Lectures

This section contains posts featuring interesting lectures available online. The views expressed in these lectures, as well as the credit and copyright, in each case belongs exclusively to the filmmaker(s) and/or producer(s).

The other inconvenient truth

March 5, 2014
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Johnathan Foley is director of the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota. He recently received a Heinz Award, which is given annually to people who improve the human condition and environment through work in areas ranging from poverty alleviation to the arts and sciences. The award citation for Foley begins as follows: A scientist on the leading edge of understanding global ecosystems and the study of complex environmental systems, Jonathan Foley, Ph.D., has dedicated his career to examining and finding solutions for the challenge of feeding an ever-growing population while at the same time protecting our planet…

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Predictably irrational (TED lectures by Dan Ariely)

February 25, 2014
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Dan Ariely is a behavioural economics researcher, most famous for his two books Predictably Irrational and The Upside of Irrationality, both of which challenge the assumption of rationality at the heart of classical or “rational” economics. As a behavioural economist, Ariely is interested in showing the multitude of ways in which the human mind departs from the norms of rationality. In this series of TED lectures, Ariely uses optical illusions and humorous anecdotes to expose in a vivid way some of the biases of the human mind and the predictable mistakes most of us make in judgement and  decision-making. More…

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Why online privacy matters (TED lecture by Alessandro Acquisti)

December 24, 2013
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In this informative and also humorous TED lecture, Allesandro Acquisti, a researcher on the behavioural economics of privacy, talks about the current state of privacy online and why we should care about it. He concludes his talk with the following thought: “I do believe that one of the defining fights of our time will be the fight for the control over our personal information. The fight over whether big data will become a force for freedom rather than a force which will manipulate us. Right now, many of us do not even know that the fight is going on. But…

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The internet and mind-change (lecture by Susan Greenfield)

October 12, 2013
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In this fascinating lecture, Susan Greenfield, a neuroscientist and professor of Pharmacology at Oxford University, talks about the effects of a digitized world on the human brain. She argues that the brain’s frontal cortex, the area responsible for abstract thought and analysis, is significantly altered in adolescents growing up with a high exposure to digital technologies. Many of the points made in this talk are consistent with Sherry Turkle’s findings on the happiness of contemporary “digital natives”. This is not only interesting material, it also has practical significance for every parent and every adolescent growing up today. On her website,…

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How to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (lecture by Norman Finkelstein)

May 25, 2013
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Norman Finkelstein is one of the clearest, most informed, and most courageous commentators on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He has been speaking out and writing about the conflict for most of his adult life and has paid a heavy price for his candor and integrity on the issue. In the lecture below Finkelstein  lays out the reasons why a solution to this conflict is a distinct possibility, dissects some of the propaganda surrounding the issue, and defines the challenges that must be faced in order to achieve a solution. One of the great strengths of this lecture, like most others by…

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How Class Works (animated lecture by Richard Wolff)

May 17, 2013
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The description for this short lecture reads as follows: Richard Wolff is an economist who has studied class issues for more than 40 years. In this animation and audio presentation, Wolff explains what class is all about and applies that understanding to the foreclosure crisis of 2007–2011. He argues that class concerns the “way our society splits up the output [and] leaves those who get the profits in the position of deciding and figuring out what to do with them… We all live with the results of what a really tiny minority in our society decides to do with the…

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You don’t have to go down in my basement (lecture by Dan Barker)

March 9, 2013
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Dan Barker, ex-evangelical priest and now outspoken atheist and secularization-activist begins his lecture for the 4th Skepticon, the annual skeptics convention set in Springfield, Missouri, with the following words: If I wasn’t a true Christian, nobody is. I felt it, I believed it, I prayed, I read the Bible, I dedicated my life, I lived by faith, I was preaching for 19 years, and also when I prayed I got these feelings, all these amazing goosebumps, and I knew God was real. It’s a real thing that is happening in the brain, in fact I can still do it now.…

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Aaron’s Law: law and justice in a digital age (lecture by Lawrence Lessig)

March 6, 2013
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In his inaugural speech as the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard Law School,  Lawrence Lessig,  a cyber-law expert and self-described mentee of Aaron Swarts, talks about Aaron’s life, his activism, and his ideas for a better world. He also discusses copyright and the access to information–not in the sense of access to the latest entertainment products, but rather access to academic material, government data, and other important information.

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How viable is Economics? (lecture by Steve Keen)

October 30, 2012
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In the lecture below, Steve Keen, Associate Professor of Economics & Finance at the University of Western Sydney and author of Debunking Economics, questions the viability of modern neoclassical macroeconomics and its premises. His critique not only calls into question what is taught in virtually every economics department around the world, but also casts doubt on the typical policy recommendations made by neoclassical economists.

