This program explores the decolonizing potential of Indian aesthetic-social philosophy by challenging two entrenched colonial prejudices: the supposed radical dissimilarity and inferiority of pre-modern Indian traditions compared to modern social theory. Through an analysis of the Upanishads and Vaisnava theology and poetry, Sudipta Kaviraj, professor of Indian Politics and Intellectual History at Columbia University, examines conceptions of paradise as a life without suffering, arguing that div...
Dec 02, 2024•1 hr 14 min
The site of Göbekli Tepe is well known as a settlement of the transitional phase in SW-Asia, in which the greater mobility of the Palaeolithic increasingly gave way to the more permanent settlement of the Neolithic. This talk uses the example of Göbekli Tepe to explore the linkage of buildings with ecology, climate, economy, cultural, political, symbolic systems, and creation of networks between dwellings. The central question is to what extent it is possible to understand how people in the Neol...
Dec 01, 2024•18 min
The ENLACE Summer Research Experience at UC San Diego connects high school and college students from the U.S. and Mexico in hands-on lab work with real research impact. Led by Dr. Olivia Graeve, the program offers a chance to explore new fields, gain lab skills, and prepare for grad school, while building cross-border friendships and collaboration in STEM. Series: "Education Channel" [Humanities] [Education] [Show ID: 38306]
Nov 28, 2024•9 min
What defines a person’s character, and how does it shape who they are? In this lecture, Susan Wolf, emeritus professor of philosophy at the University of North Carolina, challenges traditional ideas about character. She argues that character is more than just a set of traits or values an individual endorses—it can include aspects of ourselves we may not even recognize or approve of. Wolf explores how a deeper understanding of character, rooted in active intelligence and thoughtful reflection, ca...
Nov 23, 2024•1 hr 14 min
This presentation will briefly trace 70,000 years of cultural evolution from the ancient crossing from Sunda to Sahul, via the swift continental colonization during the Ice Age, through the severe impacts on survival during the Last Glacial Maximum, and the socio-territorial reconfigurations during Holocene sea-level rise. The Australian Aboriginal world had become characterized by low environmental impact habitation, complex social organization systems anchored within constructed sacred origin ...
Nov 20, 2024•18 min
Troubled interactions are moments when communication breaks down in subtle, often unnoticed ways. In this program, Waverly Duck, an urban ethnographer and professor of sociology at UC Santa Barbara, discusses these breakdowns, revealing surprising aspects of how we create meaning and self-identity. Through video and audio recordings, Duck shows how misunderstandings lead people to assign motives to each other, creating conflict. Examples from Duck's research include neighborhood poverty, food in...
Nov 20, 2024•29 min
The transition from Neolithic villages to early cities marked the greatest social transformation faced by our species before the Industrial Revolution. Our ancestors had to learn how to live in new settlements that had more people, higher densities, and more activities than had been known previously. The new adaptations to urban life involved changes in society and social processes, not just individual learning. Some changes came about through social interactions in a process called energized cr...
Nov 16, 2024•19 min
Humans construct their physical worlds in part by designing and constructing new tools, habitations, and in due course diverse buildings and, in some cases, towns and cities and construct their symbolic worlds by putting words together to tell stories, articulate plans, tell lies, seek truth, and much more. This talk offers hypotheses that address a key question for anthropogeny: How did biological evolution yield humans with the “construction-ready brains” and bodies that made us capable of the...
Nov 11, 2024•20 min
Pragmatism is a “philosophy” in two senses of the term. It is a general outlook on life and an academic theory of the universe and our place in it. In this program, Aaron Zimmerman, professor and chair of the Philosophy Department at UC, Santa Barbara, discusses the nature of America's pragmatism. The axiom of pragmatism is Alexander Bain’s (1865) theory of belief, which was subsequently developed by Charles Sanders Peirce and William James. Despite its Scottish origins, pragmatism is distinctiv...
Nov 11, 2024•28 min
This talk provides a deep time perspective for assessing the behavioural implications of the creation of the earliest known structure and the technologies used in its making. Evidence for the earliest structure appears relatively late, about 500,000 years ago in Zambia, and before the evolution of Homo sapiens. The next oldest structures were made by Neanderthals in Europe, 176,000 years ago. The site in Zambia preserves rare evidence for the shaping and fitting together of two tree trunks to ma...
