Colorado Matters

Today, the possibility of a second chance for 48 inmates in Colorado sentenced to life without parole as teenagers. The U.S. Supreme Court says their sentences must be reviewed. And, a Denver artist learns she had multiple sclerosis after waking up with distorted vision, and figures out a way to combine that new fact of life with her creativity.

Coloradan David Klaus was a launch commander for NASA when the space shuttle Challenger exploded 30 years ago. He’s now a professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, and he talks about his memories of that day. Then, a new exhibit that one artist hopes inspires the state’s art community. Also, they’re called “sharrows” and they’re meant to prevent collisions between bicyclists and cars, but do they work? Then, a look back at Beat writer Neal Cassady’s time in Denver.

Today, an encore show featuring some of our favorite recent interviews with a history bent. Our founding fathers worried a lot about health. We hear from a Colorado author about her book “Revolutionary Medicine,” and Jeffersoncare. Then, extreme skier Chris Anthony is in awe of the 10th Mt. Division soldiers on skis who helped win World War II. And a look at the movie about screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, a Grand Junction native. It stars Bryan Cranston, who was just nominated for an Oscar.

The problems that led to the school shooting at Arapahoe High School two years ago aren’t unique. That’s according to several new independent investigations. We explore the steps some say Colorado schools need to take to make them safer. Then, another challenge schools and students face: bullying on social media. A new play shows the pain it causes a teenage girl and her mother. Also, scientists think they’ve found a 9th planet in our solar system, but one astronomer says, “show me.” And, why researchers are worried about a 1,000-year-old glacier west of Boulder.

Lafayette Democratic lawmaker Mike Foote says offshore tax havens are robbing the state of millions in tax dollars. He wants the legislature to take action. Then, a new collection of short fiction by an author who calls his style “Chicano Noir.” Plus, a new Nova documentary highlights how CU Boulder scientists quickly began to study last year’s massive earthquake in Nepal. And the Fat Bike Championships are coming to Crested Butte this week, but not everyone’s happy about it. We’ll learn why.

Anxious. Frightened. Angry. Those are words that describe the mood of voters this year. The big question, especially for Latinos in Colorado, is whether those feelings will inspire more people to vote, or to tune out. CPR News partners with NPR to look at the overall tone of the election… and how that may play out in our swing state. Then, in an encore presentation, ornithologist John Marzluff has advice on how to make a home for birds and other wild animals in the face of rapid development in the West.

Mike King butted heads with the EPA over the Gold King Mine spill, and navigated contentious fracking issues, as head of Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources. He joins us as he prepares to step down and take a new job at Denver Water. Then, older white men are committing suicide at staggering rates in Colorado. We ask why. We also take a look back at the Golden age of Colorado Radio. And, we hear how a galactic merger could uncover a new kind of black hole.

Silverton is a town that resisted Superfund designation for years, now appears to be courting it after the Gold King Mine Spill. We speak with the editor of the Silverton Standard, who says a designation would address a whole cluster of leaky mines. Then, if you buy stuff on Amazon to skirt sales taxes your tax-free holiday is coming to an end. But why now, after all this time? We get your feedback in Loud and Clear. And then, Colorado businesses that deal in aging technology: A shop that fixes typewriters finds new interest in them. And one of Denver’s last video rental stores seeks help in the non-profit world.