The Measure of Everyday Life

The Measure of Everyday Life

The Measure of Everyday Life is a weekly public radio program featuring researchers, practitioners, and professionals discussing their work to improve the human condition. Independent Weekly has called the show 'unexpected' and notes that the show 'brings big questions to radio.' Dr. Rachel Powell of the CDC Foundation has said the show is "a wonderful resource that communicates ... in a digestible and conversational way." Episodes air weekly in the Raleigh-Durham, NC, media market, stream internationally through WNCU, and are available online. WNCU produces the show with major underwriting from the nonprofit RTI International. For more information, see www.measureradio.net.

Episodes

October 29, 2025 29 mins

Billions of people do not have access to medicines that could save their lives. The Med Aditis Foundation is a non-profit organization that builds partnerships to improve access to high-quality medicines. On this episode, we talk with Bob Blouin, President and CEO of the Med Aditis Foundation.

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In schools across the United States, active shooter drills have been common for years and yet we don't know all that we could about the effect of such drills on students and educators. On this episode, we talk with two members of a National Academ...

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Have you ever felt any sort of shame in admitting you have used an artificial intelligence tool? On this episode, we talk with Jessica Reif of Duke University, lead author of a new paper in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that explores how people feel about co-workers using AI and what they do about it.

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October 1, 2025 29 mins

Healthcare professionals do heroic work and so finding ways to support them can help all of us. Evidence now suggests that mindfulness techniques might help. On this episode, we talk with Misty Rae, an emergency physician with the North Mississippi Health System, about mindfulness and the future of medicine.

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September 17, 2025 29 mins

When many people think about the science of life, they think of concepts such as DNA or genes. Proteins also play a vital role in our everyday existence that might surprise you. On this episode, we talk with Shahir Rizk and Maggie Fink, authors of The Color of North: The Molecular Language of Proteins and the Future of Life. 

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September 3, 2025 29 mins

Our healthcare system comprises people -- including patients who need help and healthcare professionals who help them -- and yet our discussions about healthcare in the U.S. often focus on abstract concepts such as financial cost or new technologies.  Read more

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August 6, 2025 29 mins

We have been making progress in incorporating emotional responses into measures of public perceptions to predict behavior. On this episode, we talk with Tomas Gonsorcik, Global Chief Strategy Officer at DDB Worldwide, about innovations in considering how what we feel says something about what we tend to think and do. 

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July 30, 2025 29 mins

Whenever we use the Internet, we potentially share personal data in exchange for information that can, in turn, shape future information presented to us. What are the implications of that arrangement for society? On this episode, we talk with Jose Marichal, professor at California Lutheran University and author of the new book, You Mus...

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July 2, 2025 29 mins

How we talk about suicide matters. How we talk about prevention and support also matters. On this episode, we talk with Aurora Occa of the University of Kentucky about her work to help college students by considering how we frame opportunities for support.

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June 18, 2025 29 mins

We hear often hear about stress and burnout in healthcare. We don't hear as often about kindness. What roles could kindness play in the future of our healthcare system? On this episode, we talk with Nora Jones of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation and ...

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May 14, 2025 29 mins

How to be a good parent has been a topic of conversation for decades but raising children now includes online influences as well. How is the Internet shaping how we think about parenting? On this episode, we talk with Ranjana Das of the University...

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April 16, 2025 30 mins

Even as people use online technologies in their everyday lives, they sometimes worry about potential pitfalls, including concerns about trusting other people. On this episode, we talk with two innovators who are seeking to improve public health by improving transparency in sexual relationships through a new platform called PlumCheck...

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April 9, 2025 29 mins

As we seek to know ourselves, who should help us with that exploration? Many different perspectives on empirical research,  philosophy, and contemplation can be helpful as we try to understand our minds and ourselves. On this episode, we talk with...

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Local public health workers help communities all over the country. Who helps them do their work? On this episode, we talk with two people who have spent time supporting public health in Western North Carolina with compelling new innovations to improve communication about local health: Read more

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March 26, 2025 29 mins

How should we support people facing mental health challenges? The Ad Council -- the same organization which introduced us to Smokey Bear over 80 years ago -- has some answers with their latest evidence-based campaign: Love, Your Mind. On this epis...

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Artificial intelligence tools have been in the headlines and yet we are still learning who opts to use such tools and why. On this episode, we talk with David Playfoot of Swansea University in the United Kingdom about his work on student use of AI...

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As online content evolves, you might assume teenagers are flourishing on the Internet while older Americans shake their head in confusion, but the reality might surprise you. On this episode, we  Read more

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February 5, 2025 29 mins

The growth of online courses has been an important part of the story of education in the United States in the past decade, but we need more evidence of the ways our shift online may affect our sense of connection with others. On this episode, we talk with Daniela Castellanos-Reyes of North Carolina State University about her work to understand student connections online. 

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On this episode, Marieta Pehlivanova of the University of Virginia returns to the show to discuss her neurological perception research, including the adult experiences of people who as children reported memories of what some people refer to as a past life.

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January 8, 2025 29 mins

Helping children make friends with a wide range of people can benefit us all. On this episode, we talk with Melanie Killen of the University of Maryland, a psychology professor who has studied ways to reduce social exclusion and improve connections between peop...

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