A couple kisses on Valentine's Day. The day is named after two of 11 officially recognized Early Christian martyrs named Valentine, namely Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni.; Credit: Kristian Dowling/Getty Images

The Love and Fidelity Network is running its campaign, #BringDatingBack, on college campuses this Valentine’s Day.

The campaign’s goal is to promote dates without sexual contact as an opposition to what could be described as the college hook-up culture.

The Love and Fidelity Network’s director, Caitlin La Ruffa, has said that young people feel obligated to “hook-up” and she wants to change that. As a proponent of abstinence before marriage, La Ruffa hopes the campaign will encourage students to engage in a chaste form of casual dating, such as asking someone out for a cup of coffee or a burger.

While La Ruffa isn’t alone in her opposition to the casual sex that is widely accepted as dating on college campuses, but some see hooking up as a form of sexual freedom and a form of empowerment, especially for women who don’t want to derail their career paths with short-term relationships.

So what do you think of the college hook-up culture? Is it damaging or empowering? Should the promotion of casual, sex-free dating be more prominent on campuses?

Guests:

Caitlin La Ruffa, executive director of the Love and Fidelity Network, a pro-abstinence organization which started the #BringDatingBack campaign

Kathleen Bogle, Associate Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice, La Salle University; and author of "Hooking Up: Sex, Dating and Relationships on Campus" (NYU Press, 2008)

David Reitze, executive director of the LIGO Laboratory at Caltech, announces that scientists have observed ripples in the fabric of spacetime called gravitational waves for the first time.; Credit: SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

For the first time ever, scientists can actually hear the universe.

A team of physicists announced Thursday that they were able to detect and record the sound of two black holes a billion light-years away colliding with one another. A hundred years ago, Albert Einstein posited that gravitational waves existed, but until now these ripples in the fabric of space-time were undetectable. Now, thanks to the twin Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors and the team that worked on them, the final piece of Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

What does the universe sound like? The LIGO team says it was a faint tone that was the result of a collision about 1.2 billion years ago that rose to the note of middle C before stopping. It signifies the warping of space-time itself.

Until now, scientists haven’t been able to measure that sound over the other noises of our planet, but in September 2015, the LIGO antenna were able to measure vibrations from a gravitational wave in The discovery is being likened by some to the night Galileo first pointed a telescope toward the sky and observed the planets.

Just how important is this discovery to the scientific community?

Guests:

Alan Weinstein, professor of physics at Caltech

Lawrence Krauss, theoretical physicist and Foundation Professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration and Physics Department at Arizona State University

Visitors are few at Carbon Beach, the so-called "Billionaires' Beach," on the first day of the opening of a new access route. The California Coastal Commission opened a third public path to Carbon Beach.; Credit: Nick Ut/AP

The search for a replacement for Charles Lester promises to be contentious, after last night's firing of the top executive of the California Coastal Commission.

The powerful agency that manages development on California's coastline voted 7-5 to oust Lester - after an impassioned hearing of nearly 12 hours. Environmentalists say Lester was fired because of pressure from development interests. Critics of Lester say his management of the office was plagued with delays and that decisions lack transparency.

Who are some contenders to replace Lester? What qualifications and sensibilities will she or he need to bring to the job?

Guests:

Steve Kinsey, Chairman, California Coastal Commission

Fred Gaines, a Calabasas councilman and attorney who has represented developers and property owners before the commission for 25 years

Sarah Sikich, Vice President, Heal the Bay - nonprofit environmental organization based in Santa Monica

A teaching candidate speaks with a recruiter at a teachers job fair.; Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

A report released in January by the Learning Policy Institute warned of an impending teacher shortage in California.

Three bills have been introduced in the state Legislature to address the problem, hoping to replenish a pipeline that has been left dry by a variety of reasons including funding cuts.

It is not an issue facing only the Golden State, many districts and cities in America also find themselves having to deal with finding and retaining qualified educators to staff their schools.

A panel of education experts joins Larry to look at the reasons behind the shortage, and solutions going forward.

