Podcast
The Podcast Browser
Hosted by Paul Barnes / Listen Notes · EN
Selected podcast episodes on psychology, economics, science, history and culture
119episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Is Man the Hunter just a myth?
5d ago01:32:01Tap to summarizePodcast: Many Minds (LS 42 · TOP 1.5% what is this?)Episode: Is Man the Hunter just a myth?Pub date: 2026-06-05Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationThere's a story about of our past that you know well. It goes like this: At some point earlier in human evolution, we started to hunt. Men in particular—perhaps channeling some deep-seated aggressive impulses—began to seek out big game. This new food source, this bonanza of calories, was what allowed our brains to expand. It changed our bodies and our societies and sent our species off on a whole new track. In short, Man the Hunter made us human. This story—told in different versions, with different points of emphasis—has circulated for decades. It's been debunked and revived, rejected and reimagined. What is the history behind the Man the Hunter idea? How does it square with our current understandings of evolution? Is it, in fact, pure fiction? My guest today is Dr. Vivek Venkataraman. Vivek is an evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Calgary, and an editor-in-chief of the journal Hunter Gatherer Research. He and his collaborators recently published an article on the different layers and meanings of the Man the Hunter idea. Here, Vivek and I lay out those meanings. We talk about how the phrase refers, first, to that popular myth about our evolution, but also to a landmark scientific conference in the 1960s, and to a major finding of research on contemporary hunter-gatherer groups—namely, that men generally do do most of the hunting. We do a little crash-course on the field of hunter-gatherer research, including the kinds of questions it asks and frameworks it uses. We dig into some of the key ingredients of the Man the Hunter myth: the idea that we have aggressive tendencies, the idea that only men hunt, and the idea that hunting played a transformative role in our evolution. We walk through three recent, high-profile studies challenging Man the Hunter ideas in various ways. And we talk about the ever-present danger of projecting our current norms and ideals back in time. Along the way, Vivek and I touch on 2001: A Space Odyssey; reasons why contemporary hunter-gatherers may differ from the hunter-gatherers of long ago; giant sloths; extractive foraging; the case of the Agta, a society in which women do engage in big-game hunting; the forest people and the fierce people; risk and cooperation in sexual divisions of labor; persistence hunting and endurance activities; caregiving and cognition; and honey. Alright friends, I think you'll enjoy this one. On to my conversation with Dr. Vivek Venkataraman. Notes 3:30 – The article by Dr. Venkataraman and colleagues, 'The Meaning and Dividends of Man the Hunter.' Commentaries on the article can be read here. A recent popular essay by Dr. Venkataraman on the same ideas. 5:00 – Raymond Dart's "killer ape" was originally laid out in a 1953 article 'The Predatory Transition from Ape to Man' (unavailable online) and then developed in Robert Ardrey's book, African Genesis. 8:30 – The "dawn of man" scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey. 16:00 – The 1966 conference titled 'Man the Hunter' resulted in a 1968 volume of the same name. 27:00 – A philosophical discussion of the use of the "ethnographic analogy" in reconstructions of the past. The paper describing the "tyranny of the ethnographic record." 33:00 – The classic ethnography, The Forest People; the classic ethnography, Yanomamö: The Fierce People. 36:00 – The article by Chris Boehm on the concept of "reverse dominance hierarchy." See also his book Hierarchy in the Forest. 37:00 – Our earlier episode with Brian Hare. 38:00 – Steven Pinker's widely read and contested book, The Better Angels of our Nature. 44:00 – A study of the Agta, a society in which women hunt for big game. 48:00 – The paper by Judith Brown about childcare and subsistence. A paper by Haneul Jang and colleagues about how young girls help mothers during foraging. 55:00 – For a book-length treatment of hunting in evolution and history, see Matt Cartmill's, A View to a Death in the Morning. 1:01:00 – For the 2023 paper by Anderson and colleagues on the prevalence of women's hunting across cultures, see here. For Dr. Venkataraman and colleagues' commentary on the paper, see here. For the related study by Dr. Venkataraman and colleagues about women's hunting, see here. 1:05:00 – For the 2020 paper by Haas and colleagues female hunters of the Americas, see here. 1:13:00 – For the academic 'Woman the Hunter' papers by Lacy and Ocobock, see here (for the physiology paper) and here (for the archaeology paper). For their article in Scientific American, see here. For an interview on the podcast On Humans with Cara Ocobock, see here. 1:14:00 – For the recent study on persistence hunting in the ethnographic record, see here. 1:20:00 – The authors of the three critiques discussed here have all written commentaries on Dr. Venkataraman and colleagues' paper. These commentaries and others can be read here. 1:24:30 – For the commentary emphasizing the links between popularization and science, by Nadine Weidman, see here. 1:28:00 – For our earlier episode with Alison Gopnik, in which we discuss the overlooked cognitive capacities involved in caregiving, see here. 1:29:00 – For papers on the importance of honey in human evolution, see <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07409710.2011.630618?casa_token=CXtD8P6WTQUAAAAA:CtwNHLg-0v-3IBa8WkBhypgYlSXa2hQ8uCV01YkKoUe9oAEuScAnSVOfGdlP3aERXqYzD8Da73Tdhw&casa_token=8ji9utGRKiIAAAAA:s26gcsHrtaIJ75agWAAdppaIFQQ-A1pnG2ZL7kHCs12MC9LlTdprElJcXdYl4BIK...
