RadioWest
488 episodes - English - Latest episode: 18 days ago - ★★★★★ - 711 ratingsKUER’s award-winning interview show explores the world through deep thinkers who host Doug Fabrizio asks to think even deeper. Join writers, filmmakers, scientists and others on RadioWest: A show for the wildly curious.
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Episodes
The Past, Present and Future of Salt Lake City’s Japantown
June 27, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesAlmost 60 years ago, Salt Lake City’s Japantown was condemned to make way for the Salt Palace. Now, new plans for a big development have put what’s left of the Japanese American enclave in the crosshairs of urban development.
A Cultural History of Hypochondria
June 26, 2024 07:30 - 50 minutesWriter Caroline Crampton survived cancer, but she still didn’t feel well. Instead, she was stuck with a persistent, anxious fear that the cancer would come back.
Is it Actually a Good Idea to Colonize Mars?
June 19, 2024 23:42 - 50 minutesLife on earth is for the dogs. There’s too much regulation, too few resources and it’s burning up besides. Better to pack up and leave for Mars. Or is it?
RadioWest’s 2024 Summer Book Show
June 19, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesWith summer upon us, it’s time again for a “RadioWest” tradition — gathering our trio of local booksellers to get you set up with all their favorite reads for the season.
RadioWest’s 2024 Summer Book Show
June 19, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesWith summer upon us, it’s time again for a “RadioWest” tradition — gathering our trio of local booksellers to get you set up with all their favorite reads for the season.
On the Many Meanings of Twins
June 13, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesTwins have captivated the human mind since ancient times. But often what’s imagined of them reveals more about everyone else than it does about real twin life.
What An Owl Knows
June 12, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesLook into the eyes of an owl and what do you see? Is there any way to know what’s hidden behind those eyes? Thanks to new research, there might be.
Amanda Montell on the Age of Magical Overthinking
June 06, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesThe author Amanda Montell says magical thinking is everywhere. If you’ve ever wondered if you could manifest your way to wealth, this one’s for you.
The Future of Sports and Entertainment in Salt Lake City
June 05, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutesPlans for a so-called “rejuvenation zone” in downtown Salt Lake City are quickly moving ahead, but there’s a lot we still don’t know.
Mormonism's First Rebel Historian
May 30, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 22.3 MBThis isn’t really an episode about a little-known Mormon writer from the 19th century: it’s an episode about the lifelong search to figure out what you believe.
A Year-Long Misadventure Through the Grand Canyon
May 29, 2024 08:00 - 1 hour - 36.9 MBKevin Fedarko’s best friend said it would be easy: Hike from one end of the Grand Canyon to the other. He said it would be “a walk in the park.” It wasn’t.
A People’s History of the Nuclear West
May 28, 2024 16:00 - 48 minutes - 22.3 MBIn 1951, the U.S. government began test detonations of nuclear bombs in the Nevada desert. It wasn’t long before people started getting cancer.
Searching for Home in (Very) Rural America
May 28, 2024 15:59 - 49 minutes - 22.8 MBNavied Mahdavian had always been a city guy. He had never fished, gardened, hiked, hunted or lived in a snowy place. Then he, his wife and dog moved from San Francisco to an off-the-grid cabin in rural Idaho.
The Emperors of Rome with Mary Beard
May 16, 2024 17:21 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBMary Beard is an expert on the Roman Empire, and her latest book is about the rulers who presided over it — 30 emperors in nearly three centuries.
The Fateful Final Voyage of Captain James Cook
May 15, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 22.3 MBOn July 12, 1776, James Cook set sail aboard the HMS Resolution. It was his third voyage, and his last.
The Tipping Trap
May 09, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutes - 22.7 MBHas America's gratuity culture reached a tipping point? With tip prompts popping up everywhere from butcher shops to airport kiosks, the social norms around tipping are more fraught than ever.
The Enslaved Christians who Co-Wrote the Bible
May 08, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBScholars say the New Testament was authored by familiar names, like Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Paul. But they had important help: slave labor.
The State of the Utah Republican Party
May 02, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutesUtah’s Republican conventions have always been rancorous and incredibly contentious. But according to one longtime observer, this year’s meeting was as nasty as it’s ever been.
The Past, Present and Future of Pro Hockey in Utah
May 01, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutes - 22.9 MBIt’s official: Utah is getting a professional ice hockey team. But is this a hockey place?
Never Heard of Scrupulosity? Neither Have Many Who Suffer From It
April 25, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutes - 22.9 MBEven if you aren’t afflicted by it, you probably know about obsessive compulsive disorder. But even if you have it, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of scrupulosity.
Celebrating the Natural World with Writer Rick Bass
April 23, 2024 22:17 - 48 minutes - 22.1 MBFor the acclaimed writer and environmental activist Rick Bass, there are no hard lines between life, art and the natural world.
Whales of the High Desert
April 18, 2024 14:33 - 36 minutes - 16.5 MBIn 1888, the daily Salt Lake Herald-Republican reprinted a story from a Canadian paper. The headline? That a family of whales was flourishing in the Great Salt Lake.
Breathing Salt Lake’s West Side Air
April 17, 2024 10:00 - 49 minutes - 22.4 MBIf you live in the Salt Lake Valley, you know a thing or two about air pollution. There are days when you can see it. But if you live on the west side it’s even worse.
Mere Beauty: Utah Symposium on Science and Literature
April 11, 2024 08:00 - 50 minutes - 23 MBIf you got a poet, a neuroscientist and a theoretical physicist together to talk about beauty, what would they possibly have to say to each other?
Through the Lens: ‘Hotshot’
April 10, 2024 10:00 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBHotshots are the hardened individuals who fight wildfires. Gabriel Mann’s new film gets viewers as close to the fire line as you can be without becoming a hotshot yourself.
How the Ocean Works
April 04, 2024 10:00 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBThe oceanographer Helen Czerski wants you to think of the ocean as a vast, planet-spanning engine. And what it drives is no less than life itself.
Exploring Clint Eastwood’s ‘Unforgiven’
April 03, 2024 10:00 - 52 minutes - 23.9 MBAhead of the Salt Lake Film Society’s screening of the 1992 Clint Eastwood classic “Unforgiven,” we sit down to talk about this great Western.
The Debate Over Women's Empowerment in the LDS Church
March 28, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBA recent post on the LDS Church’s official Instagram page has racked up thousands of comments, many from women who see a vast gulf between how empowered the church says they are, and how empowered they actually feel.
A History of Witchcraft in Thirteen Trials
March 21, 2024 08:00 - 48 minutes - 22.3 MBThe scholar Marion Gibson is an expert on witches. Her latest book tells a centuries-long history through the stories of 13 witch trials.
Gardening along the (not so dry) Wasatch Front
March 20, 2024 10:00 - 49 minutes - 22.4 MBUtah is suffering from megadroughts, a dying lake (or two) and a dwindling Colorado River. So, why, then, are we watering so much Kentucky bluegrass along the Wasatch Front?
Podcast Extra: A Brief History of Polyamory in America
March 18, 2024 21:58 - 44 minutes - 20.1 MBPolyamory is having a bit of a moment right now. We wanted to learn more about the history of having more than one romantic partner.
The Serious Search for Alien Life
March 14, 2024 08:00 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBUFOs undoubtedly exist. After all, people have been seeing inexplicable things in the skies for centuries. So, if the truth is out there, what does the government know about it?
Through the Lens: ‘Exposure’
March 13, 2024 10:00 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBIn 2018, a group of inexperienced explorers — all women — set out on a journey that lots of people thought they couldn’t possibly finish: a trek to the North Pole.
Tax Exemptions for Religious Institutions
March 07, 2024 09:00 - 50 minutes - 22.9 MBAccording to one report, the LDS Church’s financial holdings are in the hundreds of billions of dollars. And that raises the question: When is a church less about spirit and more about profit?
The Mastermind Behind Oil in the Uinta Basin
March 06, 2024 16:57 - 49 minutes - 22.3 MBTransporting oil out of the Uinta Basin isn’t easy. The place is remote and the roads aren’t great. But a Texas oil man named Jim Finley is trying to change all that.
The 2024 Utah Legislative Wrap-Up
March 01, 2024 20:25 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBThere is a new format for the Utah Legislative session — start with the most controversial bills up top. However, now that we near the end of the session, important bills are still in flux.
The Long Shot Bid for a Utah Lottery
February 27, 2024 23:27 - 49 minutes - 22.8 MBUtah is one of only four states without a lottery. A longshot bill under consideration by the Utah State Legislature could potentially change that.
Through the Lens - The Eternal Memory
February 21, 2024 23:26 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MB“There is pain here,” “But there is also a lot of nobility.” From the book “The Forbidden Memory” by Augusto Góngora.
Through the Lens - The Eternal Memory
February 21, 2024 16:56 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MB“There is pain here,” “But there is also a lot of nobility.” From the book “The Forbidden Memory” by Augusto Góngora.
The Alien Abduction of Betty and Barney Hill
February 15, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 22.5 MBOn September 19, 1961, Betty and Barney Hill claimed they were abducted by “beings that were somehow not human.”
Spirit World Encounters in Mormon Utah
February 14, 2024 22:12 - 47 minutes - 21.9 MBGrowing up in Northern Utah, the scholar Erin Stiles often heard stories from her Mormon friends about visits from spiritual beings. In a new book, she explores just how common these experiences happen to be.
The Golden Era of Hijacking Planes
February 07, 2024 11:01 - 49 minutes - 22.4 MBIf you were born in post-9/11 America, the idea of a plane getting hijacked is terrifying. But once upon a time hijackers seemed more interested in the thrill than instilling fear. And one of them even became a kind of folk hero.
The Plan to Save Great Salt Lake
February 01, 2024 19:12 - 50 minutes - 23 MBA new plan to protect Great Salt Lake was recently released. This one has the endorsement of Utah’s most powerful political leaders. But does it have what it will take to save the lake?
How the Road Crossed the Land
February 01, 2024 19:11 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBRoads are such a common feature of the landscape that you can forget that they aren’t natural at all — that is, unless you’re an animal trying to cross one.
The Future of D.E.I.
January 25, 2024 11:00 - 50 minutes - 34.4 MBLawmakers are rushing an anti-D.E.I. bill through the 2024 Utah Legislature.
Sundance Film Festival 2024: ‘Sugarcane’
January 24, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 22.4 MBIn 2021, unmarked graves were discovered at several residential boarding schools in Canada. Then, investigations began.
A New History of Mormonism
January 18, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 22.6 MBUpstate New York, 1830: self-proclaimed prophets are creating new faiths. Joseph Smith was one such man, and it was his new religion that would endure.
Budget, Housing and DEI — It’s the 2024 Legislative Session
January 17, 2024 11:00 - 48 minutes - 22.3 MBThe controversial bills — including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion — will kick off the 2024 Utah Legislative Session.
The Offensive Magic of Swearing
January 11, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 22.7 MBA good swear is like a bomb, shocking and offensive to all in the blast-radius. Except for those times when swears don’t quite go off. So, what’s the difference?
Mary Beard On The Emperors of Rome
January 10, 2024 11:00 - 49 minutes - 22.7 MBMary Beard is an expert on the Roman Empire, and her latest book is about the rulers who presided over it — 30 emperors in nearly three centuries.