Wild child

Stories of children raised by animals have been around for centuries (remember Romulus and Remus?). Video documentation has brought current stories of feral children to life. Now we can observe and appreciate how "wild" these children behave. For instance, check out this video of Oxana, a girl who was cruelly penned up with only dogs for company for five years as a young girl. Her movements are remarkably similar to those of her canine companions. For an update on Oxana, read this article put out by the Telegraph in 2006.

For the August 11th show (click here for podcast), we explored several stories of feral children. The struggles these individuals face when trying to integrate back into society are great, and often the outcome is undesirable. These stories highlight the importance of human interaction during the early years of development.

In the news...

• Preventing homosexuality in the womb?
• Arkansas researchers find a GM crop that has escaped into the wild
• Blue whales synchronize song pitch

In the last bit of the show, we heard some songs from our friends the wrens (Family: Troglodytidae). These songsters have some of the most complex and, in my opinion, interesting vocalizations of the bird world.

Artists featured included Tindersticks, Sufjan Stevens, Spoon, Animal Collective, Mariee Sioux, Cab Calloway, Headlights, Echo and the Bunnyman, Broadcast, and more.