Think from KERA

Why you can’t afford health insurance

For millions of Americans, health care benefits come from their jobs and now small businesses are finding they can no longer afford to offer them. Bob Herman, STAT’s business of health care reporter, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how the end of subsidies to the Affordable Care Act means small businesses and those self-employed can no longer find an insurance option that fits their budget and how some employers are choosing between cutting insurance and cutting jobs. His series is “Out of Pocket, Out of Reach.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Is California overdue for the Big One?

The San Andreas fault in California should produce a sizeable earthquake about every 150 years and it’s starting to worry some that it hasn’t. Rong-Gong Lin II joins host Krys Boyd to discuss what has scientists on edge about a massive fault line that hasn’t had an earthquake in more than a century. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The high-tech weapons changing how we fight wars

A.I. and drones are changing warfare are the U.S. and its allies ready to meet the challenge? Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why billions invested in new tanks, planes and warships might be better spent on cheap drones, how autonomous weapons are changing battle strategies, and why military leaders need to learn to adapt rapidly in order to win. His article is “There’s a New Way of War, but Is It Evolution or Revolution?” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Colombia’s counterfeit cartel

Colombia is known for its illicit drug trade and now cartels there are counterfeiting U.S. dollars. Yudhijit Bhattacharjee is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine who reports on transnational crime, national security and science. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how Colombian authorities are trying to track down criminal enterprises counterfeiting dollar bills, how this could harm economies in Latin America and erode trust in the dollar, and why these fakes have gotten so good it’s hard to tell them from the genuine article. His article is “The Hunt for the Counterfeiter Trying to Make the Perfect Bill.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Your grandparents had skills. Do you?

Long before A.I., people have worried about technology taking away the ability to work with our hands. Joshua Habgood-Coote is a lecturer in the School of Philosophy, Religion, and History of Science at the University of Leeds. He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss the centuries-old longing to get back to the “good old days” of craftsmanship, what this nostalgia means for our modern times, and why mastering a skill might help us to be more content in our desk-bound jobs. His article “Skill Nostalgia” was published by Aeon. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices