On today’s show, we hear the incredible story of Harry Harlow, an American psychologist known for his research on social isolation and maternal separation in the 1950s and 1960s. Harlow spent his life trying to understand and measure the importance of love and companionship in human development. In a series of controversial experiments, Harlow separated baby rhesus monkeys from their mothers and, to study the effect of separation and isolation on the babies, allowed them to be “raised” by milk-dispensing robots. Listen in at 6pm on Saturday to hear author Deborah Blum, author of the critically acclaimed Love at Goon Park: Harry Harlow and the Science of Affection, tell the full and emotional story.

More about: Harry Harlow Love Maternal Separation Rhesus Monkey Social Isolation