Where Shall We Meet
Explorations of topics about society, culture, arts, technology and science with your hosts Natascha McElhone and Omid Ashtari.The spirit of this podcast is to interview people from all walks of life on different subjects. Our hope is to talk about ideas, divorced from our identities - listening, learning and maybe meeting somewhere in the middle. The perfect audio diet for shallow polymaths!Natascha McElhone is an actor and producer. Omid Ashtari is a tech entrepreneur and angel investor.
S2 E3 · Wed, April 30, 2025
On Meditation, Morality & Free Will with Sam Harris
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Sam Harris. Sam is the host of the Making Sense Podcast and an the author of five New York Times best sellers. His books include The End of Faith, Letter to a Christian Nation, The Moral Landscape, Free Will, Lying, Waking Up, and Islam and the Future of Tolerance (with Maajid Nawaz). His writing and public lectures cover a wide range of topics—neuroscience, moral philosophy, religion, meditation practice, human violence, rationality—but generally focus on how a growing understanding of ourselves and the world is changing our sense of how we should live. Sam’s work has been published in more than 20 languages and has been discussed in The New York Times, Time, Scientific American, Nature, Rolling Stone , and many other publications. He has written for The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Economist, The Atlantic, Nature, among others . The Making Sense Podcast , which was selected by Apple as one of the “iTunes Best” and has won a Webby Award for best podcast in the Science & Education category. Sam received a degree in philosophy from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA. He has also practiced meditation for more than 30 years and has studied with many Tibetan, Indian, Burmese, and Western meditation teachers, both in the United States and abroad. He has created the Waking Up app for anyone who wants to learn to meditate in a modern, scientific context. We talk about: How failing at meditation is the best approach Dissolving concepts that are made up by our mind How to loose your head His book the Moral Landscape Moral absolutes versus moral relativism Is adversity is the only path to growth The illusory distinction between rationality and emotions His book Free Will Whether we really know why we change our minds How losing a foot might lead to better podcasts And a lot more Let’s meditate! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S2 E2 · Wed, April 16, 2025
On Overdiagnosis with Suzanne O'Sullivan
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Suzanne O'Sullivan, the author of the book The Age of Diagnosis: Sickness, Health and Why Medicine Has Gone Too Far . Suzanne is a neurologist, clinical neurophysiologist, and writer. She has been a consultant since 2004 and has been at The National Hospital for Neurology and The Epilepsy Society since 2011. Her specialist interests are in epilepsy and in improving services for people who suffer with functional neurological disorders. Suzanne qualified in medicine in 1991 from Trinity College Dublin. In addition to academic publications in her field, she is an author of award-winning non-fiction books, each focusing on her medical casework. Her 2016 book, It's All in Your Head: True Stories of Imaginary Illness , won the Wellcome Book Prize, and the Royal Society of Biology's General Book Prize, for "for an accessible, engaging and informative life sciences book written for a non-specialist audience". Her book, The Sleeping Beauties: And Other Stories of Mystery Illness , was shortlisted for the 2021 Royal Society Science Book Prize. We talk about: Is there an epidemic of overdiagnosis Extending the definitions of disorders The rise of ADHD and Autism diagnosis The impact of this on either end of the spectrum Has this had a positive or negative effect on mental health Medicalising natural mood swings and differences Illness as identity Cancer screening and proactive surgery Let’s analyse Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S2 E1 · Wed, April 02, 2025
On Life's Beginnings with Nick Lane
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Nick Lane, who offers fresh insights on the theories of the origins of life. He is a Professor of Evolutionary Biochemistry in the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London. Nick’s research is on the way that energy flow has shaped evolution over 4 billion years, using a mixture of theoretical and experimental work to address the origin of life, the evolution of complex cells and downright peculiar behaviour such as sex. He has received many awards for his work. Among them the 2015 Biochemical Society Award for his outstanding contribution to molecular life sciences and 2016 Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize and Lecture , the UK’s premier award for excellence in communicating science. Nick is the author of five acclaimed books on evolutionary biochemistry, which have sold more than 150,000 copies worldwide, and been translated into 25 languages. We talk about: How it all began deep in the ocean The similarity between a cell and the planet Is the earth only a giant battery How there are no clear definitions of what life is How cloning is boring and sex creates difference The innovation of multi- over single cell life How Genes shouldn’t be in the limelight, while chemistry is doing all the work The three domains of life Let’s go back to the beginning! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E17 · Wed, December 11, 2024
