For 3 years, scientists in secret cities around the U.S. had been in a race against time to complete the world’s first atomic weapon. And in July of 1945, the very first plutonium bomb was ready. Constructing “The Gadget” as it was called, had taken 2 billion dollars and the collective work of 400,000 people. It was ready to be tested. And it needed to work. ... Show More
Today
The Most Chaotic Election in American History Was Saved by an Irish Immigrant, and a Conversation with Congressman James Clyburn
Meet the Irish immigrant who used fireplace tongs to fight a member of Congress, was thrown in jail for insulting a president, and ultimately changed the course of American history.
Plus, Sharon talks with powerful Democratic Congressman James Clyburn in a wide-ranging convers ... Show More
45m 22s
Nov 19
Presenting unPAUSED with Dr. Mary Claire Haver
Welcome to unPAUSED, the podcast where bold, unfiltered conversations take place about what it really takes for women to thrive in the second half of life. Every week, Dr. Mary Claire Haver, a board-certified Obstetrician-Gynecologist, Certified Menopause Practitioner, and #1 New ... Show More
2m 43s
Nov 17
How Hard Can It Be, Boys Do It? Plus, Fighting for Equal Rights After the Civil War, and Answers to Your Questions
It’s not something you’ll read about in most history books. Sharon tells the remarkable story of Florence Hall and her Women’s Land Army: the women who took over the farming jobs American men left behind when they went off to fight World War II. These women weren’t just fill-ins, ... Show More
45m 26s
Jul 2023
Destroyer of Worlds (Replay)
July 16, 1945. It happened within a millionth of a second. In the New Mexico desert in the early morning hours, a group of scientists watched in anticipation as the countdown began. It was silent at first, yet hot and unbelievably bright. Then came the sound. The first-ever atomi ... Show More
31m 17s
Jan 2024
The Manhattan Project | Chain Reaction | 1
<p>In December 1938, a team of German physicists achieved an astonishing scientific breakthrough: they split the nucleus of a uranium atom. In the United States, news of the discovery sparked fear in the scientific community. Atomic fission could power a devastating new weapon, a ... Show More
40m 4s
Jul 2023
CultureLab: Oppenheimer – The rise and fall of the “father of the atomic bomb”
First J. Robert Oppenheimer created the weapon, then he fought for years to warn of its dangers. During the second world war, the so-called “father of the atomic bomb”, led a team of scientists in the US in a race against Nazi Germany to create the first nuclear weapon. Then it w ... Show More
27m 52s