FAA, Kiowa Indians, Bee Math, Wyoming Life

FAA’s Oversight of Boeing Under Scrutiny Guest: Jim Hall, Former NTSB Chairman The Federal Aviation Administration is Top of Mind today. It was responsible for certifying that Boeing’s 737 Max 8 jet was safe. But after two similar crashes in less than five months, the FAA’s oversight is under scrutiny. Both the Justice Department and the Department of Transportation’s inspector general are investigating how the FAA handled approval of the Boeing 737 Max8. Meanwhile, all of those planes are grounded until Boeing comes up with a fix to the software believed to have been involved in the crashes. The FAA will have to sign off on returning the 737 Max to the air. But, can it be trusted at this point?  A Religious Clash Between 19th Century Settlers and the Kiowa Guest: Jennifer Graber, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of Texas at Austin When America’s original inhabitants were forced off their land, it was often violent. For example, President Andrew Jackson had the Cherokee Nation marched out at gun point on what’s become known as the Trail of Tears. An estimated 4,000 Cherokee died from hunger, exposure and disease. There were some Americans who didn’t approve of the violent tactics. Ministers and missionaries saw religion as a peaceful way deal with the country’s “Indian Problem.”  Honeybees Have Tiny Brains and Can Learn to Do Basic Math –So Brain Size Doesn’t Matter? Guest: Scarlett Howard, Postdoctoral Researcher at Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse, France In the animal kingdom, the human brain is biggest, relative to our body size. And when it comes to smarts, size matters. Except researchers are discovering that’s not always true. Scarlett Howard taught honeybees –with teeny-tiny brains –how to do basic arithmetic. Not calculus, mind you. But still, if a bee can learn to add or subtract one, maybe there’s a lesson there for big-brained humans trying to teach robots to be artificially intelligent?  A Day in the Life of a Wyoming Ranch Family (Originally aired October 10, 2019) Guest: Mike and Erin Galloway, Cattle Ranchers, Creators, “Our Wyoming Life” Feeding pigs, fixing fences, harvesting vegetables, birthing calves and herding geese with a flying drone, no less. That’s how Mike and Erin Galloway spend their days on a family ranch in Gilette, Wyoming. All of it is on display to the world through their rapidly growing social media presence and day-in-the-life videos that get thousands of views. Is Modern Music Becoming More Mundane? (Originally aired August 29, 2019) Guest: Colin Morris, Pop Music Appreciator, Computer Scientist, Data Visualizer At least one song is going to be stuck in your head for the next few hours. They’re supposed to. Computer scientist –and pop music fan -Colin Morris has analyzed the lyrics from 15,000 songs that made the Billboard pop charts from 1958 until today. Brain Science Confirms that Giving Beats Receiving (Originally aired December 5, 2019) Guest: Christina Karns, Assistant Research Professor, Center for Brain Injury Research and Training, University of Oregon Getting an unexpected gift from a friend is a pleasant surprise but giving can be just as rewarding. Some new brain imaging work reveals an interesting connection between the two –the more grateful you are for what you have, the more you enjoy giving to others.