Think from KERA

As potentially millions of Americans seek treatment for Covid-19 this year, the economic realities of our healthcare system will need to be addressed. Jay Shambaugh, director of The Hamilton Project and a senior fellow in Economic Studies at the Brookings Institution, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why health care prices are so high and how we can improve future outcomes. He’s an author of a new report published by The Hamilton called “A Dozen Facts about the Economics of the U.S. Healthcare System.”

People who are incarcerated have no voice when it comes to choosing the elected officials who craft policies that often directly affect them. The question is: Should they? Daniel A. Gross joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why we deny prisoners the right to vote and if we should restore that privilege. His article published in The New Yorker is “Why Shouldn’t Prisoners Be Voters?”

What city are you from? What neighborhood? Do you have children? We ask so many personal questions of one another… except, “how much money do you make?” Joe Pinsker, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about one of the last American taboos: asking about what’s in someone’s bank account. His article is “Why So Many Americans Don’t Talk About Money.”

Voting is supposed to be a pretty simple process – everyone casts a ballot and the candidate with the most votes wins. In America, however, we have the Electoral College. Jesse Wegman, a member of the New York Times editorial board, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about how the power behind millions of individual votes can disappear with the decision of a single elector. His new book is “Let the People Pick the President: The Case for Abolishing the Electoral College.”

The origins of the phrase “the luck of the Irish” doesn’t mean what you might think it does: It’s about always looking on the bright side and remembering that things could be worse. John Tierney joins host Krys Boyd to talk about searching for the half-full glass when it seems the world wants to smash it altogether. His book, co-written with Roy Baumeister, is called “The Power of Bad: How the Negativity Effect Rules Us and How We Can Rule It.”

Golden State Warriors point guard Steph Curry has been called the greatest shooter of all time. So how much of that is thanks to practice, practice, practice, and how much is just good luck? Wall Street Journal sports reporter Ben Cohen joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the algorithms that can keep us on a roll, and the myths that prove they can’t. His book is “The Hot Hand: The Mystery and Science of Streaks.”

The freedom of the open road invokes an array of feelings. For a 1950s white family, a Sunday drive might have been a chance for adventure; for a black family, unwarranted traffic stops, even violence. Gretchen Sorin, director and distinguished professor of the Cooperstown Graduate Program of the State University of New York, joins Krys Boyd to talk about the freedoms and challenges of car ownership for African-Americans. Her book is “Driving While Black: African American Travel and the Road to Civil Rights.”

Around the globe, humanity is currently experiencing a common fear – but that fear is manifesting itself in many ways. Chapman University sociology professor Christopher Bader joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the anxiety we’re feeling and how social ties are severed when we fear too much. His book is called “Fear Itself: The Causes and Consequences of Fear in America.”

It’s hard enough being a parent in normal times. And in times of uncertainty, when schedules are thrown out of whack, superhuman powers are necessary. Alyssa Westring, associate professor and DePaul Presidential Fellow in the Department of Management and Entrepreneurship, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about managing family life in this current time of upheaval. Her book, co-written with Stewart D. Friedman, is called “Parents Who Lead: The Leadership Approach You Need to Parent with Purpose, Fuel Your Career, and Create a Richer Life.”

As many of us work from home and stay away from crowds, it’s important to find innovative ways to stay connected with friends and family. Kaitlin Ugolik Phillips joins host Krys Boyd to talk about how we should think about using social media – and about the pluses and minuses of substituting in-person connections for virtual ones. Her new book is called “The Future of Feeling: Building Empathy in a Tech-Obsessed World.”