Best Carl Martin Johnson Podcasts (2025)

1
Carl Zimmer: The Living Sky 39:33

4h ago39:33

39:33

Stories of the discovery that the air is full of invisible life – and how that discovery was tragically overlooked when the covid pandemic struck.By Bobi NYC

1
Episode 108: Craig Haythorn 51:00

5d ago51:00

51:00

Fourth generation rancher Craig Haythorn talks about the history of Haythorn Land & Cattle Company, the influence of his father and grandfather, the Nebraska Sandhills, feeding with a team of horses, pulling out the wagon, changes in ranching, and his love for his family. This episode was sponsored by National Ranching Heritage Center in Lubbock, T…

1
John Leguizamo: Meticulously Spontaneous 35:47

7d ago35:47

35:47

His far-reaching career acting, writing and producing on television and film spans voicing a sloth in the movie Ice Age to hosting a PBS series on the untold history of Latinos in the US. He’s fast talking, funny, outspoken and possesses a rare quality in his acting – on display in his new movie Bob Trevino Likes It.…

1
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda: Season 29 Trailer 28:18

14d ago28:18

28:18

Alan and Clear and Vivid’s executive producer Graham Chedd chat about and play clips from some of the shows coming up in season 29. Guests include actor John Leguizamo, science writer Carl Zimmer, and astrophysicist Mario Livio.By Bobi NYC

1
Bill Pullman: From a Stage Fall to Curtain Calls 41:36

22d ago41:36

41:36

A chat with an actor who does it all. After recovering from a near fatal fall on stage as his career was beginning, Bill Pullman has not only had a busy and award-winning career on stage, screen and television, he’s also getting into science communication – while working on a one-man play and making hard cider for his friends and neighbors.…

1
Alison Wood Brooks: Talking About Talk 42:56

28d ago42:56

42:56

How the letters in the acronym TALK can have a profound effect on the next conversation you have.By Bobi NYC

1
Episode 107: Scott Slusher 52:07

1M ago52:07

52:07

Cowboy and fashion photographer Scott Slusher talks about photographing working cowboys, authenticity, staying out of the way, and being in the right place at the right time. Learn more about Scott Slusher at www.scottslusherphotography.com Learn more about Cowboy Crossroads at www.andyhedges.com Become a Patron at www.patreon.com/cowboycrossroads…

1
Kafui Dzirasa: An Electrical Path to Mental Health? 39:00

1M ago39:00

39:00

A psychiatrist, engineer and neuroscientist, Kaf Dzirasa is researching ways to reengineer the brain to make it better able to cope with stress and so improve mental health.By Bobi NYC

1
Shannon Vallor: The AI Illusion 41:21

1M ago41:21

41:21

Artificial intelligence is poised to reshape our world, in many ways for the better. But the gains come with great risks – above all that its seductive appeal lulls us into believing that AI machines know better than we do.By Bobi NYC

1
Malcolm Gladwell: Tipping Points Old and New 39:25

2M ago39:25

39:25

His new book Revenge of The Tipping Point takes a fresh look at the tipping points of social change he opened our eyes to 25 years ago – and unearths unexpected explanations for such new questions as: what really drove the opioid crisis, why diversity matters, and why Harvard University has a women’s rugby team.…

1
Ann Patchett: Bel Canto Revisited 42:09

2M ago42:09

42:09

In a remarkable and illuminating tour de force, the novelist recently took a fresh look at her best-known book, going through it line by line and annotating it with handwritten notes in the margins – notes on things she both loved and hated. “It shows,” she says, “a lot about how to write a novel.”By Bobi NYC

1
Matt Strassler: What Are You Made Of? 35:54

2M ago35:54

35:54

The answer, regrettably, is unbelievable. That is, unbelievable to most of us, because we cannot imagine a universe – including ourselves – made of waves. Quantum physicist Matt Strassler braves the task of convincing Alan he is a collection of waves, and in doing so helps Alan answer a question that’s haunted him for more than a decade.…

