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A library of interviews with the world’s biggest thinkers.
3mins
It’s a classic historian’s question, but Ken Burns rejects it, insisting that “human nature is the only given.”
4mins
According to Ken Burns, imposing a narrative on the past keeps humans from going crazy—and is an act of love. Critics who find that view tidy and sentimental are revealing […]
3mins
Does making a documentary deepen or exhaust Ken Burns’s appreciation of its subject? And does he ever start imagining his life as one of his own films?
5mins
Filmmaker Ken Burns describes how he hopes “The National Parks” will succeed both as a topical statement about conservation and a timeless human story.
6mins
Inspired by Twain’s own example, the “Mark Twain” documentarian seeks to explore quintessentially American issues of “race and space.”
6mins
From cutting huge amounts of footage to zooming and panning on still photos, the documentarian explains the techniques that distinguish his films—and why changing them now would be “ridiculous.”
5mins
As a young director with a risky film, Ken Burns had countless doors slammed in his face. How did he push past them, and how would he advise today’s young […]
3mins
The documentarian last took a formal history class in 11th grade, “when they hold a gun to your head.” But as a passionate student of film, he soon became drawn […]
10mins
From brain size to emotional intelligence, Lise Eliot uncovers the truth behind age-old clichés.
7mins
The neuroscience professor explains that parents are more cautious with daughters than sons, but females are technically easier to rear.
7mins
How parents, siblings, and home setup—including toys in the nursery—influence gender identity.
7mins
Lise Eliot outlines biological differences in girls and boys from womb to playground, explaining the crucial role that culture plays.
31mins
A conversation with the neuroscience professor at Chicago Medical School and the author of “Pink Brain, Blue Brain.”
3mins
By taking ownership of certain ideas, Republicans made the opposition seem like weaklings in key areas like defense.
7mins
A lack of promising candidates plague a party that is otherwise ripe for a takeover.
6mins
Some factions of the right wing wanted drastic change, while others fought for the status quo.
5mins
The Grand Old Party has always benefited from old money, big business, and hardcore social conservatives, says the NYU historian.
21mins
A conversation with the assistant professor of history at the Gallatin School at New York University.
2mins
The former Poet Laureate recites one of her latest poems from the collection entitled, “Sonata Mulattica.”