Guests:

Angela Minnici,  Director of the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders at the American Institutes for Research (AIR), a behavioral and social science research and evaluation organization. AIR recently held a forum looking at the issue of teacher shortage

Linda Darling-Hammond, a professor emeritus at Stanford University and president of the Learning Policy Institute. She is the lead author of the recent report, “Addressing California’s Emerging Teacher Shortage: An Analysis of Sources and Solutions”

Catherine Brown, Vice President of Education Policy at the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning thinking tank in DC. It released a report last year looking at how to address teacher shortage in America

Eric Scroggins, Chief Strategy Officer for Teach for America, that works to increase the number of recent college graduates to go into teaching. He is also the acting executive director at the Bay Area chapter of the nonprofit

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (R) (I-VT) speaks with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka (L).; Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images

The Nevada caucuses are fast approaching this month, and the Culinary Union -- the most powerful union in the state with over 60,000 members -- has yet to endorse a Democratic candidate for president.

Our guests weigh the issues that matter to the Culinary Union and where its endorsements landed historically. We also take a look at the most powerful national unions and federations such as the teachers unions, AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations), UAW (United Auto Workers), SEIU (Service Employees International Union), and AFSCME (American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees).

Where do they stand when it comes to their endorsements for Democratic presidential candidates?

Guests:

Nicholas Riccardi, AP West political reporter; he tweets from @NickRiccardi

John Nichols, National Affairs Correspondent, The Nation; he tweets from @NicholsUprising

Today the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved legislation that would transfer control of the air-traffic control system out of the hands of the Federal Aviation Administration to a not-for-profit corporation.
; Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

Today the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved legislation that would transfer control of the air-traffic control system out of the hands of the Federal Aviation Administration to a not-for-profit corporation.

The bill is called The Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization (AIRR) Act. Opponents argue that the bill is essentially a power grab by the airlines, and that the publicly-funded air-control system should not be run by the proposed 11-member corporation, which would partly be comprised of members nominated by the major airlines.

In addition to the issue of how and who should run air-traffic control, the two Republican lawmakers who introduced the bill also added a few items that consumers would likely find favorable, like requiring all airports to have lactation rooms, a ban on in-flight voice calls, and a mandatory refund for baggage fees if luggage go missing for more than 24 hours.

Guests: 

Robert Poole, Director of Transportation Policy, the Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank

Thomas L. Hendricks, President and CEO of National Air Transportation Association, public policy group that represents the interests of the general aviation business community; represents nearly 1,600 aviation businesses

UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura holds up a map of Syria during a news conference after the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting in Munich, southern Germany, on February 12, 2016. ; Credit: CHRISTOF STACHE/AFP/Getty Images

Secretary of State John Kerry announced that major world powers have reached a ceasefire in Syria that will begin in one week.

The US was among 17 nations to meet in Munich to figure out a way to dial down violence in Syria. The group also has agreed to speed up and commit additional resources to humanitarian aid to the country.

But Kerry cautioned that while an agreement has been reached, it still takes the full commitment of each country to make the ceasefire a lasting reality.

Guests:

Alan Johnston, Middle East analyst for the BBC based in London. He has been the BBC's correspondent in Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and the Gaza Strip. He tweets from @AlanJohnstonBBC

Mohsen Milani, Professor of Politics, and the Executive Director of the Center for Strategic and Diplomatic Studies, University of South Florida

US Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders wave after the PBS NewsHour Presidential Primary Debate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on February 11, 2016.; Credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images

After losing by double digits in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Hillary Clinton continued to go after Bernie Sanders’ ambitious agenda on issues like college costs and health care during Thursday night’s PBS Newshour Democratic Debate in Milwaukee.

The two candidates continued to highlight their fundamental differences, despite agreeing in principal on many of the policy issues discussed. Senator Sanders is pushing a big, progressive agenda that is energizing a large group of voters who want to see change, while Secretary Clinton is arguing for many of the same reforms but with the added bonus of her experience as a Senator, First Lady, and Secretary of State.

