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Coming up on Maine Calling:

1/30 Monday – ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Artificial intelligence touches our lives in many ways, from Netflix’s personal recommendation algorithm, to robotic home devices, to programs that can write college essays. We’ll learn about the new developments and why some fear what AI might lead to, but we’ll also hear how AI has the vast potential to benefit society. We will also discuss a new report that details how AI is being used in Maine.

1/31 Tuesday — MAINE’S SHIFTING DEMOGRAPHICS

How is Maine’s population changing? We’ll get a snapshot of the makeup of Maine today, looking at socio-economic trends, changes in racial and ethnic representation, in-migration during the pandemic, and other demographic patterns. This program kicks off a yearlong series—“The Changing Face of Maine”—about how the people and communities of Maine are evolving.

2/1 Wednesday – CHILDREN’S ORAL HEALTH

February marks Children’s Dental Health Month, which aims to raise awareness that dental disease is the No. 1 chronic disease among children. We’ll learn about the ways in which kids’ oral health is tied to their overall health, preventive tips, and how parents’ dental health affects their children's health.

2/2 Thursday – WINTER BIRDING

Just because it’s cold out doesn’t mean the birds are all gone— in fact, Maine is home to 191 winter bird species. We’ll learn what to look for this time of year and hear about some of the recent rare sightings. We’ll also find out how the Maine Bird Atlas is shaping up—and how volunteer bird observers can still contribute to the atlas – if they hurry!

2/3 Friday – RICHARD BLANCO

Richard Blanco is known for his poetry, especially after being selected as the poet for President Obama’s second Inauguration. Now he’s written his first play, “Sweet Goats and Blueberry Señoritas,” which is showing at Portland Stage through Feb 12^th. We’ll talk with Richard about how his own experiences are reflected in the play, the challenges of writing for the stage—and what else he is working on.

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