Programs

This episode was recorded on October 5th, 2025 at the Culture Center Theater in Charleston, WV. The lineup includes Jim Lauderdale & The Game Changers, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Lilly Hiatt, Joachim Cooder, and Woodbine. https://bit.ly/4qXuRhh

When we think of China today, we think of a technological superpower. From Huawei and 5G to TikTok and viral social media, China is stride for stride with the United States in the world of computing. However, China’s technological renaissance almost didn’t happen. And for one very basic reason: the Chinese language, with its 70,000 plus characters, couldn’t fit on a keyboard.Today, we tell the story of Professor Wang Yongmin, a hard-headed computer programmer who solved this puzzle and laid the foundation for the China we know today.Special thanks to Martin Howard. You can view his renowned collection of typewriters at: antiquetypewriters.com. EPISODE CREDITS: Reported by – Simon AdlerProduced by – Simon Adler Sign up for our newsletter!! It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Signup (https://radiolab.org/newsletter)!Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing radiolab@wnyc.org.Leadership support for Radiolab’s science programming is provided by the Simons Foundation and the John Templeton Foundation. Foundational support for Radiolab was provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

In this bonus DIJ, Jim picks a song from the ’80s that’s as relevant now as it was then.Join our Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/3sivr9TBecome a member on Patreon: https://bit.ly/3slWZvcSign up for our newsletter: https://bit.ly/3eEvRnGMake a donation via PayPal: https://bit.ly/3dmt9lUSend us a Voice Memo: Desktop: bit.ly/2RyD5Ah  Mobile: sayhi.chat/soundopsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The brightness of any star that’s in the prime phase of life is controlled by the star’s mass: Heavy stars are brighter than lightweight stars. But it’s not a simple one-to-one kind of relationship. A star that’s twice the mass of the Sun isn’t twice as bright – it’s more than 15 times as bright. That’s because gravity squeezes the core of a heavier star more tightly. That increases the core’s temperature, which revs up the rate of nuclear reactions. That produces more energy, which makes its way to the surface and shines out into space. Regulus illustrates the point. The heart of the lion consists of four stars, three of which are in the prime of life. The star we see as Regulus – Regulus A – is a little more than four times the mass of the Sun, yet it radiates about 340 times more energy. Much of that energy is in the ultraviolet, which we can’t see. But even at visible wavelengths, it’s about 150 times the Sun’s brightness. Regulus A has a couple of distant companions. Regulus B is about 80 percent the mass of the Sun, but only a third of the Sun’s total brightness. And Regulus C is even more dramatic: a third of the Sun’s mass, but just two percent its brightness – a cool, faint ember in the heart of the lion. Look for Regulus standing close above the Moon as they climb into good view around 1:30 or 2 in the morning. The star will be a little farther from the Moon at dawn. Script by Damond Benningfield

This week we visit SPAIN and spotlight the country's vibrant rock, pop and EDM scenes. Featured artists include The Pinker Tones, Adiós Amores, Manu Chao, Arde Bogotá, ambre, Rigoberta Bandini, Jeanette, Vete Vete, Polock, Pecker, Ana Laan and more. 

Shalom Auslander goes on vacation with his family, suspects the beloved, chatty old man in the room next door is an imposter, and sets out to prove it. This and other stories about the pitfalls of making snap judgments about others. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription.Prologue: Amy Roberts thought it was obvious that she was an adult, not a kid, and she assumed the friendly man working at the children's museum knew it too. Unfortunately, the man had Amy pegged all wrong. And by the time she figured it out, it was too late for either of them to save face. Host Ira Glass talks to Amy about the embarrassing ordeal that taught her never to assume she knows what someone else is thinking. (8 minutes)Act One: While riding in a patrol car to research a novel, crime writer Richard Price witnessed a misunderstanding that, for many people, is pretty much accepted as an upsetting fact of life. Richard Price told this story, which he describes as a tale taken from real life and dramatized, onstage at The Moth in New York. (12 minutes)Act Two: There are situations where making judgments about people based on limited information is not only accepted but required. One of those situations is open adoption, where birth mothers actually choose the adoptive parents for their child. Producer Nancy Updike talks to a pregnant woman named Kim, going through the first stage of open adoption: reading dozens of letters from prospective parents, all of whom seem utterly capable and appealing. (6 minutes)Act Three: David Rakoff picks a fight with a hit Broadway show. (6 minutes)Act Four: Shalom Auslander tells the story of the time he went on vacation, pegged the guest in the room next door as an imposter, and devoted his holiday to trying to prove it. Shalom is the author of Feh: a Memoir. (22 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.orgThis American Life privacy policy.Learn more about sponsor message choices.