University of California Audio Podcasts (Audio)

"I use art to start conversations about something that is serious and complex." Shaney jo Darden, Founder and Global Creative Chief of The Keep A Breast Foundation, shares her journey in the world of art and activism. As someone who has carved out a career path focused on community and compassion, she stresses the importance discovering your unique talents and finding a place for them in your everyday work. Series: "Career Channel" [Show ID: 34575]

A panel of distinguished speakers shares their inspiring vision and experiences, while bringing awareness to the issues faced by women working in nontraditional fields and industries. Series: "Career Channel" [Show ID: 34655]

This panel explores how statewide direct democracy measures, including ballot initiatives, have propelled affirmative criminal justice reforms in jurisdictions with large Latinx populations. Panelists discuss the ways in which Latinx people were and were not meaningfully incorporated into the campaigns and subsequent implementation efforts for Florida’s Amendment 4, California’s Propositions 47 and 57, and a handful of drug referendums. This discussion focuses on lessons learned and highlight best practices as they relate to the ballot box and criminal justice reform. Ultimately, this discussion informs the capacity for meaningful reforms to integrate the needs of the Latinx community, including the potential for scale in other jurisdictions with large Latinx populations, like Arizona. Moderator: Sonja Diaz, UCLA Luskin School of Public Policy. Panelists: Tomas Robles, LUCHA; Juan Cartagena, LatinoJustice PRDLEF; Marisa Arrona, Californians for Safety and Justice. Series: "UCLA Law Review Symposium " [Show ID: 34538]

This panel focuses on questions surrounding the influence of race and ethnicity on the imposition of capital punishment. The Supreme Court struck down unitary standardless capital punishment statutes in the early 1970s. Only a few years later the Court upheld two forms of bifurcated, more structured death penalty statutes relying in part on an assumption that the narrowing required by such statutes would eliminate the influence of racial bias. None of the cases considered the possibility of racial bias against any group other than African Americans. This panel examines the evidence that racial and ethnic bias continues to influence the imposition of the death penalty under modern statutes. Moderator: Devon Carbado, UCLA and Harry Pregerson, UCLA Schoolof Law; Sheri Lynn Johnson,Cornell Law School; Martin Urbina, Sul Ross State University; Catherine Grosso, Michigan State University College of Law.

Series: "UCLA Law Review Symposium " [Show ID: 34540]

More recently known for her Black Panther and Wakanda Forever Marvel Comics, Nnedi Okorafor is an international award-winning novelist of African-based science fiction, fantasy and magical realism for both children and adults. Born in the United States to two Nigerian immigrant parents, Nnedi is known for weaving African culture into creative evocative settings and memorable characters. In a profile of Nnedi’s work titled, “Weapons of Mass Creation,” The New York Times called Nnedi’s imagination “stunning.”

Game of Thrones author, George R.R. Martin and HBO are currently developing a show based on her World Fantasy Award Winning novel, Who Fears Death. Ta-Nehisi Coates has passed the torch on writing the Black Panther comics to Nnedi, and the women warriors from the mega-hit movie were such fan favorites that Marvel has tasked Nnedi to create a new spinoff comic, Wakanda Forever. Series: "Writer's Symposium By The Sea" [Show ID: 33945]

The view that the sciences make progress, while the arts do not, is extremely common. Philip Kitcher, John Dewey Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, challenges it. Scientific progress has social dimensions. A socially embedded notion of scientific progress then allows for a parallel concept of progress applicable to the arts. Kitcher specializes in the areas of pragmatism (especially Dewey), science and social issues, naturalistic ethics, and philosophy in literature. Series: "UC Berkeley Graduate Lectures" [Show ID: 34353]

What can we learn about gun violence, prevention, and preparedness from mass casualty incidents such as the Las Vegas mass shooting? How can this be applied to the campus experience? Dr. Scott Scherr discusses the challenges, logistics, response, recovery and long term impact for pre-hospital first responders, emergency personnel, and the community. Scherr is an emergency physician for TeamHealth, Medical Director for Sunrise Hospital Emergency Department, and Medical Director for Clark County Fire Department in Las Vegas. He was on duty in the emergency room on the night of the Route 91 shooting in Las Vegas. Series: "Ethics, Religion and Public Life: Walter H. Capps Center Series" [Show ID: 34567]

Cerebral organoids, also known as mini-brains, are tridimensional self-organized structures derived from stem cells that resemble the early stages of the human embryonic brain. This new tool allows researchers to explore fundamental neurodevelopmental steps otherwise inaccessible in utero experimentally. Alysson Muotri, UC San Diego Stem Cell Program, explains how mini brains are generated in his lab and how this strategy can create novel therapeutical insights on neurogenetic disorders, such as autism. He also describes the use of mini-brains to explore the uniqueness of the human brain compared to other extinct species, such as the Neanderthals. Limitations and ethical concerns surrounding this exciting technology are also discussed. Series: "Exploring Ethics" [Show ID: 33715]

Panel of explores how Latinx communities perceive the criminal justice system and provides a general overview of what we know and don't know about Latinx incarceration. The panel also explores the content and consequences of Latinx racialization (including the prevalence of negative racial stereotypes) and the various ways in which U.S. immigration law and policy punishes and criminalizes migrants. Moderator: Laura Gomez, UCLA School of Law. Panelists: Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve, University of Delaware; Victoria Plaut, Berkeley Law; Celina Romano, Berkeley Law; Kelly Lytle Hernandez, UCLA.

Series: "Immigration" [Show ID: 34535]

Judith Rodin gives data on her research into how Fortune 500 women CEOs are portrayed in the media. Series: "Helen Edison Lecture Series" [Show ID: 34653]