1
Julie Sedivy: How Language Shapes Us 41:10

2M ago41:10

41:10

Her new book, Linguaphile: A Life of Language Love is an ode to the power of language to both shape us and be shaped by us. It’s informed by her own experience with languages: she spoke five before learning English as an immigrant to Canada as a child.By Bobi NYC

1
Mala Murthy: From a Fly’s Brain to Yours 37:27

3M ago37:27

37:27

The 500 feet of wiring packed into fruit fly’s brain has been fully mapped – giving insights into how the more that 300,000 miles of wiring packed into your brain generates your thoughts, feelings, perceptions and actions. These insights could also lead to novel treatments for the diseases caused when the wiring goes wrong.…

1
Brenda Wineapple: When Evolution Was on Trial 37:57

3M ago37:57

37:57

In 1925, a trial in a small town in Tennessee riveted the nation. In the dock was a young man named John Scopes, charged with violating a state law outlawing the teaching of evolution. The trial exposed fault lines in society that are opening again today, a century later.By Bobi NYC

1
Episode 106: Ed Ashurst 57:06

3M ago57:06

57:06

Arizona cowboy and writer Ed Ashurst tells stories of working with old-time cowboys Whistle Mills and Bill Howell and talks about his experiences on legendary Arizona outfits including the O RO Ranch, the Babbitt Ranch, and the Diamond A Ranch. Recorded onstage in front of a live audience at the 2nd Annual Ranch Verse. This episode was sponsored by…

1
Daniel Levitin: Music as Medicine 40:46

3M ago40:46

40:46

Music can lift our spirits, bring us to tears, spark our creativity, pace our workouts. Neuroscientist and musician Daniel Levitin explores all these benefits of music – and adds the recent scientific evidence that in some chronic medical conditions, music is medicinal.By Bobi NYC

1
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda - Season 28 trailer 36:32

3M ago36:32

36:32

Alan and Clear and Vivid’s executive producer Graham Chedd chat about and play clips from some of the shows coming up in season 28. A major theme of the season is language –from babies picking up clues about their mother’s language while still in the womb, to male fruit flies singing courtship songs to female fruit flies, to a best-selling novelist…

1
Marcia Bjornerud: The Wisdom of Rocks 32:37

4M ago32:37

32:37

Offsprings of the Earth – Earthlings – we are most of us ignorant of the 3.5 billion years of experiments our planet has been through to produce us. Yet the story is there in the rocks all around us – if only we can decipher what they have to say.By Bobi NYC

1
Matt Abrahams: Off the Cuff and in the Zone 40:22

4M ago40:22

40:22

So much of our communication is spontaneous and yet we never really learn or are taught how to do it well – we’re just expected to do it. How to avoid being tongue-tied, whether when called upon to give an impromptu speech or when sitting next to a stranger at a dinner party.By Bobi NYC

1
Dean-David Schillinger: The Power of Patients’ Stories 37:27

4M ago37:27

37:27

Eliciting the story behind a patient’s visit to the hospital can lead to better diagnosis and treatment than medical tests alone – and also reveals much of what needs fixing in health care today.By Bobi NYC

1
Kristin Andrews: Is that spider conscious? 40:53

4M ago40:53

40:53

Alan’s fleeting thought while chasing a spider around the floor sparked a conversation with an animal minds expert who argues that many more creatures than we imagine are conscious. What could this mean for our relationship with the rest of the animal kingdom – including those that annoy us and those we eat?…

1
John Pollack: The Surprising Power of Puns and Analogies 39:05

4M ago39:05

39:05

Good analogies led to cheaper cars and Apple computers; bad ones to lives wasted and lost. And while puns might not always make you smile (or grimace), they helped pave the way for written language.By Bobi NYC

1
Episode 105: Teal Blake 41:49

5M ago41:49

41:49

Cowboy artist Teal Blake talks about his father Buckeye Blake, his western art influences, becoming a member of the Cowboy Artists of America, his artistic process, and his love for the West. Learn more about Teal Blake at www.tealblake.com Learn more about Cowboy Crossroads at www.andyhedges.com Become a patron at www.patreon.com/cowboycrossroads…

1
Jasmin Graham: She’s Down with Sharks 35:38

5M ago35:38

35:38

As a Black graduate student disillusioned with academia, she founded Minorities in Shark Science (MISS). She now pursues her passion for sharks and outreach to a public fearful of sharks as a successful independent researcher.By Bobi NYC

1
Craig Foster: Life Lessons from an Octopus 36:01

5M ago36:01

36:01

For most of us who live in the “tame” modern world, a reminder of how we can refresh ourselves by experiencing the wild world – even the wild world of our backyard or city streets.By Bobi NYC

1
Joshua Greene: Games That Build Bridges 39:46

5M ago39:46

39:46

His research figuring out how our brains make moral judgments has led to two on-line games: One aimed at overcoming political animosity (and that’s fun to play!); the other to satisfy both your head and your heart when you donate to charity.By Bobi NYC

1
Dan Heath: In Someone Else’s (Working) Shoes 38:46

5M ago38:46

38:46

Most of us have no idea how others – even our friends and neighbors – spend their days at work. What’s it really like to be a plumber, a marriage counselor, an ice cream truck owner, an author of mystery novels? In his podcast Dan Heath talks to workers in dozens of different jobs to find out What It’s Like to Be.…

1
Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods: How to Raise a Great Dog 39:39

6M ago39:39

39:39

The puppy kindergarten at Duke University is discovering how to spot a future great service dog while the dog is still a puppy. And it turns out that what makes a great service dog can also make your dog great.By Bobi NYC

1
Backstage at The West Wing 39:56

6M ago39:56

39:56

How the acclaimed TV series came to be and what it has come to mean since, as recalled in a new book by cast members Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack. Including stories you’ve probably never heard before.By Bobi NYC

1
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda - Season 27 trailer 24:54

6M ago24:54

24:54

Alan and executive producer Graham Chedd look ahead to season 27. In a nostalgic look back at the TV series The West Wing, Alan recalls the scariest moments of his career; we visit a puppy kindergarten to spot future service dogs; a doctor tells stories that vividly illustrate the shortcomings of the health care system; and we meet a woman who can …

1
Episode 104: Carl Lane Johnson 1:23:35

6M ago1:23:35

1:23:35

Third generation New Mexico rancher and author Carl Lane Johnson talks about his family's ranching history, his cowboy idol, breaking colts, treating screwworms, changes in the ranching industry and explains the difference between a cowboy, cowman, cattleman, and rancher. This episode was sponosred by the National Ranching Hertiage Center. Learn mo…

1
Lynnae Quick: Could an Icy Moon Harbor Life? 36:39

6M ago36:39

36:39

Her doctoral thesis led to her becoming a member of the team behind yesterday’s successful launch of NASA’s Clipper mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa. Her contribution could help find out if beneath its thick ice crust, Europa is friendly to life.By Bobi NYC

1
Terry Szuplat: Speak Your Mind 38:46

7M ago38:46

38:46

For eight years he wrote speeches for President Obama. Today he applies much of what he learned then in helping others with public speaking – how to craft a speech, how to connect with the audience, how to overcome the sheer terror of standing in front of dozens or hundreds of people.By Bobi NYC

1
Steve Martin: Portrait of the Artist 38:31

7M ago38:31

38:31

He’s had a legendary life as a stand-up comedian, actor, writer, banjo player, even magician. As Steve talks about these threads in his life, a picture emerges of the thoughtful side of this remarkable entertainer.By Bobi NYC

1
Ayana Johnson: We Can Do This! 40:30

7M ago40:30

40:30

A clarion call to those of us acutely aware of the peril facing our planet yet feel powerless to help save it. Ayana Johnson urges us to stop fretting about what “I” can do and instead think about what “we” can do, by joining our own skills and passions with those of others – and have fun doing it. Then, she asks in her provocative new book, What I…

1
Episode 103: Wylie Gustafson 58:27

7M ago58:27

58:27

Wylie Gustafson of Wylie & The Wild West talks about the beginning of his musical career, the cowboy folk music of his father, the story of the Yahoo yodel, cutting horses, writing songs with Paul Zarzyski, and the workingman quality of cowboy poetry. Learn more about Wylie Gustafson at www.wyliewebsite.com Learn more about Cowboy Crossrods at www.…

