Humanities (Audio)

Climate change is one of the hallmarks of the Anthropocene. Rising global temperatures are having profound effects on ecosystems and the organisms that inhabit them, including disease-causing organisms such as viruses, bacteria, and parasitic worms. However, much less is known about the potential for infectious agents to contribute to changes in climate. Many infectious agents have the potential to affect greenhouse gas emissions via effects on their hosts. In her talk, Vanessa Ezenwa explores the idea that interactions between climate change and infectious diseases are not solely unidirectional, specifically, that climate change can increase disease prevalence in human and animal populations, but disease, in turn, may exacerbate climate change. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37774]

This century is the first in Earth's history when the catastrophic threats to the entire planet can be induced by one species, humans. We have an ever-heavier collective footprint on the planet. We’re empowered by ever more powerful technologies that can be hugely beneficial, but which if misapplied could trigger calamitous setbacks to civilization. Such events could be global: we’re so interconnected that no continent would be unscathed. It’s an ethical indictment of humanity that the gap between the actual state of the world, and the way it could be, is widening rather than narrowing. COVID-19 has been a wake-up call. It has shown that our increasingly interconnected civilization is vulnerable - but also that well-directed science can be our salvation. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37777]

Connections between past and present human exploitation of the environment, the coming crisis of the Anthropocene and what we humans can do to alleviate the crisis. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37773]

UC Berkeley’s Kroeber Hall became the fourth building on campus to be stripped of its name in a year’s time. The decision by Berkeley officials capped a formal review process and was made, in large part, because the building’s namesake - Alfred Louis Kroeber, born in 1876 and the founder of the study of anthropology in the American West - is a powerful symbol that continues to evoke exclusion and erasure for Native Americans. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37827]

This talk considers the effects of the most aggressive ants on the environment, arguing that certain invasive species resemble humans in their capacity for global conquest and environmental destructiveness.  Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37772]

Eric Roth, screenwriter of Dune, discusses the film with moderator Matt Ryan. Roth talks about how he tackled adapting Frank Herbert’s novel to the screen, and his collaboration with director Denis Villeneuve. He also talks about various details of his process, such as how he approached portraying the characters of Paul and Lady Jessica, and bringing the world of Dune to life with his portrayal of the Fremen and the sandworms. Roth elaborates on working with the Herbert family early on to make sure that the legacy of the novels was properly respected. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37862]

In The Revenge of Power: How Autocrats Are Reinventing Politics for the 21st Century, Moisés Naím, former Editor-in-Chief of Foreign Policy, turns to the trends, conditions, technologies and behaviors that are contributing to the concentration of power, and to the clash between those forces that weaken power and those that strengthen it. Naím concentrates on the three “P”s—populism, polarization, and post-truths. All of which are as old as time, but are combined by today’s autocrats to undermine democratic life in new and frightening ways. The Revenge of Power shows how power has not changed but the way people go about gaining it and using it has been transformed. Series: "Institute of the Americas" [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 37831]

Dr. Simon Todd, assistant professor in the Department of Linguistics at UC Santa Barbara, talks about what you can learn simply by listening. His research focuses on the incredible power of passive listening for developing and accessing knowledge about language varieties and the people that speak them. Series: "GRIT Talks" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37872]

Social media content ranges from benign to traumatizing - but who is responsible for deciding what is appropriate for a given audience? Kristen Vaccaro, PhD, examines the history of content moderation, current practices, and future models. Series: "Exploring Ethics" [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 37316]

UC Berkeley Assistant Professor, Jack Tseng, explains his research on juvenile T. rexes and what the findings tell us about the lifestyle of the teenage tyrannosaur. Series: "UC Berkeley News" [Humanities] [Show ID: 37829]