Focus

Focus, or Focus 580, was WILL Radio's flagship talk program from 1981 until 2014. David Inge was the host from 1981 until his retirement in 2012. Always engaging, the program acted as a resource for citizens to directly question politicians and candidates as well as keep up on the arts, science, health, and even the latest from well-known novelists.

The Focus archive below offers thousands of great interviews and serves as a time capsule and a great resource for researchers and those just curious about how influential people spoke of important topics as they were happening.

Life Script: How the Human Genome Discoveries Will Transform Medicine and Enhance Your Health

Guest: Nicholas Wade.

The sequencing of the human genome is set to change medicine forever. Today on Focus, science writer Nicholas Wade joins the show to explore the impact genetic science will have on how diseases are diagnosed and treated. We'll also review stem cell research, the treatment it may be able to offer treatment for a range of debilitating conditions, and the ethical controversy still surrounding it.

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Ancient Encounters: Kennewick Man and the First Americans

Guest: James Chatters.

One of the oldest human skeletons found to date is referred to as "Kennewick Man." This skeleton was discovered by two young men along the Columbia River in 1996 and brought to the attention of James Chatters, a forensic anthropologist and our guest today on Focus. Controversy arose when the U.S. government reclaimed Kennewick Man and placed him in storage—but Chatters had done enough tests to reveal the skeleton to be nearly 9,500 years old. Today on Focus, Chatters will explain how, armed with this information, he set out on a multicontinental quest to understand the origins of Kennewick Man.

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The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention that Changed the World

Guest: Amir D. Aczel.

Most historians agree that the compass has its origins in ancient Chinese lodestones. It was not utilized for sea travel, however, until the Italians unleashed its formidable powers in the twelfth century. Amir D. Aczel, author of The Riddle of the Compass, joins us today on Focus to share the story of navigation through the ages and the impact that the rise of the compass made on history.

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