In the late 1600s, it was thought the heart was made of “the stuff of souls.” It’s easy to see why: they break with love and are sometimes said to be made of gold. Even now we take for granted that they power our lives. Gabriel Brownstein joins host Krys Boyd to talk about his complicated relationship with his own heart, which he writes about in “The Open Heart Club: A Story About Birth and Death and Cardiac Surgery.”

By now you’ve got the message about coronavirus protocol: wash your hands, don’t touch your face, masks won’t protect you. Still, an estimated 40- to 70-percent of people worldwide will catch it — though most will barely notice. Dr. James Hamblin is a staff writer at The Atlantic and a lecturer at Yale School of Public, and he joins host Krys Boyd to talk about preparing for coronavirus on a national and individual level.

If you hear a sudden yelp from your spouse in the next room, chances are you’re about to be called to squash a bug. But what if, instead, you made a moral case for cohabitating with creepy crawlers? John Hainze, an entomologist and ethicist with Seattle University Center for Environmental Justice and Sustainability,joins host Krys Boyd to talk about his evolution from pesticide designer to insect advocate. His new book is “Nature Underfoot: Living with Beetles, Crabgrass, Fruit Flies, and Tiny Life All Around Us.”

Like “fake news,” lawyers in a courtroom can claim “junk science,” pitting one expert’s testimony against another’s. So how do judges decide what a jury should hear? Reporter Peter Andrey Smith joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the standards by which courts decide what scientific evidence is admissible. His article “Where Science Enters the Courtroom, the Daubert Name Looms Large” was published by Undark.

When a small American town dies, can it be brought back to life by immigrants hoping to become Americans themselves? Cynthia Anderson, journalist and teacher of writing at Boston University, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about Lewiston, Maine — a city that has transformed itself through the arrival of African Muslim refugees. She tells the story in her book,“Home Now: How 6,000 Refugees Transformed An American Town.”

Home DNA testing kits are popular for amateur detectives looking for family origins. But investigating a family tree sometimes unearths long-buried secrets. Journalist Libby Copeland joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the pluses and minuses of opening a door into who is really related to whom. Her new book is called “The Lost Family: How DNA Testing Is Upending Who We Are.”

In the 2020 presidential race, candidates have proposed plans to reform higher education. On this hour of “Think,” we’ll talk about affordability, accessibility, and attrition problems when it comes to attending universities and look at whether free college is a viable option to solve these problems. Guests include Matthew M. Chingos, vice president at the Urban Institute Center on Education Data and Policy, journalist Paul Tough, and Anthony A. Jack,assistant professor of education at Harvard.

Mothers in the workplace often struggle with the balance between being a team player and raising a family. But research says that’s not what’s holding them back from reaching the C-suite. Robin J. Ely, Diane Doerge Wilson Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the real reasons businesses have a tendency to stall female advancement. Her article “What’s Really Holding Women Back?” was published in the Harvard Business Review.

Books for young readers are supposed to be about teen vampires and first loves, right? In these challenging and confusing times, the answer might be: no. Teens need more. Journalist and author Karen Blumenthal joins host Krys Boyd to talk about writing a comprehensive look at reproductive rights for ages 12 and up. Her new book is called “Jane Against the World: Roe v Wade and the Fight For Reproductive Rights.”

On Super Tuesday, voters in 14 states cast their votes. Whether or not we will know on Wednesday who those votes were cast for – and which candidate claimed the bulk of the 1,300 available delegates – remains to be seen. Host Krys Boyd talks about if the race for the Democratic nomination for president is clearer or cloudier withDavid Barker,Director of the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University; and Niambi Carter, assistant professor of political science at Howard University.