Think from KERA

The damage caused by alcohol costs Americans billions of dollars, and it largely goes unnoticed. Isabella Cueto, chronic disease reporter for Stat, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the harms of alcohol from elevated cancer risk to liver damage to its impact on violent crime and why public health officials don’t seem to have a cohesive strategy to combat its very real consequences. Her series, writt...

For two-time National Book Award winner Jesymn Ward, the deep South is the only place she can call home. The author talks with host Krys Boyd about the pain and heartbreak she’s felt in rural Mississippi, why the draw of family keeps hope alive, and why she writes for anyone experiencing loss or grief. Her book of essays is “ On Witness and Respair .” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/...

Creativity knows no bounds but it’s best captured within set limits. Author and journalist David Epstein joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why too many choices make it hard to start a project, how to avoid leaning on the status quo when we don’t know where to start, and how we can unlock our unlimited potential. His book is “ Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better .” Learn about your ad choi...

To really understand the nuts and bolts of economics, look to the black market. Alvin E. Roth is Craig and Susan McCaw Professor of Economics at Stanford University and the George Gund Professor of Economics and Business Administration Emeritus at Harvard University. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2012. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his work on organ donation which led him to...

Iran was filled with hope during the 1979 revolution; that was soon dashed. Yeganeh Torbati is a correspondent for The New York Times covering Iran, and she joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Iran’s recent history from the promise of democracy to oppressive rule and further corruption and why the killing of leader Ali Khamenei signals more bad news for the country. Plus, we’ll hear about the people s...

There’s a movement to rebuff the gains of feminism called masculinism, and it’s gaining ground. Helen Lewis, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the movement that decries empathy and female achievement in the workforce and academia as feminizing the country, why adherents point to ancient civilizations to make their arguments, and why this form of masculinity is more abou...

The country is run by senior citizens, and their control is transforming the nation. Samuel Moyn is Kent Professor of Law and History at Yale University and author of “Gerontocracy in America: How the Old Are Hoarding Power and Wealth and What to Do About It.” He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why the nation’s elders hold vast amounts of wealth and political influence, why that isn’t transferring...

There are lots of experts who claim to know when it’s time to potty train a child, but their advice is rarely based in science. Saabira Chaudhuri joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how big diaper companies push the idea that parents should wait for certain signs to train their child to use the toilet, how this can be devastating for the environment and how this issue affects the elderly as well. Her...

The Supreme Court has already ruled on monumental issues this term, and more are to come. Ian Millhiser is a senior correspondent at Vox, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss hotly anticipated decisions on birthright citizenship, transgender students in sports and gun rights and how the use of the “shadow docket” has changed the landscape of rulings. His article is “ What the Supreme Court still...

Gen Zer’s have lived their lives online, and they’re burned out. Freya India is the author of the Substack GIRLS, where she writes about the challenges girls and young women face in the modern world, and a staff writer for Jonathan Haidt’s newsletter, After Babel. She joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss the pressure to build personal “brands,” how even childhood has been commodified and t...

Kevin Warsh has been confirmed as the next Federal Reserve Chair will the central bank remain independent? Frontline correspondent and filmmaker James Jacoby joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Trump’s efforts to control the Fed, his push to indict current Chair Jerome Powell, and the far-reaching consequences of these sustained attacks. The documentary is called “ The President and the Fed. “  Learn...

The most reluctant politician we’ve ever had just happens to have been our first president. H.W. Brands is Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss George Washington who saw himself as a solider and not a politician why he felt it was paramount for a president to defer to Congress, and the grievances he had against the crown...

 The 1980s brought us the young upstarts known as the Yuppies and you may be living their lifestyle today. Dylan Gottlieb is historian at Bentley University and co-host of Who Makes Cents: A History of Capitalism Podcast and author of “Yuppies: The Bankers, Lawyers, Joggers, and Gourmands Who Conquered New York.” He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the social and political changes Yuppies brought t...

In the debate of nature vs. nurture, the animal world does a lot more nurturing than you might think. Science journalist Elizabeth Preston joins host Krys Boyd to discuss parenting styles of animals – like otters that teach their offspring to swim – the role dads play in caring for their young, and what science knows about love in non-human creatures. Her book “ The Creatures’ Guide to Caring: How...

If you could choose your future baby’s hair color, height, even I.Q. should you? Christopher Cox is an editor at New York Magazine, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the $50,000 tests that promise to help prospective parents choose the most desirable traits, if this new practice is a form of modern eugenics, and if these tests even work. His article is “ Can You Really Choose Your ‘Best Baby’...

 The first college students to have access to A.I. are graduating, and employers are wary. Amanda Hoover is a senior correspondent at Business Insider covering the tech industry. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how companies are trying to discern if A.I. is being used to cheat through interviews, why no one quite knows what these graduates are capable of, and what these types of intellectual s...

People are injecting themselves with unregulated compounds bought from the internet — so how safe is this health trend? Dhruv Khullar is a physician and contributing writer at The New Yorker. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the realities of injectable peptides — what they promise and what are falsehoods, what the FDA has to say about these substances, and why some people are willing to take hug...

 To answer the age-old question “why do we exist?” it might be helpful to add a little science into out existential pondering. we need to employ quantum physics for the answer. Hakeem Oluseyi is an astrophysicist, inventor, educator and CEO of the Astro Society, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the space-time continuum of life as we know it, the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe,...

There’s power in speaking truth to power — you just need the courage of your convictions. Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw is Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of California, Los Angeles, the Isidor and Seville Sulzbacher Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, and the cofounder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum. She joins host Krys Boyd to talk about her upbrin...

 Whether you notice it or not, you speak with an accent. Valerie Fridland, professor of linguistics in the English Department at the University of Nevada, Reno, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how accents from the Southern drawl to the California Valley Girl came to be, why accents are key to culture, and why, in our mass media world, some are fading away. Her book is “ Why We Talk Funny: The Real...

Our lives are ruled by markets, but you don’t have to be an economist to understand these forces. Alex Mayyasi, host of the new podcast “Gastronomics” and a longtime contributor to “Planet Money,” joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the nuts and bolts of the economy – from how zoning codes create jobs to the cross purposes of dating apps – and breaks it down for the Average Joe to understand. His book...

 Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth believes America’s wars around the world are part of a holy Christian mission. Peter Wehner, contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the Psalms he quotes about smiting enemies, how he is taking inspiration from the Bible for military conquests and why he wants his entire chaplain corps to think...

 The average new car in America costs $50,000, but how many people can actually afford one? Clifford Winston is an economist who specializes in transportation and microeconomic policy. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss where the low-priced cars have gone, how all the new bells and whistles are squeezing those on a budget, and why even repair bills are now sky high. His article for The New York Ti...

The U.S. military attack on Venezuela was fast and surgical — so how is the country doing now? Missy Ryan, staff writer for The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what Venezuelans on the ground think of the regime change, how the new government is faring and whether legitimate democracy now has a foothold there. Her article is called “ Venezuela Seems to Be Going … Well? ” Learn about your...

 For children who felt responsible for their parents’ happiness: There’s a way to turn that into joy. Anna Konkle is co-creator and co-star of the Hulu series “Pen15,” and she joins host Krys Boyd to discuss her childhood – when her parents fought all the time and she felt like the peacemaker – her complicated relationship with her father and how she turned that experience into comedy for her crit...