Does It Really Matter if Political Ads Are Allowed on Social Media? (0:36)

Guest: Adam Durfee, Managing Director of YDigital Agency, Brigham Young University

Facebook has been fighting hard to remove misinformation about COVID-19 from the site. What it won’t take down? Political ads. CEO Mark Zuckerberg sees Facebook as a public square where the ability to speak freely matters, including through paid political advertising. Heading into this presidential election, Twitter took the opposite stance by banning on all political advertising from its platform. Campaigns should earn their exposure on Twitter, says CEO Jack Dorsey. They shouldn’t just be allowed to reach a bunch of people by paying for it. (Originally aired 11/14/19)

 

Why Some People Get Their Blood Sucked More Than Others (17:50)

Guest: Jonathan Day, Professor Emeritus of Epidemiology, University of Florida

Winter is officially over. But enjoying the sunshine again means soon we’ll be enjoying mosquito bites. Have you ever noticed that the pesky bugs seem to like some people more than others? (Originally aired 10/2/2019)

 

What’s Artificial Intelligence’s Role in Religion? (33:35)

Guest: Ilia Delio, PhD, Franciscan Sister of Washington, DC, Josephine C. Connelly Endowed Chair in Theology, Villanova University.  

Lots of churches have gone digital to avoid coronavirus spread. Is technology a help or hindrance to sincere spirituality?  What if the pastor or priest leading service or hearing confession on the other end of your internet connection were an artificially intelligence computer instead of a human? There are already Buddhist priest robots in Japan that will conduct funeral services and in Europe there’s a robot that will quote comforting scripture to elderly patients in nursing homes. Would you seek spiritual counsel from an artificially intelligent machine? (Originally aired 23/11/2019)

 

Excelsior! Remembering Stan Lee (50:43)

Guest: Joseph Darowski, English Professor, Brigham Young University

The last surviving cartoonist to work on the original Captain America comics died this week. His name was Allen Bellman, and he did a lot of freelance work for Stan Lee, the Marvel Comics icon who helped create Spider-Man, the X-Men, Black Panther, Iron Man and many more. As the original artists behind the most beloved superheroes pass away, their creations are enjoying blockbuster success on screen. Stan Lee died in 2018 and we took the opportunity to consider his legacy. (Originally aired 11/14/2018)

 

Finding Fake Volcanoes and Dealing With the Real Ones. (1:20:57)

Guest: Janine Krippner, PhD., Volcanologist at the Smithsonian Institute

There are fewer volcanoes today than there were just last year thanks to people like volcanologist Janine Krippner. She works at the Smithsonian and one of her jobs is to sniff out imposters on the official list of volcanoes. Yes, there’s an official list. And best beware if you’re a volcano-wannabe, cause Krippner has no qualms killing your dream. (Originally aired 9/11/2019)