University Of The Air: Recent Episodes
Wisconsin Public Radio
Hosts Norman Gilliland and Emily Auerbach invite distinguished faculty guests from the University of Wisconsin-Madison to discuss topics in music, art, writing, theater, science, education, and history. "University Of The Air" can be heard on Sundays at 4 p.m. on the Ideas Network.
American universities are facing new questions about their purpose. How are they adjusting to address those questions and what will tomorrow’s university look like? For this final broadcast of University of the Air, we'll look into the future with Johannes Britz, Senior Vice President for Academic & Student Affairs of the Universities of Wisconsin.
In her final University of the Air broadcast, Emily Auerbach engages in a lively conversation with UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin about her journey to becoming 30th chancellor, the highs and […]
This hour explores the life and legacy of singer, songwriter, pianist, and activist Nina Simone, followed by a look back at other women of the Civil Rights Movement such as Rosa Parks and singer-activist Fannie Lou Hamer.
During the Cold War, “the man on the spot” could wield great power over US policy in Europe, Korea, Africa, Latin America, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Iran. Raising the question: Did the influence of individual espionage agents lead to costly mistakes?
The U.S. expelled nearly one million people of Mexican descent during removals labeled "voluntary repatriation" between the 1920s and 1940s. What was the outcome then and what does it tell us about how we arrived at the current deportations?
The University of Wisconsin has the oldest labor education program in the country and remains active today.
Every ship that carried Africans into forced servitude in the New World had a story. If we look closely at one of those stories, we’ll find that we’re soon caught up in a dangerous web of merchants, slave traders, and seafarers on four continents. We’ll also find out where the ultimate power was—in the monarchy or somewhere else?
Explore the variety and special cultural features of Latinx populations here in the Midwest.
The US Constitution establishes what the US Supreme Court has the power to rule on. But recently the Supreme Court has chosen not to rule on a variety of major cases that fall under its jurisdiction.
Educator, author, and veteran Doug Bradley explores the soundtrack of his life before and after Vietnam in "Tracks of My Years: A Music-Based Memoir."
College athletes are particularly vulnerable to the mental and physical stresses involved in sports. What kind of training can help them to cope with those stresses and what role do […]
We explore American ideas of “manifest destiny,” including Walt Disney creations designed for Latin America.
From his youthful discovery of the works of Shakespeare to his roles on a famous TV sitcom and an animated series, actor Earle Hyman had an unusual acting career. His performances took him from his childhood home in rocky Mount, North Carolina, to New York, and on to Norway, where he performed plays by Shakespeare in Norwegian. Actor, director and Earle Hyman scholar Baron Kelly will tell us about the forces that inspired Earle Hyman to become one of America’s best.
UW Health's hospital at home pilot program achieves remarkable outcomes by moving doctors, nurses, therapists, and equipment into patients' homes.
World War II in the Pacific was the culmination of the expansionist Japanese empire, an empire that was the product of just a few decades. How did the empire develop […]
We discuss racial disparities in incarceration rates and the myth that undocumented immigrants commit more violent crimes than citizens.
Explore the evolution of wolves to dogs, the ways dogs enhance our lives, and the billions of dollars we spend on them
The American Dream. It offers everyone the freedom and opportunity to attain a better life. It can stand for democracy, liberty and equality, But since the great Depression it has […]
The British had learned a great deal in their seven-year war against the French and Native Americans, but those lessons had grown somewhat stale by 1775, and during the American Revolution, the standard tactics of the British Army would require considerable rethinking.
In recent years Wisconsin native Fredric March has been criticized for his participation in a questionable student organization at the University of Wisconsin. But in addition to being a brilliant […]
New oral histories reveal that during the Great Depression, the U.S. government banished thousands of Mexican American women to Mexico, including many who were American citizens.
Britain in the 1840s was wracked by poverty, unrest, and uncertainty. There were attempts to assassinate the queen and her prime minister, and the ruling class lived in fear of […]
One of the most famous of cold War speeches is JFK’s address to citizens of a divided Berlin on June 26, 1963-a speech epitomizing the divide between the US and its Allies on one side of the Berlin Wall and the Soviet Union and its buffer states on the other. During the Cold War, several US presidents used rhetoric to project US power and intentions to a world audience. What were their methods?
Why do so many people hate grammar? Find out which grammar "rules" are prescriptive gobbledygook with the Chair of the UW English Department
In this rebroadcast, we ask, Why are so many American children failing to learn to read, and what can be done about it?
The process for nominating US presidential candidates has changed over the years—often in ways that are complicated, confusing, and not necessarily democratic. Nominations have become a shifting landscape of delegates, superdelegates, back-room party bosses, and late-night compromises that try to unite competing party factions. As the 2024 presidential election approaches, how will the nomination processes work and how will they be different from those in previous elections? Political scientist Barry Burden looks at the way presidential candidates are nominated.
Computers are dangerous enough for individuals. When nations are involved, the stakes are even bigger.
Ever since the days of Puritan New England, American governments have struggled to define the relationship between religion and a secular nation. In recent years, that struggle has become increasingly strident with the rise of the Christina Right. What is the relationship between the Christian Right and traditional evangelicals? At what point did the Christian Right become an influence in US presidential elections? And who were the key players in that development? Historian Dan Hummel will take us into the world of the Christian Right and its influence in American politics.
Explore the increasing battles over academic freedom, tenure, and faculty governance at public universities today.
We delve into our archives for a conversation about one of Ireland’s celebrated writer James Joyce. We decode some of the more obscure meanings behind Joyce’s often ambiguous prose and wry humor, and explore what made Joyce so innovative and so controversial.
Since the founding of the state of Israel in 1948, U.S. presidents have tried a variety of approaches to maintain balanced relations with Israel and the surrounding Arab states. In the years leading up to the Israeli-Hamas war, a series of conflicts have made the attempt particularly challenging.
Explore how Wisconsin's Ho-Chunk people fought back against devastating attacks on their land and culture
We can't exist without phosphorus. Until recently, there was a steady supply because it moved through a cycle, but now that cycle has been broken and what was life-sustaining is becoming scarce and dangerous.
Explore why acclaimed African American singer, actor, and activist Paul Robeson became embroiled in controversy and denied a passport.
In the years following World War I, the Catholic Church was intent upon regaining lost ground and entered into a variety of political alliances to do so--some of them with unexpected outcomes.
What role do poverty and economic hardship play in child maltreatment and neglect? And how can child welfare systems prevent them? UW Professor of Social Work Kristen Slack will hare her research into programs designed to prevent child maltreatment. She'll discuss her work with coordinating services and benefits and detail improved strategies for preventing child neglect.
The groundbreaking Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer's Disease (WRAP) yields new data on this devastating disease, its generational impact, and pathways to treatment.
During its long history minor league baseball has produced a lot of bizarre occurrences. Sports announcer Tim Hagerty will share some of them from his vast collection of amazing and amusing happenings culled from newspaper archives and the Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York. What was the call when the ball was shot out of the sky? Why did a manager disguise himself as the team’s mascot? Where do home runs hit in one state land in another? Why did angry fans throw books at an umpire? It's all in Tales from the Dugout.
During its long history minor league baseball has produced a lot of bizarre occurrences. Sports announcer Tim Hagerty will share some of them from his vast collection of amazing and amusing happenings culled from newspaper archives and the Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York. What was the call when the ball was shot out of the sky? Why did a manager disguise himself as the team’s mascot? Where do home runs hit in one state land in another? Why did angry fans throw books at an umpire? It's all in Tales from the Dugout.
What goes into writing a great story? Award-winning author, essayist and critic Lorrie Moore will give us some insights derived from her years of teaching creative writing and experience as a novelist and celebrated short story writer.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
How a living system capable of evolving complexity first emerged on Earth some 4 billion years ago remains one of the biggest unsolved scientific mysteries. Resolving this puzzle would guide the search for life on other worlds and might even suggest ways to engineer new life-like chemical systems in the laboratory. UW Professor David Baum will discuss different theories that have been proposed to explain the origin of life and summarize ongoing work in his laboratory and elsewhere that aims to test these theories experimentally.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
Through discussion of the book Take a Sad Song: The Emotional Currency of 'Hey Jude,' we discover whole new ways to understand and appreciate an iconic song.
Before it ran its course, the Hollywood blacklist sucked in some of the most prominent names in show business. Actors, directors, writers and producers were forced to take sides and those attempting to find a middle ground were subject to condemnation from both sides and the public. Under those circumstances, some filmmakers had to leave the country and some of those who remained resorted to allegory or saber rattling to create movies such as High Noon, and the Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Film historian Jeff Smith will tell us how the blacklist came to be and how various celebrities coped with it.
Accused of fatally stabbing her jailer with an ice pick, Joan Little became the first woman acquitted of murder because of her right to self-defense against sexual assault.
When Hamlet told a friend, “There are more things in heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy,” he made an understatement to last the ages. And the words become truer with every astronomical discovery. What are we finding out there in the seemingly limitless universe? F or starters, there are white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes. How do we find them, and how do we track their development, which can go on for billions of years? Astronomer Marina Orio will tell us about some of the latest--often puzzling--discoveries.
What are the keys to well-being, and what is the difference between well-being and happiness? Richard Davidson, professor of psychology and psychiatry at UW Madison will describe the four components to well-being derived from studies of the physiological effects of each. He’ll tell us how awareness of the moment at hand, connectedness, a sense of self, and a sense of direction in life can lead to a longer, healthier, and more fulfilling life.
The music challenges, the texture is rich…so wrote a reviewer of Laura Schwendinger’s opera Artemisia, which brings to the stage the story of a remarkable 17th century painter—a woman who prevailed in a world where the odds were stacked against her. Laura Schwendinger will give us some insights into her music, which recently won her the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Letters Ives Opera award.
In this hour, we sample the rapidly changing, turbulent sixties, from JFK to LBJ, from Martin Luther King to the Black Panthers, from the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, from hippies to Reagan conservatives.
In this hour, we sample the rapidly changing, turbulent sixties, from JFK to LBJ, from Martin Luther King to the Black Panthers, from the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, from hippies to Reagan conservatives.
The idea of preserving the Yosemite Valley went back as far as the Lincoln Administration, but saving the valley meant safeguarding the area around it, which became the work of two men with very different backgrounds. When rough-hewn naturalist John Muir teamed up with the privileged publisher Robert Underwood Johnson, they championed a cause which could've ruined both of them.
Why do so many people hate grammar? Find out which grammar "rules" are prescriptive gobbledygook with the Chair of the UW English Department
Relations between Russia and Ukraine have a long and complicated history that led to a vicious conflict in 2022. What might Russia and Ukraine have done to avoid a ruinous war that's become a dangerous confrontation between Russia and the West?
A child migrant worker who became a professor in UW's School for Workers places his Mexican family's journey in a broader political and economic context.
The Allies set up the Nuremberg Trials to bring the Nazis to justice after the devastation of World War II. But the trials also became a turning point in the burgeoning Cold War. How did the aims of the Soviets conflict with what the other three allies wanted from the trials, and what was the result? We'll find out from Francine Hirsch, author of Soviet Judgment at Nuremberg.
Why are so many American children failing to learn to read, and what can be done about it?
How did the Christian and Jewish bibles take their present shape, and how can knowing their historical context help Jews and Christians (and others) think about each other's scriptures differently? Historian Charles Cohen will give us insights.
Who can sue for libel, what are the defenses against it, and what role does the First Amendment play in settling libel suits? UW-Madison journalism professor Robert Drechsel will guide us through some notable cases.
A memorial to late UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank. In this rebroadcast from 2017: What is it like to oversee Wisconsin’s largest and highest ranking university, with over 43,000 students, billions of dollars in research funding, and the “Wisconsin Idea” of serving the state? In this hour, Chancellor Rebecca Blank discusses the pleasures and challenges of her role as UW Chancellor.
Revolutionary medieval mystic Julian of Norwich penned what’s thought to be the first book in English written by a woman. She dared to suggest that God was both father and mother. Professor Sherry Reames explores the life, writings, and legacy of a courageous medieval anchoress and author.
During the first half of the 19th century, Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin was a crossroads that attracted men and women of all backgrounds. Among them were five Black women who represented a variety of experiences. Although the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 outlawed slavery in the areas that would become Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Ohio, a patchwork of laws enabled white slaveholders to retain possession of four of the five women. Historian Mary Elise Antoine will tell us about the degrees of servitude that existed in Wisconsin and the efforts that some of them took to secure their freedom.
During the Civil War, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln met twice in the White House. There's no record of the conversations, but playwright Richard Hellesen has written a play based on the issues that may have led to a lively set of exchanges between the two giants of American history. Baron Kelly and Norman Gilliland bring their words to life in an adaptation directed by Russell Vandenbroucke.This broadcast will begin slightly earlier than usual, at 4 pm sharp.
Why have most of us never heard of Ira Aldridge (1807-1867) , America’s first internationally acclaimed African American actor? UW Theatre professor Baron Kelly links his own journey as a Black actor to that of the remarkable Ira Aldridge. NOTE--Next week Baron Kelly will return to University of the Air for a special broadcast of Richard Hellesen's play Necessary Sacrifices, i nspired by Frederick Douglass' conversations with Abraham Lincoln. The broadcast will begin slightly earlier than usual, at 4 pm sharp.
Its waves of working-class immigrants, self-made millionaires, and socialist reformers have shaped Milwaukee into a city where historic places are sometime obliterated, sometimes repurposed, and sometimes restored. From the Grand Avenue mansions of a hundred years ago to the unrest of the 1960s, follies and nautical disasters to surprising resurgences of woods and wildlife, Milwaukee is a treasure trove of stories. We’ll hear some of those stories from lifelong resident and author John Gurda
The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan chronicled changing times, protests exploded from Selma to Watts, and LBJ embraced domestic reforms while escalating the war abroad. We explore the pivotal year 1965.
In the 2022 Supreme Court case Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, the court ruled that there is no Constitutional right to abortion, reversing 50 years of protections extended by Roe v. Wade. Behind the headlines lie broader implications to that case that have to do with the way the Constitution is interpreted in other cases, including those involving gun ownership and public prayer.
Discover how the study of starlings' group behavior, singing, and emotions has implications for humans.
He became one of the most influential authors of New Testament tenets of Christian faith. But how much do we know about Paul the Apostle, his conversion to Christianity and his relationships with other Christians of the first century?
Once upon a time, the United States and China were allies. How did the alliance come about, and how did US policy toward China develop during colonial times? What role did opium play? When did China and the US become adversaries, and what are China's ambitions today? Historian Judd Kinzley will guide us through the ups and downs of US-China relations.
Explore how Asian Americans evoke a strange mixture of anxiety and desire, manifested in objects such as cartoons, home decor, and AI robots.
Silent films were never silent! One or more musicians accompanied every frame with precise timing to match the tone of the scene and introduce the characters. Theater organists commanded an array of sounds and sound effects that brought the film to life. Of the 10,000 theater organs used in the 1920s, only a few remain in their original places. Among them is the newly restored Grand Barton organ in Madison, Wisconsin's Capitol Theater. Organist Jelani Eddington will run the organ through its paces for us and demonstrate scene and character building for some classic films.
We explore the transition from Imperial China to modern China through the writings and customs of prominent writer Yu Yue and his descendants. Professor Rania Huntington discusses her own journey from Mazomanie, Wisconsin, to a career in Chinese studies and shares her personal connection to the Yu family's poignant writings about memory and loss.
Since the 2016 elections, claims of foreign interference have become common. As we approach the 2022 midterm elections, how can outside entities affect the US democratic process and how pervasive are those efforts? UW-Madison Journalism and Mass Communications professor Young Mie Kim will provide some answers.
Ancient monsters include a chimera with the heads of a snake, lion, and she-goat, a one-eyed cannibal, and venomous women whose gaze turns viewers into stone. Classics professor Will Brockliss links horrific creations of ancient Greece and Rome to our own fascination with monsters ranging from Godzilla to the Alien.
How far do First Amendment rights go on a college campus? Are the rules for free speech on a campus different from those in other places? UW political scientist Howard Schweber will walk us through some complexities of free speech--and we may be in for some surprises.
How might we redefine what counts as knowledge, whether in a science classroom, an educational TV program, or a prison?
Preschoolers often miss the lessons we think they learn from watching Clifford, Sesame Street, and other educational programs, while teens may use TV sitcoms to broach difficult topics with their parents. We explore the media's impact on us from childhood through adulthood.
We explore haiku, the shortest poetic form in the world. Whether crude, erotic or funny, we examine haiku as a fascinating and complex global phenomenon.
Whether it's golf, football, track and field, or any other sport, the pressure of competing with other players, the pressure of competing against oneself, and the narrow margin between victory and defeat can put enormous physical and psychological stress on a player. What are the ongoing difficulties for men and women participating in sports, and what are the best ways of preventing or coping with them? we'll get insights and answers from sports psychiatrist Claudia Reardon.
