Daniel Levitin's new book The World in Six Songs has attracted a serious fan following, including Sting, Joni Mitchell and Willie Nelson. Neuroscientist, rock producer, and best selling author (This is Your Brain on Music) Levitin talks about his research for this fascinating book that takes the reader on a journey of the world through 6 types of songs--friendship, joy, comfort, knowledge, religion/ritual, and love.

In our everyday lives language and instrumental music are obviously different things. Neuroscientist and musician Ani Patel is the author of a recent, elegantly argued offering from Oxford University Press, Music, Language and the Brain. Oliver Sacks calls Patel a "pioneer in the use of new concepts and technology to investige the neural correlates of music." In this podcast he discusses some of the hidden connections between language and instrumental music that are being uncovered by empirical scientific studies.

This week we're exploring the science of sound and music. We sound out the human voice, hear why we all talk differently, and probe the origins of accents and the means by which impersonators mimic their victims. Also, we discover how a tune can act like cocaine in your brain and why, in some cultures, music can replace a lawyer! Also, we hear what's going on in the brains of Jazz musicians as they improvise, see how hungry sharks are similar to shoppers and find out why a big brown bat needs magnetic bat-nav.