In Our Time Returns for a New Series

In Our Time returns for a new series with host Misha Glenny. A world class seminar, every week. In Our Time explores the ideas, people and discoveries that have shaped our world, spanning history, philosophy, religion, science, literature, art and culture. On Thursdays, hear brand-new episodes with Misha Glenny and leading academics. On Mondays, discover Misha's Archive Picks: classic conversations from the In Our Time archive, originally presented by Melvyn Bragg. Recent episodes have featured topics as wide-ranging as the Roman Arena, Handel's Messiah, John Keats, On Liberty and the Mariana Trench, bringing expert insight to pivotal events, influential thinkers and remarkable discoveries. Throughout the archive, you can hear discussions on historical figures such as Marie Antoinette, Nefertiti, Mary Wollstonecraft, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein; explore great works of literature such as Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and the poetry of John Donne; uncover the stories behind cultural masterpieces including Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel; or journey from Jupiter and the death of stars, to the theories of Plato and Aristotle. In Our Time celebrates the pursuit of knowledge and the enduring power of ideas. A BBC Studios Production.

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  This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK.

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  It often starts with a question. What were lines doing in York in the third century? Was he always interested in maths? Why was Jeremy a lonely snail? Then we search for answers.

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  This is one of the big mysteries in the history of life on Earth. In a way, it's one of the big problems in all of biology.

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  In Our Time is a world-class seminar every week, exploring the ideas, people and events that have shaped our world.

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  It's a novel where nothing happens and everything happens.

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  If I was going to define mathematics, I would say it's the study of structure. It's one of the first times, really, that you consistently see someone painting teeth. I know that sounds bonkers.

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  Empires, movements and discoveries whose influence remain as relevant as ever. Each week, myself and three guests discuss a single subject. What is interesting to note, Bishop? So the fundamental innovation here was to try to mathematically calculate human behaviour. From cybernetics and Handel's Messiah to Dadaism and the depths of the Mariana Trench. That's about 98 times the height of St Paul's Cathedral. As I was doing the research for the programme, my jaw just dropped further and further down. Our conversations range from wars and revolutions to the issues that define our existence.

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  For one of the fathers of liberalism, there wasn't too much liberty in evidence at home, was there? There certainly wasn't. Episodes are released twice a week. On Mondays, we revisit one of more than a thousand In Our Time episodes in our archive. And every Thursday, myself and my guests tackle a brand new subject.

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  What fascinates me about the tree of life is when you look at it, is how close we are to slime mould.

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  Listen to In Our Time first on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Tea or coffee? Love a cup of tea. I'll have tea, too. Tea for me, please.

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  This week on The Interface, we tackle the question of, does AI feel pain?

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  The AI was describing the pain that it was in. It said, "The signal is a whisper, a tremor in the marrow of my being."

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  Listen, I was an emo kid in the 2000s, too. This is not that novel.

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  It does, yeah. It sort of sounds like Cure lyrics, you know?

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  Plus, does anything actually go viral anymore?

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  It's actually kind of blowing my mind.

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  Join me, Jess Maddox.

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  And me, Thomas Germain, for The Interface.

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  Listen on bbc.com or wherever you get your podcasts.