You know the earth is round, the sky is up, and your dog loves you. But HOW do you know those things? This week, how we form opinions – the psychology and brain chemistry behind our beliefs. You & Your Brain - Julian Keenan; Sonic Sidebar: The Political Divide; Irrational Beliefs - Will Storr; Charting Religious Traditions - Karen Armstrong; BookMark: Alfred Kubin's "The Other Side"; On Our Minds: Philip Pullman.

This episode explores the artist and new ways to think about the creative process Steal Like an Artist - Austin Kleon; Powers of Two - Joshua Wolf Shenk; Myopia - Mark Mothersbaugh [Slideshow]; BookMark: Charles Duhigg on "The Children"; On Our Minds: The Great Migration.

Smart phones and digital distribution have made it easier to get into the radio game. After the success of Serial, it seems like everyone’s talking about podcasts. But what does it take to make a hit show? And what do a host of new, independent programs mean for good ol’ radio? Alex Blumberg on Our Podcast Future; What About Public Radio?; It's a Gabfest - Emily Bazelon; Sounds, Original at WFMU; BookMark: Samuel Scheffler on "The Children of Men"; On Our Minds: Keeping Speech Free.

Want to improve your mood? Just dance. This hour we’re talking with people who’ve found an easy way to keep themselves happy, to build friendships, and make art. We’re checking in with neuroscientists too, to hear just what happens in our brains when we’re dancing. Also, how dancing together has been part of religious life for centuries.  Dancing Away Anxiety; The Dancing Brain; Dancing Together; Sonic Sidebar: Tango; Sally Gross - Finding Her Own Dance; Deep Tracks: Charles R. Cross; On Our Minds: Picturing Migration.

Are Americans afraid of black men? That's one of the issues at the heart of the national debate over the deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice. This hour, we take a closer look at negative stereotypes about African American men, how those biases affect our justice system, and what we might be able to do about it. Addressing Bias; Condemning Blackness; What Do You Fear?; Not Calling the Police; Reforming the LAPD; Dangerous Idea: Love Your Enemy; On Our Minds: Hip Hop Prophets.

we explore the fine art of comedy writing Spoiled Brats - Simon Rich; Bob Odenkirk on Comedy as an Act of Truth and Destruction; Science...for Her! - Megan Amram; The New Yorker Cartoons - Bob Mankoff; Dangerous Idea: Can Too Much Christmas Drive Kids to Kill?; What Do Your Passwords Say About You?.

Television used to be formulaic. Today, it’s the best gig around. We examine the explosion of high quality TV, from The Sopranos and The Wire to Mad Men, and talk with the creator of HBO’s True Detective. TV Revolution - Alan Sepinwall; True Detective - Nic Pizzolatto; "Husbands" - Brad Bell & Jane Espenson; Dangerous Idea: A Different Draft?; On Our Minds: Iraq War Poetry.

In his short life, British mathematician Alan Turing changed the world. He cracked the code that helped defeat the Nazis, dreamed up artificial intelligence, and laid the foundation for the computer age. Patrick Sammon - Turing's Final Years; Andrew Hodges - The Roots of Turing's Genius; Alan Garner - Running With Turing; Mohan Embar - The Turing Test; Brian Christian - The Most Human Human; BookMark: "My Struggle" by Karl Ove Knausgaard; On Our Minds: P.D. James.

The Secret Language of Plants Thinking Like a Forest - Suzanne Simard; What a Plant Knows - Daniel Chamovitz; Sonic Sidebar: Data Garden Quartet; Plant Intelligence - Jeremy Narby; The Grammar of Animacy; Dangerous Idea: Question Your Beliefs; On Our Minds: Ralph Nader .

Reality is catching up to science fiction.  But there are still new science-fiction writers who are thinking the unthinkable and daring to go beyond the limits of our imaginations. The Book of Strange New Things - Michel Faber; Stories of Your Life and Others - Ted Chiang; Questionable Practices - Eileen Gunn; BookMark: Edmund White; On Our Minds: Kurt Godel.