“Uptalk” is that rising, questioning tone some people use when ending a statement. It’s becoming so common that Thomas Linneman (College of William and Mary) studied its use by contestants on the game show Jeopardy. He found women use it more than men, but male contestants often use “uptalk” after a woman competitor gets a wrong answer. And: Most of us think the best way to motivate is with rewards like money. But best-selling author Dan Pink says that’s a mistake. He says the secret to high performance and satisfaction is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to create new things, and to better our world.

Also featured: First published in 1947, Goodnight Moon has become one of the most popular books for young children. Yet the book’s author, Margaret Wise Brown, always wanted to write for adults. With Good Reason’s Kelley Libby tells the story of Brown’s life, from Hollins College to her tragic early death. Also featured: After World War II, the International Youth Library in Munich was created to promote understanding by introducing Germany’s children to the literature of other cultures. It’s now the largest repository of children’s literature in the world. Dr. Osayimwense Osa (Virginia State University) is a former fellow at the library. Hesays the internationalizing of children’s literature is a step toward world peace. And: With busy schedules and media-soaked lives, have our children lost their ability to engage in moment-by-moment experiences? Michele Briggs and Tammy Gilligan (James Madison University) discuss the lost art of mindfulness, its importance to classroom decorum and academic achievement, and what teachers can do to help children learn this important skill.

“Uptalk” is that rising, questioning tone some people use when ending a statement. It’s becoming so common that Thomas Linneman (College of William and Mary) studied its use by contestants on the game show Jeopardy. He found women use it more than men, but male contestants often use “uptalk” after a woman competitor gets a wrong answer. And: Most of us think the best way to motivate is with rewards like money. But best-selling author Dan Pink says that’s a mistake. He says the secret to high performance and satisfaction is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to create new things, and to better our world.

Also featured: First published in 1947, Goodnight Moon has become one of the most popular books for young children. Yet the book’s author, Margaret Wise Brown, always wanted to write for adults. With Good Reason’s Kelley Libby tells the story of Brown’s life, from Hollins College to her tragic early death. Also featured: After World War II, the International Youth Library in Munich was created to promote understanding by introducing Germany’s children to the literature of other cultures. It’s now the largest repository of children’s literature in the world. Dr. Osayimwense Osa (Virginia State University) is a former fellow at the library. Hesays the internationalizing of children’s literature is a step toward world peace. And: With busy schedules and media-soaked lives, have our children lost their ability to engage in moment-by-moment experiences? Michele Briggs and Tammy Gilligan (James Madison University) discuss the lost art of mindfulness, its importance to classroom decorum and academic achievement, and what teachers can do to help children learn this important skill.

The healthcare system in the U.S. ranks last among peer countries for overall quality and costs, and medical providers and policy makers are calling for new models of care. Carolyn Morcom Rutledge (Old Dominion University) is a Family Nurse Practitioner and founding director of a new Doctor of Nursing Practice program. She says graduating nurses at the doctoral level—and training them in business, leadership, and policy—offers an innovative solution to America’s healthcare problems. Plus: Lily Hargrove is a physician who says taking health insurance out of the equation is better for both doctors and patients. And: Pulitzer Prize finalist Blake Bailey (Old Dominion University) is best known for his biographies of the likes of John Cheever and Richard Yates, and Philip Roth has chosen him to write his official biography. Now Blake is revealing his own dark upbringing in his new memoir The Splendid Things We Planned.

Also featured: An epidemic of over-consumption is sweeping the United States and the rest of the industrialized world. With Good Reason sat down with PBS documentary producer John De Graaf, among whose best-known shows is Affluenza, for an in-depth discussion of happiness and the economy and how the life/work balance got out of whack for American workers. Also featured: The story of life has a complex cast of characters, and Fred Singer (Radford University) says we’re losing many of them due to poor judgment and our own astounding biological success. Singer has interviewed Jane Goodall, Dan Jansen, and other renowned scientists for his new textbook on ecology.

The healthcare system in the U.S. ranks last among peer countries for overall quality and costs, and medical providers and policy makers are calling for new models of care. Carolyn Morcom Rutledge (Old Dominion University) is a Family Nurse Practitioner and founding director of a new Doctor of Nursing Practice program. She says graduating nurses at the doctoral level—and training them in business, leadership, and policy—offers an innovative solution to America’s healthcare problems. Plus: Lily Hargrove is a physician who says taking health insurance out of the equation is better for both doctors and patients. And: Pulitzer Prize finalist Blake Bailey (Old Dominion University) is best known for his biographies of the likes of John Cheever and Richard Yates, and Philip Roth has chosen him to write his official biography. Now Blake is revealing his own dark upbringing in his new memoir The Splendid Things We Planned.

Also featured: An epidemic of over-consumption is sweeping the United States and the rest of the industrialized world. With Good Reason sat down with PBS documentary producer John De Graaf, among whose best-known shows is Affluenza, for an in-depth discussion of happiness and the economy and how the life/work balance got out of whack for American workers. Also featured: The story of life has a complex cast of characters, and Fred Singer (Radford University) says we’re losing many of them due to poor judgment and our own astounding biological success. Singer has interviewed Jane Goodall, Dan Jansen, and other renowned scientists for his new textbook on ecology.

In Japan, insects are pets, medicine, and even vehicles for spirits. Mary Knighton (Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, William & Mary) researches Japan’s special relationship with insects. And: One of the most unpopular insects in the U.S. is the tick, which can be a carrier of Lyme disease. David Livingston, Jay Sullivan, and Jim Squire (Virginia Military Institute) have invented a tick-removal robot that rolls over a lawn, attracting and killing these unwanted insects. Tick expert Holly Gaff (Old Dominion University) has tested the “tick rover” with surprising results. Plus: Between errands and dishes and kids, it sometimes feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day. Luisa Igloria (Old Dominion University) has managed to make time to write one poem every day—for 1,270 days!

Later in the show: Poetry has long been used to celebrate love and family, but it has also always documented the dark times in human life. Bob Hicok (Virginia Tech) worked for 20 years in the automotive industry. His poems explore the lives of family and friends coping with economic devastation in Michigan. Also: Many scholars have believed that nonsense literature in the vein of Lewis Carroll or Edward Gorey is a strictly English language innovation. But Kevin Shortsleeve’s (Christopher Newport University) book documents nonsense literature from all over the world. And: Lisa Russ Spaar (University of Virginia) explores how a familiar place changes through time in her poem Empty Nest.

In Japan, insects are pets, medicine, and even vehicles for spirits. Mary Knighton (Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, William & Mary) researches Japan’s special relationship with insects. And: One of the most unpopular insects in the U.S. is the tick, which can be a carrier of Lyme disease. David Livingston, Jay Sullivan, and Jim Squire (Virginia Military Institute) have invented a tick-removal robot that rolls over a lawn, attracting and killing these unwanted insects. Tick expert Holly Gaff (Old Dominion University) has tested the “tick rover” with surprising results. Plus: Between errands and dishes and kids, it sometimes feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day. Luisa Igloria (Old Dominion University) has managed to make time to write one poem every day—for 1,270 days!

Later in the show: Poetry has long been used to celebrate love and family, but it has also always documented the dark times in human life. Bob Hicok (Virginia Tech) worked for 20 years in the automotive industry. His poems explore the lives of family and friends coping with economic devastation in Michigan. Also: Many scholars have believed that nonsense literature in the vein of Lewis Carroll or Edward Gorey is a strictly English language innovation. But Kevin Shortsleeve’s (Christopher Newport University) book documents nonsense literature from all over the world. And: Lisa Russ Spaar (University of Virginia) explores how a familiar place changes through time in her poem Empty Nest.

The tempestuous relationship between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton captured the world’s attention in a way no other Hollywood couple’s had before. The public and press couldn’t get enough of their volatile romance. Nancy Schoenberger (College of William and Mary) is the co-author of Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century.

Also featured: If anyone’s qualified to write a satire about football, it’s Inman Majors (James Madison University). He comes from a family known as “Tennessee’s First Family of Football.” His novel Love’s Winning Plays is an affectionate tongue-in-cheek look at college football. And: Henrietta Lacks was a poor African American woman whose tumor cells were collected without her knowledge just before her death in 1951. Though these “HeLa” cells launched a multimillion-dollar biomedical industry, her family was never compensated. Henrietta’s son recently shared his family’s story at Norfolk State University.

