Science & Technology

Critic Owen Gleiberman reviews Edward Scissorhands, the new movie directed by Tim Burton, starring Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder. Gleiberman says the film shows Burton's artistry taking a new leap.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer joins Fresh Air to talk about the scientific and cultural history of the Red Planet. He advocates for robotic and human exploration of Mars -- an endeavor that would lead to greater technological innovations and international cooperation.

Scientist Barry Commoner, founder and director of the Center for the Biology of Natural Systems in New York. For years Commoner has been at the forefront of the ecology movement. "Time" magazine once dubbed him the "Paul Revere of Ecology." Early on he crusaded about the dangers of nuclear fallout. In 1970 he helped organize the first Earth Day, and a year later published "The Closing Circle," an examination of the affect of technology on the environment.

Lester Brown, president of the Worldwatch Institute, a Washington-based think tank that monitors the state of the environment. The Institute has just issued it's 7th annual "State of the World" report. Brown's been nicknamed "Doctor Doom," for his dire predictions about subjects such as the dwindling forests and the global warming trend. But critics use that term less and less these days as more of Brown's predictions have come true. The 1990 edition of "State of the World" is published by Norton. (Part 2 of a two-part interview.

Lester Brown, president of the Worldwatch Institute, a Washington-based think tank that monitors the state of the environment. The Institute has just issued it's 7th annual "State of the World" report. Brown's been nicknamed "Doctor Doom," for his dire predictions about subjects such as the dwindling forests and the global warming trend. But critics use that term less and less these days as more of Brown's predictions have come true. The 1990 edition of "State of the World" is published by Norton. (Part 1 of a two-part interview.

Gladys Hansen is the archivist for the city of San Francisco. She's just written "Denial of Disaster," a book about the 1906 earthquake which corrects misinformation perpetuated about the quake.

Denis Hayes, the chairman of Earth Day 1990, a one day world-wide demonstration calling attention to the planet's environmental problems. Hayes organized the first Earth Day back in 1970. That event is credited with launching the environmental movement in the U.S. Since that first Earth Day, Hayes founded Environmental Action, was a senior fellow at the Worldwatch Institute, and did extensive work on solar energy. More recently, he's been a visiting professor at Stanford University. Earth Day 1990 is scheduled for April 22, 1990, 20 years to the day after the first Earth Day.

Paleontologist and evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould. Gould is a professor of geology and curator at the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard. He writes columns for "Natural History Magazine" and "Discover Magazine," and has written several books, including the award-winning "The Mismeasure of Man." Gould uses his writing and teaching to illuminate and demystify the scientific method and to provide a historical perspective on science for the layman.

Physicist James Trefil. His writings have been praised for bringing the complexities of modern science to the general reader. One of his best-known books, Meditations At Sunset, won wide praise for his ability to explain the wonders of the physical world in ways the layman can comprehend. His other books include The Moment of Creation and Meditations at 10,000 Feet. His latest book, Reading The Mind of God, explores the sequence of events that led to the discovery of universality - the principle that the laws of nature on earth apply throughout the universe.

Bill Joy. He's a founder and Vice President of Research and Development for Sun Microsystems, one of the most innovative and successful computer companies. He imagines the computer of 14 years from now, a machine he calls the "2001 computer." It will be a phenomenally fast machine (128,000 times the speed of current computers), with a memory capacity the equivalent of 300,000 books, all fitting into the size of a sugar cube. (Interview with Sedge Thomson)

Writer John McPhee. He's a classic example of a "writer's writer," one whose style is endlessly studied and mimicked, and whose effortlessness in moving between subjects as diverse as Alaskan geology, oranges, and birch-bark canoes is the envy of every freelancer. He's worked at The New Yorker magazine since the late 60s and is one of its most popular contributors.

Bioacoustics researcher and field recordist Bernie Krause. Krause has a new album called "Gorillas in the Mix." It features selections from new age to dance tunes. What makes the album remarkable is that every sound on it is from nature. Krause recorded and mixed together whales, apes, insects, the sound of shifting sands, and hundreds of other natural sources. Krause was a Motown session musician in the 60s, before earning a Ph.D. in bioacoustics.

Commentator Stewart Brand reports on his first journey through cyberspace, a type of three-dimensional computer-generated world that humans can `fly through' by simply pointing a finger. Brand traces the evolution of Cyberspace through recent fiction.

On the eve of the 20th anniversary of man's first walk on the moon, commentator Stewart Brand shares his thoughts on space exploration and how it has changed us. Brand is founder of The Whole Earth Catalog.

Some people bemoan the use of computer language to describe human behavior. But linguist Geoff Nunberg says the trend works both ways: we often discuss technology in anthropomorphic terms -- but only when it malfunctions.

Ted Schultz edited a new book called The Fringes of Reason, which compiles conflicting opinions of supernatural, New Age, and cosmological world views. Schultz is now studying entomology, which he says is related to his curiosity about what is and isn't real.

Lester Brown is the president of the Worldwatch Institute. The organization's latest State of the World report looks into the greenhouse effect, deforestation, and rising sea levels, among other troubling trends. Brown joins Fresh Air to discuss the causes of these phenomena, whether they'll cause permanent changes, and how we can mitigate their effects.

Book critic John Leonard says poet Brad Leithauser writes difficult fiction. The author's new novel, Hence, features an apocalyptic view of the modern world. Leonard calls it a contradictory book filled with Nabokovian cleverness.

New Yorker staff writer Alex Shoumatoff has a new book of essays called African Madness, about his travels throughout the continent. He joins Fresh Air to talk about the brutal reign of Emperor Bokassa in the Central African Republic, Dian Fossey's blind spots regarding the human populations near gorilla habitats, and the spread of AIDS.

Book critic John Leonard reviews African Madness, a new collection of travel essays by Alex Shumatoff, a New Yorker staff writer who seeks to capture the changing face of sub-Saharan African.