How Local Governments Reinforce Segregation in Favor of White Homeowners (0:31)

Guest: Jessica Trounstine, PhD, Professor of Political Science, University of California–Merced, Author of “Segregation by Design”

Is the neighbor who lives next door the same race as you? How about the people living on the next block? Or a mile away, in your same town? Chances are pretty good that you live in a community where most everyone is your same race. Despite decades of anti-discrimination laws and policies, America remains deeply segregated. Is it that deep down, we’re all impossibly racist? No, political scientist Jessica Trounstine says our city and county governments have played an important role in shaping these patterns.

 

Are More Choices Better... Or Worse? (20:30)

Guest: Thomas Saltsman, Senior Lab Director, Social Psychophysiology Laboratory, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York

You’re studying the menu at a new restaurant you’ve heard great things about. The menu is long. But everything looks really good. So your mouth is watering and you keep telling the server to give you a few more minutes to decide. And now you’re starting to feel a little anxious because the rest of your group is ready to order but you can’t decide. So you just pick something. And you’ve got high hopes for what you’ve ordered. But the moment it arrives, you’re regretting your choice. This happens to me every time I go to a new restaurant. And apparently it’s common enough psychologists have a name for it: ““choice overload.” It also happens when people are faced with an endless array of options on streaming TV sites or dating apps.

 

Can Perfectionism Be Toxic?

Guest: Thomas Curran, Professor of Psychology at the London School of Economics and Political Science

A common job interview question is “What’s your greatest weakness?” A common, clever answer is perfectionism. It may seem like the perfect response to twist the question in your favor, but psychologist Thomas Curran says that this characteristic is dangerous and not something to be proud of. He’s found that it’s on the rise in young people, and that could be why cases of depression and anxiety are also going up. 

 

How to Avoid Political Burnout from Stress (51:07)

Guest: Lynn Bufka, PhD, Psychologist and Associate Executive Director of Practice, Research, and Policy at the American Psychological Association

We’re one year and one month away from the 2020 presidential election, so politics will be virtually impossible to avoid in the coming months. Even when we’re not in an election year, it bombards us on cable TV and social media. And that’s taking a toll on our mental health, it seems. The 2018 Stress in America survey, from the American Psychological Association, found that 62% of American adults reported that the current political climate was a significant source of stress for them. Is it possible to be engaged in politics –as a voter and an informed citizen –without having it overwhelm us or harm our relationships?

 

A Better Way to Prevent Wildfires (1:08:07)

Guest: Eric Appel, PhD, Assistant Professor of Material Science and Engineering, Stanford University; faculty fellow, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

California’s largest utility company –PG&E –deliberately shut off power to millions of residents in the state last week hoping to prevent its electricity lines and transmitters from accidentally causing a wildfire during high winds. The strategy seems to have worked in Northern California, but a number of wildfires did break out over the weekend in Southern California, killing four people. Stanford University engineering professor Eric Appel has developed a solution that might let land managers be more proactive in preventing wildfires.

 

Your Great-Grandparents Had a Greater Impact on your Health than You May Have Thought (1:23:26)

Guest: Dr. B. Paige Lawrence, Professor at the University of Rochester School of Medicine

If you’re one of those people who never gets the flu or seems able to shake it fairly quickly while other people end up in bed for two weeks, you might have your grandmother to thank. Immunology expert B. Paige Lawrence at the University of Rochester’s School of Medicine has found evidence that when a female is exposed to certain toxins while she’s pregnant, that exposure affects the immune systems of her children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren.