On the occasions when we humans go out of our way to help another person who is in distress, we are acting out our biological inheritance. And if we dont help someone in trouble, thats because weve had to actually actively suppress what is natura

In 2020, we sat down with structural geologist Marcia Bjornerud on the Shape of the World for a conversation that reshaped how we think about time. We decided to revisit and re-release that episode. Marcia has continued to research and to write, and

Ferris JabrFerris Jabr, author ofBecoming Earth, claims that it is alive: that Earth is a vast interconnected living system and we humans (and all other living things) dont just liveonthe earth wearethe Earth. Were an outgrowth of its stru

Dr. Adrienne Brown reads cities the way professors read novels: carefully, and with lots of attention to whats written between the lines. Adrienne teaches in the departments of English and Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity at the University of Chicag

Daniel Holz studies black holes, gravitational waves, and cosmology, all while also running theExistential Risk Laboratoryat the University of Chicago. In this episode, Daniel helps us shed light on some of the biggest threats facing humanitythe

BiologistSara Lewis doesnt just study firefliesfor her, fireflies are a living reminder that the world is pure magic. In this episode, the author ofSilent Sparks: The Wondrous World of Firefliesunpacks the science of fireflies. These members of

Biologist Dr. Seth Magle wants to rethink what a city is and who its for. As part of an alliance with 50 cities around the globe, Seth and other wildlife researchers have discovered an overlooked truth: that our large cities teem with interesting

Artist Laurie Palmer believes they can. In her book,The Lichen Museum, Laurie explores what we can gain from learning to see life the way a lichen does. Laurie explains how our understanding of the world is filtered constantly through our own physi

Season Six will launch this Friday, May 9thNew episodes, new guests, and new insights about nature and our built environments coming soon with season 6 of Shape of the World. And more on how we can live togetherwith nature, with cities, and wit

The world is full of sound. Yet we happen to be a species who, at the moment, is directing most of our attention to our own voices and not so much to the voices of other living things. Biologist David George Haskell says this collective inattention