Think from KERA

Humans inhabit nearly every corner of the Earth. It wasn’t always that way, though. This hour, we’ll talk about how early humans developed the skills to cross land and sea with Larry Klein. He’s the producer of the NOVA documentary “Great Human Odyssey,” which airs Wednesday night at 8 on KERA-TV.

With little training under his belt, Nicholson Baker signed up to become a substitute teacher in Maine. This hour, as a part of KERA's American Graduate initiative, we’ll talk with him about the unique view substitute teachers have into our public schools – and about how to improve daily life in the classroom – which he writes about in “Substitute: Going to School With a Thousand Kids” (Blue Rider Press)

Baseball may look nothing like soccer – or even chess for that matter. Each of these games has at least one thing in common though: clearly defined rules. This hour, we’ll talk about why these rules are actually essential to making games fun – and how we can use parameters to make everyday life more enjoyable – with Georgia Tech professor Ian Bogost. He writes about the idea in his new book, “Play Anything: The Pleasure of Limits, the Uses of Boredom & the Secret of Games” (Basic Books).

Dec. 7 marks the 75th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. This hour, we’ll talk about how the passage of time has altered how we think about that day that left 2,403 Americans dead with Craig Nelson. He’ll talk about his new book, “Pearl Harbor: From Infamy to Greatness” tonight as part of Highland Park United Methodist Church’s Authors Live! series.

Americans have a tough choice in November, in part because so many voters dislike both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. As a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for The New York Times, Maureen Dowd has written about each candidate for two decades. This hour, we’ll talk with her about the path for each to the White House – and whether a third party candidate could actually have a chance. Her newest book is called “The Year of Voting Dangerously: The Derangement of American Politics” (Tw

Winston Churchill’s steely resolve was instrumental in seeing Britain safely through World War II. This hour we’ll talk about how Churchill developed that toughness as a soldier fighting in South Africa with Candice Millard. She’s the author of “Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill” (Doubleday),” which she’ll talk about tonight as part of DMA Arts & Letters Live.

For more than a year, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have crisscrossed the country telling voters about themselves. This hour, we’ll hear what those closest to the candidates have to say about them from Michael Kirk. His Frontline documentary “The Choice 2016” airs tonight on KERA-TV.

Every day we cross paths with dozens of strangers, doing our best to not make eye contact as we hurry along. This hour, we’ll talk about what could actually happen if we just said “hello” to that person behind us in the checkout line with Kio Stark. She writes about the idea in “When Strangers Meet: How People You Don't Know Can Transform You” (TED Books).

Nearly 20 percent of Americans 65 and older are working – and counted among them are the Republican and Democratic presidential nominees. This hour, we’ll talk about the knowledge and experience veteran workers bring to their jobs – and about why so many of them find those jobs hard to come by – with Ashton Applewhite. Her opinion piece “You’re How Old? We’ll Be in Touch,” appeared earlier this month in The New York Times.

The North Texas arts community is currently in a deep discussion about the idea of cultural equity. The conversation centers on how the arts are funded – and how that funding impacts the diversity of our cultural experiences. This hour, we’ll talk about leveling the artistic playing field with Jennifer Scripps, the director of the Dallas Office of Cultural Affairs; David Lozano, executive artistic director of Cara Mia Theatre; and Clyde Valentin, director of Ignite/Arts Dallas.