Think from KERA

After Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks, the contributions of black women are often glossed over in the annals of American history. University of Texas at Austin history professor Daina Ramey Berry joins host Krys Boyd to talk about rethinking our nation’s story to include the vital role black women have played in shaping America. She’s a co-author of “A Black Women’s History of the United States.”

Remember in math class when a complicated formula was written on the chalkboard and you whined, “But, when am I ever going to use this?” Brace yourself: you already are. Matt Parker, host of Science Channel’s “Outrageous Acts of Science,” joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the everyday math constantly happening all around us. His new book is called “Humble Pi: When Math Goes Wrong in the Real World.”

Only in the movies does something you kill come back to life … only in the movies and economics, that is. New York Times columnist and Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman joins host Krys Boyd to talk about disproven ideas that have been resurrected by politics and fear – and about how to argue for common sense. His recent collection of essays and columns is called “Arguing With Zombies: Economics, Politics, and the Fight for a Better Future.”

There was a time when the ticker at the bottom of a television screen was only used in emergencies. Now, it seems, everything is “breaking news.”Robert L. Tsai, professor of law at American University, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about his research into how exaggerated situations and distorted facts whittle away at democracy. His paper on the topic is called “Manufactured Emergencies” and appears in the Yale Law Journal Forum.

In 2000, an internet virus arrived in e-mail inboxes with the subject “I love you.” Back then the problem was more of an annoyance; today, the stakes for spotting internet bots, trolls and the spread of disinformation couldn’t be higher. Samuel Woolley, program director for computational propaganda research at the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the future of destructive tech and ways to combat it. His book is called “The Reality Game: How the Next Wave of Technology Will Break the Truth.”

The British government famously encouraged citizen to “keep calm and carry on” during wartime. New research shows, however, that “keep calm and grow stronger” might be more useful advice. Ian Robertson, T. Boone Pickens Distinguished Scientist and co-Leader of The BrainHealth Project, talks to host Krys Boyd about how adversity can steer us toward success. He writes about the topic in his book “The Stress Test: How Pressure Can Make You Stronger and Sharper.”

When kids run, jump and play, it’s easy to forget that the neighborhood where they are tucked in at night greatly impacts their health outcomes. Genna Reed, lead science and policy analyst in the Center for Science and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about a new report that details how federal government policies are backsliding when it comes to child well-being. It’s called “Endangering Generations: How the Trump Administration’s Assault on Science Is Harming Children’s Health.”

Tembi Locke wasn’t expecting to find a husband on a vacation to Italy. And she also couldn’t have known she was setting herself up for tragedy. The actor and author talks to host Krys Boyd about love and loss: from finding her soulmate in Florence to his death from cancer, to the decision to travel back to her husband’s Sicilian hometown to find herself — and her family — again. Her book is called “From Scratch: A Memoir of Love, Sicily, and Finding Home.”

When Colin Kaepernick kneeled during the national anthem, the football world reeled. Howard Bryant is a senior writer for ESPN the Magazine and a correspondent for NPR’s Weekend Edition, and he joins host Krys Boyd to talk about how America’s ongoing conversation about race so often spills into sports. His new book is called “Full Dissidence: Notes from an Uneven Playing Field.”

Iran and Saudi Arabia are currently locked in a battle for Middle East supremacy. Kim Ghattas, Emmy-winning journalist and a writer who covered the Middle East for 20 years for the BBC and the Financial Times, joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the source of their animosity – including differing views of Islam. Her new book is “Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the Forty-Year Rivalry That Unraveled Culture, Religion, and Collective Memory in the Middle East.”