Nov 06, 2024•21 min
Director Don Hertzfeldt joins moderator Miguel Penabella (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a discussion of his films ME and It’s Such a Beautiful Day. They discuss his time as a UCSB student and his early interest in animation, as well as the development of his new film. Hertzfeldt also shares insights into his influences from silent cinema, and his thematic interests in deep time and memory across his work. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 40070]
Nov 04, 2024•57 min
At a global level, Homo sapiens have reshaped the planet Earth to such an extent that we now talk of a new geological age, the Anthropocene. But each of us shapes our own worlds, physically, symbolically, and in the worlds of imagination. This symposium focuses especially on one form of construction, the construction of buildings, while stressing that such construction is ever shaped by diverse factors from landscape to culture and the construction of history embodied in it - and more. After a b...
Oct 29, 2024•9 min
As distinct from the buildings of termites (interesting though these are), bird nests offer a more apropos point of comparison for human buildings – they are conducted by single vertebrate (or a few) and can be adapted to varied circumstances, with even a small effect of social learning. However, the basic Bauplan remains species-specific, unlike the creativity of the human architect. Since nonhuman primates lack interesting building skills, and so we suggest that bird nest construction may come...
Oct 29, 2024•18 min
Step into the historic Chicago Cafe in Woodland, California, a culinary landmark that could potentially be the oldest Chinese restaurant in the U.S. Anchored by the Fong family for over a century, their resilience echoes through the decades of the Chinese Exclusion Act and societal adversity. The cafe offers more than traditional Chinese food. It's a living chapter of Chinese-American history and a beacon of cultural endurance. Series: "UC Davis News" [Humanities] [Show ID: 40176]
Oct 28, 2024•4 min
Every building – from the Parthenon to the Great Mosque of Damascus to a typical Georgian house – was influenced by the energy available to its architects. This talk offers a historical perspective on a topic of great relevance today, the linkage of architecture and energy. It provides a useful complement to the non-urban perspective on ecology offered by the talk on “The indigenous architecture of Australia.” Architecture has been shaped in every era by our access to energy, from fire to farmin...
Oct 25, 2024•21 min
Composer Christopher Willis joins moderator Tyler Morgenstern (Assistant Director, Carsey-Wolf Center) for a discussion of his work on Schmigadoon! They discuss how theatrical and movie musical history, as well as Willis’ musicology background, informs the music of the show. They explore the challenge of composing an underscore, and incorporating the stylistic variation of decades of musicals, from the Golden Age musical tradition to the darker themes of 1960s and 1970s productions. Series: "Car...
Oct 22, 2024•50 min
Director Lynn Hershman Leeson joins moderator Letícia Cobra Lima (History of Art & Architecture, UCSB and curator of A Box of One’s Own) for a discussion of her film !Women Art Revolution. They discuss her history as an artist, and the difficult process of piecing together a narrative from hundreds of hours of footage, interviews, and extensive archival research. They also examine the institutional issues faced by women in the art world and make connections between past and present artists. ...
Oct 21, 2024•35 min
Human "place-making" began over a million years ago when early humans made the hearth the center of social life. By 450,000 years ago, they were using caves in southwest Asia and sometimes buried their dead beneath the floor, linking memory-making with place-making. Hunter-gatherers started settling seasonally around 24,000 years ago, with permanent stone settlements by 13,000 BCE. Large, co-resident communities became common in the Holocene. The Neolithic (9600-6000 BCE) saw major social, econo...
Oct 20, 2024•21 min
Writer/director Sam Kadi and actors William Atherton and Rizwan Manji join moderator Juan Campo (Religious Studies, UCSB) for a discussion of their film The Citizen. They share their experiences making the film and drawing inspiration from real Arab-American stories. They also discuss the continued relevance of the film’s themes, including issues of citizenship, the immigrant experience, racial prejudice, and the right to protest, as well as the representation of Arab-Americans on-screen. Series...
