Gulf Coast Life

Ghostbird Theatre Company is mounting a production of a new play titled “Artificial Genesis” about the end of the world brought about by artificial intelligence. The play itself was written by a generative AI model. We’ll take a closer look in a conversation with the show’s director Barry Cavin and his son Emory Cavin, who’s responsible for the AI interface design and programming that led to the creation of the play.

David Rahahę·tih Webb was born in Southwest Florida and grew up on Sanibel Island, which puts him in a relatively small group of people compared to this area’s current population. But, his family roots go back for generations and their connections to life on Sanibel are both broad and deep. His ‘pioneer’ side goes back eight generations on Sanibel and his Seminole side goes back past recorded history. His direct ancestors were Spanish Seminole members of the Sanibel Island Rancho. Ranchos were small, tight-knit communities settled by Europeans centuries ago. They were essentially fishing camps with as many as 600 residents, most of which were Seminole. And, David is a 4th generation Ding Darling employee — his great grandfather was the first refuge employee; the admin building was dedicated to his grandmother, who worked there for 33 years; his mother worked there when she was pregnant with him and he worked there while serving in AmeriCorps in the mid 1990s.

New legislation passed during the 2024 session modifies the rules by which the state commission, and local ethics boards, can operate. Critics say these changes will gut the effectiveness of the state commission and local boards. Supporters say the changes will prevent the state and local ethics boards from having to spend their time investigating politically motivated accusations. We dig into the details on Senate Bill 7014, which has yet to be signed by the governor, with two people who have spent their lives focusing on politics in Florida and its ethics system.

According to data released more than two years ago, the American Medical Association is warning that about 1 in 5 U.S. physicians are leaving, or scaling back patient care. Our guest is one of those 1 in 5 doctors the AMA warned would quit practicing. Dr. Maryann Wilbur is now a non-practicing surgeon. She’s a GYN Oncologist — that means she’s a surgeon who focuses on cancers of the female reproductive tract. She is now Director & CEO of a new startup called Health Equity Consulting; and co-author of a book called “The Doctor is No Longer In: Conversations with U.S. physicians” which will compile data collected from interviews with physicians who have recently left practice.

Delta Blues guitarist, bassist and vocalist Anthony “Big A” Sherrod performed live in studio while in Southwest Florida for a Big A & The All Stars concert at Florida Gulf Coast University earlier this month. We’ll hear music and conversation from Sherrod along with Delta Blues documentarian, organizer and advocate Roger Stolle.

The new book, “La Florida: Catholics, Conquistadores, and Other American Origin Stories” opens with the story that takes place in what’s now Florida in the fall of 1565 when Spanish explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilés celebrated a ‘feast day of commemoration’ with his men after their successful landing at the future site of the town of St. Augustine. This celebration had many of the same trappings as what we think of when we recount the story of the first Thanksgiving, celebrated 56 years later in the fall of 1621, by Pilgrims in Plymouth Plantation. But, it’s not considered the “first Thanksgiving.” Why is that?

During the 2024 Session Florida lawmakers approved legislation that would prohibit the manufacturing for sale and distribution of what’s called “cell-cultivated” or “lab-grown” meat in Florida. And while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved lab-grown meat cultivation in June of last year, it’s far from hitting the grocery store shelves or restaurant plates. To get some context on this new food science industry, and why a state legislature might already be banning it at this stage, we talk with Dr. Jennifer Martin, she’s an Associate Professor in Meat Science and Quality at Colorado State University.

When we do something — when we think we’ve made a decision about how to act or behave — are we always consciously aware of why we made that particular decision? That is just one part of the field of research our guest today has spent the past three decades investigating. Dr. Sandra Schneider is a Professor in Cognition, Neuroscience, and Social Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of South Florida in Tampa. And she founded the USF Judgment and Decision Making Lab in the early 90s.

The Southwest Florida Symphony showcases the orchestra’s concertmaster Orin Laursen in a March 16 performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major. Ahead of the performance Laursen joins us to talk about the piece and his musical background. Maestro Radu Paponiu also joins the program to explore other works in the upcoming Masterworks concert.

Florida lawmakers ended the 2024 state legislative session, March 8, with a $117.5 billion dollar budget. We explore what passed, what didn’t and what it all means for Florida going forward in a conversation with UCF Political Scientist Aubrey Jewett, Ph.D., and Sun Sentinel Opinion Editor Steve Bousquet.