Podcast Episodes
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Great Environmental Shocks in History | Before the Plague | 3
Episode 130
Afua and Peter explore the "Great Famine" of the early 1300s. Triggered by sudden global cooling and torrential rains, Europe's food supply was decim…
4 months, 2 weeks ago
Great Environmental Shocks in History | Darkness at Noon - The Justinianic Plague | 2
Episode 129
A sudden, catastrophic dimming of the sun in 536 AD triggered the coldest decade in two millennia, launching a "volcanic winter" that saw harvests fa…
4 months, 2 weeks ago
Great Environmental Shocks in History | The Remaking of the Ancient World | 1
Episode 128
Afua and Peter launch their new series on environmental catastrophes by revealing how a massive volcanic eruption in Alaska—10,000 kilometers away—se…
4 months, 3 weeks ago
Iran | Feat. Christopher de Bellaigue | On The Eve Of Confrontation | 3
Episode 127
Iranian history is defined by a fierce sense of exceptionalism rooted in geography, language, and a unique intellectual enlightenment that Western na…
4 months, 3 weeks ago
Iran | Feat. Kim Ghattas | The Legacies Of 1979 | 2
Episode 126
Afua and Peter explore the seismic shift of 1979, tracing how a single revolutionary year transformed Iran from a U.S.-allied monarchy into a militar…
5 months ago
Iran | Feat. Ali Ansari | Seen From The Inside And Out | 1
Episode 125
Afua and Peter dive into the historical psyche of Iran, exploring how a civilization with deep imperial memories navigates a modern reality of global…
5 months ago
Ernest Hemingway | One True Sentence | 2
Episode 124
Afua and Peter track Ernest Hemingway’s spiral from the peak of his Nobel success into a dark cycle of alcoholism and untreated head trauma. They exp…
5 months, 1 week ago
Ernest Hemingway | The Lost Generation | 1
Episode 123
Afua and Peter track Ernest Hemingway’s path from a suburban Chicago childhood spent hunting and boxing to the bloody front lines of Italy. They show…
5 months, 1 week ago
Gertrude Stein | Oozing Cubism | 2
Episode 122
In this second installment, Peter and Afua examine Stein's boldest move: ghostwriting her partner’s "autobiography" to claim the global stardom she f…
5 months, 2 weeks ago
Gertrude Stein | It Takes A Lot Of Time To Be A Genius | 1
Episode 121
Peter and Afua discuss the life of Gertrude Stein, an influential figure in the Parisian art and literature scene. They explore her relationships wit…
5 months, 2 weeks ago