2023
October 2023
Can Local News Fix the Crisis in Democracy?
In this forum, a panel of journalists considers the pivotal role of information and facts in a healthy democracy.
September 2023
Living on Borrowed Time
Jeff Goodell’s latest book, The Heat Will Kill You First looks at the impact that rising temperatures will have on our lives and on our planet.
June 2023
Gunfight: Is Healthy Gun Ownership Ever Possible?
Ryan Busse, former executive at Kimber America, a major gun manufacturer and author of Gunfight talks about his battle with the gun industry which he says, has radicalized America.
June 2023
How Not to Kill Yourself
Suicide rates are rising at an alarming rate in America and the populations most at risk are no longer white middle-aged men, they are increasingly young people and minorities. What societal ills might be fueling this tragic trend?
May 2023
Plastic: Our Toxic Addiction
What can be done to break our toxic addiction to plastic, and to terminate its lethal global legacy?
May 2023
Challenging History: On the Streets of Newtowne
A new book aims to paint a more multi-dimensional view of the area charting its cultural influences and history starting ten thousand years ago, when indigenous people built communities there.
April 2023
Beauty or the Beast: The True Cost of ChatGPT
Recent concerns about the implications of artificial intelligence apps like Chat GPT have prompted journalists, academics, and entrepreneurs to seek a halt to the training of AIs. What do you think?
April 2023
Cartoonists, Racism, and Free Speech in a Threatened Democracy
What is the role of the cartoonist in the today’s convoluted world? Is it poking fun at the powerful, parodying the absurdities of life or acting as “a troublemaker”?
March 2023
Bringing Healing to the Homeless
Traci Kidder, author of Rough Sleepers, explores how a small but dedicated group of people have improved thousands of lives by facing homelessness rather than looking away.
March 2023
Fragile But Resilient
Daily we hear more dire news about the future of the planet. Christopher Preston believes all is not lost; there are some fragments of good news to note.
February 2023
Forgetting & Remembering: What Can We Do About It?
Why do we remember certain things and forget others? Research shows us that committing things to memory is far more complex than we imagine but so too is retrieving that information.
February 2023
The 64-Year Climate Change Cover-Up
Big oil knew about greenhouse gases and their impact on climate change more than half a century ago – but instead of sharing the information, they lied and undermined its veracity.
January 2023
Why Do We Need the Humanities?
At a time when interest and investment in the humanities is plummeting, and enrolment in STEM subjects is flourishing, we consider the human consequences of such a shift in direction.
January 2023
The Resurgence of the Independent Bookstore
More than 300 new independent bookstores have sprouted up across the country and another interesting development has accompanied this trend: the bookselling business has become much more diverse.