Ian Williams, the 2024 CBC Massey lecturer, is a novelist and poet whose work dives into migration and identity. He shares how childhood reading shaped his imagination and reflects on the blend of ballet and rugby in his youth, underscoring the balance of art and athleticism. Williams explores narrative multiplicity, emphasizing diverse voices, and discusses the importance of empathy in dialogue. He also addresses the complexities of racial identity and champions meaningful conversations as a way to foster deeper understanding and connection.

Is there a luxury you would never give up for your ideals? An all-purpose deal-breaker? IDEAS producer Tom Howell investigates how wanting a nice lunch in a restaurant intersects with morals and politics — with the help of a restaurateur, an economist, an anti-poverty campaigner, and a light golden Chablis. *This episode originally aired on June 24, 2024. 

Hidden in the 1950 academic paper that launched the famous 'Turing Test' of machine intelligence, is a strange mystery. Cryptographer Alan Turing argued that humans might always be able to outsmart machines, because we have supernatural powers like ESP, telepathy, and telekinesis. His belief in the paranormal is just one part of the spooky side of artificial intelligence. Like hauntings or seances, AI is an exercise in self-deception; we imagine intelligence from computation and data, just like we imagine ghosts from strange lights and bumps in the night.

In this digital age, we must think of ourselves as stakeholders, playing a vital role in the creation of data, says Wendy H. Wong. She is a political scientist and winner of the 2024 Balsillie Prize for Public Policy for her book, We, the Data. Wong argues for a human rights approach when it comes to how our data should be collected, and how it can be used.

For leaders who built empires throughout history, Virgil's Aeneid has been a blueprint for how to take over land that belongs to someone else. Now when empires are making a comeback, it's worth asking if the epic poem is propaganda, or does it carry a message about the horrors of empire, too?

Emily Urquhart dives into the emotional ties between loss and the supernatural, illustrated by personal encounters with spirits. Azania Patel shares the intriguing link between ghost stories and urban change in India, showcasing how these tales reflect societal traumas. Daniel Goldstein discusses how art emerged as a healing force during the AIDS crisis in San Francisco, capturing grief and connection. Together, they explore how our experiences of ghosts embody the very human emotions of grief and memory across different cultures.

Smell has been called the 'Cinderella sense,' capable of inspiring profound admiration if we stop turning our noses at it. Producer Annie Bender examines what we lose when we take our powerful — but often misunderstood — sense of smell for granted. *This episode originally aired on June 3, 2024.

Examining the parallels between Inuit storytelling and modern horror narratives, writer Jamesie Fournier explores the importance of being afraid and how the other side comes back to haunt us for our own good. This episode is part of our on-going series called IDEAS at Crow's Theatre.

Canadian thinkers explore the meaning and significance of reasonableness in government and law. Five Canadian intellectuals discuss their backgrounds and areas of expertise. Personal experiences with unreasonableness in various aspects of life are shared. The characteristics of unreasonableness and the challenges faced by boundary-pushing writers are discussed.

How can religion help decode the motives for Russia's aggression against Ukraine? And how can Judeo-Christian ethics inform a way forward for peace? Ukrainian Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, and historian of Central European politics Timothy Snyder explore these questions.