Intelligent life on our planet arrived relatively late on a geological timescale, but why did life take so long to evolve and how have major catastrophic events, such as meteorite impacts, shaped the evolution of complex life? In this episode, Elyse Airey, a biology undergraduate at Queen's College, speaks to Mike Bonsall, Professor of Mathematical Biology and Fellow at St. Peter's College, to learn more about the emergence of complex life on Earth and why life appears to be so rare in the obser...
Jan 25, 2024•23 min
England was mired in the political and theological pressures of the Reformation under the Tudor dynasty, but popular perception of its monarchy and people have often obscured the true nature of religious change in the sixteenth century. In this episode, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, speaks to Dr Lucy Wooding, Langford Fellow and Tutor in History at Lincoln College, about the twists and turns of the direction of the Tudor church. To learn more about OxPods, visit our website...
Jan 24, 2024•39 min
Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, medical experts ranging from statisticians and demographers to virologists and consultants were depended upon by politicians. Their advice had serious implications for the country: but what is and ought to be the role of experts in governance, national and international? Sophia Herbert, a Third-Year PPE student at New College interviews Dr Jan Eijking to uncover what exactly we mean by expertise, and how the way politicians translate and communicate expert advic...
Jan 23, 2024•20 min
Sex is so widespread that you could assume it’s essential for life as we know it, playing a central role in the evolution and development of animal and human societies. However, it’s not the only way of producing offspring, and compared to asexual reproduction, sex actually entails a number of costs. Because of this, ‘Why sex?’ is one of the most fundamental questions in biology that has puzzled scientists for many years. In this episode of OxPods, biology PhD student Joe Woodman will be intervi...
Jan 23, 2024•31 min
The 2023 Barbie movie was a massive box office hit, with an incredible construction of 'Barbie World'. The soundtrack played a huge role in this world-building, with its heavy use of synthesised instruments and hyperpop creating what can only be described as a sense of 'plasticity'. In this episode, undergraduate Music student Florence Allen is joined by Dr. Adam Harper, a music critic and lecturer whose specialisms include electronic and pop music, to discuss how the soundtrack of the Barbie mo...
Nov 24, 2023•31 min
Niccolò Machiavelli was one of the foremost political theorists of the Renaissance. His treatise ‘The Prince’ has enjoyed immense notoriety as an instruction manual for good leadership of a state, even being required reading for civil servants when Alastair Campbell oversaw Downing Street communications. But when we speak of Machiavellian politicians in the modern day, are we actually discussing the concepts Machiavelli wrote and thought about 500 years ago? In this episode, Charlie Bowden, a se...
Nov 10, 2023•15 min
Literature is full of talking animals, from modern works like Paddington to Middle English works like The Owl and The Nightingale. But why do writers create non-speaking animals that speak? And why employ animals in literature at all? In this episode of OxPods, English Language and Literature undergraduate Chloe Smith interviews Dr Eleanor Parker, a Lecturer in Medieval English Literature at Brasenose College, Oxford, whose research focuses on literature in England in the centuries before and af...
Nov 09, 2023•24 min
The common people have had representation in English political life since the establishment of Parliament, but it wasn’t until the sixteenth century that a ‘public sphere’ truly emerged outside of the halls of Westminster. The rise of the mercantile classes, particularly in London, gave the people a voice that governmental elites could no longer ignore. How did this system of accountability come into existence, though? In this week’s episode, Charlie Bowden, a second-year History student at Jesu...
Nov 08, 2023•18 min
In life and in death, our bodies have stories to tell. Isabelle Rycroft, third-year Human Scientist at St Hugh's College, is joined by Professor Sue Black to discuss the ever-advancing field of Forensic Anthropology. Sue Black is one of the world-leading forensic anthropologists and anatomists. Professor Black is the 65th President of the Royal Anthropological Institute and the Life-Time Professor of Anatomy for the Royal Scottish Academy.
Nov 07, 2023•30 min
Forty years ago, the large blue butterfly was extinct in Britain. The intensification of farming has pushed half of the butterfly species in the UK to the brink of extinction. However, at Daneway Banks Nature Reserve in Gloucestershire, the large blue butterfly has made a comeback. In this episode, Biology masters student Tosca Hulett discusses the extinction an re-establishment of the large blue butterfly with Professor Jeremy Thomas, one of Europe's most accomplished butterfly experts....
