Please Explain (The Leonard Lopate Show)

By WNYC

What's Please Explain (The Leonard Lopate Show) about?

In Please Explain, we set aside time every Friday afternoon to get to the bottom of one complex issue. Ever wonder how New York City's water system works? Or how the US became so polarized politically? We'll back up and review the basic facts and principles of complicated issues across a broad range of topics — history, politics, science, you name it.

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Please Explain (The Leonard Lopate Show) episodes:

12.08.2017
How To Sniff Like A Dog
For this week’s Please Explain, we’re following dogs as they sniff their way through the world with their incredible sense of smell. Alexandra Horowitz, who teaches canine cognition and creative nonfiction at Barnard College and runs the Horowitz Dog Cognition...
12.01.2017
What's Your Cat Really Thinking?
How did cats get domesticated? Why are they so popular on the internet? Are they good or evil? If you have wanted to know the answers to these questions, and more, tune in to our latest Please Explain, which is all...
11.17.2017
We Get Fired Up Over Peppers
There are over 200 varieties of peppers, ranging from shishitos to habaneros. For our latest Please Explain, we dig into the world (and health benefits) of peppers with three-time James Beard Award-winning chef, culinary historian and author Maricel Presilla. She’s the...
11.10.2017
Why Vinegar Deserves More Credit As An Ingredient
Vinegar often plays an essential role in the food we eat. We use it in everything from baking to braising to pickling. But, author Michael Harlan Turkell writes that vinegar is "underappreciated and little understood." For his new book Acid Trip: Travels in the...
11.03.2017
The Secrets Behind Succulent Sauces
For this week’s Please Explain, James Peterson stops by to talk sauces. He’s an award-winning food writer, cookbook author, photographer and cooking teacher who started his career as a restaurant cook in Paris in the 1970s. His book, Sauces: Classical...
10.27.2017
How To Go Vegan
Our first Food Fridays Please Explain kicks off with vegan cooking! Ronen Seri and Pamela Elizabeth are the co-founders behind the vegan restaurant franchise Blossom and the authors of The Blossom Cookbook: Classic Favorites from the Restaurant That Pioneered a...
10.20.2017
How To Succeed Even If You're An Introvert
For our latest Please Explain, we explore what it means to be an introvert and what pressures they face when advancing their careers. We're joined by Morra Aarons-Mele, an internet marketer who has launched online campaigns for President Obama, Malala Yousafzai,...
10.13.2017
How Addiction Works
For this week's Please Explain, we explore how science is giving us a better understanding of how addiction works, and what that means for how we think about and treat it. We're joined by Fran Smith, author of "The Science of Addiction," National Geographic Magazine's...
10.06.2017
How The First Amendment Works
In a time when the president is openly attacking the press for negative stories and neo-Nazis in Charlottesville are claiming freedom of speech while protesting the removal of Confederate monuments, this week’s Please Explain is all about the First Amendment....
09.29.2017
What Happens When We Sleep?
People spend about one-third of their lives asleep, but what actually happens when we close our eyes and begin to dream? For this week’s Please Explain we are joined by Wallace Mendelson to better help us understand. Mendelson is the...
09.22.2017
What Happens When A Dog Drinks Water?
Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher join us to talk about their book Furry Logic: The Physics of Animal Life for our latest Please Explain about how our pets use science to survive. We explore the physics behind everything from how dogs...
09.15.2017
What's The Future Of DACA?
For this week's Please Explain, we’re discussing DACA with Hasan Shafiqullah, Attorney-In-Charge of the Immigration Law Unit at The Legal Aid Society. We're also joined by Pamela Resendiz, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico City, Mexico, and a community organizer who advocates...
09.08.2017
How Legal Pot Could Be Monopolized
Cities and states across the country are either decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana. As the cultural shift toward accepting pot progresses, we chat with journalist Amanda Chicago Lewis for our latest Please Explain about what this means for consumers, and how the industry could...
08.25.2017
Protecting Yourself Against Identity Theft
For this week’s Please Explain, we explore a crime that affects millions of Americans each year: Identity theft. We're joined by Axton Betz-Hamilton, an assistant professor of consumer affairs at South Dakota State University, to discuss how easy it is for...
08.18.2017
Why We Love To Run
For our next Please Explain, Vybarr Cregan-Reid jogs us through the basics of running. Cregan-Reid, who authored the book Footnotes: How Running Makes Us Human, reveals how running reconnects us to our bodies and helps us cleanse our minds. He explores the...
08.11.2017
All The Light We Cannot See
