OxPods

To most, otters are those small fluffy creatures that lie back, hold hands and drift off into the sunset. In this episode, PhD student Claire Marr shakes up that expectation in conversation with 4th-year Biology student, Emily Jones, and introduces us to the giant otter: the 2-metre-long Amazonian relative of the otters we already know and love. How different are these giant otters to their smaller relatives and what is so special about their social behaviour? Host: Emily Jones Editor: Emily Jones Looking to make the most of Oxford’s world-leading professors, we decided to set up a platform to interview these academics on the niche, weird and wonderful from their subjects. We aim to create thought-provoking and easily digestible podcast episodes, made for anyone with an interest in the world around them, and to facilitate university access and outreach for students aspiring to Oxford or Cambridge.   To learn more about OxPods, visit our website ⁠www.oxpods.co.uk⁠⁠, ⁠or follow us on socials ⁠@ox.pods. ⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/ox.pods/] ⁠ If you would like an audio transcription of this episode, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. OxPods is made possible through the support of our generous benefactors. Special thanks to: Brasenose College JCR for supporting us in 2025. OxPods © 2023 by OxPods [http://oxpods.co.uk/]is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1]

Understanding the five senses is a foundational element of modern education, but how long has this been the case throughout history? Where did the idea originate and how did it survive when so many other conceptions of human biology from the past have been disproven? To find out more about this topic, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, speaks to Dr John Merrington, Examination Fellow in History at All Souls College. Host: Charlie Bowden Producer: Florence Allen Looking to make the most of Oxford’s world-leading professors, we decided to set up a platform to interview these academics on the niche, weird and wonderful from their subjects. We aim to create thought-provoking and easily digestible podcast episodes, made for anyone with an interest in the world around them, and to facilitate university access and outreach for students aspiring to Oxford or Cambridge.   To learn more about OxPods, visit our website ⁠www.oxpods.co.uk⁠⁠, ⁠or follow us on socials ⁠@ox.pods. ⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/ox.pods/] ⁠ If you would like an audio transcription of this episode, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. OxPods is made possible through the support of our generous benefactors. Special thanks to: St Peter's College JCR, Jesus College JCR & Lady Margaret Hall JCR for supporting us in 2024. OxPods © 2023 by OxPods [http://oxpods.co.uk/]is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1]

This episode explores the diplomatic strategies of Lusophone African liberation movements at the United Nations. We speak with Maria de Costa to discuss how movements in Angola, Mozambique and Guinea-Bissau built international alliances and shaped their political identities to push for independence. Host: Kwame Appafram Producer: Florence Allen Looking to make the most of Oxford’s world-leading professors, we decided to set up a platform to interview these academics on the niche, weird and wonderful from their subjects. We aim to create thought-provoking and easily digestible podcast episodes, made for anyone with an interest in the world around them, and to facilitate university access and outreach for students aspiring to Oxford or Cambridge.   To learn more about OxPods, visit our website ⁠www.oxpods.co.uk⁠⁠, ⁠or follow us on socials ⁠@ox.pods. ⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/ox.pods/] ⁠ If you would like an audio transcription of this episode, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. OxPods is made possible through the support of our generous benefactors. Special thanks to: St Peter's College JCR, Jesus College JCR & Lady Margaret Hall JCR for supporting us in 2024. OxPods © 2023 by OxPods [http://oxpods.co.uk/]is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1]

Queer history is a relatively new addition to the lexicon of historical analysis, and questions remain about how best to approach the study of queerness in the past. To what extent can we 'find' queer identity in the past? In this episode, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, speaks to Professor Matt Cook, the Jonathan Cooper Professor of the History of Sexuality at Mansfield College, about his forthcoming book Writing Queer History and what it says about developments in this popular field. Host: Charlie Bowden Editor: Charlie Bowden Producer: Florence Allen Looking to make the most of Oxford’s world-leading professors, we decided to set up a platform to interview these academics on the niche, weird and wonderful from their subjects. We aim to create thought-provoking and easily digestible podcast episodes, made for anyone with an interest in the world around them, and to facilitate university access and outreach for students aspiring to Oxford or Cambridge.   To learn more about OxPods, visit our website ⁠www.oxpods.co.uk⁠⁠, ⁠or follow us on socials ⁠@ox.pods. ⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/ox.pods/] ⁠ If you would like an audio transcription of this episode, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. OxPods is made possible through the support of our generous benefactors. Special thanks to: St Peter's College JCR, Jesus College JCR & Lady Margaret Hall JCR for supporting us in 2024. OxPods © 2023 by OxPods [http://oxpods.co.uk/]is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1]

The development of Christianity in the centuries following the death of Jesus was far from plain sailing. Which ideas and authors played the most significant roles in the shape of the religion as it entered the second millennium? To query this, Charlie Bowden, a History student at Jesus College, speaks to Dr Conrad Leyser, Associate Professor of Medieval History at Worcester College about the first thousand years of Christian history. Host: Charlie Bowden Editor: Charlie Bowden Looking to make the most of Oxford’s world-leading professors, we decided to set up a platform to interview these academics on the niche, weird and wonderful from their subjects. We aim to create thought-provoking and easily digestible podcast episodes, made for anyone with an interest in the world around them, and to facilitate university access and outreach for students aspiring to Oxford or Cambridge.   To learn more about OxPods, visit our website ⁠www.oxpods.co.uk⁠⁠, ⁠or follow us on socials⁠@ox.pods. ⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/ox.pods/] ⁠ If you would like an audio transcription of this episode, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us. OxPods is made possible through the support of our generous benefactors. Special thanks to: St Peter's College JCR, Jesus College JCR & Lady Margaret Hall JCR for supporting us in 2024. OxPods © 2023 by OxPods [http://oxpods.co.uk/]is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?ref=chooser-v1]