Lead pollution could have poisoned some people's personalities. Girls and boys internalize healthy ideas from Moana, Elsa, and other Disney Princesses. And the new trend of female pop stars baring their bodies and their souls. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision for Disney Consumer Products/AP Images)

Many Americans stand firm in the belief that they have the right to choose their medical treatment—but do they? The past year in Haiti was rife with natural and political disasters, so what will the country's future look like? And is it safe to release radioactive water into the ocean? Also, on today's show: how something mundane ends up unused in the closet for months and months while you wait for just the right moment to use it; why African American pitmasters have been pushed to the margins of the barbecue scene.

Health experts hope that the end of the COVID-19 pandemic will also see the end of over-sanitizing our hands and homes. Building a city that is both functional AND sustainable can be complex. A scholar of Jewish history says antisemitism is an American tradition. Also, on today’s show: how islanders are saving an endangered palm tree; the potential to tackle loneliness as a public health problem; genetic engineering makes chickpeas more drought-tolerant.

Organs developed in monkeys or pigs could be the future of organ donation, but the process carries ethical concerns. What exactly is your smart voice assistant listening for when it sits in your home? American middle-aged people are physically and mentally more unhealthy than past generations, and it has ties to stress. Also, on today's show: innovations in urban farming as the fields move indoors and upwards; people who declare themselves and their land independent of their country can make things difficult for the host nation; small, safe doses of electricity could power your smartwatch throughout the day so you can still wear it at night to track sleep patterns.

3% of people can’t conjure up a picture with their "mind's eye." A new campaign is aiming to list the position of "mother" on resumes. Congress could put unemployed writers to work documenting life during the pandemic—an initiative very similar to a program during the Great Depression. Also, on today’s show: the size of one’s pupil might correlate with one’s intelligence; Americans are still consuming a lot of beef despite varied options.

Scientists are trying to mitigate climate change's effects on the weather through artificial manipulation. Why Americans could show a growing interest in pilgrimages. Blue Latitudes is transforming empty oil rigs into artificial reefs. Also, on today's show: why the Snake River is one of America's most endangered rivers; how meteorites and space dust are raining down all around us; a novel brings to life the resistance against Nazi occupation on two British islands.

There are over ten million people in prison worldwide, and the experiences of those prisoners differ drastically from prison to prison and from country to country. The pay gap between men and women has shrunk a lot since the 1970s, but progress has stalled. NASA’s developed a plan to clean up orbit. Also on today’s show: Alaskan middle schoolers endure an unusual final exam; robot designers borrow a trick from the human body.

If you need therapy and love watching movies, YouTube channel Cinema Therapy is for you. TIME picked a kid of the year for the first time. A program that helps low-income kids cope emotionally and socially keeps benefitting them years later. Also on today’s show: a replay of our Thanksgiving special canvasses the history of Thanksgiving on the celebration of its 400th anniversary, the British celebration of the landing of the Mayflower at Plymouth Rock, and preparing and tasting different foods are a great way to introduce kids to making healthy, varied choices.

Since COVID-19 suppressed the celebration of the 400th anniversary of Thanksgiving, Americans celebrate the anniversary this year. Across the pond, Brits celebrate the 400th anniversary of the landing of the Mayflower at Plymouth Rock. A nonprofit helps kids enjoy and make the foods on their dinner plates. Also, on today’s show: the US’s dietary guidelines come under fire; nearly all apps today seem to be playing games with users; British citizens turned up over 47,000 artifacts in their backyards.

Smell is the most expendable sense according to millennials, but would you give it up? A world memory champion explains how he got to where he is. Letting your mind wander might take you to new, fantastical places in reality just as much as it does in imagination. Also, on today's show: a new initiative gets stories by and about Black families published; debate rages over the fate of American wild horses; TV is teaching tweens and teens some perhaps questionable values.