Gresham College Lectures

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Latest episodes

• Cosmology’s Mad Idea: Inflation & the Creation of Our Universe - Chris Lintott

  October 6, 2026 · 51 min

  Our expanding Universe only makes sense if, early on, it expanded rapidly in a period of cosmic inflation. In this lecture, we consider the evidence for this apparently arbitrary idea, and asks whether we are on the brink of finding…

• The Future of Creativity - Daniel Susskind

  October 2, 2026 · 46 min

  This lecture was recorded by Daniel Susskind on the 23nd of September 2026 Dr Daniel Susskind is a writer and economist. He explores the impact of technology, and particularly AI, on work and society. He is the Mercers’ School Memorial…

• The Myth and Promise of the U.K. Jury Trial - Clive Stafford Smith

  September 29, 2026 · 47 min

  The Lammy plan to eliminate half of U.K. criminal jury trials has provoked a rebellion among many lawmakers. Recent Palestine Action cases highlight the jury’s moral role, with several “perverse verdicts” acquitting activists despite clear…

• Is the HIV pandemic over? - Matt Higgins

  September 25, 2026 · 45 min

  A stark advert picturing a gravestone chiselled with ‘AIDS: DON’T DIE OF IGNORANCE’ captured the horror of this disease in the 1980s. Now, for HIV-infected people able to access anti-retroviral therapies, life expectancy is normal. How…

• Cracking the Whip: Strings, Chains and Dinosaurs - Alain Goriely

  September 22, 2026 · 52 min

  This lecture was recorded by Alain Goriely on the 15th of September 2026 Alain Goriely is a mathematician with broad interests in mathematical methods, mechanics, sciences, and engineering. He is well known for his contributions to…

• The Sky at Night, Tonight: A New View of the Changing Sky - Chris Lintott

  September 21, 2026 · 49 min

  On a remote mountain top in Chile, scanning the sky with the largest astronomical camera ever built, the Vera Rubin Observatory is conducting the deepest and most sensitive survey of the sky yet. This lecture covers whatever it’s found in…

• Cello - In Search of a Voice - Kate Kennedy

  September 15, 2026 · 50 min

  How do we tell stories of past voices through a cello, the voice of its player? This lecture explores what it means to be separated from your voice, and to find it again. Dr Kate Kennedy traces a journey she took across Europe with her…

• Why Do We Need Empathy? - Jane Shaw

  September 11, 2026 · 45 min

  This lecture was recorded by Jane Shaw on Monday, 07 Sep 2026. Professor Jane Shaw is Provost of Gresham College and Professor of the History of Religion at the University of Oxford. Professor Shaw was formerly Principal of Harris…