Meanwhile, two Republican candidates decided to call it off this week. Former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina said she’d be ending her campaign after spending a number of weeks at the bottom end of GOP polls, and despite winning some points after hammering Marco Rubio during last Saturday’s GOP debate for robotically repeating the same line several times, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will return to work in Trenton after ending his run as well.

Who do you think had the edge in last night’s debate? Have the cycle of debates ever changed your view on a candidate or his/her platform? Where does each party stand heading into next week’s South Carolina primary?

Guests: 

Erikka Knuti, Democratic strategist with Purple Strategies, a political consulting firm based in Washington, D.C.

Lisa Camooso Miller, Republican strategist and partner at Blueprint Communications, a public affairs firm based in Washington, D.C.

AirTalk's Larry Mantle hosts a live student debate at Pomona College. Students present arguments for their favorite presidential candidate.; Credit: KPCC

Vote now: Which student on today's program made the most compelling argument for a candidate? Let us know what you think.

Granite State voters streamed to the polls yesterday for New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary, with Bernie Sanders winning the state's Democratic primary and Donald Trump won on the Republican side.

Listen to AirTalk's coverage at 11 a.m. or watch it live below.

After Ted Cruz and Hillary Clinton secured victories in the Iowa caucuses last week, it is expected that New Hampshire’s results will be a bellwether for the primaries to come.

But before the nation’s eyes turn to the South Carolina primary, AirTalk’s expert panel of political scientists from across the Claremont Colleges take a look back at the winners and losers from New Hampshire and what lies ahead on the campaign trail for the frontrunners and those still trying to make up ground while there’s time left to spare.

One of the biggest and most important voter groups for any presidential candidate to secure is the youth vote, and today we’ll get a look inside the minds of young, politically-charged college voters who want to leave their mark on this election. Members of the Claremont Colleges’ Republican and Democrat student groups have chosen a candidate to represent, and each surrogate will have a chance to make the case for his or her candidate.

Finally, two students from each group will square off in a final debate to try and answer the question: Why is your party the best one to lead the country?

Tweet us your thoughts @AirTalk.

Live: Airtalk hosts student debate at Claremont

Guests:

Zach Courser, Research Director of the Dreier Roundtable and visiting Assistant Professor of government at Claremont McKenna College. He tweets from @zcourser

Lorn Foster, Professor of American Government and Politics at Pomona College

David Menefee-Libey, Professor of Politics at Pomona College. He tweets from @DMenefeeLibey

Vanessa Tyson, Assistant Professor of Politics at Scripps College. She tweets from @VanessaCTyson

The debate over whether it should be President Barack Obama or his successor who appoints the next Supreme Court justice is heating up.; Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images

The debate over whether it should be President Barack Obama or his successor who appoints the next Supreme Court justice is heating up.

Writing in today's Washington Post, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid says by refusing to approve an Obama nominee to succeed the late Justice Antonin Scalia, the GOP-led Senate would "aim a procedural missile at the foundation of our system of checks and balances." But Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch tells CNN that the Constitution doesn't specify a "time constraint" for approving a new justice. 

The No. 3 Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer of New York, said today that he expects Obama to select a consensus candidate who could get bipartisan support. But Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texan who has practiced before the high court and is seeking the Republican presidential nomination, has vowed to filibuster any nominee.

It also remains to be seen what strategy President Obama will employ in choosing his nominee — will he choose someone with a liberal record, knowing that the Republicans are all but sure to block the nomination?

If Obama goes liberal, does that fire up Republicans and boost turnout? Or does he choose someone moderate, possibly even someone who's been nominated before by a Republican president? And does that backfire on Republicans if their delay the nomination regardless of the nominee?

Meanwhile, a wild presidential race becomes even more important, as each party knows the stakes for the Court's future. At stake are Affirmative Action, gun laws, campaign finance restrictions, and the reach of Presidential power.

With Files from the Associated Press.

Guests:

Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the School of Law at UC Irvine and an expert on constitutional law

Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow in constitutional studies at the Cato Institute and editor-in-chief of the Cato Supreme Court Review.

