Smart Cookies

Luke Kemp, a research affiliate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk researched 324 cases of societies, usually empires (which he called Goliaths) that collapsed - and soon found one thing they all had in common...

In this (slightly terrifying) conversation we discuss the main questions featured in Luke's groundbreaking book, Goliath's Curse - questions like why are hierarchical societies always a bad idea, what usually goes wrong first and finally, why we seem to be heading for a collapse of our own.

I always wondered whether the Renaissance was a truly groundbreaking historical event - or has it become just a self-referential cliché?

Talking to Prof. Kenneth Bartlett (author of The Renaissance in Italy: A History), I finally had a chance to ask...

In this illuminating conversation we talk about the movement's main ideas, the timeless art they produced, the political intrigues of Florence, the House of Medici and finally, their creepy adversary, friar Savonarola.

What do Kanye West, Taylor Swift, Mark Zuckerberg and Donald Trump have in common? As cultural critic W. David Marx argues in his new book Blank Space, they are all generators and representatives of a MONOCULTURE that has taken over the planet.

From VICE magazine's domination of the early 2000s and Kanye's forays into high fashion to the rise of the tech bros, we are living through a time in which everything seems to be increasingly turning into mush.

But how did we get here? Listen to my convo with David here!

The era of neoliberal globalisation that has dominated economies 90's and early 2000's is coming to an end. But what comes next?

Renowned economist and inequality researcher Branko Milanovic believes the world is entering a much more precarious phase, one in which countries bet on nationalist interests instead of free trade, but also a world in which China is rising and the West if falling.

But what are the underlying drivers of this new order? And how will it play out in the real world? More in my conversation with Branko!

As someone who moved to Japan not too long ago I was always fascinated with the country's unique history, particularly with the question of how did a country so completely isolated from the industrial revolution become a global superpower in just a few short decades? How did it manage to totally transform its society, military and culture? And finally, where did it all go wrong?

Join me and historian Christopher Harding, author of A History of Modern Japan, as we explore Japan's journey from the Edo period's isolation to the transformative Meiji Restoration, discussing how Japan's victory...

The old version of the story went something like this - Homo Sapiens appeared in Africa around 2 to 300.00 years ago and for most of that time, we lived in small hunter gatherer communities, competing with other animals, sometimes more, and sometimes less successfully. That was, until one day we had a gnarly idea to start growing crops, build settlements and settle down for good.

However, the mind-boggling discovery of the dazzling Gobekkli Teppe, has thrown this attractively simple narrative into question. But how is it possible that such an impressive complex of monuments, built 12.000 years ago (thousands...

In the past 2 decades literacy rates have dropped dramatically... and so have our IQ scores.

Writer James Marriott believes these two facts are connected. His Substack article, "The dawn of the post-literate society and the end of civilisation," in which he argues that the absence of reading might signify the end of our civilisation, caused a big stir online...

In this conversation we talk about the history of reading, why this immense transfer of knowledge led to the breakdown of feudal society (while making us smarter), but also about how smartphones are fracturing our political...

Joseph Kellner is a historian of Russia and the Soviet Union at the University of Georgia. He's also the author of the recently released book The Spirit of Socialism - Culture and Belief at the Soviet Collapse.

Contrary to Western narratives, culture within the USSR wasn't an eternally grey monolith that we used to see in James Bond movies. Quite the opposite - it was a diverse, often flourishing organism. But what happened to it during the brutal dissolution of the Soviet Union?

In this conversation, Prof. Kellner and I discuss the decline and the...

Podcaster Joe Rogan keeps claiming that climate change doesn't really exist and that the Earth is in fact, cooling down, negating all available climate science (as well as plain observation). To address this misleading take, and the often cited Washington Post article accompanying it, I talk to Prof. David Armstrong McKay, climate scientist from the University of Sussex.

We also talk about the rate of warming in 2025, the global lack of progress on climate targets, the danger of tipping points and whether the Paris Accords target of keeping the warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius is really dead in...

We all know it - the internet has become a huge garbage heap, guided by malignant algorithms and filled with useless apps, mind numbing social media and AI slop. In a word - it's shitty.

But how did we get here? And how can we restore the better internet of old?

Cory Doctorow, author of the groundbreaking book ENSHITIFICATION: Why Everything Was Built to Break, has a couple of ideas.

The horrific war that Israel is waging against the predominantly civilian population in Gaza has been going on for almost two years, and yet, the slaughter continues to this day. Why is that?

