MIT Compass

MIT Compass

MIT Compass: Thinking & Talking About Being Human is a show about exploring fundamental questions: What do we value – and why? What do we know – and how do we know it? What do we owe to each other? Hosted by MIT professors from across the humanities, arts, and social sciences, each episode takes on the moral and social questions of the human experience.

Episodes

February 9, 2025 35 mins

For a transcript of this episode, click here (https://sites.mit.edu/compass/files/2025/06/Power-podcast-transcript.pdf).

In this episode, we’ll get into exercises of power and how they have changed through the ages with MIT professors from sociology and history (classical Roman history, medieval northern Europe, and early modern Atlantic capitalism).

Featuring: Susan Silbey, Professor of Sociology (host); Will Broadhead, Professor of...

Mark as Played

For a transcript of this episode, click here (https://sites.mit.edu/compass/files/2025/06/Truth-and-Knowledge-Transcript-1.pdf).

This episode explores the question “What are truth and knowledge?” with MIT professors from philosophy, history, mechanical engineering, and brain and cognitive sciences. 

Featuring: Alex Byrne, Professor of Philosophy (host); Jim DiCarlo, Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences; Anette (Peko) Hosoi, Prof...

Mark as Played
February 3, 2025 37 mins

For a transcript of this episode, click here (https://sites.mit.edu/compass/files/2025/06/Value-Podcast-Transcript.pdf).

This episode explores the question “What is value?” with MIT professors from philosophy, science, technology and society (STS), history, electrical engineering and computer science. 

Featuring: Sally Haslanger, Professor of Philosophy (host); Munther Dahleh, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science;...

Mark as Played
January 8, 2025 31 mins

For a transcript of this episode, click here (https://sites.mit.edu/compass/files/2025/06/Genius-Podcast-Transcript.pdf).

This episode explores the question ”What makes a genius and why does it matter?” with insights from MIT professors of music, math, physics, and history of science. 

Featuring: Emily Richmond Pollock, Professor of Music (host); Larry Guth, Professor of Mathematics; and, David Kaiser, Professor of Physics and Histor...

Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

    If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

    My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

    My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.

    Dateline NBC

    Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

    The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.

Advertise With Us
Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.