questions

Texas Standard: July 23, 2020

According to published reports, the Rio Grande Valley may have the worst rate of COVID-19 hospitalization in the country. We’ll talk with the mayor of Harlingen today. Also, food banks across the Lone Star State brace for increased demand in August. We’ll hear why. Plus more on the abrupt shutdown of the Chinese consulate in Houston as the Trump administration ratchets up pressure with espionage claims. And the app from a China based company that some lawmakers are trying to ban. Tech expert Omar Gallaga with details. All of that and then some today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 14, 2020

How to make up for lost time: reopen school for a full year? Texas educators struggle with what to do in the fall and thereafter, we’ll have the latest. Plus, a new phase in the battle against the spread of the Coronavirus as businesses try to reopen. We’ll hear more on the state of testing in the state of Texas. And Dr. Fred Campbell of UT Health San Antonio takes up more of your COVID-19 questions. Also, who’s in charge, where? The back and forth over seemingly contradictory safety orders from state and local officials. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Higher Ed: Curiosity Did Not Kill The Cat

What does “curiosity” mean, exactly? Most definitions center around the desire to know something. So is curiosity just the act of asking lots of questions, or is it something deeper? In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton discuss curiosity, wonderment, and if any question is ever a silly one.

What do we know already (or think we know) about curiosity? It “killed the cat,” right – implying that too much inquisitiveness about something is dangerous. Curious George stories are a more playful take on learning and exploration.

Ed defines curiosity as the “mindful act of thinking beyond whatever it is that is in front of a person…. What comes next? What led to this? Where do I go from here? It really comes down to the art of creating questions.”

But Ed puts a slight twist on that definition. He does not actually believe those questions ever have to be asked out loud.

“Curiosity is an internal thing,” Ed believes. “I talk about the art of creating questions. You don’t have to ask them to be curious. But just to be thinking about ‘why is the person doing it that way? Why does that look the way it looks? Why did the person say that and not something else? What did the person not say?’ Just having those thoughts and those questions in your own head generate the internal curiosity.”

Ed’s definition may make it sound as if we are either born with that internal instinct to create questions or we are not. Are we stuck with the level of curiosity we have at day one or can curiosity be taught?

Ed says curiosity can absolutely be taught and amplified by encouraging that internal development of questions. Listen to the full episode to hear how Ed believes curiosity can be taught and nurtured (he has specific examples from his classroom). It is also time to get into gear for a new puzzler!

This episode was recorded on Dec. 4, 2018.

Higher Ed: Developing “Intellectual Bravado” A.k.a. The Courage To Ask Any Question

Ever feel like you want to ask a question, but you hold back because you think the question is stupid or you will look silly asking it? In this episode of KUT’s podcast “Higher Ed,” Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger and KUT’s Jennifer Stayton discuss getting past those barriers that keep us from asking what’s on our mind.

We have all been there: a question pops into out head, but then so does the self-doubt. We fear that others will find the question stupid or elementary, and we will look foolish if we ask it. So we clam up and fervently hope that someone else will pipe up with the same query.

How can we get past that feeling that our questions are dumb?

Ed says all of us could stand to develop a little “intellectual bravado” when it comes to learning and asking questions.

What’s “intellectual bravado?”

“Intellectual bravado means that you’re brave enough to explore the outer limits of your own thinking or other people’s thinking,” says Ed, ” and you are not afraid to go beyond and to maybe be in a place that’s a little bit uncomfortable or a little bit awkward or that’s new.”

Ed says one way to get braver asking questions is to understand that questions do not need to be exceedingly sophisticated or complicated. Sometimes, he says, simple questions are the most profound.

“If we were brave enough to actually ask what seems like a foundational or fundamental question,” Ed asserts, “we actually will go deeper even though it might sound silly at first.”

Ed says a tremendous payoff results from investing more in a presentation, activity or conversation by asking questions.

“We get more out of life’s experience when we actually know we’re going to a – create a question; and b – actually going to ask it,” says Ed.

What event in Ed’s life freed him to feel like he could ask questions without fear? Listen to the full episode to find out, and to hear this week’s unusual take on a puzzler. It may prompt some questions in you!

This episode was recorded on Dec. 4, 2018.

Best of “Higher Ed:” Breaking Down Tough Questions

We all face questions in life that seem just about impossible to answer. Maybe it’s a really tough question on a test. Or maybe it’s a challenging assignment at work. What can we do when the answer just won’t come to us? How about not answering the question? In this “Best of” episode of KUT’s podcast Higher Ed, KUT’s Jennifer Stayton and Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger explore ways to break down seemingly impossible questions into manageable parts. So just to be clear, the advice here is not to ignore the question. But Ed advocates starting by breaking down a hard question into a simpler one in a parallel vein, or translating it into a known, easier question.  Ed and Jennifer discuss how this technique can be used in or outside of academic settings. Wondering if you should listen on to hear more? That’s a definite yes! You will also get the solution to a puzzler that poses some interesting questions; it assumes three = 1/2 of five!

This episode was recorded on November 22, 2016.

Higher Ed: Breaking Down Tough Questions

We all face questions in life that seem just about impossible to answer. Maybe it’s a really tough question on a test. Or maybe it’s a challenging assignment at work. What can we do when the answer just won’t come to us? How about not answering the question? In this episode of KUT’s podcast Higher Ed, KUT’s Jennifer Stayton and Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger explore ways to break down seemingly impossible questions into manageable parts. So just to be clear, the advice here is not to ignore the question. But Ed advocates starting by breaking down a hard question into a simpler one in a parallel vein, or translating it into a known, easier question.  Ed and Jennifer discuss how this technique can be used in or outside of academic settings. Wondering if you should listen on to hear more? That’s a definite yes! By the way, this episode’s technique might be useful in solving it. Remember, it’s the puzzler that assumes three = 1/2 of five !

This episode was recorded on November 22, 2016.

Talkback: Hearing Loss and Happiness

In this new feature, we are offering to podcast listeners only, we respond to listener comments about recent shows we did on hearing loss and another on happiness.

If you have questions or comments please email us at twoguys@kut.org. Thanks!

Higher Ed: The Art of Creating Questions

The old saying goes something like this: “If a tree falls in the forest, and no one is around to hear it it, does it make a sound?” A variation on that might go: “If someone asks a question, and no one is around to hear it, what good does it do?” A lot, as it turns out. In this episode of KUT’s podcast Higher Ed, Jennifer Stayton and Southwestern University President Dr. Ed Burger exchange questions and answers about the art and importance of questions to learning. They explore how the act of simply creating a question can change the whole dynamic of learning. But what about the answer, you might ask? Guess what; most of the benefit might actually come without ever even getting answer!