Why We Don’t Use the Metric System (Originally aired May 22, 2019)

Guest: John Bemelmans Marciano, Author of “Whatever Happened to the Metric System? How America Kept Its Feet”

If you take a drive on Interstate 19 in Southern Arizona you’ll be in for surprise. It is the only stretch of highway in the United States with road signs that show only in kilometers. Turns out Interstate 19 is a leftover from the 70s when the country was preparing to go metric. So, what happened? Today, the United States, Myanmar, and Liberia are the only countries left in the world that don’t use the metric system.

Gender-Specific Toys Can Limit Opportunities for Children to Learn and Grow (Originally aired May 21, 2019)

Guest: Lisa M. Dinella, Principal Investigator of the Gender Development Laboratory at Monmouth

When you walk down the toy aisle at any store, you’ll usually find the aisle divided into pink and blue: on the pink side there are Barbies, tea sets, and princesses. On the blue side you’ll see cars, superheroes, and nerf guns.

Meme Creators are Unionizing. Why? (Originally aired July 30, 2019)

Guest: Aiden Arata, Meme Union Member

Okay so, memes. That’s what they call those weird, viral images that pop up on your social media feed –maybe it’s a screenshot of a TV show and someone’s put some funny captions on it. And then someone else goes in and writes their own captions for it and shares that. There are whole Instagram accounts devoted to sharing memes and gets tons of traffic –which is brilliant for Instagram because it’s making money off all this viral content people are making for free. But now the makers of memes are organizing to demand more control over how their work is used and who benefits from it. 

Adventures of a Theme Park Journalist (Originally aired May 22, 2019)

Guest: Robert Niles, Founder and Editor, ThemeParkInsider.com

Theme parks can be magical with that thrill of anticipation when you’re about to drop on a rollercoaster, spending time with family, and, of course, the nostalgia. But theme parks can also be a nightmare with the hordes of people, crying children, and overpriced food.

Concerts for The Deaf (Originally aired May 13, 2019)

Guest: Amber Galloway Gallego, Owner of Amber G. Productions, An Organization that Interprets Musical Performances into American Sign Language

American Sign Language interpreters at music concerts traditionally have been pretty reserved, just signing the words. But now, some interpreters are taking it to the next level to help the deaf seethe music. They’re not just signing the words, they’re also signing the sounds and tones of the instruments. One of those interpreters that specializes in music is Amber Galloway Gallego, and she’s signed for Adele, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, and Billy Joel, as well as many other famous artists.

Writing the Book on Racial Literacy (Originally aired June 5, 2019)

Guest: Priya Vulchiand and Winona Guo, Co-authors of “Tell Me Who You Are,” Co-founders/Co-presidents of CHOOSE

How has race impacted your life? Race is embedded in American society–it’s affected us all in some way. It’s just that most of us lack the tools to understand and navigate a world structured by racial division. Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi came to that realization near the end of high school in Princeton, New Jersey. They’ve since spent a year traveling around the country asking people that question –How has race impacted your life? The stories they collected are available in a book called, “Tell Me Who You Are.” It’s meant as a classroom guide for teaching racial literacy.