There's More to That
Smithsonian Magazine
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DEC 19, 2024
[Rebroadcast] Meet The 6888: The WWII Battalion of Black Women That Inspired the New Netflix Film
[First released in 2023.] The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion was the only unit comprised entirely of Black women to have been deployed overseas during World War II, and it had served a critical function: clearing the backlog of mail that marked the only line of communication between American soldiers in Europe and their loved ones back home.
In this episode, we speak with retired Army Colonel Edna Cummings, who made it her business to get the 6888 their belated recognition, and with Smithsonian magazine senior writer Jennie Rothenberg Gritz, who wrote about Col. Cummings' quest for the March 2023 issue of Smithsonian.
NOTE: On December 20, Netflix will debut "The Six Triple Eight," a movie that dramatizes the heroic story of the battalion. Starring Kerry Washington and featuring Oprah Winfrey, the film is directed by Tyler Perry.
Learn more about the women of the 6888th Central Postal Battalion at the Women of the 6888th site.
Find prior episodes of our show here.
There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions.
From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Rye Dorsey, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales.
Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz.
Music by APM Music.
38 MIN
AUG 8, 2024
As Hurricanes Get Stronger, Can a $34 Billion Plan Save Texas?
After Hurricane Ike destroyed thousands of homes and inflicted an estimated $30 billion in damages in 2008, engineers hatched an ambitious plan to protect southeast Texas and its coastal refineries and shipping routes from violent storms. The $34 billion collaboration spearheaded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is a harbinger of the type of massive public works projects that could be required to protect coastal cities like New York and Miami as sea levels rise and hurricanes become less predictable and more severe due to climate change.
Smithsonian magazine contributor and Texas native Xander Peters reflects on his experiences growing up in a hurricane corridor and tells us how the wildly ambitious effort came together. Then, Eric Sanderson, an ecological historian, tells us how the project could be applied to other low-lying coastal cities.
Read Xander Peters' Smithsonian magazine story about the Ike Dike here.
Let us know what you think of our show, and how we can make it better, by completing our There's More to That listener survey here.
Find prior episodes of our show here.
Listen to the New York Botanical Garden podcast "Plant People" here.
There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions.
From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly.
From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Rye Dorsey, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales.
Fact-checking by Stephanie Abramson.
Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz
Music by APM Music.
32 MIN
JUL 25, 2024
How to Sweat Like an Olympian
Have you ever felt embarrassed by the need to carry a towel, or even a fresh shirt, with you during the most sweltering months of the year? You shouldn’t. Sweating is one of the most remarkable ways our bodies protect themselves when the mercury heads north.
With summer temperatures spiking around the world as the sweat-filled Olympic Games begin in Paris, we’re joined by Sarah Everts, a Smithsonian contributor and the author a marvelous book called The Joy of Sweat: The Strange Science of Perspiration. She explains why the body’s thermostat is so ingenious, and how it cools athletes—and the rest of us. Plus: A series of snack-sized anecdotes about the Olympics!
Let us know what you think of our show, and how we can make it better, by completing our There's More to That listener survey here.
Find prior episodes of our show here.
Read Smithsonian magazine's coverage of the Olympics, past and present, here, here, here, and here.
There’s More to That is a production of Smithsonian magazine and PRX Productions.
From the magazine, our team is Chris Klimek, Debra Rosenberg and Brian Wolly.
From PRX, our team is Jessica Miller, Adriana Rosas Rivera, Genevieve Sponsler, Rye Dorsey, and Edwin Ochoa. The Executive Producer of PRX Productions is Jocelyn Gonzales.
Fact-checking by Stephanie Abramson.
Episode artwork by Emily Lankiewicz
Music by APM Music.
30 MIN
JUL 15, 2024
Survey: Help Us Design Our Future Season
We're over here making podcasts, and you're over there listening. Let's bridge that gap! We want to know more about you, like: why you're listening, what your favorite topics are, and what Smithsonian magazine can do to make "There's More to That" even better. Tell us what you think at smithsonianmag.com/podcastsurvey.
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