Pulled Up Short

Featuring Ellen Winner (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Keith Sawyer (commentator)

There is a seemingly age-old division between art and science, which on one hand attributes emotions and creativity to art, and on the other hand, espouses science with logic and reason. Join Ellen Winner in this episode as she troubles this dichotomy and helps us to see the ways that art and science overlap.

Featuring Howard Gardner (guest) and Stanton Wortham (host) with Gabrielle Oliveira (commentator)

Everyone has heard the mantra: keep it simple. Why make something more complicated than it needs to be? In this episode, Howard Gardner reflects on the complexities inherent in simplicity via the global uptake of his famous theory of multiple intelligences.

Featuring Richard Kearney with Stanton Wortham (host) and Colleen Griffith (commentator). 

In our current era of the pandemic and of social distancing, we are confronted with the challenges of prolonged periods without contact. In this episode, Richard Kearney claims that the basic human need for touch has never been so prevalent as it is today. Tune in to consider the reasons why touch is arguably our most important and most neglected human sense.

Featuring Greg Fried with Stanton Wortham (host) and Liane Young (commentator)

Though it has become a commonsense assumption that humans indeed have control over their decision-making, Greg Fried offers a neurological insight in this episode that raises questions about whether or not humans really have free will.

Featuring Rebecca Lowenhaupt with Stanton Wortham (host) and Vincent Cho (commentator)

As COVID-19 rages on, there is increasing conversation and controversy about the impact of the pandemic on education and school children. Many have characterized this school year as one of disruption and learning loss. In this episode, Becca Lowenhaupt proposes a flip in script: What if we see this year as one of increased learning for children? As a year of learning gained?

Featuring René Arcilla with Samantha Ha (guest host) and Chris Higgins (commentator)
 
Like most people, René Arcilla thought that the purpose of education was to equip students with the skills and knowledge needed to address pressing social problems. This episode highlights what he discovered instead -- a purpose of education that isn’t focused on acquisition, but has more to do with attraction, beauty, and mystery.

Featuring Ryan Hanley with Stanton Wortham (host) and Greg Kalscheur (commentator)

The central figure in this episode is Adam Smith, an economist and philosopher most notorious for being the “Father of Capitalism.” Ryan Hanley draws from his own research to demonstrate how Smith’s focus on markets is compatible with commitments to social justice and to providing for the poor.

Drawing from the widespread fascination with Netflix’s show, Indian Matchmaking, Usha Tummala-Narra addresses the ways in which South Asian arranged marriage practices might be more common in Eurocentric relationships and conceptions than we might think.

In this episode, Stanton Wortham draws on anthropological research to illustrate why a belief in witchcraft is rational. His definition of witchcraft - not defined by pointy hats or Halloween - might challenge you to consider not only whether witches exist, but whether you could be a witch as well.

World poverty is a humanitarian issue that is nearly unanimous in stance -- you don’t find many people who would want global poverty and hunger to persist. However, what if there was something tangible you could do to address this problem? In this episode, Scott Seider considers Peter Singer’s Solution to world poverty and what it asks of everyday people.