Video Friday: Neil deGrasse Tyson on Spaghettification

Neil deGrasse Tyson explains what would happen if you fell in a black hole. 

Here's our advice: Avoid black holes. 

Talking Sex With Your Kids

According to a report released on Tuesday, the pregnancy rate among teenage girls in the United States has jumped for the first time in more than a decade. 


The Washington Post says "The cause of the increase is the subject of debate. Several experts blamed the increase in teen pregnancies on sex-education programs that focus on encouraging abstinence." Read the full article here. 


Following this study, some critics have suggested that Amber Madison's  new book "Talking Sex With Your Kids" should be mandatory reading for parents. The book educates parents about teens' sexual concerns and most important questions, so that they can engage in productive conversations about sex with their kids. The Library Review recently gave "Talking Sex With You Kids" a starred review. Check it out here. 


Madison is young (only 26), so she easily bridges the teen world and that of parents. She also manages to address the subject professionally and candidly, but with humor and humility.As the sexpert for BettyConfidential.com, a regular media expert (incl. appearances on The Today Show, MTV News, etc), and author of "Hooking Up:A Girl's All-Out Guide to Sex and Sexuality," Madison is more than equipped to talk about this new report.


Learn more about Amber Madison here. 

The Collision of Friendship and Integrals

Mathematician (and fantastic speaker) Steve Strogatz talks with SEED Magazine about the nature of friendship, why math isn’t about right and wrong, and how an elliptical swimming pool helped launch his teaching career.


Read the full article here. 


Not familiar with Steve Strogatz? A mathematician and the author of "Sync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order" and "The Calculus of Friendship," Strogatz talks about how our supposedly random everyday lives are filled with synchrony and harmony. I mean, haven't you wondered how an audience of hundreds of strangers can coordinate their rhythmic applause? Learn more. 

Steve Brodner Reacts (w/his pen)

Satirical illustrator Steve Brodner reacts to last week's Supreme Court decision to allow corporations to use money from their general treasuries to pay for political campaign advertising. 

Check out what Brodner has to say about his artwork here. Learn more about Brodner's compelling work here. 

Lewis Hyde: Exhibition and Artist Reception

Lewis Hyde, renowned author of "The Gift," is kicking off his animal dreaming exhibit at Maine College of Art with an artist reception on January 21 at 12:30PM. 

animal dreaming highlights an ongoing collaboration between painter Max Gimblett and poet and Hyde. Inspired by their shared interest in Buddhist practice, Hyde and Gimblett have created a series of works on paper and artist books. One of Gimblett's drawings is posted at left and  Learn more about this project here. 

To learn more about this exhibit and reception, click here. 

Book Review: "Three Felonies a Day" by Harvey Silverglate

Harvey Silverglate's highly praised new book “Three Felonies a Day” explains how people commit felonies without even realizing, simply because the number of modern federal criminal laws has exploded and also become exceptionally broad and vague. 


The Harvard Law Record recently reviewed the book, calling it "impressively researched" and saying "'Three Felonies a Day' could become an important book in the public debate over the need for reform of the justice system and the proper role of prosecutors in shaping the law."


Read the full review here.  

"Why Do We Need the State’s Permission to Get Married Anyway?"

The Wall Street Journal recently interviewed our friend Stephanie Coontz about the state of marriage in 2010. 

Coontz explains "... for thousands of years, the state really stayed out of marriage, except to intervene only if and when a family needed it to back it up. In the U.S., the state was pretty loose on marriage. The laws used to say that if you acted like you were married, then you were married." 

Read the full article here. 

Not familiar with Stephanie Coontz? She uses history to examine our ideas about marriage and family, emphasizing that the dynamics of the "traditional" American family have changed. Coontz has produced work intended to debunk romanticized notions about the notion of American families -- in particular her book The Way We Never Were argues that the family in the 1950s was far more prone to divorce, teen pregnancy, and infidelity than is commonly believed.

Upcoming Events: Bernice Johnson Reagon

Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon is a Freedom Singer who highlights her forty year journey as a cultural activist, scholar and artist. Founder of 'Sweet Honey In the Rock,' she renders her passionate convictions in a moving and memorable mixture of song and spoken word, drawing on the life stories of 19th and 20th century African American women whose struggles for freedom guide her in this moving presentation. 


Learn more about Dr. Reagon here. And if you're lucky enough to live near the following areas, be sure to check her out!

• Bernice Johnson Reagon will keynote the Seattle Community Colleges’ 36th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Celebration today (Friday, January 15) from 12 -1:30PM. This event takes palce at Mount Zion Baptist Church at 1634 19th Avenue in Seattle. This event is free and open to the public. Learn more here. 

• Bernice Johnson Reagon will perform alongside Toshi Reagon at Berklee Performance Center on Thursday, February 18 at 8:15PM. The Berklee Performing Arts Center is located at 136 Massachusetts Avenue in Boston. Learn more here. 

Help the Red Cross Help Haiti

Jodi Solomon Speakers Bureau is committed to helping Haitians re-build. For every program booked through January 22, Jodi will donate $100 to the Red Cross International Response Fund. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Haitian community and all those affected. Call 617.266.3450 today. 

1.22.10 - Although this promotion is now closed, Jodi Solomon Speakers Bureau would like to thank everyone who took advantage of the opportunity to book a speaker and help Haiti. 

Author Charles Johnson Sits Down with The Root - By Michael E. Ross

"Charles Johnson walks into the Faire Gallery & Café on Seattle’s Capitol Hill, deceptively low-key for one of America’s pre-eminent men of letters. At the cozy café, owned by his daughter, Elisheba, Johnson asks for “my usual,” a large cup of coffee with two Splendas. It’s a good place from which to look at his adopted city, and to consider the culture and the kindred people whose literary exploration by the author and scholar has lifted him to great heights."


....read more here. 

Video Friday: Bob Barker on Rachel Maddow Show

Rachel Maddow recently interviewed Bob Barker about his work with Captain Paul Watson's Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Check out the video below and learn more about Sea Shepherd, and Whale Wars, here.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Japanese Whalers Ram Sea Shepherd's Ady Gil

In an unprovoked attack captured on film, a Japanese whaling ship deliberately rammed and caused catastrophic damage to the Captain Paul Watson's Sea Shepherd catamaran Ady Gil. None of the crew were injured, but the Ady Gil is believed to be sinking and chances of salvage are very grim. Learn more here.

Welcome, 2010!

Goodbye 2009 and Hello 2010!

Here at Jodi Solomon Speakers Bureau, we're excited to usher in a new year of creating dynamic and engaging programs! Please feel free to learn more about how we can help you at www.jodisolomonspeakers.com.

In the meantime, stay tuned to our blog for interesting news stories, great deals and promotions on events, and anything else that entertains the staff here at Jodi Solomon Speakers Bureau!