This year's Reith Lecturer is the distinguished engineer, Lord Broers. Alec Broers is President of the Royal Academy of Engineering and Chairman of the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee. He was a pioneer of nanotechnology and the first person to use the scanning electron microscope for the fabrication of micro-miniature structures. Lord Broers delivers the first of his five Reith Lectures in which he sets out his belief that technology can and should hold the key to the future. He ...
Apr 06, 2005•43 min
In his fifth and final Reith Lecture, the Nobel Laureate, playwright, poet and political activist Wole Soyinka examines the causes and impact of fanaticism. When Osama Bin Laden declares that the world is divided between believers and non-believers, it is easy to identify the menace of the fanatical mind but, in what other company can we place George Bush when we hear him declare that 'you are either with us or you are on the side of the terrorists'? We fail at our peril to recognize a twin stra...
May 05, 2004•43 min
The Nobel Laureate, playwright, poet and political activist Wole Soyinka explores the notion of dignity within a climate of fear. Even in defeat, negotiating terms of surrender, a defeated nation pleads: 'Leave us something of our dignity'. Denied this little consideration, a doomed struggle is promptly resumed. What exactly is this 'dignity' that even nations enshrine in their constitutions and Bills of Human Rights? Is it a basic core of volition? Or is it a sense of freedom? Obviously human d...
Apr 28, 2004•43 min
In his third Reith Lecture, the Nobel Laureate, playwright, poet and political activist Wole Soyinka examines the power of political and religious rhetoric. Between God and Nation, and Sieg Heil, a complex set of social impulses and goals are reduced to mere sound. It is a potent tool that moves to vibrate a collective chord and displace reason. A willed hypnosis substitutes for individual will and the ecstasy of losing oneself in a sound-cloned crowd drives the most ordinary person to throw awa...
Apr 21, 2004•43 min
In his second Reith Lecture, the Nobel Laureate, playwright, poet and political activist Wole Soyinka examines how difficult it can be to tell friend from foe in a climate of fear. Organisations that are set up to overthrow dictatorships can themselves turn into tyrannical regimes. Liberation movements may be forced to seek help from dangerous quarters and these days it is not just countries that control and direct the lives of their citizens. Wole Soyinka looks at the recent history of two coun...
Apr 14, 2004•43 min
The Nigerian born writer, Wole Soyinka, is a playwright, poet and a political activist. His novel, The Man Died: The Prison Notes of Wole Soyinka, recounts his experience of his unlawful imprisonment and the effects of solitary confinement over a period of 22 months during the Nigerian Civil war. Subsequently he has been an outspoken critic of many military dictators and in 1986 was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. In his first lecture, Wole Soyinka considers the changes since the Cold Wa...
Apr 07, 2004•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Vilayanur S Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition. He has lectured widely on art and visual perception of the brain and is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Human Behaviour. Professor Ramachandran's work has concentrated on investigating phenomena such as phantom limbs, anosognosia and anorexia nervosa. In his final Reith Lecture, Professor Ramachandran argues that neuroscience, perhaps more than any other discipline, is capable of trans...
Apr 30, 2003•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Vilayanur S Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition. He has lectured widely on art and visual perception of the brain and is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Human Behaviour. Professor Ramachandran's work has concentrated on investigating phenomena such as phantom limbs, anosognosia and anorexia nervosa. In his fourth Reith Lecture, Professor Ramachandran demonstrates experimentally that the phenomenon of synesthesia is a genuine sensory ...
Apr 23, 2003•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Vilayanur S Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition. He has lectured widely on art and visual perception of the brain and is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Human Behaviour. Professor Ramachandran's work has concentrated on investigating phenomena such as phantom limbs, anosognosia and anorexia nervosa. In his third lecture, which is the most speculative one in the series of five, Professor Ramachandran takes up one of the most ancient q...
Apr 16, 2003•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Vilayanur S Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition. He has lectured widely on art and visual perception of the brain and is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Human Behaviour. Professor Ramachandran's work has concentrated on investigating phenomena such as phantom limbs, anosognosia and anorexia nervosa. In his second Reith Lecture Professor Ramachandran examines the process we call 'seeing'; how we become consciously aware of things arou...