Oct 20, 2024•54 min
Dr. Sian Proctor, astronaut, geoscientist, pilot and poet, flew on the first all-private mission to Earth orbit, on SpaceX Dragon. While in orbit, she found time to observe our beautiful planet, and wrote “Earth Light,” a poem about her mesmerizing experience. The poem captures the emotional impact of orbiting Earth - of being “bathed in Earth light.” Series: "Arts Channel " [Humanities] [Arts and Music] [Show ID: 40254]
Oct 18, 2024•2 min
Lucy is one of the most famous fossils of all time. The discovery of this species had a major impact on the science of human origins and evolution. Why? What was that impact? The symposium speakers—each a prominent scientist in their field—will address this question and specifically discuss the discovery’s impact through time, starting with the first few years after the discovery, the lasting impact, and the state of the art in that research area today. We're celebrating the 50th anniversary of ...
Oct 13, 2024•1 hr 19 min
The discovery of a 3.2-million-year-old hominin skeleton named Lucy revolutionized human evolutionary studies. Her Linnean classification as Australopithecus afarensis sparked debates on taxonomy, highlighting the complexity of interpreting fossil evidence and shaping our understanding of hominin evolution. Lucy's systematics provide insights into the challenges of classifying early hominins, emphasizing how interpretations evolve with new evidence and knowledge. Comparing fossils with living ap...
Oct 11, 2024•21 min
Tucked near the Art Department buildings on the south side of the UC Santa Barbara campus, the Art, Design & Architecture Museum is host to two important art collections, a fine art collection of over 10,000 eclectic pieces, and the Architecture and Design Collection, with close to two million pieces of architectural history and archives. With the ADC celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2023, we took a look at the museum and how it has grown into an important academic and community resource ...
Oct 07, 2024•5 min
Filmmaker Sreemoyee Singh joins moderator Shiva Balaghi (Area Global Initiative, UCSB) for a discussion of her film And, Towards Happy Alleys. They discuss the impetus for the film and Singh’s research into the cinema of Iran, as well as her travels to the country. Singh reflects on her experiences documenting Iranian filmmakers like Jafar Panahi and meeting those close to and following in the footsteps of the late Forugh Farrokhzad. She also discusses lessons learned as a documentary filmmaker....
Oct 07, 2024•40 min
Producer Angela Laprete and actor Lindsay Watson join moderator Tyler Morgenstern (Assistant Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center) for a discussion of their film The Wind and the Reckoning. They discuss the film’s origins and telling the story in the ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi language. They also speak on the development of the script, its approach to genres like the Western and historical drama, working with cultural consultants, and the importance of authentic and thoughtful cultural representation. Series:...
Oct 04, 2024•43 min
Lucy, discovered in 1974, revolutionized paleoanthropology, sparking interest in Africa's fossil-rich regions. This led to significant discoveries, pushing human origins records beyond six million years. Lucy's find prompted the establishment of research facilities in Africa, aiding local scholars' training. As we mark her 50th anniversary, we celebrate scientific progress and African research infrastructure while recognizing the need for further support to advance paleosciences in Africa. Serie...
Oct 04, 2024•24 min
UC Davis is commemorating the 30th anniversary of the campus' iconic Egghead sculptures in 2024. As part of the celebration, this documentary tells the tale of the UC Davis art department — from its founding artists to the present faculty and students who follow in the founders' footsteps. The first-generation artists built their community in the ceramics building known as TB 9, or Temporary Building 9, and ignited an art revolution. Part one of the three-part series looks at the cultural upheav...
Oct 01, 2024•9 min
Director Sam Pollard joins moderator Wendy Eley Jackson (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a discussion of his film Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes. They discuss his long and remarkable career as a documentary filmmaker and the life of jazz musician Max Roach. They also reflect on Pollard’s varied documentary subject matter throughout the decades, from dressage to graffiti to the civil rights movement, and working closely with director Spike Lee. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ...
Sep 29, 2024•51 min
Lucy's 50-year legacy as a superstar in human evolution is undeniable. Yet, with newer, older fossils and a growing understanding of her ancient world, her status as our ancestor is questioned. This talk delves into how these discoveries reshape Lucy's narrative and our understanding of human evolution, likening her to a middle-aged celebrity facing new challengers. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 39827]
Sep 27, 2024•21 min
Happiness is often described as being U-shaped over adulthood—starting high, declining to a midlife slump, then improving thereafter despite social losses and declines in health. Though some claim that this U-shape is a fundamental feature of human lives, happiness has mostly been studied in high-income countries. To provide a broader perspective, Michael Gurven, Professor of Anthropology at UC Santa Barbara, discusses age-profiles of subjective well-being among non-industrialized societies wher...
Sep 24, 2024•29 min
