Survival of Malls, Russian Political Rebel, Olive the Lionheart

Desperate Measures to Save America’s Shopping Malls (0:31) Guest: Scott Crowe, Chief Investment Strategist, CenterSquare Investment Management Have you been inside a mall lately? The pandemic has been devastating for them. But, let’s be honest, malls were hurting before that. It’s gotten so bad that Simon Property Group–which is the largest mall owner in America-has been buying stores out of bankruptcy, so it’ll still have something to draw shoppers to the mall. Brooks Brothers, Forever 21, Lucky Brand are three stores Simon Property Group has bailed out. It’s trying to buy JC Penney, too. And, in another strange development, the Wall Street Journal reported last month that Simon was in talks with Amazon to turn some of its empty Sears and JC Penney stores into Amazon distribution hubs. Isn’t that a little like letting your conqueror move into your house?  How One Political Rebel Changed the Face of Russian Politics (20:01) Guest: Regina Smyth, Professor of Political Science, Indiana University Bloomington One of Vladimir Putin’s fiercest critics–a man named Alexei Navalny–is in critical condition in a hospital in Berlin, and German officials have determined he was poisoned by a nerve agent that’s been used before to assassinate Putin’s opponents. The Russian government denies this. Navalny has been jailed for his activism before–and he’s been instrumental in mobilizing large protests against the Russian government. Cow Attacks in the Alps (31:58) Guest: Denise Hruby, Freelance Journalist, Environmental and Social Issues, Austria Listening to the Sound of Music brings to mind a picture Julie Andrews frolicking in a green meadow full of yellow wildflowers with white-capped mountains in the background. Well she wouldn’t have had that Alpine meadow to sing in without Austrian cows. They help create those beautiful pastures. But problem is, more and more hikers in the Alps are being attacked and some killed–by these cows. From Heartsick Socialite to Intrepid Explorer: Olive MacLeod Goes to Africa (52:47) Guest: Brad Ricca, Author of “Olive the Lionheart,” “Mrs. Sherlock Holmes” and “Super Boys,” English Professor, Case Western Reserve University We’ve been marking the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage this year with stories of remarkable women fighting for change. But for the next hour we’re going to rewind the clock to 110 years ago and the forgotten story of a Scottish aristocrat who broke all kinds of rules on a wild trek across Africa. Olive Macleod was 30 and more of a party girl than an outdoorswoman. How she ended up meeting African warlords, discovering elusive waterfalls and adopting two lion cubs as pets is quite the tale. Grey Reef Sharks Form Long-Term Social Bonds (1:33:25) Guest: Yannis Papastamatiou, Professor of Biological Science, Florida International University Lots of animals travel in groups, live in communities and form close relationships. Sharks don’t. Although, when researchers put trackers on a bunch of grey reef sharks in the Pacific Ocean, they found something like social ties that lasted for years. Sharks don’t have BFFs, necessarily, but they do seem to prefer the company of certain sharks and occasionally hang out.