Stage right here with all of us. Thank you. Thank you. With the applause most celebrated living historian in the United States of america of the American Experience which is even greater. Hes been called dean of americana and reason why hes taken pus down the georgetown shroud and building of the canal the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, Harriet Truman john adams, the americans in paris. The wright brother and sister. And this fabulous new book to talk about a little bit later, the pioneer. So won the Pulitzer Prize twice, the National Award twice and been given the medal or freedom of honor even better than honor and youve been writing, david, about america the trajectory has been 150 years since lets say the revolution to charlesmanburg and beyond. Is there a scene here . Yes. I now see it as i have not some things you gain from time going by. I would see now that almost all of my books are about americans who set out to accomplish Something Worthy that would they knew would be difficult and it was going to be more difficult even than they expected. And who did not give up and who learned from their mistakes and it eventually achieved what their purpose had been in the first place. And always i the characters that ive chosen always to our benefit. I think that one of the reasons that we ought to read history and know history is to increase our capacity for gratitude for those who went before us of what they did for us. What they achieved for us, and for us to take it for granted is route in extreme and we i think that two of the qualitieses that history provides you know, how we, what we read and what we teach are gratitude and a empathy. To put ourselves in the place of those who went before us what they put up with. In working for the last several years, in trying to understand what these pioneers who settled, you know, had to contend with and what they accomplish against such adversities. I cant help but feel were a bunch of the softies and how much we learn from them. How much we come to know about them that we cant even though people that we arent close to in real life because or for one thing in real life you dont get to read other people l diary and mail and working to say with the papers of john adams or Abigail Adams you really get to know them because theyre pouring out all of their innermost ambition and worries and fears. And suffering that word suffering isnt just that they got hurt. Or that they worried excessively about their excuse me the safety of their children they were suffer, and so much that they didnt have that we have now that we take for granted. They have no sedative or bandaids, they had no chain saws. They had no well a lot and we should never say thats the way it is. Were lucky people, and ive come to feel very strongly, were a good people. We are a good nation. And yes we make mistakes yes theres evil. And yes there are people who cheat and lie and people who have had nothing but selfish ambition but theyre the minority. They are the exception not the rule. And has been that way right along. Well, i dont think theres anybody who taught us more and i mean in a really engaged way w, david you have had had a career in which you have made history exciting, engaging. You have made it popular. You have brought it a different level. I know academic historian im thinking of my friend gordonwood with great admiration for you. Because you have made his subject a subject of great interest. And in what youve just said about your theme being this tremendous force of history that brought us to where we are that made us who we are. And that sacrifices and suffering as you say. But no one has really engaged public in the way that you have. And here is a person who has been and last 50 years of booing writing not one book but bookseses that have sold millions and translated into many languages not one book has gone out precinct of course of 0 years thats pretty amazing. So i would like to make another point somewhat confessional that the stage of life ive reached but never undertaken subject that i knew anything much about. And if i knew about it i wouldnt want to write the book to me the book the writing of the book is the adventure. Often adventure consequences that i never expected and ive got as if im going to continent that ive never set poot on when i started to write the Brooklyn Bridge let me just say i would have that happen. And by the way, let me say, first of all. My ambitions to writes began in the library of congress. I was there i had quit my job in new york where i worked a time in life because president kennedy called on us i was stl in the 20s to do something for our country and i came down washington i knew nobody that kennedy i knew nobody in the government. But i would somewhere theres some organization that could use what ive had in my possession and working experience. And i wound up being editor of a magazine published by u. S. Information agency and it was a picture magazine like the white magazine, and i had to spend a lot of time doing picture research at library of congress. An one day i went in and photograph section and they spread out in a big table where photographs taken by a photographer and in the mountains and down into johns to town right after the catastrophic flood. And i looked at those pictures, my god, what happened that destruction, utter terrible destruction. Now i grew up in pittsburgh where which isnt very apart from