Tag Archives: Environment

Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle -Overuse of Antibiotics -/- Addressing Climate Change – September 25, 2016

First, sanitation and antibiotics have saved the lives of many, but are they also the culprits behind some of modern diseases? We might have gone overboard in killing our microbes. And that may be causing some of today’s epidemics. Martin I. Blaser is Professor of Translational Medicine and Director of Human Microbiome Program at New York University. He is the author of Missing Microbes : How the Overuse of Antibiotics Is Fueling Our Modern Plagues. [ dur: 21 mins. ]

Then, scientists say we still have time to address climate change and we’ve made headway, but we still have a long way to go. We speak with renowned climate scientist Michael Mann. [ dur: 37mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

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This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle – Humans Disrupting Evolution -/- Ethics in Health Care – August 21, 2016

First, is humanity the most damaging predator on earth? Our guests say yes, and that its predatory practices may be disrupting evolution.[ dur: 23 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

  • Chris Darimont, is a Professor at the Department of Geography at University of Victoria, Victoria, BC. He has a PhD in Evolution and Ecology from the Biology Department at the University of Victoria.
  • Dr. Tom Reimchen, is a Professor at the Department of Geography at University of Victoria, Victoria, BC. Canada. Please visit the Evolutionary Studies Lab at University of Victoria, Victoria BC, Canada where you will find additional studies on this subject.
  • Heather Bryan, is a postdoctoral fellow in the Applied Conservation Science lab exploring the physiological mechanisms by which wildlife responds to environmental change at University of Victoria BC, Canada.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, many observers argue, that the economic forces are corrupting medical care and eroding the trust between patients and their doctors. The problems in health care delivery have wide implications related to how health care should function particularly when there are limited resources. We examine the ethics of medicine and healthcare, and the modern day issues that complicate them. [ dur: 37 mins. ]

Find books authored by our guest scholars on this Book Shelf .

This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- Renewable Revolution in South Korea -/- American Congress influenced by Wealthy – June 12, 2016

What technological changes are needed to power the renewable revolution? [ dur: 26 mins. ]

Then, we know that the wealthy have more influence than other Americans. But just how unrepresentative is the american congress and the state legislature? [ dur: 32 mins. ]

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This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- Reasons for unethical Foreign Policies -/- Earth Climate 2047 -/- Wars not in human nature – June 5, 2016

What drives destructive or unethical foreign policies? Some point to pathological beliefs and pursuits of exceptionalism, honor and glory. Others point to systemic flaws. What are the consequences? [ dur: 14 mins. ]

Then, Professor Mora and his colleagues have calculated how climate change will affect our temperatures around the year 2047. In the future, they found, our coldest year will be warmer than the past hottest years. The changes, which will first occur in the tropics, are already driving some 25,000 species to extinction each year. [ dur: 15 mins. ]

Finally, our panel argues that warring is a relatively new phenomenon in human societies and that human beings are not warlike by nature. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

Find book authored by our guest scholars on this Book Shelf .

This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- How humanity will respond to Climate Change -/- Life long effects from act of Bullying – May 8th, 2016

First, the scenarios we face with climate change and the options for humanity. Gwynne Dyer is author of Climate Wars: The Fight for Survival as the World Overheats. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

  • Gwynne Dyer, author, military historian, journalist. He is the author of Climate Wars: The Fight for Survival as the World Overheats

