Ice at the End of the World

Guest: Jon Gertner, author, "The Ice at the End of the World: An Epic Journey into Greenland' Buried Past and Our Perilous Future"

We've heard a lot about the melting icecaps and the environmental impact that rising seas will have around the world. But when those icebergs melt, we're going to lose a deep, literally, historical record of the earth that's frozen in those layers of ice. 

Band Grandpas (originally aired June 13, 2019)

Guest: Arnold Rosen, founder, "Band Grandpas"

Dr. Arnold Rosen was in the middle of performing a colonoscopy when he suddenly thought “when I retire, I want to be a ‘Band Grandpa.’” He met with Rockford Public Schools and helped coordinate other volunteers to start Band Grandpas, a program that allows Arnold and other adults to help teach music to middle school students.

The Truffle Underground

Guest: Ryan Jacobs, author of "The Truffle Underground: A Tale of Mystery, Mayhem, and Manipulation in the Shadowy Market of the World's Most Expensive Fungus

In the world of luxury foods, the truffle is one of the most expensive delicacies out there, inspiring not only farmers and chefs, but an entire underground world of truffle-related crime. 

Why You Should Love the Semicolon

Guest: Cecelia Watson, faculty, Language and Thinking, Bard College, and author, “Semicolon: The Past, Present, and Future of a Misunderstood Mark”

Punctuation as a rule is a relatively recent invention, with different marks going in and out of style, and with their usage changing over time. Cecelia Watson calls for a return to the freedom of an understanding of punctuation as a stylistic art rather than part of the didactic dictatorship of grammarians.