Arts & Life

Siddhartha Mukherjee: Can We Reimagine Our Approach To Treating Disease?

9:57am December 22, 2017

by NPR/TED Staff

When it comes to medicine, one rule of thinking has generally prevailed: Have disease, take pill, kill something. But physician Siddhartha Mukherjee says treatment should take a broader approach.

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Atul Gawande: Medicine Has Become A Team Sport — So How Do We Treat It Like One?

9:57am December 22, 2017

by NPR/TED Staff

Surgeon Atul Gawande says doctors used to know and do everything themselves — like craftsmen, or cowboys. But those days are over. He argues for creating systems where clinicians all work together.

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Joseph Ravenell: Could Barbershops Become The New Doctor's Office?

9:57am December 22, 2017

by NPR/TED Staff

Many black men trust their barber more than their primary care doctor, if they even have one. Physician Joseph Ravenell wants to turn barbershops into a place where men can access basic health care.

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Our gift to you this holiday season is a list full of podcasts to keep you from getting bored during holiday travel time.

Arts

NPR's Ultimate Podcast Wish List For The Holidays

9:15am December 22, 2017

by Emily Barocas

Sitting in traffic? Stuck on a plane? Here's a podcast playlist for all your holiday needs, delivered in poem form.

Vicky Krieps as Alma and Daniel Day-Lewis as Reynolds Woodcock in Phantom Thread.

Arts

Impeccable 'Phantom Thread' Doesn't Drop A Stitch

8:53am December 22, 2017

by Scott Tobias

Paul Thomas Anderson's film about a London dressmaker in the 1950s is "a rare combination of audacity and precision, impeccably tailored yet full of mystery and magic," says critic Scott Tobias.

Arts

The Art Of Gift Wrapping

4:55am December 22, 2017

Professional gift wrapper Mia Canada says she used to be a gift bag person. But that all changed after a seasonal job opportunity allowed her to explore the creative side of wrapping presents.

Books
Arts

The 25th Anniversary Of David Sedaris Reading 'Santaland Diaries'

4:55am December 22, 2017

by David Sedaris

Before he became a best-selling writer and humorist, David Sedaris worked as a department store elf. We bring you the 25th anniversary of David Sedaris reading from his essay "Santaland Diaries."

After a recent fire scare, visiting reindeer Lightning, front, and Holiday were removed from the Santa Barbara Zoo.

Rounding Up Reindeer: Zoo Prepares To Evacuate As Fire Burns Close

5:40pm December 21, 2017

by Stephanie O'Neill

As the massive Thomas Fire burs in California, the Santa Barbara Zoo's elaborate evacuation plan involves 150 species, tranquilizers and maybe even throwing a towel over an alligator's head.

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Mediocre Meaty Ogre: Joel Edgerton is an orc named Nick, Will Smith is a human named Daryl in Netflix's Bright.

Arts

Will Smith Plays Cops-And-Monsters In Unremarkable 'Bright'

5:10pm December 21, 2017

by Chris Klimek

Smith is a police officer paired with an orc (Joel Edgerton) in this fantasy-inflected buddy-cop movie that's "lazy but not boring" and "perfectly, stubbornly mediocre."

(L to R) Udo Kier as Konrad, Paul (Matt Damon), and Dusan (Christoph Waltz) in Downsizing.

Arts

'Downsizing': A Tone-Deaf, Less-Than-Incredible Shrinking Satire

5:01pm December 21, 2017

by Andrew Lapin

Director/co-writer Alexander Payne's film is "the rare movie that seems to execute every part of its concept absolutely wrong; a narrative, tonal, visual and sociopolitical fiasco."