Think from KERA

[2016-05-16 12:00:00] As the second man to walk on the moon, Buzz Aldrin is one of the most famous astronauts in the history of the space program. So it’s surprising to learn that he was rejected the first time he applied to NASA. This hour, we’ll talk with him about perseverance and other wisdom he’s gained in his 86 years, which he’s collected in “No Dream Is Too High: Life Lessons From a Man Who Walked on the Moon” (National Geographic). Aldrin speaks Sunday at Highland Park United Methodist Church for Authors Live!

[2016-05-12 13:00:00] Since last year, Juan Felipe Herrera has served as U.S. poet laureate. This hour, we’ll talk with him about how being the son of immigrant farmers has affected his work – and about how we can get young readers and writers more interested in poetry. Herrera speaks tonight at the Latino Cultural Center as part of the “Literacy in Motion” event.

[2016-05-12 12:00:00] Pain is a feeling that’s nearly impossible to quantify – even the oft used 1-10 scale is tied to an individual’s perception. This hour, we’ll talk about how our inability to agree on this most basic feeling has led to differences of opinion on legal issues with Keith Wailoo, vice dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He’s the author of “Pain: A Political History” (Johns Hopkins University Press).

[2016-05-11 13:00:00] Immigration remains one of the hot-button issues this election season. This hour, we’ll look at the economic impact that immigrants have on the United States with Pia Orrenius, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank senior economist and a fellow at SMU’s John Tower Center. Her essay “The Benefits of Immigration Outweigh the Costs” appears in the spring issue of “The Catalyst,” a new quarterly publication produced by the Bush Institute.

[2016-05-11 12:00:00] As host of the public radio show On Being, Krista Tippett has spent her career interviewing scientists, theologians and artists to better understand what it means to be human. This hour, we’ll talk with her about the lessons she’s learned, which she writes about in “Becoming Wise: An Inquiry into the Mystery and Art of Living” (Penguin Press).

[2016-05-10 13:00:00] The smartest crooks who walk among us know how to look at a house or a building and spot its weaknesses. This hour, we’ll look at architecture through a bad guy’s eyes – and talk about how we can fortify their vulnerabilities – with Geoff Manaugh. His new book is called “A Burglar’s Guide to the City” (Farrar Straus & Giroux).

[2016-05-10 12:00:00] As the election season continues to divide us, it can feel as if some Americans are more devoted to their political parties than the country itself. This hour, we’ll talk about finding common ground on issues that are splitting the nation apart with Mark Gerzon, author of “The Reunited States of America: How We Can Bridge the Partisan Divide” (Berrett Koehler).

[2016-05-09 12:00:00] When we build memorials to tragedies, we do so partly to remember the victims and partly to remind ourselves to be vigilant against future evils. Can we ever heal, though, if we’re constantly reminded of these terrible events? This hour, we’ll explore the question with David Rieff, author of “In Praise of Forgetting: Historical Memory and Its Ironies” (Yale University Press).

[2016-05-05 12:00:00] With Ted Cruz and John Kasich suspending their campaigns, the path is clear for Donald Trump to accept the Republican nomination. Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders says his campaign is alive and well after his win in Indiana. This hour, we’ll talk about the election season so far – and get a preview of the general election – with Jeffrey Engel, director of the Center for Presidential History at SMU; and Harold Clarke, professor of political science at UT-Dallas.

[2016-05-05 13:00:00] As biologists gain a better understanding of how animals think, one thing has become evident: humans have underestimated the intelligence of other creatures for far too long. This hour, we’ll talk about current research into animal intelligence with Frans de Waal, director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center. His new book is “Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?” (W.W. Norton and Co.).