Preschoolers often miss the lessons we think they learn from watching Clifford, Sesame Street, and other educational programs, while teens may use TV sitcoms to broach difficult topics with their parents. We explore the media's impact on us from childhood through adulthood.
World War II in the Pacific was the culmination of the expansionist Japanese empire, an empire that was the product of just a few decades. How did the empire develop so quickly? What were its goals, and what made its strategists think that they could beat the world's most powerful nations? UW History Professor Louise Young will tell us about Japanese expansion and the Wartime Empire.
Explore John Bascom, the colorful President of the University of Wisconsin from 1874-1887 who championed women’s rights, worker’s rights, temperance, the pursuit of truth, and a notion that would go on to earn fame as “The Wisconsin Idea.”
After the Bible, it’s the most translated book in the world. It’s also called the first modern novel. Don Quixote is the work of a Spaniard who spent five years as a captive in Algiers—and that experience may have been one of the best things that happened to world literature. We'll hear about the world that shaped Miguel de Cervantes and his novel. Is the book a comedy or a tragedy? What makes it so contemporary after four hundred years? And what did Cervantes know about his exact contemporary, William Shakespeare?
The Arabian Nights is probably the most familiar Arab influence upon European literature, but a survey at a thousand years of Arabic poetry and prose can tell us a good deal about Western writings.
Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.
By the time the Thirteen United States of America declared their independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776, the two powers had been at war for more than a year and there was no going back. But were there efforts by both sides to avoid the war? As British citizens all, couldn't they have worked things out? How necessary was the American Revolution? Historian Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy will tell us if the war that led to American independence was inevitable.
Through discussion of the book Take a Sad Song: The Emotional Currency of 'Hey Jude,' we discover whole new ways to understand and appreciate an iconic song.
We see the term schizophrenia often, but what does a schizophrenia sufferer experience, and how can non-sufferers recognize the symptoms? UW-Madison Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry Diane C.Gooding will lead us through the complexities of a disorder that affects millions of people worldwide.
Celebrated actors Randall Duk Kim and Anne Occhiogrosso present favorite scenes from the plays of the Bard of Avon.
In recent years Wisconsin native Fredric March has been criticized for his participation in a questionable student organization at the University of Wisconsin. But in addition to being a brilliant actor, he was also an outspoken proponent of the Civil Rights movement. Author Charles Tranberg will set the record straight on the life and career of the Oscar-winning actor.
How should privileged, white journalists change the way they cover news stories exposing systemic racism, as with Wisconsin's "Race to Equity" report? We explore personal and professional experiences with racial bias.
The UW MIA Recovery and Identification Project was founded in 2015, two years after helping identify the remains of a U.S. service member mistakenly buried as a German soldier. Since then, UW has forged a unique partnership with the Department of Defense that harnesses the cutting edge technology and knowledge of the Madison campus — and now other academic partners — to find and identify America's MIAs. We'll find out what advantages the Project has when it comes to identifying some of Wisconsin’s 1500 missing soldiers and hear the stories of some of their discoveries.
Teen moms, 'baby mamas,' sex workers, and crack addicts: how did they come out on the other side as doctors, lawyers, artists, counselors, and more? Activist Sagashus Levingston discusses her book Infamous Mothers: Women who've gone through the belly of hell and brought something good back .
Britain in the 1840s was wracked by poverty, unrest, and uncertainty. There were attempts to assassinate the queen and her prime minister, and the ruling class lived in fear of riot and revolution. But by the 1880s Britain was a stable, confident country enjoying progress and prosperity with new attitudes toward politics, education, and the working class. How did the transformation happen so quickly? Historian Simon Heffer will tell us how a group of dynamic people remade a country.
So-called silent films were anything but silent. As with today's films, they had music accompanying the images, often frame for frame for the entire film. A leading latter-day practitioner of silent film music, Jelani Eddington, will tell us how he performs the score he composed for "The Flying Ace," a remarkable 1926 action movie with an all-black cast. How well does a silent film work on radio? Find out as we experience the Art of Silent Film Music.
What are the indicators of life and how will we look for them as we continue to explore Mars and beyond?
Some aspects of the supernatural are universal, but the long traditions of Chinese supernatural writings have some traits all their own. In this hour of University of the Air, Rania Huntington will introduce us to a gallery of ghosts, shape-shifters, divinities, superhumans, and dragons. Along the way, she'll tell us several stories that date back as far as the 12th century.
