Chat GPT in the pulpit, Barbie in crisis, and mothers who kill

English Professor Dianne Berg analyzed the portrayal of mothers in true crime stories. Sociology Professor Shelly Tenenbaum taught courses on global genocide in prison classrooms, leading her students in debates on morality.

Rabbi Joshua Franklin ’06, M.A. ’07, challenged his congregation to guess the anonymous author of a sermon, then delivered the answer: Chat GPT. He mused whether artificial intelligence can comprehend empathy.

Philosophy Professor Wiebke Deimling went to the movies to see “Barbie” and unraveled why a fictional doll was having “irrepressible thoughts of death.”

It all happened in 2023 on the Challenge. Change. podcast, where the Clark community has chronicled their research, passions, and discoveries. On this episode, co-producers Melissa Hanson and Andrew Hart share clips of intriguing interviews recorded throughout the year.

Episodes featured include:

• Debate and Discourse in the Prison Classroom with Professor Shelly Tenenbaum
• Rabbi Joshua Franklin ’06 on Artificial Intelligence and Empathy
• The Portrayal of Mothers in True Crime and Popular Media with Professor Dianne Berg
• Sci-fi, Immigration, and Representation with Professor Betsy Huang
• Ed Greig ’23 vs. PAX East 2023
• Professor Cailin Marcel Manson and the Collective Power of Performance
• Coming of Age Stories and Confronting Divided Loyalties with Professor Spencer Tricker
• Barbie’s Existential Crisis and the Philosophy Behind it with Professor Wiebke Deimling
• Queerness and Food are an Edible Delight for Professor Elizabeth Blake
• To Teach or Not to Teach Shakespeare with Professor Justin Shaw

Listen and subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Find other episodes wherever you listen to podcasts.

Revisit some of our favorite stories and photos from 2023