These are the three things you need to know about this week's show:

1. We aren't missing anything in a world without Walter Cronkite. At least that's what media theorist Clay Shirky thinks.

2. Kids stopped using abbreviations in texting and emailing when their parents started. Linguist David Crystal says that the age of the smartphone isn't changing us as much as we think.

3. Forget sitting down to a meal. Soy shakes may be your future - which concerns Ruth Reichl.

Technology theorist Clay Shirky has been studying the Internet since before most of us had email. He says a number of industries - from the media to higher education - need to shape up, or prepare for extinction. Read More...

Food journalism isn't all filet mignon and creme brulee recipes. Ruth Reichl, former NY Times food critic and Gourmet editor, talks Twitter, blogs, and the value of sitting down for meals. Read More...

Learn the story of a brightly colored object that might be in your pocket right now, and was actually invented by an accountant. Read More...

As technology makes communication easier, some worry that it may fundamentally change language. Linguist David Crystal says we don't have to be so concerned...yet. Read More...

Clay Shirky, the famed media theorist, is moving to Shanghai.

Why would the man long known for critiquing — and seeing the possibilities of the Internet — want to head to China? Read More...

 
Here are three things to know about America's evolution:

1. Wally and the Beav may be done with the suburbs. People are choosing to live with less space if they can be closer to the social amenities that they want, say authors Leigh Gallagher and Alan Ehrenhalt.

2. The last Apple was in the U.S., and the next Apple will be in the U.S., according to Joel Kurtzman, analyst and author of Unleashing the Second American Century.

3. Julia Child ended up with a cooking show by accident. And that television show set the stage for today's cooking culture.

Julia Child was more than a great cook. She changed both television and the culture of cooking. Read More...

As the Cold War raged, concerns grew over American children’s education. Then a new rhyming book flipped literacy on its head. Read More...

As younger generations increasingly choose to make cities their home, suburbs are facing an identity crisis. Read More...