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August 9 - 13, 2004
Monday, Aug. 9
9/11 Commission Report
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Created in late 2002, The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also known as the 9/11 commission) recently completed their account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11 terrorist attacks. Guest host Jon Beaupre sits down with two of the ten commissioners, Democrat Richard Ben-Veniste and Republican Slade Gorton.
Gene Doping
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We've all heard about the doping scandals plaguing this years Olympics. According to a recent Discover magazine article, a new kind of doping, gene doping - using gene therapy to increase the strength and size of undamaged muscles - is on the rise and practically impossible to detect. Guest host Jon Beaupre talks with Dr. Theodore Friedmann, director of the human gene therapy program at the University of California San Diego about the science behind gene doping and the implications for the summer games and the future of competitive sport. Friedmann has worked with the world anti-doping agency and the US anti-doping agency on research into doping issues.
Tijuana Straits
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Opening a Kem Nunn novel is like entering a whole new world. You expect to find surfers and outsiders and plenty of adventure, but you are never quite ready for the intensity of the story. Nunn's latest novel, Tijuana Straits (Scribner), doesn't disappoint. This adventure is set near the border where, alongside fabled giant waves, Nunn chronicles the underbelly of life along and across the border.
Supermileage Competitive Car
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Guest host Jon Beaupre gets up close and personal with the future of transportation in Los Angeles, a car dubbed the "Super Eagle" that achieves a record 1,615 miles per gallon. Built by California State University Los Angeles (CSULA) students, the Super Eagle recently beat 39 entries from the U.S. and Canada in the Society of Automotive Engineers International Supermileage competition. Jon is joined by James Ettaro, Associate Professor of Technology at CSULA and some of the students involved in the project.
Tuesday, Aug. 10
Superstore Ordinance
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This morning, the Los Angeles city council met to discuss the proposed 'superstore' ordinance that would require big box stores like Wal-Mart to pay for an economic impact report before building in Los Angeles. KPCC reporter Rachael Myrow attended the meeting. Also joining the conversation is Wal-Mart spokesperson Peter Kanelos with reaction to the proposed ordinance.
Local Olympians
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Although these athletes may not appear on a box of Wheaties anytime soon, they are dedicated and accomplished local favorites in some of the less-known sports at this year's Olympic games--Tawny Bahn of San Gabriel, competing in Table Tennis, and Kevin Hall of Venture, competing in Sailing. Kitty Felde contacts them in Athens in their final preparations leading up to Opening Ceremonies on August 13th.
Ancient Greek Athletics
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This year the 2004 Summer Olympic Games returns to its ancient Greek homeland. The first recorded Olympics took place in 776 B.C., according to UC Berkeley classical archaelogist, Stephen G. Miller, though there's hardly any physical record of the competition prior to 300 B.C. With numerous photographs, illustrations and extensive research, Prof. Miller in his recent book, Ancient Greek Athletics (Yale
University Press), covers the four great athletic festivals at Olympia, Delphi, Isthmia, and Nemea. Stephen Miller joins Kitty from his home in Nemea, Greece.
"Modern Olympians" of the Ancient Nemea Games
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If you can't join the US Olympic Team of the modern Games, you can always participate every four years in the Ancient Nemea Games. Anyone can run in the Ancient Games--there are no qualifying trials or weight categories to meet. But you do have to run barefoot in a tunic. And when you win, instead of medals you are crowned with wreaths of wild celery. Kitty Felde chats with Alec Stewart and Eric Meyer, two young men who ran in this year's Ancient Nemea Games.
Wednesday, Aug. 11
Frank's Piece
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KPCC political reporter Frank Stoltze wraps up last night's debate between Senator Barbara Boxer and her opponent in the upcoming election, Bill Jones.
Senatorial Candidates
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Senator Barbara Boxer and Bill Jones debated last night at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. Kitty Felde checks in with the candidates who weren't invited to the debate.
For information on each of the candidates, visit:
Judge Jim Gray, Libertarian Candidate
Marsha Feinland, Peace and Freedom Candidate
Don J. Grundmann, Independent Candidate
Senator Barbara Boxer, Democratic Candidate
Bill Jones, Republican Candidate
Debate Analysis
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UC Irvine Assistant Professor of Political Science Lisa Garcia-Bedolla and Claremont Professor of Government and Senior Research Fellow Fred Balitzer offer analysis of the senatorial debate, from the Jones/Boxer match up last night to the two candidates featured today on Talk of the City.
Perseid Meteor Shower
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The annual Perseid meteor shower will peak tonight. John Mosely of the Griffith Observatory gives Kitty the details on where and when to look up in the sky to catch it.
Thursday, Aug. 12
Kerry & Bush in the Southland
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Both Senator John Kerry and President George W. Bush are in Southern California today. Kerry will be giving a speech at Cal State Dominguez to outline his plan to create jobs and Bush will be at the Santa Monica Airport for a Republican National Committee fund-raising dinner. KPCC reporter Frank Stoltze is covering both events and checks in with Kitty with the latest.
Happy Anniversary to the CHP
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Kitty Felde explores the legacy of the California Highway Patrol as it celebrates 75 years on Saturday. When it was first created, the CHP consisted of 280 officers. The force has since grown to over 7,000 with additional responsibilities outside of ensuring the safety of our highways. These days, the CHP administers the Amber Alert Program and are the primary guardians of California's homeland security. Kitty takes a look back at the last 75 years with Mike Brown, Deputy Chief of the California Highway Patrol's Southern Division.
Andrei Codrescu
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Popular NPR commentator for "All Things Considered," Andrei Codrescu joins Kitty to talk about his new novel, Wakefield, a cynical and funny exploration of the age-old theme of man vs. the devil.
Linda Hunt
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Oscar-winner Linda Hunt joins Kitty on the occasion of the Ojai Playwrights Conference, a retreat where playwrights and actors can work together intensively to develop important new works for the American theatre. Linda Hunt performs her own stage adaptation of Katharine Butler Hathaway's memoir "The Little Locksmith" this Saturday at 8pm.
The Loh Life
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Public radio's accidental bad girl goes for the gold.
Friday, Aug. 13
Olympics Update
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Its midnight in Athens and opening ceremonies for the games of the XXVIII Olympiad have just ended. Time Europe staff writer Jeff Chu was at the celebrations and gives Kitty an update.
Goodbye Julia Child
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Today we say goodbye to a culinary institution, Julia Child. Host Kitty Felde spoke with Julia Child last June about picks for summer treats.
Ant Farm
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For a decade beginning in 1968, Ant Farm explored the experimental fringe in architecture, design, and the media arts. Chip Lord, co-founder of this group that produced "Cadillac Ranch" and "Media Burn", walks Kitty through their first major retrospective exhibition, now showing at the Santa Monica Museum of Art. The installation includes a visual timeline of the collective, publications, drawings, collages, documentary materials, one of their famous inflatables, and videos.
Ant Farm: 1968-1978 is on exhibit through this Saturday, August 14th, at the Santa Monica Museum of Art (Bergamot Station 2525 Michigan Ave, G1). For more information, visit SMMOA.
Milestones
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Birthdays, especially those involving a big round number, are a huge milestone for most. Why? And how do various cultures commemorate the event? Kitty talks about the politics of age with Jill Grigsby, professor of sociology at Pomona College.
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