Actor Paul Rudd attends Marvel's "Ant-Man" Hall H Panel Booth Signing during Comic-Con International 2014 at San Diego Convention Center on July 26, 2014 in San Diego, California.; Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

With the release this week of Marvel’s next superhero release, “Ant-Man,” welcome to a brief look at how the movie is different from the rest of the pack in both character and development.

Although Ant-Man has never been as celebrated as his contemporaries Captain America, Iron Man, and the Hulk, he appeared in 1962 as the creation of legendary comic book writers Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby. He even premiered in the “Avengers” comics as one of its original members. And while shrinking and controlling ants may not be as impressive as flight or super-strength, Ant-Man has always been invaluable for reconnaissance and versatility.

Similar to the character portrayed within, the movie adaptation of the comic has been versatile, especially when it comes to length and cost. “Ant-Man” is just under two hours and set Walt Disney Studios back $150 million, which lies in stark contrast to other films set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe which clocked in at well over two hours and blew past $300 million. While skeptics have been unsure about whether “Ant-Man” can stand up to the giant bar set by its predecessors, the film already collected over $6 million in Thursday-night receipts.

John Horn stepped in to speak with “Ant-Man” director Peyton Reed, checking to see if by the end of the filming process he had become an expert on ants.

Guest:

Peyton Reed, Director, “Ant-Man;” Reed’s previous director credits include “Bring It On” and “Yes Man”

A cafeteria worker supervises lunches for school children at the Normandie Avenue Elementary School in South Central Los Angeles on December 2, 2010. ; Credit: MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images

An audit by the LAUSD’s Office of Inspector General this week found that the second largest school district in the country wasted about $10 million of food in a recent school year.

LAUSD runs more than twice as many kitchens as In-N-Out and the audit shows that school administrators brokered a deal in which they would receive gifts from the nation’s largest food distributors while growing corporate contracts by hundreds of millions of dollars. The inspector general has requested time for a further investigation. We’ll talk about what that might entail.

Should LAUSD offer three meals per day?

CA 14-999 REVIEW OF FSD CATEGORICAL PARTNERING FOOD PROGRAM

Guests:

Annie Gilbertson, KPCC investigative reporter

Michael Angarano (Christopher Archer), Ki Hong Lee (Gavin Lee/3401), Brett Davern (Hubbie Whitlow/7258), Tye Sheridan (Peter Mitchell/819), Johnny Simmons (Jeff Jansen/1037), Ezra Miller (Daniel Culp/8612), and Chris Sheffield (Tom Thompson/2093) in Kyle Alvarez’s "The Stanford Prison Experiment".; Credit: Steve Dietl

It started as a simple test of role-play and compliance, an attempt to understand how placing a randomized sample could affect behavior. What happened next changed experiments forever.

The new film “The Stanford Prison Experiment” is based on a real experiment in 1971 that occurred in the basement of the Stanford Psychology Department. Head researcher Dr. Philip Zimbardo wanted to analyze how the relationships between people would change if some were given the role of “prisoner” and others of “guard.” The environment was a prison, and although all the subjects and researchers were aware that the experiment did not reflect reality, they were asked to treat it as such.

Zimbardo expected that the people might adapt to their roles, but the experiment worked much better (or worse) than even he could have foreseen. The “guards” started to ridicule, segregate, and torture the “prisoners,” leading to extreme breakdowns and emotional collapse. In his own role of lead researcher and superintendent, Zimbardo allowed the abuse to continue, which affected even after the experiment was cancelled after only six days.

Ethical standards for experiments in psychology and other disciplines have permanently changed as a direct result of this experiment - now proposed studies must be approved by Institutional Review Boards. But the experiment was filmed, and the new film is revealing the public what had happened underneath the Stanford Psychology Department during those six days in 1971.

How would have treated prisoners if you were a guard? Would you have rebelled if you were a prisoner? Do you believe that roles and institutional structures have the power to change the way people behave?

Guests:

Kyle Patrick Alvarez, Director of "The Stanford Prison Experiment" - a thriller based on a true story

A California recreational surfer prepares to go surfing on March 18, 2014.; Credit: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

The public face of surf culture has long been assumed to be hang loose, chill out, and ride the waves. But the reality is that on some beaches in Southern California, if you’re not one of them, you’re not welcome.

Recently, journalists from The Guardian visited Lunada Bay in Palos Verdes Estates, a beautiful beach spot that looks like the perfect place to surf. But a group of local surfers who call themselves the ‘Bay Boys’ have been known for chasing off visitors, tourists, or anyone they deem to be an ‘outsider.’ The journalists even took hidden camera video as they were told by several surfers to leave the beach, go home, or find somewhere else to surf.

When the reporters asked police about these territorial surfers, an officer tells them that while police are aware of the group, those not wanting to deal with them should avoid the area.

How does this gang mentality hurt beaches in SoCal? What would it take to bring a gang injunction against a group of surfers like the ‘Bay Boys?’

Guests: 

Jeff Kepley, Palos Verdes Estates Police Chief

Sam George, former editor of Surfer Magazine and longtime surfer. He’s also the Emmy Award-winning director of ‘Hawaiian: The Legend of Eddie Aiaku,’ part of ESPN’s ‘30 For 30’ documentary series.

A budtender pours marijuana from a jar at Perennial Holistic Wellness Center medical marijuana dispensary, which opened in 2006, on July 25, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. ; Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

The CA Board of Equalization (BOE), the state’s tax commission, is throwing its weight behind a plan aiming to get underground medical marijuana dispensaries to pay taxes.

Of the estimated 935 cannabis businesses operating in the City of Los Angeles, about 258 of them don’t have a BOE seller’s permit. Under the plan, BOE would work with these underground dispensaries to comply with state regulations and pay their taxes without receiving punishment.

How does the plan work? Why aren’t dispensaries paying their fair share of taxes? Would the plan work?

Guests: 

Jerome Horton, Chairman, California Board of Equalization, the state tax commission

David Welch, LA-based attorney working in the medical marijuana industry

Actors Paul Rudd (L) and Michael Douglas attend Marvel's "Ant-Man" Hall H Panel Booth Signing during Comic-Con International 2014 at San Diego Convention Center on July 26, 2014 in San Diego, California.; Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney

Amy Nicholson of LA Weekly hosts Filmweek with our film critics Andy Klein and Peter Rainer to review this week’s new releases including the late Marvel thrill “Ant-Man,” the Amy Schumer starrer “Trainwreck,” Woody Allen’s “Irrational Man” and more.

TGI-Filmweek!

Guests:

Peter Rainer, film critic for KPCC and the Christian Science Monitor

Andy Klein, film critic for KPCC and LA Times Community Paper Chain

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at the Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa, on Saturday.; Credit: Nati Harnik/AP

If the Republican establishment’s reaction is anything to go by, presidential candidate Donald Trump has finally crossed the line with his remarks on Senator John McCain’s military service.

While fighting in Vietnam, McCain was captured by the North Vietnamese and spent five years as a prisoner of war.

“He’s not a war hero,” Trump said of McCain at a campaign speech on Saturday.

“He’s a war hero because he was captured,” Trump continued. “I like people that weren’t captured.”

The backlash came swift and strong, particularly among the Republican establishment that has stayed mum on incendiary comments over Mexican immigrants that the celebrity businessman had previously made. GOP presidential hopefuls from Jeb Bush to Scott Walker to Marco Rubio have also joined the fray to voice their condemnation.

Senator McCain, for his part, responded by calling Trump to apologize to all military veterans.

While Trump’s stance on immigration may have won him fans in the conservative segment of the Republican Party, his latest statements could have sunk his presidential bid for good.

Has Trump crossed the line? What’s the impact of remarks about McCain on his campaign going forward?

Guests:

Philip Rucker, reporter at the Washington Post who’s been covering the story for the paper

Noah Bierman, reporter at the Los Angeles Times who covers California politics. His latest piece for the paper looks at how the California Republican Party has responded to Trump’s latest comments

General atmosphere of Lollapalooza Brazil 2015 at Autodromo de Interlagos on March 29, 2015 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.; Credit: Mauricio Santana/Getty Images

“F*** Lollapalooza. That isn’t rock and roll.”

This was the response from Bon Iver founder Justin Vernon when he was asked by Grantland writer Steven Hyden about the lineup for his music festival, Eaux Claires. Vernon went on to lament about how he feels big music festivals like Coachella and Bonnaroo book the same acts, and that the focus of the promoters is more on making money and less on sharing and spreading new music.

There has been discussion of bringing a big music festival to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, but so far the only progress on that front was the Rose Bowl Operating Company entering into a non-binding letter of intent with Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) back in April to run a weekend-long music and arts festival at the famed stadium. The catch? Last time the Rose Bowl had a concert series, residents complained about the noise and activity level, and having multiple weeknight events.

Have major festivals thrown music to the wind in lieu of money or are concert promoters simply booking the acts people want to see? How commercialized have big music festivals become? Do you think it hinders new musicians from getting exposure? How so?

