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Interesting Tech-Related Online Talk Radio?
kabrakan writes "Finding myself in an extremely boring tech job, I find the best way to pass the time is to listen to someone speak, specifically an interesting conversation about science, or a comedian. After exhausting NPR's database, could anyone recommend any online repositories of spoken word entertainment, especially talk in the technology world?"
A lot of it ends up being pseudo-science at best (but still somewhat interesting), but Coast To Coast AM (Art Bell, George Noory) does In fact have some real scientists on. They have a 3+ month archive of their old shows in, get this, MP3 format. It does have a $6.99 monthly fee. Obviously a lot of it is annoying rubish, but some is actually pretty good. I enjoy the show, but I've really only bought into one of the conspiracy theory/UFO/ghost topics.
Somewhat real scientists that have been on the show (And are In the current archive):
Paul Davies - Understanding the Universe
Brian Greene - Physics of the Universe
Kevin Mitnick - Hacking A To Z
Robert Hogg - JPL robotics engineer - The State of Robotics
And others...
The MP3s are great for listening to at work and have most/all of the commercials removed.
And then of course, you get all of the great tinfoil hat callers. It's also good for falling asleep to at night.
Casual Games/Downloads
the friggin Martians invaded. That was it for me.
No....perhaps we should start one. Slashdot.radio?
try 2600. They keep archives of their show "Off the Hook."
NJOY
Yeah, check out www.geekradio.com. We're about technology.
Another collection for you to exhaust:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/
The next question from you will be:
Dear slashdot, I got outsourced to India because I listened to the radio and didnt do any work. What should I do with all my free time?
Love,
Your favorite turd burglar?
If slashdotters knew where to find interesting tech news, they wouldn't be slashdotters.
I kid, I kid..... mostly
Click here for a free picture of an iPod!
It's more science than tecnology perse but a great show and they even have stuff in Ogg.
2) Point it here
3) Sit back and enjoy.
-S
--- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
You can typically buy them at most bookstores, or find them at your public library. Surprisingly, many libraries have very good resources for spoken word tapes and CDs... I think maybe this was once related to having books for people with poorer eyesight. Good luck!
Leo Laporte has a question and answer call-in show that he archives at the blog for the radio show. The downloads can be found at the bottom of the show notes.
http://www.popularculturegaming.com -- my blog about the culture of videogame players
And how could I ever forget Geeks in Space. No new content in a long time, but some classics in there. Hey Slashdot guys, when are you going to bring us a new episode?
If you want something to make you laugh try LugRadio.
There's also The Linux Link Tech Show.
You can get physics lectures on tape to listen to. I once borrowed lectures by Stephen Hawking, and Richard Fineman from a friend. The Fineman ones were great, but I can't find a link. The Hawking ones were good too, if you could stand the computer voice for hours on end.
Someone who beta-tested Unix games while in grade school, *and* she's, well, female... and you have no interest?
Please don't take this the wrong way, but are you gay?
Have a look at audio books. There are some really good audio books available and while the better ones are usually fiction, there are some nice nonfiction ones too -- mostly history books. Try downloading some using amule to see if you like the style (oops, did I just suggest copyright infringment?) There are sites where you can buy the books for about $5 each.
Every now and then I tune into old episodes of Jim Cramer's financial news radio show at TheStreet.com in the upper right... he's also a commentator on CNBC, voice is a little harsh but given that he made his millions in funds (not communications), I'll listen. You'll have to fill out a registration, and then you can stream in a RealAudio feed of yesterday's ep anytime. I happen to like his witty style of digging into bad companies, and he relly seems more of a "watchdog" when it comes to tech stocks... plus it's better to learn how to invest your money (by someone on the radio) than being told where to invest.
Other than that, New York's WABC 770AM offers a free feed here. The afternoon crowd gets a bit too old school conservative for my liking, but Monica Crowley has her "get the government out" libertarian moments. Oh, they also carry the Drudge Report on Sunday Nights... always an interesting show.
cartalk.com
Informative AND funny - very entertaining even if you aren't a gearhead. They back up almost all their stuff with sound engineering and science.
Taco: "First-time caller, you're on the air--"
Caller: "Frist p0st!" *click*
Taco: "Okay, caller #2, you're on--"
Caller: "GNAA owns the radio waves--"
Taco: "Moving right along. Caller #3, you're on the air with Slashdot radio. What's on your mind?"
Caller: "I for one welcome our new GNAA overlords--"
Taco: "Fucking hell. Is there a single sane individual out there?"
It might not be an option if you work in an office but I work at home and I like to listen to DVD commentaries.
Put on the commentary for a film you like, especially if you like the actor/director who is doing the commentary, and two hours are gone before you know it.
IT Conversations has a bunch of interesting IT audio content. Well, interesting if you want to listen to people like Bruce Schneier, Tim O'Reilly, Joe Trippi, Philip Greenspun and Steve McConnell.
Actually, if you are looking for hard core science, you could check out the The KITP lecture archives. They are hard science lectures covering some really cutting edge stuff. Now while about 85% is well over my head, there are lots of "overview" lectures (and slides) in there that I found really interesting. A great little treasure trove of science.
Antioch Radio. You get old radio serials from the 30s and 40s, including Sci Fi shows.
When they came for the communists, I said "He's next door. Take him away. Goddam commies."
How about:
- panel discussions from the H2K2 conference.
- a college course on SF and Fantasy literature.
- the DV Guys focus on the art and tech of video production. (Terrible bumper music. Just suffer through it)
- The Teaching Company has some fantastic for-pay courses on CD and DVD.
- Lastly, I gotta mention The Infidel Guy. The focus is on atheism, so it's not for everyone, but there are some great interviews in the archives with people such as Massimo Pigliucci, Michael Shermer, Paul Kurtz, and Michio Kaku. Lots of contorversial and thought provoking talk on the subject of religion, philosophy, and science.