Marcia Coyle, Chief Washington Correspondent, The National Law Journal; as a lawyer and journalist, Coyle has covered the Supreme Court for 25 years; She’s also the author of “The Roberts Court: The Struggle for the Constitution;”  

Josh Gerstein, Senior White House Reporter at POLITICO who’s been following the story

Rory Cooper, GOP strategist and managing director at Purple Strategies, a political consulting firm in Washington, D.C. He was also the communications director for former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.

Celinda Lake, a political strategist and president of  Lake Research Partners, a Democratic polling firm based in Washington DC

A man is brought to jail by a New York City Police Officer in New York City. Both New York and Chicago have recently witnessed spikes in crime and shootings.; Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Rather than locking up repeat offenders, the city of Washington D.C. is considering an alternative that would incentivize them to behave.

Earlier this month, the D.C. Council passed the NEAR Act, a bill that would, in part, pay offenders a yearly stipend to stay in behavioral health and job placement programs. The most likely candidates would be criminals who have previous offenses involving firearms and who police consider a risk to reoffend.

Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, who represents Ward 5 in D.C., says the city needs to start looking at its crime problem through the lens of public health, and he hopes this program will be a start. It’s modeled off of a program that was implemented in Richmond, California, which has seen a marked decrease in homicides ever since.

Still, it’s unclear whether the unanimous support Councilmember McDuffie won from his colleagues on the D.C. Council will translate into action. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has said she is concerned the bill doesn’t actually present a provision to fight crime and that the plan isn’t a balanced approach. There are also sure to be issues raised around funding the program and implementing it in a city the size of Washington D.C.

Do you think incentivizing good behavior is a sustainable crime prevention model? What concerns, if any, do you have about the optics of the program?

Guests:

Kenyan McDuffie, member of the Council of the District of Columbia, representing Ward 5, and author of the NEAR Act

Eugene O’Donnell, professor of law and police science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice; former NYPD officer and former prosecutor in Kings County, New York

“Sweet Dreams Are Made of This: A Life in Music” by Dave Stewart; Credit: Penguin Random House 2016

With more than 100 million albums sold and musical collaborations ranging from Bono and Mick Jagger to Katy Perry and Joss Stone, Dave Stewart has lived a life that most  people only dream about.

Stewart’s new book, “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This,” features never-before-seen photographs and anecdotes about Stewart’s experience with sex, drugs and rock & roll. Stewart opens up about his personal relationship with the second half of Eurythmics, Annie Lennox, and gives readers an inside look into the life of a successful rock star.

Early in his book Stewart writes, “Looking back during the writing of this book has been a lot of fun although it’s sometimes difficult to remember the times that I’d rather forget.”

He sits with Larry Mantle today to discuss his new book and share some unforgettable experiences.

Dave Stewart will be discussing his new book, “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This: A Life in Music” at the Skirball Cultural Center tonight, Wednesday, February 17 at 8:00 p.m. Click here for more information. ​

Guest: 

Dave Stewart, guitarist and producer of the band, Eurythmics, and author of the new memoir, “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This: A Life in Music” (Penguin Random House, 2016)

LAPD Chief Charlie Beck addresses the media at Police Headquarters in Los Angeles, California.; Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

To combat a spike in crime, upwards of 2,500 LAPD officers must be hired by 2020, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck told City Councilmembers yesterday.

Lawmakers asked about the 2015 crime numbers which saw homicides rise 8.8 percent, total violent crimes jump by 20.3 percent, and property crimes increase by 10.7 percent.  

Separately, Beck is arguing that crime-watchers are wrong about any so-called Ferguson effect in Los Angeles - the theory that police are withdrawing from protecting communities due to public outrage that followed the police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014.

Writing in an LA Times opinion piece last week, Beck states: "The events in Ferguson highlighted how many communities in America do not believe that the police are using their authority fairly and legitimately. This perception — and in some unfortunate cases, reality — has created a barrier to cooperation between cops and residents to combating crime. That is the real Ferguson effect." Are weaker links with LA communities contributing to more crime?

