17 June 2018
Einstein and the speed of light
Robert Wright speaks with Jim Holt, author of the new book When Einstein Walked with Gödel: Excursions to the Edge of Thought, about how Einstein conceived his relativity theories.
In this video:
Rethinking cultural appropriation
Fashion journalist Connie Wang explains how her thoughts about cultural appropriation have changed.
Play this clip on MeaningofLife.tv
Why haven’t we heard from any space aliens?
Adam Frank, author of the new book Light of the Stars: Alien Worlds and the Fate of the Earth, speculates that climate change may be the “great filter” that stops extraterrestrial civilizations from reaching maturity.
Play this clip on MeaningofLife.tv
What is the “black experience”?
Glenn Loury and John McWhorter discuss whether John’s upbringing disqualifies him from speaking on blackness in America.
Jews vs. Muslims or Jews vs. Arabs?
Robert Wright speaks with Wajahat Ali, who wrote a controversial Atlantic article on visiting the West Bank, about how the Israeli/Palestinian conflict is framed.
Pardonpalooza
Bill Scher and Matt Lewis analyze Trump’s criminal pardons, including a rumored pardon for disgraced Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich.
Do the laws of physics permit us to travel back in time?
Physicist Brian Greene considers the question.
Play this clip on MeaningofLife.tv
Who would you fire?
Bill Scher and Matt Lewis review the latest media controversies around Roseanne Barr, Samantha Bee, et al.
Philip Roth and women
Aryeh Cohen-Wade and Phoebe Maltz Bovy evaluate the criticism that Roth only wrote stereotypical or one-dimensional female characters.
The DMZ
Milquetoast partisanship on North Korea
Bill Scher and Matt Lewis make sense of partisan reactions to Trump’s summit with Kim Jong Un.
MeaningofLife.tv
Culture of personality
Stephen Asma, author of the new book Why We Need Religion, and Rami Gabriel discuss the possible evolutionary origins behind Donald Trump’s demeanor and popularity.
Play this clip on MeaningofLife.tvMeaningofLife.tv
Less politics, more Hail Marys
Ross Douthat, author of the new book To Change the Church: Pope Francis and the Future of Catholicism, speaks to Father William Dailey about the relevance of the Vatican to the lives of most Catholics.
Play this clip on MeaningofLife.tvCulturally Determined
How David Letterman normalized Donald Trump
Jason Zinoman, author of the biography Letterman: The Last Giant of Late Night, reviewed all of Trump’s appearances on Letterman’s shows over the past 30 years.
The Wright Show
Why is the US helping Saudi Arabia bomb Yemen?
Shireen Al-Adeimi, an activist who was born in Yemen, offers an answer.
The Wright Show
Russia’s Keystone cops
