Anne Graziano and Eliyahu Keller, editors of Thresholds 46: SCATTER!, talk about the mission of the journal; the making of the SCATTER! issue; the role of student journals; and how to make architectural knowledge and education more accessible. Established in 1992, Thresholds is the annual peer-reviewed journal produced by the MIT Department of Architecture. Each independently themed issue features content from leading scholars and practitioners in the fields of architecture, art, and culture. Ab...
Apr 03, 2023•19 min•Ep. 36
How the way we perceive our bodies plays a critical role in the way we perceive ourselves: stories of phantom limbs, rubber hands, anorexia, and other phenomena. The body is central to our sense of identity. It can be a canvas for self-expression, decorated with clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, tattoos, and piercings. But the body is more than that. Bodily awareness, says scientist-writer Moheb Costandi, is key to self-consciousness. In Body Am I: The New Science of Self-Consciousness (MIT Press, 2...
Apr 03, 2023•38 min•Ep. 23
NFT, BTC, DAO, ETH, WAGMI, HODL. It would have been hard to avoid these acronyms only a year ago. The hype around cryptocurrencies and blockchain art was almost as annoying as the glee with which crypto sceptics welcomed the sudden onset of the crypto winter. But for all the popularity of Bored Apes and Ponzi scheme stories, there seems to have been little serious engagement with the philosophical, political, and aesthetic implications of the blockchain. The academy appears to have dismissed the...
Apr 03, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 105
In Break On Through , Lucas Richert explores Anti-psychiatry, psychedelics, and radical challenges to psychiatry and the conventional treatment of mental health in the 1970s. In this interview Lucas discusses the issues that run through the sixties and seventies and how they're forming debates about mental health today. "Antipsychiatry," Esalen, psychedelics, and DSM III: Radical challenges to psychiatry and the conventional treatment of mental health in the 1970s. The upheavals of the 1960s gav...
Apr 02, 2023•32 min•Ep. 65
The intersection between cutting-edge neuroscience and the emerging field of network science has been growing tremendously over the past decade. Olaf Sporns, editor of Network Neuroscience , and Distinguished Professor, Provost Professor of Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington, discusses the applications of network science technology to neuroscience. Dr. Sporns hopes the launch of Network Neuroscience will contribute to the creation of a common languag...
Apr 02, 2023•13 min•Ep. 35
Listen as Peter Krause and Sean Lynn-Jones discuss the key differences between united and hegemonic power and the internal structure of violent and nonviolent national movements, as outlined in Krause’s article “The Structure of Success: How the Internal Distribution of Power Drives Armed Group Behavior and National Movement Effectiveness” from International Security 38:3 (Winter 2013/14). This conversation was recorded on January 17, 2014....
Apr 01, 2023•45 min•Ep. 34
Listen as Andrew Menard and Laura Dassow Walls discuss the notions of walking, wildness, nationalism, and the role of beauty in Thoreau's "Walking." This conversation was recorded on February 27, 2014. Read Andrew Menard's article, "Nationalism and the Nature of Thoreau's 'Walking.'"
Mar 31, 2023•42 min•Ep. 33
Why laws focused on data cannot effectively protect people—and how an approach centered on human rights offers the best hope for preserving human dignity and autonomy in a cyberphysical world. Ever-pervasive technology poses a clear and present danger to human dignity and autonomy, as many have pointed out. And yet, for the past fifty years, we have been so busy protecting data that we have failed to protect people. In Beyond Data: Reclaiming Human Rights at the Dawn of the Metaverse (MIT Press,...
Mar 31, 2023•22 min•Ep. 337
Our contributors discuss their work in the arts and sciences, which is showcased in the new article collection, Water Is in the Air: Physics, Politics, and Poetics of Water in the Arts . Water Is in the Air explores the ways that artists, from all over the world, working at the cutting edge of science and engineering, create work that addresses critical issues of water in culture and society. This conversation was recorded on March 19, 2014. Jean-Marc Chomaz , CNRS research director at the École...
Mar 30, 2023•32 min•Ep. 32
Listen, my children, and you shall hear Of a lovely feminine Paul Revere... Marla R. Miller and Paula D. Hunt discuss Sybil Ludington, material culture, and American mythmaking. Although there is no primary evidence supporting Sybil’s historic ride, she has become an increasingly popular figure tied to the American Revolution. This conversation was recorded on March 30, 2015. Correction: At (28:41), it was the Connecticut NOW (National Organization for Women) that sponsored the Sybil Ludington Y...
