Gresham College Lectures
Episodes
How Do Vaccines Work? - Robin May
02 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/PcNoOjT30VYVaccination has changed the world, saving millions of lives and enabling us to eradicate a...
Asteroid Adventures - Chris Lintott
28 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/H8nG29pO_y4Asteroids were for years considered 'celestial vermin' - objects which got in th...
The LGBT+ Showstopper: ‘I Am What I Am’ - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
25 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/-TsWDdeQK34Composed by Jerry Herman of Hello, Dolly! fame, ‘I Am What I Am’ first appeared in the...
Documentary Photography in Apartheid South Africa - Tamar Garb
22 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/9tcRtGh7hkMThis lecture looks at debates and dialogues that characterise realist photography in Apart...
Just Ask The Axis: Jimi Hendrix unpicked - Milton Mermikides
18 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/rKoYL4yrNsgDespite being cited as one of the most creative and influential guitarists of all time, an...
The Case for Basic Income - Guy Standing
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/cjJSWgvHZKwThis lecture puts forth the ethical and economic case for a basic income, enabling finan...
The Turbulent Brain: Rhythms and Waves - Alain Goriely
11 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Despite its quiet appearance, the brain is the seat of complicated wave dynamics. Indeed, cognitive processes are carried out through communications b...
Banned Books and Freedom of Expression - Rachel Potter
04 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The right to free expression is severely threatened in many places in the world, yet it has also never been so passionately defended. This lecture foc...
Trust Issues: When Financial "Experts" Have Other Plans - Raghavendra Rau
01 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/0jSUfa0LQAoThis lecture examines agency problems in various relationships, including between investor...
Carbon Offsetting: Does It Really Work? - Myles Allen
28 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/MB73qh4pIYMOffsets, politely called carbon credit markets, are essential to many net-zero strategies,...
Is the First Amendment the greatest right of all? - Clive Stafford Smith
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/W5EKhMWdjP4In this lecture we will discuss a hierarchy of rights. Is the American First Amendment the...
The Biggest Cosmic Map - Chris Lintott
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/TRCkgDWKTdYMapping the stars is, perhaps, the oldest of astronomical pursuits, but it has been perfec...
Data: A Love Story for the Ages - Victoria Baines
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/7mW52bW23goIt has become something of a cliché to say that data is the new oil. That isn’t the ful...
The Return of the Horned God - Ronald Hutton
11 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/IAilwM_WdbIUntil the nineteenth century, the favourite ancient pagan gods in Western culture were tho...
Green Immunity – How Do Plants Fight Infection? - Robin May
11 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/Et8_myknHq8Most of us rarely think about plant immunity. But, like us, plants can distinguish between...
Unwritten Laws? Legacies from Antigone and Lycurgus - Melissa Lane
04 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gQdabAQT3JwSophocles’ Antigone refers to “unwritten laws,” as does Thucydides’ Pericles. From...
The Value of Public Space - Liza Fior
28 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As we navigate towns and cities, public spaces are all around us. These offer a respite from our often-busy routines. Public spaces are more than just...
The UK’s Generational Wealth Gap - Mike Brewer
28 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The UK's income inequality has remained stable since the 1990s, but household wealth has nearly doubled, mainly driven by soaring house prices. T...
Why Does Britain Have a Water and Sewage Crisis? - Martin Daunton
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The discharge of raw sewage into rivers, and the financial problems of major water companies, have become serious political and social concerns for th...
The Hidden Risks of "I Know Something You Don't" - Raghavendra Rau
21 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/7pvF4FdbYWUThis lecture explores how information asymmetry leads to adverse selection and moral hazar...
Is Your Money Safe? Unveiling Hidden Conflicts in Finance - Raghavendra Rau
14 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gWJmpSO4WZIFinance involves a group of people attempting to make rational decisions on valuation, but...
The Connected Brain: Network and Communication - Alain Goriely
11 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/bKMV8i9Mq40The brain is mostly organised in small modular regions connected to each other. Typically,...
Breaking the Fourth Wall of Sound: The Paradox of Screen Music - Milton Mermikides
07 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sound and music hold a strange and powerful role in film, TV and video games, aiding narrative and emotional impact. They can even exist in the world ...
‘Is it in Pevsner?’: A Short History of the ‘Buildings of …' Series - Charles O'Brien
04 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/LUyFLOUi-D4This lecture traces the history of this famous series by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, starting fr...
Writing Laws: Hammurabi to Solon - Melissa Lane
31 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/t6kkq6dI6hcWhen and why do written laws emerge in ancient societies? This lecture will consider these...
Touching the Sun - Chris Lintott
24 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/pXoU-nZmhn8Despite its familiarity, the Sun is a very different presence from the friendly yellow cir...
Science-based Targets, Greenwashing and Brownscraping: Net Zero in the Private Sector - Myles Allen
22 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/lQBdqGrfWKUOver half the world’s largest companies have a net zero strategy. But what stops “Scie...
Writing a British Constitution - Clive Stafford Smith
17 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Recently, the UK has got into a muddle over how to approach Scottish independence and Brexit. What can we learn from the U.S. which took much of its s...
The Modern Goddess - Ronald Hutton
15 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/0ZK1Y1QnFDgThis looks at how and why a particular form of the non-Christian divine feminine came to t...
Who’s Afraid of Robots? - Victoria Baines
10 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/d6Ao4KmGXBcArtificial Intelligence is a very recent invention…or is it? Humans have been fascinated...
Women at the Piano: A History Through Images - Marina Frolova-Walker
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/f6Z9L2dnxSAThis lecture explores the emergence of the "femme au piano" genre in 19th-cent...
The US Constitution: A Catalogue of Complaints about Britain - Clive Stafford Smith
03 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/wpF0oB9Mz-0The US Constitution, both in its structural element and the Bill of Rights, reflect a cata...
How Does Our Immune System Protect Us? - Robin May
31 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/JCTgxcPu78IThe human immune system rivals the brain in its complexity. Billions of cells coordinate t...
Who's Minding the Store? Corporate Rules to Align Interests - Raghavendra Rau
27 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture will explore corporate governance mechanisms designed to address agency problems, including executive compensation, boards of directors, ...
Unwrapping Irving Berlin’s "White Christmas" - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
24 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/LW0DLhTxfCEThis festive lecture explores the unusual roots of the song ‘White Christmas’ and its ...
Magical Mystery Tour: The Invention of The Beatles - Milton Mermikides
20 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/VeJxEXZfT2YThis lecture analyses the ‘psychedelic era’ of the Beatles, from Sgt. Peppers Lonely H...
Much Ado About Numbers: Shakespeare’s Mathematical Life and Times - Rob Eastaway
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Shakespeare lived in a period of exciting mathematical innovations, from arithmetic to astronomy, and from probability to music. Remarkably, many of t...
Messaging and Signals - Victoria Baines
13 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/pP3FzqYcMOAWe communicate when we have information to share. The development of signals from signs vi...
Houston, we have a problem: how the fossil fuel industry is risking our future - Myles Allen
10 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/6hEOINeTYTUAs the leaders of the oil and gas industry flew into Houston for CERAWeek, 2024, oil was...
Black Holes and Bangs - Chris Lintott
06 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/dvvOi_nUCRMSpace itself is wobbly. We exist on a choppy sea, its surface roiled by disturbances cause...
How Inequality Affects Mental Health - Lade Smith
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/UzxyNc8vuNsTraditional risk factors for mental illness include genetics, perinatal factors, substance...
Saints & Liars: The Stories of Americans Who Saved Endangered People from the Nazis - Debórah Dwork
29 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/Tt_xU005mikThis Lecture unveils the hidden history of Americans who risked their lives to save others...
Why believe in Conspiracy Theories? - Peter Knight
27 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/EyU7TCE1QJQWith Brexit, the US presidential election and the Covid pandemic, conspiracy theories now ...
The Ancient History of Computers and Code - Victoria Baines
22 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What links an ancient shipwreck to the textile mills of Northern England? Both contained forerunners of the computing we use today. Computer language ...
The Convoluted Brain: Wrinkles and Folds - Alain Goriely
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/_Q_30OIPzXwThe human brain has a very distinct and complex appearance with valleys and ridges folding...
The Health Gap: Achieving Social Justice in Public Health - Michael Marmot
15 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/leCxdECjyDMReducing health inequalities is a matter of social justice. Strategies must address the ...
Why Writing Women Back into History Matters - Janina Ramirez
12 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/IJT3B9WZntcRediscovering remarkable historical figures such as the Birka Warrior Woman, Hildegard of ...
The Origins of Modern Paganism - Ronald Hutton
08 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/sYqJomnunFgThe deeper exploration of Paganism begins with its roots in the Victorian and Edwardian er...
Does the UK have a Water Crisis? - Carolyn Roberts
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The management of water supplies, flooding and water pollution in the UK is currently the subject of great controversy, and public interest has never ...
Is Trump the same Nixon in 1968? - Luke A. Nichter
04 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/D3Lz-M1P9VkThe 1968 Presidential Election remains the most divisive in modern U.S. history, with Demo...
What is a Puzzle Canon? The Divine Trickery of J.S. Bach - Milton Mermikides
03 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Behind the sublime precision and expressive power of Bach’s music lies a mischievous spirit. From puzzle canons (where the performer must solve a ri...
