On Monday's show: University of Houston energy fellow Ed Hirs recently shared his vision in Forbes of the future for the Texas energy grid. It's something lawmakers are contemplating, too. Hirs joins discusses with us what he'd like to see, what may actually happen, and how wide the divide is between that vision and the reality.

Also this hour: There have been some examples this session of amendments to bills getting added at the last minute and voted on without any real serious review. We discuss some recent examples during this and past sessions and the issues they raise.

Then, we discuss the latest news in comsumer technology with the help of columnist Dwight Silverman.

And we get an update on sports from Jeff Balke.

On Friday's show: We learn more details about the state takeover of HISD that were outlined at the board's final meeting before a state-appointed superintendent and managers take over.

Also this hour: While G7 leaders meet in Japan to discuss concerns over nuclear threats, we focus our attention on the future of nuclear power. Can Texas make more of possible nuclear resources and learn from other countries?

Then, from outrage over a student’s suspension, to even more outrage over self-service kiosks asking for tips, our panel of non-experts weighs in on The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of the week.

And Houston musician Robert Ellis joins us for a conversation about his new album, Yesterday's News, and to perform.

On Thursday's show: This week, the Harris County Jail had its sixth inmate death of the year. We consider how this compares to the trends of recent years and what the county is doing to mitigate it.

Also this hour: Local sleep expert Dr. Sudha Tallavajhula of UTHealth and TIRR Memorial Hermann answers your questions about sleep and sleep disorders.

And we learn about the delicate art of raising dart frogs ahead of the National Amphibian Keepers Convention this weekend.

On Wednesday's show: School vouchers, online sports betting, and efforts to pass a budget -- we talk through what is and what is not happening in the Texas Legislature in this week’s political roundup. We also catch up on debt ceiling negotiations, the impact of the expiration of Title 42, and other developments in Washington.

Also this hour: The process for passing Houston's next budget has begun. Mayor Sylvester Turner presented his $6.2 billion proposed budget Tuesday, the final one of his tenure. It includes pay raises for city workers, nearly doubling the amount of spending on the city’s drainage and street repair program, and putting more than $400 million in savings, the largest reserves for the city in recent memory. And, while that all sounds fairly rosy, there’s still some reason for concern about the city’s financial situation in the coming years, according to City Controller Chris Brown. He joins us to talk it over.

And we revisit our 2022 conversation with Richard Linklater about his movie Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood, which was all about growing up in Houston during the moon landing.

On Tuesday's show: You’d think gun rights and abortion would be two wedge issues that divide Houstonians. However, the latest Houston Area Survey from the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University suggests there’s a meeting of most minds on some aspects of both. We dig into the latest findings of this long-running survey of attitudes and beliefs in our region.

Also this hour: We discuss where Texas stands on marijuana laws.

And we find out what it's like digging through the secret archives of one of your literary heroes as we revisit a 2019 conversation with Houston native Ben Moser, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography of Susan Sontag.

On Monday's show: A Texas House committee is scheduled to take up a school vouchers bill today. We learn more about it from News 88.7 reporter Dominic Anthony Walsh.

Also this hour: Last week, the TCEQ heard comments from residents over a permit renewal for the ITC plant where a days-long fire took place in 2019. Just a few hours later and just a mile down the road from ITC, a fire broke out at a Shell plant in Deer Park. While that timing is coincidental, it punctuated concerns some residents near those plants have about safety. We learn more about the permitting process for such plants and what influence -- if any -- public input has on that.

Then, veterinarian Dr. Lori Teller answers your pet care questions.

And we get an update on sports from Jeff Balke.

On Friday's show: We discuss the Greater Houston Partnership's annual report about our region's connections to the global economy, from exports, to imports, to foreign investment here.

Also this hour: Former Houston Rocket Kenny Smith discusses his new memoir, Talk of Champions: Stories of the People Who Made Me.

Then, from a driverless ride-hailing service coming to Houston, to a large load of illegally dumped pasta, we discuss The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of the week.

And DaCamera hosts jazz drummer and Houston native Kendrick Scott in a performance tonight of his production Unearthed, about the Sugar Land 95, the Black men used in convict leasing whose unmarked graves were discovered in 2018.

On Thursday's show: Daniel Perry was sentenced to 25 years in prison for killing Garret Foster during a protest against police violence and racial injustice in Austin in 2020. We discuss the politically charged case with the Texas Tribune's Jolie McCullough.

Also this hour: As the Title 42 immigration policy comes to an end, we consider whether Houston is prepared for a possible influx of migrants with FIEL Houston, Catholic Charities, and immigration lawyer Gordon Quan.

Then, we talk with The Marshall Project journalist Maurice Chammah, the reporter and host behind the investigative podcast series called Smoke Screen: Just Say You’re Sorry. The series examines the tactics a famed Texas Ranger used to get a man to confess to a murder he now says he didn't commit.

And we learn about the final concert of the 15th anniversary season of Apollo Chamber Players.

On Wednesday's show: From debt ceiling negotiations, to Title 42 ending, to bills under consideration in the Texas Legislature, we discuss the latest developments in local, state, and national politics in our weekly roundup.

Also this hour: After the school shooting in Santa Fe, a state law requires schools to utilize threat assessment protocols that include mental health interventions for troubled students. But a Texas Observer investigation finds most districts aren’t complying with it.

And lots of Texas-related movies and TV are coming your way thanks to Texas Monthly. We learn why.

On Tuesday's show: We get an update on efforts to clean up after the Shell plant fire in Deer Park last week.

And are some Houston public schools still suspending more students than they need to? Hannah Dellinger of the Houston Chronicle walks us through the paper’s investigative report.

Also this hour: We find out what a hurricane is like from the inside from NOAA's Hurricane Hunters, who recently brought some of their aircaft to Ellington Field.

Then, an expert discusses the good and bad aspects of the host of new mental health apps available to the general public in recent years.

And we discuss the effect book banning has on minority youth ahead of this weekend's BIPOC Book Festival.