Radiolab

Vanishing Words

When Alana Casanova-Burgess set out to make a podcast series about Puerto Rico, she struggled with what to call it. Until one word came to mind, a word that captures a certain essence of life in Puerto Rico, but eludes easy translation into English. We talk to Alana about her series, and that particular word, then turn to an old story about treating words as signals of something happening just beneath the surface. 
Agatha Christie's clever detective novels may reveal more about the inner workings of the human mind than she intended. According to <a href="http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~ian/">Dr. Ian Lancashire</a> at the University of Toronto, the Queen of Crime left behind hidden clues to the real-life mysteries of human aging in her writing. Meanwhile, <a href="http://www.cmrr.umn.edu/facultystaff/kelvin.shtml">Dr. Kelvin Lim</a> and <a href="http://www.pharmacy.umn.edu/faculty/pakhomov_sergey/home.html">Dr. Serguei Pakhomov</a> from the University of Minnesota add to the intrigue with the story of an unexpected find in a convent archive that could someday help pinpoint very early warning signs for Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Sister Alberta Sheridan, a 94-year-old<a href="http://www.healthstudies.umn.edu/nunstudy/"> Nun Study</a> participant, reads an essay she wrote more than 70 years ago.
La Brega update was produced by Maria Paz Gutierrez

Radiolab is on a curiosity bender. We ask deep questions and use investigative journalism to get the answers. A given episode might whirl you through science, legal history, and into the home of someone halfway across the world. The show is known for innovative sound design, smashing information into music. It is hosted by Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser.