[Swprograms] Podding Along - Issue 99

[John Figliozzi <jfiglio1@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Most radio listening takes place in the car or while doing other things that allow freedom for the ear, but not the eyes and hands.  Podcasts permit a shift of listening time from a set appointment to virtually any convenient occasion.   
I do it while âpower walkingâ (most) every other day (when itâs not cold and wet or I havenât succumbed to laziness).  The âartâ of putting one foot in front of the other can be pretty monotonous and by âpodding alongâ while plodding along the mind also gets something useful to do. 

Some of the best radio comes from the public networks of the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and the U.S.  Apart from the originating programâs web site, most programs are made available through any number of other amalgamation sources such as iTunes and TuneIn. 

Admittedly, these are thoroughly subjective recommendations, but my interests and tolerance for incompatible views are pretty wide-ranging. Hereâs another in a continuing series of small samplings:

-----

âWhy Canât We Stop Looking at Our Phones?â
THE INQUIRY - BBC World Service
Our phones are powerful tools with lots of benefits â keeping in touch, accessing information and services and managing our lives. We are using them more and more, constantly picking them up. Even insituations where it is considered inappropriate, disadvantageous, or even dangerous, many people still find it hard to resist the urge to check their smartphones. Why do we find these mini computers in our pockets so compelling?  Our expert witnesses explain how tech developers are tapping into established behavioural psychology theories about what gets us hooked. We hear how experiments conducted on pigeons can help explain why we cannot resist checking to see whether we have got email or a new like on social media and we reveal the tricks that companies use to keep us coming back for more. (23â)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04svtlv

âMegaHertzâ
WIRELESS NIGHTS - BBC Radio 4
Jarvis Cocker navigates the ether as he continues his nocturnal exploration of the human condition.  On a night voyage across a sea of shortwave he meets those who broadcast, monitor and harvest electronic radio transmissions after dark.  Paddy McAloon, founder of the band Prefab Sprout, took to trawling the megahertz when he was recovering from eye surgery and the world around him became dark. Tuning in at night he developed a ghostly romance with far off voices and abnormal sounds.  Artist Katie Paterson and 'Moonbouncer' Peter Blair send Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata to the moon and back, to find sections of it swallowed up by craters.  Journalist Colin Freeman was captured by the Somali pirates he went to report on and held hostage in a cave. But when one of them loaned him a shortwave radio, the faint signal to the outside world gave him hope as he dreamed of freedom.  And "London Shortwave" hides out in a park after dark, with his ear to the speaker on his radio, slowly turning the dial to reach all four corners of the earth.  Jarvis sails in and out of their stories - from the cosmic to the captive - as he wonders what else is out there, deep in the noise. (28â)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08k1y9j

__ __

A monthly compendium of these newsletters, plus on occasion additional pertinent material, is now published in The CIDX Messenger, the monthly e-newsletter of the Canadian International DX Club (CIDX).  For further information, go to www.cidx.ca

Good listening!

John Figliozzi
Editor, "The Worldwide Listening Guide"
7th edition available from Universal Radio, Amazon, W5YI.com and Ham Radio Outlet


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