Stride & Saunter

In various settings, people consider friendship to be a marker of personal success and completion. Friends attend our proudest moments and comfort us in troubled times. But what are the functions and roles of friendships and how do they impact the way we look at friends? This week, we're joined by Jack Quigley to explore some of these questions. Are there specific roles and relationships we allow our friends to take on? How might we limit our perspectives of our friends because of friendship?

Although love represents an ideal that many of us strive for in our personal, romantic and ongoing relationships, it manifests in many forms. Between various cultures, art forms and perceptions, the ways we express love are nearly infinite. But what do we make of the love we feel but do not express? This week, we welcome Sam Whipple to discuss the phenomenon of unexpressed love. How might expressions of platonic love alter our presumptions of romantic love? What might we miss in our relationships when we do not receive expressions of love from those around us?

Many of us interact with employees on a consistent, often daily basis. We may not think much of these moments, or the people with whom we're speaking, but customer service as an intersection between consumers and sellers serves to reveal some of our societal attitudes. This week, we welcome Nick Suyematsu to discuss the philosophy behind customer service. How do employees wield the ability to influence the emotions of customers? What do our expectations of thee interactions say about our attitudes when spending money? What can customer service teach us about general human interaction?

Looking at a culture where news, opinions and often daily conversations can tend towards negativity, a positive outlook can seem miraculous. When looking at performing environments, however, performers are encouraged to embrace new challenges, ideas and forms of expression. This week, Mark Ashin joins us to discuss an improv exercise casually known as The "Yes" Game. In the exercise, pairs of participants stand across from one another. One begins speaking about a source of joy or excitement and their partner simply affirms by repeatedly saying "Yes". What can we learn from the principles behind this game? Why might some of us find it difficult or uncomfortable to embrace? How can the philosophy involved help us be more enthusiastic and encouraging towards one another?

With the proliferation of cameras in modern smartphones, tablets, laptops and more, digital photography has entered the cultural mainstream. Many of us reflexively take selfies during travel and pose for memorable moments with loved ones. In 2016, Om Malik of The New Yorker wrote an article entitled "In the Future, We Will Photograph Everything and Look At Nothing," examining at our photographic tendencies and how the abundance of imagery has altered our relationship to it and to our memories. How do photographs become placeholders for memory? Why do we rely so heavily on imagery to capture and enrich narrative? How might we be missing out on lived experiences because of the cultural capital placed upon pictures?

As one of the most pivotal moments in history, the construction and deployment of the atomic bomb is worthy of many discussions. The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki are responsible for killing hundreds of thousands of Japanese (primarily civilians) and changing the face of modern warfare and international politics forever. This week we welcome Richard Pera to explore the moment in history, what choices and factors preceded it and what we can take away from the decision in the context of the 21st century. How might this devastating power be connected to later peace? What are the ethical entanglements surrounding the issue? How does the use of nuclear weaponry reflect deeper elements of human nature?

The bonds of friendship are central to the human experience. Friends help us as we grow through childhood, weather the storms of adolescence and explore the larger world beyond. But when do people shift focus from the quality of friendships to their quantity? This week, we welcome Michael Duffy to explore the phenomenon of quantifying friendship. How does it diminish our appreciation for the quiet and subtle moments between friends? How might a quantitative perspective alter our approaches to new friends? What societal and cultural institutions encourage an attitude of quantifying friendship?

Language and imagery have intermingled for millennia of human communication and expression. In many cases, pictographs seem to capture nuance that words alone might miss. But how do Emoji function as a form of language? How have they evolved to reflect their users and what types of communication does their flexibility permit. This week we welcome Morgan Jaffe to explore the linguistic impact Emoji have had on our culture. They present numerous, tangible examples with regard to the law, political issues and creative thinking. How do they reflect a human tendency to identify with and cultivate a visual alphabet? What can our use (or lack thereof) of Emoji teach us about our emotional vocabulary and cultural lexicon?

In the past two decades, climate change (previously described as global warming) has been a polarizing and central topic in discussions both political and personal. Some look to governments and organizations to facilitate recycling, curb emissions and reduce waste byproducts. Others invest in individual contributions, like residential solar panels, composting and eco-friendly materials. But rarely do we think about the impact of food production on the environment. In 2014, documentary filmmaker Kip Anderson set out to explore the impact of animal agriculture on the environment. This week we sit down to discuss his film with Leland Holcomb. How have carnivorous habits been internalized on a cultural level? Could we, as a global community, alter our agricultural course for a more sustainable option?

In our cultural lexicon, we often casually note that we're "addicted" to the latest TV show, album or trend that enters our lives. But we rarely discuss the grave reality of actual addiction and the burdens it creates. This week, we examine a 2015 TED Talk given by Johann Hari on the subject. In particular, he looks at common misconceptions about how and why addiction takes hold. What are the social factors at play? What can addiction reveal about our deeper human nature? How might communities and governments better prepare and respond to citizens to mitigate addiction?

Humanity at large has been fascinated, confused and humbled by dreams and the threshold of death since time immemorial. But what would the crossroads of these two phenomena look like and how might it help us better understand our minds and our lives? This week we're joined by Lucy Iselin to examine a New York Times article published in 2016. The thought-provoking article includes insights and perspectives from professionals in hospice care, stories from the terminally ill and those who study end-of-life experiences. How might this article and its subject matter encourage empathy through further observations of dreamers and their experiences? How do dreams of the dying differ from those whose hold on life is firmer? What can these dreams tell us about the most deeply-buried concerns and memories of dreamers late in life?

A few weeks ago, Stride & Saunter ran into some technical difficulties on Apple Podcasts/iTunes and vanished altogether. As a personal endeavor, this was a frustrating time. But more importantly, it led me to reflect more thoroughly on the status of the show, the nature of the intimate connections afforded by podcasts and the value of asking for specific help from those around you. A shorter and different episode than you might expect, but we'll be back to regular episodes next week. In gratitude, Kip

Modern film has become a dynamo for discussions about our world, our culture and our humanity. This role has been especially prominent with the release of a Wonder Woman film, starring Gal Gadot. Audiences have come out en masse to marvel at her superhuman strength, commitment to justice and to appreciate her role as a female superhero in a comic landscape which often highlights male narratives. As many critics of the film have pointed out, it serves as a tent-pole of sorts, one which may determine the market viability of future female-led superhero movies. This week we're joined by Aayesha Siddiqui to examine the commentaries made by the film and to explore its unique and widespread influence. What does the movie articulate about heroism, gender and personal growth? What arguments does it put forward about the horrors of war and the conflict between bravery and cowardice?

So much of our experiences as people rests upon the spaces and environments we occupy and traverse. In particular, the rooms where we socialize, rest, eat, learn and work have a heavy bearing on who we are and how we live. But when these spaces change, how does that process affect us? This week, Mark Ashin joins us to discuss the phenomenon of rooms shifting in time and how our memories and perceptions are tied not only to rooms themselves, but particular decorations or appearances the room might take on.

Cultures and societies around the world have embraced and leaned upon music since time immemorial and for various reasons. Music can soothe, invigorate and stir deep reflection and profound emotional reactions. But when we introduce lyrics, perspectives and personally-charged stances into songs, how do they change? How does music allow us to communicate ideas that speech or other means of communication might not? This week, we welcome Evan Rasch to work through this concept. What are the dangers that music, as a form of communication, might present? Do we utilize music for messaging out of fear of being more direct?