<p>The 'age of noise': How a preoccupation with unwanted sounds came to characterise modernity. The 20th century saw the expansion of cities and technological change. The sounds of motor cars, vacuum cleaners and gramaphones filled the air, leading social commentators to forecast the end of civilisation and a breakdown in mental health. Did noise provide peo ... Show More
Feb 25
The demise of Grand Theory?
What explains the apparent decline of grand theory in sociology, and what does this shift mean for the discipline today? Laurie Taylor asks whether sociologists are now less inclined to engage with large, overarching theoretical frameworks, and explores the reasons behind this ch ... Show More
27m 35s
Nov 2022
Will Hutton on the State of Social Science
<p>Political economist and journalist Will Hutton, author of the influential 1995 book <em>The State We're In</em>, offers a state of the field report on the social sciences in this Social Science Bites podcast. Hutton, who was appointed in 2021 to a six-year term as president of ... Show More
21m 48s
Mar 2025
LOUD: Is noise an invisible killer?
BBC health correspondent James Gallagher investigates how our noisy world is damaging our health. He finds out why noise increases our risk of health problems, like heart attacks, sleep problems and anxiety, and can even affect how long we live. James spends two days in Barcelona ... Show More
49m 29s
Jul 2024
Dawn Bonfield on inclusive engineering, sustainable solutions and why she once tried to leave the sector for good
The engineering industry, like many other STEM sectors, has a problem with diversity: one that Dawn Bonfield believes we can and must fix, if we're to get a handle on much more pressing planetary problems...Dawn is a materials engineer by background, who held roles at Citroën in ... Show More
28m 21s
Mar 2025
Ben Bowles, "Boaters of London: Alternative Living on the Water" (Berghahn Books, 2024)
Boaters of London is an ethnography that delves into the process of becoming a boater, adopting an alternative lifestyle on the water and the political impact that this travelling population has on the state.
London and the Southeast of England in general is home to many people a ... Show More
1h 7m