Think from KERA

The world is ruled by a handful of superpowers – each of which dominates its neighboring nations. Harvard government professor Graham Allison joins host Krys Boyd to talk about how this tricky balance of power is maintained – and about what happens when one superpower steps into another’s turf. His essay“The New Spheres of Influence: Sharing the Globe With Other Great Powers”appears in Foreign Affairs.

Are we a “me” society or a “we” society. By asking people to stay at home for the greater good, we’re about to find out. NYU sociology professor Eric M. Klinenberg joins host Krys Boyd to talk about how making it through Covid-19 will require buy-in from everyone. His article published in The New York Times is “We Need Social Solidarity, Not Just Social Distancing.”

It is estimated that 100,000 to 250,000 Americans will die from COVID-19. Beyond the shock of those massive numbers, the shock of the economic fallout will also be massive. Matthrew Yglesias, co-founder of Vox Media and co-host of The Weeds podcast, joins host Krys Boyd to argue we don’t have to head into a Great Depression if we act boldly now. His Vox article is “It’s Time for a Massive Wartime Mobilization to Save the Economy.”

The idea that 24-7 work availability is unhealthy has been floating around for years. Maybe now, when everything is in flux, it’s time to fix that way of thinking. Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, a visiting scholar at Stanford and Oxford, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about redesigning the workday. His new book is called “Shorter: Work Better, Smarter, and Less – Here’s How.”

Public transportation is considered an essential service. But in many cities, much of the population doesn’t use the system. And those who do probably have some suggestions for routes and schedules. Aaron W. Gordon, senior writer for Motherboard, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why public transportation is broken and how, especially now, it’s time to rethink how people get places. His article “Why the U.S. Sucks at Building Public Transit” was published by Vice.

People who lived during the Middle Ages ran into many of the same health problems we see today. The biggest difference, of course, is they had much different – and not very scientific – ways of dealing with these maladies, the way we view the science of our health.  Jack Hartnell, lecturer in art history at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the physical body in the medieval worldview and the fantastical tales created to justify medicinal practices. His book is called “Medieval Bodies: Life, Death and Art in the Middle Ages.”

Most of the time, our immune system protects us – though there are times when it overreacts and harms us further. The same can happen with our brains. Science writer Donna Jackson Nakazawa joins Krys Boyd to talk about microglia, cells that act as the brain’s housekeeper but can sometimes be unreliable. Her new book is “The Angel and the Assassin: The Tiny Brain Cell That Changed the Course of Medicine.”

Scientists have been on alert for years for the next pandemic, focusing on an animal-to-human zoonotic transmission. And now it’s here. Science writer David Quammen joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why this happens and the risks we face now and going forward. His book is “Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic.”

When we look at the stars in the night sky, it’s easy to wonder about our personal significance to a universe so vast. Brian Greene, professor of physics and mathematics and director of Columbia University’s Center for Theoretical Physics, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the many ways we contemplate our existence. His book is called “Until the End of Time: Mind, Matter, and Our Search for Meaning in an Evolving Universe.”

The world has been upended by coronavirus as we wait and hope for a vaccine. New York Times reporter Matt Richtel joins host Krys Boyd to talk about our complicated immune system, which is capable of both healing the body and turning on it. His book is called “An Elegant Defense: The Extraordinary New Science of the Immune System.”