On The Precariat with Guy Standing
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest this week is Guy Standing, who is a British labour economist. He is professor of Development Studies at SOAS and co-founder of BIEN, the Basic Income Earth Network. He is best known as a long-standing and prominent advocate of Basic Income, but he is also responsible for redefining and revitalizing the term ‘precariat’. Guy has written extensively about capitalism and labour market policy. Among his many books are Basic income: and how we can make it happen, A plunder of the commons, a manifesto for sharing public wealth, The Corruption of Capitalism: Why Rentiers Thrive and Work Does Not Pay, The Blue Commons: Rescuing the Economy of the Sea . We talk about: A brief history of capitalism Rentier capitalism The emergence of a precariat Plutocracy and Trump Will AI liberate us after all The dignity of a basic income for everyone Realisation and execution of basic income pilots Let’s debate! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E16 · Wed, November 27, 2024
On Consolations with David Whyte
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest this week is David Whyte. David is a philosopher poet who, is the author of eight volumes of poetry and four books of prose, as well as a collection of audio recordings. He travels and lectures throughout the world, bringing his own and others' poetry to large audiences. He also works with corporations to teach them about conversational techniques. He holds a degree in Marine Zoology and has worked as a naturalist guide in the Galapagos Islands. David also holds honorary degrees from Neumann University in Pennsylvania and Royal Roads University in Victoria, British Columbia, and is an Associate Fellow of the Said Business School at the University of Oxford. In our conversation we will focus on his recent books Consolations 1 and 2, which are about the nourishment and underlying meaning of everyday words. We talk about: Words as the magnifying glass of the human condition A reading of Alone Not avoiding the difficult questions A reading of Injury The interplay between the poet and the listener A reading of Horizon The Hawk of the Galapagos Conversations we should stop having The difference between Oven and Love Death only happens to other people Let’s listen. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E15 · Wed, November 13, 2024
On Visual Effects with William Sargent
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest this week is William Sargent. He co-founded Framestore in 1986 and led its rise from an award winning commercials production house to world renowned film and digital studio. During three decades the company has worked on all the Harry Potter films (and the JK Rowling 'Fantastic Beasts') , Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity, James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Paul King’s Paddington, Dr Strange, Christopher Robin, Blade Runner 2049 and Marvel’s Avengers Series. William and his team have won all the major creative awards including 3 Oscars, British Academy, Primetime Emmys, D&AD, Royal Television Society and most recently over 100 global awards for the newest format Virtual Reality. Equally at home in Hollywood and government, he was Permanent Secretary, Regulatory Reform, at the Cabinet Office, and Board Director of HM Treasury. He is currently a governor at Europe's largest arts complex Southbank Center, the U.K. governments innovation agency, Trinity College Dublin's Provost Council and the London Mayor's Business Council. William is a fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts, member of BAFTA and the Academy. He received a CBE in 2004 and was knighted by the Queen in 2008. We talk about: Rear Projection Stop motion animation Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity How music videos started the UK film industry George Lucas’ vision of multi-platform story telling How car manufacturing robots help in filmmaking Tennis balls and florescent tape How to create dinosaurs The next decade of filmmaking Let’s roll. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E14 · Wed, October 30, 2024
On Biomimicry with Janine Benyus