To discuss one of the biggest crimes of our time, I talk Mouin Rabbani, an analyst, and commentator specialising in Palestinian affairs, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the contemporary Middle East.

We discuss the Western world's immoral support for Israel, Hamas' aims, Netanyahu's plan for Gaza, the indifference of Arab states and finally, the chances for the latest peace plan brought forward by...

Few conflicts have been as impactful as the two Opium Wars fought between China and the Western powers during the 19th century. These unjust wars, unanimously won by the West, ultimately resulted in a series of devastating concessions and ushered in China's so-called century of humiliation, the memory of which is still shaping global politics today.

But how did it all start? Why was Britain intent on pushing opium on this vast and ancient empire? And how come Qing dynasty China crumbled in an instant?

In this episode of the Smart Cookies podcast, Yang-Wen Zheng...

Neoliberal capitalism is dead. But what kind of a system has replaced it?

In the era of tech titans, weakening institutions and growing social tensions it's hard to get a grip on the forces that are governing our lives. Throw the chaotic administration of Donald Trump into the mix and the political landscape becomes truly unrecognisable.

Are we living in the era of technofeudalism, platform capitalism or libertarian authoritarianism? And how do increasing political killings, such as the one of MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk, fit into the mix?

Professor William Davis, sociologist and...

It's the middle of the 13th century and the Mongols have bulldozed their way through a host of Middle Eastern kingdoms like they are playing a strategy game with a cheat code. One after the other, the powerful Christian, as well as Islamic, states fell until there were almost none left on the map. The conquest of EVERYTHING seemed inevitable...

However, in one of history's greatest upsets of all time, the Mongols finally met their match. This is the second part of the conversation with Prof. Nicholas Morton, author of the Mongol Storm, an unputdownable history of...

The Byzantine Empire, Anatolian Seljuks, The Ayyubid Empire, Kingdom of Armenia, The Crusader States, The Abbasid Caliphate, the Nizari Assassins... this isn't a list of factions for a new Age of Empires video game, it's a snapshot of the Middle East in the middle of the 13th century - a time (and place) of incredible diversity, sophistication and struggle.

All of these states, whether Christian or Muslim, are continuously interlocked into alliances and division, cooperation and armed conflict. But however different, they suddenly have 1 thing in common - the whispers of a TERRIFYING new power rising in...

In the mainstream media China still occupies the role of the main adversary of the West. It's usually portrayed negatively, as a belligerent country and a paragon of human rights abuses.

But is China really just an endless Asian gulag, or is the picture a bit more complicated?

To find out I talked to Kaiser Kuo, creator and host of the Sinica podcast, and former Director of International Communications at the Chinese search giant Baidu.

In this wonderfully illuminating conversation we discuss inaccurate Western perceptions, China's unique political system, its breathtaking technological advances...

The omnipresent problem of bad leadership in politics and business seems to be more pressing than ever. So why do we keep choosing incompetent leaders? What kind of people get ahead in the workplace? What does good leadership actually look like?

And finally - do I have what it takes to fulfil my lifelong dream and become an effective basketball coach?

Tune in to my convo with historian Martin Gutmann, author of the best-selling book The Unseen Leader, to find out!

Marci Shore is a historian, chair in European Intellectual history, a professor at the Munk School of Global affairs, and the author of The Taste of Ashes: The Afterlife of Totalitarianism in Eastern Europe.

Since she's an expert in the history of totalitarian regimes, I ask her about Hitler's Nazi Germany, the brutal claustrophobia of Stalinism, the twisted psychology of Soviet purges and the totalitarian mechanisms that turned ordinary people into monsters.

As prof. Shore recently made headlines when she announced she is leaving the US due to Donald Trump and his policies, we can't...

What are the motivations of artificial intelligence CEO's, people like Peter Thiel, Elon Musk and Sam Altman? What kind of ideologies are animating Silicon Valley? Why are AI companies, such as Palantir, suddenly signing huge military contracts with the Pentagon?

I addressed all of these questions to Nick Srnicek, Senior Lecturer in Digital Economy at King's College London and author of Silicon Empires: The Fight for the Future.

Check out the full conversation on what our AI future holds here!

Marcus Chown is an award-winning writer, broadcaster and former radio astronomer at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He's the author of The Ascent of Gravity, Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt you and Afterglow of Creation.

His latest title, A Crack in Everything: How Black Holes Came in from the Cold and Took Cosmic Centre Stage details the mind-blowing science of black holes, and traces this, once preposterous idea to its obscure beginnings.

In this interstellar conversation we discuss what would have happened if you managed to fall into a black hole, whether time travel...