Mar 29, 2023•31 min•Ep. 31
As Lucas Kello reveals, it is far easier to attack than to defend when it comes to cyber war. Listen as Kello and Sean Lynn-Jones discuss the dangers of cyber war, review recent cases of cyber attack, and offer security advice for policymakers. This conversation is based on Kello’s article “ The Meaning of the Cyber Revolution: Perils to Theory and Statecraft ,” which appears in the Fall 2013 issue of International Security (38:2). This episode was recorded on October 2, 2013....
Mar 28, 2023•34 min•Ep. 30
Our contributors discuss the connections between science, specifically chemistry, and art, and talk about how materials traditionally identified with science can be used to create art. This conversation was recorded on January 24, 2013. Tami Spector , Professor of Chemistry at the University of San Francisco. Philip Ball , freelance science writer, lecturer, and author of several popular science books. Kathryn de Ridder-Vignone , Post-Doctoral Research Analyst at the Center for Nanotechnology in...
Mar 27, 2023•54 min•Ep. 29
As Mary Sarotte reveals in her Fall 2012 article in International Security , the actions of the Chinese government during the Tiananmen Square protests nearly split the Communist Party of China. Listen as Sarotte and International Security Editor Sean Lynn-Jones discuss internal party reactions to the event, how it affected relations between the US and China, and lessons the CCP may have learned from other Cold War-era governments. This conversation was recorded on November 20, 2012....
Mar 26, 2023•28 min•Ep. 28
Maximilian Schich, Isabel Meirelles, and Roger Malina discuss the contents and creation of the new article collection, Arts, Humanities, and Complex Networks , which explores the application of the science of complex networks to art history, archeology, visual arts, the art market, and other areas of cultural importance. This conversation was recorded on April 26, 2012. Maximilian Schich, DFG fellow at László Barabási's Center for Complex Network Research in Boston. Isabel Meirelles, information...
Mar 24, 2023•29 min•Ep. 26
Bill Fowler, member of the editorial board of The New England Quarterly , Mary Babson Fuhrer, and Robert A. Gross discuss Fuhrer's recent NEQ article, “The Revolutionary Worlds of Lexington and Concord Compared” and Gross's 1976 book, The Minutemen and Their World . Our panelists discuss the two colonial towns, their similarities and differences, and key factors that led to the famous battles between the English and the colonists on April 19, 1775. This conversation was recorded on March 22, 201...
Mar 23, 2023•37 min•Ep. 25
Edward Mead Earle was a historian, scholar, professor, and international relations expert; he was also a founding father of the field we know as Security Studies. Listen as David Ekbladh and International Security Editor Sean Lynn-Jones discuss Earle's contributions to the field , his views on what Security Studies should be, his seminar at the Institute for Advanced Study, and what he might think of Security Studies today. This conversation was recorded on January 4, 2012....
Mar 22, 2023•26 min•Ep. 24
Contributing artists to PAJ 100 recorded podcasts based on their pieces for the issue, responding to PAJ editor Bonnie Marranca's four statements on major themes Belief, Being Contemporary, Performance and Science, and Writing and Performance. Read about the contributors and themes here.
Mar 21, 2023•55 min•Ep. 23
Much has been made of the rise of China's economy, and some fear that China will surpass the United States as the world's largest economy in the coming years. Michael Beckley goes against the grain in his article "China's Century? Why America's Edge Will Endure" ( International Security , Winter 2011/12), arguing that the size of a nation's economy doesn't necessarily dictate its global power, and that the United States is not in great danger because of China's economic developments. Beckley and...
Mar 20, 2023•30 min•Ep. 22
Bill Fowler, member of the editorial board of The New England Quarterly , Professor Dick Brown, and Governor Michael Dukakis discuss Brown's recent NEQ article, “' Tried, Convicted, and Condemned, in Almost Every Bar-room and Barber's Shop': Anti-Irish Prejudice in the Trial of Dominic Daley and James Halligan, Northampton, Massachusetts, 1806 ". Our panel touches on the evolution of our judicial system, the responsibility of the policy maker in correcting errors of our past, and the role of the...
Mar 19, 2023•29 min•Ep. 21
In this podcast, Claire MacDonald and Sarah Parry discuss the history of recording, the sharing of sound art between artists, how recording has shaped communities, the impact of technology on artists and their publics, and the artist's voice and the different genres it inhabits. About the Contributors: Claire MacDonald is a curator, writer, and editor whose work focuses on the intersections of performance, writing, and art. She is a founding editor of Performance Research and a contributing edit...
Mar 18, 2023•37 min•Ep. 20
Nicolas Collins, editor of Leonardo Music Journal and Chair of Sound at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, answered our questions about the 20th anniversary issue of LMJ . The issue's theme was improvisation. In the podcast, Nic explains how he chose the theme and shares insights about putting the issue together, as well as about how improvisation and composition have evolved during his tenure as editor of LMJ ....
Mar 17, 2023•18 min•Ep. 19
Paul Freedman, Chester D. Tripp Professor of History and Acting Chair, Department of History at Yale University, chats with Rebecca Federman, Culinary Collections Librarian at the New York Public Library. Paul provides insight into 19th-century American restaurant dining based on his recent article in The New England Quarterly , " American Restaurants and Cuisine in the Mid–Nineteenth Century " (March 2011). We hear about the most popular dishes, regional differences in menus, and which dishes c...
Mar 16, 2023•28 min•Ep. 18
Playing Oppression: The Legacy of Conquest and Empire in Colonialist Board Games (MIT Press, 2023) by Dr. Mary Flanagan & Dr. Mikael Jakobsson is a striking analysis of popular board games' roots in imperialist reasoning—and why the future of play depends on reckoning with it. Board games conjure up images of innocuously enriching entertainment: family game nights, childhood pastimes, cooperative board games centered around resource management and strategic play. Yet in Playing Oppression, D...
Mar 16, 2023•48 min•Ep. 362
Michael Gurevich, lecturer at the Sonic Arts Research Centre at the Queen’s University, Belfast School of Music and Sonic Arts, serves as guest editor of the Winter 2010 issue of Computer Music Journal . In this podcast, Michael discusses the fields of Computer Music and Human Computer Interaction (HCI). He describes how these fields intersect and what they can learn from each other, touching on how the field of Computer Music has grown and how this affects performance and composition of electro...
Mar 15, 2023•20 min•Ep. 17
Sean Lynn-Jones, editor of International Security , interviews author John Schuessler, whose article " The Deception Dividend: FDR's Undeclared War " appears in the Spring 2010 issue of the journal. Their conversation tackles the question of whether FDR willfully deceived the American public in order to persuade them to support WWII – and touches on perceptions of warring democracies as well as comparisons to the 2003 Iraq War. The conversation was recorded on May 21, 2010...
Mar 14, 2023•35 min•Ep. 16
In light of J.D. Salinger's recent passing and on reflection of his literary contributions, The New England Quarterly took a trip back to its December 1997 issue (70:4) and one of the journal's most popular articles. Pulitzer Prize-winner and NEQ editorial board member, Louis Menand interviews author Stephen J. Whitfield on his article " Cherished and Cursed: Toward a Social History of The Catcher in the Rye ." They discuss the impact of Salinger, the political and social climate during the time...
Mar 13, 2023•33 min•Ep. 15
Mary Kelley, member of the NEQ editorial board, interviews Deirdre Clemente about her article " 'Prettier Than They Used to Be': Femininity, Fashion, and the Recasting of Radcliffe's Reputation, 1900-1950 " which appears in the December 2009 issue of The New England Quarterly . The conversation was recorded on December 21, 2009.
Mar 12, 2023•28 min•Ep. 14
Samuel Jay Keyser, Editor-in-Chief of Linguistic Inquiry , has shared a campus with Noam Chomsky for 40-odd years via MIT's Department of Linguistics and Philosophy. The two colleagues sat down in Mr. Chomsky's office to discuss ideas on language evolution and the human capacity for understanding the complexities of the universe. The unedited conversation was recorded on September 11, 2009.
Mar 11, 2023•37 min•Ep. 13
Bill Fowler, Chair of NEQ 's Board of Directors, speaks with Bob Gross about the events leading up to Shays's Rebellion and how they relate to today's circumstances. Mr. Gross's article, " A Yankee Rebellion? The Regulators, New England, and the New Nation " appears in the March 2009 issue of The New England Quarterly . The discussion was recorded at Northeastern University on April 10, 2009.
Mar 10, 2023•35 min•Ep. 12
Artist Jan Harrison's work explores the connections between human and animal psyches and takes the form of painting, pastel, sculpture, and performance. Jan's essay in the current (January 2011) issue of PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art , called " Singing in Animal Tongues: An Inner Journey ", describes the origins and scope of Jan's work, including her ability to speak and sing in "Animal Tongues." In this podcast, Jan and curator Linda Weintraub discuss Jan's work and the animal beings wh...
Mar 09, 2023•25 min•Ep. 11
