Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa

The Phi Beta Kappa Society

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SOCIETY & CULTURE
MONTHLY

Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa is a podcast from The Phi Beta Kappa Society's Visiting Scholars program, featuring leading scholars across multiple disciplines in conversation with Fred Lawrence, PBK's Secretary and CEO.

2 FEB

How We Actively Shape a “Well-Grounded Brain” with Kelly Lambert

How much control do we truly have over our brain health? In this episode, Professor Kelly Lambert, a pioneer in the field of behaviorceuticals, discusses how environmental enrichment and positive anticipation physically reshape the brain. Drawing on her celebrated research—including the world-famous "rat driving" studies—Professor Lambert discusses what we can learn about brain health from wild animals, the dangers of living in what she calls “brain bubbles,” and examines the critical role of authentic experience in building emotional resilience. She also offers a unique perspective on how small behavioral shifts can serve as powerful alternatives to traditional pharmaceuticals for improving mood and cognitive function. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

26 min
5 JAN

2025 Phi Beta Kappa Book Awards

The Phi Beta Kappa Book Awards are presented annually to three outstanding scholarly books published in the United States. The 2025 winners are Charles King for his book Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's Messiah; Stefanos Geroulanos for his book The Invention of Prehistory: Empire, Violence, and Our Obsession with Human Origins; and Ayana Elizabeth Johnson for her book What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures. This year, the Book Awards Dinner was held in person in Williamsburg, VA in December 2025, where two of the three scholars discussed the impetus behind their books and the motives that keep them sleepless—and engaged—in liberal arts and sciences. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

45 min
08/12/2025

Understanding the History and Political Identity of Latinos with Geraldo Cadava

In this episode, Fred Lawrence speaks with Geraldo Cadava, Professor of History at Northwestern University and author of The Hispanic Republican. Cadava takes us from the childhood experiences that shaped his interest in complex identities—moving between the affluent suburbs of Irvine and the borderlands of Tucson—to his scholarly work on the contradictory nature of Latino identity. He shares the compelling story of his Panamanian-born grandfather, a veteran and copper miner whose partisan evolution from a Ronald Reagan voter to a staunch Republican demonstrates how individual political reasons can lead to deep ideological shifts. Cadava also previews his upcoming, ambitious project of writing a book encompassing the past 500-year history of Latinos, A Thousand Bridges, which argues that Latinos have historically been both victims and agents of empire. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

27 min
03/11/2025

How Mathematics can Solve Real-World Mysteries with Ingrid Daubechies

In this episode, Fred Lawrence speaks with Ingrid Daubechies, James B. Duke Distinguished Professor Emerita of Mathematics at Duke University and a National Medal of Science recipient. Daubechies takes us from her childhood fascination with calculating multiples to her groundbreaking work on wavelets—mathematical building blocks that have revolutionized image and signal analysis. She talks about how her research helped the FBI compress millions of fingerprints, analyze seismograms, and even distinguish authentic Van Gogh paintings from forgeries. She also tells the story behind the whimsical Mathemalchemy Project, a collaborative art installation that celebrates the pure joy and creativity of mathematics. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

28 min
06/10/2025

Discovering How Generosity Impacts Economy with Daniel Hungerman

In this episode, Fred Lawrence speaks with Professor Daniel Hungerman, a professor of economics at the University of Notre Dame. Hungerman discusses his unique academic journey, which led him to specialize in the economics of religious and charitable organizations. He explains his research on how tax policies have a measurable impact on charitable giving in the United States, also delving into the field of "generosity in economics” and how charitable donations directly impact the economy as we know it. Hungerman also touches on the long-term impact of the first Earth Day, using weather data to show how a single event can have a lasting positive influence on environmental attitudes and health. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

26 min
08/09/2025

Changing the Conversation in Music Education with Tammy L. Kernodle

In this episode, Fred Lawrence speaks with Tammy L. Kernodle, University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Music at Miami University, whose work explores African American music, gender, and race in American popular culture. Kernodle shares how her working-class upbringing in Danville, Virginia, and a home filled with music led her to Virginia State University, graduate studies at The Ohio State University, and a career dedicated to expanding the narratives taught in music history. She discusses her mission to change classroom conversations, create scholarships for underrepresented musicians, and broaden what audiences hear in the concert hall. She also reflects on her roles as curator of the New World Symphony’s I Dream a World Festival and her work on the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture.

30 min
04/08/2025

REPLAY: Exploring the Evolution of Animal Weapons and How it Relates to Arms Races in Military Technologies With Professor Doug Emlen

In this episode, evolutionary biologist Douglas Emlen joins Fred Lawrence in a conversation about his research on extreme animal weapons— from the horns of a rhinoceros beetle to elk antlers. He discusses his family's scientific legacy, his early reluctance to follow in their footsteps, and how his childhood experiences in Kenya influenced his path. In his award-winning book, Animal Weapons: The Evolution of Battle, Emlen also explores the parallels between animal and human arms races. His interdisciplinary work connects biological evolution with military history, shedding light on the forces that drive the escalation of weapons in both human societies and nature.

24 min
07/07/2025

REPLAY: How Professor Kendra McSweeney uses Geography to Protect Forests in Indigenous Homelands

For a lot of Americans, geography is just a middle school subject or a trivia night category at their neighborhood bar. But for Professor Kendra McSweeney, the “invisible field” of geography is a way to understand the relationship between people and their environment, from adaptation to climate change to how the drug trade impacts biodiverse forests in Colombia. In this episode, McSweeney highlights how her dynamic career as an academic has taken her from Canada to eastern Honduras, and talks about the thought process behind lectures such as “Viewing Political Ecology Through the Lens of the Tree of Heaven,” an enlightening take on the so-called invasive tree that is providing crucial shade in neighborhoods in the US.

28 min

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TRAILER

Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa Trailer

A podcast that features intimate and in-depth conversations with scholars and experts across many fields, including international law, Shakespeare, microbiology, economics of science, and astronautics. Listeners get a seat at the table to learn about the featured scholar’s background, research, and how their respective paths have led them to where they are today. The Phi Beta Kappa Society presents Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa, a podcast that features intimate and in-depth conversations with scholars and experts across many fields, including international law, Shakespeare, microbiology, economics of science, and astronautics. Listeners get a seat at the table to learn about the featured scholar’s background, research, and how their respective paths have led them to where they are today. Produced by Lantigua Williams & Co. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

30/08/2018

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3 min

Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa is a podcast from The Phi Beta Kappa Society's Visiting Scholars program, featuring leading scholars across multiple disciplines in conversation with Fred Lawrence, PBK's Secretary and CEO.