The establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 gave Chinese artists a government that had explicit policies for the arts, seeing them as an essential part of the creation of 'new China'. Resources were put into the support of art and artists, opening up new possibilities at the same time as other possibilities that were uncongenial to Communist Party policy were closed down. The consequences of fierce artistic debates could be expulsion from the visible art world and the silencing o...
May 14, 2018•55 min
The image of the speechwriter in televised programmes (such as The Thick of It, The West Wing or Yes Minister) is something of a puppeteer, a sinister figure operating in the shadows, malevolently manipulating our political masters. Simon Lancaster believes that the successful speechwriter is less of a puppeteer and more of an impressionist. In his talk, he will share a number of stories and anecdotes from his time as speechwriter, setting out how he captures someone else's authentic voice and w...
May 09, 2018•39 min
Ever since classical antiquity, poets and playwrights have written about famous heroes and anti-heroes, lovers and politicians. But they have also yearned for posthumous fame themselves. How do they achieve it? This final lecture will show how Shakespeare helped to immortalize the famous figures of ancient Greece and Rome, and how he in turn became famous after his death - as the classics were to Shakespeare, so Shakespeare became a classic. He is our classic. The transcript and downloadable ver...
May 08, 2018•48 min
In our post-truth age, facts often don't seem to meet the deepest human longings. So do we need to go against facts, or beyond them? What does the relatively new discipline of the cognitive science of religion, which suggests that human beings are naturally religious, have to say about our human future? And where does this instinct come from? Recent psychological research has looked at the importance of meaning to human beings, and how this works out in core questions about the relation of scien...
May 08, 2018•56 min
To mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx (5 May 1818) and 150 years since Das Kapital was published in 1867, the lecture will explore the possible affinity between Marx's work in human history and Darwin's in natural history. Enthusiasm for Darwin was shared by successive generations of Communists but Marx's conception of a 'natural human being' was different. In the new political and intellectual climate, Marx viewed competition as a product, not of 'the struggle for existence', ...
May 02, 2018•44 min
The rulers of the medieval English kingdom discouraged resistance to authority by the widespread use of execution, outlawry, and exile. Yet medieval English society also applauded such resistance. Encapsulated in the tales of Robin Hood, the good outlaw is loyal, courageous, and clever; while the authorities he outwits are disloyal, cowardly, and stupid, using the cover of the law to behave corruptly. Examination of the outlaw in medieval literature tells us much about the mentality of the medie...
May 01, 2018•50 min
The reception of moving pictures in 1894-96 has been much mythologised. Were spectators really frightened of an approaching train? Did they imagine seeing their departed relatives reanimated on screen? How much attention was actually paid to this new phenomenon among so many contemporary novelties and wonders? Moving pictures may not have been the innovation once claimed, but within a decade few could doubt that they had become a major force in changing the Edwardian world. The transcript and do...
Apr 30, 2018•50 min
What role do children play in the family trial? The case concerns their future: how is their voice heard? What happens if they hold the key to the issues before the court? Should they give evidence, hear evidence? Should they meet the judge deciding their futures? How does the court reduce the risk that the trial experience itself harms the child it is seeking to protect? In this lecture I will explore whether the family court system is fit for purpose when it comes to dealing with the children ...
Apr 26, 2018•55 min
Lung disease, heart disease, stroke, dementia and learning difficulties have been associated with different forms of air pollution including gasses and particulate matter. It is a difficult policy area because there is an economic and social cost to tackling it, so there is a trade-off. This lecture will consider the evidence for different forms of air pollution causing diseases, and outline some of the potential solutions. The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available fr...
Apr 25, 2018•50 min
In the past, these were of two types (1) Breakaway parties such as the Liberal Unionists before the First World War and the SDP in the 1980s or (2) Extremist parties such as the British Union of Fascists in the 1930s and the Communist Party. Most of them have been unsuccessful. The United Kingdom Independence Party is an exception. In 2015, UKIP showed itself the most successful minor party in British history, winning one-eighth of the vote. Since then, it has been in decline. What is the explan...
Apr 24, 2018•1 hr 3 min
We all find ourselves in crowds every so often. Whilst human behaviour in general can be very hard to predict, it is possible, to a certain extent, to predict the behaviour of large numbers of people in a crowd. In this lecture I will explain the mathematics behind herding and flocking and will use this to shed some insight into how crowds of people behave. I will then show how this is helpful for the designers of sports stadia, the police, the home office and even retail stores. The transcript ...
Apr 24, 2018•55 min
There are large disparities in economic performance at the regional level in the UK. We need to consider what kinds of policies might raise regional performance and the extent which directed industrial policies and infrastructure spending might be employed to iron out differences in regional performance. The evidence will be considered. The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/regional-in...
Apr 19, 2018•52 min
London is home to two of the oldest working theatres in the world both founded by Charles II's patents. They shaped a whole quarter of London, and continue to do so today. In a second lecture on 'Buildings in the West End of London', Professor Thurley looks at the significance and impact of these great institutions on the development of London. The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/the...
Apr 18, 2018•51 min
Against the backdrop of King John's ignominy and the political challenge posed by Magna Carta, which encouraged demands for greater representation in parliament, King Henry III used art, architecture and apparel to exalt his authority and to communicate his divinely-ordained status on a scale never previously seen in England. This lecture considers how Henry used art to justify monarchy at the dawn of what is commonly termed the 'parliamentary state'. The transcript and downloadable versions of ...
Apr 12, 2018•51 min
Time's mysteries seem to resist comprehension and what remain can stretch even the most profound philosopher. Professor Tallis seeks to rescue time from the jaws of physics, examining the claims that time is merely the fourth dimension of space-time, that there is a 'passage' of time or that time has a direction or arrow. He restores tenses and our sense of 'now' that are often denied or ignored by physicists and connects these with our unique human freedom. For most of us, time is composed of m...
Apr 10, 2018•45 min
Human beings often make frequent hand movements whilst they are talking. There has been considerable psychological debate about their function, but it is now clear that they often convey core parts of the underlying message. Since we have little conscious awareness of these movements, they can be particularly revealing. We control what we say, but find it difficult, or impossible, to control the content and form of these movements. Their form and 'meaning' may not match the accompanying speech a...
Apr 04, 2018•53 min
There are strong reasons to believe that the survival of life on the Earth is under threat. Human activity is one example that we are able to control, at least in principle. We might irreversibly pollute, or destroy the planet with thermonuclear devices. Epidemics might become uncontrollable. Asteroid impact could devastate the Earth, although preventive measures might detect and monitor orbits of potential killer asteroids. Longer term, the sun will evolve into a red giant and expand to a hundr...
Apr 04, 2018•55 min
After Stalin's death in 1953, successive leaders tried to find ways to revitalise the Soviet regime and rethink its promises to the Soviet people. Life within a system no longer based on terror and intense industrial transformation (yet still striving to reach communism) offered citizens strange alternatives. The commemoration of Bolshevism hampered attempts to enthuse the population about the Soviet future. Khrushchev, Brezhnev and Gorbachev tried to re-infuse the spirit of revolution as well a...
Mar 28, 2018•44 min
Where do the ghosts in Shakespeare come from? And what about the magic? In this lecture, Jonathan Bate will summon up the ghosts of Old Hamlet, the victims of Richard III and Julius Caesar, revealing their origins in the bloody plays of Seneca. He will then show how such figures from classical mythology as Theseus and Medea provide a key to the association between supernatural powers and Shakespearean art. The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham Col...
Mar 27, 2018•50 min
There have been dramatic changes in our scientific understanding of the universe in the last hundred years. It used to be thought that the universe was eternal; now it is thought that it came into being in the 'Big Bang'. So what does this say about the trustworthiness of science? What are the implications of the Big Bang for our understanding of ourselves? Is the universe meaningless? or is there some way of developing a 'big picture' of reality that helps us decide our place and purpose in the...
