Think from KERA

Annie Lowrey is a staff writer at The Atlantic, and she joins us to talk about just how much the government makes us work for the services it provides and how those systems could become more efficient.

Ben McIntyre joins guest host John McCaa to discuss the man with the code name “Redwood.”

Anne Applebaum, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins guest host John McCaa to talk about her reporting during which she’s witnessed government workers – under the guise of diplomatic efforts – making self-serving deals with short-term goals.

David Gelles joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss Extreme Weather Survivors, a nationwide support group for families upended by climate disasters.

Nicholas Carnes joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss why ordinary citizens are not offered a seat at the table when it comes to politics.

Kathryn Jezer-Morton joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss how capturing content shapes the way we live.

Liane Moriarty joins host Krys Boyd to talk about crafting characters that readers can’t get enough of and how her large family shapes her work.

Toluse Olorunnipa joins host Krys Boyd to discuss efforts to sew doubt into the election process and concerns about a smooth midterm election in November.

. Sarah Hepola is co-host of the weekly culture podcast “Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em” and a staff writer for The Dallas Morning News.

Lindsay Owens joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how companies have been selectively bumping up prices.

Robert Kolker joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the story of nine siblings who began to lose themselves to frontotemporal dementia.

Lindsay Crouse joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the courage it takes to let go and change course and why “strategic quitting” is a skill.

Steve Thompson joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why lawmakers are worried about the looming budget deficit.

Olga Khazan joins host Krys Boyd to discuss adverse effects from meditation.

Erin D. Dumbacher joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why having too many weapons can pose problems.

Allison Aubrey joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how taking on mid-life head-on can be both rewarding and fulfilling.

Jonathan O'Callaghan joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the enormous numbers of satellites being launched into space, what this means for traffic at low-Earth orbit altitude and space trash, and why, despite concerns, there are plans to launch 2 million more in the next few years.

Vox correspondent Allie Volpe joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how tech is offering solutions to social isolation (a problem it created).

Antonio Damasio joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why he believes consciousness came before feelings and why feelings came early in the evolutionary process.

Kai Bird joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Roy Cohn’s mentorship of a young Donald Trump and his eventual disbarment for unethical conduct.

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Eric Klinenberg is Helen Gould Shepard Professor in the Social Sciences and director of the Institute for Public Knowledge at New York University. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how Europe is warming at twice the rate of other continents due to global warming.

Journalist Billy Brennan joins host Krys Boyd to discuss “paradoxical lucidity,” where dementia patients seem to “wake up” and interact right before they decline again.

Abigail R. Hall is an Independent Institute Senior Fellow and professor of economics at the University of Tampa. She joins host Krys Boyd to make the case that some of these laws have outlived their intended purposes and violate our liberties.

Mehrsa Baradaran discusses the history of the wealth gap and why politics keep that gap alive for Black Americans.

Perrin Roosevelt Ireland joins host Krys Boyd to discuss interesting facts about animal sex – from gender fluidity to procreation to co-parenting – and offer a glimpse into why so many species are worth saving from extinction.

Jon Ronson joins host Krys Boyd to talk about what he found while looking for strange displays of masculinity.

Tyler Austin Harper joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how DEI policies burdened him as a black scholar.

Alina Chan is a molecular biologist, and she joins host Krys Boyd to talk about precautions that can be put in place that allow for important research to be conducted while protecting the public.

Sarah Smarsh joins host Krys Boyd to explore the creative genius of the Dolly Parton — a prolific songwriter of more than 3,000 songs — and a pioneer for exploring class and gender issues in America.

Michael Powell, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Burlington, Vt., Seattle and other places where needle exchanges have made public spaces unwelcoming.

Rin Reczek is professor of sociology and co-director of the Center for Aging Families at The Ohio State University. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss two distinct family units she calls “compulsory kinship” and “democratized kinship,” how they have changed over the years, and what people can lose — or gain — if they cut off contact.

New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why, when America has pulled research funding, China is funneling billions of dollars to remake its economy.