Finally, on the scholars’ panel we take a close look at bullying. Bullies and victims of bullies are much more likely to develop psychological disorders such as agoraphobia, panic disorder, suicidal thoughts and aggressive behavior, as adults. In both adult and adolescent settings bullying cultures can emerge when bystanders and others disengage and allow the behavior to continue, ultimately creating abusive organizations. What is the long term effect on individuals and by extension on societies at large, resulting from bulling behaviors? [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • Joyce T. Heames is Chair and Professor of Management and Industrial Relations in the College of Business & Economics at West Virginia University. She is the author of publications: “A bully as an archetypal destructive leader” and “Bullying: From the Playground to the Boardroom”.
  • Catherine Bradshaw is a Professor in the Department of Mental Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and has a joint appointment in the Johns Hopkins School of Education. She is the Deputy Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for the Prevention of Youth Violence and the Co-Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Prevention and Early Intervention. Catherine Bradshaw is the co-author of publication “Bullies, gangs, drugs, and school, Understanding the overlap and the role of ethnicity and urbanity”.
  • Jaana Juvonen is Professor of Developmental Psychology in the Department of Psychology at UCLA. She co-authored “Peer harassment in school: The plight of the vulnerable and victimized” and “Bullying in school: The power of bullies and the plight of the victims”.

Find book authored by our guest scholars on this Book Shelf .

This program is produced with generous contribution from Ankine Aghassian, Melissa Chiprin, Tim Page, Mike Hurst and Sudd Dongre.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- Uber, Lyft & AirBnB Business Model Effects -/- Species Extinction by Wildlife Traffickers – March 20th, 2016

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First, the battles and changes arising from so-called “disrupters” such as Uber, Lyft and AirBnB. [ dur: 25 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

Then, on The Scholars’ Circle panel, wildlife trafficking is putting some species to the brink of extinction. We explore the multi-billion dollar a year industry. What is the scope of the problem? What should be done to rescue our most endangered species? [ dur: 30mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

  • David S. Wilkie PhD is a wildlife ecologist specializing in human behavioral ecology and anthropology. He is the Director of Conservation Support at the Wildlife Conservation Society and Adjunct Associate Professor at Boston College, and formerly co-chair of the Bushmeat Crisis Task Force. He has numerous scholarly publications and is a contributor to Huffington Post and LiveScience. He is a contributor to “Great Apes and Humans: The Ethics of Coexistence“
  • Tanya Wyatt PhD is lecturer of wildlife criminology at the University of Northumbria in the UK. She is the author of “Green criminology & wildlife trafficking: the illegal fur and falcon trades in Russia Far East“, and the book “Wildlife Trafficking: A Deconstruction of the Crime, the Victims, and the Offenders (Critical Criminological Perspectives)“.
  • Marc Bekoff ( blog ), is professor emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and co-founder with Jane Goodall of Ethologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. His books include “The Emotional Lives of Animals, Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed: The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation“, and has co-authored, “Wild Justice: The Moral Lives of Animals“

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- Adapting to Climate Change -/- Genocides, causes and prevention – February 28th, 2016

First, planet earth is facing a sixth extinction. Can humanity rescue the planet that it has imperiled? [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • Annalee Newitz is journalist and author of Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction. She is the founding editor of the science and science fiction website i09.com.
  • Elizabeth Kolbert is a staff member at The New Yorker. She is the author of Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change, and her latest book The Sixth Extinction.

Then on our Scholars’ Circle panel, we analyze the causes of genocide and possible means of preventing them. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

  • Ben Kiernan is Whitney Griswold Professor of History and Director of the Genocide Studies Program at Yale University. He is the author of, Blood and Soil: A World History of Genocide and Extermination from Sparta to Darfur, and The Pol Pot Regime: Race, Power, and Genocide in Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge, 1975-79.
  • Alex Hinton is Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Genocide, Conflict Resolution, and Human Rights, and Professor of Anthropology and Global Affairs at Rutgers University. He is the co-author of, Why Did They Kill?: Cambodia in the Shadow of Genocide, and is the editor of Genocide: Truth, Memory, and Representation (The Cultures and Practice of Violence), and Annihilating Difference: The Anthropology of Genocide.
  • Simon Baron-Cohen is Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at the University of Cambridge and Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge. He is the author of, Zero Degrees of Empathy, and he is the editor of Understanding Other Minds: Perspectives from developmental social neuroscience, and The Maladapted Mind: Classic Readings in Evolutionary Psychopathology.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle- How Hollywood Artists affect Politics -/- Ethics in Cloning Extinct Species – December 13th, 2015

First, we’ll begin with the surprising ways that Hollywood actors have shaped American politics and who have some of the most groundbreaking and influential on the body politic. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

  • Professor Steven Ross, University of Southern California (USC). He is the author of “Hollywood Left and Right: How Movie Stars Shaped American Politics“.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, with dozens of species going extinct every day, we look at the science and ethical issues of de-extinction – bringing back some species through cloning. [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • Dr. Michael Archer is professor of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences at the University of New South Wales. He has published over 300 scientific journal articles and books focused on the ecology and evolution of past and present. He has been working to bring back some extinct animals. His latest work includes contributions to two encyclopedias: Fossil mammals of Australia and New Guinea and Evolution and Zoogeography of Australasian Vertebrates. He is the co-author of the book Australia’s Lost World: Prehistoric Animals of Riversleigh
  • Dr. John Wiens is professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona. He is also a former curator at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History and has served as editor of a number of scientific journals. He is the author of many books including, The Ecology of Birds Communities.
  • Carl Zimmer is an award winning lecturer at Yale University and author of thirteen books including, Evolution: Making Sense of Life and More Brain Cuttings: Further Explorations of the Mind. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, Time Magazine, National Geographic, and Scientific American. Here is a list of other books by Carl Zimmer

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle-Biological Factor of Violence-/-Climate Changed Earth in 2050-November 1st, 2015

First, how much does biology effect the propensity for violence? We are joined by Adrian Raine, author of, Anatomy of Violence: The Biological Roots of Crime. [ dur: 28 mins. ]

  • Adrian Raine is Professor of Criminology and Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of, Anatomy of Violence: The Biological Roots of Crime;

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle, with climate change, depleted natural resources, and more than 9 billion people, what will the world look like in 2050? [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • Deepak Ray is Postdoctoral Research Scholar at the Global Landscapes Initiative Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota. He is co-author of the study, “Yield Trends Are Insufficient to Double Global Crop Production by 2050,” and “Solutions for a Cultivated Planet.”
  • Edward Miguel is Professor at University of California, Berkeley and Director of the Center for Effective Global Action. He is the author of, Africa’s Turn? He is co-author of Economic Gangsters: Corruption, Violence and the Poverty of Nations, and the study, “Quantifying the Influence of Climate on Human Conflict.?
  • Laurence C. Smith is Professor and Chair of Geography at UCLA and author of The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization’s Northern Future.

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Scholars' Circle Interviews

Scholars’ Circle-Plastic-Pollution-in-Oceans-/-Refugee-Crisis-September 27th, 2015

First, tons of discarded plastic are choking off the ocean, killing wildlife, and building islands of garbage. How bad has it become and what can be done? [ dur: 19 mins. ]

For a transcript of this interview, please visit: TheBigQ

  • Capt. Charles Moore is founder of the ALGALITA Marine Research & Education Institute.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, we look at the worse refugee crisis in the history. More than 59 million people have been forcibly displaced mostly from wars and persecution, according the the United Nations Refugee Agency. And the crisis appear to be worsening. What can be done to alleviate the mass suffering? Our guests argue that only a global response will do. [ dur: 39 mins. ]

  • Phil Orchard is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Queensland and Research Director for the Asia-Pacific Center for the Responsibility to Protect. He is the author of “A Right to Flee: Refugees, States and the Construction of International Cooperation“.
  • Jay Marlowe  is Senior Lecturer and Associate Dean at the University of Auckland. He has published widely on the issue of refugees.
  • David Kyle is Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Davis. He is the author of “Transnational Peasants: Migrations, Networks and Ethnicity in Andean Ecuador“, and the co-editor of “Global Human Smuggling: Comparative Perspectives“.

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