Soundings

The novel

November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), a prize-less, month-long contest in which thousands around the world attempt to write their novel in one month. Thirty days, fifty thousand words minimum, and no prize at the end (save for their own satisfaction). On this week's show we follow of National Novel Writing Month and learn a little about the novel while we're at it. A class of Stanford students tries to finish their novels without flunking out, a San Francisco write-a-thon filled with wannabe novelists, and the elusive 150 thousand word woman. Plus interviews with a professor, a PhD, and a book critic on the history of the novel.
Host: Charlie Mintz
Producers: Lee Konstantinou, Charlie Mintz, Killeen Hanson, Dan Hirsch, Jonah Willihnganz
Featured: Emily Rials, Bianca Ceralvo, Mark McGurl, Emma Ziker, Chris Baty, Noam Cohen
Music: Max Citron
URLs: Chris Baty
Featured: Chris Baty
More info at:http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/shows/season-2/141-episode-205.html

UnValentine’s Day

Normally Valentine's Day is a time to celebrate coming together, but today we're exploring the reasons people drift apart. In four stories, we explore all the reasons we fail to click. We have a story about a Stanford student who tried, and failed, to sell her eggs to an elite donation agency, an investigation into the paradoxical allure of French women, a radio play about the perils of matchmaking, and an essay on love that offers an unusual take on arranged marriages.
Producers: Charlie Mintz, Hannah Krakauer, Rachel Hamburg
Host: Charlie Mintz
Featuring: Eva Glasrud, Paula England, Harville Hendrix, Stuart Blaire and Art Tosborvorn
Music: George Pritzker, Jeff Striker, Snuffaluffagus
More info at:http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/shows/season-2/115-episode-208.html

Questions of Travel

What happens to us when we travel? How do we get beyond the brochure (and should we)? Poets, a professor of ecology, an observer of the Malaysian meat market, and a researcher who studies sense of place work toward answers and share stories of discovery on the road.
Producers: Elizabeth Bradfield, Daniel Hirsch
Host: Elizabeth Bradfield
Featuring: Joshua Rivkin, John Evans, Laura McKee, Peter Vitousek, Nicole Ardoin, Samantha Wai, Michelle Traub, Selena Simmons-Duffin, Daniel MacDougall
Music: Volunteer Pioneer, Johnny Hwin, Natalie Dawn, Eli Herwitz, The Reiterators, and Midawe
More info at:http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/shows/season-2/109-episode-207.html

Prediction

The human brain was built to predict the future. If you can't see what's coming, you can't survive. Tea leaves, entrails, and complicated algorithms are just a few of the ways humans have tried to divine the future for personal gain. Today on our show we have three stories about various attempts to look into the future. A Berkeley undergraduate tries to beat the racetrack, economists attempt to predict recessions, and a software that can listen to a song and predict whether it's going to be a hit. Guess which one is the most successful, and who forgot about a couple very important variables.
Producers: Charlie Mintz, Daniel MacDougall, Bonnie Swift Jonah Willihnganz
Host: Charlie Mintz
Featuring: Sarah Rizk, Sam Alemayehu, Paul David, Howard Schwartz, Mike McCready, Jadena, Koji Gardiner, Eleanor Safridge Fields, Kasiana McLenaghan, Robert Mintz
Music: Koji Gardiner, Ian Burrell, Andy Seymour, Jeff Striker, Pascel, Boomsnake
More info at:http://web.stanford.edu/group/storytelling/cgi-bin/joomla/index.php/shows/season-2/153-episode-209.html