Scholars’ Circle – Book Author interview – Melting Point: Family, Memory, and the Search for a Promised Land ; Mining the Ocean Floor – July 13, 2025

The search for a safe haven for Jewish people in the early 20th Century led some Zionists to land on Galveston, Texas as a potential homeland for Jewish refugees.

Collage of jewish people in search of homeland

What was the Galveston Movement and what happened to it? We interviews the author of a new book MELTING POINT: Family, Memory, and the Search for a Promised Land. [ dur: 35mins. ]

  • Rachel Cockerell is a writer and historian.

Then, the search for minerals is leading some corporations to begin mining the ocean floor but scientists warn that this could devastate fragile ecosystems that will have repercussions that we still don’t understand. What is going on in the deep sea? What precautions should be taken to prevent devastating fragile ecosystems? [ dur: 23 mins. ]

  • Craig Smith is Professor of Oceanography at the University of Hawai’i.
  • Verena Tunnicliffe is a marine biologist at the University of Victoria in Canada where she holds a Canada Research Chair in Deep Ocean Research.

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Supreme Court decisions: Federal Injunctions and Religious belief exemption from public school curriculum – July 6, 2025

The US Supreme Court has decided numerous cases and announced their opinions in the past week. On today’s show we explore two cases.

The Court declared an end to national injunctions in a case involving birthright citizenship. [ dur: 28mins. ]

Parents can remove their children from any class they deem in opposition to their religious beliefs. [ dur: 30mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Aging & wars ; Peaceful use of nuclear power – June 29, 2025

Does the aging world population mean fewer wars in the future? What exactly is a geriatric peace?

book cover of the book the Geriatric Peace - population aging and the decline of war, blue cver with a white peace dove balanced on a walking stick

Our guest, Mark L. Haas, is the author of The Geriatric Peace: Population Aging and the Decline of War. [ dur: 30mins. ]

Then, we explore a new book on the peaceful uses of nuclear power: The Wretched Atom by Jacob Hamblin. [ dur: 28mins., recorded August 2021 ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Israel and Iran War – June 22, 2025

We look at the history of conflict and outcome in the past to understand the attacks between Israel and Iran to control Nuclear capabilities of Iran. What is the humanitarian and political impact of this war? On both Iran and on Israel. What is the impact on the region? Is this war legal, based on the laws of war? Principle of  JUS AD BELLUM. And how would American intervention on behalf of Israel escalate the war, and complicate the war. [ dur: 58mins. ]

Note: This recording was made before US bombing of Iran’s Nuclear Facility on June 22, 2025.

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – ICE and Militarization on the streets of Los Angeles – June 15, 2025

President Trump has ordered federalization of the California National Guard and deployed them to Los Angeles. He also has deployed active Marines in the city. Does this violate the law? What is the law of posse comitatus? What is its history? And will mass protests help preserve democracy? The law of Posse Comitatus needs reform to prevent abuse? In today’s political environment, is this even possible? [ dur: 58mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Pope Leo & Augustinian thought – June 8, 2025

What will it mean for Catholicism and the world to have the first Augustinian Pope? What were the teachings of Augustine of Hippo, who inspires the Order of Augustine? And what are Pope Leo’s theological views for the Church and beyond as the Church confronts a world with poverty, violence, and war? [ dur: 58mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Author interview of the book – Can Deliberation Cure the Ills of Democracy? ; Remembering Ngugi wa Thiongo author of Decolonizing the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature – June 1, 2025

We interview Professor James S. Fishkin author of the recently published book – Can Deliberation Cure the Ills of Democracy? . Then we remember Ngugi wa Thiongo , scholar of language and author many books such as Decolonizing the Mind: The Politics of Language in African Literature (1986).

Discussion with Professor Fishkin on his book Can Deliberation Cure the Ills of Democracy?. He shares his experience in conducting deliberative polling 150+ times around the world. Hosted by Doug Becker.  [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • James S. Fishkin he holds the Janet M. Peck Chair in International Communication at Stanford University. He is the Professor of both communication and of political science at Stanford University and a senior fellow of the Freeman Spogly Institute for International Studies and the director of the Deliberative democracy lab. His work focuses on a concept We’ll get into, uh, called deliberative polling.


Interview with Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o hosted by Prof. David Lloyd. This is an excerpt from the original recording from October 2021 ( show link ).  In this excerpt Professor Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o recalls his thoughts on theory of Globalectics and how it affects thoughts of decolonizing the mind.  [ dur: 28 mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Emolument Clause & Trump Qatar gifts ; The harm of microplastics – May 25, 2025

What exactly is an emolument? Is the airplane gift from Qatar to President Trump an emolument? Is it evidence of corruption? Has the Supreme Court continued to enable corruption? Our guests interpret the Emolument Clauses in the U.S. Constitution. [ dur: 26mins. ]

From the arctic to the depths of the oceans, microplastics are wreaking havoc, posing health threats to human health, animal life & the ecosystems on which we all rely. How did we get here and what can we do? [ dur: 26mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Maria Armoudian, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – Canadian election insights – May 18, 2025

Canada’s Liberals were facing a 20 point deficit a few months back but came back to maintain power by re-electing Liberal Prime Minister, Mark Carney. What does this mean for the country and its challenges this year and beyond? What are Canada’s most pressing political challenges? Canadian politics are complex and experts argue their most recent election was not only a reaction to Donald Trump’s remarks about the country. [ dur: 58mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

Scholars’ Circle – First 100 days into the second Trump administration – May 11, 2025

We are 100 days into the second Trump Administration. How different is this term from his first and from other Presidents? What are the constitutional and normative challenges it poses to American democracy? Just how much has Trump attempted to consolidate power in the Presidency? What are the biggest threats his administration poses to the constitution, the rule of law and to American democracy? [ dur: 58mins. ]

This program is produced by Doug Becker, Ankine Aghassian, and Sudd Dongre.

By Maria Armoudian