Think airs Monday to Thursday from 12:00 noon to 2:00 p.m. on KERA FM. Encore airings of Think can be heard Monday to Thursday nights on KERA FM beginning at 9:00 p.m. Podcasts and streamed video are available online at www.kera.org/think.

Monday, 11/28

Hour 1:  How do you define comfort? We’ll explore that question and the constant human cycle between tranquility and struggle this hour with Father Brett C. Hoover, a member of the  Paulist Fathers order and author of the new book “Comfort: An Atlas for the Body and Soul” (Riverhead Trade, 2011).

Hour 2:  What role is the wind playing in our country’s energy system and what does the future hold for wind turbine generation? We’ll spend this hour with Robert Righter, Research Professor of History at Southern Methodist University and author of “Windfall: Wind Energy in America Today” (University of Oklahoma Press, 2011).

Tuesday, 11/29

Hour 1:  From the archives – What makes Texas History so fascinating? We spent an hour in April with Light Townsend Cummins, Ph.D., the Bryan Chair of American History at Austin College and recent State Historian of Texas.

Hour 2:  From the archives – How will the fields of medicine, computers, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, energy production and astronautics change our lives in the not-too-distant future? Last April we spoke with Michio Kaku, professor of theoretical physics at the City University of New York and author of the new book “Physics of the Future: How Science Will Shape Human Destiny and Our Daily Lives by the Year 2100” (Doubleday, 2011).

Wednesday, 11/30

Hour 1:  From the archives – Who was Julia Child before she became America’s most famous and beloved television chef? Last spring, we discussed the intrigue of World War II espionage and more with journalist Jennet Conant, whose new book is “A Covert Affair: Julia Child and Paul Child in the OSS” (Simon & Schuster, 2011).

Hour 2:  From the archives – What should we each be doing to help preserve the environment and especially the oceans? In April we talked with adventurer and environmentalist David de Rothschild, who (along with his crew) crossed the Pacific Ocean last year on a boat made from 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles and other fully recyclable materials. His recounts the experience in “Plastiki: Across the Pacific: An Adventure to Save Our Oceans” (Chronicle Books, 2011).

Thursday, 12/01

Hour 1:  Who fostered imperial dreams for the young United States of America? We’ll explore the life and story of our country’s third vice president this hour with historian David O. Stewart. His new book is “American Emperor: Aaron Burr’s Challenge to Jefferson’s America” (Simon & Schuster, 2011).

Hour 2:  Is the international adoption system corrupt? What are the risks and who profits from adoption fraud? More importantly, who suffers? We’ll talk this hour with investigative journalist, photographer and Fellow at the Shuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University Erin Siegal. Her new book is “Finding Fernanda: Two Mothers, One Child, and a Cross-Border Search for Truth” (Cathexis Press, 2011).