Why Does Britain Have a Housing Crisis? - Martin Daunton
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture was recorded by Martin Daunton on 22nd October 2024 at Barnard's Inn Hall, London.Martin is Visiting Professor of Economic History...
The Sondheim Showstopper: ‘Send in the Clowns - Dominic Broomfield McHugh
25 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/gtCsGQ14nU0This lecture examines ‘Send in the Clowns’, probably the most commercially successful ...
How do we secure Europe? - Catherine Ashton
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/YltPv0VUFgQWith the ongoing war in Ukraine, long-term planning for security in Europe is essential....
Is the Public Lecture Dead? - Martin Elliott
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://youtu.be/wiAFxEnq8t4Gresham College has been delivering public lectures since 1597 through times of great so...
Do Microbes have Immune Systems? - Robin May
11 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDRNuI4VwmkWe often think of immunity as being a human, or at least mammalian, phenome...
How to raise the Net Zero conversation - Myles Allen
08 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKaTcobzidkIn a year of elections, climate change is emerging as a divisive political ...
Were Laws created by Greek Legends? - Melissa Lane
04 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While Lycurgus of Sparta and Solon of Athens are now the best-known lawgivers of Greek antiquity, there were many others, from king Minos in Crete to ...
Human Rights Law: Bringing Power to the Powerless - Clive Stafford Smith
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This first lecture looks at the power that is given to advocates in a country that has a constitutional structure like the US. I have brought The Am...
What is Modern Paganism? - Ronald Hutton
23 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is modern Paganism, and how does it relate to witchcraft, Druidry and other phenomena? This lecture is designed to answer that question, and in d...
Does having a big brain make your smarter? - Alain Goriely
20 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Watch the Q&A session here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFCDvsq6N5gFor centuries scientists have tried to identify what is special about the h...
A Mirror in the Sky - Chris Lintott
17 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The first lecture in the series considers the most famous telescope of all, the Hubble space telescope. A project more than forty years in the making,...
The Stories We Make Up & The Stories That Make Us - Bernardine Evaristo OBE
06 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Many decades ago, as a young graduate from drama school, I was presented with a stark choice – either to shape my story myself, through writing, or ...
Does the UK Constitution need reform? - Charles Falconer PC, KC
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Gray's Inn Reading 2024Does the UK’s constitution provide too much freedom for those that wish to abuse it? Specific examples of this migh...
Plato's Cave: Thinking about Climate Change - Melissa Lane
09 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In The Republic, Plato explores the predicament of the Cave: a passive citizen body, a conniving and self-interested set of sophistic opinion-formers ...
The Bloomsbury Group: A Queer History - Nino Strachey
02 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture will explore the world of the second Bloomsbury generation, delving into the intricacies of being young and queer in the 1920s, and how t...
Are Financial Markets Efficient? - Raghavendra Rau
26 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One of the crucial ideas in finance is that markets are efficient – that they fully reflect all available information. If so, what about market bubb...
Witch-Hunting in European and World History - Ronald Hutton
22 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture confronts the worldwide phenomenon of the persecution of suspected witches, now a serious, contemporary problem condemned by the UN in 20...
A Mathematician's View of Proof - Sarah Hart
12 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The idea of proof is fundamental to mathematics. We could argue that science consists of testable theories, and therefore that it is about what can be...
Experts in politics: Lessons from Socrates and Aristotle - Melissa Lane
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Socrates sought to test the expertise of everyone around him: the bombastic know-it-alls, the bashful youths, the confident generals, those (including...
First light: Revealing the Early Universe - Chris Lintott
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The final lecture in the series returns to the theme of how insight is derived from observations, considering the cosmic microwave background.This old...
Race, Disability & Education: Law's Uphill Battle - Leslie Thomas KC
24 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture traces the history of race and disability law in the English education system. It examines the impact of discriminatory policies on Black...
Logarithms: Mobile Phones, Modelling & Statistics?
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Logarithms were perhaps once thought of as just an old-fashioned way to do sums on slide rules. But they underpin much of modern life, from modelling ...
A Just and Inclusive Net Zero: Who should get there first? - Myles Allen
17 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Eventually, net zero needs to include everyone: for emissions to continue in half the world while the other half mops them up is both unsustainable an...
Asymmetric Information in Finance Explained - Raghavendra Rau
14 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In every financial transaction, one side has more information than the other. For example, when someone buys a used car, the seller will know better t...
Is Music Infinite? - Milton Mermikides
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture explores the very limits of music: investigating historical efforts to catalogue musical materials including the melacarta of Carnatic mu...
