E59
272 - Ada Palmer on Learning From the Past and the Future
From Getting Smart Podcast · Hosted by Tom Vander Ark
Episode summary
In this episode of Getting Smart Podcast: In today's interview, the Getting Smart team is talking to Ada Palmer, a history professor at the University of Chicago. As a historian, Ada studies the long-term evolution of ideas and the history of religious radicalism, science, and freethought, especially in the Italian Renaissance, Enlightenment, and Classical Greece and Rome. In addition to being a historian, Ada is also a composer and an award-winning science fiction author.
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Original publisher description
In today's interview, the Getting Smart team is talking to Ada Palmer, a history professor at the University of Chicago. As a historian, Ada studies the long-term evolution of ideas and the history of religious radicalism, science, and freethought, especially in the Italian Renaissance, Enlightenment, and Classical Greece and Rome. In addition to being a historian, Ada is also a composer and an award-winning science fiction author. In Tom and Ada's conversation, they discuss how we can learn from the past and the future. Ada shares her insights on historical pandemics; how society has changed; how history may influence the future; how sci-fi can help society integrate new, ethical frameworks; and how investigating the past and the future can help us navigate the complex here and now. Key Takeaways: [:10] About today's episode. [:41] Tom welcomes Ada to the podcast! [:48] As a historian at Chicago, what does Ada believe that history can teach us about a world that's currently going through a pandemic as well as the current BLM movement? [6:05] Donald Ferguson has said that historians study crisis. Does Ada think about studying history in this way? [8:21] Ada shares her thoughts on...