Thinking Allowed

From Victorian seances to schemes which upload our minds into cyberspace, there are myriad ways in which human beings have sought to conquer mortality. The philosopher, John Gray, discusses his book "...

11 Juli 201228min

From the Paris Commune to the 'Right to the City', cities have long been the centre of utopian dreams and protests. They have generated riches, destitution, celebration and organised and often violent...

4 Juli 201228min

'Evil' is a concept more readily associated with theology and psychology than the social sciences. Tabloid headlines denounce 'evil' crimes but offer little in the way of explanation. Indeed, the very...

27 Juni 201228min

Annawadi is a makeshift settlement in the shadow of luxury hotels near Mumbai's international airport. The Pulitzer prize winning writer, Katherine Boo, spent 4 years hearing the stories of the slum d...

20 Juni 201228min

Kinship is a key term in Anthropology. It describes the genealogical and biological ties which bind human beings to each other. The French anthropologist, Maurice Godelier, tells Laurie Taylor about h...

13 Juni 201228min

Laurie Taylor explores new research from this year's British Sociological Association conference. Lisa Mckenzie describes the growth in working class alienation on the St Anne's housing estate in Nott...

6 Juni 201227min

British comics are full of iconic and transgressive characters from Dan Dare to Minnie the Minx. Laurie Taylor talks to professor James Chapman the author of a new book charting the cultural history o...

30 Maj 201228min

Philanthropy is most often associated with the fight against poverty and disease. But a new book claims that the philanthropic foundations established by the major American industrialists - Rockefelle...

23 Maj 201228min