The 'brain in a vat' thought experiment reminds us of issues we wrestled with in a past episode . What is the connection between brain and body? If your brain was placed in a jar and wired to a computer that simulates the outside world, how could you prove that your beliefs about the world aren't all false?

A person named Jason responded to our post about earworm remedies with the following:

'These days, with music being everywhere, I seem to just jump from song to song. Usually, whatever I heard last is still kicking around in my head. Not for long though. The next song is usually ...

Many of you have written in about our piece on Clive Wearing, the man who all of a sudden lost his ability to make new memories. His life--what it's actually like to live a day to day existence without being able to remember anything for more than a few seconds--is difficult to envision... and it raises infinite questions for us about how memory really works.

Most of us would probably agree that a good Valentine's Day should include a healthy dose of kisses and laughter. But if you think about it, both laughing and kissing are kind of strange behaviors. Why do we laugh? Why do we kiss? Are humans the only animals that giggle ...

Earworms. Those dastardly little songs that wriggle into your brain and just won't leave. They can be beyond annoying. We're conducting an unscientific poll: What is the song most likely to get stuck in your head?

Welcome to our new blog! Kick off your shoes and explore. Read behind-the-scenes updates, find out what's piquing our curiosity, and download Radiolab ringtones! Take a look around. Check out some of the ideas floating around in our brains, and tell us what you think.

If a thought is like lots of little neurons singing together in harmony, who conducts the brain chorus? Neurologist Christof Koch offers his theory in Emergence.

Download a ringtone of a brain chorus singing coffee:

Right click to download MP3 to your desktop then contact your service provider for ...

Ever had a phrase get stuck in your head? Did it morph into music in your brain? Professor Diana Deutsch explores the phenomenon in Musical Language.

Download an infectious "Behaves So Strangely" ringtone from the show:

Right click to download MP3 to your desktop then contact your service provider ...

Radiolab has events coming up in the following cities:

Feb 21 Angelika Theater NYC, NY
March 10 Uptown Billards Portland, OR
April 24 Koshland Museum Washington, DC

Details to Follow

It might seem hyperbole to claim, as many Wagnerites do, that The Ring Cycle is 'The Greatest Work of Art Ever.' But it's permeated our culture from Star Wars to Bugs Bunny to J.R.R. Tolkien. On this Radiolab/WNYC Special, we explore the impact and influence of Wagner's Ring Cycle on the Metropolitan Opera's 2004 Presentation.

In 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright managed to coax their spruce biplane off the North Carolina sand for twelve seconds, and those twelve seconds started a revolution in flight. We examine the human desire to fly, and how getting flight changed us.

This week, a look at the different ways that people connect to each other, and how they act once they’re together. NOTE: This episode contains EXPLICIT language about sex.

How would you describe life on Earth to an alien? In 1977, the Voyager spacecraft launched into space. And with it, went the Golden Record-- a sort of time capsule, a collection of sounds and images that would describe life on Earth to whomever or whatever might find it.

In spring of 2006, Jad and Robert took the stage at the SoHo Apple Store to talk about the making of Radiolab. Jad geeks out on digital sound editing, and Robert raises editorial questions. And film editor joins them to Walter Murch weigh in on storytelling.

Pitchfork's Chris Dahlen wraps his brain around Radiolab's sonic storytelling in his "Get That Out Of Your Mouth" column:

“...every episode is incredibly listenable-- mellifluous and intricately produced, with a gentle, steady rhythm. Abumrad calls each show "a kind of hour-long composition," and if you squint your ears, that's ...

Jad turns to science to help strangers fall in love...or at least exchange a few phone numbers...as the host of a Singles Night. And he gets some advice from a few experts on the chemistry of a 'brain on love.'

Orli Van Mourik considers what makes Jad tick in a profile featured in The Villager:

“It’s rare to find a person like Abumrad: Someone inclined to ask the questions, but perfectly content not to have all the answers. Maybe this is what happens when an artist is raised in ...

What Is Enlightenment Magazine lauded Radiolab as "a fun, educational, and hip investigative-philosophical radio program" in its April-June 2007 issue:

“What you will not find here is dryness. The dialogues, sound effects, and commentary are mixed, spliced, shuffled, and rearranged into almost musical counterpoint, spiced with the wit and ...

The Washington Post's Marc Fisher explores Radiolab's journeys to new frontiers of reporting:

"'Radio Lab' seeks to tell stories of cosmology, neuroscience and anthropology in a language new to broadcasting. Krulwich brings his affinity for sound effects, dramatizations and a narrative style reminiscent of great children's literature together with Abumrad's ...

Oberlin Alumni Magazine reflects on the unmistakable chemistry between Jad and Robert in its Summer 2006 edition:

"Following their noses led Krulwich and Abumrad to forge a collaboration—both on and off the air—that projects the easy intimacy and “instinct to provoke” of a long-term marriage. They record the show ...