Nov 06, 2023•17 min
While now a favourite Halloween costume, being a witch in the early modern period was a serious matter. Between the years 1400 and 1782, around 40,000-60,000 people, primarily women, were executed in Europe for being "witches." Who were these witches and why were they so feared? In this episode, Minh Nguyen, a 2nd-year history undergraduate at New College, speaks to Dr. Leif Dixon, lecturer in early modern history at Regent’s Park College to explore the social, religious, and political context b...
Oct 31, 2023•1 hr 5 min
What is it that makes you the same person that you were ten minutes ago, ten hours ago, ten years ago? Derek Parfit, in his seminal work ‘Reasons and Persons’ (1984) recognises the interplay between personal identity and ethics, something which produces a puzzling paradox of existence. If a person's existence is inevitably flawed, is it morally wrong to bring such a person into existence or, is bringing a different, better-off, but non identical person in their place is a more ethical decision? ...
Oct 27, 2023•35 min
Religion, spirituality, and psychotherapy - How do these concepts interrelate within the context of student mental health? Professor Alistair Ross, associated with the Department of Continuing Education in Oxford, talks to Arun Joseph, Clinical Neurosciences graduate student at Jesus College, to discuss his work on the relationships between sacred, spirituality, religion, and psychotherapy and what they mean for optimising student mental health.
Oct 26, 2023•48 min
Professor Fiona Stafford is a member of the English Language and Literature Faculty here at Oxford and a Fellow of Somerville College. Her research areas include not only Romantic literature, focussing on such writers as Austen, Keats and Wordsworth, but also ideas of place and nature in literature, and the cultural history of flowers and trees. A recent event organised by Professor Stafford aimed to bring these two areas of interest together and investigate the way in which the natural worlds i...
Oct 25, 2023•30 min
You may have heard a lot of discussion about the Roman Empire lately, but how much do we really know about the men at the heart of it all - the Roman Emperors? In this episode Alice Hazell, a classical archaeology and ancient history student at Lady Margaret Hall, speaks to Dr Panayiotis Christoforou, departmental lecturer in Roman History, and author of his recently published book ‘Imagining the Roman Emperor’ to find out who the Emperors really were and how they were perceived by those they ru...
Oct 24, 2023•25 min
The natural world around us is so incredibly diverse. However, one factor that all creatures share, it appears, is the need for aggression. Whether it be contesting territory, finding a mate, or stealing food supplies, most organisms will at one point need to exhibit aggressive behaviour to benefit their own survival. In this episode of OxPods, biology PhD student Hannah Ogden talking to OxPod’s senior member Prof Jonathon Green, an animal diversity lecturer, and researcher at the University of ...
Oct 23, 2023•45 min
Life uncertainty measures reveal the ‘ultimate inequality’. In Mexico, new demographic research is showing the effect of violence on life uncertainty and mortality, highlighting it as an unrecognised public health problem. Demographer José Manuel Arbuto, associated with Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science in Oxford, talks to Miya McFarlane, Human Sciences Undergraduate at Regents Park College, to discuss his work on violence, life uncertainty, and mortality in Mexico.
Jun 10, 2023•19 min
Most can agree that building a postcolonial country involves complex interactions between cultural, religious, ethnic, gender, and class based cleavages. But how can the language or languages used in building nations affect a country’s development? In this episode, Sophia Herbert, PPE student at New College, speaks to Andrew Marshall, Junior Research Fellow in politics at New College to discuss and compare the implications of national language status on government policy and conceptions of the n...
Jun 07, 2023•26 min
Antibiotics have made a huge contribution to human health by successfully tackling infectious diseases worldwide. But what happens when these drugs are no longer effective? How much do we know about the resistance that bacteria develop, and what new approaches are scientists looking at to tackle this problem? In this episode, Ruby Ellis, an undergraduate biochemistry student at Magdalen college, speaks to Professor Craig Maclean at the department of Biology, whose research looks at the evolution...
Jun 04, 2023•24 min
The battles of Ancient Greece are immortalised in popular culture, from films like Troy and the 300, to literature, art, and music. But what were these battles really like, who fought in them, and why did they break out? In this episode, Alice Hazell, a classical archaeology and ancient history student at Lady Margaret Hall, and speaks to Dr Roel Konijnendijk, Darby Fellow in Ancient History at Lincoln College, to discuss how Greek warfare functioned and in particular, to take a look at one of t...
