Main Street

Friday, May 14, 2021 - Tyler Kelley is the author of “Holding Back the River.” He writes about the geology and history of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, the Corps of Engineers, big dams, and floods; and above all, he shares stories of the men and women whose lives and livelihoods depend on these tenuously tamed streams. ~~~ Dave Thompson joins us for a deeper dive into the latest news. ~~~ Matt Olien reviews “Shirley.”

Thursday, May 13, 2021 - It’s a book filled with lessons for leadership, but the advice can help anyone live a more meaningful life while making a difference. It comes to us from North Dakota State University Press. Joining us is the author, Prakash Mathew as we discuss “We Are Called … to do The Right Thing.” Now retired, Mathew still serves as vice president emeritus for student affairs at the NDSU. ~~~ Chuck Lura shares a Natural North Dakota essay on sandhill cranes. ~~~ Sue Balcom joins us

Wednesday, May 12, 2021 - We hear from Dr. Tom Frieden, the president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, an initiative seeking to save 100 million lives globally by addressing cardiovascular disease and preventing pandemics. In this excerpt from the Conversations on Healthcare Podcast, he talks about the effort to build a stronger global health infrastructure, developing messages to tackle vaccine resistance, and the FDA’s recent decision to ban menthol cigarettes. ~~~ It’s morel mushroom hunting

Tuesday, May 11, 2021 - To recap the just-completed ND legislative session, we share an interview from the Prairie Pulse television show as host John Harris visits with Republican senator Ray Holmberg and Democratic representative Josh Boschee. ~~~ Imagine standing onstage in front of an audience and not knowing any of your lines, or even what your story is about. That’s what will happen in a performance from Theatre B. It’s a long-form improv show called “Tim and Jacob are Friends: Scriptless.”

Monday, May 10, 2021 - Steven Johnson is the author of “Extra Life: A Short History of Living Longer.” A PBS television series of the same name, and hosted by Johnson, premieres tomorrow. The book and TV series look at the extraordinary successes of public health in the past century as life expectancy has doubled. Johnson joins us for a preview. ~~~ A PBS television special airing tonight at 8 Central dives into the right-to-die movement. Today we share an excerpt from our earlier visit with

Sunday, May 9, 2021 - For our Sunday highlight show, we’ve chosen two encore interviews from the week. First, the Pfeiffer sisters, who talk about their idyllic 1950s childhood in rural North Dakota. They’re memoir is titled "While the Windmill Watched." ~~~ Kent Burkhardsmeier also grew up in North Dakota. He’s a photographer and a poet. Those two skills are on display in his new book, “Awareness: Whispers From Nature.” Like his first book in this series, it’s an expression of his journey

Friday, May 7, 2021 - It seems philosophy can apply to anything. Another case in point is this Sunday’s “WHY? Philosophical Discussions About Everyday Life” when Jack Russell Weinstein visits with business consultant Bob Colleran. Jack joins us for a preview. ~~~ News director Dave Thompson is here for our weekly wrap up on topics in the news. ~~~ Matt Olien reviews “I’m Thinking of Ending Things.”

Thursday, May 6, 2021 - Spring is busting out all over, and that means the brings in the questions are coming in for horticulturist Ron Smith. He joins us to discuss the many lawn issues, the problem of dry trees, and much more. ~~~ Chuck Lura is here for a Natural North Dakota report about woodland wildflowers. ~~~ Sue Balcom is here for Main Street Eats. Today she shares some thoughts for Mothers’ Day.

Wednesday, May 5, 2021 - Kent Burkhardsmeier grew up in North Dakota. He’s a photographer and a poet. Those two skills are on display in his new book, “Awareness: Whispers From Nature.” Like his first book in this series, it’s an expression of his journey seeking peace in nature. Everyone who pledges during Main Street today will be entered in a drawing to receive our signed copy of Kent’s book. ~~~ Another writer who grew up in North Dakota is Deb Marquart. She’s now teaching at Iowa State in

Tuesday, May 4, 2021 - Where we are from shapes who we are. For the Pfeiffer sisters, 1950s rural North Dakota proved to be an idyllic childhood. Together they wrote about their young lives in, "While the Windmill Watched." ~~~ Commentator Eliza Blue shares a Postcard from the Prairie.