In light of a scandalous recent Guardian article which explored why Zoomers think we Millennials are profoundly uncool, I desperately needed some answers. So I turned to Dr. Carolina Are, an Innovation Fellow and a social media researcher at Northumbria University’s Centre for Digital Citizens.

We proceeded to talk about the list of perceived millennial sins, the many different aesthetic sensibilities we inhabit, the various unique challenges that only Gen Z faces, the nature of cringe... and last but not last, about Goblin mode.

Dr. Christopher Dillon is Senior Lecturer in Modern German History at King’s College London who has authored many books and articles on the history of the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany.

In this conversation we tackle the supposedly failing economy of the Weimar Republic, how this perception helped the Nazis take power, why big business supported Hitler, but also what economic policies did the Nazis actually implement?

Obviously we can't get past the big elephant in the room, namely the often repeated notion that the Wall Street Crash of 1929 launched Hitler straight to the to...

Welcome back to the second episode of the extraordinary history of the CRUSADES, with renowned historian Prof. Nicholas Morton from Nottingham Trent University.

In this episode we discuss the unexpected military success of the First Crusade, the horrific massacres that followed, the resulting establishment of the Crusader States and the initiation of the Knights Templar - but also their ultimate demise, the grim reality of the so-called Children's Crusade and finally, Ridley Scott's epic crusader film, Kingdom of Heaven.

Nicholas Morton is an Associate Professor in Middle Eastern history at Nottingham Trent University in the UK, and has been teaching Medieval - Middle Eastern History, especially the history of the Crusades, since 2008.

In the first part of our conversation on the CRUSADES, we talk about the conditions in medieval Europe at the turn of the 11th century, the religious ideas that made the prospect of a holy war possible in the first place... as well as the first military expedition that ventured to the Holy Land and it's completely unexpected success, that culminated in the eventual...

Dr. James Glattfelder is a theoretical physicist turned complexity scientist, who's interested in the really big picture, questions such as the nature of consciousness, the universe and reality itself. He's also the author of the book The Sapient Cosmos: What a modern-day synthesis of science and philosophy teaches us about the emergence of information, consciousness, and meaning.

In this mind-bending conversation we talk about the stubborn limits of known science, mind-altering experiences, the problem of consciousness, as well as the wisdom of mystics and shamans that can help bridge the gap between the rational mind and the...

Tim McMahon is a sports writer and journalist covering the NBA for ESPN. He is also the author of the book, Wonder Boy: Luka Doncic and the Curse of Greatness.

In this conversation we talk about Luka Doncic's beginnings in the NBA, his exceptional basketball talents and competitive nature, but most of all, we talk about his involuntary move to the Los Angeles Lakers, in what is quickly becoming one of the most controversial and shocking trades in the entire history of sports.

Sunil Amrith is a professor of History at Yale University. He is the author of four books, and a recipient of multiple awards including a MacArthur “Genius” fellowship. His latest book is called The Burning Earth: An Environmental History of the Last 500 Years.

In this conversation we explore the impact the environment has on the development of civilisations - we begin a 1000 years ago in medieval China and the Mongol Empire, move on to Europe and it's violent push outwards, discuss the many effects that both world wars had on our planet, and finally try to offer a gl...

Jake Adelstein was a reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest newspaper, from 1993 to 2005. He has also written for The Daily Beast/Newsweek, The Independent, and The Guardian, and is a regular contributor to The Atlantic Wire. However, most of us will probably be familiar with the name from the hit TV series Tokyo Vice, which is based on his memoir.

In this conversation we talk about his pioneering career as a foreign journalist at a Japanese newspaper, his decades long reporting on crime, and also about the slow, but undeniable demise of the Yakuza.

Dr. Nafeez Ahmed is a trans-disciplinary academic, investigative journalist and systems theorist, who's also the author of the best-selling book, “The Alt Reich: The Network War to Destroy the West from Within”.

In this conversation we're talking about the long historical reach of the far-right, it's shadowy resurgence after WWII, as well as it's current, frightening grip on Western politics.

We also discuss a role of billionaires, such as Elon Musk, in propping up these networks, the rise of Donald Trump and the complete failure of the mainstream Left.

Dr. Ariel Zeleznikow - Johnston is a neuroscientist, and a Research Fellow at Monash University. He's also the author of the acclaimed book, The Future Loves You: How and Why We Should Abolish Death.

In this conversation we talk about the current prospects of brain preservation, the possibilities of mind revival in the future, and also about the implications of living unimaginably long lives.

