Cover image of The Big Idea

The Big Idea

What are the big ideas shaping our world now?

Ranked #1

Podcast cover

The fragility of choice

The fragility of choice

Do you know why you believe what you believe? Why you are left or right wing, say, or why you find another person attrac... Read more

3 Oct 2020

9mins

Ranked #2

Podcast cover

Ubernomics

Ubernomics

Every time you book a journey from an app like Uber, you’ll be providing the company with data - and making one man in C... Read more

24 Oct 2020

15mins

Similar Podcasts

Ranked #3

Podcast cover

The truth about marriage

The truth about marriage

When most couples get married they’re optimistic that their union won’t end in divorce. The statistics show this to be h... Read more

26 Sep 2020

10mins

Ranked #4

Podcast cover

How does language work?

How does language work?

Humans are a unique species in many ways, but an important one is that we communicate with sophisticated language, using... Read more

9 Sep 2018

10mins

Most Popular Podcasts

Ranked #5

Podcast cover

Why Are Some Nations Rich?

Why Are Some Nations Rich?

Some countries, like Norway, are rich. Other countries, like Niger, are poor. Why? Why do some countries succeed whilst ... Read more

16 Sep 2018

9mins

Ranked #6

Podcast cover

Are We All Racist?

Are We All Racist?

Are we all racist? Harvard professor Mahzarin Banaji is the architect of what is arguably psychology’s most influential... Read more

8 Jul 2018

11mins

Ranked #7

Podcast cover

Friends

Friends

A great advantage of the internet and social media is that they allow us to keep in touch with all our friends, even whe... Read more

20 May 2018

9mins

Ranked #8

Podcast cover

The New Distrust

The New Distrust

In an era of fake news, are we living through a crisis in trust? Without trust society couldn’t function. We need to k... Read more

1 Jul 2018

10mins

Ranked #9

Podcast cover

The Teenage Brain

The Teenage Brain

Teenagers are an alien species. Well, that’s not exactly the conclusion of Sarah-Jayne Blakemore’s research, but it’s a... Read more

12 Aug 2018

10mins

Ranked #10

Podcast cover

Economics and Mosquito Nets

Economics and Mosquito Nets

What’s the best way of persuading parents in developing countries to immunize their kids? Do women politicians make a di... Read more

17 Jun 2018

10mins

Ranked #11

Podcast cover

The Afterlife

The Afterlife

Suppose you knew that after your natural death the human race would die out – perhaps, for some reason, humans had becom... Read more

23 Sep 2018

9mins

Ranked #12

Podcast cover

Outrage and Moral Conscience

Outrage and Moral Conscience

Why is there so much outrage on social media? And what does this have to do with our moral conscience? Molly Crockett is... Read more

27 May 2018

9mins

Ranked #13

Podcast cover

Consciousness: A Strange Theory

Consciousness: A Strange Theory

Is consciousness everywhere? Human consciousness - our subjective experience - remains a mystery. How is it that we can ... Read more

19 Aug 2018

10mins

Ranked #14

Podcast cover

Dimensions of Discrimination

Dimensions of Discrimination

Do black woman face more prejudice than black men or white women? The legal scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw introduced a new w... Read more

22 Jul 2018

11mins

Ranked #15

Podcast cover

Democracy and Famine

Democracy and Famine

What is the cause of famine? The obvious answer is shortage of food. But, says the Nobel-prize winning economist Amart... Read more

29 Jul 2018

9mins

Ranked #16

Podcast cover

How To Stop Murder

How To Stop Murder

How can we reduce murder rates? Homicide is frequent in some countries, rare in others. The countries in which the homic... Read more

5 Aug 2018

9mins

Ranked #17

Podcast cover

The Intelligent Tree

The Intelligent Tree

Are trees intelligent? We think of humans as intelligent – maybe animals too. But vegetation? Well, one of the world’s... Read more

26 Aug 2018

9mins

Ranked #18

Podcast cover

A Future Without Doctors?

A Future Without Doctors?

Can you imagine a future without doctors? We’re in the midst of a robotics and Artificial Intelligence revolution. Many ... Read more

2 Sep 2018

8mins

Ranked #19

Podcast cover

Contact Theory

Contact Theory

How do you stop different groups hating each other? Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland. Palestinians and Je... Read more

24 Jun 2018

9mins

Ranked #20

Podcast cover

Inequality Makes Us Anxious

Inequality Makes Us Anxious

Inequality makes people anxious. How? Well, according to Kate Pickett, in unequal societies we become more conscious of ... Read more

15 Jul 2018

10mins

“Podium: AI tools for podcasters. Generate show notes, transcripts, highlight clips, and more with AI. Try it today at https://podium.page”