Later in the show: The aftermath of traumatic brain injury can devastate a couple, because the healthy partner must forge a relationship with someone who has changed dramatically and the injured partner must learn that they are indeed changed. Psychologists Jeffrey Kreutzer and Emilie Godwin (Virginia Commonwealth University) are among the few therapists in the country who are focused on developing marriage-counseling techniques tailored to couples coping with brain injuries. Plus: After a promising clinical trial using focused ultrasound as a treatment for people with essential tremor, Jeff Elias (University of Virginia) is a leader in the ground-breaking study using scalpel-free technology in reducing the tremor related to Parkinson’s disease. The FDA-approved trial is enrolling 30 subjects with Parkinson’s disease. Focused sound waves target a small area deep in the brain, replacing any need to cut into the skull.

The tempestuous relationship between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton captured the world’s attention in a way no other Hollywood couple’s had before. The public and press couldn’t get enough of their volatile romance. Nancy Schoenberger (College of William and Mary) is the co-author of Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century.

Also featured: If anyone’s qualified to write a satire about football, it’s Inman Majors (James Madison University). He comes from a family known as “Tennessee’s First Family of Football.” His novel Love’s Winning Plays is an affectionate tongue-in-cheek look at college football. And: Henrietta Lacks was a poor African American woman whose tumor cells were collected without her knowledge just before her death in 1951. Though these “HeLa” cells launched a multimillion-dollar biomedical industry, her family was never compensated. Henrietta’s son recently shared his family’s story at Norfolk State University.

Later in the show: The aftermath of traumatic brain injury can devastate a couple, because the healthy partner must forge a relationship with someone who has changed dramatically and the injured partner must learn that they are indeed changed. Psychologists Jeffrey Kreutzer and Emilie Godwin (Virginia Commonwealth University) are among the few therapists in the country who are focused on developing marriage-counseling techniques tailored to couples coping with brain injuries. Plus: After a promising clinical trial using focused ultrasound as a treatment for people with essential tremor, Jeff Elias (University of Virginia) is a leader in the ground-breaking study using scalpel-free technology in reducing the tremor related to Parkinson’s disease. The FDA-approved trial is enrolling 30 subjects with Parkinson’s disease. Focused sound waves target a small area deep in the brain, replacing any need to cut into the skull.

The Gulf Stream current pushes water from the Americas to Europe and back with a force three hundred times more powerful than the Amazon River. Stan Ulanski (James Madison University) explains that the Gulf Stream was essential to the early exploration of the New World and continues to influence our climate, weather, environment, and shipping industry. And: Brian Payne reveals how gangs of fisherman in the 1800s argued and fought over fishing grounds even as they practiced a kind of early environmentalism.

Later in the show: Where did African Americans in the south vacation during the Jim Crow era when facilities in many of the parks were segregated? New research by Brian Katen (Virginia Tech) is revealing a vital and widespread network of African American owned and developed recreational sites including parklands, amusement parks, mineral springs, and camps. Plus: From Jesse Dukes and Big Shed Media, the story of Dreamland, a swimming pool and dance hall in Roanoke, Virginia’s historic African-American neighborhood of Gainsboro. Built in the 1930′s, Dreamland was condemned and torn down in 1947 as a forerunner to drastic and damaging urban renewal in Gainsboro.

The Gulf Stream current pushes water from the Americas to Europe and back with a force three hundred times more powerful than the Amazon River. Stan Ulanski (James Madison University) explains that the Gulf Stream was essential to the early exploration of the New World and continues to influence our climate, weather, environment, and shipping industry. And: Brian Payne reveals how gangs of fisherman in the 1800s argued and fought over fishing grounds even as they practiced a kind of early environmentalism.

Later in the show: Where did African Americans in the south vacation during the Jim Crow era when facilities in many of the parks were segregated? New research by Brian Katen (Virginia Tech) is revealing a vital and widespread network of African American owned and developed recreational sites including parklands, amusement parks, mineral springs, and camps. Plus: From Jesse Dukes and Big Shed Media, the story of Dreamland, a swimming pool and dance hall in Roanoke, Virginia’s historic African-American neighborhood of Gainsboro. Built in the 1930′s, Dreamland was condemned and torn down in 1947 as a forerunner to drastic and damaging urban renewal in Gainsboro.