Category: Retired

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Byzantium And The Crusades - The Third Crusade Episode 6 “The Road to Jerusalem”

King Richard the Lionheart has won a great victory over Saladin at the Battle of Arsuf in 1191. The tide seems to have turned in the Crusaders' favour. The road to Jerusalem lies open. Or is it? Saladin's army has been defeated but not destroyed. The Crusaders remain divided in their loyalties between King Guy and Conrad of Montferrat, and between the English and French Kings. In this episode, we hear how the path ahead for King Richard was fraught with problems.

Please take a look at my website nickholmesauthor.com where you can download a free copy of The Byzantine World War, my book that describes the origins of the First Crusade.

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Life Raft - How Much Can We Blame The 2020 Hurricane Season On Climate Change?

The 2020 Hurricane Season was intense. It set all kinds of records: most named storms in a season,and most to rapidly intensify, among others. Five storms hit the Louisiana coast.

How much of this can we chalk up to climate change, and how much has to do with normal weather patterns? What’s the link between hurricanes and climate change?

This week on Life Raft we revisit interviews with people who survived Hurricane Laura this summer, take a road trip across Louisiana, and learn the latest science about climate change and hurricanes.

Do you have a question you want us to explore? Send it to us! There’s a super simple form on our website.

For bonus pictures and extra fun vibes, follow us on social media. We’re on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Support for WWNO’s Coastal Desk comes from the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation, and listeners like you.

If you like what you hear from Life Raft, consider making a donation to WRKF and WWNO to help keep the show going!

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Byzantium And The Crusades - The Third Crusade Episode 5 “The Battle of Arsuf”

In this episode, the Kings of England and France arrive in the Holy Land. Richard the Lionheart leads the English while Philip II leads the French. Not only are the two men enemies but they find the surviving Crusaders are also divided between King Guy and Conrad of Montferrat. Yet for once, Islam is united against them, under the leadership of Saladin, the most gifted Islamic ruler for centuries. The scene is set for a conflict that will pass into legend, both in the Middle Ages and even still today, as one of the most heroic, brutal and surprising stories in history.

Please take a look at my website nickholmesauthor.com where you can download a free copy of The Byzantine World War, my book that describes the origins of the First Crusade.

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Byzantium And The Crusades - The Third Crusade Episode 4 “Richard the Lionheart”

In this episode, we hear about the journey of the English and French Kings to the Holy Land to try to save the last Crusader states from Saladin. The English King was Richard the Lionheart, who has passed into history as one of the most heroic of all the Kings of England. He is also central to the folk story of Robin Hood, the legendary English outlaw, that has featured in so many films. But what was he really like? Find out in this episode.

Please take a look at my website nickholmesauthor.com where you can download a free copy of The Byzantine World War, my book that describes the origins of the First Crusade.

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Back Bar - Noble Experiments

The story of American prohibition: temperance, scapegoating, hypocrisy and their unlikely love child the Margarita. 

It’s 1920 and alcohol is now constitutionally illegal in the United States. This week we look at the dark forces that got us there, what happened when Americans couldn’t drink and how the noble experiment eventually collapsed thirteen years later. We also look at the Margarita, a curious creation that was born south of the border that found its way north in the 20th century. Guests this week are Derek Brown from the Columbia Room in Washington, DC and David Suro-Piňera of Siembra Azul.

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Please SUBSCRIBE and RATE the show if you can. Join us every two weeks as we talk about history's favorite drinks and how what we drink shapes history. To see what's coming next follow Greg on instagram @100ProofGreg. #drinkinghistory

Heritage Radio Network is a listener supported nonprofit podcast network. Support Back Bar by becoming a member!

Back Bar is Powered by Simplecast.

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Life Raft - Bonus Episode: Confronting The Loss That Climate Change Promises

Happy New Year, Life Raft listeners!

We’re busy readying the second half of the Life Raft season, but we still wanted you to feast your ears on some climate content, so here’s a story for you.

It’s all about our attachment to place in the face of climate change — our connection to the land, our ways of life, and how we emotionally process what it means for those places to be threatened by climate change.

This story was originally produced by Davis Land for Houston Public Media. Davis is currently a senior producer for Slate’s daily news podcast, What Next.

Got a question you want us to explore? Send it to us! There’s a super simple form on our website.

For bonus pictures and extra fun vibes, follow us on social media. We’re on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Support for WWNO’s Coastal Desk comes from the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Walton Family Foundation, and local listeners.

If you like what you hear from Life Raft, consider making a donation to WRKF and WWNO to help keep the show going!

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39 Ways to Save the Planet - More Power from the Sun

Electricity from the sun is cheap and clean but the solar cells we see on our rooftops could be much more efficient. Henry Snaith of Oxford PV has developed a new material which helps solar roof panels extract more energy from the solar spectrum. Tom Heap visits Henry's lab and joins Dr Tamsin Edwards to consider the carbon-cutting potential of a new generation of solar energy.

Producer: Alasdair Cross

Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Professor Stephen Peake from the Open University.

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39 Ways to Save the Planet - Siberian Rewilding

Trees are often thought to be the good guys when it comes to climate change. In Siberia, however, it's not always the case. The landscape was changed when humans arrived and the forest that took over from grasslands is causing problems. In Pleistocene Park, Russian scientists are carrying out a radical rewilding - removing trees and reintroducing species of grazing animals to help protect the permafrost - the deep frozen ground - from thawing and releasing methane into the atmosphere. Tom Heap and Dr Tamsin Edwards consider how this ambitious idea could help in the fight against climate change.

Producer : Anne-Marie Bullock

Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Professor Vincent Gauci from the University of Birmingham.

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39 Ways to Save the Planet - Phenomenal Photosynthesis

Some food crops convert just one percent of the sun's energy into edible food. If we can improve the process of photosynthesis we can grow more food on less land. Tom Heap visits a Yorkshire greenhouse to meet the team from Glaia with a cunning idea to do just that. Back in the studio, Dr Tamsin Edwards, climate scientist and fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, considers the potential impact on our global carbon emissions.

Producer: Alasdair Cross

Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Professor Vincent Gauci from the University of Birmingham.

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39 Ways to Save the Planet - Chilling Food

Chilled lorries are the backbone of our food distribution system, keeping our pork pies and hummus safe and fresh on route to the supermarket. The problem for our air quality and carbon emissions is that many of the refrigeration units are powered by diesel engines.

Tom Heap meets a team converting these Transport Refrigeration Units from diesel to liquid nitrogen. If successful they could take a bite out of greenhouse gases in the west and, more importantly, offer a clean chilling option for farmers and food companies in the developing world. Food that spoils on the way to the consumer hurts farmers, causes hunger and increases carbon emissions. If meat, dairy, fruit and vegetables can be kept fresh for longer then everyone wins.

Dr Tamsin Edwards of King's College, London helps Tom calculate just how much carbon dioxide could be removed from the environment if we use techniques like this to slash food waste.

Producer: Anne-Marie Bullock

Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Dr Harry Kennard from University College London.