Squabbles over the seas and their tributary waterways are becoming more tense as rivalries deepen and the climate changes. How should the West prepare? An opinion poll with a twist suggests that Xi Jinping is not as popular as he thinks he is (11:29). And, a tribute to the queen of world rallying (17:42).
Sign up for a free trial of Economist Podcasts+. If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you’ll have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.
Ancient Greece and Rome loom large in the understanding of the roots of Western Civilisation, but the Professor of Ancient History Josephine Quinn wants to challenge that simple narrative. In How The World Made The West – A 4,000 Year History she shows how western values were developed by long-standing links between a much larger group of cultures, from the Gobi Desert to the Atlantic Ocean and beyond.
The British Museum’s major new exhibition Legion looks at life in the Roman army (on until 23rd June). This elite war machine was employed to protect and control around a quarter of the Earth’s population for over half a millennium. Recruits came from all walks of life, and from across the Empire. The archaeologist Carolina Rangel de Lima reveals the impact this extraordinary diversity of cultures and beliefs had on the imperial Roman army.
The writer Christopher Harding takes a closer look at the many ways in which Asia has influenced Europe and North America. In his book, The Light of Asia, he explores how Japan, China and India have often been sources of genuine fascination and artistic and intellectual inspiration, as well as confusion and misunderstanding.
Our future diet will be shaped by diverse forces. It will be shaped by novel technologies, by geopolitical tensions, and the evolution of cultural preferences, by shocks to the status quo-- pandemics and economic strife, the escalation of the climate and ecological crises--and by how we choose to respond. It will also be shaped by our emotions. It will be shaped by the meat paradox.
"Should we eat animals?" was, until recently, a question reserved for moral philosophers and an ethically minded minority, but it is now posed on restaurant menus and supermarket shelves, on social media and morning television. The recent surge in popularity for veganism in the UK, Europe, and North America has created a rupture in the rites and rituals of meat, challenging the cultural narratives that sustain our omnivory.
In The Meat Paradox: Eating, Empathy, and the Future of Meat (Pegasus Books, 2022), Rob Percival, an expert in the politics of meat, searches for the evolutionary origins of the meat paradox, asking when our relationship with meat first became emotionally and ethically complicated. Every society must eat, and meat provides an important source of nutrients. But every society is moved by its empathy. We must all find a way of balancing competing and contradictory imperatives. This new book is essential reading for anyone interested in the origins of our empathy, the psychology of our dietary choices, and anyone who has wondered whether they should or shouldn't eat meat.
Rob Percival is Head of Policy at the Soil Association, Britain's leading food and farming charitable organization. He has been shortlisted for the Guardian's International Development Journalism Prize as well as the Thompson Reuters Food Sustainability Media Award.
Caleb Zakarin is the Assistant Editor of the New Books Network (Twitter: @caleb_zakarin).
One of the central figures in the drama of the collapse of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire was Marc Antony.
He was a rather odd figure in Roman History. He came from an upper-class, but not necessarily elite, family.
Neither was he wasn’t a great general. Yet he was at the right place at the right time, and his actions played a huge part in the republic's collapse.
Learn more about Marcus Antonius, aka Marc Antony, and how he found himself at the center of Roman history on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.
We'll tell you all about Super Bowl LVIII: how this year's win made history, who made cameos during Usher's halftime performance, and how brands took advantage of their especially expensive ad spots.
Also, a new record was broken on Wall Street, and a severe storm is headed east this morning.
Plus, the Trump campaign is facing backlash from some of America's biggest allies; the Pentagon chief is back in the hospital, and the world's biggest Carnival celebrations are underway now.
Tuesday is Election Day for the race to replace George Santos in New York’s third congressional district. The candidates running for the seat include former Democratic congressman Tom Suozzi and Nassau County legislator Mazi Pilip who’s been selected as the nominee for Republican and conservative parties. With Republicans holding a narrow 219-212 majority in the House, the stakes are high. We’re joined by Gabby Seay, the campaign director of Battleground New York, to learn more about what it would take to flip this seat and others in the state blue.
And in headlines: the Senate advanced a bill that would provide $95 billion in aid for Ukraine and Israel, a series of Israeli strikes hit Rafah, and Vox’s Ellen Ioanes tells us about the significance of last week's parliamentary election in Pakistan.
Happy Lunar New Year! According to the Chinese lunisolar calendar, the new year began Saturday. For many, like our host Regina G. Barber, this calendar and its cultural holidays can feel completely detached from the Gregorian calendar. Growing up, she associated the former with the Spring Festival and getting money in red envelopes from relatives, and the other with more American traditions. But the Chinese calendar has a deep, centuries-long shared history with the Gregorian calendar.
To learn more about this shared history, Gina talks to scientists and historians, who spill the tea about the science behind calendars, and how both calendars and the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration played a key role in the rise and fall of empires.
Americans love spending money. Imagine being able to do so and support conservative causes using your credit card. Now you can.
Coign is seeking to fill a void in the credit card market by giving conservatives an alternative its competitors, many of which embrace left-wing causes. The credit card has all the features and benefits you’d expect, but it also donates a portion of every transaction to a conservative nonprofit.
Rob Collins, founder and chief executive of Coign, tells The Daily Signal he created a credit card specifically for conservatives because other companies didn’t share his values and political views.
After spending years working in conservative politics, Collins launched Coign two years ago. The company has already given away $150,000 to organizations with conservative beliefs, including The Heritage Foundation. (The Daily Signal is Heritage’s news outlet.)
On today’s episode of “The Daily Signal Podcast,” Collins explains how Coign works and what the future holds for this conservative credit card. Our conversation has been edited for length. The full audio is available below.
