Models of antiquity
Radicals in the Age of Revolution saw the classical world as a common inheritance that could aid their fight for liberty
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essay
Physics
Time is an object
Not a backdrop, an illusion or an emergent phenomenon, time has a physical size that can be measured in laboratories
Sara Walker & Lee Cronin
essay
Animals and humans
The free dogs of India
These canines have independent, peaceful, happy lives without a pet’s constraints. Why are they being persecuted and culled?
Krithika Srinivasan & Chris Pearson
essay
Mood and emotion
The joy of sulk
Full of implicit rules and paradoxes, sulking is a marvellous example of intense communication without clear declaration
Rebecca Roache
essay
History of ideas
The post-linguistic turn
Analytic and continental philosophers were once united in their obsession with language. But now new questions have arisen
Crispin Sartwell
essay
Art
The art of rules
Conceptual art often confounds. The key is to understand the rules of the artwork and the aesthetic experiences they yield
Sherri Irvin
video
Family life
On a whirlwind morning, a couple learns if they’re facing an unplanned pregnancy
7 minutes
essay
Thinkers and theories
A philosophy of secrets
Jacques Derrida was fascinated by the figure of the Marrano Jew, whose identity could barely be told even to themselves
Peter Salmon
video
The ancient world
What wine vessels reveal about politics and luxury in ancient Athens and Persia
16 minutes
essay
Stories and literature
The sonnet machine
A sonnet contains an emotional drama of illusion and deception, crisis and resolution, crafted to make us think and feel
Timothy Hampton
video
Art
David Goldblatt captured the contradictions of apartheid in stark black and white
15 minutes
essay
Anthropology
How to mourn a forest
The Marind people of West Papua deploy mourning not only to grieve their animal and plant kin but as political resistance
Sophie Chao
video
Philosophy of mind
Do we have good reasons to believe in beliefs? A radical philosophy of mind says no
5 minutes
essay
Physics
Time is an object
Not a backdrop, an illusion or an emergent phenomenon, time has a physical size that can be measured in laboratories
Sara Walker & Lee Cronin
video
Space exploration
In the search for life, might alien ocean worlds be a better bet than Earth-like planets?
5 minutes
essay
Political philosophy
The Swedish theory of love
All countries must balance the freedom of individuals with the demands of the community. Sweden’s solution is unique
Lars Trägårdh
video
Philosophy of religion
How a devout Catholic philosopher approaches the problem of evil
8 minutes
essay
History of ideas
The post-linguistic turn
Analytic and continental philosophers were once united in their obsession with language. But now new questions have arisen
Crispin Sartwell
video
Love and friendship
When drawing your muse hundreds of times becomes an exercise in love
7 minutes
essay
Philosophy of religion
Reckoning with compassion
After an abuse scandal destroyed my Buddhist community, I had to reconsider what it means to live an ethically attuned life
Jessica Locke
essay
Mood and emotion
The joy of sulk
Full of implicit rules and paradoxes, sulking is a marvellous example of intense communication without clear declaration
Rebecca Roache
video
Thinkers and theories
Is simulation theory a way to shirk responsibility for the world we’ve created?
13 minutes
essay
Philosophy of science
Why not scientism?
Science is not the only form of knowledge but it is the best, being the most successful epistemic enterprise in history
Moti Mizrahi
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Biology
A dazzling slice-by-slice exploration of wood exposes hidden patterns and hues
2 minutes
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Illness and disease
The war on cancer
Is it time to abandon the century-old idea that cancer is best met with a ‘fight’ from patients and their doctors alike?
Elaine Schattner
video
Family life
In Rwanda, Sébastien finds traces of personal history in the wake of national tragedy
21 minutes
essay
Neuroscience
A thickness in the air
The spooky sensation that someone or something else is right there haunts us all. But what does this felt presence mean?
Ben Alderson-Day
video
Dance and theatre
Leaf through Shakespeare’s First Folio for a riveting journey into theatre history
13 minutes
essay
Animals and humans
The free dogs of India
These canines have independent, peaceful, happy lives without a pet’s constraints. Why are they being persecuted and culled?
Krithika Srinivasan & Chris Pearson