Pivotal Tuesdays, Richard Paul Evans, Rodeo Grandma

Why Middle-Aged Whites are Dying (1:03) Guest: Gordon Lindsay, Professor of Public Health at BYU  Middle-aged white Americans are the only group in the country whose death rate is rising, and the fairly recent realization of this fact has stunned public health experts. It seems that no one had thought to parse health and mortality data in this precise way before two Princeton researchers published it last month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  Pivotal Tuesdays (20:53) Guest: Margaret O’Mara, PhD, Associate Professor of History at the University of Washington  We’re a little less than a year away from the next presidential election. Every four years since 1789, Americans have chosen their leader in a vote of the people. Since 1845, they’ve done it on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. You could argue that all presidential elections are important for a democracy, but some have had more lasting impact than others.  Richard Paul Evans (52:08) Guest: Richard Paul Evans, Author of The Christmas Box and the Michael Vey series  Michael Vey is a superhero in the X-Men vein. He’s an awkward teenager who struggles to keep his super-human power in check and secret, because what teenaged boy wants the world to think he’s a freak, right? But Michael’s amazing ability to channel electricity isn’t the only thing he wrestles with – he also has Tourette’s – and that battle may just be larger than the rest.  Rodeo Grandma (1:17:36) Guest: Nancy Hunter, Champion Barrel Rider  What’s your grandmother’s favorite pastime? While careers and hobbies vary widely from woman to woman, not many grandmothers can claim to be a champion barrel rider. Or especially, a current champion barrel rider. But even after decades of riding, Nancy Hunter is still good enough to make a living winning barrel-racing championships. Pretty much the coolest grandma on the block in Neola, Utah, where she lives.