S8 Ep268: THE GORE AND GLORY OF BATTLE Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. Wilson discusses translating the Iliad's vivid violence, drawing on insights from combat veterans regarding the trauma of battlefield death. A central theme is the treatment of corpses; posses

S8 Ep268: AGAMEMNON'S FAILURE AND DIVINE POLITICS Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. This segment details the plot's catalyst: Agamemnon seizing Briseis from Achilles, causing the hero to withdraw from battle. Wilson explains the divine politics, including Hera trad

S8 Ep268: APHRODITE, PATROCLUS, AND TROPHY WOMEN Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. Wilson examines Aphrodite's intervention on the battlefield and her representation of baser instincts like lust. The discussion shifts to Briseis, a "trophy" of war, and her relation

S8 Ep268: TRAGIC COUPLES AND DIVINE INTERVENTION Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. The segment explores key character pairings, starting with Helen's complex view of Paris and her weaving as a metaphor for the story. Wilson analyzes the tragic relationship between

S8 Ep268: HOMER'S NARRATIVE CHOICES AND ORAL TRADITION Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. Wilson discusses the "Homeric Question," noting that oral stories existed for centuries before the alphabet arrived in the 8th century BCE. She highlights the Iliad's sophistic

S8 Ep268: TRANSLATION AND THE SEARCH FOR TROY Colleague Professor Emily Wilson. John Batchelor interviews Professor Emily Wilson about her new iambic pentameter translation of the Iliad. They discuss the historical location of Troy in modern Turkey and the archaeol

S8 Ep267: GEOENGINEERING, ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION, AND DECOUPLING GROWTH FROM DESTRUCTION Colleague Gaia Vince. Vince outlines technological solutions for restoring the planet, such as ocean fertilization, which adds iron to oceans to boost algae growth and sequeste

S8 Ep267: A UNITED NATIONS AGENCY FOR MIGRATION AND THE FUTURE OF FOOD Colleague Gaia Vince. Batchelor and Vince discuss a vision for managed migration where a new United Nations agency allocates migrants to specific cities and industries based on labor needs. Vinc

S8 Ep267: RETHINKING BORDERS AND THE ECONOMIC NECESSITY OF HUMAN MOBILITY Colleague Gaia Vince. Vince argues that while humans have migrated for hundreds of thousands of years, modern borders currently restrict the world's most valuable economic resource: human lab

S8 Ep267: THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE ANTHROPOCENE AND THE INEVITABILITY OF CLIMATE MIGRATION Colleague Gaia Vince. John Batchelor and Gaia Vince discuss her book, Nomad Century, which argues that climate migration is already underway and inevitable. Vince illustrates

S8 Ep266: HOME PREPAREDNESS AND SURVIVAL TACTICS DURING WILDFIRES Colleague Danielle Clode. Clode details essential preparedness strategies for those living in fire-prone areas, emphasizing that home design features like sealed underfloor spaces are critical to pre

S8 Ep266: THE SCIENCE OF COMBUSTION AND FIRE-ADAPTED VEGETATION Colleague Danielle Clode. The discussion turns to the science of combustion, focusing on fire-adapted vegetation like Eucalyptus and Mountain Ash, which rely on fierce fires and sunlight to regenerate.

S8 Ep266: INDIGENOUS FIRE MANAGEMENT AND THE HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRES Colleague Danielle Clode. In this interview, Danielle Clode discusses the historical context of Australian wildfires, noting that early European explorers like Captain Cook frequently obse

S8 Ep265: SHOW 12-29-25 CBS EYE ON THE WORLD WITH JOHN BATCHELOR THE PRINCESS'S MUSEUM AT THE DAWN OF HISTORY Colleague Moudhy Al-Rashid. Moudhy Al-Rashidintroduces Ennigaldi-Nanna, a princess and high priestess of the moon god in the ancient city of Ur. Excavato

S8 Ep264: THE REASSERTION OF ANCIENT EMPIRES Colleague Gregory Copley. Copley contends that China is reasserting its identity as an empire, with the Communist Party seeking legitimacy by connecting with imperial history despite previous rejections of the past. Simi

S8 Ep264: CONSTITUTIONS, BELIEF, AND THE EMPIRE Colleague Gregory Copley. Copley describes the US Constitution as the "de facto crown" holding the American empire together, though it faces challenges from populist movements. He argues that a "faith-based electorate

S8 Ep264: THE DANGERS OF TRANSACTIONAL NATIONALISM Colleague Gregory Copley. Copley warns that suppression in republics often leads to uncontrollable demands for liberty, citing the collapse of the Shah's Iran and the USSR. He distinguishes between "tribal national

S8 Ep264: THE RETURN OF THE NOBLE MONARCH Colleague Gregory Copley. Gregory Copley argues that the world has reached "peak republicanism," where republics have become inefficient political battlegrounds. He defines nobility not as a class structure, but as a qualit

S8 Ep264: PLATO'S LETTERS AND THE WHITEWASHING OF DION Colleague Professor James Romm. The conversation examines Plato's thirteen letters, specifically the five Romm believes are genuine regarding the Syracuse affair. Plato viewed himself as a wise lawgiver capable

S8 Ep264: PHILOSOPHER KINGS AND THE RIVER OF HEEDLESSNESS Colleague Professor James Romm. James Romm explores Plato's Republic, arguing that philosophers make the best kings because they perceive the true "forms" of justice rather than earthly shadows. The discussi