Avsnitt
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Brutalism has become the subject of architecture tours, a coffee-table art book darling, and a highly sought-after living environment. But concrete is a complicated material, both appreciated and demonized. IDEAS explores the implications of Brutalism’s 21st century hipster aesthetic in a world of housing challenges, environmental crisis, and economic polarization. *This episode originally aired on Sept. 11, 2024.
Guests in this episode:
Joseph Bogdan is principal emeritus at BNKC Architects, Urban Design Consultants.
Elisabeth Bogdan is subject lead at Sotheby's Institute of Art London.
Stasia Bogdan is a senior leader for healthcare capital planning and design at Unity Health Toronto.
Nick Thoburn is a professor in the department of sociology at the University of Manchester. He's also the author of Brutalism as Found: Housing, Form and Crisis at Robin Hood Gardens (Goldsmiths Press, 2022).
Zahireen Tarefdar is a Toronto-based creative and enthusiast of the Ontario Science Centre.
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Bogs, marshes, and swamps have long been cast as toxic wastelands, from the dead marshes in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings to the vegetal monster from the DC comic. But in fact wetlands store more carbon than forests. Experts argue wetlands are crucial to our future. It's time to rewrite this squelchy story. *This episode originally aired on Oct. 17, 2022.
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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Humans used fire as a tool. Now we fear its destruction. But we're responsible for changing the climate, argues John Vailliant, "in a way that favours fire way more than it favours us." The author unpacks how fire made humans who we are — and how humans are changing fire in his book, Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast.
*This episode originally aired on May 29, 2024.
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In 1989 the Canadian government was set to spring into action to address climate change. “If we don’t move now, it will be a disaster,” said then-Conservative environment minister Lucien Bouchard. “We are dealing with the survival of the species.” This podcast features David Suzuki’s prescient radio series, It’s a Matter of Survival from nearly four decades ago. It includes conversations with notable politicians and environmental experts of the day.
Listen to the first episode in this series: Suzuki's Survival Guide | A Warning
For other episodes from David Suzuki's radio days, stream audio here.
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In 1989 David Suzuki hosted a radio series called “It’s A Matter of Survival,” which addressed the climate crisis head-on. He and other scientists look ahead 50 years into the future to paint a picture of what the world could be like if nothing is done to curb the human impact on climate change. The series galvanized the environmental movement in Canada, with more than 14,000 listeners writing letters of support. Nearly 40 years later, it's clear how shockingly prescient it was.
Listen to the next episode in this series: Suzuki's Survival Guide | How We Got To This Point
For other episodes from David Suzuki's radio days, stream audio here.
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Oil has delivered warmth, mobility, freedom and ruin all at the same time. "It's a very hard religion to ditch," says Don Gillmor, author of On Oil. Yes, religion. Gillmor argues oil is not just a substance — but an idea … one that has come to constitute its own potent system of belief. He joins Nahlah Ayed to discuss how oil became the one true global religion.
Want to listen to more IDEAS? Here' So... who wants a pipeline?
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When you're a historian and learn about Canada’s earliest reported ‘demon possession caused by witchcraft’ case, you dig right into the story. And that's what Mairi Cowan did. She's been investigating one of Quebec's weirdest true tales, and is finally able to piece together a detailed story of what happened. *This episode originally aired on Dec. 14, 2022.
Mairi Cowan is the author of The Possession of Barbe Hallay: Diabolical Arts and Daily Life in Early Canada. She is an associate professor in the Department of Historical Studies, University of Toronto-Mississauga.
Other guests in this podcast:
Scott Berthelette is an assistant professor in the Department of History at Queen’s University. He researches the history of Indigenous Peoples, the Métis, New France, and the Hudson’s Bay Company. His new book is Heirs of an Ambivalent Empire: French-Indigenous Relations and the Rise of the Métis in the Hudson Bay Watershed.
Colin Coates is professor of Canadian Studies and History at Glendon College (York University). He specializes in the history of early French Canada.
Sarah Ferber is a professor at the University of Wollongong, specializing in early modern European religious history; contemporary religion, and modern medical history. Her books include Demonic Possession and Exorcism in Early Modern France and, most recently, IVF and Assisted Reproduction: A Global History.
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When Sir John Franklin set out to find the Northwest Passage in 1845, he never returned. From that mystery, began the stories. But why do we keep coming back to these Franklin stories? What do they say about us? And what does it mean today to seek a Northwest Passage? *This episode originally aired on April 19, 2022.
