Entitled Opinions (about Life and Literature)

Sophus Helle is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Freie Universität Berlin. He previously translated “The Epic of Gilgamesh” into Danish with his father. His English translation of the epic was recently published by Yale University Press.  Songs in this episode: “Helen” by Glass Wave  “Gilgamesh Blues” by Glass Wave

Markus Gabriel holds the chair in epistemology, modern, and contemporary philosophy at the University of Bonn, Germany, and also serves as the Director of its International Center for Philosophy. He works mainly in epistemology and metaphysics (ontology) drawing his inspirations from the history of philosophy (in particular, 19th century Post-Kantian philosophy, Heidegger, and Wittgenstein). He […]

This episode is a brief monologue by our host, Professor Robert Harrison.  Songs in this episode: “Voodoo Child” by Jimi Hendrix “Present Tense” by Radiohead

Scott Thomas Anderson is a journalist whose work regularly appears in The San Francisco Chronicle and The Sacramento News & Review. He studied American Literature at the University of California at Davis, and while the bulk of his 15-year career has been primarily as a crime reporter, he’s recently started to balance that focus by […]

Joseph Cermatori is assistant professor of English at Skidmore College. He specializes in the fields of comparative literature, modern and contemporary drama, performance studies, and critical theory. Beyond his research in twentieth-century modernism, his scholarship encompasses the broad history of art and ideas in Western culture from 1600 to the present, focusing on the philosophical […]

Alex Rex Nielson is a Scottish musician and songwriter.  He is the founding member of the UK band Trembling Bells, which recorded six albums before Alex went on to make four solo albums under the band name Alex Rex. Songs played in this episode: “Directing Hand- for PB”— drum solo by Alex Rex “Master” by Alex […]

A conversation with Thomas Woltz about landscape architecture. Thomas Woltz is the owner of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects. Over the past two decades of practice Thomas and his team have infused narratives of the land into the places where people live, work, and play, engendering stewardship and inspiring connections between people and the natural […]

A monologue by Robert Harrison. Outro song: “The End” by The Doors

A conversation with Aqsa Ijaz about the Persian poet and Sufi mystic Rumi. Aqsa Ijaz is a PhD candidate at the Institute of Islamic Studies at McGill University. She is a singer, translator, writer, book reviewer, and a literary scholar.  Outro song: “dil miravad zidastam” by Aqsa Ijaz

A conversation with Bryan Cheong about the laws of thermodynamics. Bryan Cheong received his Bachelor of Science from Stanford University, with a degree in applied and computational mathematics.  He then went on to receive a Masters degree in Materials Science, also from Stanford. Outro Song: “Pick Up The Pieces” by The Average White Band