Conversation

What makes this legislative session so special? Ross Reynolds talks with Olympia correspondent Austin Jenkins about what is and isn't happening in our state's capitol.

When you think of plastic surgery maybe you think of best implants, botox or even facelifts, but there are surgeries that are happening more and more these days that you might have never even imagined. Ross Reynolds talks gynecomastia and labiaplasty with Northwest plastic surgeon, Dr. Phil Haeck.

According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 70 percent of Americans believe the Republican Party is out of touch with the concerns of most people in the United States. Even more revealing is that 49 percent of Republicans feel the GOP is out of touch.

What about you? If you identify as a Republican or a conservative: Is the party out of step with mainstream voters? Ross Reynolds discusses the GOP with listeners.

Monica Guzman is a columnist for The Seattle Times and Northwest tech news site GeekWire. I caught up with her in the KUOW green room before her interview with Ross Reynolds to talk about the latest tech goodies on her radar and in her smartphone, her new vlog, and what she does to get away from it all.

Nearly 40 percent of Americans engaged in political activity on social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter in the 2012 campaign.  That’s a dramatic increase from 2008 when only 26 percent of the population even used a social networking site, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center.  KUOW’s Ross Reynolds takes a closer look at the new study with Pew researcher Aaron Smith.

Today Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson ordered T-Mobile USA to stop deceptive advertising for its “no contract” plans.

Washington isn’t the only state that legalized marijuana for recreational use last fall.  Colorado did it too.  Now both states are in the process of trying something that’s never been done: regulating the growing, processing and selling of pot for recreational use. 

Ross Reynolds compares the experience in the two states with Colorado Public Radio’s Ben Markus and KUOW’s Amy Radil.

The Washington State Liquor Control Board is working to figure out how to create and regulate a legalized marijuana market. It’s not clear whether regulations will include limits on things like potency or pesticide use, but right now, there are only a couple of places in the state equipped to measure marijuana purity and potency.

Futurist Sonia Arrison believes the first person to live to 150 years has already been born. What will the rapidly evolving improvements in medicine and life extension mean for us, our society and the earth? What will living longer mean for careers, family and faith?

New York comic-strip artist Ben Katchor was the first cartoonist to be awarded a MacArthur Foundation “genuis” grant. Ben Katchor's new book, "Hand-Drying In America," examines urban design with a wryly whimsical sensibility. Ross Reynolds talks New York, life and art with Ben Katchor.