Fordham Conversations

Does what's going on with the economy, the bailout and Bernard Madoff make you so mad you just want to scream and throw things? Well, in 1999, that's how tens of thousands of people felt about the World Trade Organization, and their protests of its Seattle conference--and the extraordinary police response--became known as the Battle of Seattle. A look at those protests and what they mean to us today, with Fordham sociologist Heather Gautney.

Is that a glass ceiling above my head, or am I just seeing things? We speak with Fordham management professor Roslyn Chernesky about women in management today, and why she says we haven't made as much progress as expected.

We may not realize it when we're eating mince pie, decorating the tree, and singing carols, but a lot of our Christmas traditions come from the Medieval world. And so too does the modern world—at least according to Thomas Cahill. We speak with him about his book "Mysteries of the Middle Ages and the Beginning of the Modern World."

This week on Fordham Conversations, climate change, evolution and resurrection with Fordham plant biologist Steve Franks. Also, a look at why companies seem so much greener than they used to be...even though they might not be.

When Georgia and Russia suddenly went to war this summer, many had their suspicions about the war's real causes--was this a proxy war between Russia and the US? Was it all about oil? Or, was it because Russia can't get no respect? This week on Fordham Conversations, we speak with journalist, former CBS Moscow Bureau chief and Fordham professor Beth Knobel: She covered the war for CBS, and who says it's more about the latter than we might imagine.

A couple of days ago, most of us sat down and ate a huge meal in honor of some of the first immigrants to America... but what about more modern immigrants? We'll talk about one aspect of acclimation – housing – and look at how immigrants, and their children and grandchildren, fare in the New York housing market.

<!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> When you see the latest teen pop vixen, you might worry for the future of teen girls...but maybe they're savvier than we think. We talk with Fordham Anthropologist Oneka LaBennett about how one group of girls, West Indian teens in Brooklyn, use pop music, TV and even their accents to their own ends.

Hello, Clarice! From Sam Spade to Hannibal Lecter, we look at crime novels, that thing they do to us, and what they say about the way we look at families. Lenny Cassuto, Fordham english professor and the author of "Hard Boiled Sentimentality: The Secret History of American Crime Stories", joins me in the studio.

What makes a man? And are you a 98-pound weakling if you decide to go to the doctor when you have a cold? And is your answer to that last question different depending on whether you're black, white or Asian? We look at health, ideas of masculinity, and race, with Fordham psychologist Jay Wade.

We try to answer this question, and look at how we might know, with voter behavior expert Monika McDermott. And, just when we think we can't take it anymore, a little comic relief.

In honor of Halloween, we talk about terrifying women in poetry and literature: Poet Janet Kaplan reads some of her favorite poems about witches, sirens and creepy nighttimes, and author Jeffrey Weinstock talks about scary stories, and the women who write them.

With the economic climate being what it is at present, many of us may find ourselves with less flexible work schedules than we once had. But if we find ourselves working night shifts, or different shifts every week, how will it effect our families? We talk with Fordham sociologist Chris Morett about his work on shiftwork and work-life balance.

Culture and community, over a beer: We visit KGB bar in the east village—where they've been hosting free readings most nights for years—and talk with owner Denis Woychuk about changes in the neighborhood, his colorful clientele, and why culture should be free.

We look at the idea of “greening” New York, through green space and green architecture. Also, a look how one guy is using New York’s already-existing park space.

We look at the recent changes in the legal status of the Guantanamo detainees, and at the process of determining what's happened to former detainees who may have been psychologically effected by their experiences.

What do we see when we look in the mirror? We talk about the new anthology "About Face" (Seal Press) with editor and Fordham writer in residence Christina Baker Kline, and contributor Jennifer Baumgardner—she talks in the book about her ill-fated outing into the world of beauty pageants.

Do video games rot kids' brains, or do they make them smarter? And how do you even figure out what kids know, anyway? Computer gaming and academic testing, this week on Fordham Conversations.

Does the fact that you bought that Prada knockoff bag on Canal Street mean that you got a fabulous bargain, or just that you get what you pay for? With Fashion Week clomping all over the city's catwalks in its super high heels this week, we'll take a look at fashion and the law.

This Labor Day weekend, we look at an event that was a catalyst for both labor organizing and factory safety improvements, and the worst workplace disaster until September 11, 2001: The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911.

What inspires you to travel? Fun, adventure, maybe a desire to learn something about someplace different? This week on the show, we look at what it takes to do research in exotic locales, with Fordham biologist Alan Clark--he's just returned from the Costa Rican rainforest.