Pandemic Congress, Becoming Bulletproof, Sourdough Mystery

What’s at Stake for Congress During the Pandemic (0:31) Guest: James Curry, PhD, Professor of Political Science, University of Utah Congress is trying to pass another stimulus bill this week allocating more money for loans to small businesses suffering in the pandemic. But both the House and Senate are operating with a skeleton crew in Washington. Most members of Congress are back in their home districts trying to keep constituents happy and preparing their re-election campaigns. Lessons From a Former Secret Service Agent (16:56) Guest: Evy Poumpouras, Former Secret Service Agent and Author of Becoming Bulletproof Anywhere the president goes, they go. You see them standing stone-faced in dark suits and ties, sometimes talking into their sleeve cuffs. The US Secret Service are iconic. They’re also mostly male. But Evy Poumpouras had the job for 12 years. She protected President Clinton, both Presidents Bush and President Obama, plus members of their families. She also worked as an interrogator for the intelligence arm of the Secret Service. Her new book is part-memoir, part-instruction manual. It’s called “Becoming Bulletproof.” Taking Pictures for Social Media Makes an Experience Less Enjoyable (38:06) Guest: Alixandra Barasch, Professor of Marketing, New York University In these days when museums and national parks and travel destinations are closed, social media feeds are filled with images that are closer to home. Why are snapping that pic of your pet, your kid, your dinner? Is it to share with a loved one? Or because it’ll look great on your Instagram feed? Or just because you want to remember the moment? Why Sometimes We Just Don’t Want to Know the Truth (50:39) Guest: David Hagmann, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. This last month, I have intentionally avoided looking at how my retirement funds are doing. If I don’t look, I don’t have to feel bummed out by the big losses, even though knowing the truth might help me make better investment decisions. “Active ignorance” is what Harvard researcher David Hagmann calls this. And it’s pretty common – though what kinds of information we choose to avoid differs from person to person. Learn to Make Sourdough From a Starter and Help Solve a Scientific Mystery (1:03:35) Guest: Rob Dunn, Professor of Ecology and Evolution and Director of the Public Science Lab, NC State University; Co-Founder of the Wild Sourdough Project The pandemic has spawned a new fascination with bread making – maybe because bakeries are closed? Or because people are stuck at home with time on their hands? At any rate, yeast sold out in stores right along with toilet paper and Purell. But you don’t need to buy yeast. With flour, water and patience, you can cultivate the microbes that cause bread to rise. It’s called a sourdough starter and exactly how is works is a scientific mystery that the Public Science Lab at North Carolina State University is trying to solve. They’re asking people to document their sourdough starters and submit the data to the Wild Sourdough project. 7th Inning Stretch Continues Without Baseball (1:19:58) Guest: Josh Kantor, Boston Red Sox Organist Today the Boston Red Sox were supposed to be hosting the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park and Josh Kantor was supposed to be at the stadium organ, where he’s been for every Red Sox game since 2003. But none of that is happening right now because of the pandemic. So Kantor has started hosting daily concerts from his home, live on Facebook: taking requests from fans on Twitter as he’s done for years.