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Nationalism doesn't have to mean extremism. It can mean celebration. IDEAS shares this 1992 award-winning documentary about "The Idea of Canada," which includes music compositions inspired by Glenn Gould. Composer Christos Hatzis discusses the relevance and meaning of how "Canada allows you to be patriotic."
Credits:
Composer Christos Hatzis
Producer Steve Wadhams
Audio engineers Laurence Stevenson and Rod Crocker.
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At the surface, Bear is about a woman who develops a sexual relationship with a bear. And though the 1976 novel earned Marian Engel a Governor General's award, it's been largely forgotten. Contributor Melissa Gismondi explores its mystery, meaning and relevance today. *This episode originally aired on January 4, 2021.
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Canada produces legendary comedians and comic actors who excel on the world stage. So why is Canada not known for comedy? Does it have something to do with our proximity to the U.S., the way there are so many Scottish comedians performing in England? Three comics discuss Canadian comedy and what Canada's profile would be on a dating app — as part of the Provocations-IDEAS festival.
Comedians in this episode:
Debra McGrath is a comedian, writer, and director whose comedy began with Second City Improv. She is best-known for roles in Little Mosque on the Prairie, Seven Little Monsters and Paradise Falls.
Stewart Reynolds (aka Brittlestar) is a Stratford, Ontario-based comedian. His work has brought him to the White House, and to meeting the Prime Minister. He's the author of The Subtle Art of Resistance: Lessons From Cats For Surviving Fascism.
Martha Chaves has made many TV appearances including Just for Laughs, We’re Funny That Way Festival, and the Winnipeg Comedy Festival — and she’s often been heard on CBC's Laugh Out Loud, The Debaters, Because News — and now IDEAS.
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From the medicine wheel to the building blocks of DNA, the number four has represented structure and stability. But four is also a troublemaker: a portal to realms like the fourth dimension. Our series, The Greatest Numbers of All Time explores how four helps us understand the world — by making the rules, and by breaking them.
More in the series:
Listen to The Curse of 13
Listen to 12 is Sublime
Listen to 27 Club Lore
Listen to The 33,000 Horsepower Gamechanger
Guests in this episode:
Joyce Perreault is an Ojibway Anishinaabe children's book author and elementary school teacher at Donald Ahmo School in Crane River, MB.
Brian Katz is a composer, instrumentalist, improviser, and guitar instructor at University of Toronto and York University.
Lauren Fink is a professor of cognitive neuroscience at McMaster University.
Alex Fisher is a professor of musicology and area coordinator for early music at the University of British Columbia.
Tyrone Ghaswala is an assistant professor teaching stream with the Centre for Education and Computing (CEMC) and an adjunct professor in the Pure Mathematics department at the University of Waterloo.
Wenran Jiang is the founding director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta.
Stephan Reuter is an associate professor for plasma physics and spectroscopy at the Engineering Physics Department of Polytechnique Montréal
Sarah Hart is professor emerita of mathematics at Birkbeck College and author of "Once Upon a Prime: The Wondrous Connections between Mathematics and Literature."
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There is nothing random about featuring 33,000 in our number series. It's very powerful. So much so, that the number put millions of horses out of work. Inventor James Watt used “33,000 foot-pounds a minute" to measure the capabilities of a horse when trying to market his new and improved steam engine. The engine was a big success, saving horses from the drudgery of manual labour. Now, a similar process is underway with artificial intelligence — but are we the horses, or the steam engine? *This episode is part of our series, The Greatest Numbers of All Time.
For more in the series:
Listen to The Curse of 13
Listen to 12 is Sublime
Listen to 27 Club Lore
Listen to How 4 Makes and Breaks Rules
Guest in this episode:
Stephanie Dick is a historian of mathematics, technology, computing, and AI, and an assistant professor at Simon Fraser University.
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Twenty-seven can be a pivotal and tumultuous age. It’s held up as the year of peak performance in many sports and it's also seen as a cursed age for pop and rock stars, exemplified by the so-called 27 Club. Artists like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse, all died at 27. As part of our series, The Greatest Numbers of All Time, IDEAS producer Chris Wodskou makes the case for a number that may not stick out in your mind but is more significant than you think.
More episodes in this series:
Listen to 12 is Sublime
Listen to The Curse of 13
Listen to The 33,000 Horsepower Gamechanger
Listen to How 4 Makes and Breaks Rules
Guests in this podcast:
David Awosoga is a PhD student in Statistics at University of Waterloo and sports performance data analyst.
Alan Cross is a music historian, broadcaster, and host of The Ongoing History of New Music podcast
Dianna Kenny is a professor emerita of psychology and music at University of Sydney and psychotherapist in private practice.
