eighteenth century radical visionary who challenged the social order as well as political and religious orthodoxy at every turn. He was even tried for sedition. Rajan Datar discusses his life, works and remarkable legacy with Blake experts Dr. Linda Freedman, Dr. Susan Matthews, Prof. Jason Whittaker and artist Michael Phillips. (40â)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3cswps4

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CAPSULE REVIEW:  The Forum (BBC World Service)
This and the next few editions of Podding Along are highlighting this program, the World Serviceâs âflagshipâ (their word, not mine) discussion program.  THE FORUM is very similar in concept and format to BBC Radio 4âs THINKING ALOUD, which has been reviewed previously in this space, which is to say that it is both intellectually challenging and accessible.  A panel of experts is led by a host in a Socratic dialogue of a breathtakingly wide selection of topics in history, literature, psychology, etc., etc.  Very often, when one hears the topic for a coming edition the reaction is, âIâve always wondered about thatââ  This is a program that will be valued by the listener who is curious, interested in many disparate things and yearns to hear intelligent people talk with one another in a respectful, cooperative and informative manner.  Highly recommended.

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A monthly (well, mostly monthly) compendium of these newsletters, plus on occasion additional pertinent material, is now published in The CIDX Messenger, the monthly e-newsletter of the Canadian International DX Club (CIDX).  For further information, go to www.cidx.ca

John Figliozzi
Editor, "The Worldwide Listening Guideâ
192 page 8th edition now available from Universal Radio [universal-radio.com] and Amazon [amazon.com]
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