Summer reading lists are full of so-called "beach books." But if you’ve got enough time to lounge by a pool or swing in a hammock, why not tackle something more substantial?Read more
Exploring the Deeper End of Ideas
Show Archives
- November 24, 2018
- July 06, 2019
What's the essence of religion? God? Scripture? Moral codes? Or is it really about something more unexplainable — primal spiritual experiences?Read more
- March 03, 2018
- July 06, 2019
We’ve all had them—the big, significant, transformations that take your life in a new direction. And even though those gateway moments present new and exciting opportunities, they are almost always by definition uncomfortable.Read more
- January 13, 2018
- September 22, 2018
- June 29, 2019
Ever had the nagging suspicion that you’re being watched? You are. We all are.Read more
- October 13, 2018
- June 29, 2019
Covert spies painting nerve agents on doorknobs? It's not the only way to poison someone. We hear stories of radioactive paint, formaldehyde-spiked baby formula, and a beautiful garden full of plants that could kill you.Read more
- June 22, 2019
We're always online but still have an innate need to meet in person. How can we make gatherings, from dinner parties to work meetings, more meaningful?Read more
- July 14, 2018
- June 22, 2019
Do chimpanzees have spiritual experiences? A remarkable discovery in West Africa suggests they might.Read more
- April 21, 2018
- June 15, 2019
More than 38 million Americans knit or crochet. Not because they crave mittens and afghans, but because they like the way knitting feels. Handwork turns out be a powerful antidote for digital overload. Read more
- September 15, 2018
- June 15, 2019
The first birth is when you arrive here, as a wet, wiggling newborn. But there may be other transitions in your life that feel just as difficult and profound. Some people actually call those passages re-birth. Read more
- June 08, 2019
We owe our past and future existence on Earth to fungi. Some can heal you, some can kill you, and some can change you forever.Read more
- March 10, 2018
- October 20, 2018
- June 08, 2019
DNA tests are uncovering mixed bloodlines. For African Americans, this can be emotionally-charged. What do you do when you find out one of your direct ancestors was a slave owner? Does it open the door to new conversations about racial justice?Read more
- May 26, 2018
- June 01, 2019
Why do we have schools? To build a workforce? To create democratic citizens? Read more
- June 01, 2019
Even with all the music available today, most of us still listen primarily to just a few comfy genres. But there’s so much more out there — and so much of it defies neat, algorithm-friendly categorization.Read more
- May 26, 2018
- May 25, 2019
It doesn't matter whether you grew up going to Coney Island, Six Flags, or Pacific Park — to a kid, all amusement parks are magical. This hour we take a trip to the land of funnel cake, freak shows and fast rides.Read more
- May 25, 2019
Over-tourism is ruining some of our favorite places on earth. Maybe it’s time to think more carefully about where and why we go places.Read more
- February 24, 2018
- September 29, 2018
- May 18, 2019
For the first time since World War II, far-right and neo-fascist groups are winning converts and votes — all over Europe and also here at home. Why is it happening, and can it be stopped?Read more
- July 28, 2018
- May 18, 2019
Bees are endangered, but all over the world, people are stepping up to save them — in backyards, science labs, and the abandoned lots of urban Detroit.Read more
- September 29, 2018
- May 11, 2019
Cities can be cacophonous and loud, a chaos of sonic discord. If, that is, you don't really focus your listening. People who’ve trained their ears to hear urban soundscapes in new ways hear something different.Read more
- February 17, 2018
- September 22, 2018
- May 11, 2019
"Magical thinking" gets a bad rap these days. It suggests losing your grip on reality or being so gullible that you'll believe anything - from ghosts to miracles. But what if magic isn't pure fantasy? Maybe it's the gateway to wonder. Read more
- August 11, 2018
- May 04, 2019
Whether it’s nail biting or handwashing, most of us have a compulsion we can’t give up. Maybe that’s a good thing?Read more
- May 04, 2019
Hope means believing there’s a future. But can hope co-exist with cataclysmic realities like climate change, or disruptive technological advances like artificial intelligence? Read more
- April 27, 2019
This hour we talk with people who’ve turned that around and made hope real, whether it’s through political activism, faith, music, or reading a life-changing novel.Read more
- August 04, 2018
- April 27, 2019
Do you ever crave silence? Maybe some can’t stand to hear themselves thinking, but others go to great lengths to find respite from a blaringly loud world.Read more
- June 30, 2018
- April 20, 2019
Do scientists see the world in a different way? Not really. Just be curious.Read more
- April 20, 2019
Is hope something we’re innately born with, or something we can choose to have? We talk with people who tell us where they think hope lives in ourselves and our communities.Read more
- July 07, 2018
- April 13, 2019
Computer scientists are closing in on the next frontier in artificial intelligence — machines that can create. Make art. Write stories. Compose music. The dream is to open the door to a whole new kind of creativity. Read more
- May 05, 2018
- April 13, 2019
Milwaukee is a city on water, right on the shore of Lake Michigan, split by the historic Milwaukee River. How did it shape the city's history, politics, culture, and people? We find out in this live broadcast from Turner Hall in Milwaukee.Read more
- April 06, 2019
Look around the political landscape and you see something we haven’t seen for decades — politicians proudly identifying as socialists. Has their moment arrived?Read more
- March 30, 2019
There's a lot of hand-wringing these days about the American Empire. Is it doomed to come crashing down the way the Roman Empire did?Read more