Transcribe →
The Black Death: A Global Apocalypse?
6d ago01:00:45Tap to summarizePodcast: Gone Medieval (LS 63 · TOP 0.1% what is this?)Episode: The Black Death: A Global Apocalypse?Pub date: 2026-06-05Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationA plague of terrifying speed, mysterious symptoms and global reach, the Black Death transformed more than Europe alone.Matt Lewis is joined by Thomas Asbridge to chart the medieval spread, from Caffa’s siege lines to Cairo’s crowded streets, from brutal medical experiments to self-flagellating penitents and a medieval world shaken to its core.MOREHow To Survive Plague and War in the Middle AgesListen on AppleListen on SpotifyLeprosy in the Middle AgesListen on AppleListen on SpotifyGone Medieval is presented by Matt Lewis. Audio editor is Amy Haddow, the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music used is courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Gone Medieval is a History Hit podcast.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week, early access and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from History Hit, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
AGI Is BS | Jamie Metzl's AI Prediction
1w ago00:54:53Tap to summarizePodcast: Rational Optimist Podcast (LS 27 · TOP 10% what is this?)Episode: AGI Is BS | Jamie Metzl's AI PredictionPub date: 2026-06-03Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationJamie Metzl explains why he believes "AGI is BS," what artificial intelligence will actually mean for jobs, and how humanity can navigate the biggest technological transition in history. Jamie is a leading expert on AI, genetics, biotechnology, and the future of humanity. In this conversation we discuss AGI, AI ethics, the future of work, AI education, human-centered technology, and why transparency in AI use matters more than ever. Jamie and host Stephen McBride discuss: • Artificial general intelligence • AI jobs and the future of work • AI ethics and transparency • AI as a creative partner • The AI Ten Commandments • Education in the age of AI Jamie and GPT-5 co-authored The AI Ten Commandments, which you can find here: https://a.co/d/02TqUZEM Read Jamie's Blog post on Pope Leo's AI Encyclical: https://jamiemetzl.com/pope-leos-ai-encyclical/ Learn more about Jamie at: Jamiemetzl.com Rational Optimist Society Become a member (free): rationaloptimistsociety.substack.com TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rationaloptimistsociety?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Stephen McBride, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
Gad Saad: When Empathy Becomes Dangerous
1w ago01:30:02Tap to summarizePodcast: The Michael Shermer Show (LS 58 · TOP 0.5% what is this?)Episode: Gad Saad: When Empathy Becomes DangerousPub date: 2026-05-26Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationGad Saad returns to discuss his new book Suicidal Empathy: Dying to Be Kind, a provocative argument that empathy is not a moral trump card. Empathy can illuminate suffering, but it can also distort judgment when it is treated as an unquestionable virtue, applied selectively, or insulated from consequences. Saad's central claim is that many Western institutions have learned to treat compassion as a substitute for judgment. In practice, he argues, this can mean extending sympathy toward the wrong targets (for example, criminals over victims), excusing destructive behavior, rewarding ideological conformity over truth, or denying uncomfortable facts in the name of kindness. The result is a moral framework that feels humane in the moment but can produce outcomes that are unfair, irrational, or even dangerous. The conversation covers cultural relativism, islamism, suicide cults, kamikaze pilots, immigration and foreign aid, forbidden knowledge, and why some ideas spread and take hold while others fade away. Gad Saad is a professor and an evolutionary behavioral scientist. He has authored numerous scientific papers and pioneered the use of evolutionary psychology in marketing and consumer behavior. In addition to his scientific work, he often writes and speaks about idea pathogens that are destroying logic, science, reason, and common sense. He is the host of The Saad Truth podcast. His new book is Suicidal Empathy: Dying to Be Kind.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Michael Shermer, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
How AI is transforming warfare and the US military with Katrina Manson