Guests:

Dave Brooks, founder and editor of Amplify, which covers all aspects of the music business

Steven Hyden, staff writer for Grantland. He interviewed Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon for an article called “Lost in the World: Justin Vernon on His New Music Festival and the Uncertain Status of Bon Iver,” which was published on Grantland July 8

Eli Arnold places an American flag in the memorial in front of the Armed Forces Career Center/National Guard Recruitment Office which had been shot up on July 17, 2015 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. According to reports, Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, 24, opened fire on the military recruiting station on July 16th at the strip mall and then drove to an operational support center operated by the U.S. Navy and killed four United States Marines there, more than seven miles away.; Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Gun-rights supporters are arguing that lives could have been saved in last week’s shooting of four unarmed Marines in a “gun free zone” in Chattanooga, TN if only soldiers were permitted to carry weapons.

They’re currently not, thanks to a 1993 directive that was generated by the H.W. Bush administration and tweaked by the Clinton administration, and allows only military police to carry weapons on bases and reserve centers.

Gun rights activists argue that the military police often can't respond to an attack instantly, and those few minutes could mean the difference in how many people survive and that the gun-free policy also makes military facilities bigger targets last week’s shooting -- points that were made after the Fort Hood shooting in 2009 and the Washington Navy Yard shooting in 2013.

After an onslaught of criticism from gun-rights activists and Donald Trump, on Friday, Gen. Ray Odierno, chief of staff of the Army, pledged to review security procedures at military bases and recruiting centers.

Do you think military bases and reserve centers should remain gun-free zones?

Guests:

Brian Lepley, spokesperson for the U.S. Army Recruiting Command Center

Jack McCauley, Fellow with the Crime Prevention Research Center; retired Captain with the Maryland State Police

Ari Freilich, staff attorney with the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence

"I Can't Think"; Credit: Alyssa L. Miller via Flickr

Gin was the supposed cure of choice for F. Scott Fitzgerald.

John Steinbeck told a blocked George Plimpton working on a story on Marianne Moore that he needed to pretend he wasn’t writing to his magazine editor or a reader, but to someone close to him, like a friend, a sister.

Then there are others, who cannot sit down to create without first engaging in some sort of ritual. Take Salman Rushdie, who had a day job while writing “Midnight Children” and took a bath every Friday night before hitting his desk to, he said, “wash the week’s commerce away, and emerge - or so I told myself - as a novelist.”

Call us at 866 893 5722 and let us know what’s your cure for defeating writer’s block - or do you think it’s a myth?

Guest:

Kate Maruyama, novelist whose novel “Harrowgate” came out in 2013. She teaches fiction writing at Antioch University Los Angeles, Writing Workshops Los Angeles, as well as Inspiration2Publication, an online writing workshop

A girls soccer team competes in Baldwin Hills Park. Baldwin Hills along with View Park, Windsor Hills and Ladera Heights comprise the highest concentration of black affluence on the West Coast.; Credit: The City Project/FLICKR

The affluent neighborhood of View Park between Crenshaw and La Brea, is 84 percent African-American.

It's loaded with 2,500-5,000 square foot homes, often with pools and maids' quarters, and architecturally beautiful. These days, whites are moving in, causing residents to take notice of the impact this demographic shift has on the culture of the neighborhood. The LA Times reported there's effort to put View Park on the National Register of Historic Places. This is seen to many as a tactic to make the neighborhood even more desirable to those with the money to live there.

Others, see the potential historic designation as a way to preserve the architectural integrity of the neighborhood and to improve property values.  Ironically, in the 1960s, View Park was white, but when the Supreme Court lifted covenants that barred non-white owners, educated, monied black professionals started moving in. That's when the whites moved out en masse. Now they're returning.

Is that a problem? Is wanting to preserve the current cultural identity of View Park okay? What are the pros and cons of putting View Park on the National Register of Historic Places?

Guests:

Angel Jennings, Staff Reporter at the LA Times

Lance Freeman, Professor and Director of the Urban Planning Program at the Graduate School of Architecture at Columbia University and author of, “There Goes the Hood: View of Gentrification from the Ground Up”

Joe Hicks, VP of Community Advocates and former head of L.A. City Human Relations Commission

A visitor to the Senior HIV Intervention Project booth gathers condoms and literature May 21, 2004 during a health fair in Plantation, Florida.; Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Parents often question when the right time or what the right way is to teach their kids about sexuality, and while the reality is that the answer varies based on the individual, there is still the question of when schools should start teaching sex ed, what they’re teaching, and a new question that may arise if a rewrite of No Child Left Behind is signed into law: How much are schools telling us about how they teach our kids?

