The Summer Documentary Series From Memorial Day to Labor Day, we explore a vast array of topics, all told through highly-produced, well researched documentaries from public radio producers around the world. Find out more.... Tuesdays at 9pm

Tuesday May 29: RadioLab - Placebo Could the best medicine be no medicine at all? With new research demonstrating the startling power of the placebo effect, Radio Lab examines the chemical consequences of belief and imagination -- from the symbolic power of the doctor coat to the very real stash of opium in your mind. More... Tuesday June 5: RadioLab - Sleep Every creature sleeps -- from giant hump back whales all the way down to fruit flies Yet, science still can't answer the basic questions: Why do animals sleep? What is it for? We eavesdrop on the uneasy dreams of rats in search of answers. More... Tuesday June 12: RadioLab - Zoos In a cruel trick of evolution, humans can stand just three feet from a ferocious wild animal and still be perfectly safe. What's with humans' need to get close to "wildness?" We start with the Romans and end in the wilds of Belize, staring into the eyes of forest jaguar. More... Tuesday June 19: RadioLab - Memory and Forgetting According to the latest research, recall is an unstable and profoundly unreliable process. It's easy come, easy go as we learn how true memories can be obliterated and false ones added. Neurologist Oliver Sacks also joins us to tell the story of an amnesiac whose love for his wife and music transcend his seven second memory. More... Tuesday June 26: RadioLab - When Will I Die? Is death a fact of life or a disease that can be cured (as some scientists claim)? We filter the modern search for the fountain of youth through personal stories of witnessing death -- the death of a cell, the death of a loved one, and the aging of a society. More... Tuesday July 3: The Environment Report - Sprawling of America There's lots to like about living in the suburbs. But the suburbs lead to sprawling strip malls, traffic jams, and the loss of farmland and wildlife habitat. The documentary Sprawling of America from The Environment Report looks at the tax dollars that subsidize the suburbs, the racism that underlies sprawl, and the ideas that try to find a balance between pursuing the good life in the 'burbs, redeveloping abandoned city centers, and preserving nature. More... Tuesday July 10: Inside Out - Nursing a Shortage A look at how the shortage has come about and why it matters for nurses, hospitals and patients alike. We’ll visit hospitals where the longest running nursing shortage in history is already impacting care. And see how the roots of the problem encompass not just the changing career choices for young women, the out-dated image of nursing but also the serious difficulties faced by nursing schools trying to find nurse-educators. More... Tuesday July 17: Michigan Radio: Ashes to Hope: Overcoming the Detroit Riots In 1967 violence erupted on the streets of Detroit. 40 years later many of the regions problems are blamed on the events of that summer. Michigan Radio’s reporters will take a look at what happened and examine the lasting impacts of the riots. And we’ll hear first person accounts of how those days changed people’s lives. Tuesday July 24: America Abroad - After Castro: America and Cuba In America Abroad examines the possibility for change in Cuban-American relations after Castro’s death. We'll look back at the role Castro played in the Cuban Missile Crisis, revisit the history of US-Cuban relations before and after Fidel Castro's communist regime came to power, and examine the role of the Cuban-American community in the formulation of America’s approach to Cuba. More... Tuesday July 31: American Radioworks - Japan’s Pop Power To many people, global youth culture means rock and roll and other Western fashions. But for more and more young people across to world, the capital of pop culture is Tokyo. Over the past decade, Japanese video games, animation and comic books have caught fire in much of the world, including the U.S. Japan's rise as a cultural power offers insights into the direction of world culture and the global conomy. More... Tuesday August 7: Beyond Fear: America's Role in an Uncertain World Every day the latest headlines reflect a world filled with fear. Terrorism, war, disaster, and disease are grim realities brought closer to home in our increasingly connected world. And, they ultimately shape America's national security and foreign policies. But fear itself cannot drive our daily lives. Host David Brancaccio explores new scenarios for US global leadership built on common action, trust, and hope. More... Tuesday August 14: America Abroad: Iran - The Looming Confrontation The 28 year standoff between Iran and the United States now threatens to ignite into military conflict. The Islamic Republic continues to expand its power and influence throughout the Middle East, while the US warns that "all options are on the table" to confront Iran's nuclear program. Ray Suarez explores how the once friendly relationship between the US and Iran turned hostile. More... Tuesday August 21: American Radioworks: Green Rush: The Business of Saving the Planet This producers of this documentary spent six months following a lively group of innovators, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists at the epicenter of America's "green rush." All are seeking riches-and solutions to global climate change. We hear what happens when good deeds grapple with the realities of the free market. More... Tuesday August 28: American Radioworks: Routes to Recovery On the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we visit New Orleans to explore the status of its long road to recovery. Could the preservation and restoration of the city's cultural life provide the most enduring path to its rebuilding? Nick Spitzer, host of "American Routes," offers a provocative cultural tour of the city's road to renewal. More...