KERA's Think

Our genes don't really determine how well we'll age in later life — and that's good news. Dr. Eric Topol is executive vice president and a professor of molecular medicine at Scripps Research, the largest nonprofit biomedical institute in the United States. He's also a practicing cardiologist, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the study of what he calls the “wellderly” – those people who age to 80 without chronic disease – and the findings that he says can help us all reach that milestone. His book is “Super Agers: An Evidence-Based Approach to Longevity.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Society expects a mother to be nurturing and attentive at all times. So what happens when mom just isn't feeling particularly maternal? Margo Lowy, psychotherapist and contributor to Psychology Today, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the perfectly normal feelings of sometimes hating the work of motherhood, why it's so hard to talk about it, and why more women need to open up about their unaddressed needs. Her book is “Maternal Ambivalence: The Loving Moments & Bitter Truths of Motherhood.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 Content creation has exploded this decade, but how much of it is actually good? Spencer Kornhaber, staff writer for The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how the massive output of music, TV, movies, podcasts – even memes – constantly chips away at our attention spans. We'll also talk about how derivative this content often is, how streaming might've killed creativity, and why innovation is so hard to notice. His article is “Is This the Worst-Ever Era of American Pop Culture?"  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

College students sometimes get in trouble for using A.I. to complete assignments, but is there a way to use it as a teaching tool? Clay Shirky, vice provost for A.I. and technology in education at New York University, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how professors are using A.I. in the classroom and whether or not the technology gets in the way of critical thinking. His article “Is AI Enhancing Education or Replacing It?” was published in The Chronicle of Higher Education." Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Mentally ill inmates are at risk of neglect, dehydration – even starvation. New Yorker staff writer Sarah Stillman joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the four-fold increase since the 1980s of people in jail awaiting trial, the increasingly outsized population of mentally unwell people lacking proper treatment, and the alarming rise in jail deaths that could've been prevented with better supervision. Her article is “Starved in Jail.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The dad who coaches the team and brings home the bacon is a modern invention. Augustine Sedgwick joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how fatherhood has evolved over millennia, how the patriarchy and fatherhood diverge, and how thinkers as far back as Aristotle thought about the role of dads. His book is “Fatherhood: A History of Love and Power.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Space is the final frontier — and not too long ago, to explore it you had to be a man. Cady Coleman is a former NASA astronaut, retired U.S. Air Force colonel, scientist, pilot and musician. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how hearing Sally Ride speak changed the trajectory of her life and what months on the International Space Station taught her about her career and motherhood. Her book is “Sharing Space: An Astronaut's Guide to Mission, Wonder, and Making Change.” This episode originally aired July 25th, 2025. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Every relationship has a person who loads the dishwasher like an architect, and one who throws plates in like a tornado. Ellen Cushing, staff writer for The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why arguments over daily chores might signal deeper issues in a partnership, why some household appliances have such a hold on us, and, yes, we'll get to scientific proof of how that dishwasher is really supposed to be loaded. (Be prepared to tell your significant other.) Her article is, “There Are Two Types of Dishwasher People.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

We hear a lot about the male “epidemic of loneliness” these days—maybe it's from behaviors learned in childhood. Joshua Coleman is a psychologist in private practice and senior fellow with the Council on Contemporary Families. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how we parent girls and boys differently, asking boys to hide their emotions while allowing girls to express theirs and how even in infancy we don't give boys the attention they need reliably. His article, “What Parents of Boys Need to Know” was published by The Atlantic. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Finding happiness is no longer an abstract pursuit—there's serious science behind it, but it's research that hasn't always been held in the highest esteem. Susan Dominus, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how studying happiness became a respected field of study, what psychologists are learning about different types of happiness, and what data says about contentment. Her article is, "How Nearly a Century of Happiness Research Led to One Big Finding."  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Why are we following the lead of tech billionaires when it comes to guiding public policy? Science journalist Adam Becker joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the ways Silicon Valley scions might have A.I. all wrong, the obsession with space colonies and why we aren't asking more critical questions for their version of the future. His book is, “More Everything Forever: AI Overlords, Space Empires, and Silicon Valley's Crusade to Control the Fate of Humanity.“ Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 We think we'll win the lotto even though the odds are low— and that sums up just how wrong we are when we think about risk. Allie Volpe is a senior reporter at Vox. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the many ways we get risk management wrong, why data shows it is hindering younger generations from taking chances and ways we can manage anxiety over the things we can't control. Her article is, “Plane crashes, pandemics, toxic spatulas. How do we live with so much risk?“  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Last Thursday, the first American Pope was introduced to the world as Pope Leo XIV. Christopher White, Vatican correspondent at the National Catholic Reporter and author of the upcoming book “Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy,” joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost, what his mission for the church might be going forward, and the significance of the papal name he's chosen as he now looks to lead 1.4 billion Roman Catholics. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

