Science and Technology Archives | How To Academy

Science and Technology Podcasts

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Philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith – How Animal Minds Transformed Planet Earth

Peter Godfrey-Smith’s Other Minds introduced the world to the wonders of the octopus. Now he turns his attention to an animal closer to home: us.

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Dr Emily Leeming – The Life Changing Science of Gut Health

Your gut isn’t just a swirling sac of acid, it’s your second brain, capable of sharpening focus and changing your mood. With new groundbreaking evidence, Dr Emily Leeming digests your body’s secret powerhouse. 

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Neuroscientist Patrick House – How to Make Sense of Consciousness

Despite decades of research from the smartest brains on the planet, we still don’t understand the nature of consciousness. Neuroscientist Patrick House guides Robin Ince through the leading theories.

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Pioneering Biologist J Craig Venter – The Future of Life on Earth

Upon completing his historic work on the Human Genome Project, J. Craig Venter declared that he would sequence the genetic code of all life on earth. A journey that begins in the oceans…

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Neuroscientist Kelly Clancy – How Games Change Reality

We might think of games as trivial fun, but, as neuroscientist Kelly Clancy reveals, they are deeply intertwined with human history.

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Rebecca Boyle – The Story of Our Moon

The moon is more than a source of majesty and wonder; it has profoundly shaped the course of life on planet Earth.

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Neuroscientist Clayton Page Aldern and Dr Xand van Tulleken – How the Climate Crisis Affects Our Brains and Bodies

Neuroscientist Clayton Page Aldern joins Dr Xand van Tulleken to reveal the staggering effects of climate change on our brains and bodies.

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Philip Ball – How Life Works

Philip Ball takes us to the new frontier of the life sciences and reveals why life is much, much stranger than we realise.

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Neuroscientist Charan Ranganath meets Robin Ince – Why We Remember

Robin Ince joins UC Davis Professor Charan Ranganath shares the surprising secret to memory: forgetting.

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Philosopher Tom Chatfield – How Technology Changes Humanity, From Fire to AI

Since the dawn of our species, technology has not only extended the powers of human agency but profoundly shaped our nature.

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Novelist and Diplomat Ray Nayler – The Tusks of Extinction

Award-winning novelist and US diplomat Ray Nayler returns to the podcast to explore his philosophical thriller, The Tusks of Extinction.

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Physicist Carlo Rovelli Meets Theatre-Maker Simon McBurney

What happens at the bottom of a black hole? Join the superstar physicist and founder of Complicite for an Alice in Wonderland trip to the edge of space and time, science and imagination.

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Daniel Dennett v. Robert Sapolsky – Do We Have Free Will?

Two titans of neuroscience and philosophy come together to debate the existence of free will – a question with profound implications for identity, justice, and the very meaning of life itself.

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Oxford Data Scientist Hannah Richie – Climate Anxiety

In this episode of our sister podcast Found in Conversation, researcher Hannah Richie and ESG investor Rosa Sangiorgio outline how we can overcome the climate crisis.

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Walter Isaacson – The Life of Elon Musk

The inside scoop on the most controversial innovator of our era.

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Immunologist Luke O’Neill – The Joy of Science

What do art and science have in common? Will we ever be able to invent Star Trek style teleportation ? Can we make AI that is truly sentient? Join biochemist Luke O’Neill for a romp through the past, present, and future of science.

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Astronaut Chris Hadfield Meets Robin Ince

Astronaut, fighter pilot, bestselling author, commander of the International Space Station, and the first man to sing Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ in zero G: is there anything Chris Hadfield can’t do?

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Iain McGilchrist – The Divided Brain and the Meaning of Life

A neuroscientist, psychiatrist, and philosopher, Iain McGilchrist joins us with a compelling argument for a new philosophy of living.

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Davina McCall and Dr Naomi Potter – How to Thrive Through Menopause

Davina McCall and Dr Naomi Potter join us for a hands-on guide to help you live your best life during menopause.

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David Nutt – How Psychedelics Can Change Your Life

Are you ready to change your mind? Professor David Nutt joins us to cut through the noise and share his discoveries from more than a decade of scientific research.

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Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross – The Neuroscience of Art

Join us for a journey through the new science of neuroaesthetics, and discover how your brain transforms when you participate in the arts.

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David Christian – A User’s Guide to the Future (Bonus Episode)

Historian David Christian investigates what we can know about the future in this episode of our sister podcast, Found in Conversation.

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Malcolm Harris – How Palo Alto Conquered the World

How did the suburb of Palo Alto become the epicentre of a global tech revolution, changing not just American capitalism but the world?

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Andy Clark – How Our Minds Predict and Shape Reality

One of the most important living thinkers in cognitive science and philosophy joined us with a grand new vision to explain our lived experience.