johnstown as boy my brothers and i used to make a lake of gravy and lake the gravy in the mashed potatoes and then we take our fork and break through the potatoes as gravy flowed down among the peas, we would say the johnstown flood having no idea whatsoever what that was. So i saw photographs i thought i have to read more about what the hell happened. I just got curiosity thats the great thing is to stimulate in learning and teaching, but any event, i worked for three years book was published and right away, two other publishers from my own publisher came to me and wanted me to do the chicago fire other wanted me to do the San Francisco earthquake. So i was in my 30s and i was bad news and i didnt like that. And it shall i was determined to do something where human beings did something right, something noble something admirable something we are so quite aware of. And one day i was having lunch with some friends down the Lower East Side of new york one was a science writer, other was a an and professor with engineers and they got going about all that the people who built the Brooklyn Bridge didnt know they were in for when they started on the project about, and my wife rosie and i lived in brooklyn when we were first married, the robels with a huge composition accomplishment that we americans all know and will always know and i went out of this lunch knowing thats my next subject. I knew nothing about physics i was terrible at physics in school i wasnt a very good mathematician. But i thought, if i can find somebody who can explain to me in english language well be fine and then we heard there was a wonderful collection of letters and diaries and all of the rest of family at rpi polytechnique in troy, new york so one cool beautiful fall day we drove up to troy to go see this collection and the library then was an Old Church Building a grim old Gothic Church and not a very Good Building for library. And because there was an away Football Game by troy team, the thanks. The team, the place with campus was empty. So we went in there was one woman behind the desk and she said yes to the chexes upstairs. Of fourth floor i cant take you up there because im only one on duty heres the key and creeky stairs web and the lightbulbs got dimmer as we got higher i think theyre 40 watts at most probably by the time we got to the top floor and she said first door on the left. And if i expected some room of Library Library room was a table maybe a work table and chairs. And we open foods the door and it was nothing but a closet and with shelves on three sides from floor to ceiling big closet hacked with paraphernalias, diaries tied up with old shoe strings not tied 50 years or more, and statues and i looked ating and i said oh, my god. Rosalie behind me said oh, my god there goes three more years. You know. But oh what an adventure what a story. I like to pingt out it was 150 years ago this year that work began on building a Brooklyn Bridge. That accomplishment would not have happened if it hadnt been for immigrants the [applause] including genius who designed it john a. Imrangt from germany and worst imaginable work imaginable all immigrants and so were the people who built the transcontinue Continental Railroad 20 ,000 chinese work to mac that successful and they did toughest part of the whole job which was out west. Kennedy said we will go to the moon. And we did 50 years ago. And let us not forget word for brown and seven other highly skilled brilliant technicians who also were immigrants, it wouldnt have happened. We are all in need of immigrants, and we are immigrants most all of us. [applause] well well, well, well i was david thank you for that. I was going to ask you my next question was what was your secret sauce but i think you just gave it away. I like that word quick story. When i wrote my first book john, my editor was wonderful guy named feater pert and he was famous for titles. He did the longest day for the book about the envision, dday, and blackboard jungle he was proud of it rightly so when i finished the book i cant talked to him since we agreed that contract. And i couldnt come with a title for the john flood i searched through the bible, i searched through shakespeare couldnt find a thing but i thought i cant delay this any longer. So i called him up i mister wondering if he said remember whos i was i said david he said how are you and david way of talking. I said im fine and i finished my book that i know brilliant how you are and titles and how important titles are to you but i cant come up with a title for this book. I said no, no secret to title for that book call up johnstown flood. [laughter] he said what are we thinking of calling it one welt wednesday . [laughter] well, so then i finally finish the Brooklyn Bridge part, and i called him up and said mr. Shh wade i finished the book and im happy about it and i sent it on to you and did you receive it . He said yes. Then he said how do you spell niagara . Inirga. Wrong it is niagara and now we have to go through with whiteout to change that. I said what did you think of the book . He said oh it is terrific. [laughter] we can never underestimate and i really want to make this point the importance of so many people who make a book possible particularly kind of book that i write it shall and others. Editors particularly, of course, but librarian and archivist and i just thank goodness for the wonderful people a what ive had the good fortune to