KERA's Think

[2015-12-21 12:00:00] In 2002, forensic pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu took an interest in brain injuries when the body of NFL Hall of Famer Mike Webster lay before him on the table. This hour, we'll learn about how his research has caused many Americans to rethink our devotion to football with Jeanne Marie Laskas. Her book "Concussion" is the source material for the movie of the same name starring Will Smith out Friday.

[2015-12-17 13:00:00] Tonight, "Star Wars" fans around the world finally get a look at the newest entry into the movie franchise. This hour, we'll talk about if "The Force Awakens" stands up to the hype. And we'll talk about the best movies of 2015 with Chris Vognar and Stephen Becker of KERA's Big Screen team and Julie Hoyt Fisk, entertainment contributor for "Good Morning Texas."

[2015-12-17 12:00:00] For most of us, jury selection is a mysterious process during which we answer a bunch of questions and cross our fingers that we don't get picked. This hour, we'll talk about what attorneys are really looking for from the jury pool during voir dire with attorneys Lisa Blue Baron of Baron and Blue and jury consultant Jennifer Lapinski of Cathy E. Bennett & Associates.

[2015-08-13 13:00:00] Seventy years ago this month, the U.S. decimated the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with atomic bombs. At the time, the bombings were viewed as a quick – and even lifesaving – end to World War II. This hour, we'll talk about how views have changed in the years since with UMass Amherst history professor Christian Appy, who writes about the topic for Salon.

[2015-08-13 12:00:00] The passage of the Voting Rights Act is one of the signature moments of the Civil Right movement. Fifty years later, though, new voting restrictions are making it difficult for some Americans to cast their ballots. This hour, we'll talk about the struggle to pass the act – and how revisions to the law could affect the 2016 presidential election – with Ari Berman, author of Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America (Farrar, Straus and Giroux).

[2015-08-12 13:00:00] Getting a tattoo isn't quite the rebellious move it once was. Covering most of your body with ink, however, remains a bold choice. This hour, we'll talk specifically about what extensive body art says about the women who chose the look with Siena College sociology professor Beverly Yuen Thompson. She's the author of Covered in Ink: Tattoos, Women and the Politics of the Body (NYU Press).

[2015-08-12 12:00:00] As the number of people living on the planet grows exponentially, population control has become a hot topic among demographers. This hour, we'll talk about how to keep the population manageable with Robert Walker, CEO of Population Media Center and author of the new report "Demographic Vulnerability: Where the Population Growth Poses the Greatest Challenge."

[2015-08-11 13:00:00] When Robert Peace stepped foot on the Yale campus after a tough upbringing in Newark, it seemed his life was on the right path. This hour, we'll talk about how the dreams of a brilliant student were ultimately crushed by the life he tried to leave behind with Jeff Hobbs, Peace's roommate at Yale. Hobbs tells his friend's story in The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League (Scribner).

[2015-08-11 12:00:00] After years in medical school, Sandeep Jauhar looked forward to the stability of joining the staff at a teaching hospital. His experiences on the job, though, left him questioning the way our healthcare system works. This hour, we'll talk to Jauhar about how the pharmaceutical industry, insurance companies and government policies are affecting patient care, which he writes about in Doctored: The Disillusionment of an American Physician (Farrar, Straus and Giroux).

[2015-08-10 13:00:00] When natural disasters hit New Orleans, Indonesia, Hati and other places, the cleanup and rebuilding process is extensive. This hour, we'll talk about how the aftermath of these tragedies fuels global inequality with Columbia University professor John C. Mutter, author of The Disaster Profiteers: How Natural Disasters Make the Rich Richer and the Poor Even Poorer (St. Martin's Press).

[2015-08-10 12:00:00] By 2050, the Earth's population is estimated to reach 9 billion. And feeding all of those people using current methods will be a challenge. This hour, we'll talk about the scientists who are exploring new ways of producing food with Joel K. Bourne, author of The End of Plenty: The Race to Feed a Crowded World (W.W. Norton and Co.).

[2015-08-06 13:00:00] Tonight, the leading candidates for the G.O.P. presidential nomination take the stage for the first time to debate in New Hampshire. This hour, we'll talk about who might emerge from the crowded field – and about the possibility of Vice President Joe Biden jumping into the race – with TCU political science professor James Riddlesperger and UTA political science professor Rebecca Deen.

[2015-08-06 12:00:00] Homo sapiens aren't the only subset of humans who ever roamed the Earth – they are, however, the ones who survived to now. This hour, we'll talk about how we beat out all other animals to become the planet's dominant species with Curtis W. Marean, associate director of Arizona State's Institute of Human Origins. His article "The Most Invasive Species of All" appears in the current issue of Scientific American.

[2015-02-05 13:00:00] As Texas Monthly’s barbecue editor, Daniel Vaughn eats brisket, ribs and all the fixin’s nearly every day. This hour, we’ll talk to him about his most recent discoveries, how barbecue varies across the state and what he looks for in the perfect plate.

[2015-02-05 12:00:00] Higher education is one of the pillars of a democratic society. So what happens when a significant percentage of the population doesn’t have access to colleges and universities? This hour, we’ll talk about how admissions practices and prohibitive costs are fueling inequality with Harvard Law professor Lani Guinier, author of The Tyranny of the Meritocracy: Democratizing Higher Education in America (Beacon Press).