Allison Schrager set out to examine unusual subcultures, looking for clues that would deepen her understanding of risk and other economic realities. The result of her curious adventures is a book with the wonderfully provocative title, An Economist Walks Into a Brothel . In this episode, Allison offers her sage advice to Alan Alda on topics as varied as how to take risks and how hearing the word “no” can actually mean you’ve done well in a negotiation. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/c...
Oct 22, 2019•42 min
What makes a good joke? Why do some fall flat while others are met with a LOL, even an ROTFL? Is a joke ever out of bounds? In this episode, we examine the art of communicating with humor. Alan Alda talks with writers Frank Santopadre and Alan Zweibel, who have spent their lives finding the funny in the meaningful and the meaningful in the funny. Join them as they explore the heart of "ha." Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvivid...
Oct 15, 2019•46 min
Despite many positive changes, women in science report continuing problems. When a colleague ignores your contribution, belittles your work, or even harasses you, what do you do? Women have been leading a revolution in science for many years, and their voices are now being heard like never before. In this special episode of Clear+Vivid, Alan Alda and his producers speak with pioneers in the revolution, their mentees, and some of today’s most outspoken advocates for professional women in the STEM...
Oct 08, 2019•1 hr 37 min
As Clear+Vivid listeners know, we love improvisation because of how important it can be to communication. In this episode Alan Alda had the opportunity to speak with someone who is at the forefront of combining improv and music. Alan's guest this week is legendary jazz guitarist Pat Metheny. As it happens, Pat lives close to Alan's apartment in Manhattan, so we asked him to drop by. Pat and Alan plunged into a conversation about improvisation even before the producers remembered to press the rec...
Oct 01, 2019•48 min
What can animals teach us about our own decision-making process? Every summer for 25 years, Dr. Robert Sapolsky has been studying baboons on the plains of Africa, where he's learned a surprising amount about why we behave the way we do. In this episode Alan Alda speaks with Dr. Sapolsky about his experiences with animals (both human and baboon) and learns about the fascinating similarities in our behavior, our decision-making process, and how we communicate with each other about things we unders...
Sep 24, 2019•47 min
How can scientist’s better bring their complex and deep understanding of nature up to the surface? How can they help us see the marvels they see and revel in the hidden beauty of nature? Brian Greene is not only a brilliant theoretical physicist, but he's also someone who's completely dedicated to bringing the wonder of science to the rest of us. Alan Alda has always been curious about how the world's top scientific minds can commute their knowledge and understanding, so the rest of us can share...
Sep 17, 2019•47 min
Can music be a story? And, can that story, and the emotions it stirs in us, be something that can unite us? In this conversation, Alan Alda explores this idea with his friend Yo-Yo Ma. Alan has just heard Yo-Yo play all six of the Bach Cello Suites in a concert. An amazingly moving performance – and just one of the performances of the cello suites that he'll be doing in 36 different locations around the world. Yo-Yo calls it the Bach Project, in which the beauty of the music is only the beginnin...
Sep 10, 2019•38 min
Laura Brown is the Editor in Chief of InStyle Magazine. Recently, she had the graceful chutzpa to feature Alan Alda in her magazine as a badass. Alan had no idea what that meant, so he couldn’t let it go unexplored. It turns out, being called a badass can be a really good compliment, and this led Alan and Laura to an interesting discussion of what style is, what it communicates, and how it spreads. Laura is a lively person, so Alan invited her to join him before a live audience at Guild Hall in ...
Sep 03, 2019•46 min
When someone wants to make the world a better place – and actually has the means to do it – you wonder: How do they go about it? What are their guiding principles? What works and what doesn’t? In this candid and inspiring interview, Alan Alda asks Melinda Gates about her work as a philanthropist and her lifelong dedication to social change. They discuss her book, "The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World," and what happens when the data suggests one course of action, but the re...
Aug 27, 2019•47 min
Season 5 of Clear+Vivid® with Alan Alda starts on Tuesday, August 27th! Listen to the exclusive producer's cut of the official trailer to meet some of Alan’s next guests — including Melinda Gates, Yo-Yo Ma, Robert Sapolsky, and many more! New episodes are available every Tuesday. Subscribe and listen for free on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you like to enjoy podcasts. For more details and to subscribe to Alan’s newsletter, please visit AlanAlda.com. These episodes are made possible than...