Our latest Please Explain is about invisible currents that exist all around us with Bob Berman, author of the book Zapped: From Infrared to X-Rays, the Curious History of Invisible Light. Do you have questions about x-rays or microwaves? Wondering about the upcoming solar eclipse...
08.04.2017
Why Coral Is Dying Around The World
For this week’s Please Explain we explore the critical role coral reefs play in marine life and how they’re threatened by “coral bleaching," which is a sign of mass coral death. We’ll be joined by Jeff Orlowski, director of the...
07.28.2017
Become A Food Preserving Pro!
In a pickle over how to make the best preserves? Don't worry! Our latest Please Explain is all about preserving with Emily Paster, author of The Joys of Jewish Preserving: Modern Recipes with Traditional Roots, for Jams, Pickles, Fruit Butters, and More--for...
07.21.2017
Don't Bug Out! The Secret World Of Insects
For this week’s Please Explain! we explore the creepy-crawly world of insects with journalist David MacNeal. His latest book Bugged: The Insects Who Rule the World and the People Obsessed with Them looks at the critical role insects play in nature and in...
07.14.2017
How To Cut The Clutter And Get Organized
If your desk is a total mess, today’s Please Explain is meant for YOU! We tackle the crucial, yet all-so-difficult task, of getting organized, with Amanda Sullivan, author of Organized Enough: The Anti-Perfectionist's Guide to Getting -- and Staying -- Organized.
07.07.2017
What's Your Cat Thinking About?
Our latest Please Explain is all about the psychology and social evolution of cats with Thomas McNamee, author of The Inner Life of Cats: The Science and Secrets of Our Mysterious Feline Companions. Do you have questions about your cat's behavior?...
06.30.2017
The Yucky Stuff You've Always Wondered About
Dr. William Reisacher, an Otolaryngic Allergist and Assistant Professor of Otorhinolaryngology and the Director of Allergy at Weill Cornell Medicine, will be here to answer your burning questions about bodily fluids – specifically those of the ear, nose and throat region. His...
06.23.2017
Protecting Yourself From Ticks and Lyme Disease
Dr. Richard S. Ostfeld, Senior Scientist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, joins us for our latest Please Explain on ticks and Lyme disease. As global temperatures rise, there is an increasing prevalence of ticks, and tick-borne diseases, across...
06.16.2017
The Shocking Truth About Lightning
For this week’s Please Explain, we are joined by meteorologist Ronald Holle to understand how lightning works. Holle has spent decades studying lightning in places like Colorado and Florida. He explores lighting strikes, how they impact different parts of the world and why...
06.09.2017
The Science Of Success
Eric Barker is the author of Barking Up the Wrong Tree: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong. He joins us for our latest Please Explain on the Science of Success. In his book,...
06.02.2017
How Climate Change Will Alter Tides
For this week’s Please Explain, we’ll be talking about the mystery and magic of ocean tides with Jonathan White. He’s a marine conservationist, surfer and author of a new book called, Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean. White explores...
05.19.2017
How Daydreaming Can Help You Focus
Harvard psychiatrist and brain imaging researcher Dr. Srini Pillay will join us for this week’s Please Explain on focus, creativity and productivity. His latest book is Tinker Dabble Doodle Try: Unlock the Power of the Unfocused Mind. In the book,...
05.12.2017
The Buzz Around Honey And Beekeeping
We end Food Fridays on a sweet note with a Please Explain all about honey and beekeeping! We’ll learn about the many different varieties and flavors of honey, and find out why raw honey - although twice as sweet as...
04.28.2017
Exploring Spanish Cuisine
Our latest Please Explain is all about the variety and enduring creativity of Spanish food, including Basque food. We'll be joined by Alexandra Raij and Eder Montero, New York City-based chefs and owners of El Quinto Pino, La Vara, Tekoá, and Txikito,...
04.21.2017
The Secrets Of Pie Making
Our first Food Fridays Please Explain will be all about pies and pie making with Ron and Melissa Silver, co-owners of Bubby’s. Bubby's opened over 25 years ago as a wholesale pie business, but it has grown into a string...
04.14.2017
Making Cents Of America's Tax Code
Ever wonder how your tax dollars are spent? Or why the American tax code is filled with loopholes and special interest provisions that serve the interests of tax lawyers, accountants and huge corporations? T. R. Reid, a longtime correspondent for The...
04.07.2017
Understanding Psychosomatic Illness
For this week’s Please Explain, we discuss psychosomatic illnesses and the mind-body connection with Dr. Suzanne O’Sullivan. O'Sullivan is a neurologist and author of the book, Is It All in Your Head?: True Stories of Imaginary Illness. In her book, O’Sullivan chronicles the...
03.24.2017
How To Navigate the Open Seas
Our latest Please Explain is all about navigating the high seas and using water to help you find direction in your everyday life. We’ll hear from explorer and natural navigation expert Tristan Gooley, author of How to Read Water: Clues and Patterns...
