Guest: Michael Hamilton Morgan.

Today, relations between Islam and the West have been strained by mistrust and misunderstanding; yet there was a time when Muslim intellectual achievement was the envy of the world. Today on Focus we're joined by author Michael Hamilton Morgan to explore the ways that Muslim mathematicians, inventors, and astronomers helped set the stage for the European Renaissance, only to be drowned out and forgotten by their successors.

Guest: Timothy Ferris.

Some of the most iconic scientific figures in history have directly built on and influenced our understanding of astronomy. Today on Focus, we're joined by Timothy Ferris, author of the recent book Coming of Age in the Milky Way. He's researched a number of brilliant scientists who struggled against political and religious forces in their studies of the universe. He'll talk about the history of astronomy and more on the show.