Interview Highlights

Question: Well I'm sure you thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's meeting of the LA City Council Public Safety Committee where there were (sic) a lot said about the deployment of officers and rising crime in the city. First of all do you think that meeting in which your deployment of officers came under criticism, do you think the meeting accomplished anything?

Well Larry I don't think the Council was criticizing the deployment they just want information and so we try give it to them. Ya know everybody is entitled to know what their police department is doing to a certain extent and we wanna make sure the council knows what we're doing to what is a state rise in crime not just in the City of Los Angeles but every major city in the state of California is dealing with a crime rise. Some much more significant than the city of Los Angeles.

You said that you think the department needs to grow with its sworn officers force up about 2500 officers by 2020, right now you're having trouble aren't you recruiting enough officers just to get them qualified for the department, how tough would it be to add 2500 additional cops?

Well it would be a lot of work. Obviously the city would have to commit to it .... We'd have to schedule funding for it over time. Of course you know you can't increase them all at once. That would be not only foolhardy - because we want to pick the right people and train them correctly -  but also not feasible because you can't put that many people through the pipeline. But to give you an idea why I think we need to grow the police department: it's not only to deal with the changes in state law that put so many more criminals on the street, Prop 47; it's not only to deal with the increase in the homeless population in the City of Los Angeles -  almost 14 percent increase this year-; it's not only to deal with the expanded threat of terrorism which I think you know is something we have to recognize takes a lot of resource, it is to be able to police this city in a way that we all want to be policed; in a way that values interaction over just blind response to 911; in a way that builds partnerships in a way where people can know the police officers that work their neighborhood. You know the problem with a small police department is that you have to be everywhere at once, and so you have no continuity of officers many times within small neighborhoods. And that is one of the most successful strategies we have is to have the same cops in the same neighborhood building relationships.

If you were to have the same number of officers per capita as cities like Chicago and New York, how many officers would Los Angeles have?

Well Chicago and New York and Philadelphia - the other three big three major urban centers - all have around 45 officers per 10,000 population. The City of Los Angeles, the LAPD has 25 per 10,000, so we would need almost twice as many officers to meet their level of deployment, I don't think -- (over-talking)

And this is a city much more spread out than those cities.

I think this is arguably a much more difficult city to police uh then those - just geographically, if not through population, if not through ya know the multi-cultures that the City of Los Angeles has. So, a lot of challenges. I don't think we need to be twice the size that we are. I try to be reasonable about this. I recognize that ya know this is a time of tough financial situation and that we have to be measured in what we want to do. And I don't propose doing this all at once, I propose thinking about it as an incremental increase over the years to get us where we need to be. And probably I won't be the chief when we reach that number but we should start planning for that.

I wanna go back to yesterday's public safety meeting of the City Council, this was called for by the Police Protective League - the union. And uh to paraphrase their criticism, they're not happy about the officers you took off of patrol and put into the mobile Metropolitan Division to go to hot spots. They don't seem to be happy about the number of officers assigned to work on the body-cam program. So what's your argument back against that criticism of deployment?

Well ya know I've been a successful police chief in Los Angeles for seven years now. We've had 12 straight years of crime decline using deployment strategies much like this. Metropolitan Division was increased in size over this past year, but we had decreased it when we were in the Great Recession and were having to send officers home rather than pay them overtime and now it's time to increase it. And that is partially due to: the increase in crime, increase in violent crime; our desire and our need to respond to spikes in violent crime across the city; but also our need to respond to terrorist incidents. And ya know our patrol officers are gonna be the first responders to incidents of terrorism in Los Angeles, but the second responders will take over, especially the aggravated circumstance of barricades or hostages is Metropolitan Division. And I have to have a robust tool to meet the challenges of the city. Ya know, I have a lot of responsibilities. One of them is 911 response which is our patrol force, but the other is terrorism response and the other is making sure that this is as safe of a city as it can possibly be. And I do want to remind folks that this year we did see an increase in crime, or actually [2015] saw an increase in crime compared to [2014], but we're still at levels, safety levels that are unique in my lifetime. The past five years have been the safest five years since I've been alive and that's a long time.

