Beauty At Work

Today’s guest is Dr. Luca Cottini, a scholar, associate professor at Villanova University, and the host and creator of the YouTube show Italian Innovators. Although trained as a classical philologist and cultural historian, his interests go beyond Italian art throughout history. Through his show, Dr. Cottini explores the present artistic contributions of Italy through entrepreneurship and innovation across multiple disciplines. His books include The Art of Objects: The Birth of Italian Industrial Culture and a monograph on Italo Calvino.Dr. Cottini joins us to discuss the following:What attracted Dr. Cottini to study design and innovation.His thoughts on Galileo being the father of modern science.How Italy’s humanities-focused education influences science.How different ideas contribute to each other and create innovation.Some examples of encounters with Beauty that spurred innovation.Could aesthetic principles also hinder innovation? How?The role of beauty in the future of science.How to cultivate intellectual humility and drive in the face of failure.To learn more about Dr. Cottini’s work, visit https://www.italianinnovators.com/Check out his book: The Art of Objects: The Birth of Italian Industrial Culture, 1878-1928https://www.amazon.com/Art-Objects-Italian-Industrial-1878-1928/dp/1487502834Visit his YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/ItalianInnovatorsSupport us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/BeautyatWorkPodcastSupport the show

Dr. Eloise Ballou is a psychiatrist specializing in psychotherapy for adolescents and hospital-based emergency psychiatry. She received her medical degree from the University of Ottawa in the French stream and completed her Psychiatry residency at the University of Toronto. She enjoys supervising Psychiatry residents in psychodynamic psychotherapy at the University of Toronto, and also works as a locum psychiatrist in Northern Ontario in acute care and emergency room settings. She studied Art History and Psychology at the University of Toronto prior to starting her medical training and has a particular interest in applying insights from the humanities to her medical practice. In our interview, we explore:What drew Eloise to medicine/psychiatry in the first placeWhere she encounters beauty in her work as a psychotherapistThe obstacles to encountering beauty in her work and in the medical profession generallyHow beauty might be relevant to mental healthWhat it might look like for scientists, physicians, and the healthcare field more generally to take beauty more seriously or to cultivate the conditions for professionals to encounter beauty in their workTo learn more about her work, visithttps://www.drballou.com/Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/BeautyatWorkPodcastSupport the show

Today’s guest is Dr. Milena Ivanova, a philosopher of science based at Fitzwilliam College at Cambridge University, where she is a fellow, graduate tutor, and the Director of Studies in Philosophy. Dr. Ivanova’s research involves studying aesthetics in the expansive field of science and publishing numerous articles, papers, and books on the subject. She is the author of  Duhem and Holism (Cambridge UP, 2021) and co-editor of The Aesthetics of Science: Beauty, Imagination, and Understanding (Routledge, 2020). Dr. Ivanova lends us her expertise to explore the following:What attracted Dr. Ivanova to studying beauty in scienceThe relevance of beauty and its role in understanding scienceFunctionality and optimality of purpose contributing to an experiment’s beautyThe beauty of experiments beyond visual aesthetics through design and significance On beauty contributing to biasThe benefit of learning about beauty in science for scientists and philosophersApplying beauty and the awareness of it in other aspects To learn more about Dr. Ivanova’s work, visit https://www.milenaivanova.co.uk/Also, check out her books such as:Duhem and Holismhttps://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/abs/duhem-and-holism/0D574554BB82648C0E5E1DFA6C550300The Aesthetics of Science: Beauty, Imagination, and Understandinghttps://www.routledge.com/The-Aesthetics-of-Science-Beauty-Imagination-and-Understanding-1st-Edition/Ivanova-French/p/book/9780367141141You can also explore the topic of our interview in the following articles:When is a scientific experiment like a beautiful work of art? https://aeon.co/essays/when-is-a-scientific-experiment-like-a-beautiful-work-of-artWhat is a beautiful experiment?https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10670-021-00509-3The aesthetics of scientific experimentshttps://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/phc3.12730Watch out for our new episodes every 1st and 15th of the month!Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/BeautyatWorkPodcastSupport the show

My guest today is the astrophysicist and author Dr. Mario Livio. Dr. Livio is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. For 24 years, Dr. Livio worked with the Hubble Space Telescope. He has published more than 500 scientific articles on topics such as cosmology, supernova explosions, black holes, extrasolar planets, and the emergence of life in the universe. He is the author of seven books including The Golden Ratio, Is God a Mathematician, and Brilliant Blunders. His latest book is Galileo and the Science Deniers. In this episode, we explore:What attracted Mario to astrophysics in the first placeMario’s definition of beauty in science consists of three specific criteriaMario’s experiences of encountering beauty in scienceHow mathematics may be relevant to our understanding of beautyWhether the beauty we can encounter in science and art are similar or differentWhether scientists should care about beauty in their work, and if the public should care about beauty in scienceTo learn more about Dr. Livio’s work, visit https://www.mario-livio.comAlso, check out his books such as:Galileo and the Science Deniershttps://www.amazon.com/Galileo-Science-Deniers-Mario-Livio/dp/1501194747/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=The Golden Ratiohttps://www.amazon.com/Golden-Ratio-Worlds-Astonishing-Number/dp/0767908163/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1660240897&sr=1-1Is God a Mathematician?https://www.amazon.com/God-Mathematician-Mario-Livio-ebook/dp/B004NNVFW2/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1MXORNGPGLQ4CWhy? What Makes Us Curioushttps://www.amazon.com/Why-What-Makes-Us-Curious/dp/1476792100/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1660241070&sr=1-1Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/BeautyatWorkPodcastSupport the show

Beauty at Work explores how beauty shapes our lives and the work that we do. In this interview-based podcast, sociologist Brandon Vaidyanathan explores the role of beauty in domains like science, business, religion, food, justice, and more. You’ll hear from leaders and experts across many fields and will gain new insights into how beauty shapes our brains, behaviors, organizations, and societies. Subscribe and learn how to harness the power and promise of beauty in your life and work, while avoiding its pitfalls and perils.Don't forget to hit subscribe!Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/BeautyatWorkPodcastSupport the show