Lse Iq Podcast

Contributor(s): Dr Grace Lordan, Dr Carsten Sorensen, Professor Connson Locke, Hailley Griffis | Joanna Bale talks to LSE’s Connson Locke, Grace Lordan and Carsten Sorensen, as well as Hailley Griffis, a social media management company executive, who believes that offices will soon become extinct.

Contributor(s): Dr Jonathan Birch, Professor Kristin Andrews, Dr Rosalind Arden | This episode features Jonathan Birch, Associate Professor in LSE's Department of Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method, Professor Kristin Andrews, the York Research Chair in Animal Minds at York University (Toronto) and Dr Rosalind Arden, Research Fellow at the Centre for Philosophy of Natural and Social Science. 

Contributor(s): Dr Ela Drazkiewicz-Grodzicka, Professor Bradley Franks, Dr Erica Lagalisse | Conspiracy theories fomented by political division and a global pandemic have gained traction in the public consciousness in the last couple of years. For some people these ideas are just fun and entertaining, but for others their interest in them becomes much more consuming. Why do people become involved in this kind of conspiratorial thinking? That’s the question that LSE iQ tackles in this month’s episode. Concerns that 5G phone masts reduce our bodies’ defences against COVID-19 and that vaccines are being used to inject us with micro-chips - allowing us to be tracked and controlled - may seem extraordinary to many of us. But these beliefs have led to the vandalism of 5G phone masts and made some reluctant to be vaccinated. In this episode of LSE iQ, Sue Windebank finds out how left-wing anarchists got caught up in conspiratorial thinking and how Irish parents looking for support and community were accused of sprea

Contributor(s): Dr Robtel Neajai Pailey, Dr Ian Sanjay Patel, Dr Megan Ryburn | Citizenship. What does that word really signify? This episode of LSE IQ takes a look at the issue in all its complexities, uncovering how decisions made by a 19th century West African Gola ruler connect to today’s Liberian land ownership laws; why British citizenship became racialised in the decades following the second world war – legislation that led to the Windrush Scandal, devastating the lives of hundreds of black Britons; and how Bolivian migrants in the present day have struggled to create new lives in Chile. To understand more about the many ways citizenship can impact our lives, Jess Winterstein spoke to Dr Robtel Neajai Pailey, Dr Ian Sanjay Patel and Dr Megan Ryburn Speakers: Dr Robtel Neajai Pailey, Dr Ian Sanjay Patel and Dr Megan Ryburn Dr Robtel Neajai Pailey, Department of Social Policy, LSE https://www.lse.ac.uk/social-policy/people/academic-staff/dr-robtel-neajai-pailey Dr Ian Sanjay Patel, Department of Sociolog

Contributor(s): Ken Benoit, Andrew Murray, Seeta Peña Gangaradhan, Alison Powell, Bernhard Von Stengel | Computer algorithms shape our lives and increasingly control our future. They have crept into virtually every aspect of modern life and are making life-changing choices on our behalf, often without us realising. But how much power should we give to them and have we let things go too far? Joanna Bale talks to Ken Benoit, Andrew Murray, Seeta Peña Gangaradhan, Alison Powell and Bernhard Von Stengel. Research links: Hello World by Hannah Fry; Information Technology Law: The Law and Society by Andrew Murray; Explanations as Governance? Investigating practices of explanation in algorithmic system design by Alison Powell (forthcoming).

Contributor(s): Professor John Hills | This episode is dedicated to social policy giant Professor Sir John Hills, who died in December 2020. In this episode, John tackles the myth that the welfare state supports a feckless underclass who cost society huge amounts of money. Instead, he sets out a system where most of what we pay in, comes back to us. He describes a generational contract which we all benefit from, varying on our stage of life. His words remain timely after a year of pandemic which has devastated many people’s livelihoods. Many of us have had to rely on state support in ways that we could not have anticipated, perhaps challenging our ideas about what type of person receives benefits in the UK. This episode is based on an interview that John did with James Rattee for the LSE iQ podcast in 2017. It coincided with the LSE Festival which celebrated the anniversary of the publication of the ‘Beveridge Report’ in 1947 - a blueprint for a British universal care system by former LSE Director William Bev

Contributor(s): Dr Tali Sharot, Dr Joan Costa-Font, Professor David de Meza, Dr Chris Kutarna |   Despite our growing collective pessimism about the state of the world, when it comes to our own lives, research suggests we are generally optimistic.   After a year that will remain synonymous with anxiety, isolation, endless devastating news reports, and for too many – loss, this episode of LSE IQ asks: is optimism is good for us? And, beyond the effects on our wellbeing, is optimism an accurate lens through which to view the world?   Addressing these issues are: Dr Tali Sharot, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at UCL; Dr Joan Costa-Font, Associate Professor in Health Economics at LSE; Dr David de Meza, Professor of Management at LSE; and Dr Chris Kutarna, author of Age of Discovery: Navigating the Risks and Rewards of our New Renaissance.     Contributors   Dr Tali Sharot Dr Joan Costa-Font Professor David de Meza Dr Chris Kutarna Research   The Optimism Bias: Why we're wired to look on the bright side by T

Contributor(s): Professor Laura Bear, Nikita Simpson, Professor Joan Roses, Dr Adam Oliver, Dr Clare Wenham, Professor Patrick Wallis | In this month’s episode of the LSE IQ podcast we ask, ‘What’s the point of social science in a pandemic?’.   On the 23rd March 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the country’s first national lockdown. In the months since, there has been a seismic shift in all our lives. As we embark on 2021 and, hopefully, the latter stages of the pandemic, now is an apt moment to reflect on how we’ve got to where we are. While the scientific community has taken centre stage in the fight to overcome the virus, how have social scientists helped us navigate – and evaluate –the UK’s response?   In this episode we talk to anthropologists Professor Laura Bear and Nikita Simpson, Economic historians Professor Patrick Wallis and Professor Joan Roses, Assistant Professor of Global Health Policy Dr Clare Wenham and behavioural economist Dr Adam Oliver.   Research   ’A good death’ during the C

Contributor(s): Dr Kitty Stewart | A campaign by the Manchester United footballer, Marcus Rashford, has prompted the UK government to provide extra support for children from low-income families during the pandemic. Even before coronavirus, child poverty had been rising for several years. This latest bite-sized episode of LSE iQ explores the question, ‘How can we end child poverty in the UK?’ Joanna Bale talks to Kitty Stewart of LSE’s Social Policy Department and Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion. Dr Stewart is currently part of a major research programme examining what progress has been made in addressing social inequalities through social policies. Research links: K Cooper and K Stewart (2020): Does Household Income Affect children’s Outcomes? A Systematic Review of the Evidence   K Stewart and M Reader (2020 forthcoming): The Conservatives’ record on early childhood: policy, spending and outcomes 2015-20.   Polly Vizard, John Hills et al (2020 forthcoming): The Conservatives’ Record on Social Policy:

Contributor(s): Professor David Graeber | This episode is dedicated to David Graeber, LSE professor of Anthropology, who died unexpectedly in September this year. David was a public intellectual, a best-selling author, an influential activist and anarchist. He took aim at the pointless bureaucracy of modern life, memorably coining the term ‘bullshit jobs’. And his book ‘Debt: The First 5000 years’ was turned into a radio series by the BBC. But David started his academic career studying Madagascar. Anthropology interested him, he said, because he was interested in human possibilities - including the potential of societies to organise themselves without the need for a state - as he had seen in his own research. He was also a well-known anti-globalisation activist and a leading figure in the Occupy Wall Street Movement. David was generous enough to do an interview for us in 2016 when LSE iQ was in its infancy. That episode asked, ‘What’s the future of work?’ and in his interview he reflected on the disappointmen

Contributor(s): Dr Thomas Curran | Jess Winterstein speaks to Dr Thomas Curran about the potential pitfalls of wanting to be perfect. Our society values perfection, but is the concept of perfect really that good for us? The latest episode of LSE IQ explores perfectionism. In this bitesized episode of the LSE IQ podcast, Jess Winterstein speaks to Dr Thomas Curran, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science at LSE. While aspiring to perfection may still be viewed positively by many, Dr Curran’s research reveals that the drive to be the best can potentially do more harm than good. Are the potential downsides worth it when balanced against the possible achievements that can come from being a perfectionist? In a discussion which explores the realities of being a perfectionist, we ask, is perfection really worth it?   Contributors   Dr Thomas Curran https://www.lse.ac.uk/PBS/People/Dr-Tom-Curran   Research  A test of social learning and parent socialization perspectives on the d

Contributor(s): Paul Krugman, Andy Summers, Dr Luna Glucksberg | The coronavirus crisis has devastated economies and brought existing inequalities into sharper focus. Will it result in higher taxes on income and wealth, as we saw after the Great Depression and WWII? Or will the top 1 per cent continue to pull away from the rest of society? Exploring the question, ‘Can we afford the super-rich?’, Joanna Bale talks to Paul Krugman, Andy Summers and Luna Glucksberg. Research links: Arguing with Zombies: Economics, Politics, and the Fight for a Better Future by Paul Krugman. Capital Gains and UK Inequality by Arun Advani and Andy Summers. A gendered ethnography of elites by Luna Glucksberg.

Contributor(s): Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, Dr Ute Collier, Dr Sefi Roth, Dr Thomas Smith | Seven million people die of air pollution, worldwide, every year. This episode of LSE IQ asks how this invisible killer can be tackled.  Sue Windebank speaks to Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah about her campaigning work for both clean air and a new inquest into the causes of her daughter’s death. In 2013, her daughter Ella Roberta died from a rare and severe form of asthma – she was just nine years old.  According to an expert report there was a "real prospect” that without unlawful levels of air pollution near their home, Ella would not have died.  As well as the impact on health, the episode looks at the effects of air pollution on crime and education. It also examines air pollution on the London Underground, forest fires and clean cooking.   Addressing these issue are: Dr Ute Collier, Head of Energy at Practical Action; Dr Sefi Roth, Assistant Professor of Environmental Economics at LSE; and Dr Thomas Smith, Assistant Pr

Contributor(s): Dr Stephen Roberts, Dr Leeza Osipenko, Professor Barbara Prainsack, Dr James Somauroo | With more and more information about us available electronically and online, this episode of LSE IQ asks, ‘Is big data good for our health?’ Advances in bio-medical technologies, along with electronic health records and the information we generate through our mobile phones, Smart Watches or Fit bits, our social media posts and search engine queries, mean that there is a torrent of information about our bodies, our health and our diseases out there. Alongside this, the tremendous growth in computing power and data storage means that this ‘Big Data’ can be stored and aggregated and then analysed by sophisticated algorithms for connections, comparisons and insights. The promise of all of this is that big data will create opportunities for medical breakthroughs, help tailor medical interventions to us as individuals and create technologies that will speed up and improve healthcare. And, of course, during the CO

Contributor(s): Clare Wenham | A special bite-sized episode of LSE IQ asks, “What does gender have to do with pandemics?” Cholera, Ebola, Influenza, MERS, SARs, Smallpox, Yellow fever, Zika and of course novel Coronavirus – these are just some of the pandemic, epidemic diseases listed by the World Health Organisation. And until a few months ago, many of us – particularly in the West – had remained comfortably unaffected by these terrible diseases. Yet today it seems dreadfully routine to consume daily infection rates and sobering death tolls. And while the exact figures are unclear – men seem to be dying at a far higher rate. So it might be strange to be focus on women at a time like this. But in this episode Sue Windebank speaks to Dr Clare Wenham, Assistant Professor of Global Health Policy at LSE about why it’s so important to think about gender when responding to epidemics and pandemics.