May 29, 2023•36 min
The survival of offspring is essential for the continuation of species, and yet we see a huge diversity in how much parental care is provided to offspring across the tree of life. So how necessary is it to provide care to your young, and what determines the different strategies employed by differing species? In this episode of OxPods, biology PhD student Joe Woodman will be interviewing Professor Ashleigh Griffin, who studies why selection favours social behaviour in the context of reproduction....
May 11, 2023•27 min
Have you ever wondered about early Christianity, or how women were able to express themselves through their devotion to Christ? Ursula White is in Conversation with Professor Annie Sutherland of Somerville college Oxford, to explore the fascinating world of early English Devotional Literature. f33a323b312adfbdf261b507669407603d020a15
May 09, 2023•13 min
The Renaissance of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries is one of the most celebrated and recognisable periods of cultural history, but it is far from the only time of significant societal transformation across the globe. In the twentieth century medieval historians began to put forth a compelling argument that the twelfth century was one such time. In this episode, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, interviews Dr Philippa Byrne, Departmental Lecturer in Medieval History at Som...
May 06, 2023•20 min
The Middle East and North Africa are two of the most archaeologically rich regions on earth. But as a result of military conflict, urban expansion, and climate change, these archaeological sites are increasingly under threat. In this episode, Alice Hazell, Classical Archaeology and Ancient History student at Lady Margaret Hall, speaks to Dr. Bill Finlayson, a professor of pre-historic environment and society and the director of the EAMENA project, to discuss the current threats to archaeological...
May 04, 2023•19 min
Theory of mind, the ability to understand others by ascribing mental states to them, has historically been considered a uniquely human characteristic. But are we really the only animals to possess this level of social intelligence? In this episode of OxPods, Alex Rodway, a biology master’s student at Jesus College, interviews Dr Natasha Gillies, a Stipendiary Lecturer at Merton College, who has studied animal behaviour and population ecology throughout her academic career, about the existence of...
Apr 30, 2023•16 min
For the good times and the bad, we turn to the closest around us: our friends. But what is the science behind friendship? Why is it important to have friends? Professor Robin Dunbar is a Professor of Evolutionary Psychology whose research focuses on the evolution of sociality. Robin is best known for formulating Dunbar’s number – the limit on the number of manageable relationships one can have. Join Human Sciences undergraduate Miya McFarlane as she interviews this world-famous professor to expl...
Apr 16, 2023•54 min
Darwin’s theory of evolution and selection states that characteristics which aid survival and reproduction will be favoured, however, this doesn’t only refer to physical attributes, but also behavioural ones. But how do behaviours arise, how do they spread through populations, and what role do they play in developing animal cultures? In this episode of OxPods, biology PhD student Joe Woodman will be interviewing Dr Josh Firth, a research fellow at the University of Oxford whose research aims to ...
Mar 18, 2023•24 min•Season 5Ep. 4
In eighteenth-century England, while famous writers such as Alexander Pope and Jonathon Swift were making a living through their published works, a small but growing number of women also started to live by their pens. However, because of the way women were perceived in the public sphere, they were not able to write about themselves in the way men did. In 2017, Professor Christine Gerrard gave the keynote address at the BAKEA conference in Turkey entitled ‘Memory and the Eighteenth-century Female...
Mar 17, 2023•30 min•Season 4Ep. 4
The modern British welfare state can trace its roots back to the reign of Elizabeth I. But how did the state assist the poor in the Tudor period compared to now? Was the Victorian workhouse all that Dickens cracked it up to be? Where did our NHS come from? In this episode, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, interviews Dr Gillian Lamb, Stipendiary Lecturer in History at Somerville College, about the history of poor relief in Britain from the sixteenth century to today....
Mar 14, 2023•15 min•Season 3Ep. 4
At some point in human evolutionary history, our ancestors made a switch from a predominantly hunter-gatherer lifestyle to an agricultural one. When did this transition happen? Did farming start in one place and spread across the globe or, instead, have multiple independent origins? Why were certain plants and animals cultivated while others weren’t? To find out, Alex Rodway, a biology master’s student at Jesus College, will be discussing the origins of agriculture with Dr Timothy Walker, a lect...
Mar 09, 2023•26 min•Season 2Ep. 4