Last Thursday, the U.S. Senate quietly passed a revamp of the controversial education law, and included in the 600-page rewrite of the bill is a measure that would force high schools to report the way they teach kids about relationships. It would also mean reporting how they teach kids about what consent is and how to avoid being coerced. Sex education has always been a touchy topic for public school systems, and while experts say the K-12 years are the perfect time to begin sex education, parents others worry that teaching about ways to properly condone sex is impossible without implying that casual sex is acceptable.

How early is too early to begin sex education? Should kids also be learning the right way to consent to sex, and what it means have a consensual encounter? Does teaching safe ways to say yes imply that casual sex is OK?

Guests:

Jonathan Zimmerman, professor of history of education and Director of the History of Education Program at New York University’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. His latest book is “Too Hot To Handle: A Global History of Sex Education” (Princeton University Press, 2015).

Elizabeth Schroeder, international sex education expert and founder of Elizabeth Schroeder Consulting, which helps adults teach young people about sexuality.

Gov. Jerry Brown speaks at the Vatican on climate change on July 21, 2015.; Credit: GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images

Spirituality and climate change appear to be the two biggest items on the agenda as Governor Jerry Brown pays a visit to the Vatican this week, where he’ll meet with Pope Francis and others during a symposium on climate change.

Governor Brown joins five U.S. mayors, including San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, for the visit, which comes a month after the Pontiff put out an encyclical, calling on the scientific and religious communities to work together to fight man-made climate change.

The Governor’s connection to Catholicism is well-documented. Before pursuing his political inclinations, Governor Brown dropped out of Santa Clara University in 1956 to attend the Jesuit novice house Sacred Heart Novitiate, with the intent of becoming a Catholic priest. After three years of study, he left Sacred Heart and enrolled at UC-Berkeley to study Classics. He also spent time in Calcutta, India during the 1980s working with Mother Teresa at one of her hospices to help the dying and destitute.

He and Pope Francis come from similar Jesuit backgrounds and are separated in age by only a year, and many feel that these similarities will help the two connect on an even deeper level.

What are the implications of this meeting for California as a state with high pollution levels? What are the most important things for Governor Brown to emphasize during his meeting with Pope Francis?

Guest:

David Siders, reporter for the Sacramento Bee covering Governor Brown and state politics. He joins us from Rome, near the Vatican, where he’s covering the Governor’s meeting with Pope Francis. Follow him on Twitter @davidsiders for live tweets, photos, and stories about the Governor’s trip.

A man looks at a dating site Ashley Madison on his computer in Washington,DC on February 10, 2014. ; Credit: EVA HAMBACH/AFP/Getty Images

The group claiming to have hacked cheaters' website Ashley Madison for personal information of millions of adulterers allege the company failed to secure users' data.

The so-called Impact Team hackers highlight that Ashley Madison advertises a $19 service fee to members cancelling accounts who want assurances all data will be deleted, but the hackers call that "a complete lie." The group is demanding the site used by "cheating dirtbags" be shut-down or it will release all customer records because they “deserve no discretion.”

What do you think is the real motivation of the hackers? Did Ashley Madison fail to protect user data by linking accounts with payment information? Is it unethical, or a straightforward business cost, for websites to charge a premium to scrub user accounts?

Guests:

Mary Anne Franks, Associate Professor of Law, University of Miami School of Law; Legislative & Tech Policy Director of  the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative (that advocates on behalf of victims of nonconsensual porn); Her research research and teaching interests include cyberlaw and privacy

Paul F. Roberts, Editor in Chief, The Security Ledger, a publication covering all things cyber security in Boston; "Parent Firm of Ashley Madison Faces Extinction Level Hack "

Westwood Blvd north of Wilshire Blvd

Proposed bike lanes for going through Westwood Village on Westwood Boulevard are being discussed.

The stretch would run from Le Conte Ave. which borders the UCLA campus to Wellworth, just one block south of Wilshire. Those in favor of the lanes see them as providing safety to cyclists, and a greener, more agile way to travel. Those against the lanes predict the lanes causing more traffic, less parking, and impacting business in the village negatively.

Westwood Boulevard is a thoroughfare loaded with cars, cyclists and pedestrians. Over 3,000 students, faculty and staff use the Blvd to bike to campus.

Supporters of the bike lanes say there have been a significant number of accidents, involving motorists, and many cyclists nearly missed by vehicles. Critics say the safety of cyclists will be impaired.

Why? Is there a way to install bike lanes so that cyclists and business can be satisfied with the result? Is it all or nothing?

Guests:

Eric Bruins, Planning and Policy Director at the LA County Bicycle Coalition

Barbara Broide, President of the Westwood South of Santa Monica Blvd. Homeowners Association

Human Resources; Credit: Don Bayley/Getty Images/iStockphoto

It seems almost everyone has a negative story about how their workplace’s human resources department failed to support them when it comes to the “human” part of workplace antics like, conflict-resolution with colleagues, bosses, or subordinates, career tips, or interpersonal strategy.

Human Resource departments tend to focus on all the critical administrative tasks necessary to keep the company business flowing. But, in an article written by John Boudreau and Steven Rice, published by the Harvard Business Review, Human Resource departments need a dramatic shaking up.

What has been your experience with HR? Helpful? A hindrance? Would you rather ask a close friend or business associate for advice?

Guest:

John Boudreau, Professor of Management and Organization at the Marshall School of Business at USC

In this composite image provided by NASA, ESA, globular star cluster Omega Centauri (NGC 5139) in the Centaurus constellation and the Hubble SM4 ERO Team, is pictured July 15, 2009 in Space; Credit: NASA/Getty Images

The money from Russian internet entrepreneur Yuri Milner goes toward the creation of a new program that uses the latest scientific methods and technology to jumpstart efforts at finding extraterrestrial life in space.

The “Breakthrough Initiatives” project also has the backing of British cosmologist Stephen Hawking. It will be part of the SETI Research Center at UC Berkeley and include researchers from the Northern California school, as well as Cambridge, and NASA.

Innovative technology the project will use includes signal scanning equipment that comb through so-called quiet zone for the existence of extraterrestrial life.

The half-a-century search for intelligent life in space has thus far yielded little results, but scientists believe that the money put up by Milner would lead to meaningful breakthroughs in the field.

Guests:

Seth Shostak, Senior Astronomer and Director of the Center for Study Research at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California

Projected LADWP rates for FY 2016-2017 compared to other California water districts

Recently, the DWP proposed a tiered water rate hike that, if approved, will bump the average customer’s combined water and power rates to 3.4% every year, or $4.75 a month every year, for five years.

If customers want to cut down on their water usage even more than they already might have, gray water might be an option.

Gray water is gently used water that comes from your bathroom sink, bathtub, shower, and laundry machines. It’s not water that’s been contaminated with waste, as in, that which comes out of your toilet, dishwasher or kitchen sink. The beauty of gray water is that, once piped into your yard, your fruit trees and plants can receive this water that would otherwise be treated and then, ultimately, returned to the ocean.

Gray water is legal in California, and installation is fairly easy and ranges in its affordability. But the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (DWP) has its concerns about gray water.

For example, what if people use bleach in their wash, or other contaminants like dirty cloth diapers. There’s also the issue of people using more water because by doing so, their garden will receive more water. But, the DWP offers rebates on gray water systems for multi-family units, like apartments, and commercial properties. Why?

Is there a way that the DWP could get behind incentivizing single family homes to use gray water? Do you use gray water? Are you seeing cost savings? How’s the garden looking?

Guests:

Laura Allen, Founder of Greywater Action

Marty Adams, Senior Assistant General Manager of the Water System, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power

Women sunbathe in Tignes, southeastern France, on July 21, 2015.; Credit: LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images

With work seemingly taking up more and more of our day, knowing how to make the most of your down time is paramount.

Take your vacation, for example. There are many ways to make it better and more enjoyable. In a piece for the Wall Street Journal, reporter Sumathi Reddy offers tips on precisely that, from spacing out your vacation days, to ensuring you incorporate "me time" on your trips.

Have you gone on a vacation lately? How much planning did you do? What ended up working -- and what not?

Guest:

Sumathi Reddy, reporter at the Wall Street Journal whose story, “The Smartest Way to Take a Vacation” was published earlier this week in the paper

Will we be prepared for an El Niño this year?; Credit: Photo by b3d_ via Flickr Creative Commons

After nearly missing its June water reduction target, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has voted to give the City Council leeway to push through tougher water reduction measures ahead of schedule.

If need be, the City Council can now call for limiting outdoor watering to just two days a week, down from the current allocation of three days a week.

Under the so-called Phase III of the city’s emergency water conservation plan that the two-day-a-week limit falls under, residents would also be asked to use pool covers and refrain from washing their cars at home. Those are recommendations only, but would become mandatory once Phase IV kicks in.

For the plan to work, enforcement would be key. How would LADWP enforce the tougher outdoor watering limit? Would Angelenos comply with the tough restrictions?

In the meantime, El Niño, the powerful storm system many hope could bring relief to the parched state, continues to gain strength. What should Southern California expect if El Niño really is coming?

Guests:

Kevin Wattier, general manager of the Long Beach Water Department

Amir AghaKouchak, climatologist and assistant professor, Center for Hydrology & Remote Sensing (CHRS) at the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at UC Irvine