work with that the library of congress and that enumerable other libraries here and in europe, and that wonderful editors ive had who it is a joined effort and almost nothing is ever accomplished alone. No such thing as a selfmade man or woman thats nonsense were all a result of so many people who have helped and taught us and sometimes in rivals and thank goodeness for it i think one of the most important lessons from history is learning from your mistake be kind of person when youre locked down dont wimper and moan and feel sorry for yourself. Get up figure out what you did wrong. Why it didnt work to get back to work. Is that the american character . I think so. And i think it needs to be cultivated and encouraged in our young people. Why you have a passion for the american character, and you have a passion for ive heard you say this because weve been friends for a while a long while and ive heard you so excited about seeing materials it that you havent seen before and saying oh, my god this is extraordinary and the process of get the details and all of that is very passionate process for you. But also youve written a lot about people who have been written about a lot like john adams and truman. And but you do it a different way. What is that different way, do you think . Well trying man and adams have in common as they were upstaged by the new proceeded him and president who followed them. Men who were taller, better looking for famous so forth. And i felt in both cases adam and truman deserved far more attention than theyve been given. I remember the night of the 48 election i was in high school, and my father very republican family, and my father was listening all night so i try to stay awake i couldnt i went to bed and next dad was in shaving fibs dad, dad who won . He said truman. Like it was the end of the world and i dont know. 30 years later, i was back home, we sat down to have a chat after dinner and he started telling me about how pl world was going to hell and country was going to hell and he paused he said too bad all harry still isnt in the white house. And thats what happened, dust settles and you see them differently. You judge them differently and he himself said that you have to wait 50 years and with this books i was writing about about people you never heard of and nobody has ever heard of including historians, and i had dreamed of doing that someday. Why to have a select from the past to help me get everybody into the tent . Lets do it just on the the story thats there to be told. I wases hugely influenced by thorne wilder when i was in college and i loved our town. This was at yale and arttown is classics american masterpiece. Couldnt i even find a situation, a story where there was sufficient material to tell the story in their language from their point of view of a group of people youve never heard of well it was one of the most thrilling strokes of luck in my working writing life. That i found this incredible collection of all maces Small College library, you know, in murrieta, ohio. And it was all of the papers all the letters and diaries of these first pioneers numbering in the thousands, the letters and diaries in the done primarily by five different characters. And they pour out what theyre worried about what theyre striving to achieve what they stand for. And as do their wives and some of their children. And there it was. It wasnt in somebodys attic or grim place but it was intushly collected and marvelous library and by the best people ive ever worked with linda who knows the collection up and town and realize and realizes how vastly important it is. These people who went out to ohio in the last part of the 18th century, had passed what was known as the northwest ordinance meaning rts no and west of the ohio river. You say important as declaration of the the independence or process it is because they said one of the most important bills ever passed by congress, they said its not enough to say all men are created e equal and then have is all of your slaves out in the long fixing up how everything looked. They said of all men are created we will not have is slave is so no slavery in this territory which was to make up five new states which an area Geographic Area large as all 13 colonies so in double the size of the country, has had in that half of the country there will be no slavery. And that was that was the work of one man. Who had never lobbied a legislature in hi life and didnt have the word lobby yet he was a polymatthew he was a lawyer and a doctor. And a doctoral all in one person. He was also the leading naturalist botanist of his time american botanist interested in everything. And he said we will treat the native americans with respect and fairness and he said complete freedom of religion and there will be Public Education, education for everybody and no Public Education in massachusetts or connecticut or anywhere at that point so those three hugely important advances were promoted and got passed by congress, be by one man. And we dont even know him or didnt until we started to write about it. Then when after jefferson was elected in jefferson Political Party with jefferson decided they were going to in the Ohio Legislature they were going change rule on slavery and then emit slaves this was in 1804. Meantime, cutlers son had had gone out as one of the pioneers. And he was still a young man and elected to the legislature. And he was working with with a one