Writer and director Rob Rapley joins us to discuss the invention of what is known as the lie detector test, its uses and abuses, and how it’s used today.
Read moreHistory is defined by what happens after a great invention
Derek Thompson, a staff writer at The Atlantic, joins us to discuss why, when the U.S. is a world leader in Nobel Prizes in science and technology, we still lag behind in the implementation of innovation.
Read moreParasites could unlock evolutionary history
Scott L. Gardner, professor of biological sciences, joins us to discuss parasitology around the world and how these tiny creatures offer insight to the evolutionary history of regions.
Read moreEven the ancient Greeks suffered from addiction
Carl Erik Fisher discusses his own struggle with alcoholism and his search to find answers in the policies, people and treatments of both the recent and distant past.
Read moreWho we build monuments to and why it matters
Paul M. Farber of the National Monument Audit joins us to discuss a recent study of 50,000 monuments across the U.S. and what the research shows about who we memorialize and who we leave out.
Read moreFor historians, the past Is written in pencil
James M. Banner, Jr. is founder of the National History Center of the American Historical Association, and he joins us to talk about why history is never really set in stone.
Read moreThe science of your dreams
Neuroscientist Sidarta Ribeiro joins us to discuss how dreams are connected to how we learn and even how we understand our existence.
Read moreHow We Politicize The Past
Princeton University historian Matthew Karp joins us to discuss how both sides of the political spectrum have used history lessons for wildly divergent purposes, and what that means for the truth.
Read moreThe Vice President Who Set The Stage For Civil War
Baylor University historian Robert Elder joins us to talk about Vice President John C. Calhoun, a man who argued that slavery was a “positive good” and set the stage for the South to secede from the Union.
Read moreThe Black Roots Of Beer Culture
James Bennett II joins us to talk about why beer is often conflated today with a rich, white world and why something as simple as the backyard BBQ is essential to understanding how America chooses to drink.
Read moreWhat Does The Alamo Really Represent?
Author Bryan Burrough joins us to talk about arguably the state’s most famous story – The Alamo – and why its role in preserving slavery is often written out of Texas lore.
Read moreA Case For A Great Migration Back To The South
New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow joins us to talk about his ideas for how to create lasting social change, honor culture and memory, and fight back against systemic racism.
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