Thinking Aloud

Classicist Kyle Harper joins the show to discuss his new book, "The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire," which introduces two new characters in the narrative of Rome's decline: climate change and infectious disease.

British archaeologist Alexander Langlands joins the show to talk about his new book, "Craeft: An Inquiry Into the Origins and True Meaning of Traditional Craft."

Joining us is Jill Abraham Hummer, author of “First Ladies and American Women: in politics and at home.” It’s a book that explores these precedents in the specific legacies of first ladies extending from Lou Hoover to Michelle Obama.

Law professor Mark Fenster, author of "The Transparency Fix: Secrets, Lies, and Uncontrollable Government Information," discusses the never-ending debate about secrecy in the American government.

Lacanian psychoanalyst Bruce Fink visits the show to discuss Jacques Lacan's thoughts and writing on love.

Marcus Smith interviews a historian, Ronit Stahl, about the U.S. military chaplaincy and its role in shaping the relationship between religion and state. 

This episode is an encore of an interview conducted in 2010 with Zina Petersen about the work of author Ursula K. Le Guin, who died on January 22, 2018.

Brown University's Amanda Anderson joins BYU Humanities Center director Matthew Wickman in a discussion about her latest book, "Bleak Liberalism."

Many of the cheap products we buy and use come from over-worked, underpaid and under-regulated employees and workplaces. There are however good people are working to change things, to remedy wrongs, promoting more humane economies and more ethical industry.

One such group of people can be found at the Alta Gracia factory.

We’re joined by John Kline and Sarah Adler Milstein to talk about this exemplary factory at the heart of their recent book. The title is “Sewing Hope: How One Factory Challenges the Apparel Industry’s Sweatshops.”

We’re joined by Joshua Davis, author of a fascinating account of the scrappy, entrepreneurial, and socially engaged American spirit. He trains his lens on a specific era of political engagement, in a history titled “From Head Shops to Whole Foods: The Rise and Fall of Activist Entrepreneurs.” Few of these thousands of small businesses survive today, but their style of conducting business left a mark on society that we haven’t quite forgotten.