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Janine Benyus, who is the Co-founder of Biomimicry 3.8. She is a biologist, innovation consultant, and author of six books, including Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. Since the book’s 1997 release, Janine’s work as a global thought leader has evolved the practice of biomimicry from a meme to a movement, inspiring clients and innovators around the world to learn from the genius of nature. She has personally introduced millions to biomimicry through two TED talks, hundreds of conference keynote presentations, and a dozen documentaries such as Biomimicry, produced by Leonardo DiCaprio’s Tree Media, 11th Hour, Harmony, and The Nature of Things with David Suzuki, which aired in 71 countries. In 1998, Janine co-founded the Biomimicry Guild with Dr. Dayna Baumeister. That consultancy morphed into Biomimicry 3.8, a B-Corp social enterprise providing biomimicry consulting services to clients like Nike, General Electric, Herman Miller, Procter and Gamble, and Levi’s. In 2006, Janine co-founded The Biomimicry Institute, a non-profit institute to embed biomimicry in formal education and informal spaces such as museums and nature centers. Over 11,000 members are now part of the Biomimicry Global Network, working to practice, teach, and spread biomimicry in their region. In 2008, the institute launched AskNature.org , an award-winning bio-inspiration site for inventors. Janine believes that the more people learn from nature’s mentors, the more they’ll want to protect them. This is why she writes, speaks, and communicates so prolifically about biomimicry. We talk about: Learning from biological systems Waging war against nature rather than allying How profitable emulating nature can be Fitting form to function How ant colonies inspire mobile phone networks The dependence of the agricultural system on oil Photosynthetic Reaction Centre Nature is the best chemist AI helping the detective work of biologists Let's get inspired by nature! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E13 · Wed, October 16, 2024
On Ancestry with Maya Jasanoff
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! We are talking about Ancestry today. Our guest is Maya Jasanoff who is the Coolidge Professor of History at Harvard University’s History Department. Maya’s teaching and research extend from the history of the British Empire to global history. She is the author of three prize-winning books. The Dawn Watch examines the dynamics of modern globalization through the life and times of the novelist Joseph Conrad. Her other books are Liberty’s Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World and her first book, Edge of Empire explores British expansion in India and Egypt through the lives of art collectors. She is currently working on a book about the human preoccupation with ancestry. In addition to classes on imperial history, she teaches a multidisciplinary Gen Ed course on the topic of "Ancestry: Where Do We Come From and Why Do We Care?". In 2015 Jasanoff was named a Harvard College Professor for excellence in undergraduate teaching. From 2019 to 2022, she is a part-time Visiting Professor at Ahmedabad University in India, where she has been helping launch new curricula in the liberal arts. Jasanoff has been a Guggenheim Fellow (2013), a fellow at the New York Public Library’s Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers, a Kluge Chair at the Library of Congress, and a member of the Institute for Advanced Study. She has participated in several BBC documentaries, and her essays and reviews regularly appear in publications including The New York Review of Books , The Guardian , The New Yorker and The New York Times . We will be talking about: The history of ancestry Caste systems in India Herder and the Idea of a Nation Immigrant nations Bards as knowledge keepers Race as a factor for resource allocation Affirmative Action university admission Generational privilege and dispossession Transatlantic slave trade Let’s go back to our roots! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E12 · Wed, October 02, 2024
On Hypocrisy with Tim Minchin
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Today we managed to catch Tim Minchin on his book tour between Brighton and Piccadilly London. He is an Australian actor, writer, musician, poet, composer, and songwriter. Tim is also a piano playing comedian extraordinaire. His recent book “ You Don't Have To Have A Dream: Advice for the Incrementally Ambitious ” became an instant Sunday Times bestseller. He has released several albums, comedy specials, and live comedy shows that he has performed internationally. He is the composer and lyricist of the Olivier Award-winning, Tony Award-winning and Grammy Award-nominated show Matilda the Musical and the Olivier Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated show Groundhog Day The Musical . In 2013, he played rock star Atticus Fetch on Californication and in 2019 he co-wrote and starred as Lucky Flynn in the TV series Upright. Tim has been awarded several honorary Doctorates for his contribution to the arts. His “ 9 life lessons ” acceptance speech went viral and has been viewed 10s of millions of times. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2020 Australia Day Honours "for significant service to the performing arts, and to the community". We will talk about: Self-censoring and policing opinion Free speech absolutism Life without social media Assertion of tribal identity People just wanting a hug Decontextualising of text messages The sloganisation of the worlds information Ginger haired people Being consumers versus creators Bothsidesism Male Homo Sapiens are dangerous things Let's get into it! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E11 · Wed, September 18, 2024