On whether the crime increase will continue:

I think that we have not fixed the core issues. The increase in crime is easily, well not easily, is traced to several core issues and one of them, I think, is Prop 47's inability to come through with its promise to supply treatment rather than jail. And the other is an increase in homelessness; increase in gang violence. Until we address these core issues, we are going to be struggling with this. And that is one of the reasons why I think we need to not only be strategic in how we deploy our resources which Metropolitan Division is one of those. But also think about growing the police department because identifying these problems is not going to make them go away. Identifying these problems just gets us started in making them go away.

Are you getting any traction on rehabilitation programs out of Prop 47?

You know the state has identified some monies and is in the process of evaluating their distribution. And ya know I'm hoping that it won't be too little too late. And ya know we're working with the state and I believe they know what our challenges are. Now whether they'll meet those challenges, we'll see.

Listen to the rest of the interview by clicking the "play" button.

Guest:

Charlie Beck, Chief, Los Angeles Police Department. He tweets from @LAPDChiefBeck

Lonnie Franklin Jr., who has been charged with 10 counts of murder in what have been dubbed the "Grim Sleeper" serial killings that spanned two decades, appears at a court hearing.; Credit: Nick Ut/AP

Testimony began Tuesday in the much-anticipated trial of Lonnie Franklin, Jr., a.k.a. ‘The Grim Sleeper.’

He’s pleading not guilty to ten counts of first degree murder and one count of attempted murder for a spate of killings spanning more than 20 years in South Los Angeles. For years, the killings left law enforcement guessing, but advances in DNA technology over the years finally allowed investigators to make the connection that led them to Franklin.

As the trial began, prosecutors painted a picture of a man who knew South L.A.’s streets intimately, and during a time when crack cocaine was an epidemic, they say he preyed on women who had drug problems and would lure with promises of narcotics.

They showed grisly photos of several of the women Franklin allegedly killed, saying they were “dumped like trash.”

Franklin’s attorney chose not to make an opening statement on Tuesday, so it’s still unclear exactly what his defense will be.

The trial resumes on Wednesday. For more of KPCC’s coverage, click here.

Guests:

Annie Gilbertson, KPCC investigative reporter; she tweets from @AnnieGilbertson

Andrew Blankstein, investigative reporter for NBC News; former L.A. Times reporter who covered crime and the LAPD, including the Grim Sleeper case; he tweets from @anblanx

Apple CEO Tim Cook says he'll fight a court order demanding the company must help the FBI break into the San Bernardino mass shooter's phone.; Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Apple CEO Tim Cook says he'll fight a court order demanding the company must help the FBI break into the San Bernardino mass shooter's phone.

Syed Farook used an iPhone issued by his employer, the San Bernardino County health department. However, federal investigators don't have the passcode. If they try to guess the code, they'll likely hit the maximum tries allowed before the phone automatically erases all its data.

The judge ordered Apple to create software allowing an infinite number of passcodes to be tried on Farook's phone without it erasing.

Tim Cook calls that software the equivalent of a master key that would threaten the security of every iPhone user.

What are the feds hoping to find on Farook's work phone? Once an iPhone turns into a "brick," can the erased information be recovered forensically? Does this precedent make it easier for the government to argue for the software in future cases? And if Apple succeeds in fighting this judge's decision, what's to keep prospective terrorists from using iPhones for all activities, knowing investigators can't get in?

Guests:

Julian Sanchez, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute and studies issues at the busy intersection of technology, privacy, and civil liberties, with a particular focus on national security and intelligence surveillance

Cedric Leighton, founder and president of Cedric Leighton Associates, a risk and leadership management consultancy. He is also a retired colonel in the US Air Force and the former Director for Training of the National Security Agency

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to voters on February 17, 2016 in Bluffton, South Carolina. T; Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images

At the most recent Republican debate, Donald Trump promised to stop using vulgarities such as "schlong," "crap," and the slang version the female sexual organ, but his impact on political rhetoric could be hard to undo, according to experts in communication.