Apr 09, 2003•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Vilayanur S Ramachandran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition. He has lectured widely on art and visual perception of the brain and is Editor-in-chief of the Encyclopaedia of Human Behaviour. Professor Ramachandran's work has concentrated on investigating phenomena such as phantom limbs, anosognosia and anorexia nervosa. Professor Ramachandran begins his Reith Lecture series on 'The Emerging Mind' by arguing that scientists need no longer be afraid to ask...
Apr 02, 2003•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Onora O'Neill. She became Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, in l992 and has chaired the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission. She is currently chair of the Nuffield Foundation and she has been President of the Aristotelian Society, and a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee. In 1999 she was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, and sits as a crossbencher. She has written widely on political phi...
May 01, 2002•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Onora O'Neill. She became Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, in l992 and has chaired the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission. She is currently chair of the Nuffield Foundation and she has been President of the Aristotelian Society, and a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee. In 1999 she was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, and sits as a crossbencher. She has written widely on political phi...
Apr 24, 2002•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Onora O'Neill. She became Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, in l992 and has chaired the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission. She is currently chair of the Nuffield Foundation and she has been President of the Aristotelian Society, and a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee. In 1999 she was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, and sits as a crossbencher. She has written widely on political phi...
Apr 17, 2002•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Onora O'Neill. She became Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, in l992 and has chaired the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission. She is currently chair of the Nuffield Foundation and she has been President of the Aristotelian Society, and a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee. In 1999 she was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, and sits as a crossbencher. She has written widely on political phi...
Apr 10, 2002•43 min
This year's Reith Lecturer is Onora O'Neill. She became Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge, in l992 and has chaired the Nuffield Council on Bioethics and the Human Genetics Advisory Commission. She is currently chair of the Nuffield Foundation and she has been President of the Aristotelian Society, and a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee. In 1999 she was made a life peer as Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve, and sits as a crossbencher. She has written widely on political phi...
Apr 03, 2002•43 min
Tom Kirkwood, Professor of Medicine and head of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Newcastle presents his final of five Reith Lectures investigating new insights from the frontiers of science and the choices and decisions we face in the uncharted territories of a greying world. In this lecture, Professor Kirkwood challenges science and society to look afresh at what is happening in our world, to recognise the opportunities, as well as the threats to future stability, that stem fr...
May 02, 2001•43 min
Tom Kirkwood, Professor of Medicine and head of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Newcastle presents the fourth of five Reith Lectures investigating new insights from the frontiers of science and the choices and decisions we face in the uncharted territories of a greying world. In this lecture, recorded at Berryhill retirement village, near Stoke-on-Trent, Professor Kirkwood discusses making choices in ageing. He argues that the freedom to make, and continue making choices is pe...
Apr 25, 2001•43 min
Tom Kirkwood, Professor of Medicine and head of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Newcastle presents the third of five Reith Lectures investigating new insights from the frontiers of science and the choices and decisions we face in the uncharted territories of a greying world. In this lecture Professor Kirkwood tackles the subject of sex. Does sex shorten our lives? Can it be, as some have suggested, that ageing and death are the price we pay for sex? Does it make sense to think...
Apr 18, 2001•44 min
Tom Kirkwood, Professor of Medicine and head of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Newcastle presents his second of five Reith Lectures investigating new insights from the frontiers of science and the choices and decisions we face in the uncharted territories of a greying world. In this lecture he looks at a revolution in the life sciences; a revolution that has unfolded with breathtaking speed over the last half century and which has accelerated greatly of late. It is this revol...
Apr 11, 2001•43 min
Tom Kirkwood, Professor of Medicine and head of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Newcastle presents the first of five Reith Lectures investigating new insights from the frontiers of science and the choices and decisions we face in the uncharted territories of a greying world. In his first lecture, recorded at the Royal Institution, Professor Kirkwood explores the revolution in human longevity. Science, he says, has new things to tell us about the process of ageing. We know now ...