1w ago00:36:59Tap to summarizePodcast: GZERO World with Ian Bremmer (LS 55 · TOP 0.5% what is this?)Episode: How AI is transforming warfare and the US military with Katrina MansonPub date: 2026-05-09Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationIan Bremmer's guest this week is author and Bloomberg defense tech reporter Katrina Manson, who spent years reporting on Project Maven for her new book on the Pentagon's AI push. The program launched in 2017 with a narrow mandate: use machine learning to process drone footage. It has since expanded into something far more ambitious. Autonomous weapons, drone swarming technology, and AI-assisted targeting are now central to how the Pentagon talks about modern warfare. The tech rollout is fast, but not reliable. Algorithms fail when the battlefield changes. The targeting process is accelerating to the point where operators are clicking through AI recommendations with little ability to question them. Manson says the military knows about AI's vulnerability "to sycophancy, to escalation, to bias and hallucination," and has not yet found adequate solutions. Subscribe to the GZERO World with Ian Bremmer Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred podcast platform, to receive new episodes as soon as they're published. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from GZERO Media, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
Episode 63: "Advance Britannia" - Bomber Command & Britain's War 1942-1945, with Professor Alan Allport
1w ago00:52:40Tap to summarizePodcast: Never Mind The Dambusters (LS 35 · TOP 3% what is this?)Episode: Episode 63: "Advance Britannia" - Bomber Command & Britain's War 1942-1945, with Professor Alan AllportPub date: 2026-02-04Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationSend us a message or question! (Buy tickets for Jane's talk at the International Bomber Command Centre, Lincoln, on 5 March 2026 here ) In this episode, Jane Gulliford Lowes is joined by historian Professor Alan Allport for a wide-ranging discussion of his new book, Advance Britannia, which re-examines Britain’s war effort from 1942 onwards — a period when the nation moved from survival to sustained, large-scale offensive operations.From the rapid expansion of RAF Bomber Command to the mounting moral, political, and human questions surrounding the bombing war, Advance Britannia offers a fresh perspective on how Britain fought, endured, and understood the later years of the Second World War.Alan Allport brings his characteristic clarity and depth to topics including:Why 1942 marks a turning point in Britain’s war effortBomber Command at the height of its power and controversyHow the bombing campaign was understood by the British public at the timeMoral debate, doubt, and dissent within wartime BritainBritain’s changing role within the Allied coalition alongside the USAAFHow victory shaped post-war memory and reckoningWhat Advance Britannia adds to our understanding of Britain’s wartime experienceThis episode situates Bomber Command within a broader social, political, and cultural history, offering listeners a deeper understanding of how the air war was fought — and how it has been remembered.Advance Britannia is available as a hardback book, an ebook, and on Audible. See Links hereAbout the GuestProfessor Alan Allport is a historian of modern Britain and a frequent guest on Never Mind the Dambusters. He is the author of several acclaimed books, including Demobbed, Browned Off and Bloody-Minded, and Britain at Bay. His work focuses on the social and cultural history of war, with particular attention to morale, memory, and lived experience.Coming Up NextIn the next episode, Jane will be joined by Mike Peters from the Mighty Eighth Podcast to discuss the USAAF daylight bombing raids on Schweinfurt, examining their objectives, their cost, and what they reveal about the American approach to the air war.Support the showPlease subscribe to Never Mind The Dambusters wherever you get your podcasts. You can support the show, and help us produce great content, by becoming a paid subscriber from just $3 a month here https://www.buzzsprout.com/2327200/support . Supporters get early access to episodes and invitations to livestreams. Thank you for listening! You can reach out to us on social media at @RAF_BomberPod (X) or @NeverMindTheDambusters (Instagram)You can find out about James' research, articles, lectures and podcasts here .You can read more about Jane's work on her website at https://www.justcuriousjane.com/, and listen to podcasts/media stuff hereThe podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Jane Gulliford Lowes and James Jefferies, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
We’re updating our career advice for the strangest time in history | Benjamin Todd, author of 80,000 Hours