Moreover, Trump choosing to use slang and "unpresidential" language could be rallying his base effectively. A reader poll at the conservative news website The Blaze found 37 percent of survey respondents see Trump's cursing as a plus, saying his plain speaking is refreshing.

Who is turned on and who is turned off when political candidates use profanity? What impact does it have on the discourse overall?

Guest:

Tom Hollihan, Professor of Communication, USC Annenberg School; he has authored several books including, "Uncivil Wars: Political Campaigns in a Media Age"

Researchers at MIT have zeroed in on an area in the brain where the neurological origin of loneliness resides. ; Credit: Chris Ware/Getty Images

Researchers at MIT have zeroed in on an area in the brain where the neurological origin of loneliness resides.

The team launched a mice study where each mouse was isolated for 24 hours, and found that a particular region of its brain experienced increased activation. That part, made up of a group of cells, is called the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) and is located near the back of the brain.

Joining Larry to talk about the study and the implications of its findings is senior author of the study Kay Tye.

MIT Study on the Origin of Loneliness

Guest:

Kay Tye, senior author of the study, “Dorsal Raphe Dopamine Neurons Represent the Experience of Social Isolation” published in the February issue of the Journal Cell. She is also an assistant professor of neuroscience at MIT

Tyler Williams of Blanchester, Ohio selects marijuana strains to purchase at the 3-D Denver Discrete Dispensary on January 1, 2014 in Denver, Colorado.; Credit: Theo Stroomer/Getty Images

In cinemas this weekend, a new documentary, "Rolling Papers," follows reporters and editors at "The Denver Post" during the first year of legalization of marijuana in Colorado.  

The film covers the legalization issue, the impetus behind the marijuana reviews, a controversial column on parenting and pot use, plus the future of the journalism business.

Guest:

Ricardo Baca, Marijuana Editor, "The Denver Post;" Editor, The Cannabist - the Post's marijuana news and culture website

Dr. Angela Rocha (C), pediatric infectologist at Oswaldo Cruz Hospital, examines Ludmilla Hadassa Dias de Vasconcelos (2 months), who has microcephaly, on January 26, 2016 in Recife, Brazil.; Credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images

Speaking on a flight en route from Mexico to Vatican City today, Pope Francis has suggested that women threatened with the Zika virus could use artificial contraception to prevent pregnancy.

As the National Catholic Reporter writes, "The pope's remarks on contraception may be seen by some as a significant opening from the highest levels of the church, as Paul VI banned the use of artificial contraceptives in his 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae."

The Roman Catholic church teaches that abstinence, including between married couples, is the only morally acceptable way to prevent the spread of disease.

The church has been criticized for counselling against use of condoms in countries with high rates of HIV transmission. In the past, Pope Francis and his recent predecessors have been questioned about whether there should be an exception to the ban in such regions. Francis has avoided a specific answer on that matter. How could the pope's comments on contraceptives influence Catholics around the world?

Guests:

Thomas Reese, S.J., Jesuit Catholic Priest, Senior Analyst, National Catholic Reporter. Author of "Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church"

Christopher Kaczor, a professor of philosophy at Loyola Marymount University, in Los Angeles, and a corresponding member of the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life

Jeffrey Volkmer, Assistant Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies, Biola University

Pope Francis prays besides crosses on a platform in Mexico those who died trying to cross the border at El Paso, Texas on February 17, 2016.
; Credit: MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images

Pope Francis found his way into US politics again with comments aboard his jet on its way home from Mexico.

A reporter asked the Pope what he thought about Donald Trump. Francis responded, "A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian."

The implication that Trump isn't Christian brought a quick response from the presidential candidate, who essentially said the Pope is a “pawn” of the Mexican government.

We’ll debate the Pope's judgement of Trump, and what it means to be Christian.

Guests:

Thomas Reese, S.J., Jesuit Catholic Priest, Senior Analyst, National Catholic Reporter and author of "Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church"

Christopher Kaczor, a professor of philosophy at Loyola Marymount University, in Los Angeles, and a corresponding member of the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life

Jeffrey Volkmer, Assistant Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies, Biola University