Energy Gluttons
The following audio clip is excerpted from the BackStory episode “From Whales to Wind: A History of Energy.” You can listen to the entire episode here. Historian David Nye discusses the origins of Americans’ ample appetites for energy. [Audio clip: view full post to listen] Excerpted from: From Whales to Wind: A History of Energy
The Age of Horses
The following audio clip is excerpted from the BackStory episode “From Whales to Wind: A History of Energy.” You can listen to the entire episode here. Historian Ann Norton Greene explains why the “Age of Steam” was also the Age of Horses. [Audio clip: view full post to listen] Excerpted from: From Whales to Wind: [...]
Justice on Horseback – Web Exclusive
This is a companion piece to BackStory‘s full-length episode, “Scales of Justice: A History of Supreme Court Nominations,” broadcast in June of 2010. Long before The People’s Court, there was circuit riding. In this piece, BackStory assistant producer Catherine Moore explores the earliest days of the Supreme Court, when Justices risked life and limb to [...]
From Whales to Wind: A History of Energy
In this episode, BackStory takes on big oil! And big trees, big water, big whales.. How have changing energy sources shaped the growth and decline of cities and towns? What are the social costs and benefits of new energy technologies?
Traffic: How We Get From Here to There
America’s story is one of migration and expansion. In this hour, we explore the history of America’s highways and byways. We hear from Gridlock Sam, who fights traffic for a living, and Peter Norton, who takes us back to the dawn of the motor age. Then we travel through America’s canalways with batteau reenactors and [...]
