

Gresham College Lectures
Gresham College
Gresham College has been providing free public lectures since 1597, making us London's oldest higher education institution. This podcast offers our recorded lectures that are free to access from the Gresham College website, or our YouTube channel.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 16, 2024 • 1h 12min
LGBT Rights: Overcoming a Colonial Legacy - Leslie Thomas KC
Historically lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people have been persecuted under English law.Homophobic and transphobic laws were exported from England to the Commonwealth Caribbean, and these colonial laws have had a long-term impact on Caribbean societies.This lecture will make the case for the robust constitutional protection of LGBT rights.This lecture was recorded by Leslie Thomas KC on 1st February 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/lgbt-lawGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Feb 12, 2024 • 58min
Mathematical Puzzles and Paradoxes - Sarah Hart
Many puzzles have a long history, such as water pouring puzzles, where you need to measure (for example) one pint of water equipped only with an eight-pint and a five-pint jug. The mathematics behind the solution has many useful applications.Meanwhile, paradoxes such as: “some men shave themselves; those that do not shave themselves are shaved by the barber: who shaves the barber?” lead us to deep questions about set theory.We will discuss several examples and the related mathematics.This lecture was recorded by Sarah Hart on 30th January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/maths-puzzlesGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Feb 12, 2024 • 1h 17min
Satirical Cartoons: A History - Martin Rowson
How do cartoons and visual satire operate?This lecture will look at when humans first created art and at the dawn of satire.Examining the work of Swift, Hogarth, Gillray, David Low and Ronald Searle, this lecture by celebrated cartoonist Martin Rowson will also examine the role cartoons play in giving offence. Covering the Danish Cartoons scandal and the Charlie Hebdo massacre, this talk will also look at Martin Rowson's own cartoon output over the past 40 years.This lecture was recorded by Martin Rowson on 25th January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/satirical-cartoons-historyGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Feb 6, 2024 • 1h 3min
Capital Structure Theory Explained - Raghavendra Rau
Knowing what the investors demand enables the firm to plan its financing. What type of instrument should it use? Should it issue debt or equity?This lecture will introduce the concept of Capital Structure Theory which tells the manager how to reduce capital cost by a correctly chosen mixture of debt and equity.The composition of the mixture depends on how much tax the firm pays and how it can use its financing to reduce those taxes.This lecture was recorded by Raghavendra Rau on 22nd January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/capital-structureGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Feb 5, 2024 • 59min
'Oumuamua: Our first interstellar visitor - Chris Lintott
'Oumuamua: Our first interstellar visitor - Chris Lintott. Chris Lintott, Astrophysicist and presenter, discusses the unusual properties of 'Oumuamua, our first interstellar visitor, and how it is teaching us lessons about solar system formation. The lecture also explores the prospects of finding more unusual objects in the Solar System and the threat of asteroids to Earth.

Feb 1, 2024 • 1h 12min
How Cancer Genomics is Transforming Cancer Care - Sanjay Popat
Using lung cancer as a case study, this lecture will explore the transformative impact of genomics on personalised cancer treatment.What are the challenges of implementing tumour sequencing in routine care, its effect on drug development, and how can we maximise clinical benefit? How is the new technology of circulating tumour DNA analysis (liquid biopsy) used by healthcare systems? What is the potential future impact of using DNA analysis to screen for cancers early?This lecture was recorded by Sanjay Popat on 23rd January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/cancer-genomicsGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Jan 29, 2024 • 60min
The Art and Science of Tuning - Milton Mermikides
This lecture presents the rich history of musicians’ engagement with pitch.From the tuning systems of Babylon, Pythagoras and Hindustani ragas, through the temperaments of the Baroque and Classical eras and arriving at contemporary electronic, blues, jazz and global practices, we explore how musicians have organised, sliced and manipulated the pitch continuum for expressive effect.In so doing, we reveal the mechanics that determine the 12 notes of the piano keyboard and the beautiful spectrum of pitch colours between them.This lecture was recorded by Milton Mermikides on 18th January 2024 at LSO, St Luke's Church, LondonThe transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/art-tuningGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Jan 26, 2024 • 1h 6min
Ancient Greek Ideas of Justice - Melissa Lane
In the poetry of the Athenian lawgiver Solon, justice (dikē) was a boundary stone marking out terms that rich and poor alike could respect. Yet ancient Greek authors also recognised the danger that the powerful will simply exploit those less powerful, and that Greek societies enforced slavery.This lecture explores ancient Greek aspirations to justice - and how they fell short - as a call for recurrent interrogation of the terms governing power and vulnerability.This lecture was recorded by Melissa Lane on 11th January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/greek-justiceGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

Jan 23, 2024 • 60min
How is Climate Change Affecting The Weather Now? - Myles Allen
Climate change is already affecting us all, regardless of where we live, through changing risks of extreme weather events. This lecture will take a break from global climate policy to talk about the links between climate and weather, chaos theory and the practical tools available to quantify changing risks.There is a lot we still don’t know – and a lot we could know, if only governments and the insurance industry were willing to pay for better climate risk information.This lecture was recorded by Myles Allen on 17th January 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/weather-changeGresham College has offered free public lectures for over 400 years, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. There are currently over 2,500 lectures free to access. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds. To support Gresham's mission, please consider making a donation: https://gresham.ac.uk/support/Website: https://gresham.ac.ukTwitter: https://twitter.com/greshamcollegeFacebook: https://facebook.com/greshamcollegeInstagram: https://instagram.com/greshamcollegeSupport the show

19 snips
Jan 15, 2024 • 59min
Why Is There Only One Species of Human? - Robin May
Robin May, a researcher and lecturer on human evolution and the diversity of human-like species, discusses the existence of multiple human species throughout history, including Neanderthals, Denisovans, and Homo Floresiensis. The podcast explores advancements in ancient DNA technologies and the presence of Neanderthal and Denisovan genome sequences in modern humans. May also delves into the concept of biological species, the meaning of race, and the coexistence of different species of humans. They also discuss traits in different populations, interbreeding, and gene inheritance between modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans.