Charles Mingus and Tijuana Moods - Helen Edison Lecture Series One of the most important composers in jazz history, Charles Mingus documented his lively impressions of Tijuana in "Tijuana Moods," a rarely performed suite. Join Grammy-winning jazz author Ashley Kahn; eminent alto saxophonist Charles McPherson, a longstanding member of Charles Mingus' band; Anthony Davis, UC San Diego professor of music and noted composer, pianist and improviser; and Steven Schick, UC San Diego professor of music, percussionist, and conductor, for an exploration of the legacy of African-American composer Charles Mingus and his historic Tijuana Moods album. Recorded on 01/20/2018.
	Father Gregory Boyle - Burke Lectureship Father Gregory Boyle, Jesuit priest and bestselling author of Tattoos on the Heart, is the founder of Homeboy Industries in Los Angeles. He shares what three decades of working with gang members has taught him about faith, compassion, and the enduring power of kinship. Recorded on 11/09/2017.
	Celebrating Paper Theater UC San Diego's Geisel Library hosts an annual Paper Theater Festival, celebrating an art form with roots in Victorian Era Europe. Paper theaters (also known as toy theaters) were used to promote productions. They were printed on paperboard sheets and sold as kits at the concession stand of an opera house, playhouse, or vaudeville theater. The kits were then assembled at home and plays performed for family members and guests, sometimes with live musical accompaniment. The theaters gradually declined in popularity during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but have enjoyed a resurgence in interest in recent years among many puppeteers, filmmakers, theater historians, and hobbyists. Presently there are numerous international paper theater festivals throughout the Americas and Europe, as well as several museums.
	Losing the Nobel Prize with Brian Keating Cosmologist and author of "Losing the Nobel Prize" Brian Keating tells the inside story of BICEP2's mesmerizing discovery and the scientific drama that ensued in this interview with science fiction author David Brin. Keating describes a journey of revelation and discovery, bringing to life the highly competitive, take-no-prisoners, publish-or-perish world of modern science. Along the way, he provocatively argues that the Nobel Prize, instead of advancing scientific progress, may actually hamper it, encouraging speed and greed while punishing collaboration and bold innovation. In a thoughtful reappraisal of the wishes of Alfred Nobel, Keating offers practical solutions for reforming the prize, providing a vision of a scientific future in which cosmologists may, finally, be able to see all the way back to the very beginning. Recorded on 04/25/2018.
	Can We Should We and Will We Bring Back Mammoths? with Beth Shapiro Beth Shapiro, Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz, explains her work on using ancient DNA to infer evolutionary history and processes. She is the MacArthur Award-winning author of "How to Clone a Mammoth: The Science of De-Extinction," which considers the feasibility and desirability of bringing back passenger pigeons, steppe bison, mammoth and other currently extinct species. This program is presented by the Institute for Practical Ethics in the Division of Arts and Humanities at UC San Diego.
	The Healing Self with Deepak Chopra -- Writer's Symposium By The Sea 2018 Deepak Chopra, MD, a leading pioneer in integrative medicine, shares insights from his new book, "The Healing Self," on how to protect your immune system by managing stress and reducing inflammation – two key factors for lifelong wellness. Chopra is presented by the 2018 Writer's Symposium by the Sea at Point Loma Nazarene University.
	An Evening with Nnedi Okorafor - Writer's Symposium by the Sea 2019 More recently known for her Black Panther and Wakanda Forever Marvel Comics, Nnedi Okorafor is an international award-winning novelist of African-based science fiction, fantasy and magical realism for both children and adults. Born in the United States to two Nigerian immigrant parents, Nnedi is known for weaving African culture into creative evocative settings and memorable characters. In a profile of Nnedi's work titled, "Weapons of Mass Creation," The New York Times called Nnedi's imagination "stunning." Game of Thrones author, George R.R. Martin and HBO are currently developing a show based on her World Fantasy Award Winning novel, Who Fears Death. Ta-Nehisi Coates has passed the torch on writing the Black Panther comics to Nnedi, and the women warriors from the mega-hit movie were such fan favorites that Marvel has tasked Nnedi to create a new spinoff comic, Wakanda Forever.
	Beatles Revolutions: Let It Be The Beatles' final concert, their late-era conflicts, and the complicated history of director Michael Lindsay-Hogg's Let It Be documentary all arise in this discussion between musician Alan Parsons and Music Professor David Novak (UC Santa Barbara). Parsons was a teenage sound engineer at Abbey Road studios when he was assigned to record audio for the Beatles as they worked through this iconic album. Novak draws Parsons into dialogue about recording equipment, studio layouts, and the musical personalities of each member of the band. Recorded on 01/25/2019.
	Black Power Jewish Politics: Reinventing the Alliance in the 1960s Undermining widely held beliefs about the black-Jewish alliance, Marc Dollinger, Professor of Jewish Studies at San Francisco State University, describes a new political consensus, based on identity politics, that drew blacks and Jews together and altered the course of American liberalism. Dollinger's most recent book takes a new and different look at Jewish involvement in the Civil Rights Movement, showing how American Jews leveraged the Black Power movement to increase Jewish ethnic and religious identity in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Recorded on 01/14/2019.
	Blade Runner 2019: Did Life Imitate Art? The film Blade Runner was set in a dystopian 2019 Los Angeles. A timely gathering is in order. Three futurists sit down for a conversation on the film's legacy and its relevance to Southern California. The guest speakers are David Brin, Paul Sammon and Mike Davis. They discuss the film's influence and compare its vision with today's 2019. Blade Runner initially underperformed in theaters when it was first released in 1982; some praised its thematic complexity and visuals, while others were displeased with its slow-paced narrative and unconventional plot. However, by 1992 it had become a cult classic and was re-released in newly edited versions. Why did it take a decade to find — or create — its audience?
	Script to Screen: Star Trek Editor Maryann Brandon joins Pollock Theater Director Matt Ryan for a conversation about the process of editing Star Trek (2009). The Star Trek franchise has captured the imagination of audiences for over fifty years using a blend of spacefaring high-adventure and futuristic, utopian themes. In 2009, J.J. Abrams refreshed and extended the series with the series' eleventh film. Brandon explains what is was like to edit a film that was part of such a beloved franchise, as well as how she maintained her own editing style while staying true to the original series. She discusses the process of manipulating footage and cutting on set, as well as how she shapes each scene around an actor's performance while maintaining a delicate balance between exposition and effects. She also discusses her professional relationship with Abrams, sharing anecdotes from the sets of both Star Trek and Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, which she is currently editing under his direction. Recorded on 06/01/2019.