Reports about science, technology, medicine, the Arts, and business. 

NPR/PRI stories

Animals Aloud is a podcast about the complex human bond with other species.  
In each episode, we take talk to celebrities, biologists, veterinarians, musicians, storytellers and others about such weighty topics as --Why birds sing;  Why bees like Van Gogh; or really important stuff like How to keep your dog out of the punch bowl. 
Sometimes funny, sometimes poignant, always informative.  
Curl up with your cat, get out the dog treats and listen up. 
 

Animals Aloud

Intel's "Future Lab" Podcast

This story aired on NPR's Morning Edition on Memorial Day 1998. 
Hasbro made this special GI Joe action figure that looks like a U.S. Nisei soldier. It's a tribute to the young Japanese-Americans who fought for the U.S. in Europe.
 
One veteran I spoke to enlisted with his three brothers and all were injured; while their parents were in concentration camps in Arizona.  Will post that interview soon. 

Nisei GI Joe NPR

In 2008, clashes broke out between police and demonstrators in Copenhagen.  This is one of several stories I covered in Denmark. 

Danish Riots NPR Spot

There is often confusion about the various advance care planning forms available, including advance directives, Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) forms and Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) forms. In this episode of The Talk, family physicians discuss the differences between these documents and how they can help patients understand and complete them, as well as contemplate and make clear their medical wishes in advance of a terminal diagnosis or health care crisis.  (c)2016 deirdrekennedy All rights reserved

"The Talk" 2 Advance Care Planning

Computer graphics programs can generate extremely realistic images for games and films.  But the sound FX that bring those images to life are still made the old fashioned way -- by recording sounds from real life and manipulating them to fit the image.  Researchers for Intel Labs are trying to generate sound from scratch. 

We talk to Doug James, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science, Cornell University;  Pat Hanrahan, Canon USA, Professor, Stanford University;  and John Owens, Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at U.C. Davis

Creating Virtual Sound

Science writer Erik Vance succumbed to the excitement of petting a baby gray whale (not this one)while doing research on ecotourism for his story, “Stewards of the Sea” for the September issue of National Geographic. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/09/baja-mexico-marine-conservation-tourism-fish-sharks-whales/

You can the full interview with Erik Vance soon on KQED's California Report and on Deirdre Kennedy's podcast "Animals Aloud."  Stay Tuned.

Petting a gray whale

This story aired on NPR's Day to Day program.  It was one of my tougher assignments.  I had to go hang out with a herd of fluffy docile alpacas on a farm near Santa Barbara for a day. Hand feeding them mulberry leaves.   
In the mid-2000s, many people out West who had some acreage to spare decided to "invest" in the alpaca market.  They were trying to cash in on the growing market for a better breed of alpacas whose amazingly soft wool would take over the garment industry. 
Some alpaca sires were selling for more than $100k in 2006.  Crazy yes?  
For the people who bought them.   The alpacas were no worse for the wear.  They got to hang out in sunny California and be treated like royalty.

NPR Alpaca Bubble

Opioids were involved in the deaths of more than 42,000 people across the U.S. in 2016. That number was five times higher than in 1999.  The states with the highest overdose rates were West Virginia, Ohio, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky.

KQED Heroin Epidemic Pt 1 Of 2

(This is Part 2 of a 2-part series on San Francisco’s heroin crisis  that I produced in 1996.) 
Twenty years ago, California had one of the highest rates of drug-overdose deaths in the nation with its epicenter in San Francisco. Although the rate continued to climb by 30% between 1999 and 2015, when compared to other states like West Virginia, where the rate has climbed by 975% over the same period, California now has the lowest rate in the U.S. 
According to the New York Times, the reason could be that the black tar heroin used by addicts in the West can’t be easily cut with fentanyl – a powerful painkiller that’s been linked to the spike in opiate deaths on the East Coast.

KQED Heroin  Pt2

When that 7.1 earthquake hit San Francisco in 1989, I was standing on West Grand in Oakland watching a double deck freeway collapse, crushing dozens of people inside vehicles. That's me in the photo holding up the lady in white with my friend Robyn in front of us.
Ten years later, I interviewed two men who were also there that day. One of them nearly died. Here's our story.

LomaPrietaQuake10yrsAfter

All those creepy bugs you see on screen -- like maggots, flies, and roaches -- they're not all computer generated. Some of them are totally real. They don't get scooped out of any old trash can. They're "animal actors" who are carefully bred and raised by scientists. A few years ago, I visited an Insectory north of Los Angeles where the little stars are born. This originally aired on KQED FM. Usage rights were cleared.

Celebrity Bugs

Well, apparently it’s not just people who have opinions about art.  Animals do too.  I’m not just talking about pigeons leaving their comments on public sculptures.  Some Bees in Britain chose Van Gogh’s Sunflowers as their favorite painting.  
Researchers at the University of London conducted the experiment.  We talked to its co-designer, Artist Julian Walker, and he described how the bees scored as art critics.

VanGoghBees

Animals Aloud host Deirdre Kennedy interviews Dogster & Catster founder Ted Rheingold 
Rheingold created his pet portfolio empire almost by accident, to entertain his then girlfriend.  He now heads a multi-media empire for dog and cat lovers.  

Dogster Rheingold

Snakes, lizards, spiders and other exotic animals can be fascinating; but do you really want a 30 foot snake slithering around your house?  Reptile expert Owen Maerks let me hold a mid-sized boa constrictor and she decided to take a stroll with me attached.  Maerks talks with us about keeping exotic animal pals. 

Fascinating Reptiles

In their book, "Learning to Quit," authors Suzanne Harris, RN and Paul Brunetta, MD former smokers including themselves, share their personal stories of getting free of tobacco and how it transformed their lives. They offer strategies for quitting and sound medical info. In this clip, Suzanne Harris offers hope and encouragement to smokers who are not sure they're ready to quit.

Quit Smoking You're Worth It

In her book, "The Lady and the Panda"  author Vicki Croke tells the true story of Ruth Harkness -- a New York socialite who captured a baby panda in China's wilderness and brought the small cub back to the U.S. in 1936.  Before then, pandas were believed to be mythical creatures like unicorns, that didn't really exist in nature.  Croke explores the fascination with pandas and the role Harkness played in their near extinction and ultimate preservation.  
 

The Lady and the Panda

In this excerpt from her book, Learning to Quit, smoking cessation expert Suzanne Harris, RN talks about the adventure of beginning a brand new life without cigarettes. Harris and co-author, Paul Brunetta, MD are both former smokers who have developed a compassionate, non-judgmental method for helping smokers quit. The book includes stories from former smokers that guide you through quitting and help you stay quit.

Learning to Quit, e-book and paperback Now on Amazon.com 

"Quit Smoking. You're Worth It"

Author Suzanne Harris talks about the importance of having the right mindset about why you are quitting smoking to maintain your motivation.
This is an excerpt of my interview with her from December 2018.

Jarvis Jay Masters has been sitting on death row at San Quentin for more than twenty years.  In his book "That Bird Has My Wings,"  he writes about his experiences in prison and his conversion to Buddhism.  Masters' literary agent Sarah Jane Freymann visited him on death row recently and talks about his gift for weaving inspirational stories out of his experiences.  This feature includes a reading from his book. 

"Jarvis Masters Story Teller" - interview with literary agent Sarah Jane Freymann

Why do bird songs resemble Miles Davis's compositions? Why do birds pick up songs from other birds?  Philosopher and clarinet player David Rothenberg discovered the answers when he travelled around the globe to play duets with wild song birds.  This feature originally aired on Animals Aloud on XM Satellite radio. 
Learn more about our show on http://www.animalsaloud.net 
 

WhyBirdsSing David Rothenberg

I filed this story from Sweden, where more than 30,000 Iraqi refugees live. The Scandinavian nation opened its doors to more Iraq war refugees than any other Western country, including the US.  In 2008, Sweden's government decided to greatly reduce its refugee resettlement program, leaving some Iraqi families stranded in Sweden waiting for asylum. This story originally aired on Radio France International, and the PRI/BBC radio program The World.  It is archived at this link: http://www.pri.org/theworld/?q=node/20268 

The World:Sweden Iraq Refugees

Renown photographer Bruce Weber made a documentary film about his five golden retrievers called A Letter to True.  It's much more than a memorial to his dog True.  The film is a surprising look at Weber's many passions - from glamorous high fashion and beautiful models to gritty images of destruction and poverty in Haiti.  Weber talked to us about movie stars, music, war, and how his dogs taught him to be a better person.  

For the Love of Dog: an interview with photographer Bruce Weber

Thousands of miles of lost fishing line known as "ghost nets" have become death traps for seabirds, dolphins, and other marine animals.  US wildlife agencies have launched a major effort to clear out discarded nets from the waters of the Puget Sound near Seattle.  This story originally aired on NPR's Weekend Edition -- host Liane Hansen reads the introduction.  

NPR Ghost Nets: floating death traps for marine animals

This is a short clip in which I explain the history of electricity. It's from from a longer episode I produced for Intel's Future Lab podcast about how enormous Data Centers waste energy.

Intel's Future Lab Podcast Electricity Lesson

The film Black Power Mixtape compiles footage shot by Swedish TV reporters at the end of the 1960s. I interviewed its Swedish director, Goran Olsson, former Black Panther activist, Ericka Huggins. and others about the legacy of the Civil Rights movement.

More info on the film on IMDB:
 https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1592527/

The Black Power Movement, Through Swedish Eyes

US Data centers use about 2% of the nation's electricity -- enough to power more than 6.6 million homes for a year. In this episode of "Future Lab" -- tech companies explore ways to lower their carbon footprint.  All episodes available on iTunes -- (c)Deirdre Kennedy 2011
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/future-lab-radio/id388026794

Kennedy Data Centers

I love recreating stories and experiences with sound. I've produced news and radio features for NPR, BBC World Service, Deutsche Welle, PRI, Radio France International and other broadcast networks. I create podcasts for corporate and individual clients and I also produce interviews and segments for shows like Reveal, Pop-Up Magazine, Seeing White, Intel's Future Lab podcast, TechNation, Newsweek.com, California HealthLine, California Academy of Family Physicians, and many others.  I created and hosted a weekly show called "Animals Aloud" which ran on XM Satellite radio for 2 seasons distributed it as a podcast on iTunes, Yahoo, and other podcast services. I have taught podcasting workshops since 2004.

DeirdreKennedy

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