IDEAS schedule for December 2023

* Please note this schedule is subject to change.

Friday, December 1

MERCURY'S IN RETROGRADE: THE RISE OF ASTROLOGY  
Belief in astrology is on the upswing, especially among younger people. That's maybe not surprising given that astrology's popularity rises in times of crisis and uncertainty. But since it has no predictive value, what meanings can be gleaned from a belief that the stars reveal all about us? This documentary examines the rise of popular astrology in the 1930s and how it fits into the consumer capitalism world we now inhabit. *This episode originally aired on March 29, 2023.
 

Monday, December 4

PROVOCATIONS IDEAS FESTIVAL 
Rarely has a technology been the subject of so much hype and hope as artificial intelligence. The release of ChatGPT in 2022 heralded the arrival of generative AI as part of everyday life — and it intensified the already heated debate over whether it's possible to build AI that's smarter than humans without making humans themselves obsolete or even putting us at existential risk. But in a panel IDEAS host Nahlah Ayed moderated at the Provocation Ideas Festival, science fiction writer Cory Doctorow and digital public policy expert Vass Bednar argue there are more immediate questions, such as whether AI will ever be capable of what its developers dream of, and who it's intended to serve — human welfare or Big Tech.

Tuesday, December 5

PASSAGGIO  
Passaggio is a term from classical singing, used to describe the transition area between vocal registers. It's also the title of a documentary by radio producer, Pamela Post — about the transition of her transgender son, Asher, a serious performer of vocal music. The documentary captures the pain and joy of this intimate passaggio, as Asher confronts the pain of medical procedures, and the prospect of losing both his musical career and his partner. A story of love, family, and ultimately triumph. *This episode originally aired on December 20, 2021.

Wednesday, December 6

BRING BACK GRUMPY GEORGE
A pessimist realist Red Tory who died in 1988 provides the perfect counsel for our times, argues PhD candidate Bryan Heystee of Memorial University in St. John's, Newfoundland. Heystee seeks to revive the work of Canadian philosopher George Grant, best known for the books Lament for a Nation and Technology & Empire. Grant became a truly public intellectual, injecting his skeptical takes into political debate via the national media (and giving the CBC Massey Lectures in 1969). Today, few Canadians continue to read or discuss his thoughts. Heystee tries to change that in our series, Ideas from the Trenches, featuring the unique insights of PhD students across the country. 

Thursday, December 7

FROM GRIT TO GLORY
Mary Ann Shadd Cary was born in 1823 in Delaware to parents who were free African Americans. She moved to Canada in 1850 after America's passing of the Fugitive Slave Law. She founded a racially integrated school in Windsor, Ontario. Three years later she became the first Black woman publisher in Canada with her newspaper, The Provincial Freeman. The story of this Black woman who was a lawyer, publisher, and educator and whose work and legacy laid the groundwork for Black liberation in Canada has long been hidden from most Canadians. But a growing body of scholarship along with greater cultural attention is bringing Mary Ann Shadd Cary and her remarkable story to the masses.

Friday, December 8

THE RISE OF H.P. LOVECRAFT
American short story writer H.P. Lovecraft died in 1937, broke and mostly unknown. Today, Lovecraft may be at the height of his popularity. From TV shows to movies to video games and music, Lovecraft is having a moment. This documentary from Matthew Lazin-Ryder looks at why Lovecraft's world of shadowy cults, curious scientists, and malevolent gods resonates with audiences today, despite the author's own regressive politics and racism. *This episode originally aired on January 22, 2021.
 

 
Monday, December 11

INVENTING PEACE 
At a time of deadly, bitter conflict, we consider what it takes to make peace. How does a peace process begin? We speak to an experienced mediator and two former heads of state who helped to end some of the world's most intractable conflicts. They discuss how to get warring sides beyond the dehumanization and rage; the role of victims, and the unavoidable tension between attaining justice and inventing peace.

Tuesday, December 12

THE GOOD AND EVIL OF DISGUST
In 55 BC, the Roman orator Cicero wrote "the greatest pleasures are only narrowly separated from disgust." Disgust Is linked to darker forces too, from homophobia and misogyny to religious and racial prejudice; throughout history, disgust has been weaponized to marginalize others. Yet scientists — including Charles Darwin — have suggested that disgust serves a core evolutionary function, helping to protect us from infectious disease and toxic food — and that our ability to feel disgusted is part of what makes us human. One thing that's certain is that we can't rid ourselves of disgust entirely, scholars say, making it important to reckon with this complicated emotion.

Wednesday, December 13

ENEMIES AND ANGELS 
When Najah Aboud got wounded during the Iran-Iraq war, he crawled into a bunker to die. It was there that the Iraqi soldier was found by Iranian medic, Zahed Haftlang. Zahed made a split-second decision: to save his enemy's life. So he risked his own — twice — to get Najah to a field hospital. Neither man knew that nearly 20 years later, and on the other side of the world, a breathtaking coincidence would reunite them in another life-saving encounter. *This episode originally aired on Dec. 23, 2014.

Thursday, December 14

HOW TO DO DIPLOMACY WITH AUTOCRATS
Autocratic governments, like democratic ones, have a sphere of influence and a logic of diplomacy. They do their diplomatic dance with each other but also with democracies. Sometimes, that dance is a partnership but often it's a competition. Is it possible to have honest and pragmatic engagements, especially in a time of crisis, when the diplomatic temperature is set to a default slow burn? 