of Washington Generals who was one of the original pioneers to go out, named ruffus and they were battled to top is this move to disband rule and allow slavery. And the day of the vote cutler was deathly ill in bed in boardinghouse near the legislature building. And putnam came to him he was old enough to have been his father came up to his room said you have to get up out of bed because were going to cast a vote today. And he went said i cant. He said youve got to so he did some people say he was carried in on a stretcher and if i found in proof of that. In any event he got to legislature, he gave it powerful speech. And he voted. And the measure to introduce slavery into whole Northwest Territory defeated by one vote. [applause] yet nobody had ever heard of his name. And people said to me if you would put this in a novel your answer would say no this would never happen in real life it did happen in real life and we should know about that and know about him, and hes the one who did more than anybody else to get education passed by the Legislature Later on providing school, public schooling, public learning all the way through the university of ohio. And he was doing it as was he goes neither of them had had a proper education, they knew what it was to not be educated. To the report today that 30 of our population is ill literal weve still got a long, long way to go and weve got to get busy and fix about that. And you are in in way this Great American teacher of history brought to the masses. I want to know what is the state of history in school rooms today . Do you have an idea . It is not good at all. And i think it is largely because of im not trying to be unfair about what to do with the teachers, and the required courses that is the system. Teacher os should not be allowed to major in education. They should major in a subject the American Teacher who reach more children than anybody who ever lived was mr. Rogers he was taught by a woman who taught at the university of pittsburgh named Margaret Mcfarland and her great admonition to teachers is show them what you love and they will love it too. Now you cant love something you dont know anymore than you love someone you dont know. So if you graduate with a degree it in education, you know anything about about english or history particularly or math and youre assigned to teach course snow shower not going to be a very good teacher so and i would also bring back required courses. 80 3 bg9 of our college is now today no longer requiredded to take any history. In the four years of college thats wrong. It is important to understand that some things in life are required. [laughter] i would like to read you a couple of thingses i may this is an account by tbrangd daughter of one of my five characters remembering how life was growing up in the family. And particularly her grandmother children i raised as one daughter katherine would about are qoat to be useful, to be pleasant with your playmates. Respectful to superiors. Just to all excuse me black or white. Good to the poor not showing fried or selfishness but kindness and good will. And to see to it that we look to our own more than to the faults of others. And shes said there was expression that her mother most frequently repeated, count the day loss as which settings son sees that it is closed, no worthy action done. These people panel this believed in telling the truth. They did not believe in lying. Or cheating or being unkind to people. Because they had some peculiarity who believed strongly that all a men should be not only created equal but treated equally. Andrew worked hard to be useful all their live and many of us in this room i know were brought up that way. What you do today to make things a little better for somebody. Now also look to read to you one of the passage from one of the letters that cutler wrote to his wife sally. Their correspondent is marvelous touches in the extreme. Hes up at the legislature in massachusetts late december. Christmas is about to happen. He wants to be home. And hes still trying to get this legislation through about education. He wrote to her sally, a long letter over the, quote, thick headed mortal and name of politic i just returned from attending meeting of our committee and all is hushed and slim in joining rooms difficulty in making thick headed mortal understand claim question is sometime vexing but this morning contend with art and aband names and that legislature where designingses an they entrap unweary and leemp and suck the public. You see how things have changed . He was fed up truly tired of it. My hands, head, heart are in the labor hads before me but by no means did he consider giving up. With his nulled background and devotion to the cause of learning, was no less than ever and he succeeded. Pretty great. It is, thank you. [applause] no i this particular story and we dont know and dont know it well enough. Theres several questions that i want to ask you about it but first of all the mix of people who were in this rush west were, i mean, you have young yale graduate Young Harvard graduates you have also the warrior who have just finished revolutionary war, and who were being paid in whiskey. You have a kind of roves and tumble and you have ideals at the same time. Which seemses to me a kind of representation of the american, way we do things a frontier there are those who have cofreedom battle field useful to use and there will be those who come from hall as of education will be useful to you. I think one thing that we have to remember and this is a serious reality that we ought to understand. Is how hard people had to work then. It wasnt just that they believed in work as part of the way of from a contradicting life but it worked for survival, and children worked women worked. Women in many ways worked harder than men not from dawn to dusk and even more, and this particular group, this is very, very important where fund from the e descendents from puren tays every time i undertake a book because i didnt know it be when i began i learn pee mince amount and one of the things that ive come to understand as i never did before is e should have is about puritans my impression is they wore black and never thed nobody to have any fun. They didnt wear black. Their ministers did but they didnt they wore colorful clothes and like to sing, dance, have a little wine they were human beings. What they did believe in was education. Learning. Because it was conviction to understand realm of god, religion, better life, the better understanding, the better humanity, you have to be able to read. You have to be able to read the bible. Excuse me so there and colleges like harvard yale, others were all started because they believe in education. And that thank goodness became a part of the creed of our country in large part because of this success in the new realm called the Northwest Territory. Imagine if slavery had been introduced into hog ohio and illinois the difference in our history had. History turned on that one man what didnt know Abraham Lincoln or grant and think what has come out of ohio now to what degree we can attribute this and maybe something this the water i dont know. But the man who first circled the earth and man who first put his had feet on the moon not only came from same state, place, ohio he came from the same part of ohio. Now is that coincidental, im not sure. Edison we can go on and on all came out of this place where they first introduced Public Education. I loved and, of course, Wright Brothers i loifd it when wilbur was asked what was the secret, whats had the secret of success as you understand it . He said pick out a good mother and father and grow up in ohio. [laughter] but i i hope this doesnt sound pretentious but ive never said it in front of an audience before. But i feel with every project i undertake trying to do something for my country. Indeed you have. Indeed you have. I think you have you have taught us about American Ingenuity and youve taught us that perhaps even world was smaller back and much more controllable in a sense you see that you see in this many this book you see ohio grow from cutler who comes in the first, you know, people to actually go west and establish ohio by the end of the story, by his death there are millions of people in ohio. And that that enormous building he had did get off on foot and state and so did whole territory i dont know how many more minutes we have but i want to tell this audience something im reading book thats phenomenal it is called silver, silver the sword and stone. An it is by somebody named ari. Hes also a very generous man 37 i thought i knew a lot about history. I know nothing about history compared to what is in that book. This whole history of latin america all that went long before any of the colonial people showed up or even columbus showed up that this brilliant american is an immigrant and this brilliant american has done a hell of a lot in her short time that does deserve more attention and praise and gratitude than you will ever get. David. Thank you. Oh, my goodness. Oh. Died and gone to heaven well david lets talk about the way that the world was so much smaller then because i wanted to ask is you how can we get become to that sort of ingenuity hard work, respect for freedom of religion which some times in some places we seem to have lost how we get back to the value of education so that when people leave as we heard yesterday from David Rubenstein when people leave some people who graduate from college and never read another book again. How can we get back to some of those values or do you think thats gone . Truly i believe that the people doing most important work in our country clearly the most important word are our teachers. [applause] they are they are shaping our future. They are the ones that mold all of us and i doubt theres any here today who cant right away remember this so soso who changed your life because of the way they taught some is subject or something that they once said to you that youve never forgotten. Ive had teachers all the way through grade school, high school, and college that i know change my life. Because one thing theyre attitude theyre enthusiasm for their subject, their understanding that you have to work to achieve learning. And that information isnt learning. Information is not learning. Information were learning, about if you memorize world almanac you would be educated if you mel wise word you would be weird and difference between information or facts and a story the great english novelist said if i tell you the king died, and then queen died thats a sequence of events. If i tell you that king died, and the queen died of grief thats a story. Is that difference of the story and one of the writers influence me enormously wases barbara and she said theres no strict to teaching history. Or writing history, tell stories. Thats what