Synopsis
Big Ideas offers lectures on a variety of thought-provoking topics which range across politics, culture, economics, art history, science.... By nature of its lecture format, pacing and inquisitive approach, it is the antithesis of the prevailing sound-bite television norm. The simple, bold concept is a victory of substance over style. Big Ideas airs Saturdays and Sundays at 5:00 PM EST on TVO - Canada's largest educational broadcaster.
Episodes
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Vaclav Smil on the future of the planet.
21/05/2010 Duration: 55minCan one planet survive the impact of a human population of close to 9 billion people? Environment writer, Andrew Revkin, interviews author and distinguished professor, Vaclav Smil, about the promise and perils of the next fifty years. This talk was part of the Q2C festival at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo in October 2009.
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Jordan Peterson on Reality and the Sacred
14/05/2010 Duration: 44minIn his lecture entitled Reality and the Sacred, psychology professor, Jordan Peterson, explores the human search for meaning in a chaotic world and how our perceptions and beliefs shape our sense of reality.
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P. Sainath on India in the Age of Inequality
07/05/2010 Duration: 56minAward-winning journalist Palagummi Sainath delivers a lecture at York University entitled Slumdogs versus Millionaires: India in the Age of Inequality.
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Cory Doctorow, on Copyright vs. Universal Access
30/04/2010 Duration: 54minAuthor, activist, journalist and blogger, Cory Doctorow, delivers a lecture on Copyright vs. Universal Access. Subtitled, The State of Play in the Global Copyfight, this lecture was part of the Q2C Festival at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo.
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Nick Mount on T.S. Eliot
23/04/2010 Duration: 47minEnglish professor Nick Mount analyzes T.S. Eliot's modernist masterpiece, The Waste Land.
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Rupinder Brar on Exoplanets: The Search for Other Earths
16/04/2010 Duration: 44minRupinder Brar from the Science and Physics Department at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology presents his competition winning lecture entitled Exoplanets: The Search for Other Earths.
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David Gray on Open Economy Macroeconomics
02/04/2010 Duration: 43minDavid Gray from the Economics Department at the University of Ottawa presents his competition lecture entitled Open Economy Macroeconomics
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Nadia Habib on Reflections on Gender and Sexuality
01/04/2010 Duration: 41minNadia Habib from the Liberal Arts and Professional Studies Department at York University presents her competition lecture entitled Reflections on Gender and Sexuality.
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Bruce Meyer lecture
26/03/2010 Duration: 35minBruce Meyer from the English Department at Laurentian University at Georgian College presents his competition lecture entitled The Four Phases of Yeats.
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Monika Havelka on Why Sex? The Evolution of a Paradox
26/03/2010 Duration: 43minMonika Havelka from the Biology Department at the University of Toronto Mississauga presents her competition lecture entitled Why Sex? The Evolution of a Paradox.
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Best Lecturer 2010 nominee Rupinder Brar
19/03/2010 Duration: 44minRupinder Brar from the Faculty of Science at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology presents his competition lecture entitled Exoplanets: The Search For Other Earths.
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Virginia Walker lecture audio podcast
19/03/2010 Duration: 33minVirginia Walker lecture audio podcast
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Best Lecturer 2010 nominee Sohail Rashid
12/03/2010 Duration: 43minSohail Rashid from the Psychology Department at Ryerson University presents his competition lecture entitled Birth Order and Personality.
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Best Lecturer 2010 nominee Karolyn Smardz Frost
12/03/2010 Duration: 44minKarolyn Smardz Frost from the History Department at York University presents her competition lecture entitled Fugitive Sources: Uncovering Toronto's Underground Railroad Connections.
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Eleanor MacDonald on Are We Postmodern?
05/03/2010 Duration: 34minEleanor MacDonald from the Political Studies Department at Queen's University presents her competition lecture entitled Are We Postmodern?
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Steve Joordens on Teaching Critical Thinking
05/03/2010 Duration: 39minSteve Joordens from the Psychology Department at the University of Toronto Scarborough presents his competition lecture entitled You Can Lead Students to Knowledge, But How Do You Make Them Think?
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BIG IDEAS: Nick Mount audio podcast
26/02/2010 Duration: 51minAs part of his Literature for Our Time series, English professor Nick Mount discusses Virginia Woolf?s novel To the Lighthouse.
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Michael Ruse asks Is Darwinism Past its Sell-By Date?
23/02/2010 Duration: 49minAt the 2009 Darwin conference entitled Origin of Species at 150, philosophy professor Michael Ruse asks Is Darwinism Past its Sell-By Date?
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Francis Broun
12/02/2010 Duration: 55minArt historian, Francis Broun, delivers an informative and entertaining lecture on the sculptures of Michelangelo. Broun is a professor in the Faculty of Liberal Studies at the Ontario College of Art
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Dambisa Moyo on Innovating Away from Aid
05/02/2010 Duration: 36minIn her best-selling book, Dead Aid, economist Dambisa Moyo, argues that aid to Africa breeds corruption and dependence and should be replaced with more innovative ways of financing, including capital markets and microfinance. Her lecture, Innovating Away from Aid, was delivered at the University of Waterloo.