Jazz has been called "the coolest, freest, and yet deepest music humans have ever made," an indigenous art form that seems to defy categorization. We explore the definition of jazz with the help of numerous musical examples.
"My dad's in jail and I don't like to talk about it," says Alex, a character on Sesame Street. In this hour, UW Professor of Human Ecology Julie Poehlmann discusses her research and her work with Sesame Street on its initiative designed for millions of children with incarcerated parents.
The Caribbean triangle trade of sugar, molasses, and rum was a big part of the colonial economy. Not so well known was the salt industry, which flourished in large measure because of slave labor. Mary Prince was one of the slaves who worked in the salt ponds of the Turks and Caicos Islands. Cherene Sherrard-Johnson will give us the background of the Caribbean salt trade and tell us about the remarkable account that Mary Prince left about her experiences as a slave working and traveling through the Caribbean in the early years of the nineteenth century.
Why do so many people hate grammar? Find out which grammar "rules" are prescriptive gobbledygook with the Chair of the UW English Department
From an escaped slave to one of America's great orators and political activists, Frederick Douglass was a major force at a turning point in American history. What were the factors that enabled Douglass to prevail in violent times? Biographer Greg Lampe will take us into the life and times of a man who became the conscience of America.
Dexter Gordon’s widow, Maxine Gordon, explores her award-winning biography Sophisticated Giant: The Life and Legacy of Dexter Gordon.
His upbringing was unlikely to produce a writer with an international reputation. His education was limited and traumatic. But Hans Christian Andersen became known throughout Europe for stories such as The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, and The Snow Queen. How was he able to turn simple ideas into stories for the ages? And were those stories, so popular in Disney films, really for children? Andersen expert Scott Mellor will tell us about the breaks, good and bad, that elevated Andersen to the ranks of celebrated authors.
In this hour, we sample the rapidly changing, turbulent sixties, from JFK to LBJ, from Martin Luther King to the Black Panthers, from the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, from hippies to Reagan conservatives.
Veiled in clouds, Venus is one of earth's most mysterious neighbors, and yet those studying the planet continue to make discoveries about it. Is life possible on Venus? If not, was it ever possible? And what does it tell us about the future of earth? Astronomer Sanjay Limaye will share some answers.
David Walker, Maria Stewart, and Frederick Douglass were revolutionary black abolitionists in the 19 th century who raised their voices to try to end slavery. Professor Christy Clark Pujara introduces these figures and their turbulent times. Two graduates of the UW Odyssey Project (Tosumba Welch and Molinda Henry) read eloquent passages from the writings of abolitionists.
It's a record that many a songwriter would envy--2000 songs recorded, many of them covered by prominent performers including Ray Charles, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, James Taylor, Alison Kraus and the Everly Brothers. Boudleaux and Felice Bryant had a major impact on country and popular music. Bill and Bobbie Malone will tell us how an unlikely couple developed into a songwriting powerhouse.
We take a look at the US Constitution from the standpoint of America's founding father of the Supreme Court.
How did the Christian and Jewish bibles take their present shape, and how can knowing their historical context help Jews and Christians (and others) think about each other's scriptures differently? Historian Charles Cohen will give us insights.
Revolutionary medieval mystic Julian of Norwich penned what’s thought to be the first book in English written by a woman. She dared to suggest that God was both father and mother. Professor Sherry Reames explores the life, writings, and legacy of a courageous medieval anchoress and author.
By the end of nineteenth century, food in America could be ownright deadly. Sustances added to extend the shelf life of food often shortened the life of the person who ate it. But American corporations blocked even modest food safety egulations. Then, in 1883, chemist Harvey Washington Wiley was named chief chemist of the agriculture department, and the agency began methodically analyzing food and drink, resorting to somtimes shocking methods. Pulitzer Prize-winning science journalist Deborah Blum will tell us about the long and dangerous conflict behind making food safe.
We may think of the French horn as producing mellow romantic sounds for symphonies, but what happens when you add electronic sounds to this instrument's repertoire?
Ninety-five percent of the universe is invisible. How do we know it’s there and what is it? We'll take a look at the dark side of the universe, including the mysterious forces that affect the spin of our galaxy and the processes that build and destroy the estimated two trillion galaxies out there. Along the way we’ll catch sight of the Big Bang that started it all and get some notion as to where it’s all going.