Big Brains: All Episodes

Translating groundbreaking research into digestible brain food. Big Brains, little bites. Produced out at the University of Chicago. Winner of CASE "Grand Gold" award in 2022, Gold award in 2021, and named Adweek's "Best Branded Podcast" in 2020.

Big Brains podcst

Episode List

Trump, Coronavirus and the Cost of Ineffective Government, with William Howell (Ep. 45)

Leading presidential scholar thinks coronavirus has revealed why our governmental institutions need to be reformed.

How Coronavirus Is Exposing Our Racial Disparities, with Monica Peek (Ep. 44)

Dr. Monica Peek was studying racial health disparities before the coronavirus outbreak. Now her research is more important than ever.

Coronavirus Shows Why We Need To Rethink Health Care, with Katherine Baicker (Ep. 43)

Leading UChicago health economist explains why our public health infrastructure wasn’t ready for coronavirus, and what we need to change for the next pandemic.

What Rats Can Teach Us About Empathy and Racism, with Peggy Mason (Ep. 42)

What can rats teach us about empathy? As one University of Chicago neurobiologist discovered, we can learn from them a lot.

Why the coronavirus could send China’s economy back to the ‘80s, with Chang-Tai Hsieh (Ep. 41)

A University of Chicago economist explains why the coronavirus is one of the most pivotal moments in China’s economic history.

 

Why the Doomsday Clock is Closer to Apocalypse Than Ever, with Rachel Bronson (Ep. 40)

Even though the Doomsday Clock is a symbolic metaphor, understanding the meaning behind it is a matter of life and death.

Vladimir Putin’s No. 1 Enemy, with Bill Browder (Ep. 39)

What turned a powerful businessman into an international advocate for human rights.

How Google and Facebook Are Ruining Capitalism, with Luigi Zingales (Ep. 38)

A leading economist says American capitalism is once again under threat from monopolies.

Why Some Nations Prosper and Others Fail, with James Robinson (Ep. 37)

A leading University of Chicago scholar explains why some nations fall into poverty while others succeed.

The Hunt for Alien Life and Exoplanets, with David Charbonneau (Ep. 36)

A leading astronomer searches the stars for habitable planets and alien life.