2w ago01:06:43Tap to summarizePodcast: 80,000 Hours Podcast (LS 54 · TOP 0.5% what is this?)Episode: We’re updating our career advice for the strangest time in history | Benjamin Todd, author of 80,000 HoursPub date: 2026-05-26Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationThe average career is 80,000 hours long. With AI advancing so rapidly, the hours you have left in your career matter more than ever.Some leading AI researchers think there’s a 10% chance that AI systems begin automating AI research itself this year — and a 60% chance by the end of 2028. This could introduce aggressive feedback loops that completely reshape every industry, institution, and career.If these predictions are right, the window for influencing the direction of the future could be closing fast. As 80,000 Hours cofounder Benjamin Todd argues in his new book, that makes thinking carefully about your career more important than ever.Fortunately, there are lots of ways to use your career to make the AI transition go well.In today’s conversation with host Zershaaneh Qureshi, Ben lays out three scenarios — from AGI by 2029 to a decades-long plateau in AI progress — and explains why not everyone needs to bet on the shortest timeline. A fresh graduate and a senior government official have wildly different leverage, so timing your impact well means weighing where you are in your career against the urgency of the risks.Ben also addresses the obvious anxieties:Will AI come for all the jobs he’s recommending?What’s the point in following his advice if the job market is about to collapse?Which skills are actually worth building right now?His new book, 80,000 Hours: How to Have a Fulfilling Career That Does Good, provides a surprisingly concrete framework for making career decisions in these radically uncertain times.This episode was recorded on May 7, 2026.Learn more and read the full transcript: https://80k.info/bt26We're hiring: we have lots of open roles at 80,000 Hours — across advising, web, video, and ops — check them out and apply on our website.Chapters:Cold open (00:00:00)Benjamin Todd on AI-era career advice (00:01:34)A deadline for your career plan? (00:02:21)Three timelines, one career (00:08:48)What if you’re not an ‘AI person’? (00:13:55)Ben’s own AI wake-up call (00:21:23)How to break into AI safety in 3 months (00:25:42)Is mass unemployment coming? (00:33:48)99% automation vs 100% automation (00:40:09)Don’t become a plumber to dodge AI (00:52:43)Is it already too late? (01:01:03)Our production team includes:Video editors: Josh Alward, Dominic Armstrong, Jasper Luithlen, Milo McGuire, Luke Monsour, and Simon MonsourProducers: Elizabeth Cox and Nick StocktonCoordination and support: Katy Moore and Lou MoranCamera operator: Jeremy ChevillotteMusic: CORBITThe podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The 80,000 Hours team, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
622. The Critical Art of Manufacturing & Why We Can’t Lose It with Tim Minshall
2w ago00:54:48Tap to summarizePodcast: unSILOed with Greg LaBlanc (LS 41 · TOP 1.5% what is this?)Episode: 622. The Critical Art of Manufacturing & Why We Can’t Lose It with Tim MinshallPub date: 2026-02-20Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationIn today’s world where every imaginable product can appear at your doorstep with the click of a button, the art that goes into manufacturing those products is increasingly overlooked. Tim Minshall is a professor of innovation at the University of Cambridge and the author of How Things Are Made: A Journey Through the Hidden World of Manufacturing. As head of the Institute for Manufacturing, Tim is shaping the future leaders of manufacturing and reinforcing the critical role manufacturing plays in today’s world. In this conversation, Tim and Greg discuss the disconnect happening between modern-day consumers and the products they buy, plus the misconception that manufacturing has declined. They also delve into the complexity and fragility of manufacturing systems, the role of education in manufacturing, challenges in reviving manufacturing, and the future of manufacturing and software integration. *unSILOed Podcast is produced by University FM.* Episode Quotes: Bridging the gap between idea and implementation 08:09: The narrative has got a bit confused. This idea that there is a thing called innovation where you have got all the great science and technology and all this cool stuff happening, and that is brilliant. And then there is a bit, which is now implement, or we can call that manufacturing and, as you say, not without its challenges to scale and support software at scale. It is a non-trivial challenge. But if you are scaling up the production process for a new cell therapy to treat cancer or scaling up the production of, a novel semiconductor approach using, I do not know, compound semiconductors, there is, as you say, massive physical challenges involved there, so, but to me that is all part of the same innovation story. You go from the idea and the market opportunity all the way through is part of the innovation story. There is not this neat line in the middle which goes, yes, we have done with the innovation, now we manufacture. Have we become disconnected from how manufacturing happens? Every single thing we can see, unless it is a plant, a rock, an animal, or another human, has been manufactured...All of these things have been manufactured, and so there has been a slight worrying thing that has happened, certainly in the UK, and I suspect a little bit in the US as well, which is we have become disconnected from how that happens. And the more we become disconnected from it, the less we appreciate how incredibly clever it is. What are one of the biggest challenges facing manufacturing? 16:39: One of the biggest challenges facing manufacturing is. Getting good people to want to work in factories. Surely step one is making it visible. If you do not know it and you have not seen it, you are unlikely to just go, oh, I want to get involved in manufacturing. You need to have seen it. Repositioning manufacturing as the thing that drives solution 23:24: We have to reposition manufacturing as the thing that drives solutions. It is the thing that pushes us to deal with the energy transition. It allows us to deal with our multiple healthcare crises. It is what allows us to deal with sustainability challenges, all of these, it allows us to deal with the defense challenges. Geopolitics at the moment is pointing to extremely important role for manufacturing. We would rather not be in this situation, but it is an absolute truth. Show Links: Recommended Resources: I, Pencil Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future by Dan Wang Why Isn't the Whole World Developed? Lessons from the Cotton Mills by Gregory Clark Jeff Immelt | unSILOed John Taylor Ha Joon Chang | unSILOed Guest Profile: Faculty Profile at University of Cambridge’s Institute for Manufacturing Professional Profile on LinkedIn Profile on X Guest Work: How Things Are Made: A Journey Through the Hidden World of Manufacturing – A Guide to Sustainable Innovation - US Your Life Is Manufactured: How We Make Things, Why It Matters and How We Can Do It Better - UK Google Scholar Page Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Greg La Blanc, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
Is Inequality the Problem?
2w ago00:56:29Tap to summarizePodcast: The Argument (LS 38 · TOP 2% what is this?)Episode: Is Inequality the Problem?Pub date: 2025-12-01Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationRising income inequality hurts democracy, health, happiness, and basically anything you can think of … right? Sociologist Lane Kenworthy doesn't think so. In his new book Is Inequality The Problem? Kenworthy argued that inequality is overrated as “the” cause of our problems — and discussed why the data pushes him toward a different set of priorities. Host Jerusalem Demsas is skeptical. Together, they dig into happiness, health, and populism, and they discuss why expanding the social welfare state might matter more than obsessing over the 1%.The Argument is a podcast dedicated to honest, unflinching debate about the biggest questions facing democracy, culture, and our future. As the host, Jerusalem Demsas brings together voices across the political spectrum to argue, challenge, and persuade. Each episode is a space where disagreements are confronted directly, with clarity and conviction, rather than hidden or shouted down.We want to hear from you! If you liked the episode, disagreed with it, or have a guest or episode suggestion, reach out at podcast@theargumentmag.com.For a full-length, ad-free version of our podcast, you can become a paid subscriber. You can watch the full version with ads for free by subscribing to our YouTube channel. The audio version is also available wherever you get your podcasts.Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube | Overcast | Pocket CastsThe Argument podcast with Jerusalem Demsas is available wherever you get podcasts. New shows drop every Monday. If you like the show, leave a comment and ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen.Articles, studies, and posts referenced in the episode can be found on our website.Support the Show: Get a full transcript, show notes, and an ad-free version: TheArgumentMag.com New episodes every Thursday—subscribe so you never miss a debate!The Argument is produced by Justin Zuckerman, fact-checked by Eli Richman, with music by Breakmaster Cylinder and art by Ben Tousley.The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Jerusalem Demsas & Matthew Yglesias, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →
The olds are in charge, and it’s not good
2w ago00:45:38Tap to summarizePodcast: Think from KERA (LS 55 · TOP 0.5% what is this?)Episode: The olds are in charge, and it’s not goodPub date: 2026-05-29Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationThe country is run by senior citizens, and their control is transforming the nation. Samuel Moyn is Kent Professor of Law and History at Yale University and author of “Gerontocracy in America: How the Old Are Hoarding Power and Wealth and What to Do About It.” He joins host Krys Boyd to discuss why the nation’s elders hold vast amounts of wealth and political influence, why that isn’t transferring to younger generations and how we might rebalance power among generations. His companion article “The Old Guard” was published in Harper’s. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choicesThe podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from KERA, which is the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Listen Notes, Inc.
Transcribe →