Maine

 This is a rebroadcast of an earlier show (original air date April 16, 2019); no calls will be taken.

Several different invasive pests have caused severe harm in Maine, from the brown-tailed moth to the emerald ash borer. At the same time, the overall insect population is in sharp decline. We'll learn about insects and their effects on humans from a panel of experts.

This is a rebroadcast of an earlier show (original air date March 25, 2019); no calls will be taken.

Peter Ditto, UC Irvine psychology professor, joins us to discuss how motivation, intuition and emotion shape and often bias our social, political, moral, medical and legal judgments. Learn how people make judgments in emotionally charged and motivationally involving situations, and particularly in how emotion and motivation can shape and often bias our reasoning processes and, ultimately, our beliefs about ourselves and the world. Ditto is in town to deliver a speech at the University of New England’s Center for Global Humanities.

This is a rebroadcast of any earlier show (original air date Feb 14, 2019; no calls will be taken.

Fermentation is trendy now (think kombucha), but it’s also a time-honored Maine tradition, driven by the need to preserve food and beverages over the long winter season. We’ll learn about different fermenting methods and products, and what health benefits they are said to bring.

Maine is struggling to find enough workers to care for its aging population, especially in rural areas of the state.

This is a rebroadcast of an earlier show (original air date April 15, 2019); no calls will be taken.

The latest Kids Count Data Book reports that Maine children have the highest rate of diagnosed anxiety in the country, as well as high rates of depression and suicide. We learn what causes, signs and treatments are for anxiety in young people, as well as resources available to children and families.

Scholar Marie Griffith joins us to discuss the origins and growth of the religious right as a political force, and how it has transformed America's broader culture and public life. Griffith investigates the pervasive fears driving our sex-obsessed politics, especially when it comes to issues such as birth control, obscenity, interracial relationships, female chastity, sex education, abortion, sexual harassment, and LGBTQ rights. Griffith is in town as part of the University of New England Crosley Lecture Series.