Aug 20, 2019•44 min
How do you engage a national audience and bring attention to a cause? Katie Couric’s decision to allow her colonoscopy to be broadcast live on television was but one highlight in an extraordinary career in television. As co-host of NBC’s Today show and later the first female anchor of a national nightly news program on CBS, her work has been distinguished by her ability to relate to her audience. In this episode, Katie and Alan Alda talk openly about her life as a well-known communicator and wha...
Aug 13, 2019•47 min
Is there a way to bring up the climate crisis and not lose friends and disinfluence people? Katharine Hayhoe has found ways to communicate about a topic that desperately needs good communicating – the increasingly dire crisis that’s gripping our planet. What makes her so special is that she finds a way to connect with people – even people who deny the reality of climate change – through things that matter to them. In this episode, Alan Alda speaks with Dr. Hayhoe about the consequences of the de...
Aug 06, 2019•46 min
There's a difference between communication and communications, with an "S." The way we look at it, communicating is connecting with people; and communications with an "S" is the technical way you reach out to millions, as with broadcasting. Some people find ways to combine those two ideas in ways that have a real impact, and Henry Schleiff is one of them. With vast experience as a broadcaster, Henry has a thoughtful, funny angle on communication that he shares with Alan Alda in this entertaining...
Jul 30, 2019•43 min
Your visit to the doctor isn’t what it used to be. Now, there are more options for doctors to consider, and much less time for them to decide on them. Dr. Eric Topol, one of our country’s leading visionaries in the field of medicine, has a fascinating way of looking at this problem. Even though some experts on this show have talked about digital technology as a threat to our privacy, to our ability to relate, and in some cases even to our health, Dr. Topol tells us how machines can actually make...
Jul 23, 2019•44 min
Do animals have emotions? What can we learn from them about family, friendships, and stable relationships? A surprising amount. Frans de Waal began studying chimpanzees when he was a student. He's the director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes National Primate Center in Atlanta where he studies the social lives of chimpanzees and what they can tell us about ourselves. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvivid
Jul 16, 2019•45 min
There's an "Art of War," but is there a place for the arts in the military? Adam Driver is a brilliant young actor who is taking the worlds of television, film, and theater by storm. His own world changed in 2001, when he was just 18 and enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. His experience in the military helped to shape who he is today, both as a person and as an actor. Adam is dedicated to giving back to his fellow servicemen and women. Alan Alda talks with Adam about his work in bringing togethe...
Jul 09, 2019•45 min
Do you ever imagine what it's like to be a plant? Do they communicate? Hope Jahren, author of the bestselling book, Lab Girl, has been fascinated by plants her whole life. As a scientist and author, she has dived so deep into the lives of plants that they come alive in our imaginations. This while weaving her own personal story of a life in science that allows us to share in her own experience. Hope is a fascinating teacher and she's also a professor at the University of Oslo, so Alan Alda was e...
Jul 02, 2019•47 min
When you first think about science, what comes to mind first? What words do use to describe science? How does science make you feel? Asking these questions is Chris Volpe, who heads the non-profit organization Science Counts. Through its research into how the public sees the role that science plays in their lives, Science Counts has set itself the task of discovering what is needed to strengthen America’s commitment to science. In this episode, Alan Alda talks with Chris about how to make scienc...
Jun 25, 2019•35 min
Earlonne Woods was recently released from San Quentin prison after 20 years inside. For the last 3 years he’s been helping inmates get their stories out in a remarkable podcast called Ear Hustle. Ear Hustle is produced in creative collaboration with Nigel Poor, who met Earlonne when she was a volunteer teacher at the prison. In this episode, Alan sits down with Earlonne and Nigel to talk about how stories are made and, as importantly, how they get out. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/c...
Jun 18, 2019•48 min
Every Saturday night for 11 years, Carol Burnett communicated a sense of family to the entire country. She worked alongside other skilled comic actors. But it wasn’t just skill. There was always a sense of community among the actors and we in the audience felt we were invited in as part of the gang. It was fall-down-funny, belly laugh humor that new generations are still discovering. And they are still reacting to the warmth, still feeling that sense of family. Alan Alda wondered how she did it....
Jun 11, 2019•49 min
Empathy is a powerful tool and, when mixed with politics, it can be used to help the greater good. But, it also has a dark side. In this episode, Alan Alda speaks with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. As Secretary of State, she brought communication skills to international relations that were not only powerful, they were inventive and game changing. They also discuss her recently published best-selling book, "Fascism." Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvivid...
Jun 04, 2019•45 min
Season 4 of Clear+Vivid® with Alan Alda starts on Tuesday, June 4th! Listen to the official trailer to meet some of Alan’s next guests — including Madeleine Albright, Carol Burnett, Adam Driver, Katie Couric, and many more! New episodes are available every Tuesday. Subscribe and listen for free on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you like to enjoy podcasts. For more details and to subscribe to Alan’s newsletter, please visit AlanAlda.com. These episodes are made possible thanks to the gener...
May 28, 2019•20 min
You need little more evidence these days that our country is badly divided than to toggle back and forth between Fox News and MSNBC – two perspectives on the same day’s events that might be coming from two different universes. We have become a nation of tribes. We didn’t set out on Clear+Vivid to explore this divide, but in our conversations about connecting and communicating, the topic kept coming up. On this podcast, Alan Alda has talked to people as diverse as politicians, comedians, and psyc...
May 21, 2019•20 min
Regular listeners to Clear+Vivid know that we have a thing for empathy, as do many of our guests. For our host, Alan Alda, empathy is the indispensable foundation for good communication. But exactly what empathy is isn’t always obvious – nor is it obvious that it’s always a good thing. So, we thought we could look back over the 40-odd conversations we’ve had on this podcast so far and see where and how empathy plays a role in our lives. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvivid...
May 14, 2019•30 min
We love hearing from our listeners! Through social media and email, you've been sending us your own answers to "Alan's 7 Questions" and we've been having a great time reading through all your witty, smart, and often poignant responses. In this episode, we're highlighting all of our favorites! We want to keep hearing from you, so please continue to write us at: [email protected] or get social with us on Twitter @alda, or on Facebook and Instagram at "ClearandVivid." Thanks for listeni...
May 07, 2019•32 min
Why doesn't Dr. Ruth talk about her sex life? What keeps Michael J. Fox optimistic? Why does Isabella Rossellini have a passion for animals? What's the strangest question someone ever asked Tina Fey? How do Sarah Vowell and Sarah Silverman stop compulsive talkers? Our guests have hilarious, thoughtful, and heartwarming answers to Alan Alda's "7 Questions" -- in this episode, we bring you all of our favorites. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvivid...
Apr 30, 2019•15 min
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda is coming back soon for a sensational season 4! In the meantime, we've been having a lot of fun behind the scenes creating bonus episodes, new experiences, and great content for you. And, we also want to introduce you to some of our favorite podcasters. So, here's a podcast we like called Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast. In this episode Gilbert and Frank welcome a sought-after guest, writer-director-actor Alan Alda, who discusses (among other topics) growi...
Apr 23, 2019•1 hr 45 min
How do you learn? It may be different from how I learn. David Flink knows about learning differences. Dave was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD in grade school, but with the right support he got into an Ivy League college. There, he helped start a program for kids with a diagnosis of dyslexia or ADHD to be mentored by college students with the same diagnosis. Dave's program, "Eye to Eye," is now entering its 20th year and Dave has written a book, titled "Thinking Differently," recounting his exp...
Apr 16, 2019•46 min
At Harvard, she's known as the "rollerblading, rockstar scientist." Pardis Sabeti mines the human genome for its secrets to eradicate deadly scourges. Her breakthrough work helped tackle an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in Africa. She also finds time to write and perform with a rock band. In this episode, Pardis and Alan Alda talk about her extraordinary work, and how to tackle any challenge with empathy, humanity, and a whole lot of fun. Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/clearandvi...
Apr 09, 2019•45 min
How do we come up with ideas? How do we make decisions? And how can we do both better? Steven Johnson has explored this question and written a dozen books about it. In this playful, thoughtful episode, Steven has some fascinating stories, like how Darwin made the decision to get married — or how a defecating duck helped lead to the invention of the computer. Through their own stories, Steven and Alan Alda share their thoughts about the transformative nature of ideas and what sort of environments...
Apr 02, 2019•47 min