Twentieth-Century Divas: Julie Andrews - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Starring in My Fair Lady (1956), The Sound of Music (1965) and Cinderella (1957) gave Dame Julie Andrews unparalleled profile.These were among the mos...
Health after Extreme Cold, Heat, Storms and Floods - Professor Sir Chris Whitty
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Weather and climate-related events can cause significant mortality and disability.Sudden cold, heat, storms and floods all present risks to health, es...
How to Prove 1=0, And Other Maths Illusions - Sarah Hart
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this lecture I will show you some mathematical illusions: “proofs” that 1=0, that fractions don’t exist, and more. There are curious and impo...
Evolution Tomorrow and Beyond - Robin May
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Evolution has led from amoebae to blue whales and from algae to giant redwoods. So what might it do in the future? What species might evolve in the n...
The Next Fifty Years of Tech - Dr Victoria Baines
28 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Come take a ride in the Tech Time Machine and explore how IT may change our lives in the next fifty years. By employing techniques used by science fic...
Musical Consonance and Dissonance: The Good, Bad and Beautifully Ugly - Milton Mermikides
24 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What makes a piece of music challenging, bland, intriguing, beautiful or ugly?This lecture explores the concept of ‘musical flavour’ formed by int...
Is it Aliens? The Most Unusual Star In The Galaxy - Chris Lintott
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Boyajian's star, a faint and unprepossessing presence in the constellation of Cygnus, attracted astronomers' attention when it began to flic...
The Western Magical Tradition - Ronald Hutton
20 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture makes a survey of learned ceremonial magic in Europe throughout history and demonstrates that both of the customary claims made for it by...
Locating Queer History - Matt Cook
17 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Queer urban life has changed dramatically in England over the last seventy years. Shifts in the economy, culture, attitudes, and technology have all p...
Refugees: English Law's Protection or Persecution? - Leslie Thomas KC
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How are refugees protected in English law?This lecture traces the history of refugee protection, the limits of the Refugee Convention, and changes to ...
The Geopolitical Risks of Climate Change - Myles Allen
13 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Climate Change is predicted to spark increasing threats to food security and demands for climate reparations, fuelling geopolitical instability.Probab...
Sustainable Energy in Refugee Camps - Dr Sarah Rosenberg-Jansen
09 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Most of the world’s 102 million forcibly displaced people – refugees – lack access to reliable, affordable, sustainable energy. Attempts to prov...
What went wrong in Latin America? - Martin Daunton
07 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the Great Depression, producers of food and raw materials complained that they received low prices and paid high prices for industrial imports. Lat...
Lead: A Toxic Legacy - Dr Ian Mudway
29 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Evidence that childhood lead exposure caused stunted intelligence and behavioural problems motivated efforts to ban lead in petrol, with the world fin...
Twentieth-Century Divas: Shirley Bassey - Dominic Broomfield-McHugh
26 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Black Welsh singer started out recording cover versions of American songbook classics but rose to international fame after her performance of the ...
Artificial Selection: How Humans have Shaped Evolution - Robin May
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We often think of evolution as ‘something that happened’ in the past. But of course, evolution is a constant, powerful process and one that is oft...
Data Protection for Thrillseekers - Dr Victoria Baines
17 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We increasingly share with online services intimate details of our lives, such as mental health and reproductive data. Far from being a ‘tick box’...
The Human Cost of Immigration Detention - Dr Greg Constantine
16 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Governments increasingly use detention as a central component of immigration and asylum policy. The lecture addresses several important questions.What...
Democracy: Ancient Models, Modern Challenges - Melissa Lane
12 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Demokratia is the power (kratos) of the people (demos). But what kind of power, and who constitutes the people? Although ancient democracy is often st...
New Hope in Cancer: A Panel Discussion - Dr Richard Sidebottom, Sanjay Popat and James Larkin
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In partnership with Novartis Treatments and research in cancer are moving very fast, giving new hope to many.This event will bring together speakers ...
Modern Concepts of ADHD - Peter Hill
08 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a combination of hyperactivity, impulsiveness and inattention which significantly impacts those liv...
Ancient Greek Ideas of Equality under the Law - Melissa Lane
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Nobel Laureate economist Amartya Sen has posed the question, ‘equality of what?’ The value of equality depends on what standard is chosen. As ...
Ritual Nudity in History and Religion - Ronald Hutton
03 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This lecture looks at the role played by nudity in European religion and magic from ancient times to the present, with some reference to a global cont...
Climate Tipping Points in Oceans, Ice, Forests - Myles Allen
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The impacts of climate change that probably worry people the most are irreversible changes that affect the entire world, such as a collapse of the wes...