Washington Post investigations editor Peter Wallsten joins us to discuss the AR-15’s outsized role in mass shootings and the marketing campaigns that brought its power to the masses.
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The surprising things monarchies can teach us about democracy
Priya Satia is a professor of international history at Stanford University and she joins guest host John McCaa to discuss ideas we might take from pre-colonial monarchies.
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Unscrambling the science and history of eggs
Author Lizzie Stark joins us to discuss the history and culture of eggs – from world cuisine to motherhood – and how we’re still awed by such a humble object.
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Domestic terror and the history of anarchy
Adrienne LaFrance from The Atlantic joins us to discuss what she describes as “slow-motion anarchy,” where political violence doesn’t lead to civil war but an erosion of the ties that bind peaceful citizens together.
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The beauty of beetles
Entomologist Arthur V. Evans joins us for a primer on the world of beetles – some 400,000 species strong – their ability to survive and their importance to ecosystems.
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Does being an American kill your ancestral culture?
Barrett Holmes Pitner joins us to discuss why Black Americans have faced ethnocide since the beginning of the slave trade, why the post-Trump world has spotlighted this issue further, and the way it continues to shape the future.
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The late Judith Heumann on her 50-year fight for disability rights
Judith Heumann joined us to discuss her life’s work, the lawsuits and sit-ins that changed history for people with disabilities, and what it means to rebel against entrenched norms and win.
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Imagine growing up in the Ice Age
April Nowell, a Paleolithic archaeologist, joins us to discuss the efforts to uncover the mysteries of childhood in the Ice Age.
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The true history of lie detector tests
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.
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What authoritarian leaders have in common
Professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat joins guest host John McCaa to discuss how world leaders from Benito Mussolini to Vladimir Putin have gained followers and manipulated the media.
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The unfinished work of Reconstruction
Peniel Joseph is the Barbara Jordan Chair in Political Values and Ethics at the LBJ School of Public Affairs. He joins us to assess the current push for racial equality – from the election of Barack Obama to Black Lives Matter.
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Presidents come and go, but Putin remains
Frontline filmmaker Michael Kirk joins us to discuss Putin’s relationship to not only President Biden, but to Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump.
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