Enlightenment now

FromChemistry World Book Club

Start listening View podcast show

Enlightenment now

FromChemistry World Book Club

ratings:

Length:

19 minutes

Released:

Apr 3, 2018

Format:

Podcast episode

Description

Are things getting better, or are we on the decline? In Enlightenment now, Steven Pinker argues that science and reason have made us better than ever before. Emma Stoye, Kit Chapman and Aurora Walshe find out if he hits the mark.

Released:

Apr 3, 2018

Format:

Podcast episode

Titles in the series (78)

Meet the authors of the latest popular science books, and join Chemistry World for a review and discussion of the topics the book raises. Join in on twitter by using #bookclubCW

Skip carousel

Adventures in the Anthropocene: A journey to the heart of the planet we made by Chemistry World Book Club
22 min listen
Big data: does size matter?: This month, we discuss the benefits of big data and whether these are offset by their threat to privacy by Chemistry World Book Club
24 min listen
The Elements of Power: This month we discuss by David Abraham. New technologies like smart phones and wind turbines are increasing the diversity of elements that humanitiy is ustilising. Amongst them are the rare metals, which may not acutually be rare, but they often... by Chemistry World Book Club
23 min listen
Why does asparagus make your wee smell?: This month we answer the profound qustion This is the title of Andy Brunning's new book, which addresses a smorgasbord of questions about food and drink in a scientific manner. You can read here, and . We want to include... by Chemistry World Book Club
27 min listen
A is for Arsenic: Welcome to our new monthly podcast, theChemistry World Book Club. Each month we’ll be sharing our thoughts on one of the latest popular science releases and interview the authors to find out what inspired them to write about science. Join us for a... by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
Herding Hemingway's Cats: This month we discuss by Kat Arney. In Ernest Hemingway's house in Florida there is a family six-toed cats. Their appearance is caused by a mutation in the molecular switch that controls the Sonic hedgehog gene. These cats provided Kat Arney... by Chemistry World Book Club
1 min listen
Why science is sexist: This month we discuss by Nicola Gaston. That science is sexist – it is. Rather, she wants to know why a field that prides itself in being rational should behave so illogically.We discuss the research she presents on unconscious bias, in... by Chemistry World Book Club
23 min listen
Chemistry World at the Hay Festival: Join Emma Stoye at the Hay Festival of Literature & Arts in Hay-on-Wye, Wales. She speaks to New Scientist's Rowan Hooper about his book Superhuman, finds out from Philip Ball why quantum physics is Beyond Weird, and discusses the genesis of... by Chemistry World Book Club
30 min listen
Scientific Babel: This month we examine the history of scientific language, with Michael Gordin's book . We ask whether the mixture of science and language can be distilled, or if our reactions to words are too strongly bonded to their meaning. We'll discover how... by Chemistry World Book Club
27 min listen
Sorting the beef from the bull: This month we discuss by Richard Evershed and Nicola Temple. The horsemeat scandal opened our eyes to the fact that the food we eat is not always what it claims to be. Just how widespread is the problem, how do we detect it and what changes need... by Chemistry World Book Club
23 min listen
Thing explainer: This month we discuss Thing explainer by Randall Munroe. In this book the creator attempts to explain things as diverse as the International Space Station and the human body, using only the most common ten hundred words in the English... by Chemistry World Book Club
24 min listen
Science and the city: the mechanics behind the metropolis: In this month’s book club we discuss the technologies that help modern cities function by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
Grunt: the curious science of humans at war: This month we discuss by Mary Roach. The military is a huge investor in scientific and technological development. Mary Roach gained access to those who carry out research into those technologies of warfare that aren’t to do with weapons. Her... by Chemistry World Book Club
22 min listen
Homo deus and the best books of 2016: Yuval Noah Harari likes the big topics. His last book, Sapiens attempted to explain everything that has happened in the history of humanity. In his latest book he examines everything that will happen in humanity’s future. In part 1 of the podcast,... by Chemistry World Book Club
38 min listen