On Sharing with Tessa Clarke
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Tessa Clarke. She the is Co-Founder & CEO of Olio , the anti-waste app tackling the climate crisis by solving the problem of waste in our homes & local communities. Olio does this by connecting people with their neighbours so they can give away rather than throw away their spare food and other household items. It is powered by volunteers who collect unsold food from local businesses such as Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda and Holland & Barrett, and redistribute it to the community via the Olio app. Its impact has been widely recognised, most notably by the United Nations who highlighted Olio as a "beacon” for the world, and by Vivatech who awarded Olio "Next European Unicorn". Olio is also a proud B Corp, and Tessa is an Ambassador of the Better Business Act. Prior to Olio, Tessa had a 15 year corporate career as a digital Managing Director in the media, retail and financial services sectors, and she met her co-founder Saasha whilst they were studying for their MBAs at Stanford University. Tessa is passionate about the sharing economy as a solution for a sustainable world, and about ‘profit with purpose’ as the next business paradigm. Tessa’s TED talk about the power of sharing has been watched over 1 million times, and in 2023 she was awarded the Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award, the longest running award for female business leaders. We will talk about: That we throw away 30% of our food And that the majority of this is in our homes The truth about plastic bottles Reframing charity as sharing Ugly apples Earth Overshoot Day Connecting with your neighbours The truth about use by and sell by dates The Circular Economy Let’s get wasted. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E10 · Wed, September 04, 2024
On Yearning with Maria Popova
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Our guest today is Maria Popova, who thinks and writes about our search for meaning — sometimes through science and philosophy, sometimes through poetry and children's books, always through the lens of wonder. She is the creator of The Marginalian (born in 2006 under the name Brain Pickings), an online publication, which she has fought to keep free and advertisement free. It features her writing on books, art, science, philosophy and poetry. It is included in the Library of Congress permanent digital archive of culturally valuable materials. She’s also the author of Figuring, and maker of the live show “The Universe in Verse” — a charitable celebration of the wonder of reality through stories of science winged with poetry, which is now also a book. In addition to her writing and related speaking engagements, she has served as an MIT Futures of Entertainment Fellow, as the editorial director at the higher education social network Lore, and has written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, Wired UK, and other publications. We will talk about: Dissatisfaction as propulsive force Productivity as a band aid Performative Identity versus Soul Instagram Wisdom Everyone is a living question - the question is what is the question Poetry as a side door to consciousness Writing as a clarifying force Resisting Dinner Parties The Price of consciousness is awareness of mortality ”The Republic of Letters” Now let’s search for meaning. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E9 · Wed, August 21, 2024
On History with Ben Macintyre
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we talk to Ben Macintyre. He is a columnist and Associate Editor on The Times. He is also an award winning authour and one of the most acclaimed writers of espionage history. His books Agent Zigzag A Spy Among Friends, The Spy and the Traitor, Agent Sonya: Lover, Mother, Soldier, Spy, Operation Mincemeat, Double Cross and SAS: Rogue Heroes have reached bestseller status and many have been adapted for the screen. Ben’s latest book Colditz: Prisoners of the Castle tells the astonishing true story of history’s most infamous prison and became the biggest selling history book of 2022 and a No.1 Sunday Times Bestseller. His upcoming book The Siege is about the greatest SAS hostage drama held in the Iranian Embassy London. We will talk about: The ultimate history curriculum How reality is always stranger than fiction Historical quantum leaps Agent versus structre theory Uncovering the hidden stories of spies How much of history is the story of the victors How much virality could change the way we tell history in the future You can pre-order Ben's new book "The Siege" here . Let’s travel through time! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E8 · Wed, August 14, 2024
On Psychedelics with Dr. Rosalind Watts
