Enlightenment lectures (audio)

Dr Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones presents a discussion seminar examining Handel in the Orient.

Dr Stephen Lloyd presents an illustrated talk that begins to map out the web of establishment patronage in Edinburgh and Scotland that supported the prolific career of the portrait painter Sir Henry Raeburn.

For the last 20 years the focus of nutritional advice has been to reduce total fat intake and consume large amounts of carbohydrate. However, this advice is inconsistent with many lines of evidence indicating that unsaturated fats have beneficial metabolic effects and reduce risk of coronary heart disease.

More recent evidence has also shown that the large majority of carbohydrates in current industrial diets, consisting of refined starches and sugars, have adverse metabolic effects and increase risks of obesity, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

Thus, in what appears to be an optimal diet, most calories would come from a balance of whole grains and plant oils, proteins would be provided by a mix of beans, nuts, fish, eggs, and poultry, and the remaining nutritional needs would be filled by plenty of vegetables and a few fruits.

Important considerations include the role of dairy products, the interrelationships with physical activity and genetic variations, the implications of our food choices on environmental sustainability, and how we move from today’s pathological diet to a more optimal way of eating.

Dr Walter Willett is Professor of Epidemiology and Nutrition and Chairman of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Dr Willett is the most cited nutritionist internationally, and is among the five most cited persons in all fields of clinical science. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences and the recipient of many national and international awards for his research.

Recorded on 12 June 2008 at the University of Edinburgh's George Square Lecture Theatre.

Language is the main channel in which human beings share the contents of their consciousness. It offers a window into human nature, revealing the hidden workings of our thoughts, our emotions, and our social relationships. In his lecture, Prof Steven Pinker will explore an example of each: everyday metaphor as a window into human cognition; swearing and taboo words as a window into human emotion; and indirect speech-veiled threats and bribes, polite requests, and sexual come-ons as a window into human relationships. Professor Steven Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. Until 2003, he taught in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT. He conducts research on language and cognition, writes for publications such as the New York Times, Time, and Slate, and is the author of seven books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, Words and Rules, and The Blank Slate.Recorded on 6 June 2008 at the University of Edinburgh's McEwan Hall.

Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, presents an Enlightenment Lecture, entitled European Union in the 21st Century. Jose Manuel Barroso served as Prime Minister of Portugal from April 2002 until June 2004, when he resigned to become the 11th President of the European Commission. This lecture was recorded on 28 November 2006 at the University of Edinburgh's Assembly Hall.

Dr Lawrence Klein presents an Enlightenment Lecture, entitled A Retired Shopkeeper Makes Enlightenment: Edmund Rack in Bath, 1775-1787. The Enlightenment had a large cast of characters, many of whom were humble in origin. This talk will explore the nature of Enlightenment inclusiveness through the experiences of a particular individual. Edmund Rack was a shopkeeper in East Anglia who turned himself into a man of letters and, moving to Bath in 1775, put himself at the centre of the local Bath enlightenment. He published essays, attended literary salons and helped found two philosophical societies. His career shows both the pleasures and worries that attached to eighteenth-century upward mobility. Recorded on 18 October 2006 at the University of Edinburgh's St Cecilia's Hall.

Professor Tom Devine, the Sir William Fraser Chair of Scottish History and Palaeography, presents the third lecture in the Enlightenment series. Professor Devine is the author or editor of over two dozen books on topics ranging from migration, famine, identity, transatlantic commercial links, urban history, the Highlands and rural social history. Other panel members included Joyce McMillan, chief theatre critic for The Scotsman, Professor Geoffrey Boulton, Vice Principal and Regius Professor of Geology and Mineralogy at the University and James Boyle, former Chairman, Scottish Arts Council and Cultural Commission. Recorded on 7 October 2006 at the University of Edinburgh's McEwan Hall.

The University of Edinburgh Enlightenment Lecture Series with the support of ScottishPower presents Globalisation & the 21st Century Enlightenment by Joseph Stiglitz.

The Principal of The University of Edinburgh, Timothy OShea said: The University is delighted to welcome Joseph Stiglitz to speak as part of our Enlightenment Lecture Series. He is one of the giants of economics, his contributions across every part of the discipline are recognised the world over. He has already played a major role in shaping events in the worlds recent economic history, and now he is set to shape our future with his ground breaking theories on how globalisation needs to work for disenfranchised peoples worldwide. His lecture examining themes of global economics for the new millennium promises to be a fascinating insight into new economic theory.

Stiglitz was formerly the chief economic advisor to President Clinton and Chief Economist at the World Bank from 1997 to 2000. His most important contribution to economic theory has been his role in shaping and defining the ‘third way’ economic philosophy, which seeks

to rebalance the influence of governments and markets in political economies.

Recorded on 28 August 2008 at the University of Edinburgh's McEwan Hall.

Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International, presented the inaugural Enlightenment Lecture, entitled The War on Terror - A War on Liberty?

This was the first visit to Scotland by an Amnesty Secretary General. Irene Zubaida Khan became the organisation’s seventh Secretary General in its 40th anniversary year, 2001. Ms Khan is the first woman, the first Asian and the first Muslim to head the world’s largest human rights organisation.

Recorded on 21 February 2006 at the University of Edinburgh's McEwan Hall.

Leading geneticist Steve Jones asks 'Is Human Evolution Over?' as part of the Enlightenment Lecture Series.