Michael Owen is a retired clinical psychologist and author of The 27 Club.
Maria Westerstahl is senior lecturer at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.
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Complete. Whole. Divine order. That's just the start of what makes the humble dozen extraordinary. It's one of only two numbers ever discovered in mathematics to be “sublime.” Twelve makes a number of appearances in pop culture, in religion, in non-fiction, everything from the 12 days of Christmas to the 12 people it takes to form a criminal jury. Still need convincing of 12’s perfection and indispensability? Check your watch.
More episodes in our series, The Greatest Numbers of All Time:
Listen to The Curse of 13
Listen to 27 Club Lore
Listen to The 33,000 Horsepower Gamechanger
Listen to How 4 Makes and Breaks Rules
Guests in this episode:
Glen Van Brummelen is a professor of mathematical sciences at Trinity Western University.
Ainsley Hawthorn is a cultural historian and nonfiction writer. She has a PhD in Near Eastern Civilizations from Yale University.
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Has there ever been a number more maligned in western culture than 13? So feared, it's got its own horror-film franchise. So infamously unlucky, a good many of us avoid it en masse. We've just blindly accepted its bad reputation. As part of our series, The Greatest Numbers of All Time, IDEAS explores where our irrational fear and uncomfortable feelings about 13 began. *All five episodes in our number series will be available daily in our feed this week.*
Listen to 12 is Sublime
Listen to 27 Club Lore
Listen to The 33,000 Horsepower Gamechanger
Listen to How 4 Makes and Breaks Rules
Guests in this episode:
Stephen Winick is a folk life specialist at the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress.
Barry Markovsky is distinguished professor emeritus of sociology at University of South Carolina. His latest book is Everyday Extraordinary: A Scientist Ponders a Lifetime of Magical, Bizarre, and Paranormal Experiences.
Claire Potter is an author of parenting books, including Getting the Little Blighters to Behave and the creator of the online programme Tiny Bites for parents of picky eaters.
Rabbi Heschel Greenberg is the founder and director of the Jewish Discovery Center in Buffalo, New York. He has written many books including Tefillin: Judaism's Crown.
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It's tempting to think suffering should be avoided at all costs, but moral suffering has its own distinct standing. It signals a moral conscience. Every day people consume real time violence, grief, war and genocide through screens and experience moral upending. Without a moral compass there’s no motivation to address necessary issues.
Guests in this episode:
Cynda Rushton is a nurse and a professor of nursing and bioethics at Johns Hopkins University.
Robert Meagher is an emeritus professor at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Thea Lim is a novelist, culture writer, and creative writing teacher in Toronto.
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Former IDEAS writer-broadcaster David Cayley passed away at his home on Wednesday June 10, surrounded by family. To honour his legacy, we wanted to share part of a 2006 conversation David had with Irish philosopher Richard Kearney on the space for theism within atheism, and/or atheism within theism.
Richard Kearney is a philosophy professor at Boston College and University College, Dublin. He has written many books on modern philosophy and culture, including The God Who May Be: A Hermeneutics of Religion and Anatheism: Returning to God After God.
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There may be no one alive who saw Houdini perform magic. Yet we still know his name and his legend. Dua Lipa namechecked the escape artist in a 2023 dance hit and she's not alone. Houdini is still a cultural reference point, despite having died 100 years ago. And that’s pretty much what he would have wanted. IDEAS explores why his name persists in our imaginations and how his magic helped his family escape poverty.
Guests in this episode:
Adam Begley is a biographer living in London, and author of Houdini: The Elusive American.
David Ben is a conjuror, writer, and consultant in Toronto. He’s writing a graphic novel featuring an imagined adventure for Houdini.
Katie Bender is a playwright and actor. Her interactive performance about Houdini is called Instructions for a Seance.
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Sujata Berry's brother, Sharad was 16 years old when he was killed. He was aboard Air India Flight 182 when it exploded off the coast of Ireland on June 23, 1985. It's considered the worst terror attack in Canadian history. For Sujata, the shock of his horrific death morphed into an unshakeable grief. The family's sorrow was augmented with the lack of justice for victims' families — a flawed investigation, evidence lost and what Sujata says was "an unsatisfactory verdict." It's taken Sujata 40 years to chip away at her grief and try to understand what happened to her and her family. She explores love, loss and the grief that binds them in her documentary, All that Remains. *This episode originally aired on Sept. 17, 2025.
Read Sujata's personal essay with pictures
- Visa fler