we all are. Each of us is a story. Each city, each town. Each road, we go west or south or north is a story. And ever river is a story. Mark twain understood that right away river towns are story towns. But theres always something passing through always something new. And we always want to know hows it come out . Whats it come out to . I think if we can encourage our children to get up off out of the chair and do something besides watch television if we can get people working on good projects it could be building model airplanes one or working with a library of congress. If we can do that, and we can encourage them to do that, when i had First Library card that to me was exciting when hi got my first drivers license it changes your life. I grew up in pittsburgh and pittsburgh the library and the museum and carnegie concert hall under same roof and i think that had a big influence on me and all of the others growing up there because i never thought it was separate. That books, the music, the art, the science. Dinosaur paintings all part of a rainy day saturday. And a terrific part. And part of education part of the story. I was just recalling this morning with with a friend i went with a High School Classmate with his mother and father on the history tour, a spring vacation from pittsburgh down to charlottesville and went to month saw old keamps and went on to washington, and came back. And stopped at the getties burg and just opened my eyes in a way to American History as nothing ever had i was justs dizzy i also thought the university of virginia looked very appealing very attractive. And i was my older brothers have gone to yale and i sort of thing i would go to yale. And my english teacher had gone to yale and he was a wonderful character. From maine, named luld and went in so see him after i got back from the trip i said ive had had a wonderful trip with steve and his mother and father, and when we went to university of virginia saw the beautiful campus there, and i was thinking maybe i might apply to university of virginia. He was stapgding right close to me and he was considerly shorter than i and he jammed his finger into my chest he said youre going yale and i dont it e hear anymore it be. [laughter] he didnt say lets sit down and talk about your innermost feelings it was a different approach and i never thought about going to university of virginia tben. Again Great Teachers change the world. [laughter] ive been doing a collection of prominent story when figured in all, music, art, politics and who was the teacher that they gave credit for . Being what they were in every single one of them had such a teacher and one of the most hovly of all what she had to say about her teachers, of course, she wound up being a teacher for quite a while. So i dont know how many teachers here but youre doing what needs to be done to you [applause] speaking of teaches i want to know what a you think about, i mean, youre a person who about has really two way of communicating youre hearing one way of communicating he has astonishly powerful voice of a narrator we have heard his voice on john adams series, and whatnot we have heard david voice telling these stories. But telling the story on a page requires a certainly mastery of language, a certain sensitivity sensibility towards the rhythm of a sentence. Tell us about your approach to language itself. Well i know to be writer you have to be a rewriter so i write what i write many times over and nibble writing for the ear as well as the eye. Because it was somebody reads it back to you or in some case use read it yourself, you when youre repeating some word too often or when youre sentence structures repetitive or when youre boring. And rosily my wife with reads everything that a i write. Allowed to me and we were working on last chapters of my book about theodore roosevelt, this will never forget, and she came to a sentence and she read it and said theres something wrong with that sentence. I said well read it again. So she read it again i said no theres nothing wrong with that sentence. She said yes there is. Flb i said give it to me. Not me at my best, and i read it to her i said see. Nothing wrong with it. She said yes there is. I said well lets just go on and book went on to publisher. And it was published and it got wonderful reviews. Except in the new york review of books in the review by gorby he toed and said sometimes, however, he doesnt write very well. Consider this sentence [laughter] i have to tell you Something Else it shall about the voice tg snowstorm in boston and everything stopped you couldnt get food so i went over to star market and back mace to load up on provisions. And i had it shall we worked out a list and i went. And found everything we wanted except cashews and as you know you cant survive without cashews. [laughter] so there was this fellow walking by with a star market label on his shirt. I said excuse me sir but can you tell me where i would find cashews he said yes ill show you follow me so we follow him and he pointed it out i thanked him very much he went on his way. Well ten minutes later or so i was checking out the cash register. And he came to me and he said excuse me. Were you the narrator of the series of the civil war i said yes i was. He said i have to thank you from the bottom of my heart. Because when that series first came on the air, i was suffer terribly from insomnia. I would hear that voice and go right out. I dont