Show Archives

Live from the Turner Hall ballroom.

Making Waves: Live in Milwaukee

Airdates: 
May 05, 2018

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.More

Prison bars

Locked Up

Airdates: 
April 28, 2018

Most of us will never know what really happens behind bars. Prisons are generally off limits to the public and press, but several new...More

A tree in Sequoia National Forest

The Secret Language of Trees

Airdates: 
April 28, 2018

Trees talk to each other, and even form alliances with other trees or other species. Some are incredibly old — the root mass of aspens might live 100,000 years. In this hour, we explore the science and history of trees.More

Handwork

Airdates: 
April 21, 2018

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. More

God Talk

Airdates: 
April 21, 2018

Some people talk to God and some think God talks to them. More

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Hip Hop Future

Airdates: 
April 14, 2018

Hip hop created a sound that changed music, art, fashion, and politics. What's next? Diplomacy? Journalism? Education? Philosophy?More

Tree image

Traditional Knowledge

Airdates: 
April 12, 2018

Reading books isn't always the best way to learn. Some things you need to learn from your elders, and their wisdom has often been passed down through the generations. More

Glitch lady

Why Is the Internet Such a Toxic Place for Women?

Airdates: 
April 07, 2018

Why do women have to put up with this? And how do they fight back?More

Octopus

Thinking With Animals

Airdates: 
April 07, 2018

Can we ever get inside the mind of an animal? Can we really know how an octopus or a parrot thinks? Also, the fascinating story of Charles Foster's attempt to act like a badger, when he lived in a hole in the ground and ate worms.More

A healing hand

Healing Trauma

Airdates: 
March 31, 2018

As terrible as it sounds, most of us will go through something traumatic at some point in our lives. The experience can be deeply isolating and crushing, but it doesn't have to be. More

Paramount Theatre in Newark, NJ

You Had To Be There

Airdates: 
March 31, 2018

Home entertainment options have never been richer, but public places like movie theaters and performance spaces are suffering. What do we lose when everyone stays home?More

We've Had 30 Years Of Prozac. Why Are We Still Depressed?

Airdates: 
March 24, 2018
November 17, 2018

Modern anti-depressants have saved a lot of minds. And lives. But what have they done to our bodies? And how do we navigate that trade-off between body and mind?More

vinyl is back

The Revenge of Analog

Airdates: 
March 24, 2018

Maybe it’s nostalgia. Maybe it’s something more. But analog is back in style.More

Teens march in Madison on March 14, one month since a deadly shooting in Parkland, FL.

What Can We Learn From Teenagers?

Airdates: 
March 17, 2018

A chorus of hope is coming from an unexpected group — teenagers. They have superpowers — innocence, idealism, and Instagram — and they aren't waiting for permission to use them to shape the world.More

ce matin, un lapin in middle school

Awkward

Airdates: 
March 17, 2018

When was the last time you said something so mortifying that all you wanted to do was crawl under a rock and hide? From teenage angst to cringe comedy, we're setting aside the shame and reveling in all things awkward.More

typewriter

Short Stories

Airdates: 
March 10, 2018

Short stories can be harder to write than novels, but just as great.More

The family tree

Discovering America's Black DNA

Airdates: 
March 10, 2018
October 20, 2018

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?More

Live in St. Louis

Gateway Moments: Live from St. Louis

Airdates: 
March 03, 2018

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.More

Art is subjective.

Why Make Art?

Airdates: 
March 03, 2018

We grow up scribbling with crayons and covering sidewalks with chalk, and then around middle school most of us stop. Maybe we think it's childish or just too hard. So what can we learn from the people who never stopped making art?More

Facing hatred head-on

How Do You Face The Hate On Your Doorstep?

Airdates: 
February 24, 2018
September 29, 2018

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?More

Actress with long tongue

Yuck

Airdates: 
February 24, 2018

We delve into the new science of revulsion.More

A little more magic in the world.

Magical Thinking

Airdates: 
February 17, 2018
September 22, 2018

"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.  More

Your electronic best friend

Sentimentality for Silicon

Airdates: 
February 17, 2018
October 13, 2018

Do you love your laptop? Feel affection for your phone? Some of us spend more time with our devices than our families. How deep do those attachments go?More

The Majestic Theater in Madison

Love + Evolution: Live in Madison

Airdates: 
February 10, 2018

What can science reveal about lust, romance, and compassion?More

ice

Imagining Climate Change

Airdates: 
February 10, 2018
November 24, 2018

“The climate crisis is a crisis of culture and thus of imagination,” says writer Amitav Ghosh. So what changes in our conversation about global warming when we tap into the imaginative worlds of novelists and artists?More

Eric, president of the Wisconsin chapter of the Proud Boys, shows off his tattoo, which is part of initiation into the group. Another ritual involves getting punched by other members while reciting breakfast cereal names. Photo taken Oct. 4, 2017.

What's Wrong With Men?

Airdates: 
February 03, 2018
October 06, 2018

The right-wing politics and bro culture of The Proud Boys is attracting young, white men nationwide. Founder Gavin McInnes believes “95% of American women” would be happier at home. Where does his vision of “being a man” fit in 2018?More

time travel clock

Time Travel

Airdates: 
February 03, 2018

This hour, we explore our obsession with time travel. Why is such a recurring them in movies and TV shows? And what can time travel teach us about ourselves?More

Wolf in Yellowstone

In The Company Of Wolves

Airdates: 
January 27, 2018

While their domesticated cousins sleep on our beds, Congress debates wild wolves’ survival. This hour, we’ll explore our complicated relationship with our canine cousins, and the feelings they evoke – fear, hatred, and also love.  More

shame statue

Shame

Airdates: 
January 20, 2018
November 10, 2018

Social media has brought us all closer together. Sometimes that's a good thing. But when it comes to online shaming, it's a bad thing. More

Saddam Hussein

Can An Evil Man Be A Decent Person?

Airdates: 
January 20, 2018
October 27, 2018

How can someone be a monster — a brutal dictator, a mass murderer, a serial killer — and up close seem like a decent, caring person? What happens when you find yourself liking someone who’s done terrible things?More

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