03.17.2017
Spring is Coming. So Are Allergies.
‘Tis the season for sniffles. Millions of Americans suffer from allergies, seasonal and otherwise. For this week’s Please Explain, Dr. Clifford Bassett, the founder and medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York, joins us to explain what...
03.10.2017
What's At Stake With Clean Water Regulation Rollbacks?
Dave Owen, Professor of Law at U.C. Hastings, joins us for this week's Please Explain to discuss the history of clean water legislation and what's at stake as the EPA attempts to roll back established water regulations. A recent executive...
03.03.2017
Pulling the Curtain Back on NASA
This week's Please Explain is all about the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)! We pull back the curtain on the institution that explores the mysteries of our universe. Dr. Valerie Neal, curator, chair of the Space History Department at...
02.24.2017
Understanding CRISPR, the Sci-Fi-Esque Gene Editing Tool
Science journalist Jennifer Kahn joins us for this week’s Please Explain, which is all about CRISPR, an incredible tool that makes precise gene editing cheaper and easier than ever before. Researchers have used CRISPR to genetically engineer malaria-resistant mosquitoes and...
02.17.2017
Why Can't You Just Stop?
Sharon Begley, the senior science writer for STAT, joins us for our latest Please Explain on compulsions to discuss her latest book Can’t Just Stop: An Investigation of Compulsions. She explores the spectrum of compulsions afflicting many people, from checking...
02.10.2017
Demystifying That Four-Letter Word (Hint: It Starts with L)
Why do we fall in love with one person and not another? Is there such a thing as love at first sight? Today’s Please Explain is all about love and attraction! Dr. Helen Fisher, author, biological anthropologist and chief scientific advisor...
02.03.2017
How You Can Have a Say, In Politics and Your Community
Itching to do something that makes a real change, but not sure where to begin? This week's Please Explain with Ami Dar, founder and executive director of Idealist, and Alex Kouts, chief product officer at Countable, is all about social activism....
01.27.2017
Listening to Body Language
When is a shrug just a shrug? What are you really saying when you fold your arms across your chest? Whether we know it or not, we’re constantly conveying signals to other people through our body language and facial expressions....
01.13.2017
Oh, the Things Our Bodies Would Say
Jonathan Capehart guest hosts today! This week’s Please Explain is all about the weird and wonderful human body with James Hamblin, author of If Our Bodies Could Talk: A Guide to Operating and Maintaining a Human Body. Hamblin, an M.D., is...
01.06.2017
Why Fat Is So Misunderstood
Our latest Please Explain is all about fat with Dr. Sylvia Tara, author of The Secret Life of Fat: The Science Behind the Body's Least Understood Organ and What It Means for You. Dr. Tara argues that fat, an endocrine...
12.23.2016
Finding Light on the Darkest Day: The Winter Solstice & Yuletide
It's widely known that the modern celebration of Christmas has its origins in Pagan traditions. The Roman Saturnalia was celebrated by exchanging gifts and candles. But there's much more to the story than that. On this week’s Please Explain, we’re looking...
12.16.2016
A Deep Dive into Aquariums
As many of us know from childhood goldfish experiences, there’s a lot that can go wrong when it comes to keeping fish fed, safe, healthy and stimulated. Imagine how much effort it takes to run a successful aquarium, where thousands...
12.09.2016
What's Keeping You Up at Night?
Why can’t we sleep? The CDC estimates that 50 to 70 million U.S. adults have a sleep or wakefulness disorder, caused by "broad scale societal factors such as round-the-clock access to technology and work schedules, but sleep disorders such as insomnia...
12.02.2016
Behold the Wonders of Butter
Julia Child once said, "With enough butter, anything is good." Wise words because after all, where would we be without butter, the building block of hundreds of recipes, from flaky croissants to rich buttercream frosting? On this week’s Please Explain, we are...
11.18.2016
Have a Seat: The History of Chairs
This week's Please Explain has us on the edge of our seats! From the Klismos, to the Eames, we're talking about the history of chairs and chair design with Witold Rybczynski, an architect, writer and an emeritus professor of architecture...
11.11.2016
How the Electric Guitar Revolutionized Music
Where would music be without the electric guitar, the instrument that gave us everything from the quintessential rock n' roll sound of the 1960s, to hardcore punk, and face-melting metal? On this week's Please Explain, Brad Tolinski, former the editor-in-chief of Guitar...
11.04.2016
The Science of Cheese
Ever wonder why Swiss cheese has holes? Why are so many types of cheese yellow in color? Or, what kinds of milk are best for making cheese? Chemist Michael Tunick has spent almost three decades working with the USDA's Agricultural Research...