We want our airline pilots to fly only when they're healthy, which can lead to masking symptoms of mental illness. Helen Ouyang is an emergency physician and associate professor at Columbia University. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss rules around pilot health — which can discourage them to seek necessary treatment for fear of being deemed unfit to fly — and why there are both pros and cons to the policy. Her article in The New York Times is “Why Airline Pilots Feel Pushed to Hide Their Mental Illness.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A.D.H.D is a fairly common diagnosis, but some researchers are wondering if we should start taking a more nuanced approach to treatment. Paul Tough is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, and he joins host Krys Boyd to talk about why A.D.H.D. might be experienced by anyone at a given time and might not be a permanent diagnosis, and why doctors are rethinking standard stimulant medications. His article is “Have We Been Thinking About A.D.H.D. All Wrong?” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Malcolm X, John F. Kennedy, James Baldwin —1963 brought great minds together to work on the common goal of Civil Rights. Peniel Joseph is Barbara Jordan Chair in Political Values and Ethics at the LBJ School of Public Affairs and professor of history and founding director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy at the University of Texas at Austin. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how different political perspectives shaped a pivotal year in Civil Rights history and how violence woke the nation up to the urgent need for change. His book is “Freedom Season: How 1963 Transformed America's Civil Rights Revolution.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Humans have an extraordinarily high genetic mutation rate — which just means we'll never be perfect. Laurence D. Hurst is professor of evolutionary genetics in the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why imperfection is baked into our genetic code, why other species can get rid of “junk” DNA better, and what this means for human evolution. His book is “The Evolution of Imperfection: The Science of Why We Aren't and Can't Be Perfect. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 We've all had moments of blind rage, but the science says we can be wide-eyed and alert even in our most emotional moments. Ethan Kross is a professor in the University of Michigan's psychology department and its Ross School of Business and he is the director of the Emotion and Self-Control Laboratory. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the newest research into controlling our emotions so they don't control us, how labeling feelings as “good” and “bad” helps build a feelings immune system, and why avoidance is sometimes a great tool. His book is “Shift: Managing Your Emotions—So They Don't Manage You.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The high cost of living combined with a modest bank account has young people asking if they should save or splurge? And many of them are choosing to splurge. Journalist Claire Lampen joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why Gen Z is taking on second jobs and side hustles to pay for meals out, elaborate vacations and other treats that might more prudently be skipped. Her article in The Cut is “Is Everybody Just Living Beyond Their Means?”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It was first thought schools would close for only a few weeks during Covid, but that stretched into a year. Was it too long? Journalist David Zweig joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what we can learn from school closures during the pandemic and to look at the reality that decisions were based on scientific guesswork. His book is “An Abundance of Caution: American Schools, the Virus, and a Story of Bad Decisions.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The early 2000s preached “girl power” to the masses — but that often looked like sex and plastic surgery. Sophie Gilbert, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what coming of age in the early aughts meant for young women in an atmosphere of highly sexualized body image, how porn manifested itself into pop culture, and what society had to say about powerful women. Her book is “Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 Grandparents raising their grandchildren have taken on a “second shift” of parenting — and it's exhausting them. Faith Hill, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how lack of childcare is reshaping what used to be the golden years of grandparenting, how it's changing what retirement looks like, and why saying “no” to family is so difficult. Her article is “Grandparents Are Reaching Their Limit.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 Ed Helms is known as a comedian, actor and writer—and also as an investigator of history's biggest gaffes. The host of the podcast SNAFU joins host Krys Boyd to talk about the cats that were trained for the CIA, a plan to nuke the moon, and other bad ideas that never saw fruition (thankfully). His book is called “SNAFU: The Definitive Guide to History's Greatest Screwups.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 José Andrés joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the hope and nourishment food brings to those in desperate need, how he built his humanitarian mission, and the types of people he surrounds himself with to make the world a better place.  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