Apr 04, 2001•43 min
To mark the new millennium, this year's Reith Lectures are delivered by five different thinkers, each eminent in a different field. At the end of the run, the Prince of Wales presents his own views on the topic in a roundtable discussion with all five lecturers. The Millennium Reith Lectures deal with one of the most pressing issues of our time - sustainable development. The fifth lecture, delivered from Delhi, is by the Founder Director of the New Delhi Research Foundation for Science, Technolo...
May 10, 2000•43 min
To mark the new millennium, this year's Reith Lectures are delivered by five different thinkers, each eminent in a different field. At the end of the run, the Prince of Wales presents his own views on the topic in a roundtable discussion with all five lecturers. The Millennium Reith Lectures deal with one of the most pressing issues of our time - sustainable development. The fourth lecture, delivered from Geneva, is by the Director General of the World Health Organisation, Dr Gro Harlem Brundtla...
May 03, 2000•43 min
To mark the new millennium, this year's Reith Lectures are delivered by five different thinkers, each eminent in a different field. At the end of the run, the Prince of Wales presents his own views on the topic in a roundtable discussion with all five lecturers. The Millennium Reith Lectures deal with one of the most pressing issues of our time - sustainable development. The third lecture is by Sir John Browne. Sir John Browne is Chief Executive Officer of BP Amoco, Britain's largest company and...
Apr 26, 2000•57 min
To mark the new millennium, this year's Reith Lectures are delivered by five different thinkers, each eminent in a different field. At the end of the run, the Prince of Wales presents his own views on the topic in a roundtable discussion with all five lecturers. The Millennium Reith Lectures deal with one of the most pressing issues of our time - sustainable development. The second lecture, delivered from Los Angeles is by Tom Lovejoy. Tom Lovejoy is Chief Biodiversity Advisor for the World Bank...
Apr 19, 2000•43 min
To mark the new millennium, this year's Reith Lectures are delivered by five different thinkers, each eminent in a different field. At the end of the run, the Prince of Wales presents his own views on the topic in a roundtable discussion with all five lecturers. The Millennium Reith Lectures deal with one of the most pressing issues of our time - sustainable development. The first lecture, delivered from London is by Chris Patten. Chris Patten is a European Commissioner and was the last Governor...
Apr 12, 2000•43 min
Professor Giddens was director of the London School of Economics and he has been described as 'Britain's best-known social scientist since Keynes'. In his fifth and final lecture, delivered from London, Professor Giddens examines one of the most powerful energising ideas of the 20th Century; democracy. He argues that rather than thinking of democracy as a fragile flower, easily trampled underfoot, we should see it more as a sturdy plant, able to grow even on quite barren ground. The expansion of...
May 05, 1999•58 min
Professor Giddens was director of the London School of Economics and he has been described as 'Britain's best-known social scientist since Keynes'. The lectures are delivered from five major cities around the world, locating the lectures themselves within the cultural variety of the world across which they were broadcast. In his fourth lecture, delivered from Washington DC, Professor Giddens examines the roles within the family and argues that the persistence of aspects of the traditional family...
Apr 28, 1999•58 min
Professor Giddens was director of the London School of Economics and he has been described as 'Britain's best-known social scientist since Keynes'. The lectures are delivered from five major cities around the world, locating the lectures themselves within the cultural variety of the world across which they were broadcast. In his third lecture, delivered from Delhi, Professor Giddens looks at the links between tradition and fundamentalism and argues that all traditions are invented traditions. Mu...
Apr 21, 1999•58 min
The 1999 Reith Lecturer is Professor Anthony Giddens. Professor Giddens was Director of the London School of Economics and his writings have been used by world leaders, including Tony Blair and Bill Clinton, to develop ideas on what become known as 'The Third Way' in politics. He was Professor of Sociology at the University of Cambridge from 1986-96 and took up the post as Director of the London School of Economics in 1997. He has been described as 'Britain's best-known social scientist since Ke...
Apr 07, 1999•43 min
