KERA's Think

[2014-06-10 13:00:00] It’s easy for Grand Prairie to get lost among its larger neighbors as it sits between Dallas and Arlington. But the city has played an important role in the history of North Texas as well as the war effort during WWII. We’ll talk about the city’s past and present this hour with Kathy Goolsby, author of A History of Grand Prairie: Pre 1840s-2009, and Grand Prairie city councilwoman Jorja Clemson.

[2014-06-10 12:00:00]At least 27 mild earthquakes have struck near Azle since Nov. 1, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. We’ll talk this hour about the effects the quakes have had on the community and whether they are related to the booming local oil and gas business. We’ll be joined by SMU seismologist Brian Stump, who is studying the recent seismic activity in North Texas, and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Lisa Song of Inside Climate News.

[2014-06-09 13:00:00] Alan Furst is a master of the historical spy novel, basing each of his tales of espionage in Europe during World War II. This hour, we’ll talk to him about the endless inspiration he gets from the time period, which is also the setting for his newest novel, Midnight in Europe (Random House).

[2014-06-09 12:00:00] With the convenience of ordering books online, how do local bookstores build a client base? This hour we’ll, speak with a few local store representatives about thriving among giants.

[2014-04-08 13:00:00] Trinity Groves, Oak Cliff and Lakewood are among the Dallas neighborhoods often mentioned as local hotspots. We’ll find out this hour how they developed that reputation and if they’ll be able to keep it with a panel of local architects and urban planners. Our conversation is ahead of a panel discussion tonight sponsored by Dallas Architecture Forum called “Dallas’ Emerging Neighborhood Hotspots: Will They Survive?”

[2014-04-08 12:00:00] As our national debt rises, America becomes increasingly beholden to foreign creditors. We’ll talk this hour about the dangers of further borrowing with former Houston mayor Bill White. His new book, America’s Fiscal Constitution: Its Triumph and Collapse (PublicAffairs).

[2014-04-07 13:00:00] The American military has been deployed to Afghanistan for more than a decade. But have our troops been in the right place? We’ll talk this hour to New York Times reporter Carlotta Gall, who makes the case that Pakistan is more deserving of our attention. Her new book is The Wrong Enemy: America in Afghanistan, 2001-2014 (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt).

[2014-04-07 12:00:00] As our computers and smartphones get to know us, they’re also developing the ability to predict our actions with increasing accuracy. We’ll talk this hour about the pros and cons of predictive analytics with Patrick Tucker, author of The Naked Future: What Happens in a World That Anticipates Your Every Move (Current).

[2014-03-31 13:00:00] NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg’s time covering the Supreme Court predates the appointments of all of the current justices. We’ll talk to her this hour about some of the landmark cases the court will hear this year and about covering a beat in which every story changes America. Totenberg comes to town April 8 to speak at UT-Arlington’s Mavericks Speakers Series.

[2014-03-31 12:00:00] The University of North Texas and University of Texas at Arlington have each appointed new presidents within the last year. As part of KERA’s American Graduate initiative, we’ll talk to Vistasp Karbhari of UTA and Neal Smatresk of UNT this hour about the challenges and opportunities facing two of the largest universities in the region.

[2014-03-27 13:00:00] For many overweight people, being fat is part of their identity. So what happens when all of the sudden the weight’s gone? We’ll talk this hour to Alexandra Lescaze, director of the Independent Lens documentary All of Me, which looks at a tight-knit group of Austin women struggling with the fallout from weight-loss surgery. All of Me airs March 31 at 11 p.m. on KERA.

[2014-03-27 12:00:00] As politicians have vowed to get tough on crime, the nation’s penal system has grown exponentially. But research suggests that locking up more people has not served the social function intended. We’ll talk this hour about the problems with the criminal justice system with Natasha A. Frost, Associate Dean and Associate Professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northeastern University. She’s the co-author of The Punishment Imperative: The Rise and Failure of Mass Incarceration in America.

[2014-03-26 13:00:00] The Amon Carter Museum of American Art is currently hosting the exhibition “Art and Appetite: American Painting, Culture and Cuisine,” which includes masterworks on loan from the Art Institute of Chicago. We’ll look this hour at the intersection of food and art with Judith Barter of the Art Institute, who curated the exhibition.

[2014-03-26 12:00:00] Many people turn to the Bible for answers, but they sometimes come away asking more questions. And often those questions are matters of interpretation. We’ll look at this ancient text through modern eyes this hour with The Rev. Adam Hamilton, the Methodist pastor who preached at the national prayer service that was part of President Obama’s second inauguration. His new book is Making Sense of the Bible: Rediscovering the Power of Scripture Today.

[2014-03-25 13:00:00] Calling someone a bird brain is usually meant pejoratively. But new research suggests you might be paying that person a compliment. We’ll learn about just how smart our feathered friends are this hour with naturalist Noah Strycker. His new book is The Thing With Feathers: The Surprising Lives of Birds and What They Reveal About Human Beings (Riverhead).