Showdown Over Brexit in British Parliament

Guest: Quinn Mecham, Professor of Political Science, BYU

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is struggling to keep his Brexit plans on track. He’s vowed to see Britain leave the European Union on October 31, no matter what. But members of Parliament are blocking his attempts –and that includes a number of his own conservative party members who’ve jumped ship. 

Getting More Women on the Force

Guest: Ivonne Roman, Police Captain, Newark, New Jersey, National institute of Justice LEADS Scholar, Cofounder of the Women’s Leadership Organization

There’s a nationwide push to add more women to the ranks of law enforcement. Currently they make up less than 13 percent of police officers in the US and an even smaller percentage of law enforcement leadership. It’s not that women are less capable of policing. Study after study has shown policewomen are actually better at communicating and defusing potentially violent confrontations. So why aren’t there more women on the force?

The Science Behind Artificial and Natural Flavoring

Guest: Gene Ahlborn, Professor of food science, toxicology, and flavor chemistry at Brigham Young University

When I see “all-natural flavors” on a food label, I imagine that means the thing is flavored only by its main ingredients. So, if it’s apple juice, then it’s flavored by actual apples. But that’s not how flavoring works in the processed food industry. In fact, the difference between “natural” and “artificial” is not nearly as big as you’d think. 

Apple Seed

Guest: Sam Payne, Apple Seed

Sam Payne shares a story about Labor Day.

Diversity in the Workplace may be Easier to Solve than You Think

Guest: Olga Stoddard, Assistant Professor of Economics at Brigham Young University

Fortune 500 companies have more female CEOs this year than ever before -33. That’s still under 7 percent, and Hispanic and black CEOs barely even make a percentage. Many companies have made promises to increase diversity among all their employees, but they’re still struggling to make it happen. A team of economists has come up with a strikingly simple and cost-effective solution that doubled the number of racial minority applicants in their experiment.

If Diet Apps Aren’t the Answer to Childhood Obesity, What Is?

Guest: Andrew Subica, assistant professor of social medicine, population, and public health at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine

One in five children and teens in the United States have obesity. That rate has tripled since the 1970s. So, we clearly need young people to be eating better and exercising more. But Weight Watchers –now known as WW –is taking all kinds of heat for its new app aimed at kids. If a food-tracking app isn’t the way to go, what is?