Podcasts

What will you resolve to change in the New Year? In the second of our two-part series with the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies, scholar Benjamin Sax tells us about Jewish theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel and his philosophy on forgiveness.

As the end of the year approaches, many of us consider donating to charities and nonprofits. In the first of a two-part series from the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies, executive director Heather Miller-Rubens tells us about Dorothy Day, a religious leader who offered a powerful meditation on giving.

How have smartphones and our constant connectivity changed the way we travel- and the way we relate to one another through the places we visit? Towson University anthropology professors Samuel Collins and Matthew Durington tell us how their research led them to the new idea of “networked anthropology.”

What role did women play in England’s financial revolution in the 17th and 18th Century? Amy Froide, Acting Chair and Associate Professor of History at UMBC and author of an upcoming book on the subject, tells us about some of the pioneering female investors and brokers of the era.

This year marks the centennial of the Pulitzer Prizes, and Maryland Humanities has been celebrating with a yearlong series of events highlighting the impact this award-winning work has had on our lives. In partnership with the University of Maryland, we wrap up the series on December 6th at 7 p.m. with WORLDWISE Arts & Humanities Dean’s Lecture Series: The Pulitzer 100, featuring Pulitzer-Prize winning author-historians Taylor Branch and Isabel Wilkerson in conversation, moderated by Sherrilyn Ifill, at the Clarice in College Park. Here to tell us more is Director of the Arts and Humanities Center for Synergy at the University of Maryland College Park, Dr. Sheri Parks.

What was life like in the Middle Ages in Europe? A Feast for the Senses: Art and Experience in Medieval Europe, a new exhibition from the Walters Art Museum sponsored in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities, depicts the human experience of that time through hundreds of life-inspired works of art. Joaneath Spicer, acting curator of the exhibition, tells us more.

Placemaking is the idea of utilizing a community’s local assets in order to create quality public spaces that contribute to the well-being of the community and create a sense of belonging through place. Silvia Blitzer Golombek, a nonprofit consultant and secretary of the Board of Maryland Humanities, shares how public libraries serve as such spaces for local communities.

The enduring value of classic literature lies in its exploration of the human condition and also its ability for modern interpretation. Can today’s students in our modern world relate to classics that were written centuries before their time? Towson University Professor John McLucas provides this reflection on a recent class on Ariosto’s epic 16th century Italian poem, Orlando furioso.

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death in 1616, the Folger Library and the National Endowment for the Humanities are bringing the First Folio of Shakespeare to one site in every state. With support from Maryland Humanities, St. John’s College is hosting the Folio in Maryland from November 1–December 4. Christopher Nelson, President of St. John’s College, tells us why the First Folio is so important.

The study philosophy explores the human condition and searching for meaning in the world around us. Today, public philosophy brings the practices of philosophy to public forums to address social, ethical, and other contemporary issues. Aaron Rodriguez, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Morgan State University, provides a reflection on the growing field of public philosophy and how his students are putting philosophy to action.