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Weekdays from 1 to 2 p.m.

Edgar B. Herwick III hosts GBH’s newest show, The Curiosity Desk, weekday afternoons from 1 to 2 p.m. Tune in for conversations, insights and profundities about the world we live in.

We want your input. Have something you’re curious about? Submit your questions via the form below, or email curiositydesk@wgbh.org for the chance to hear them answered on the show.

Watch The Curiosity Desk on the GBH News YouTube Channel or listen daily on GBH.org or 89.7 FM. To weigh in during the show, call or text at 877-301-8970.

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Listen to previous shows

  • First up.... With some help from our studio audience, we’re playing a game of “bad fibs” – that's news-inspired mad libs, with nightside anchor Tori Bedford and a special guest appearance from reporter Marilyn Schairer. Then, All Things Considered host Arun Rath just so happens to be a practicing magician. He’ll join to talk about Boston’s rich history in the world of magic. He’ll also perform the first-ever live radio magic trick in Curiosity Desk history. (And yes... you can do this along at home, all you need is a desk of cards) Lastly, Mount Auburn Cemetery has become a living laboratory for scientists in the field of biodiversity. Edgar meets Herpetologist Joe Martinez & Vice President of Cemetery of Visitor’s Services Bree Harvey to talk about their work reintroducing native aquatic amphibians missing from the cemetery.
  • First, Edgar speaks with NASA flight director Rick Henfling, who is overseeing the Artemis II crew’s return this weekend.Next, shifting from outer space to the ocean’s depths, Edgar sits down with Boston University microbiologist Jeff Marlow to discuss his new book, The Dark Frontier: Unlocking the Secrets of the Deep Sea. Finally, Edgar explores the question, “Who’s really naming all these creatures?” in a conversation with Steve Heard, Honorary Research Professor at the University of New Brunswick, about his book, Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider: How Scientific Names Celebrate Adventurers, Heroes, and Even a Few Scoundrels
  • First up.... Mass. is one week into a new system tracking Alpha-Gal syndrome across the state. The worst concentrations remain on Martha’s Vineyard – but not Nantucket. What’s going on? We'll explore all things Alpha-Gal with biologist Patrick Roden-Reynolds and epidemiologist Lea Hamner, both from The Martha’s Vineyard Tick Program. Then.. We get caught up on Four Things To Know for today, with Gal Tziperman-Lotan who writes the GBH Daily Newsletter. Lastly, we addressing the pressing question: how does an emoji make it from concept to smartphone? We’ll ask Joan Donovan, who helped co-create the beaver emoji. She’ll join alongside Jennifer 8. Lee, a member of the Unicode Emoji Standard and Research Working Group.
  • Edgar talks with GBH reporter Trajan Warren about his latest reporting on a lack of major protests over the killing of Stephenson King, and the state of police accountability activism in Boston. Then... we’re exploring the psychology and economics behind betting sites like Polymarket, with MIT economics chair Jonathan Gruber.Lastly, as the crew on Artemis II rounds the moon & begins their return home, we'll check back with Houston Chronicle space reporter Andrea Leinfelder about the state of the mission.
  • First, we're going behind the scenes on how influencers make a living with Maddie Graves-Witherell, a Boston-based influencer known as Maddie GW, and creator economy expert Lia Haberman, who’s provided social and influencer marketing insight to Google, Robert Half, AT&T and more. Then, for our America 250 coverage, Edgar interviews Nina Sankovitch, author of “Not Your Founding Father: How a Nonbinary Minister Became America's Most Radical Revolutionary,” about the 18th century minister known as Public Universal Friend. Lastly, we dive into the importance of enriched uranium with renowned scientist and Harvard professor John Holdren.