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IT'S A WONDERFUL AFTERLIFE

Program 10-05-23-A

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Eighty per cent of Americans say they believe in heaven. But when they're asked to describe it, many are at a loss for words. Do they think that there's another universe in the sky or do they believe that heaven is something more abstract and metaphorical? In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll explore our enduring fascination with the afterlife by talking to Lisa Miller, the author of "Heaven." Also, Carlos Eire on a very brief history of eternity.

SEGMENT 1:

Neuroscientist David Eagleman is the author of Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives. He tells Anne Strainchamps about some of the different things he has imagined might happen to us after we die. He starts by reading the title story Sum. The unedited interview can be found below as a web extra.

SEGMENT 2:

Religion Editor for Newsweek magazine Lisa Miller is a journalist as well as author of a book called Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife. She tells Jim Fleming about the common denominators the three Abrahamic religions have about the concept of heaven. Literary scholar John Casey is also a philosopher with an interest in heaven, and talked with Steve Paulson about his book After Lives: A Guide to Heaven, Hell and Purgatory. He says Christian and Muslim traditions often involve the afterlife, but it's not so important to the Jews.

SEGMENT 3:

Carlos Eire won a National Book Award for his memoir Waiting for Snow in Havana. His new book isA Very Brief History of Eternity. He tells Steve Paulson he started to worry about death as a child, growing up in Cuba during an era of public executions.

CD copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 10-05-23-A.

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Books & CDs:

Lisa Miller, Heaven: Our Enduring Fascination with the Afterlife (Harper)
John Casey, After Lives: A Guide to Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory (Oxford University Press)
Carlos Eire, A Very Brief History of Eternity (Princeton University Press)
David Eagleman, Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives (Pantheon)

Websites:

• -- David Eagleman
  http://www.eagleman.com/
  UNEDITED INTERVIEW - WEB EXTRA
  (click & listen or right-click & choose "save-as" to download)
  
• -- Lisa Miller
  http://www.lisaxmiller.com/
  
• -- John Casey/"After Lives: A Guide to Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory
  http://tinyurl.com/256ehgk
  
• -- Carlos Eire/"A Very Brief History of Eternity"
  http://press.princeton.edu/titles/8979.html
  http://www.yale.edu/history/faculty/eire.html

Music:

• -- Music heard during David Eagleman's first reading, "Sum":
  -- "1/1"/Brian Eno
  from the CD, "Ambient 1: Music for Airports (Original Recording Remastered)" (Astralwerks)
  
• -- Music heard after David Eagleman interview:
  -- "Spacebeach"/Arling & Cameron
  from the CD, "Music for Imaginary Films" (Emperor Norton Records)
  http://www.xs4all.nl/~drive/
  http://www.myspace.com/arlingandcameron
  
• -- Music heard during Lisa Miller interview:
  -- "Heaven"/Talking Heads
  from the CD, "The Best of Talking Heads" (Sire/Warner Bros./Rhino)
  
• -- Music heard after Lisa Miller interview:
  -- "Morning"/Mark Adler
  from the CD, "Focus: Original Score" (Milan/BMG Entertainment)
  
• -- Music heard after John Casey interview:
  -- "Stanley/Frank/Linda's Breakdown"/Jon Brion
  from the CD, "Magnolia: Original Motion Picture Score" (Reprise Records)
  
• -- Music heard after Carlos Eire interview:
  -- "2/1"/Brian Eno
  from the CD, "Ambient 1: Music for Airports (Original Recording Remastered)" (Astralwerks)
  
• -- Music heard during, and after, David Eagleman's last reading, "Reversal""
  -- "2/2"/Brian Eno
  from the CD, "Ambient 1: Music for Airports (Original Recording Remastered)" (Astralwerks

Distribution dates: week of 06/26/2011 - hour 2 week of 05/23/2010 - hour 1 click HERE for timings and cues

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