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Can sexual desire lead us to something that transcends the physical act? Socrates seemed to think so. In Plato’s Symposium, Socrates recalls the words of his apparent teacher of erotics, the priestess Diotima of Mantinea, who instructed him that lust was the first rung on a ladder leading upwards towards an appreciation of the form of beauty itself and, further, to morality and virtue.
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Family life
The precious family keepsakes that hold meaning for generations
10 minutes
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Information and communication
Coverage of the ‘balloon boy’ hoax forms a withering indictment of for-profit news
17 minutes
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Meaning and the good life
Wander through the English countryside with two teens trying to make sense of the world
10 minutes
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Art
A puppeteer makes sense of an overwhelming world by shrinking it down to size
5 minutes
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Anthropology
Does Mogi’s future lie with her horses on the Mongolian steppe, or in the city?
16 minutes
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Art
The sprawling mural that depicts an unflinching people’s history of Los Angeles
7 minutes
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Personality
A ‘dumpster archeologist’ reconstructs strangers’ stories via what they’ve discarded
14 minutes
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Art
In his poem ‘London’, William Blake crafted a bleak vision of the city he loved
9 minutes
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Art
A prisoner in Guantánamo finds some escape in building intricate model ships
6 minutes