What's Please Explain (The Leonard Lopate Show) about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Please Explain (The Leonard Lopate Show) episodes:

How To Sniff Like A Dog

What's Your Cat Really Thinking?

We Get Fired Up Over Peppers

Why Vinegar Deserves More Credit As An Ingredient

The Secrets Behind Succulent Sauces

How To Go Vegan

How To Succeed Even If You're An Introvert

How Addiction Works

How The First Amendment Works

What Happens When We Sleep?

What Happens When A Dog Drinks Water?

What's The Future Of DACA?

How Legal Pot Could Be Monopolized

Protecting Yourself Against Identity Theft

Why We Love To Run

All The Light We Cannot See

Why Coral Is Dying Around The World

Become A Food Preserving Pro!

Don't Bug Out! The Secret World Of Insects

How To Cut The Clutter And Get Organized

What's Your Cat Thinking About?

The Yucky Stuff You've Always Wondered About

Protecting Yourself From Ticks and Lyme Disease

The Shocking Truth About Lightning

The Science Of Success

How Climate Change Will Alter Tides

How Daydreaming Can Help You Focus

The Buzz Around Honey And Beekeeping

Exploring Spanish Cuisine

The Secrets Of Pie Making

Making Cents Of America's Tax Code

Understanding Psychosomatic Illness

How To Navigate the Open Seas

Spring is Coming. So Are Allergies.

What's At Stake With Clean Water Regulation Rollbacks?

Pulling the Curtain Back on NASA

Understanding CRISPR, the Sci-Fi-Esque Gene Editing Tool

Why Can't You Just Stop?

Demystifying That Four-Letter Word (Hint: It Starts with L)

How You Can Have a Say, In Politics and Your Community

Listening to Body Language

Oh, the Things Our Bodies Would Say

Why Fat Is So Misunderstood

Finding Light on the Darkest Day: The Winter Solstice & Yuletide

A Deep Dive into Aquariums

What's Keeping You Up at Night?

Behold the Wonders of Butter

Have a Seat: The History of Chairs

How the Electric Guitar Revolutionized Music

The Science of Cheese