Scientific Paper Writing – a Survival Guide: This month we discuss by Bodil Holst. Every budding researcher must eventually write a scientific paper, and yet how to do this is not something that is usually taught. Some supervisors provide excellent guidance and others – let's be diplomatic... by Chemistry World Book Club
29 min listen
The master algorithm: If there’s one thing we can learn from histroy it’s everything that there is to know. Or at least that’s the promise of machine learning. by Pedro Domingos tells us how machines that learn are starting to transform the world, bringing us... by Chemistry World Book Club
24 min listen
I contain multitudes: the microbes within us and a grander view of life: Some cleaning agents claim to kill 99.9% of all bacteria, but if preventing disease is the main aim, then maybe total annihilation isn’t the best course to take. We discuss this and other lessons we have learnt by studying the microbiome: the... by Chemistry World Book Club
20 min listen
Bring back the king: Almost a decade after its extinction, the Pyrenean ibex became newly un-extinct thanks to cloning. But what are the limits of this technology? Could we one day visit a real-life Jurassic Park? Bring back the king by Helen Pilcher recounts the... by Chemistry World Book Club
24 min listen
More molecules of murder: This month we discuss More molecules of murder, in which John Emsley meets your morbid fascination with stories of true crime and the poisons involved by Chemistry World Book Club
20 min listen
Furry logic: Evolution has created ingenious solutions to life’s problems. Some animals use physics in a way that stumps even the physicists. Turtles, for instance, venture thousands of miles across the ocean, yet return with precision to the exact beach from... by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
Liquid: This month’s podcast features material scientist Mark Miodownik’s latest book Liquid: The Delightful and Dangerous Substances That Flow Through Our Lives. Fascinated by what defines a liquid and the mechanisms behind their working, the... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Superior: The Return of Race Science: In Superior: The Return of Race Science, Angela Saini examines the history of race science and the people who spend years studying it. Superior was influenced by Saini’s childhood, when experiences of every-day racism made... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Chemistry: This month we discuss Chemistry, in which First-time novelist Weike Wang takes us inside the mind of a Chinese American PhD student in Boston by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
The secret life of fat: Fat might not be fashionable, but it is essential. It is a living organ that communicates with the brain, controlling our behaviour and even influencing our reproductive cycles. These facts and more form the the subject of The secret life of fat:... by Chemistry World Book Club
22 min listen
The death of expertise: The mass disparagement of knowledge is a recent phenomenon. Apparently we’ve all had enough of experts, and facts aren’t important, as there are always alternatives. In , Tom Nichols considers how facts fell out of favour, and what it means for... by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
Cat Zero: For this month’s podcast, we take a slight diversion from our usual non-fiction theme, and take a look at Jennifer Rohn’s lab-lit novel Cat Zero. Being a scientist as well as a writer, Rohn finds herself in a unique position, enabling her to... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
The Beautiful Cure: Emma Stoye presents this month’s podcast about immunology professor Daniel Davis’s latest book – The Beautiful Cure. The book explores the history of immunology, along with insights from the author’s career and findings from his recent... by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Gene machine: the race to decipher the secrets of the ribosome: This time, we discuss and scrutinise Gene Machine: The Race to Decipher the Secrets of the Ribosome, by Venkatraman “Venki” Ramakrishnan. By the time Venki had earned a PhD in physics from Ohio University in the US, he had already made the unusual... by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Enlightenment now: Are things getting better, or are we on the decline? In Enlightenment now, Steven Pinker argues that science and reason have made us better than ever before. Emma Stoye, Kit Chapman and Aurora Walshe find out if he hits the mark. by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Seeds of Science: For this month’s podcast, we explore the world of anti-GM campaigning which Mark Lynas was a part of for years, and discover what it was that made him turn his back on his extreme views. The book looks at how and why he decided to help scientists on... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen

