Pulitzer Prize and Oscar-winning director and journalist Mstyslav Chernov joins to discuss his new documentary, "2000 Meters to Adriivka." The film follows an assault brigade of Ukrainian soldiers fighting to take back control of the small village of Adriivka. "2000 Meters to Adriivka" is in theaters today, and will premiere on PBS later this year.

*This episode is guest-hosted by Tiffany Hanssen.

This week, two conversations from the archives about parts of the world that are imperceptible to us, verging on almost unthinkable. We start with a moment of uncertainty in physics. Inspired by an essay written by physicist and novelist Alan Lightman, called The Accidental Universe (https://zpr.io/4965dUdNqtpQ), taken from a book of the same name. Former Radiolab co-host Robert Krulwich pays a visit to Brian Greene to ask if the latest developments in theoretical physics spell a crisis for science. He finds that we've reached the limit of what we can see and test, and we’re left with mathematical equations that can't be verified by experiments or observation.

Then, come along as we kick rocks and end up tumbling down a philosophical rabbit hole where the solid things around us might not be solid at all. We talk to Jim Holt, author of Why Does the World Exist? (https://zpr.io/UqHpLnDx2QNx) who points out that when you start slicing and sleuthing in subatomic particle land, trying to get to the bottom of what makes matter, you mostly find empty space. Your hand, your chair, the floor, it's all made up of mostly nothing. Robert and Jim go toe-to-toe over whether the universe is made up of solid bits and pieces of stuff, or a cloudy foundation that more closely resembles thoughts and ideas.

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In a new documentary, the likes of Bjork and David Byrne attest to the influence and importance of pioneering multi-disciplinary artist Meredith Monk. The film follows Monk, now in her 80s, as she creates her latest immersive work. "Monk in Pieces" will open in theaters on July 25. Meredith Monk joins us alongside director Billy Shebar.

Meg Wolitzer presents two stories about the things she loves most: books and words and why they matter. In Ben Loory’s “The Book,” a contrarian volume becomes a literary sensation, and alters one woman’s life. The reader is Jane Kaczmarek. In “Things I Know to be True” by Kendra Fortmeyer, originally published in One Story, a damaged veteran uses words to hold his life together. The reader is Calvin Leon Smith. And in a special feature, Wolitzer visits a favorite indie bookstore, Three Lives & Company: http://threelives.com/who.html The Greenwich Village icon, which was founded in the 1980s, is a haven for readers, writers, and book lovers of all kinds. Michael Cunningham calls it “One of the greatest bookstores on the face of the Earth. Every single person who works there is incredibly knowledgeable and well read and full of soul.” And you’ll meet some of them—and the books they treasure--on this show. 

Sure, you could spend hundreds of dollars to take your family to a Mets or a Yankees game. Or you could spend a fraction of that amount to experience the enduring goofiness of minor league baseball, which takes itself a lot less seriously -- and has more interesting food. Benjamin Hill covers the minor leagues for MiLB.com, and Rex Doane (who is a senior producer at WNYC by day) is a serious fan. They discuss the joys of minor league baseball.

The new film "Videoheaven" presents a kind of video-essay about the history of on-screen portrayals of video stores, now mostly extinct. Writer and director Alex Ross Perry, who himself worked at Kim's Video, discusses the film alongside editor Clyde Folley. "Videoheaven" will screen on August 12 at Alamo Drafthouse, with a Q&A with Perry to follow.

Gigi Perez is a singer and songwriter from Florida, and at 25 years old, she’s already had so many ups and downs in her music career. She started sharing her songs on TikTok, where they got enough attention that she got signed to a major label deal, but that ultimately didn’t pan out. Soon after that, as an independent artist again, she had her biggest breakout hit, with “Sailor Song.” She released it in July 2024, and it went viral on TikTok. Now, it has over a billion streams on Spotify alone, and it’s a part of her new album, which came out in April 2025. In this episode, you’ll hear how the song evolved, from her first voice memo to the final version, which she recorded in her childhood bedroom. I talked to Gigi about how “Sailor Song” came about, and about all the different parts of herself that she put into it—her faith, grief, desire, and more. 

For more info, visit songexploder.net/gigi-perez.

Actor Casey Likes stars in the new off-Broadway revival of "Heathers: The Musical," based on the 1988 teen crime comedy film. He talks about the show, the film it's based on, and why the musical is ripe for revival.