Mar 27, 2018•56 min
Posters in shops and on trucks shout 'carbon neutral business', and more organisations are boasting of reducing their environmental impact by using environmentally-friendly, responsibly sourced materials. And yet we also have diesel car emission frauds, the hoax of 'degradable' plastic, and a fashion industry that claims to be sustainable whilst suggesting that we buy new clothes each season. There are green marketing scams, and dubious data being deployed to benefit shareholders. Are global bus...
Mar 22, 2018•55 min
When the most famous diarist in English, Samuel Pepys, accompanied Charles II back to London for the Restoration of the monarchy he was given the task of carrying the king's guitar. From this moment on, the instrument had a the royal seal of approval and some of the best guitar playing in Europe was heard at Whitehall. Court ladies had themselves portrayed with a guitar on their lap like a musical pet; actors and actresses played them in comedies and guitar-masters made a living teaching the dau...
Mar 21, 2018•52 min
Many televisions, baby monitors, central heating and even light-bulbs are already connected to the internet but this is only the start. Over the next few years, many billions of devices will be connected and machine-to-machine data will become the main internet traffic. Why is this happening? How will all this data be processed? And what are the benefits and the risks? The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.u...
Mar 20, 2018•54 min
In the traditional model of finance, households saved and firms borrowed through financial intermediaries. Those financial intermediaries might be banks or pension funds but the experience of intermediation in the UK does not encourage the thought that long term finance can easily be located. Do we need a Development Bank? The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/the-structure-of-finance ...
Mar 15, 2018•57 min
Everyone is different, and treatment options increasingly reflect that. As we understand more about our genetic makeup, our varying response to conventional therapies means that we can design drugs and build devices tailored for individuals ('bespoke' rather than 'ready made'). This lecture considers the challenges that the NHS and its suppliers face in employing personalised medicine. The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https:/...
Mar 14, 2018•55 min
Descriptions and reconstructions of houses can illuminate other histories and provide a sense of the relationships between people and places. Edwardian architecture in particular provides a fascinating commentary on broader historical themes - not only in its use of style and its remodelling of old buildings but also in the range of new activities it provided for, from 'servantless' country and seaside cottages to motor houses, gardens and hobbies rooms. Looking at the furnishing and operation o...
Mar 13, 2018•50 min
Quantum science has been one of the most successful and useful theories ever invented. Indeed quantum technology was added as the ninth of the original eight great technologies. However, quantum mechanics is also, at the same time, one of the most mysterious, and in many ways most bizarre of all scientific theories. Some of the maths of quantum science will be explained, demonstrating its vital role in modern technology. We will also look at its applications to quantum computing and ask question...
Mar 13, 2018•58 min
In recent years, the reputation of the financial services and related professional services industries has been corroded by a series of scandals. In 2017, the largest ever decline in trust across the institutions of government, business, media and NGOs was reported. In the light of the 2016 Brexit vote, it is clear that trust amongst society and commerce is more important than ever. The City has a responsibility to regain the trust of the society it is here to serve. This talk and panel discussi...
Mar 08, 2018•1 hr 4 min
In 1887 the influential arts-and-crafts book illustrator Walter Crane published The Baby's Own Aesop, bringing the homespun wisdom of ancient Greek peasants to a new generation of children. This lecture uses these fables to tackle the least attractive feature of ancient Greece - institutionalised slavery. Beneath the semi-legendary figure of Aesop himself, a barbarian sold to a Greek slave-owner in the 6th century BCE, lie tens of thousands of his real-life equivalents. The lecture asks how the ...
Mar 08, 2018•52 min
Based on new research into the origins of St. James's, Simon Thurley looks into the ingredients that went into making a court quarter there and the way it formed a blueprint for the new West End of London. This is the first of two lectures by Professor Thurley on 'Buildings in the West End of London.' The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/palace-park-and-square-st-jamess-and-the-birth-...
Mar 07, 2018•55 min
