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Brave New World -- hosted by Vasant Dhar

Mar 21, 2024

Given what we know of physics and neuroscience, can there be free will? Kevin Mitchell, a neuroscientist himself, joins Vasant Dhar in episode 80 of Brave New World to unpack his argument for the existence of free will.

Useful resources
1. Kevin Mitchell on Amazon, TwitterTrinity CollegeGoogle Scholar,


Mar 7, 2024

Artificial intelligence is transforming society. And therefore politics. Arthur Spirling joins Vasant Dhar in episode 79 of Brave New World to share his insights from his twin fields of data science and political science.

Useful resources:
1. Arthur Spirling at PrincetonTwitterLinkedInGoogle Scholar and his own...


Feb 22, 2024

How can we use the insights of behavioral economics to make the world a better place? David Halpern joins Vasant Dhar in episode 78 of Brave New World to share his learnings from running the Behavioral Insight Team for the British government.

Useful resources:
1. David Halpern on Wikipedia and the Behavioural Insights...


Feb 8, 2024

Her film My Octopus Teacher won an academy award -- and her insights on nature, and her love for it, go far beyond the film. Pippa Ehrlich joins Vasant Dhar in episode 77 of Brave New World to talk about her work and what she has learnt from it.

Useful resources:
1. Pippa Ehrich on InstagramXLinkedIn and 


Jan 25, 2024

Life on earth is a crazy accident. We have no idea how it arose or whether it will survive. Peter Ward joins Vasant Dhar in episode 76 of Brave New World to chat about the origins of our planet, the many extinctions and resurgences of life, and the future of our species.

Useful resources:
1. Peter Ward on Wikipedia