Couldn’t get to sleep last night? If so, you’re not alone. Millions of Americans complain of insomnia at least a few nights a week. What causes it and what are the health risks associated with the condition? We’ll spend this hour with Gayle Greene, a member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the patient representative on the board of the American Insomnia Association. Greene’s new book is “Insomniac” (University of California Press, 2008).
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Where does Texas politics get its swagger? Some might argue that Bob Bullock had a hand in crafting that image. We’ll remember the legendary Bullock this evening with journalists Dave McNeely and Jim Henderson who write about “The Largest Texan” in their new book “Bob Bullock: God Bless Texas” (University of Texas Press, 2008). Judge Manuel T. Valdez will join us during the Scene segment to discuss Fort Worth’s Vaquero Sculpture Project which recently achieved its fundraising goal and is planned for completion soon.
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What factors influence a woman’s image of her own body and how can women achieve body acceptance? We’ll spend this hour with SMU’s Psychology Professor Katherine Presnell and Journalism Professor Camille Kraeplin who are studying how the media influences body image and how cognitive dissonance exercises may help.
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Who was Peter Mark Roget and what prompted him, from the age of eight, to begin the systematic organization of the English language that made him famous? We’ll talk with journalist Joshua Kendall, whose new book is “The Man Who Made Lists: Love, Death, Madness, and the Creation of Roget’s Thesaurus” (Putnam, 2008).
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Can the U.S. actually achieve energy independence? We’ll explore the idea this hour with a confirmed doubter, journalist Robert Bryce. Bryce, who has reported extensively on energy for nearly 20 years, argues that the bi-partisan call for energy independence is essentially “meaningless rhetoric” in his new book “Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of ‘Energy Independence’” (Public Affairs, 2008).
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Do tried-and-true marketing strategies still work in our go-fast, get-it-all society? Not so much, argues marketing guru Denise Shiffman in her new book “The Age of Engage: Reinventing Marketing for Today’s Connected, Collaborative, and Hyperinteractive Culture” (Hunt Street, 2008). Shiffman will join us this hour.
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Almost all adult children must eventually face the challenge of caring for an aging parent. What is the best approach? We’ll talk this hour with Dr. Dennis McCullough who addresses the issue in “My Mother, Your Mother: Embracing ‘Slow Medicine,’ the Compassionate Approach to Caring for Your Aging Loved Ones” (Harper Collins, 2008).
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Fans of the Discovery Channel’s “Man vs. Wild” are familiar with the plot line – a man is dropped in the woods with only his wits and skills to help him survive, with no help from the camera crew. The story is not a new one. We’ll talk this hour with E Magazine editor Jim Motavalli whose new book is “Naked in the Woods: Joseph Knowles and the Legacy of Frontier Fakery” (Da Capo Press, 2008).
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What is the human rights situation in Darfur? How are people coping in Iraq? We’ll talk this hour with one of the world’s premiere authorities on human rights, former United Nations Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Jan Egeland. Egeland, whose new book is “A Billion Lives: An Eyewitness Report from the Frontlines of Humanity” (Simon and Schuster, 2008), will be in town later this week to address the Word Affairs Council of Dallas Fort Worth.
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What does the future hold for the United States on the global stage? According to former governor and U.S. senator David Boren, the decisions we make now will secure our country’s future. Boren, currently president of the University of Oklahoma, is in town to talk about his new book “A Letter to America” (University of Oklahoma Press, 2008). He’ll join us this hour.
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If you haven’t noticed, China is a big deal. They’re hosting the Olympics, manufacturing almost everything, and building more power plants faster than any other country on earth. We’ll take a closer look at China this evening with journalist Ted Fishman, author of “China, Inc.: How the Rise of the Next Superpower Challenges America and the World” (Scribner, 2006), which is now out in paperback.
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What happens to the families and small children of illegal immigrants when they are detained or seeking asylum? Many are locked up in a former medium-security prison right here in Texas. We’ll spend this hour with journalist Margaret Talbot, whose story “The Lost Children: What do tougher immigration policies mean for illegal immigrant families?” appears in the March 3rd issue of The New Yorker.
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