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Richard Dawkins – Live at Wilderness Festival 2022

Richard Dawkins joined us at last year’s Wilderness Festival for a celebration of an extraordinary life in science.

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Scott Shapiro – The Dark Art of Hacking

The Information Age is built on precarious architecture, leaving states, companies, and individuals open to hacking. Scott Shapiro joins us to bust the myths and reveal the truth about viruses, espionage, and cyberwar.

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Thomas Hertog – Stephen Hawking’s Final Theory of the Universe

How did the universe begin? Stephen Hawking’s collaborator and friend Thomas Hertog shares the physicist’s final theory of the origins of time.

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Robin Ince Meets Justin Gregg – What Animal Intelligence Tells Us About Human Stupidity

A hilarious and demystifying look at humans, animals, and the meaning of life itself.

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Robin Ince Meets Chris van Tulleken – Why We Can’t Stop Eating Stuff That Isn’t Food

The BAFTA winning physician joins us to reveal what ultra-processed foods are doing to our bodies and our society.

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Alexa Hagerty – Genocide, Forensics, and What Remains

Bones can reveal brutality, beauty, trauma, and love – Alexa Hagerty used them to reveal the truth.

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Brad Smith – Tools and Weapons

Join us for a preview of Tools and Weapons, the new podcast with Microsoft President (and former How To Academy guest in London) Brad Smith.

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Richard Restak – The Neuroscience of Strengthening Your Memory

It’s never to late to start future-proofing your memory. Find out how from renowned neurologist Dr Richard Restak.

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Ray Nayler – What Octopuses and AI Teach Us About Consciousness

What does the intelligence of animals and machines tell us about human nature? Diplomat Ray Nayer investigates in his deeply philosophical new novel, The Mountain in the Sea.

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Tracey Shors – A Neuroscientist’s Guide to Trauma

Contrary to popular belief, trauma is not only caused by a singular extreme events. How can we protect our brains and build resilience?

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Morgan Levine – How to Reverse the Ageing Process

While ageing itself may be inevitable, science allows us to measure our biological age – and provides strategies to slow down and even reverse the ageing process.

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Felix Flicker – The Magic of Matter

Forget string theory. Forget black holes. The most magical and wondrous ideas in the universe are right before your eyes.

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Siddhartha Mukherjee – The Song of the Cell

Pulitzer Prize winning physician Siddhartha Mukherjee and geneticist Adam Rutherford tell the extraordinary story of cells.

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Yuval Noah Harari Meets Katherine Rundell – Unstoppable Us

In a special podcast for children and families, the author of the multi-million bestselling Sapiens tells the incredible story of the human race to Katherine Rundell.

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Adrian Hon – How Corporations and Governments Use Videogames to Control Us

Game designer Adrian Hon reveals how videogame mechanics are being used to influence human behaviour in the real world and rob us of dignity and autonomy.

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Cornelia Parker Meets Carlo Rovelli – The Hidden Nature of Things

Visual artist Cornelia Parker and theoretical physicist Carlo Rovelli come together to explore the revelations of quantum physics and the nature of reality.

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Mark Bergen – Inside YouTube’s Chaotic Rise to Global Domination

Bloomberg News reporter Mark Bergen reveals the story of how YouTube changed the world through untamed freedom of speech.

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Charlotte Fox Weber – A Journey Into Human Desire

Join leading psychotherapist Charlotte Fox Weber for a fly-on-the-wall journey through universal human wants and desires, and a practical toolkit for living well.

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Melanie Joy – How to Get Relationships Right

Psychologist Melanie Joy shares the principles and tools that can make any relationship, from personal to professional, healthier and more resilient.

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Philip Ball – How to Make Sense of Inhuman Minds

Understanding the human mind has challenged scientists and philosophers for centuries. How do we even begin to think about ‘minds’ that are not human?

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Daniel Pick – A New History of Thought Control

Psychoanalyst and historian Daniel Pick reveals the murky and pernicious story of ‘brainwashing’, taking us from the first days of the Cold War through to modern-day conspiracy theories.

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Suzie Sheehy – The Matter of Everything

Physicist Suzie Sheehy joins science filmmaker David Malone for a thrilling new history of particle physics, told through the discoveries that have shaped our lives – often without us knowing it.

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Ken Liu – Storytelling is Our Most Important Technology

The award-winning novelist explores why speculative fiction is so bad at predicting the future — and so good as revealing hidden aspects of the present.

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Jane McGonigal – How to See the Future Coming

Game designer, futurist and TED superstar Jane McGonigal explains how imagining the future can help us to adapt to change – and be ready for anything.

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Alice Roberts – Buried

Combining archaeological evidence with cutting edge DNA research, the bestselling anthropologist joins us with a bold new account of death in the so-called Dark Ages.