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.Read more
Exploring the Deeper End of Ideas
Episode Archives
Original Air Date:
December 20, 2015
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.Read more
Original Air Date:
March 10, 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?Read more
Original Air Date:
November 08, 2015
Short stories can be harder to write than novels, but just as great.Read more
Original Air Date:
April 17, 2016
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?Read more
Original Air Date:
June 11, 2017
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
Original Air Date:
February 24, 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?Read more
Original Air Date:
February 17, 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. Read more
Original Air Date:
September 02, 2017
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?Read more
Original Air Date:
August 12, 2017
“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?Read more
Original Air Date:
February 26, 2017
What can science reveal about lust, romance, and compassion?Read more
Original Air Date:
February 03, 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?Read more
Original Air Date:
October 09, 2016
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?Read more
Original Air Date:
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. Read more
Original Air Date:
January 20, 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?Read more
Original Air Date:
April 18, 2015
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. Read more
Original Air Date:
January 13, 2018
Ever had the nagging suspicion that you’re being watched? You are. We all are.Read more
Original Air Date:
October 23, 2016
Psychologists say telling a good life story can make you happier. But do we also create an inauthentic version of ourselves if we turn everything into a narrative?Read more
Original Air Date:
January 02, 2016
Why are we so obsessed with the future? Is it because we can't handle the present and all of our current problems, like climate change, racism and terrorism? That's one theory.Read more
Original Air Date:
January 06, 2018
Ah, January. Season of diets and fasts and cleanses, of "Drynuary" and "Veganuary." Why does being virtuous always seem to mean giving up pleasure?Read more
Original Air Date:
December 30, 2017
We don’t handle endings well, in general. So this hour, let’s learn about how to make a good ending — whether leaving a lover, quitting a job, or getting ready for the end of life itself.Read more
Original Air Date:
January 03, 2016
Procrastination can be an occasional bad habit, but it can also be a lot worse. It can lead to depression, low self-esteem, anxiety. Today, we try to answer the question, Why do we put things off and how can we stop?
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Original Air Date:
December 23, 2017
Who really runs the world? Presidents and prime ministers, or CEOs and bankers? And who’s responsible when everything falls apart?Read more
Original Air Date:
February 21, 2016
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
Original Air Date:
July 15, 2017
Do you ever wish you could reinvent yourself? This hour, we hear from four noted artists who experienced pivotal turns in their own lives: artist Rashid Johnson, writer/photographer Teju Cole, singer Nikka Costa, and musician Michael Nesmith.Read more
Original Air Date:
June 18, 2017
Yosemite is climbing’s mecca. It’s where Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell stunned the world with their dazzling climbs.Read more
Original Air Date:
December 09, 2017
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
Original Air Date:
May 21, 2017
When you’re hurt and the only way out of toxic bitterness and resentment is to let go, how do you summon the resolve to reach out to the person who hurt you most?Read more
Original Air Date:
December 02, 2017
Sexism has no boundaries, as we're quickly discovering. But what impact does it have on scientific discovery if sexist behavior drives women out of science entirely?Read more