Was Leonard Bernstein a threat to American democracy? We’ll explore the life and times of one of the greatest creative forces of the 20th Century with Barry Seldes, political scientist at Rider University and author of the new book “Leonard Bernstein: The Political Life of an American Musician” (California, 2009).
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What are the special challenges faced by those who run arts and cultural organizations? How are they coping with the world-wide economic downturn? As the 10th International Conference on Arts and Cultural Management wraps up today at SMU, we’ll talk with one of the organizers. Krista Farber Weinstein is a recent Visiting Assistant Professor in the Center for Arts Administration at SMU.
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What was the 17th Century heresy trial of Galileo really like? We’ll find out this hour with author Dan Hofstadter, who examines the details of the trial and conviction in his new book “The Earth Moves: Galileo and the Roman Inquisition” (W.W. Norton and Co., 2009).
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What will become of the protesters in Iran and will they accomplish the change they so desperately want? We’ll explore the current situation and possible outcomes this hour with Dr. Mahmoud Sadri, Professor of Sociology at Texas Women’s University.
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Is there a developed world solution to issues that face developing world communities? We’ll talk this hour with Princeton University Professor Adam. K. Webb, author of the new book “A Path of Our Own: An Andean Village and Tomorrow’s Economy of Values” (Spence Media, 2009).
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It may seem unbelievable, but according to our guest this hour, slavery is alive and well – even in our country. We’ll talk with Kevin Bales, president of Free the Slaves in Washington, D.C and co-author with Ron Soodalter of the new book “The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking and Slavery in America Today” (University of California, 2009).
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Is the President blowing it? We’ll spend this hour with Kevin Baker, whose article “Barack Hoover Obama: The Best and the Brightest Blow It Again” appears in the current issue of HARPER’S Magazine.
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On October 26, 1976, the last case of Smallpox occurred, ending a ten-year struggle to eliminate a disease that had annually killed two million people or more. We’ll spend this hour with Dr. D.A. Henderson, the physician who led the campaign. He tells the story in a new book – “SMALLPOX – THE DEATH OF A DISEASE: The Inside Story of Eradicating a Worldwide Killer ” (Prometheus, 2009).
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Controversy over the public funding of art is nothing new, but how will the current economic climate influence future funding and what does history tell us? We’ll talk this hour with David A. Smith, a Baylor University historian and author of the recent book “Money for Art: The Tangled Web of Art and Politics in American Democracy” (Ivan R, Dee, 2008).
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Is the brain capable of change and growth – even later in life? We’ll talk this hour with neuroscientist Susan R. Barry who describes her own brain’s transformative experiences in the new book “Fixing My Gaze: A Scientist’s Journey into Seeing in Three Dimensions” (Basic Books, 2009).
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From the archive: What has happened to the bees and what will become of those who care for them? We’ll explore the complexities of the hive and the future of the honeybee with beekeeper Susan Brackney whose new book is “Plan Bee: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Hardest-Working Creatures on the Planet” (Perigree, 2009).
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Think listeners respond to the issues that President Obama touched on during his press conference.
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