Dave Davies

Scott Weidensaul has spent decades studying bird migration. "There is a tremendous solace in watching these natural rhythms play out again and again," he says. Originally broadcast March 29, 2021.

Time magazine's Vera Bergengruen says Ukraine's citizen IT force, led by a 31-year-old minister of digital transformation, is blunting Russian disinformation and galvanizing international support.

White Lies author A.J. Baime tells the story of Walter White, a light-skinned Black man whose ancestors had been enslaved. For years White risked his life investigating racial violence in the South.

Medical historian Ira Rutkow points to physical evidence that suggests Stone Age people conducted — and survived — brain surgery. His new book is Empire of the Scalpel.

Waterston joined the cast of the original NBC series in 1994 on a one-year contract. He wound up staying 16 years, until the series wrapped in 2010. Now the show's back — and so is he.

Though he fully expected to be infected with COVID, Dr. Thomas Fisher says he was committed to providing medical care to the Black community on Chicago's South Side. His new book is The Emergency.

Following the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary school, journalist Elizabeth Williamson says, conspiracy theorists tormented the victims' families by accusing them of being actors.

David Blight's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography traced Douglass' path from slavery to abolitionist and inspired HBO's documentary, Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches. Originally broadcast in 2018.

Dr. Farmer worked to improve health care in the developing world. He died in Rwanda Feb. 21, on the grounds of a hospital and university he helped establish. Originally broadcast in 2011.

Environmental writer Oliver Milman says habitat loss, pesticides and climate change are killing off insects worldwide, which, in turn, threatens humans. His new book is The Insect Crisis.

Bardem didn't set out to become an actor; instead he wanted to be a painter. He's now up for for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Desi Arnaz in Being the Ricardos. Originally broadcast in 2011.

Michael Waldman, president of the Brennan Center for Justice, says lawmakers in 27 states are considering hundreds of bills designed to limit voting or undermine the integrity of the election process.

Journalist Matthieu Aikins shed his own identity and traveled with his Afghan interpreter along smugglers' routes to reach Europe and escape the Taliban. His book is The Naked Don't Fear the Water.

Russell Shorto's grandfather was a mob leader in the industrial town of Johnstown, Pa. He spoke to Fresh Air in 2021 about the havoc that resulted from his grandfather's business dealings.

New Yorker writer Jane Mayer discusses the conservative beliefs and influence of Ginni Thomas, an activist who's been associated with some groups involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

In 2005, the British actor played brooding aristocrat Mr. Darcy in the film adaptation of Pride & Prejudice. Now, he's Tom Wambsgans, a scheming Midwesterner on the HBO series Succession.

Imani Perry says the South can be seen as an "origin point" for the way the nation operates. Her book South to America reflects on the region's history and traces the steps of an enslaved ancestor.

By age 5, Keaton was a star in his family's vaudeville act; he went on to star in and direct silent films, performing jaw-dropping stunts. Slate film critic Dana Stevens profiles Keaton in a new book.

New York Times reporter Dave Philipps says a top-secret special ops unit disregarded official protocols to pick targets for airstrikes, resulting in the death of thousands of farmers and families.

"Americans went on a shopping spree as soon as lockdown started, and we haven't really stopped," journalist Christopher Mims says. His book, Arriving Today, goes inside the global supply chain.