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we speak to Dr. Roslind Watts. Dr Watts is a clinical psychologist, and a nature lover. Her work as the Clinical Lead for Imperial College London’s psilocybin trial has made her one of the most prominent voices and minds in the field of psychedelic research. Dr Watts has been named as one of the 50 Most Influential People in Psychedelics. She builds tools and structures to foster connectedness after psychedelic experiences, finding inspiration for their design from nature. She co-founded the UK's first psychedelic integration group, and in 2022 launched ACER a global online integration community. We will talk about: The difference between Macro and microdosing Categorising synthetic and natural compounds The Importance of post trip integration How psychedelics are changing approaches to therapy The condundrum of corporate interests and democratisation use Regulation ACER Appropriation of indegenous practices “Doing the work” and being a tenant of your own trauma The Default Mode Network More about Dr. Rosalind Watt's ACER framework here . Now let’s go on a trip! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E7 · Wed, August 07, 2024
On AI with Ali Eslami
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we talk to Ali Eslami, who is a Principal Research Scientist at Google DeepMind studying artificial intelligence. He's currently also Director of Research Strategy for Google Gemini. Prior to this, he led a team at DeepMind working on generative models, self-supervised learning, multi-modal large language models. He also led the Quantum Chemistry and Materials team in Science. Prior to DeepMind, he was a post-doctoral researcher at Microsoft Research Cambridge. He did his PhD at the University of Edinburgh, where he was a Carnegie scholar. During that time he was also a visiting researcher at Oxford University in the visual geometry group. We talk about: The emergence of the AI landscape Whether you need a body to understand the world Human perception slash Plato The difference between how humans and AI learn How AI models are built and trained Differences between Machine learning and Generative AI Marcus Aurelius and how amazing the human brain is Whether we are about to surrender our sovereignty to AI Let’s log in! Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E6 · Wed, July 31, 2024
On Exploration with Erling Kagge
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we talk to Erling Kagge who is an explorer, author, publisher, art collector, and the first person to have completed the Three Poles Challenge on foot—the North Pole, the South Pole, and the summit of Mount Everest. He has written eight books on exploration, philosophy, and art collecting. They have been published in 42 different languages. His next book is 'The North Pole - The History of an Obsession', which out later this year. In this episode we talk about: Searching for infinity in the North Pole The hardship of exploration And how inconvenience is good for you Wearing the same clothes for 50 days Confronting Polar Bears Pooping at minus 50 How a single raisin can make your day Living underground in sewers And whether silence can be measured We recommend listening to this episode while walking! Here a link to Erling's book ' Walking: One Step at a Time ' Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E5 · Wed, July 24, 2024
On Music with Nitin Sawhney
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we are speaking to Nitin Sawhney, who is a multifaceted artist whose career spans music, film, theatre and dance. Nitin is a world-renowned composer, producer, and musician, celebrated for his ability to blend a wide array of musical styles, including classical, jazz, electronica, and traditional Indian music. He also produces other artists work, offering stewardship to many talented young musicians. His work has earned him over 20 international awards, a CBE, a Mercury Prize nomination and an Ivor Novello Lifetime Achievement Award. Beyond his albums, Nitin has composed scores for film, television, and stage productions, showcasing his versatility and depth as an artist. His collaborations read like a who’s who of the music and entertainment world, featuring artists such as Paul McCartney, Sting, Annie Lennox, Nora Jones, Anoushka Shankar, Joss Stone and Jeff Beck. His influence extends to activism as well, using his platform to address social and political issues. We talk about: The neuroscience of music Nature and music How cultures create different musical frameworks The impact of technology on music production Why is it that music affects our mood? The fabulousness of Nitin’s musical career Will copyright survive AI? And the existential questions that arise form this Press play and enjoy the music! Here's a link to Nitin's newest Album Identity . Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E4 · Wed, July 17, 2024
On Dating with Tugce Bulut
