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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Alexander Nehamas -individual character and ideas of beauty
27/08/2011 Duration: 51minBig Ideas presents Princeton University professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature, Alexander Nehamas, on how individual character defines our ideas of what is beautiful
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Eric Mazur on Stopping Time
20/08/2011 Duration: 56minEric Mazur, the Dean of Applied Physics at Harvard University, delivers a lecture entitled, Stopping Time. In it he breaks time down into it's smallest measureable components via photography and developments in laser technology.
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Michael Hardt on The Politics of Love and Evil
13/08/2011 Duration: 49minBig Ideas presents Duke University Literary Theorist, Michael Hardt, discussing The Politics of Love and Evil
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Joseph Emerson on The Quantum Tamers
06/08/2011 Duration: 52minBig Ideas presents Joseph Emerson of the Department of Applied Math at the University of Waterloo on the documentary The Quantum Tamers which he co-produced at the Perimeter Institute
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John O'Leary on Popular, Informal Education
30/07/2011 Duration: 25minBig Ideas presents John O'Leary, the President of Frontier College on Popular, Informal Education: From the Archives of Frontier College
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The Age of Unequals: An Evening with Richard Wilkinson
23/07/2011 Duration: 37minArmine Yalnizyan, Jordan Peterson, and Matthew Mendelsohn join epidemiologist Richard Wilkinson to discuss why equality is better for everyone, the theme of Wilkinson's book, The Spirit Level
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Robert K. Logan on The Origin and Evolution of Language
16/07/2011 Duration: 24minUniversity of Toronto Physics professor Robert K. Logan on The Origin and Evolution of Language and the Emergence of Concepts
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Marcus Chown on 10 Bonkers Things About the Universe
09/07/2011 Duration: 48minMarcus Chown of New Scientist Magazine on his Top 10 Bonkers Things About the Universe
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Kevin B. Anderson, Janet Afary on The Seductions of Islamism
02/07/2011 Duration: 38minKevin B. Anderson and Janet Afary on their book The Seductions of Islamism: Revisiting Foucault and the Iranian Revolution
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Renate Loll on the Quantum Origins of Space and Time
25/06/2011 Duration: 01h11minRenate Loll from Utrecht University's Institute for Theoretical Physics delivers a lecture on Searching for the Quantum Origins of Space and Time. The lecture was recorded at the Perimeter Institute in Waterloo, Ontario, on May 5, 2010.
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Alan Middleton on the History of Branding
18/06/2011 Duration: 01h01minBig Ideas presents York University professor of Marketing, Alan Middleton, on The History of Branding
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Arne Kislenko on Southeast Asia and the Cold War (Part 2)
11/06/2011 Duration: 36minBig Ideas presents Arne Kislenko, winner of the 2005 Best Lecturer Competition, as he delivers part 2 of his lecture on Triumph and Tragedy: Southeast Asia and the Cold War
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Cory Doctorow Q and A on computer regulation
04/06/2011 Duration: 40minCory Doctorow answers questions following his lecture, Why it's a Bad Idea to Regulate Computers the Way We Regulate Radios, Guns, Uranium and Other Special-Purpose Tools
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Peterson and de Sousa debate Living Without the Sacred
28/05/2011 Duration: 52minPhilosopher Ronald de Sousa and clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson debate Living Without the Sacred: Should John Lennon's Imagine Become Our Reality? The debate was hosted by the University of Toronto Secular Alliance, and sponsored by TVO's Big Ideas and the Centre for Inquiry Ontario.
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Noam Chomsky on Academic Freedom
21/05/2011 Duration: 55minNoam Chomsky is one of America's leading scholars and intellectuals. He is a professor emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His lecture on Academic Freedom and the Corporatization of Universities was delivered at the University of Toronto Scarborough on April 6, 2011.
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Arne Kislenko on Southeast Asia and the Cold War
14/05/2011 Duration: 55minBig Ideas presents Arne Kislenko, winner of the 2005 Best Lecturer Competition, on Triumph and Tragedy: Southeast Asia and the Cold War
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Charles Foran on Mordecai Richler and Nationalism
14/05/2011 Duration: 53minNovelist and critic, Charles Foran, delivers a lecture on Mordecai Richler and Canadian Cultural Nationalism. Mr. Foran recently won the 2011 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction for his book Mordecai: The Life & Times.
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Armine Yalnizyan on Economics, Equality and Democracy
07/05/2011 Duration: 52minSenior economist Armine Yalnizyan examines how growing economic inequality and injustice is affecting our democracy. Her lecture, entitled Economics, Equality and Democracy, was produced in collaboration with the Literary Review of Canada.
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Michael Persinger on No More Secrets
07/05/2011 Duration: 54minBig Ideas presents Michael Persinger, winner of the 2007 Best Lecturer Competition, on Just Suppose You Could Know What Others Are Thinking: No More Secrets
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Cory Doctorow on Why it's a Bad Idea to Regulate Computers
30/04/2011 Duration: 55minBig Ideas presents Cory Doctorow on Why it's a Bad Idea to Regulate Computers the Way We Regulate Radios, Guns, Uranium and Other Special-Purpose Tools