University of the Air

Explore John Bascom, the colorful President of the University of Wisconsin from 1874-1887 who championed women’s rights, worker’s rights, temperance, the pursuit of truth, and a notion that would go on to earn fame as “The Wisconsin Idea.”

After the Bible, it’s the most translated book in the world. It’s also called the first modern novel. Don Quixote is the work of a Spaniard who spent five years as a captive in Algiers—and that experience may have been one of the best things that happened to world literature. We'll hear about the world that shaped Miguel de Cervantes and his novel. Is the book a comedy or a tragedy? What makes it so contemporary after four hundred years? And what did Cervantes know about his exact contemporary, William Shakespeare?

Groundbreaking work in UW's Stereotyping and Bias Research Lab has found new, evidence-based ways to reduce bias, create inclusion, and promote equity.

By the time the Thirteen United States of America declared their independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776, the two powers had been at war for more than a year and there was no going back. But were there efforts by both sides to avoid the war? As British citizens all, couldn't they have worked things out? How necessary was the American Revolution? Historian Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy will tell us if the war that led to American independence was inevitable.

Through discussion of the book Take a Sad Song: The Emotional Currency of 'Hey Jude,' we discover whole new ways to understand and appreciate an iconic song.

We see the term schizophrenia often, but what does a schizophrenia sufferer experience, and how can non-sufferers recognize the symptoms? UW-Madison Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry Diane C.Gooding will lead us through the complexities of a disorder that affects millions of people worldwide.

Celebrated actors Randall Duk Kim and Anne Occhiogrosso present favorite scenes from the plays of the Bard of Avon.

In recent years Wisconsin native Fredric March has been criticized for his participation in a questionable student organization at the University of Wisconsin. But in addition to being a brilliant actor, he was also an outspoken proponent of the Civil Rights movement. Author Charles Tranberg will set the record straight on the life and career of the Oscar-winning actor.

How should privileged, white journalists change the way they cover news stories exposing systemic racism, as with Wisconsin's "Race to Equity" report? We explore personal and professional experiences with racial bias.

The UW MIA Recovery and Identification Project was founded in 2015, two years after helping identify the remains of a U.S. service member mistakenly buried as a German soldier. Since then, UW has forged a unique partnership with the Department of Defense that harnesses the cutting edge technology and knowledge of the Madison campus — and now other academic partners — to find and identify America's MIAs. We'll find out what advantages the Project has when it comes to identifying some of Wisconsin’s 1500 missing soldiers and hear the stories of some of their discoveries.

Teen moms, 'baby mamas,' sex workers, and crack addicts: how did they come out on the other side as doctors, lawyers, artists, counselors, and more? Activist Sagashus Levingston discusses her book Infamous Mothers: Women who've gone through the belly of hell and brought something good back .

Britain in the 1840s was wracked by poverty, unrest, and uncertainty. There were attempts to assassinate the queen and her prime minister, and the ruling class lived in fear of riot and revolution. But by the 1880s Britain was a stable, confident country enjoying progress and prosperity with new attitudes toward politics, education, and the working class. How did the transformation happen so quickly? Historian Simon Heffer will tell us how a group of dynamic people remade a country.

So-called silent films were anything but silent. As with today's films, they had music accompanying the images, often frame for frame for the entire film. A leading latter-day practitioner of silent film music, Jelani Eddington, will tell us how he performs the score he composed for "The Flying Ace," a remarkable 1926 action movie with an all-black cast. How well does a silent film work on radio? Find out as we experience the Art of Silent Film Music.

What are the indicators of life and how will we look for them as we continue to explore Mars and beyond?

Some aspects of the supernatural are universal, but the long traditions of Chinese supernatural writings have some traits all their own. In this hour of University of the Air, Rania Huntington will introduce us to a gallery of ghosts, shape-shifters, divinities, superhumans, and dragons. Along the way, she'll tell us several stories that date back as far as the 12th century.