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Can democracy exist without trust? (TED lecture by Ivan Krastev)

September 5, 2012
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The following lecture is by Ivan Krastev, a political scientist and chair of the Centre for Liberal Strategies, in Sofia, a research and analysis NGO on democracy and trust.  Here are a few interesting quotes from the talk: Democracy is the only game in town. The problem is [when] people start to believe that it is not a game worth playing. And when we talk about the internet – yes it’s true, internet connected all of us, but we also know, that the internet created these equal chambers and political ghettos, in which for all your life, you can stay…

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Freedom of thought and open-source software (lecture by Eben Moglen)

July 28, 2012
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Eben Moglen, professor of law and legal history at Columbia University, as well as founder, Director-Counsel and Chairman of Software Freedom Law Center and long-term supporter of organizations like the Free Software Foundation, is a lecturer and free software/open-source advocate. Though the following lecture and interview only covers so much, they do serve as a good introduction to his extensive body of work. Why Freedom of Thought Requires Free Media and Why Free Media Require Free Technology This lecture was held during the Re:publica 2012 conference in Berlin. It describes in detail why the current societal model, in which proprietary…

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Taxing the wealthy (TED lecture by Chuck Collins)

June 30, 2012
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The Program on Inequality and the Common Good, run by Chuck Collins at The Institute for Policy Studies in Washington DC, focuses on the dangers that growing inequality pose for U.S. democracy, economic health and civic life. In this TEDx lecture Collins gives a moving and illuminating talk on the moral justification for reducing income inequality by increasing taxes on the rich. Collins’s privileged background lends to his credibility on this subject, but what really impresses in this talk are the stories of the wealthy people across the US who are actually willing to dramatically increase their tax rates. This talk…

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Dean Ornish and enlightened ethical egoism

May 28, 2012
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Ethical egoism is the philosophical theory that people should always act in their own self-interest, that when faced with choices between what’s good for oneself and what’s good for others, one should always place one’s own interests first. One of the chief exponents of this view was Ayn Rand, who influenced a generation of powerful people, including Milton Friedman, Alan Greenspan, Ronald Reagan, and Margaret Thatcher, each of whom helped to push forward the neoliberalist agenda that has dominated social and political life since the 1980s. At the heart of neoliberalist philosophy is the idea that greed is good, not just…

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Tracking the trackers (TED lecture by Gary Kovacs)

May 27, 2012
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As you surf the internet, information is being collected about you. Web tracking is not 100% evil — personal data can make your browsing more efficient; cookies can help your favorite websites stay in business. But, says Gary Kovacs in this TED lecture, it is your right to know what data is being collected about you and how it affects your online life. He unveils a Firefox add-on to do just that.  Gary Kovacs is the CEO of the Mozilla Corporation, where he directs the development of Firefox.  [I am] not even two bites into breakfast, and there are already nearly…

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Moral behavior in animals (TED lecture by Frans de Waal)

April 21, 2012
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Empathy, cooperation, fairness, and reciprocity are characteristics not only of (some) humans, but also of non-human animals. In this lecture Frans de Waal shares some surprising videos of behavioral tests on primates and other mammals that demonstrate that altruism is not a uniquely human phenomenon. This point is both intrinsically interesting and significant for its implications regarding debates on the nature of morality and the connection between morality and religion. While many theists see their religion or deity as the source of morality, these animal studies suggest otherwise, that morality, like all other forms of human and animal behavior, has evolved…

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Connected, but alone? (lectures by Sherry Turkle)

April 11, 2012
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In this lecture, Sherry Turkle turns her attention to the world of social media and sociable robots. As she puts it, these are technologies are the “architect of our intimacies.” In her most recent book, Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other, Turkle argues that the social media we encounter on a daily basis are presenting us with a moment of temptation. Drawn by the illusion of companionship without the demands of intimacy, we confuse postings and online sharing with authentic communication. We are drawn to sacrifice conversation for mere connection. Turkle suggests that…

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Dying in 21st century (TED lecture by Peter Saul)

March 29, 2012
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This talk was given by Peter Saul at the independently organized TED event in Newy, Australia. The original description reads: Peter Saul is Senior Intensivist in the adult and paediatric ICU at John Hunter Hospital, and Director of Intensive Care at Newcastle Private Hospital. Having trained in Cambridge, London, Sydney and Harvard, he came to Newcastle to help start up the new ICU at John Hunter, and never left. He has been accused of being an “ethicist”, which he tries to deny, but does admit to having been Head of Discipline for Medical Ethics at Newcastle University in the past,…

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The illusion of free will (lecture by Sam Harris)

March 29, 2012
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Sam Harris gave this talk at  the California Institute of Technology in March 2012. In it Harris discusses the illusion of free will (the topic of his most recent book) and its implications for religious belief. The talk was organized by the Skeptics Society.

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The Purpose of Purpose (Lecture by Richard Dawkins)

March 13, 2012
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In “The Purpose of Purpose” lecture Richard Dawkins tells an anecdote of Peter Atkins being asked by a member of the Royal Family, “But what about the ‘why question?'” and Atkins replying, “That is a silly question”. Dawkins notes that asking why for inanimate objects like air or rocks is almost always considered inappropriate. But asking why for living organisms was often done in the past. He mentions a number of amusing examples, such as claims that domestic animals provide a means to keep their meat fresh until we have need to eat them, lice were a strong incentive to personal cleanliness,…

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Speaking out on climate change (TED lecture by James Hansen)

March 11, 2012
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Another lecture that really should be required viewing for everyone. James Hansen, head of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, is a credible expert on climate change and global warming. In this lecture he describes some of the main features of the climate change taking place today and gives a good sense of just how much time is left before we reach the point of no return. Most amazing is the fact that Hansen firmly believes that the greatest challenge facing human civilization has a simple and elegant solution, which is for governments to collect a gradually rising carbon…

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