In Our Spare Times

Oxford University
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In Our Spare Times Podcast

An academic podcast in which a panel of Oxford students and young researchers join hosts Jan-Willem Prügel, Aled Walker and Alice Harberd to discuss their academic and intellectual passions. Each episode will have a different theme, ranging from Marxism to Medieval Song, Cicero to Sondheim -- a tribute to the astonishing diversity of thought which takes place in Oxford. Twitter: @Oxford_IOST

  1. 01/11/2021

    Conservatism

    In this episode, Jan-Willem Prügel discusses the historical origins and philosophical characteristics of Conservatism with two brilliant Oxford students of the humanities. Some say Conservatism is not even a proper political belief, some think of it as shorthand for the politics of the Tory or Republican party. Alas, it is so much more than that and so much more difficult to grasp. Explore the nature of this strange political creature and find out if there are not some aspects of it you find charming and worthy of implementing into your very own view of the world around you. Hello, little platoons, hello useful traditions.

    1h 46m

  2. 28/10/2021

    Number Systems

    Jan-Willem Prügel questions three Oxford mathematicians about the mythical entities known as numbers. What are they? And perhaps even more importantly, why are they? Show notes: https://media.podcasts.ox.ac.uk/ball/in_our_spare_time/sparetimes-number-systems-show-notes.pdf

    1h 15m

  3. 28/10/2021

    Number Systems (Other Resource)

    Jan-Willem Prügel questions three Oxford mathematicians about the mythical entities known as numbers. What are they? And perhaps even more importantly, why are they? Show notes: https://media.podcasts.ox.ac.uk/ball/in_our_spare_time/sparetimes-number-systems-show-notes.pdf

  4. 26/07/2017

    The Problem of Evil

    Oxford students discuss the problem posed by the existence of evil in the world to the Christian and Hindu gods.

    49 min

  5. 13/06/2017

    Nuclear Fusion

    Aled Walker, Justin Ball, Valerian Chen, Jason Parisi discuss nuclear fusion as part of the In Our Spare Time series.

    39 min

  6. 20/03/2017

    Language, Mobility and Belonging

    A new episode of of in our spare time, this time looking at the social aspects of language.

    43 min

  7. 20/01/2017

    Criminology

    Oxford graduate students discuss Criminology, and the societal affects of real-life crime documentaries. In the final months of 2014, the most downloaded podcast on iTunes wasn't on politics or on current affairs, it was no grand historical narrative, and it certainly wasn't a comedy. The podcast was called 'Serial', by now downloaded over 80 million times, and it told, over the course of twelve long episodes, in intimate detail, the investigations of reporter Sarah Koenig into the murder of a single teenage girl, in Baltimore, 15 years previously. Whodunnits have been a feature of popular fiction for over 150 years: extremely popular fiction indeed, with Agatha Christie battling only William Shakespeare as the most popular author of fiction of all time. Yet, such detailed serialisations of real-life murder cases are a much newer phenomenon, and, from a certain perspective at least, a rather morbid one. Why do we as human beings seem to find these distressing stories so fascinating? Could podcasts such as Serial warp our perceptions of the realities of criminal justice? What responsibilities should such documentary makers have when presenting these cases.? And is even the very act -- the act of making the lives of such vulnerable people prime-time entertainment -- can that ever be ethically justified? The success of programmes such as Serial, and also Netflix's endlessly controversial 'Making a Murdurer', poses many questions to the professional scholar of the public's relationship with the criminal justice system -- the criminologist.

    44 min

  8. 18/01/2017

    Évariste Galois

    Oxford graduate students discuss the life and work of 19th century French mathematical prodigy Évariste Galois To appear on a commemorative stamp is surely the greatest stamp of fame. Évariste Galois -- 'Révolutionnaire et Géomètre', as the French stamp says -- was one of the most unusual and enigmatic mathematicians in history. He died when he was just 20 years old, in dramatic circumstances, but during his brief span he created mathematics which, in the decades after his death, would go on to revolutionise all aspects of the discipline.

    42 min
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About

An academic podcast in which a panel of Oxford students and young researchers join hosts Jan-Willem Prügel, Aled Walker and Alice Harberd to discuss their academic and intellectual passions. Each episode will have a different theme, ranging from Marxism to Medieval Song, Cicero to Sondheim -- a tribute to the astonishing diversity of thought which takes place in Oxford. Twitter: @Oxford_IOST

Information

  • Creator
    Oxford University
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2021
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Oxford University
  • Show Website
    In Our Spare Times

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