More Episodes from Chemistry World Book Club

Skip carousel

A Taste for Poison: If you really want to develop an appreciation for those early pathologists who went so far as to taste-tested truly horrible samples from corpses to establish a system for detecting poisons, read a new book by US-based physiology and biophysics... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Book club – Fresh Banana Leaves by Jessica Hernandez: Indigenous communities are among the most affected by climate change, yet their work and knowledge has long been dismissed as unscientific. In her first book Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes through Indigenous Science, Maya... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Book Club - Racing Green: This episode examines the science behind auto racing by digging into Racing Green: How Motorsports Became Smarter, Safer, Cleaner and Faster, by science journalist and science historian Kit Chapman. In this his second book, following... by Chemistry World Book Club
20 min listen
Book club – Sticky by Laurie Winkless: Why is duct tape the answer to fixing everything? How do geckos cling to walls? And what, exactly, keeps our car tyres rolling down the road? In Sticky: The Secret Science of Surfaces, physicist and science writer Laurie... by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Her Hidden Genius: In this episode, we discuss Her Hidden Genius. It’s the new book by Marie Benedict, a lawyer and best-selling author who unearths the historical stories of women who have left important legacies. In this her third book about a female scientist,... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Book club – Murder isn’t Easy: In this episode, we’re delving deep into the science of one of the best-selling fiction writers of all times: . We look for evidence of her pioneering forensic writing with Murder Isn’t Easy: The Forensics of Agatha Christie, the second... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Life as We Made It: This episode is for anybody interested in how human beings have altered the world around us since we came on the scene tens of thousands of years ago. University of California Santa Cruz evolutionary biologist Beth Shapiro weaves fascinating and... by Chemistry World Book Club
16 min listen
Book club – The Icepick Surgeon by Sam Kean: This month, we’re reading The Icepick Surgeon: Murder, Fraud, Sabotage, Piracy, and Other Dastardly Deeds Perpetrated in the Name of Science. It’s the new book by Sam Kean, who many might know as the author of the periodic table book The... by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Book club – Deep Sniff by Adam Zmith: In this episode, we’ll tackle Deep Sniff: A History of Poppers and Queer Futures by Adam Zmith. In his first book, Zmith blends historical research with wry observation to tell the story of how amyl nitrites wafted out of the lab and into gay... by Chemistry World Book Club
14 min listen
Book club – Lessons from Plants by Beronda Montgomery: This episode is for all those people who have turned to gardening or amassed houseplants during the Covid lockdowns as we’ll be talking about Lessons from Plants. In it, the biochemist Beronda Montgomery explores the vigorous and creative life of... by Chemistry World Book Club
14 min listen
Book club – Science in Black and White by Alondra Oubré: In this month’s episode we’ll talk about Science in Black and White: How Biology and Environment Shape Our Racial Divide by medical anthropologist Alondra Oubré. She delves into the science behind the nature versus nurture debate... by Chemistry World Book Club
15 min listen
Book club – Vampirology by Kathryn Harkup: Get your garlic and crucifix ready as we tackle Kathryn Harkup’s latest book Vampirology: The Science of Horror’s Most Famous Fiend. Harkup is a chemist and science communicator, and an expert at casting a scientific eye on cultural phenomena,... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Book club – Handmade by Anna Ploszajski: How do you make a chemical-resistant beaker out of a material as fragile as glass? And how do you tell the temperature of a piece of steel without a thermometer? These are questions Anna Ploszajski tackles in her book Handmade: A Scientist’s Search... by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
Book club – The Disordered Cosmos by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein: We might like to think that science is purely objective, driven only by scientific principles and free of social disturbances — but this couldn’t be further from the truth. In this episode, we read Chanda Prescod-Weinstein’s debut The... by Chemistry World Book Club
22 min listen
Book club – Never Mind the B#ll*cks, Here’s the Science by Luke O’Neill: In this episode, we’re looking for answers to the important questions in life like ‘Why do you believe in diets?’ or ‘Why are you working in a bullshit job?’ Biochemist and immunologist Luke O’Neill certainly doesn’t mince words in... by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Book club – The Poison Trials by Alisha Rankin: This month we find out drug testing has come a long way, as we read The Poison Trials: Wonder Drugs, Experiment and the Battle for Authority in Renaissance Science, the latest book from historian of science and medicine Alisha Rankin. The... by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Book club – Uncle Tungsten by Oliver Sacks: This month we’re celebrating 20 years of a popular science classic: Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood by Oliver Sacks. In his memoir, Sacks – who later became a famous neurologist – recounts how he discovered his love for... by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
Book club – Science books for children: Whether you’re looking for a sciencey Christmas present for the young readers in your life or just want to delve into the science of children’s science writing, this kid’s books roundup is for you. We brought together three families and their... by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Written in Bone: Hidden Stories in what We Leave Behind by Chemistry World Book Club
19 min listen
The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking): It’s the end times in this episode as we’re reading The End of Everything (Astrophysically Speaking). In five scenarios, cosmologist Katie Mack explores how the universe might meet its ultimate demise and what this might look like... by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
United We Are Unstoppable: 60 Inspiring Young People Saving Our World by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Half Lives: The Unlikely History of Radium by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Three books on pandemics: In this episode we’re tackling the coronavirus information overload by comparing three books on pandemics past and present: Outbreaks and Epidemics by Meera Senthilingam, Adam Kucharski’s The Rules of Contagion, and The... by Chemistry World Book Club
21 min listen
The Alchemy of Us: From photographic film to scientific glassware, Ainissa Ramirez’s new book The Alchemy of Us offers a unique insight into our relationship with technology. Find out what we thought about the book, and hear from Ramirez herself as she... by Chemistry World Book Club
14 min listen
Smoke & Mirrors: How Hype Obscures the Future and How to See Past It by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Ingredients: The Strange Chemistry of What We Put in Us and on Us by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Say Why to Drugs: Everything You Need to Know About the Drugs We Take and Why We Get High by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: This month, we’re talking about giraffes, a magic sandwich hole and the question of whether robots will take over the world. All of these things come up in Janelle Shane’s You Look Like a Thing and I Love You, a book about the wonderful and often... by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen
Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter’s Wolf: How the Elements Were Named: This month, we’re delving deep into chemistry’s history as we discuss Peter Wothers' book Antimony, Gold, and Jupiter’s Wolf: How the Elements Were Named. Some chemists may know Wothers’ writing in the form of chemistry textbooks, but this is... by Chemistry World Book Club
17 min listen
Transcendence: How Humans Evolved Through Fire, Language, Beauty, and Time by Chemistry World Book Club
18 min listen