Batja Mesquita is a social psychologist, an affective scientist, and a pioneer of cultural psychology. She is a professor of psychology at the University of Leuven, Belgium, and director of the Center for Social and Cultural Psychology at the University of Leuven. She's also the author of the groundbreaking book, “Between Us - How Cultures Create Emotions,”

In this conversation we explore the complex interplay between emotions and culture, focusing on how different societies perceive and express emotions like anger, shame, empathy and love. We also tackle the cultural significance of these emotions, the implications for health, and...

The holiday season is here, which means we need to have a conversation about... ALCOHOL. And that's why I invited dr. Sally Adams, an alcohol researcher from the University of Birmingham, to the pod to discuss the physiological and psychological effects of alcohol consumption, the risks associated with drinking, and the cultural expectations surrounding alcohol use.

We also talked about alcohol's effects on the brain, such as impaired decision-making, as well as potential long-term health risks, including various cancers.

In the end we also turned to the nature of hangovers, their causes, and practical tips...

Phillip Goff is a professor of philosophy at Durham University and the author of extremely thought-provoking books, such as Consciousness and Fundamental Reality, Galileo's Error: Foundations for a New Science of Consciousness and his last one Why? The Purpose of the Universe.

We talk about the utterly improbable conditions for life in the universe, the stubborn problem of human consciousness, the idea of a God of limited abilities and the purpose behind... everything.

Timothy Ryback is the co-founder of the Institute for Historical Justice and Reconciliation in the Hague. Some of His previous books include the highly acclaimed Hitler's Private Library: The Books that Shaped his Life, The Last Survivor: Legacies of Dachau, and Hitler's first Victims: The Quest for Justice.

His latest book, Takeover: Hitler's Final Rise to Power just came out and has already been showered with praise. In this conversation we talk about the failing Weimar republic, Hitler's rise to power and his obsession with spirituality... as well as the many eery parallels with Donald Trump.

Dr. Justin Sledge is a professor of philosophy and religion whose work focuses on the Western Esoteric Tradition, particularly in religious and philosophical thought. He's also the host and creator of the extremely popular Youtube channel, Esoterica.

In this exhilarating conversation we talk about the fascinating tradition of summoning demonic entities, mystical experiences and magic, as well as the brutal medieval persecution of esoteric practices.

As an undying fan of Ridley Scott's Gladiator, I've always wanted to learn the real history of these celebrated, yet mysterious figures - and now I finally have the chance...

Alexander Mariotti is a Roman historical consultant and a leading speaker on gladiatorial life, combat, and weaponry.

Following academic work, his main focus has been working as an advisor to the media, featuring in countless documentaries, TV shows, and movies, most recently for the Amazon Prime TV show, Those about to die.

We talk about gladiator origins, the Olympic games, ancient superstardom, as...

Dr. Emmanuel Maggiori is a software engineer, writer, and speaker, who's on a mission to help develop a more balanced view about the tech and AI industries in the midst of the relentless hype. He's also the author of the books Smart Until It's Dumb and Siliconned: How the tech industry solves fake problems, hoards idle workers, and makes doomed bets with other people's money.

We talk about the potential rise of artificial consciousness, the way large language models really work, doomsday AI predictions, the future of work and the many cons of Silicon Valley.

Professor Norman Finkelstein is a political scientist whose primary fields of research are the politics of the Holocaust and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. He's the author of many books, such as The Holocaust Industry, I'll burn that bridge when I get to it, and Gaza: an Inquest into its martyrdom.

We talk about the origins of Zionism, the current state of Israeli society, the horror of the conflict in Gaza, the prospects of Kamala Harris... as well as his notorious debate with the popular streamer Destiny.

The story of dog domestication seems as simple as pie - humans took some wolf puppies, brought them over to the campfire and the rest is history... However, the truth is far less straightforward and far murkier, sometimes even downright bizarre.

From rabbits and chickens, to dogs and cats, prof. Greger Larson, an evolutionary geneticist from University of Oxford breaks down the extremely complicated story of humans and the process of animal domestication.

Daniel McClellan is a scholar of the Bible and religion, and an honorary fellow at the University of Birmingham's Cadbury Centre for the Public Understanding of Religion.

He's also the co-host of the Data over Dogma podcast and runs a brilliant Tik Tok channel where he tackles common questions and misunderstandings about the Bible.

In this amazingly illuminating conversation we talk about the origins of the Old Testament, the historicity of its personalities, the inconsistencies in the four Gospels, Jesus's stance on hell and homosexuality, as well as the scientific claims supposedly found in the...