video
Cosmology
The Indian astronomer whose innovative work on black holes was mocked at Cambridge
13 minutes
essay
Comparative philosophy
Folklore is philosophy
Both folktales and formal philosophy unsettle us into thinking anew about our cherished values and views of the world
Abigail Tulenko
video
Astronomy
Seven years later, what can we make of our first confirmed interstellar visitor?
59 minutes
essay
Anthropology
Societies of perpetual movement
Why do hunter-gatherers refuse to be sedentary? New answers are emerging from the depths of the Congolese rainforest
Cecilia Padilla-Iglesias
essay
Public health
It’s dirty work
In caring for and bearing with human suffering, hospital staff perform extreme emotional labour. Is there a better way?
Susanna Crossman
video
Earth science and climate
The only man permitted in Bhutan’s sacred mountains chronicles humanity’s impact
22 minutes
essay
Social psychology
The magic of the mundane
Pioneering sociologist Erving Goffman realised that every action is deeply revealing of the social norms by which we live
Lucy McDonald
video
Cosmology
The Indian astronomer whose innovative work on black holes was mocked at Cambridge
13 minutes
essay
Stories and literature
The real Miss Julie
Victoria Benedictsson assumed a male identity, achieved literary stardom, and took her own life. Then Strindberg stole it
Elisabeth Åsbrink
video
Art
‘If you’re creative, why can’t you create a solution?’ One artist’s imaginative activism
17 minutes
essay
The future
Prehistory in the atomic age
To understand the terrifying futures unleashed by nuclear weapons, we urgently need to return to the deep past
Maria Stavrinaki
video
The ancient world
An ancient Roman’s hilarious (and perhaps relatable) response to a social snub
2 minutes
essay
Economics
Who bears the risk?
Under the guise of empowerment and freedom, politicians and business are offloading lifethreatening risk to individuals
Suzanne Schneider
essay
Political philosophy
The battles over beginnings
Niccolò Machiavelli’s profound insights about the violent origins of political societies help us understand the world today
David Polansky
video
Ethics
For Iris Murdoch, selfishness is a fault that can be solved by reframing the world
6 minutes
video
Death
A hunter’s lyrical reflection on the humbling business of being mortal
6 minutes
essay
Anthropology
Societies of perpetual movement
Why do hunter-gatherers refuse to be sedentary? New answers are emerging from the depths of the Congolese rainforest
Cecilia Padilla-Iglesias
video
Love and friendship
After his son’s terrorist attack, Azdyne seeks healing – and his granddaughter
25 minutes
essay
Language and linguistics
Cathedrals of convention
Humans have a strong impulse to see things that are arbitrary or conventional as natural and essential – especially language
Reuben Cohn-Gordon
essay
Neuroscience
Rethinking the homunculus
When we discovered that the brain contained a map of the body it revolutionised neuroscience. But it’s time for an update
Moheb Costandi
video
Astronomy
Seven years later, what can we make of our first confirmed interstellar visitor?
59 minutes
essay
Gender and identity
Silencing of the girls
Girls are still in a bad bargain with patriarchy: the price of relationship is keeping their true thoughts to themselves
Carol Gilligan
video
Physics
Is it possible to design a shape to roll along any fixed path?
4 minutes
essay
Religion
Inventing Hindu supremacy
Vinayak Savarkar ridiculed Gandhi, preaching that anti-Muslim violence was the only means to unite India into a nation
Mihir Dalal
video
Art
More than breathtaking, ‘The Birth of Venus’ signalled an aesthetic revolution
19 minutes
essay
Comparative philosophy
Folklore is philosophy
Both folktales and formal philosophy unsettle us into thinking anew about our cherished values and views of the world
Abigail Tulenko
essay
Evolution
Kinship
Science must become attuned to the subtle conversations that pervade all life, from the primordial to the present
David Waltner-Toews
video
Biotechnology
The two women behind a world-changing scientific discovery
14 minutes