1
Frank Barry: Taking the Lincoln Highway to America 37:07

7M ago37:07

37:07

Escaping the Covid lockdown in 2020 he and his wife Laurel set out in an RV to travel across America along the Lincoln Highway – a road more aspirational than real. But with Abraham Lincoln’s spirit as their guide they talked with the people they met along the way to explore the urgent question of what can hold our fractured country together.…

1
Randy Fertel: Improv Everywhere 37:32

7M ago37:32

37:32

Is improvisation at the heart of Western culture — music, art, literature, politics, even artificial intelligence? Author Randy Fertel thinks so. And he warns that as much as it’s a positive force, there’s also peril in it.By Bobi NYC

1
Roger Rosenblatt: Wounds and Other Blessings 35:36

8M ago35:36

35:36

Alan talks with Roger Rosenblatt about his new book “A Steinway on the beach.” It explores that great mystery of how being wounded—emotionally or physically—is both an inescapable part of life and a chance to illuminate it. It’s seeing the wound as the place where the light enters you.By Bobi NYC

1
Lisa Kaltenegger: Alien Hunter 37:58

8M ago37:58

37:58

She’s a pioneer in figuring out how we might tell if any of the trillions of planets out there in the galaxy might harbor life – and if so, what kind of life.By Bobi NYC

1
Mark Rank: As Luck Would Have It 40:16

8M ago40:16

40:16

Chance events not only change lives, they can change history – as when a soviet sailor’s briefly stuck foot prevented a potential nuclear catastrophe. You can’t predict when luck, good or bad, will intervene. But you can learn to take advantage of it.By Bobi NYC

1
Anne Curzan: Say What? Says Who? 40:37

8M ago40:37

40:37

Over time, the meaning of words often changes. The history of these changes suggests they're inevitable and that some of us (like our host) could be a little more relaxed about it and a little less peevish.By Bobi NYC

1
Episode 102: Martin Black 1:02:44

9M ago1:02:44

1:02:44

Cowboy and horseman Martin Black talks about his family's deep ranching roots, being in cow camp with his brother at eight years old, ranching changes in the Great Basin, the disappearance of the wagon, and the horsemanship philosophy of his mentors Ray Hunt, Tom Dorrance, and Tom Marvel. Learn more about Martin Black at www.martinblack.net Learn m…

1
Mo Rocca: Late Comebacks 38:27

9M ago38:27

38:27

Older people, says Mo Rocca, have better stories. And he tells many of them – stories of people as different as Colonel Sanders and Henri Matisse – in his new book Roctogenarians – older people who even in their 90s have achieved great things.By Bobi NYC

1
Clear+Vivid with Alan Alda - Season 26 trailer 21:25

9M ago21:25

21:25

Alan and Executive Producer Graham Chedd chat about and play excerpts from Alan's conversations with some of the guests in the new season, beginning next week. Guests include author Roger Rosenblatt, word maven Anne Curzan, and TV and radio personality Mo Rocca.By Bobi NYC

1
David Toomey: Want to play? 36:50

9M ago36:50

36:50

Most creatures play– even octopuses, pigs, crows and bees. But play is much more than fun and games. Play teaches life skills and empathy – even morality. And it may help shape evolution. Want to play?By Bobi NYC

1
Sanjana Curtis: Sprinkling Stardust on TikTok 38:03

9M ago38:03

38:03

An astrophysicist brings the universe down to earth. In brief captivating videos she tells the stories of how everything our world is made of – including ourselves – was created in cataclysmic explosions and collisions far out in space.By Bobi NYC

1
Chris French: Would you believe it? 41:00

10M ago41:00

41:00

When we experience things that seem beyond explanation, are they evidence of the supernatural? Or instead, a quirk of our brains? A skeptical but open-minded psychologist has some entertaining answers.By Bobi NYC

1
Cady Coleman: Sharing Space 39:29

10M ago39:29

39:29

Sharing her experiences of three space missions – including 159 days as the only woman on the 6-person crew of the International Space Station – Cady Coleman also shares lessons about getting along:valuable insights for the rest of us down here on earth.By Bobi NYC

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