By the 1920s, 76% of the Native American population was forced to attend boarding schools. Mary Annette Pember is national correspondent for ICT News, and she joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the legacy these schools left behind, from generational trauma to tribes working even today to reclaim their languages and ceremonies, and why the U.S. took this route to assimilate Native populations in the first place. Her book is “Medicine River: A Story of Survival and the Legacy of Indian Boarding Schools.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The Signal leak from the Department of Defense is just another reason American allies are worried about sharing sensitive intelligence with our country. David V. Gioe is British Academy Global Professor and Visiting Professor of Intelligence and International Security in the Department of War Studies at King's College London and Director of Studies for the Cambridge Security Initiative and is co-convener of its International Security and Intelligence program. He joins host Krys Boyd to explain what an “intelligence liaison” is and why the U.S. has broken those unwritten rules, and why that might put our national security in a precarious position. His article “How America's Allies Boost U.S. Intelligence” was published in Foreign Affairs. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The friendly, neighborhood library actually came about by centuries of rebellious acts. Director Dawn Logsdon joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how the public library came to be so ubiquitous in American life— and so loved, and the age-old efforts to limit the books they distribute. The documentary “Free for All: The Public Library” airs on PBS. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Harvey Weinstein is once again in a Manhattan courtroom defending himself against sex crimes charges – allegations that came to light after deep investigative work by New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor. The best-selling co-author of “She Said” joins host Krys Boyd to talk about her work uncovering consequential stories, when she knows a story is ready for print, and what attracts her to stories that hold powerful people to account. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The Russia-Ukraine war has dragged on for more than three years, but the depths of the U.S.-Ukrainian coordination in the war effort are only now coming to light. New York Times investigative reporter Adam Entous joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the dramatic secret U.S. military missions to Ukraine. And we'll speak with the mayor of Ukraine's second largest city, Kharkiv, about his appeal to Americans to not forget his country.   Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It's not every day a serious academic espouses belief in the unexplained — maybe more should? Jeffrey Kripal holds the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss UFOs, souls, déjà vu and how these universal concepts make us more human. His book is “How to Think Impossibly: About Souls, UFOs, Time, Belief, and Everything Else.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It was a 900-page policy paper that President Trump disavowed during the campaign, but now Project 2025 is changing life in America. David Graham, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the document that offers a blueprint for the second Trump administration, how it wants to align the DOJ with the oval office's desires, and how it envisions the country changing socially and economically. His book is “The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The Trump administration is deporting alleged violent gang members to a prison in El Salvador — often with little evidence. New Yorker staff writer Jonathan Blitzer joins host Krys Boyd to discuss cases of men mistaken for members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua and deported anyway, efforts to get them back, and how the U.S. court system seems one step behind the fast-moving orders from the White House. His article is “The Makeup Artist Donald Trump Deported Under the Alien Enemies Act.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Though they are located at the ends of the Earth, glaciers really do affect your daily life. As part of a conversation on the mysteries and importance of glaciers, host Krys Boyd talks with Dr. Twila Moon, deputy lead scientist and science communication liaison at the National Snow and Ice Data Center, part of the University of Colorado Boulder's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES); and Dr. Heïdi Sevestre, an internationally renowned glaciologist whose specialization focuses on glacier dynamics, tropical glaciers and solutions to preserve the cryosphere. We'll hear about the role of glaciers in climate science and what is being done to preserve these precious assets. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A decision as simple as deciding what to wear in the morning can be stressful — what will people think? But our brains are wired this way for a reason. Emily Falk is professor of communication, psychology and marketing at the University of Pennsylvania and the vice dean of the Annenberg School for Communication, where she directs the Communication Neuroscience Lab and the Climate Communication Division of the Annenberg Public Policy Center. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how our behavior is shaped by the opinions of those around us and the benefits of evolving this way – plus we'll hear tips on how to make sound decisions and create healthy habits. Her book is “What We Value: The Neuroscience of Choice and Change.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Authoritarian regimes sometimes take power all at once – but other times they chip away at societal norms bit by bit. Aziz Huq teaches law at the University of Chicago, and he joins host Krys Boyd to discuss specifically how the Nazis rose to power and began to persecute Jews in part because the rest of German society just went about its business without objection. His article published in The Atlantic is “America Is Watching the Rise of a Dual State.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Deep DOGE cuts to the FAA have hit the agency hard. Is the public still safe to fly? Isaac Stanley-Becker, a staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why DOGE layoffs mean safety technicians and other critical roles are understaffed – and why a smoothly running airport system in America is beneficial for the nation's bottom line. His article is “The FAA's Troubles Are More Serious Than You Know.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

D.E.I. may be on the way out, but there are still tools out there for those who want to address structural inequality. Nilanjana Dasgupta is provost professor of psychology and inaugural director of the Institute of Diversity Sciences at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She joins host Krys Boyd to discuss our status quo cultural norms — from the way we speak to who ends up in the C-suite — and how money can influence what we see as blind luck. Her book is “Change the Wallpaper: Transforming Cultural Patterns to Build More Just Communities.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Feminist author Roxane Gay has put together a compendium of notable feminist works, but even she says it's not the last word. The contributing opinion writer for The New York Times joins host Krys Boyd to talk about editing a new collection that looks at hundreds of years of feminist writers and why the ideas around women's rights are always evolving. She's the editor of “The Portable Feminist Reader.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It might not exactly look like a game, but the economy has winners and losers and there are ways to beat the system. Daryl Fairweather, chief economist at Redfin, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what she calls the game of economics and why it's set up for those who are already financially well off to continue winning – and how using game theory can help level the playing field. Her book is “Hate the Game: Economic Cheat Codes for Life, Love, and Work.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 Scientists are using the secrets of biology to unlock living well past current human life spans. Venki Ramakrishnan shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for uncovering the structure of the ribosome. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Venki runs a research group at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the quest to live forever, if that's even ethical, and what it looks like to alter our physiology. His book is “Why We Die: The New Science of Aging and the Quest for Immortality.”  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is it possible that conversations with A.I. can be as effective as talking to a friend or therapist? Author Vauhini Vara joins host Krys Boyd to discuss her experience asking A.I. for critiques and insights into her deepest feelings – and we'll consider the portrait A.I. creates of us based on what we share with it. Her book is ”Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

At the beginning of the pandemic, messages of togetherness were everywhere. That quickly changed. David Wallace-Wells joins host Krys Boyd to discuss Covid five years on, how the pandemic changed the way we view each other, and the distrust it has woven into our most venerable institutions. His opinion piece in The New York Times is “How Covid Remade America.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Medical child abuse, formerly known as Munchausen by Proxy, is not as rare as we've been led to believe. Detective Mike Weber has 40 years of law enforcement experience, including 15 years as a crimes against children investigator. He joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss his experience with several cases of medical child abuse, profiling of the mothers who committed the injuries, and how he meticulously uncovered evidence of these notoriously difficult to diagnose crimes. His book, written with co-author Andrea Dunlop, is “The Mother Next Door: Medicine, Deception, and Munchausen by Proxy.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It can be bewildering to see a child go from loving to learn to dropping out of academic engagement. Jenny Anderson is a co-author of “The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better” written with co-author Rebecca Winthrop. She joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss why teens disconnect from the world and to offer strategies to get them back on track not only in the classroom, but also in life. The companion article published in The Atlantic is “The Teen-Disengagement Crisis.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Sisters of Mary Morning Star is a group of Catholic nuns who work with women on Texas' death row. New Yorker staff writer Lawrence Wright joins guest host Courtney Collins to discuss the deep bonds the sisters have with condemned inmates, what it says about faith and friendship, and how they view the death penalty as law. His article is “The Nuns Trying to Save the Women on Texas's Death Row.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In the 2024 election, Democrats lost the presidency and control of the Senate. What now? Katie Glueck covers American politics with an emphasis on the Democratic Party for The New York Times. She joins guest host John McCaa to discuss why the Blue Wave never materialized, the current mood of a party marked by in-fighting, and strategies Democratic Party leadership might employ heading into the 2026 mid-terms. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

If knowledge is power, withholding an education is also a way of denying power. University of South Carolina School of Law professor Derek W. Black joins guest host John McCaa to talk about the history of Southern leaders withholding literacy from Black people from the end of the Civil War through Reconstruction and beyond – and about the lengths that Black Americans have gone to get an education. His book is, “Dangerous Learning: The South's Long War on Black Literacy“. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 Researchers are diligently gathering data about near-death experiences to better understand the thin line between life and death. Science journalist Rachel Nuwer joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the phenomenon, which has been recorded since ancient times, and how it may offer insight into how we understand consciousness. Her Scientific American article is “Lifting the Veil on Near-Death Experiences.”This episode originally aired on June 10th, 2024. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

“Do you like me? Check yes or no.” Say goodbye to the childhood love note — teens aren't dating anymore. Faith Hill, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the demise of teenage dating, what kids are missing out on when they don't practice being in adult-like relationships, and how a new idea of adolescence is being formed — for better or worse. Her article is “Teens Are Forgoing a Classic Rite of Passage.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

 As far as student motivation goes, letter grades get a big fat “F.” Author Daniel Pink joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the history of letter and number grading, why they don't move students to care about their education or help with material retention, and why it might be time to ditch them altogether. His article “Why not get rid of grades?” was published in The Washington Post.  Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

For human rights organizations dealing with oppressive governments, sometimes humiliating them on the world stage actually gets things done. Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss his organization's tactic of “naming and shaming” countries that violate human rights and why Americans are sometimes blind to the lessening of freedoms and dignity around the world. His book is “Righting Wrongs: Three Decades on the Front Lines Battling Abusive Governments.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices