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Legal scholar and developer of the Creative Commons licenses that have opened up access to intellectual property old and new, Lawrence Lessig has also been focused on the corrupting influence of money on American elections and politics. Earlier this month he “retired” his popular lecture about this issue and spoke with AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams this morning about his hopes for transforming Legislator’s dependence on funders’ money and not on voter’s opinions.
“So for us [ men], being the Alpha - it’s not about being the alpha man. It’s not about being the most dominate man in the group. It’s simply about being the best version of yourself, so whatever that means,whatever things you want to work on,those are the things that are most important, and it’snot just about being more confident,or making more money,or being better looking than other men, it’s about being the most confident that you can be, making the most money that you deserve and changing the body so you can be better looking for you.And taking people from a comparative mindset to a mindset of intrinsic motivation, is really one of the goals of the book.”
- John Romaniello, author of Man 2.0
Like the great Grizzly Bear that it is, Man Monday has slept through the winter. It returned with a vengeance this morning when AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams spoke with fitness guru John Romaniello about the methods he espoused in his book with the manliest title of all time, Man 2.0: Engineering the Alpha.
Following up on a story about Kiera Wilmot, the Florida teenager who was expelled and possibly facing felony charges for setting off a small explosion in an “unauthorized science experiment” , as it turns out she will NOT be going through any criminal proceedings. Morning AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams ask their listeners what they thought about the Zero-Tolerance policies for public schools. LA Public Schools have stopped theirs for non-violent offenses. Brian and Molly also touched base on how Finland’s public school system is ranked #1 in the world and probe into why that is the case. Perhaps free mandatory lunch, universal healthcare for all and no homework does the trick?
“A lot of our science teachers are not prepared to really teach the new science at a level that it needs to be taught. They still teach science straight off a book. Our kids just don’t learn the same way they need to be more visual, and see things hands on and that’s where we come in and present the students with that hands on learning environment where they are able to really understand how this math and science that we’re teaching them is really applied in every day life. But as far as the students that we are teaching also, they don’t know any scientists. They don’t know any engineers. All they see on TV is entertainment, and rap, and music, and movies, and so these are the things that they want to be; they see the instant gratification of money. They want to achieve that quick success. But they don’t understand through education and through hard work you can get to that level and still be successful and have that nice, comfortable life.”
- Jason Coleman, Executive Direction (Project Syncere)
Diversifying the population of people who enter the STEM fields is a matter of access, education, and recruitment. Jason Coleman is the Executive Director of Project Syncere, a non-profit that is trying to tackle this issue, getting more black, Latino, and female students in the field. He stopped by the studio and talked to AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams about this non profit organization and why students have such a difficult time with learning math and science.
The exhibit War Baby/Love Child at the DePaul Art Museum highlights the work of mixed race artists who share Asian heritage in their identities. Curator Laura Kina and artist Mequitta Ahuja joined AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams in the studio this morning and discussed their personal family lineage, the stereotype stamped on mixed children whose roots came from Asian countries where the United States was involved in, and how kindship is formed among “war babies” through artistic expression and exhibits.
Photo Courtesy of Maggie Dzubiek/Depaulia
“Downwardly mobile doesn’t necessarily mean that your parents are paying your rent. But it does come with a certain set of expectations. Most of these people are educated - most of these people thought that they were going to get an awesome job out of college and now all of a sudden they’re either living with their parents, or they’re living with five roommates and they’re still 30 [ years old], or they’re just not making very much money: they don’t have health insurance, they don’t have a 401K, they don’t have any of these markers of adulthood. When you hear people obsess about Millennials they’re usually talking about downwardly mobile Millennials they’re not talking about the permanent poor. […] The word ‘broke’ kind of connotates not that you’ve been in a family that is in generations worth of poverty. It means that you’re cash poor but you have a certain set of expectations.”
-Nonna Willis-Aronowitz on her latest work concerning the struggle towards employment for the Millennials.
Writers April Scissors and Nona Willis-Aronowitz (a Founding Member of the Council) joined the AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams this morning to discuss Nonna’s latest research on how the economy—especially employment rates—has yet to turn up for young people. If you’re interested in knowing more about the downwardly mobile Millennials, check out Nonna’s article published on the Atlantic Cities.
Drew Marquardt is a freelance bacon curer. His business started off as a brandless, nameless side project as he used to spend his all his spare time cooking and curing until his bacon game hit at an all time high. His business, “Flesh for Food” has expanded its scope as they’ve catered art openings and even teaming up with local bars and brewers for “pop-up” food stands. Drew joined AMp host Molly Adams and guest co-host Ernest Wilkins as he brought some of that bacon into the studio for every one to try. It was glorious!
Maggie Dziubek joined the AMp’s Molly Adams and WBEZ’s Alison Cuddy with this week’s Anti-TV Guide. Following last week’s coverage of My Drunk Kitchen, she has found another drinking and concocting show in You Deserve a Drink, hosted by the divisive Mamrie Hart. Sounds like an appropriate topic considering that the Chicago Bulls are facing the Miami Heat tonight after losing twice - hardcore Chi Town fans may need a few hard liquor tips from Mamrie herself.
Jared Logan, a West Virginian, flew in from the Big Apple and will tell jokes this weekend while standing up on a stage at Zanies in Old Town. On his agenda this year? Perform on his very own half hour special on comedy central, and will be a weekly commentator as a cast member on VH1’s Best Week Ever. No big deal! He joined AMp host Molly Adams, and guest co-host Jill Hopkins this morning to talk about what life is like in West Virginia, his knowledge in coal mining, and all things pertaining to hilarity.
“There’s no one-solution. I know mentoring is but one of them. We read the stories, we see the press about public schools and issues around the country related to students, and I do believe parenting is key. We can somehow solve that issue, but then what does that go? That gets to the economy. When the parents have those source of issues trying to handle the three basic necessities of life - food, shelter,and clothing -education, unfortunately, becomes a distant forth when those things aren’t in place. And it is difficult to learn if you don’t have food in the home, clothes on your back, and a roof over your head.”
-Rendel Solomon on how mentoring can be an effective solution.
Helping over a thousand of economically disadvantaged kids into college through academic enrichment, LINK Unlimited is Chicago’s oldest mentoring organization. Naja Morris and Rendel Solomon spoke with AMp hosts Brian Babylon and Molly Adams about their programs this morning.
