In today's world of specialization, Alan Lightman is that rare individual who has accomplished remarkable things in two very different realms. As a physicist with a Ph.D. from Cal Tech, he's taught at Harvard and MIT and advised the United Nations. As a novelist, he's written award-winning bestsellers like Einstein's Dreams and The Diagnosis.
In this episo ... Show More
Feb 2
772 Thucydides and The History of the Peloponnesian War (with Polly Low and Robin Waterfield) | My Last Book with James West
The Ancient Greek historian and general Thucydides (c. 460-400 BCE) called his history of a war between Athens and Sparta "a possession for all time." More than 2,400 years later, his work is still essential reading for anyone interested in the morality of war and the nature of p ... Show More
1h 4m
Jul 2024
Alan Lightman, "Einstein's Dreams" (Vintage, 1992)
Einstein’s Dreams (Vintage, 1992) by Alan Lightman, set in Albert Einstein’s “miracle year” of 1905, is a novel about the cultural interconnection of time, relativity and life. As the young genius creates his theory of relativity, in a series of dreams, he imagines other worlds, ... Show More
55m 6s
Jul 2024
Alan Lightman, "Einstein's Dreams" (Vintage, 1992)
Einstein’s Dreams (Vintage, 1992) by Alan Lightman, set in Albert Einstein’s “miracle year” of 1905, is a novel about the cultural interconnection of time, relativity and life. As the young genius creates his theory of relativity, in a series of dreams, he imagines other worlds, ... Show More
55m 6s
Jun 2020
Brian Greene, "Until the End of Time: Mind, Matter, and Our Search for Meaning in an Evolving Universe" (Random House, 2020)
Brian Greene is a Professor of Mathematics and Physics at Columbia University in the City of New York, where he is the Director of the Institute for Strings, Cosmology, and Astroparticle Physics, and co-founder and chair of the World Science Festival. He is well known for his TV ... Show More
2 h
May 2024
#145 - Robert Edward Grant: Decoding The Hidden Secrets Of The Universe
<p>This week on The Higher Self, we are honored to host entrepreneur, author, and polymath Robert Edward Grant. His work offers inspiration through geometric art, mathematical insights, and explorations of ancient wonders like the Pyramids of Giza.</p>
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<p>In this epis ... Show More
1h 17m
Oct 2025
Chris Hadfield’s Fictional Universe Is Rooted in Real Space History
What happens when a real-life astronaut turns to fiction? In this episode, Chris Hadfield shares how decades of spaceflight and global diplomacy inspired his latest novel, Final Orbit, a cold war thriller packed with historical intrigue and technical precision. Host Rachel Feltma ... Show More
10m 52s
Jan 2025
Book Club: Let’s Talk About Alan Hollinghurst’s ‘Our Evenings’
<p>The novel “Our Evenings,” by Alan Hollinghurst, follows a gay English Burmese actor from childhood into old age as he confronts confusing relationships, his emerging sexuality, racism and England’s changing political climate in the late 20th and early 21st century. It’s the st ... Show More
47m 52s