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we'll talk to Tugce Bulut. She recently launched Luna, a GenAI dating coach that aims to transform the dating market. She is committed about providing a solution to what she believes is a loneliness crisis. Previously, Tugce was a strategy consultant at EY Parthenon advising Private Equity houses on M&A. Tugce is a published author and a Cambridge economist, specialising in the use of technology to bolster economic development. She is passionate about the power of AI and the positive change it can bring to the world. As a serial entrepreneur, Tugce started a number of AI businesses including Streetbees where she served as the CEO for 8 years. We will discuss: Are tick boxes really the way to find your life partner Has dating become yet another job The rapid adoption of dating apps as a way to meet your romantic partner How many more men than women there are on hetero-normative apps And how having fewer women creates unique dynamics Democratising the access to relationship coaches The tradition of arranged marriages How responsible Hollywood is for creating unrealistic expectations If you enjoyed this date, you can sign up for Luna on the My Alchemy website . Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E3 · Wed, July 10, 2024
On Media with Roy Greenslade
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we speak to Roy Greenslade, a renowned journalist with a career spanning over 40 years. He was the media commentator for the Guardian newspaper for 28 years and ex-editor of the Daily Mirror newspaper. He is also an author, historian and former professor of journalism at City University London where he has had an influence on the next generation of journalists. Despite his frequent criticism of the press, Roy continues to hold a sympathy for the values of traditional media and a concern for what its loss of influence means in our culture. Together we explore legacy vs social media. In particular: Benefits of citizen journalism Accountability of the traditional editorial model Media manipulation by powerful elites Post trust and post truth The virality of narratives which provide simplistic answers Versus: nuanced discussion asking complicated questions Proliferation of ‘angertainment’ through algorithms If you want to hear more from Roy, follow him on Twitter . Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E2 · Tue, July 02, 2024
On Technology with Sophie Hackford
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we talk to Sophie Hackford about technology. Sophie is a futurist, and has given 220+ provocative talks to boards and exec teams on novel science and tech. Sophie is an advisor to John Deere & Co, on the future of food, climate, and agriculture. Sophie is also an advisor to New Lab in Brooklyn. Sophie co-founded and chaired 1715Labs: a spinout from Oxford University’s Astrophysics Department, labelling data to train algorithms. She previously worked at WIRED Magazine, Singularity University on the NASA Research Park in Silicon Valley, and the Oxford Martin School at Oxford University, where she raised $120m for frontier-bending research. Our conversation covers: the merger of biological and silicon-based systems is technological advancement actually progress for humanity the hidden power of "dark compute" interspecies communication the power of narratives to inspire and drive positive change innovative solutions in environmental monitoring and conservation If you want to help make science more relevant, representative and connected consider checking out The British Science Association . If you want to channel your inner citizen scientist how about classifying some galaxies on the Galaxy Zoo page . Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
S1 E1 · Tue, June 25, 2024
On Democracy with Alastair Campbell
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! In this episode we talk to Alastair Campbell about Democracy. Alastair Campbell, who doesn’t really need an introduction if you already listen to his podcast The Rest is Politics. Alastair served under Tony Blair as Downing Street Press Secretary from 1997–2000 and then became Downing Street's director of communications and spokesman for the Labour Party 2000–2003 playing a pivotal role in shaping the New Labour. He's an accomplished author, publishing both best selling novels and non-fiction books about mental health, the media, the environment and most recently two books for kids ' Why Politics Matters ’ and ‘ How Politics Works ’. Can modern democracy keep up with the pace of change in today's world? On this episode of "Where Shall We Meet," we try to tackle this critical question. Alistair offers his unique insights draw comparisons between Western democracies and city-states like Singapore, and even monarchies like the UAE, to examine the pressing need for renewed civic engagement and political accountability. Join us for a stimulating conversation that underscores the crucial need for political reform and early political education. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
Sun, June 23, 2024
A Medley of our Upcoming Episodes
Questions, suggestions, or feedback? Send us a message! Welcome to 'Where Shall We Meet' a new podcast with your hosts Natascha McElhone and Omid Ashtari. This is a medley of our upcoming Episodes. Web: www.whereshallwemeet.xyz Twitter: @whrshallwemeet Instagram: @whrshallwemeet
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