How To Be A Hero

April 16, 2021 Education, Health, History, Mental Health, Politics, Upcoming

William H. McRaven joins us to talk about what we can all learn from those who acted with valor when the moment required it.

An Artist’s Quest To Replace The Irreplaceable

April 15, 2021 Current Events, History, Race/Identity, Upcoming

Michael Rakowitz joins us to talk about his work that uses historic moments as a launching board to workshop big ideas into moments of change.

Darwin’s Guide To Alien Life

April 13, 2021 Education, Environment, History, Science and Technology

Arik Kershenbaum, a zoologist and fellow at Girton College, University of Cambridge, joins us to talk about understanding evolution on Earth and how that might parallel alien life forms elsewhere.

The World Needs More Toilets

April 12, 2021 Culture, Economics, Global Issues, Health, History, Science and Technology

Science journalist Chelsea Wald joins us to talk about what’s behind the plumbing and introduce the scientists and activists working to make sanitation healthy and accessible for all.

Asian Americans And The Rise In Racism

April 12, 2021 Culture, Current Events, Education, History, Race/Identity

Vishakha N. Desai, chair of Columbia University’s Committee on Global Thought and a past president of the Asia Society, joins us to talk about these troubling statics, how Asians regularly face racist ideas that question their place in American society and what needs to happen to fight back.

NFTs And The Future Of Digital Art

April 8, 2021 Culture, Current Events, Economics, Global Issues, History

Kyle Chayka is a contributor to The New Yorker, and he joins us to discuss the high stakes, high-price world of digital art and why galleries, museum curators, auction houses, even everyday people are jumping on this cutting-edge trend.

Student Debt Is Crushing Parents, Too

April 7, 2021 Culture, Economics, Education, History

Caitlin Zaloom, associate professor of social and cultural analysis at New York University, joins us to discuss how college-minded parents are taking on enormous debts to fund higher education and why the middle-class is especially crunched.

Online Scams Are Out Of Control

April 6, 2021 Current Events, History, Politics, Science and Technology

Ankush Khardori, a lawyer and former federal prosecutor who specialized in financial fraud and white-collar crime, joins us to discuss internet crime, why it’s gotten worse during the pandemic, and the persistent problems facing the Justice Department.

How The Quest For Flavor Drove Evolution

April 5, 2021 Culture, Global Issues, History, Science and Technology

Rob Dunn, professor of applied ecology at North Carolina State University joins us to talk about why we prefer cooked food, the various ways we taste, and how our pursuit of a good meal might’ve led to starting the first fire.

Rights Shouldn’t Be A Zero-Sum Game

April 2, 2021 Culture, Current Events, History, Politics

Columbia Law professor Jamal Greene joins us to talk about why courts have an outsized role in determining what Americans fight for and against, a method he says is out of line with what the framers of the Constitution envisioned.

How Facebook A.I. Enables Misinformation

April 1, 2021 Current Events, History, Politics, Science and Technology

Karen Hao, senior artificial intelligence reporter with MIT Technology Review, joins us to talk about her profile of Joaquin Quiñonero Candela, who built Facebook’s wildly successful AI platform only to later struggle with the reality that he can’t tame the monster he created.

The Limits Of Identity Politics

March 30, 2021 Culture, Global Issues, History, Language, Politics, Race/Identity

University of Manchester sociology professor Gary Younge joins us to talk about how societies operate based on assumptions and privileges granted to people based on their identities.