From December 27, 1831, to October 2, 1836, the HMS Beagle set out on a scientific survey expedition in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. On the ship was a young man named Charles Darwin. That expedition exposed him to ideas that would develop his theory of natural selection which would revolutionize the world of biology. This episode is not about that theory ... Show More
Today
The Baseball Hall of Fame
In the 1930s, the United States was in the grip of the Great Depression, and baseball was approaching its 100th anniversary. One enterprising business leader in Cooperstown, New York, came up with the idea of establishing a museum and a hall of fame to honor the greatest players ... Show More
15m 24s
Jan 24
The Clovis First Hypothesis
In 1932, archaeologist Edgar B. Howard made a major discovery near the town of Clovis, New Mexico. He found a stone spear point embedded in the rib of a woolly mammoth, which inspired what became known as the Clovis First Theory. According to this theory, the creators of these sp ... Show More
15m 23s
Apr 2024
Miriam Piilonen, "Theorizing Music Evolution: Darwin, Spencer, and the Limits of the Human" (Oxford UP, 2024)
What did historical evolutionists such as Charles Darwin and Herbert Spencer have to say about music? What role did music play in their evolutionary theories? What were the values and limits of these evolutionist turns of thought, and in what ways have they endured in present-day ... Show More
1h 17m