believe that. Absolutely true. [laughter] no i think that writing is all important. I think that first page of a book is crucial. Critical i think that how a book ends is critical. One of my favorite endings of one of my books is when the Wright Brothers put on first exhibit of what they could do at home out at the cow pasture where they had been experimenting all of those years. And wanted to take his father up and had his father was in his 80s. And up they went old Bishop Wright wonderful man and all of the time they were up there Bishop Wright kept saying higher, higher thats the spirit. Thats the spirit. Also the quote that i began that book with wilbur said no bird ever soared in a calm. Youve got to have adversity you have to have the wind against you in order to lift off. And thats so true so very true. If everything were easy it would do it nothing but sit around we would not only not accomplish much of anything. I dont think we would be very is happy. And theres always something that needs people who need help. Always advances there are exciting, whats happening in medicine right now under our very noses is going to be written about for years and years maybe most important event of our time this exciting and it is all human ingenuity human perseverance about, and admirable use of the mind in working together all of it. I wish i could live another 80 years, its going to be exciting. [laughter] we do too. We do too. I also must insist on revealing the secret of my whole career, success accomplishments, everything her name see rosily barnes and rosalie she is the secretary treasury, shes chair of the Ethics Committee [laughter] and shes most wonderful editor partner in this work that one could panel sweet heart would you please stand up . [applause] that is a great, great segue into thank you for that. Because that was going to be my next question. And thinking how helpful shes been special trying to save you from that sentence whatever it was. But as a member of my gender, you i want to say because when you treat John Adams Abigail is there. When you treat Wright Brothers, the sisters there. When i treat washington and emily takes over. It takes over absolutely. And in this book my goodness the women are added buildingses, building of this country. Yeah. So never been given sufficient credit. That that is changing. Thank goodness. [applause] years ago years ago i read a marvelous book ive never forgotten it and still tell people it be. And with a distinguished name by ashley a natural superiority of women. And he is studied this seriously as anthropologist and scholar. Women live longer. Women are less susceptible to disease. Women mature in their minds, bodies faster than men. They are stronger on a weight basis. And its or very easy to understand why. Because women are necessities in order for race to survive. Men are no good except the number of 0 of our time is live as cave men prehistoric people. All of the men had to be able to do was plant a seeds and go tout face saber tooth tiger but women have to raise young minds these brains because were the only animal who isnt born ready to go. And therefore, they have to be around the mothers the women, for at least eight to 15 years. Now they know it is probably about 25 years. [laughter] no truly. Mind doesnt fully develop until about about 22 or 23 years old. But this is wonderful thats progress. Real progress. David i want to thank you from the bottom of my heart and from the bottom of everybodys heart here web and i want to the read what the president ial medal from freedom citations which i think incaps lates the great gift that youve given this nation that youve givens us in making all of that history come alive. One of our nations most distinguished honored historian david has taken his own place in American History. United states honors him to document the people, places events that have shaped meshes and so we hon your you david mckullah. That was wonderful. A great job. [applause] youre watching booktv on cspan2. For complete Television Schedule visit booktv. Org, you can also loon behind scenes on social media at booktv on twitter, instagram, and facebook. Here are some of the current best selling nonfiction books according to the wall street journal. Topping history is tara a account of growing up in idaho mountains and introduction to formal education at age 17 in her book, educated. It has been on best seller list over a year. Next, American University professor argues that america must choose to be antidepressant racist and work towards building more Equitable Society in how to be an antiracist hell be appearing on Author Interview program afterwards next weekend to discuss his book. Then it is selfhelp book strength finder 2. 0 following that is Michelle Obama memoir becoming best selling book of last year and wrapping up a look at some of the best selling nonfiction books according to wall street journal is mark mann son advice on leading a happier life. Some of these authors appeared on booktv an watched them onlionel at booktv. Org. Host this week on the communicators we want to introduce you to george mason University Professor duminda wijesekera. Professor wijesekera, what do you do it George Mason University . Guest i do research mostly related to cybersecurity and its consequences on transportation systems. I have a large group of students with radio communication, on connected, some are railroad security, some on uavs,