Friday, December 15 

RETURN TO NORTH: THE SOUNDSCAPES OF GLENN GOULD
In 1967, pianist Glenn Gould made a documentary for CBC Radio about the Canadian North. Gould applied the technique of contrapuntal music to documentary-making, with the result sounding something like a Bach fugue made of stories. In Return to North: The Soundscapes of Glenn Gould, CBC contributor Mark Laurie talks to four people who knew Gould intimately, and reinterprets Gould's contrapuntal technique to explore the landscape of Gould's life — and his ideas about music and radio. *This episode originally aired Dec. 21, 2017.
 

Monday, December 18

GROUP THERAPY 
So you need mental health support. Do you seek individual help? Or are you willing to share both a therapist — and your problems — with a group of similarly-struggling strangers? This IDEAS documentary features psychiatrists, scholars, and participants who see the 20th century practice of group therapy as deserving of greater attention and respect, particularly in this current era of mental health crisis. Done skilfully, they say, "group" can provide acute self-insight and effective help, because it is both a microcosm of society, and a safe place to explore how we behave in relationship to one another. 

Tuesday, December 19

THE TEST OF NOW
Kurt Weill. Hans Gál. Arnold Schoenberg. Among the most well-known composers forced to flee the Nazi onslaught. But there were many others — gifted, celebrated composers — who ran for their lives and found safe havens. Most, however, never regained their previous stature and success. Instead, they and their compositions were lost. For the last 20 years, the members of The ARC Ensemble have dedicated themselves to recovering the forgotten works of exiled composers.

Wednesday, December 20

INNER CITY WINNIPEG 
The inner city isn't just a place, it's an idea. And in Winnipeg, the question of what the "inner city" means — and what it should become — has been fiercely contested. IDEAS host Nahlah Ayed joins Owen Toews, author of Stolen City: Racial Capitalism and the Making of Winnipeg, for a walking tour of inner-city history — and sits down with long-time Indigenous organizer and "inner-city builder" Kathy Mallett, the co-editor of Indigenous Resistance and Development in Winnipeg:1960-2000.

Thursday, December 21

WINTER SOLSTICE 
Much about the Christmas season badgers us to buy more, give more, eat more, more, more! But the solstice — the longest night of the year — invites us to move inward, to slow down, and to quiet down. Paolo Pietropaolo is the host of In Concert on CBC Muisic. He joins IDEAS host Nahlah Ayed to showcase music he feels captures the spirit of the winter solstice, and to discover the power of introspection. *This episode originally aired on December 21, 2022.

Friday, December 22

ORDINARY MAGIC: THE MUSICAL GENIUS OF JERRY GRANELLI
A profile of the legendary jazz drummer and composer Jerry Granelli, who was recorded by producer Mary Lynk on the eve of his turning 80. Granelli sadly passed away in Halifax on July 20, 2021. Over his career, he accompanied many of the greats: Mose Allison, Sly Stone and The Grateful Dead. He opened for Lenny Bruce and taught alongside Allen Ginsberg. And most famously, he was the member of the Vince Guaraldi Trio that recorded the iconic album: A Charlie Brown Christmas. *This episode originally aired on December 21, 2021.

Monday, December 25

**Evening broadcast preempted

HORN OF PLENTY: THE SAXOPHONE AND THE SPIRIT
How did the saxophone make its way from being a 19th century marching-band curiosity to a vessel for the spiritual seeker?  How can an instrument associated with the buffoonery of Benny Hill and the schmaltz of disco ball romance also possess such cosmic sensibilities? The work of jazz giant John Coltrane has a lot to do with it. But what is it about the instrument itself that has driven some of those playing it to plumb the depths of human experience, and the heights of spiritual striving? IDEAS producer Sean Foley traces the saxophone's path toward transcendence. *This episode originally aired on March 3, 2020.

Tuesday, December 26

CHRISTMAS PHILOSOPHY 101 
Heat the cocoa, stoke the fire, and settle in for some good ol' fashioned philosophy. Christmas is a minefield of deep philosophical quandaries — is it ethical to lie to children? Who does a gift really benefit: the giver, or receiver? How do we really know Santa exists, or doesn't? Christmastime is full of moments that reveal deep questions, so join IDEAS on a jocular journey through the philosophy of Christmas. *This episode originally aired on December 23, 2020.

Wednesday, December 27

BEAR
It's a novel so strange, shocking and surreal that it's hard to describe. At the surface, Bear is about a woman who develops a sexual relationship with a bear. And though the 1976 novel earned Marian Engel a Governor General's award, it's been largely forgotten. Contributor Melissa Gismondi brings Bear to life and explores its mystery, meaning and relevance today. *This episode originally aired on January 4, 2021.

Thursday, December 28

FIRESIDE & ICICLES — POEMS FOR WINTER 
Facing a colder-than-usual winter (in social terms if not temperature), IDEAS producer Tom Howell seeks not to escape misery so much as exploit it, with the goal of achieving a certain delicious mix of loneliness, nostalgia, yearning, and elevated moaning known to Welsh poets as hiraeth. He digs through a pile of poetic works from ancient to new in search of the perfect works to evoke hiraeth in their own way. He enlists the help of poets as well as IDEAS' online community. *This episode originally aired on December 17, 2020. 

Friday, December 29

ENTRE CHIEN ET LOUP: HOW DOGS BEGAN
Scientists agree that dogs evolved from wolves and were the first domesticated animals. But exactly how that happened is contested. Many scientists think that self-domestication is the most plausible explanation — that some wolves found an advantage by hanging around the settlements of our prehistoric ancestors, and eating their garbage. Over time, they evolved into the first dogs. But when that might have happened remains elusive. IDEAS contributor Neil Sandell examines the theories and the evolution of the relationship between dogs and humans. *This episode originally aired on March 1, 2021.