Dr. Helen Ouyang is a physician and associate professor at Columbia University and a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the teens who take on changing bandages and managing medications for family members.

We’ve all heard of “imposter syndrome” and something similar is going on in your brain in regard to your intelligence. Dr. Josh Turknett, M.D joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why we all have the ability to unlock abilities, how intelligence is built over time.

For every exonerated individual in the criminal justice system, there is another forgotten victim: the original victim’s family. Barbara Bradley Hagerty joins host Krys Boyd to discuss a case involving a man, Ben Spencer, who was wrongfully convicted of a crime.

Stephanie Mencimer joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why 7 million people are waiting to hear back from the IRS about correspondence.

Chad P. Bown joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how tariffs push up prices, what lessons from history can teach.

Journalist Emi Nietfeld joins host Krys Boyd to discuss her disillusionment with her “millennial values” where hard work and dreaming big would pay off in the corporate world why Gen Z doesn’t have a sense of optimism for their futures.

David E. Sanger joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Trump’s options for ending the war, which include military escalation, economic crackdown or simply declaring victory and walking away.

Science writer Laura Spinney joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the proto-Indo-European language

Bob Herman joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how the end of subsidies to the Affordable Care Act.

Rong-Gong Lin II joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what has scientists on edge about a massive fault line that hasn’t had an earthquake in more than a century. Read more

Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why billions invested in new tanks, planes and warships might be better spent on cheap drones.adscf

Yudhijit Bhattacharjee joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how Colombian authorities are trying to track down criminal enterprises counterfeiting dollar bills.

Joshua Habgood-Coote joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the centuries-old longing to get back to the “good old days” of craftsmanship.

Jordan Thomas is a former Los Padres hotshot wildland firefighter and currently an anthropologist and chancellor’s fellow at the University of California, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why climate change doesn’t tell the whole story.

John Semley joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the history, culture and economics of morticians, why their particular trade is quickly going out of fashion.

Stephanie Fairyington is a journalist who writes on gender, sexuality, family and parenting. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss her perception that she didn’t live up to modern standards of pretty.

Tyler Pager, White House correspondent for The New York Times, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how and why Rubio is making big economic and political decisions for the country.

Katie Engelhart, contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the children who must decide whether to care for aging parents who abused them.

Annette Gordon-Reed joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Jefferson’s own words on race, what it meant to be.

Fay Bound-Alberti joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how facial understanding is tied to where and when people live.

Simone Stolzoff joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why striving for certainty cuts off creative thinking, why building tolerance for uncertainty helps prepares us for life’s pitfalls, and why someone who claims to know it all might actually be dangerous.

Heather Timmons writes about consumer rights for The Guardian. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why American shoppers are fed up with higher prices, inflation, private equity and A.I. customer service

Tom Wainwright joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the rise of “local” entertainment, where artists want to appeal to a smaller segment of the population and not go “global,”.

Anna Fisher joins host Krys Boyd to discuss her record as the longest serving astronaut at 36 years and 9 months.

Darby Saxbe discusses the changes fathers go through when a baby is born from hormones to attention span the important role grandfathers play

Devlin Barrett joins host Krys Boyd to discuss evidence that Trump is using the department to exact revenge.

Michael Pollan joins host Krys Boyd to explore what we do and don’t know about the mysteries of the conscious mind.

Ibram X. Kendi joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how authoritarian leaders tap into the fears of white populations to tighten their grip on power.

The Booker Prize-winning author talks with host Krys Boyd about his latest work.

Tayari Jones discusses her new novel.

When you have the natural curiosity of David Sedaris, ordinary observations turn into moments of humor and humanity. The best-selling author joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his latest book of essays that lays out life in in the 21st Century.

America has long enjoyed a relatively calm home in North America, but President Trump’s recent moves could upend that stability. Krys Boyd sits down with three guests to break down the state of U.S. relations with Mexico, Canada and Cuba.

Nuclear weapons have long been thought to be deterrents for global warfare– are they still? Rose Gottemoeller joins guest host Paige Phelps to discuss why nuclear weapons are largely ineffective in stopping sustained attacks by cheap drones.

Ann Larson joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss the lives of grocery store workers, who are deemed essential but earn wages that don’t cover basic life necessities. Read more

Couples desperate to adopt often turn to underregulated for-profit adoption agencies. Gabrielle Glaser joins host Krys Boyd to discuss a system ripe for abuse, where “baby brokers” target pregnant women.

The most reluctant politician we’ve ever had just happens to have been our first president. H.W. Brands joins host Krys Boyd to discuss George Washington who saw himself as a solider and not a politician.

Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton fought for independence and fought each other. Jeffrey Rosen, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the battles Jefferson and Hamilton had over concepts of liberty and freedom.

America’s history is a mix of pride and shame so how should we square those conflicting feelings? Yoni Appelbaum, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what it means to be a patriot when scholars argue about the American story.

The Declaration of Independence might’ve been written by men, but history was being made by women. Denise Kiernan joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the publishers, spies, and other extraordinary women that powered the American Revolution.

Lindsay Chervinsky, executive director of the George Washington Presidential Library, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the second U.S. president.

After the Flood, a new podcast from the Texas Newsroom and PBS’s Frontline, has followed survivors over the last year and tries to find out why this happened – and whether it could happen again.

Justin Gregg is senior research associate with the Dolphin Communication Project and an adjunct professor at St. Francis Xavier University, where he lectures on animal behavior and cognition. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the benefits of anthropomorphism and the detriments of its polar opposite dehumanization.

America’s 250th birthday celebration was to be led by the Smithsonian then President Trump took it over. Michael Scherer joins host Krys Boyd to discuss a new rebranded celebration called America250.

Hospice care is a good option for dying loved ones so why not pets? Dr. Sunita Puri joins host Krys Boyd to discuss end-of-life care for beloved animals.

India has claimed the world’s largest population since 2023 but that changes fast. Tom Sasse joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why a decline in birth rates will hinder future growth.

How do you write satire about an administration that is already over the top? Author Ben Fountain joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his wild new novel in which a pro-wrestler holds almost magical powers that captivate crowds.

Caleb Gayle is a journalist, author and professor at Northeastern University, and he is also a contributing writer at The New York Times Magazine. He joins guest host John McCaa to tell the story of Edward McCabe, who made it his life’s work to set up a Black state in Oklahoma.

Clint Smith, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his interviews with dozens of enlisted and civilian Black servicemembers.

Dating should be fun, but single, straight people are finding it a drudgery or even worse cringe. Magdalene J. Taylor, senior editor at Playboy, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss “heteropessimism”.

The common evolutionary question centers around nature vs. nurture. Jonathan R. Goodman a social scientist joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Darwinian survival vs. species interdependence.

Simon Paré-Poupart, a sociologist and garbageman in Montreal, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his life on the back of a garbage truck.

Sharron Wilkins Conrad joins guest host John McCaa to discuss how Black families viewed martyred leaders who advocated for change.

Stefan Szymanski is professor of sport management at the University of Michigan and a leading sports economist. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why, with all the money and sponsorships and hype around professional soccer teams.

New American pope has been a very vocal critic of American foreign, domestic policy. Victor Gaetan joins Krys Boyd to discuss Pope Leo’s policies.

Microbes have lived on this planet since long before humans. Shayla Love joins host Krys Boyd to discuss these masters of evolution that can mutate in a single generation.

The damage caused by alcohol costs Americans billions of dollars. Isabella Cueto, chronic disease joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the harms of alcohol from elevated cancer risk to liver damage.

For two-time National Book Award winner Jesymn Ward, the deep South is the only place she can call home.

Creativity knows no bounds but it’s best captured within set limits.

A look at Iran’s recent history — from the promise of democracy to oppressive rule and further corruption.

To really understand the nuts and bolts of economics, look to the black market.