Contributor(s): Bob Ward, Svenja Surminski, Ivan, XR | This month’s episode of the LSE IQ podcast asks if the climate crisis can be averted. If you can, cast your mind back a few months. Can you remember a time when toilet roll wasn’t a prized possession? Or when going out meant more than a trip to the supermarket? You may recall talk of another crisis, one that threatened millions of lives and livelihoods. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, this episode turns its attention back to this other threat to our world: climate change. One of the few positives to emerge from the pandemic is a dramatic decline in greenhouse gas emissions. Both China and Europe are forecast to emit 25% less greenhouse gases in 2020 and in New York carbon monoxide levels have already dropped by 50%. As city smogs lift, fewer people are predicted to suffer strokes, or contract heart disease and lung cancer. While this drop will only be temporary, does the pandemic point to how bold action on the climate is possible? Or is it inev

Contributor(s): Michael Muthukrishna, Sandra Sequeira, Jonathan Weigel | Welcome to LSE IQ, the award-winning podcast where we ask social scientists and other experts to answer one intelligent question. In this episode Jess Winterstein asks, "Is corruption inevitable?" Bribery, extortion, cronyism, nepotism – corruption comes in many forms, with varying levels of legality, it costs countries trillions of dollars per year and causes great damage to a nation’s economic prosperity and reputation. Yet despite regular pledges of governments around the world to combat it, corruption still flourishes. Exploring the question, ‘Is corruption inevitable?’, Jess Winterstein talks to Michael Muthukrishna, Sandra Sequeira and Jonathan Weigel Corruption, Cooperation, and the Evolution of Prosocial Institutions by Michael Muthukrishna http://www.lse.ac.uk/lacc/publications/PDFs/Muthukrishna-Corruption-Cooperation-Prosocial-Institutions.pdf Corrupting cooperation and how anti-corruption strategies may backfire by Micha

Contributor(s): Yvonne Lawson, Professor Tom Kirchmaier, Carmen Vila-Llera, Janet Foster, Kerris Cooper | Knife crime in England and Wales hit a record high in 2019, up by 7% on the previous year. A disproportionate number of victims - and perpetrators - are young and disadvantaged. Exploring the question, ‘How do we stop knife crime?’, Joanna Bale talks to Kerris Cooper, Janet Foster, Tom Kirchmaier, Yvonne Lawson and Carmen Villa-Llera. Research links: Physical safety and Security: Policies, spending and outcomes 2015-2020 by Kerris Cooper and Nicola Lacey. The Real Sherlocks: Murder Investigators at Work by Janet Foster (due for publication in 2020)

Contributor(s): Professor Paul Dolan, Professor Lord Richard Layard, Liz Zeidler | This month we have raided the LSE IQ archives for an episode from 2017 when we ask, ‘What’s the secret to happiness?’ Western societies have been getting steadily richer for several decades, but social scientists have shown that we are no happier for it. In fact we now have more depression, more alcoholism and more crime. Why does happiness elude so many of us and what can we do about it? Joanna Bale talks to LSE’s Paul Dolan and Richard Layard, and Liz Zeidler of the Happy City Initiative

Contributor(s): Professor Christopher Coker, Dr Debin Ma, Dr Yu Jie | Welcome to LSE IQ, the award-winning podcast where we ask social scientists and other experts to answer one intelligent question. In this episode Sue Windebank asks, “Is the 21st Century the Chinese century?” This month sees the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. In 1949 the Chinese Communist Party won the Chinese Civil War. Having overthrown the nationalist government of the Republic of China, Mao Zedong declared the People’s Republic on October 1st in Tiananmen Square. The last 70 years have been tumultuous for the People’s Republic of China. Under Mao it experienced economic break down and societal chaos. Famously the Great Leap Forward, a campaign designed to industrialise and modernise the economy, led to the largest famine in history, with millions of people dying of starvation. And yet today, after widespread market-economy reforms started by Deng Xiaoping in the 1970s, China is the second largest economy in the