What's the Point?

Arts and humanities in medicine with Professor Ian Fussell

We tend to see medicine as a strictly scientific sector, but the arts and humanities are essential when it comes to educating our doctors and caring for patients and the planet. Doctor and Professor of Medical Education Ian Fussell joins me to talk about: * What is medical humanities * How and why we can use arts and humanities in medical education * The links between planetary health, medical health, and social justice * Why medical and scientific researchers need artists and humanities specialists * How the humanities helped the medical field during the Covid-19 pandemic * Medicine as an enabler of the arts and humanities Find Bryony @BF_Armstrong [https://twitter.com/BF_Armstrong] Find the pod @wtppod_ [https://twitter.com/wtppod_] Find Ian at the University of Exeter Medical School [https://medicine.exeter.ac.uk/people/profile/index.php?web_id=Ian_Fussell] Artwork: Riduwan Molla https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/ [https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/] Music: Madaan Mansij https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer [https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/].

Why science alone can’t solve the climate crisis with Conor Brennan

Although there has been scientific consensus on the climate crisis for decades, humans have been slow to respond to its urgency. Environmental humanities researcher Conor Brennan joins me to talk about:  * What is environmental humanities? * How can evironmental humanities help to solve the climate crisis? * The role of popular culture in communicating the climate crisis * The problems that arise when we take arts and humanities out of the equations  * How art convinces people to change their behaviour about the climate crisis * How has the climate crisis affected literature and aesthetic experiments? * Why climate activism should include humanities teaching in schools/universities Read "The Humanities in the UK Today [https://www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/The-Humanities-in-the-UK-Today-Whats-Going-On.pdf]" report by the Higher Education Policy Institute Other sources discussed: * Edward Said, "Jane Austen and Empire", Culture and Imperialism (1993) * Richard Powers, The Overstory (2018) * Kim Stanley Robinson, The Ministry for the Future (2020) * Olga Tokarczuk, Drive Your Plough Over the Bones of the Dead (2009) Find Bryony @BF_Armstrong [https://twitter.com/BF_Armstrong] Find the pod @wtppod_ [https://twitter.com/wtppod_] Find Conor [https://www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub/research/fellows/2021-22grad-fellows/Conor-Brennan.php] Artwork: Riduwan Molla https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/ [https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/] Music: Madaan Mansij https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer [https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/].

Humanities, fact checking and fake news with Sarah Turnnidge from Full Fact

In this time when "fake news" and "alternative facts" have become buzzwords, arts and humanities are more important than ever. Professional fact checker Sarah Turnnidge from Full Fact [https://fullfact.org/] joins Bryony Armstrong to discuss: * How her humanities background prepared her for being a professional fact checker * Academic English as a lens to look at different topics * Humanities as a natural place for the study of misinformation * The role of AI in misinformation and how humanities can analyse that * How humanities teaches us to use evidence * The role of narratives in (mis)information * The fact checking that happens within the humanities Find Bryony @BF_Armstrong [https://twitter.com/BF_Armstrong] Find Sarah @sarah_turnnidge [https://twitter.com/sarah_turnnidge?lang=en] Artwork: Riduwan Molla https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/ [https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/] Music: Madaan Mansij https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer [https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/].

We can't have cybersecurity without the humanities with Dr Andrea Zeffiro

Cybersecurity researcher Dr Andrea Zeffiro joins Bryony Armstrong to talk about: * The role of humanities in addressing technological challenges in data science domains * Using humanities to solve problems surrounding data breaches * Considering the human elements of cybersecurity  * Understanding cybersecurity as more than a neutral protection of networks and data * The problems we will have with cybersecurity if the humanities continue to be devalued and underfunded The Reconfiguring Participation in Cybersecurity project at the Oxford Internet Institute can be found here [https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/research/projects/reconfiguring-citizen-participation-in-cybersecurity/ ]. Find Bryony @BF_Armstrong [https://twitter.com/BF_Armstrong] Find Andrea here [https://experts.mcmaster.ca/display/zeffiroa] Artwork: Riduwan Molla https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/ [https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/] Music: Madaan Mansij https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer [https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/].

Arts and humanities in Roma communities with Dr Madeline Potter

Researcher and upcoming author Madeline Potter joins Bryony Armstrong to talk about: * Tackling intergenerational poverty through the arts in Roma communities * The importance of knowing your own history * Maddy’s upcoming book, The Roma: A Travelling History  (Bodley Head/ Harper Collins, 2025) * Why writing and research skills need to be valued and funded * The role of humanities in combatting “fake news” * Getting information directly from the source * The need for the Roma to be represented by Romani people The article announcing Maddy's book auction can be found here [https://www.thebookseller.com/rights/the-bodley-head-triumphs-in-14-way-auction-for-potters-history-of-the-roma]. The Twitter thread that explains the truth of the Jane Austen headline can be found here [https://twitter.com/TabitaSurge/status/1511489556599775243?fbclid=IwAR2SkfyA2BoINJsUmlpXXRCxvSRZZ6ozu85RBuByZ0EwVKYQ6YRElS5A5Y4]. Find Bryony @BF_Armstrong [https://twitter.com/BF_Armstrong] Find Maddy @madeline_cct [https://twitter.com/madeline_cct] Artwork: Riduwan Molla https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/ [https://www.canva.com/p/riduwanmolla/] Music: Madaan Mansij https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer [https://www.pond5.com/artist/mansij_tubescreamer] This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/].