Join Yale History professor Carlos Eire and theologian-novelist Tara Isabella Burton for a conversation on Eire's new book They Flew: a history of the paranormal and inexplicable in the early modern world, and what it can tell us about our current age of "weirdness" against a backdrop of seeming secularism. The early modern era was a…
Join philosophy student Arkadiusz Synowczyk to explore what pseudoscience is and how to recognize it, all with reference to astrology, alchemy, and magic in the ancient world. This salon is the first episode in a series on the nature of science – its power, limits, and the potential dangers it poses. Very often, claims about…
Why do people from different cultural backgrounds behave and think differently – if at all? A historical and philosophical lens. My name is Dhruv Ghulati and I am an AI entrepreneur and work in technology. I have lived in Hong Kong, Thailand, Qatar, across the Indian subcontinent, London and the Netherlands. You can find some…
POLITICO National Security Reporter and Pulitzer Prize finalist Alexander Ward joins veteran writer and technologist Sean Patrick Hughes for a conversation on America's global future based on rigorous reporting and sources from within Biden's White House as they worked to reposition America's international reputation. In the wake of the Trump administration's turn away from America's…
Join philosophy student Arkadiusz Synowczyk to explore the topic of objectivity of scientific knowledge, skepticism, and relativism! This salon is the first episode in a series on the nature of science – its power, limits, and the potential dangers it poses. Debates about the possibility of objective knowledge are relevant not only to the ivory tower. Societies…
Hollywood is haunted by the ghost of playwright and novelist Oscar Wilde. But how did Wilde, who died over a decade before the first feature film, help to make the movies? Join Kate Hext, associate professor of English literature at the University of Exeter and author of the new book Wilde in the Dream Factory:…
Hi, I’m Gina! I’m a therapist, avid learner and educator. I’ve spent time in many settings, ranging from mental hospitals to jails and schools and most recently I’ve been coaching entrepreneurs in AI on self-care and social connection. I’m extremely interested in the origins of electric connections! Using Joshua Wolf Shenk’s book Powers of Two,…
Join us for an eye-opening journey into the world of gossip with hosts Shahid Nowshad and Yael Friedman. Discover how gossip, often dismissed as trivial chatter, has shaped societies and…
Join philosopher Arkadiusz Synowczyk to explore what pseudoscience is and how to recognize it, all with reference to astrology, alchemy, and magic in the ancient world. This salon is the…
The first of a series of conversations with Robin Hanson, this salon will discuss what "the sacred" is and how best to identify and explain its roles in human life. Hosted by Thomas Arnold. This conversation with Robin Hanson will be "sacred talk," exploring what the sacred means and attempting to explain how it works…
Is philosophy, as a field, conceived of correctly today? Join Jonathan Leaf, an award-winning playwright and novelist, for a salon where Jonathan will delve into this issue and explore the historical and current views on philosophy. The literal meaning of philosophy is "love of wisdom." So you might think that philosophy classes would be trying…
Solidarity is often invoked, but it is rarely analyzed and poorly understood. Leah and Astra together developed the first in-depth examination and intellectual history of solidarity. We will discuss the past, present, and future of the concept across borders of nation, identity, and class to ask: how can we build solidarity in an era of…
