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Fresh Air Weekend: Revisiting Fela Kuti's story; Michael Pollan on consciousness

Michael Pollan is the author of A World Appears: A Journey into Consciousness.
Christopher Michel
/
Penguin Random House
Michael Pollan is the author of A World Appears: A Journey into Consciousness.

Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, as well as new program elements specially paced for weekends. Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and it often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts. This week:

How Nigerian musician Fela Kuti used music as a weapon against dictatorship: Considered the father of Afrobeat, Kuti used his music in the 1970s to combat colonial values and brutal dictatorship. Podcaster Jad Abumrad tells his story in the series, Fela Kuti: Fear No Man.

Michael Pollan says AI may "think" — but it will never be conscious: "Consciousness is under siege," says author Michael Pollan. His new book, A World Appears, explores consciousness on both a personal and technological level.

You can listen to the original interviews here:

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.