Related podcast episodes

Skip carousel

Tassie Devil's Dilemma and the Big Chill: In this week's science news: singing gibbons, (nearly) toothles rats, mars curiousity in space and angry birds! Dr Beata Ujvari speaks to Julie-Anne Popple about the plight of the tasmanian devil. Therese Chen reports on the Big Chill theory challenging by Diffusion Science radio
20 min listen
Reincarnation Theories (Ian Stevenson and Others): Last time, Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli looked at what parapyschologists have found in studying reincarnation and this time they examine the question of reincarnation. Do we truly live again or is there another explanation? by Jimmy Akin's Mysterious World
129 min listen
The clocks in your body | Tony Wyss-Coray by From Our Neurons to Yours
22 min listen
Episode 39: Is Faith Good? by Terrifying Questions
62 min listen
Reincarnation Research (Ian Stevenson): Belief in reincarnation is found in multiple world religions, but it is also studied from a scientific perspective today as well. Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli discuss what parapsychologists have found about cases of the reincarnation type and ask what... by Jimmy Akin's Mysterious World
97 min listen
13: Curious Processes - Curiosity, Science and Memory - The Curious Advantage Podcast by The Curious Advantage Podcast
19 min listen
Mind Meld 218 | The Magic Between Stimulus and Response with Scott Carney: the science of changing your mind, how to find the strength you didn't know you had, psychedelic adventures, why humanity needs a great yet personal cause, and more... by THIRD EYE DROPS
74 min listen
Exploring Extraterrestrial Life through Science and Science Fiction w/ Julie Nováková, Giovanni Poggiali, and Eric Choi by The Cosmic Companion - Astronomy, Space, Technology Advancing Humanity
39 min listen
Dr Erin Macdonald: Is there any science in Star Trek?: Star Trek’s science consultant Dr Erin Macdonald talks about supernovae, what a science consultant really does, and whether warp drive is possible. by Instant Genius
29 min listen
Everything Everywhere All at Once: could the multiverse be real?: The film Everything Everywhere All at Once has enjoyed critical acclaim and awards success. Ahead of the Oscars, where it’s tipped to sweep the board, Ian Sample speaks to theoretical physicist and philosopher Sean Carroll about why we seem to be drawn to the idea of multiple worlds, and what the science says about how the multiverse might actually work by Science Weekly
18 min listen
Episode 024: Rationality and the Perils of Nostalgia with Dr. Steven Pinker by The Decision Education Podcast
37 min listen
Your Ego Will Surprise You - MTP286: Co-Host Stephen Hawley Martin (https://mountaintoppodcast.com/afterlife) by The Mountain Top - Masculine Men Get Women
40 min listen
Can Science Dictate Our Identity? with Praveen Sethupathy: Kyle Worley and Rebecca McLaughlin are joined by Praveen Sethupathy to talk about what science is and if it can dictate our identity. by The Confronting Christianity Podcast with Rebecca McLaughlin
35 min listen
Deja vu’s lesser-known opposite: why do we experience jamais vu?: There’s a sensation many of us might have experienced: when something routine or recognisable suddenly feels strange and unfamiliar. It’s known as jamais vu, or ‘never seen’. Research into this odd feeling recently won an Ig Nobel prize, which is awarded to science that makes you laugh, then think. Ian Sample speaks to Ig Nobel recipient Dr Akira O’Connor about why he wanted to study jamais vu, what he thinks is happening in our brains, and what it could teach us about memory going right, and wrong by Science Weekly
15 min listen
Deliberately doomed dart: The sacrificial space mission designed to protect the Earth from asteroid impact. by Unexpected Elements
63 min listen
How Can We Be S.U.R.E. That God Exists?: What’s more likely? That no one created something from nothing, or that someone created something from nothing? If you ask an atheist or an agnostic this question, the answer may shock you. According to Aristotle, “nothing is what rocks dream about. by I Don't Have Enough FAITH to Be an ATHEIST
48 min listen
Case File 52-The Simulation Hypothesis: Are we living in a simulation? It is a question being talked at the highest levels of science and physics but what evidence do we have? As far as we know this universe that we experience is physical, or at least thats what your taught. What if we are jus... by Alien Theorists Theorizing
127 min listen
The Power of Woo for Mental and Emotional Health with Jenny Walters, LMFT by The Yes Collective Podcast with Justin Wilford, PhD
56 min listen
Episode 1: Hope, dread, and Star Trek: Discovery: What went wrong, and what went oh so right with this show? by Our Opinions Are Correct
37 min listen
The Skeptics Guide #623 - Jun 17 2017 by The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe
20 min listen
Why are elephants so big?: An episode dedicated to the curious minds of our younger listeners by CrowdScience
31 min listen
Glow-worms by The Fact Detectives
15 min listen
#21 — The Duet of Physics & Psychology with Psychophysicist, Stanley Klein: "Subjectivity and consciousness are the two main mysteries that science is still faced with. I'm an optimist. I believe that in the next half a century we might make progress on understanding consciousness." - Stanley A. Klein, psychophysicist, pr... by On Consciousness & the Brain with Bernard Baars
63 min listen
Psychologist Steven Pinker: Are we living in a uniquely healthy, safe and more prosperous world? by HARDtalk
24 min listen
Dr. Michael Shermer — What is Truth?: In this live podcast event hosted by the Santa Barbara Science Salon in conjunction with the Skeptics Society and the Unitarian Society, co-hosted by Dr. Whitney Detar, Dr. Shermer reflects on the question “What is Truth?” in the context of his... by The Michael Shermer Show
69 min listen
Allergies by The Fact Detectives
18 min listen
The Truth About False Memories: The Lost in the Mall experiment is a classic case study in Psych 101 classes. by The Cut
37 min listen
Solar explosions and insect minds: From the 2001 archives: Falling penguins, shifting Earth, neurological optimism, by Deanna Coleman, Tim Baynes talks about explosions on the Sun, Nick Perkins speaks with Professor Srinivasan about insect minds, Ecstasy may damage your sex life, Protests by Diffusion Science radio
20 min listen
Episode 404: QA 47: Starter Telescope Advice and More. Featuring Dr. Alan Stern from New Horizons by Universe Today Podcast
24 min listen
Stars by The Fact Detectives
21 min listen

Discover this podcast and so much more

Enlightenment now

Enlightenment now

Description

Titles in the series (78)

More Episodes from Chemistry World Book Club

Related podcast episodes