Science

Where The Wild Thoughts Are

by Jo Marchant

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About the show

We’re talking about science. But not just any science... Each episode, journalist Jo Marchant meets researchers who are doing things differently: challenging our assumptions, stretching our minds, and changing how we see the world. We’ll be pushing boundaries from cosmology and quantum physics to neuroscience, archaeology, ecology… Jo’s guests are asking deep questions, chasing outrageous dreams, and exploring the world in completely new ways. As well as learning about their pioneering ideas, we’ll hear their personal stories: what inspires their leaps of imagination; how they keep going despite the obstacles; the importance of thinking differently; and why we need creativity to survive. But most of all, Where The Wild Thoughts Are is about the wonder of peeking past supposed limits. Come into the wild with us, for a glimpse of what’s beyond… Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Latest episodes

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February 16, 2026 · 54 min

Exciting news: I have a new book coming out! It’s called In Search of Now: the science and mystery of the present moment, and I’d love to share some of the ideas in it with you, so here is a one-off special episode to ask: What is Now? The…
End of season special

December 8, 2025 · 49 min

Since September we've met 16 scientists, in fields from neuroscience and quantum physics to archaeology and ecology, who are asking wild questions, exploring the world in different ways, wondering what if the world isn't how we thought…
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December 1, 2025 · 37 min

What happens if we let go of our expectations about nature – all the things we think it is, or isn’t, or should be – and just… listen? Our guide into the unknown this week is award-winning sound artist and ecologist David de la Haye. I…
How does the moon shape biology?

November 24, 2025 · 48 min

People have long told stories about the moon’s power, from werewolves shapeshifting by the moon, to the belief that drinking water soaked with moonlight could help women conceive. And monthly rhythms appear across nature, from corals and…
Can slow AI make us more human?

November 17, 2025 · 36 min

How does using AI change who we are? Last week on Where the Wild Thoughts Are, we talked about freeing AIs to have their own creative ideas and express their own realities. This week we’re flipping that theme, with philosopher Caterina…
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November 10, 2025 · 41 min

Can an AI have wild thoughts? Are machines capable of true creativity, true art, of going beyond the training and the prompts we give them in order to explore new worlds? My guest this week is Simon Colton of Queen Mary, University of…
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November 3, 2025 · 57 min

Thinkers don’t come much wilder than Albert Einstein. His out-of-the-box physics transformed how we think about the universe: with his famous equation E=mc2 he showed that energy and matter are one and the same; through his theory of…
What happens when consciousness meets chaos?

October 27, 2025 · 54 min

Standing waves and resonant frequencies appear everywhere in the world around us, from musical notes and swaying bridges to electron orbits and animal coats. This week's guest, neuroscientist Selen Atasoy, wondered if they could also be…