The Reith Lectures

In the first Reith Lecture of his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, examines the so-called 'mind body problem'. Searle uses this paradox of the conscious mind verses the scientific brain to explore our understanding of the world. In this lecture entitled 'A Froth on Reality', Professor Searle considers how humans thi...

In the second Reith Lecture of his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, considers artificial intelligence. He debates whether scientists could create a digital computer which has its own thoughts. In this lecture entitled 'Beer Cans and Meat Machines', Professor Searle compares the relationship of the mind and the brain...

In the third Reith Lecture from his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, explores the discipline of cognitive science. In this lecture entitled 'Grandmother Knew Best', Professor John Searle investigates how and why scientists are developing the field of cognitive science. Exploring how the human brain processes informa...

In his fourth Reith Lecture from his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, analyses the structure of human actions. In this lecture entitled 'Walk to Patagonia', Professor Searle draws together the mental and physical aspects to show how our mental activities can produce our behaviour. Can our ability to choose our movem...

In his fifth Reith Lecture from his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley, considers the discipline of human behavioural science. In this lecture entitled 'A Changing Reality', Professor Searle explores the limits to the insights that we can expect from a 'science' of human behaviour. He questions the success of the natur...

In the final lecture of his series 'Minds, Brains and Science', John Searle, Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, examines the evidence for and against the existence of free will. In this lecture entitled 'The Freedom of the Will' Professor Searle attempts to explain why human beings stubbornly believe in their own freedom of action and debates the philosophy of free will. He c...

David Henderson, Head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the first of five lectures in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'The Power of Do-It-Yourself Economics', David Henderson explores the phenomenon of economic DIY. Explain...

David Henderson, head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the second lecture in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'Soap Opera in High Places', David Henderson considers the leading elements of Do-It-Yourself Economics (DIYE) an...

David Henderson, head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the third lecture in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'Needs, Centralism & Autarchy', David Henderson highlights the contrast between Do-It-Yourself Economics (DIYE...

David Henderson, head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the fourth lecture in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'Orthodox Economists Versus the People', David Henderson further explores the contrasts between Do-It-Yourself Ec...

David Henderson, head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the fifth lecture in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'DIYE plus the Lobbies: Counting the Cost', David Henderson puts forward two questions. The first: why do some pro...

David Henderson, head of the Economics and Statistics Department at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), examines the influence of economic ideas on policy. He gives the sixth and final lecture in his series entitled 'Innocence and Design'. In this lecture entitled 'Markets, States and Economics', David Henderson puts forward the uses of economics and concludes his co...

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his first Reith lecture from his series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In his lecture entitled 'The Chill and Distant Heights', Lord McCluskey discusses whether it is right for judges to have sole responsibility for sentencing criminals. He argues that if judges were relieved of the responsibility for so-called sentencing policy, it could help them to pla...

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his second Reith lecture from the series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In this lecture entitled 'The Clanking of Medieval Chains', Lord McCluskey examines how judges think. He asks how with precisely the same starting materials in terms of fact and legal tradition, judges can come to such diametrically opposite conclusions.

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his third Reith lecture from the series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In this lecture entitled 'Hard Cases and Bad Law', Lord McCluskey argues that Parliament, not the judiciary, must have ultimate responsibility for legislation. He argues that they must not abdicate the making of policy choices to "a body of elderly men".

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his fourth Reith lecture from his series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In this lecture, Lord McCluskey counters Lord Denning's exhortation of 'trust the judges' and argues instead for a simplification of the law. He argues that there should be predictable outcomes because the method of adjudication ought, as far as possible, to be the relatively mechanic...

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his fifth Reith lecture from the series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In this lecture entitled 'An Enormous Power', Lord McCluskey debates the essential constitutional difference between the British and American higher judicial systems. Debating the merits and flaws of both systems, Lord McCluskey argues against the enactment of a Bill of Rights in the U...

Serving Judge Lord McCluskey gives his sixth Reith lecture from the series entitled 'Law, Justice and Democracy'. In his sixth and final Reith Lecture entitled 'Lions under the Throne', Lord McCluskey concludes his argument for separating law and justice. He argues that the functions of making the law and the function of applying it should not be held by the same people. He suggests some swift, su...

This year's lecturer is Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge Alexander Goehr. An English composer, his compositions, such as Psalm IV and The Deluge, have established him as an inspirational music creator. In his Reith Lecture series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony', he explores what musicians have done to music. In this lecture entitled 'The Old Warhorse', Alexander Goehr trac...

Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge and English composer Alexander Goehr gives his second Reith Lecture from the series 'The Survival of the Symphony'. He examines the effect of recorded sound on our perception of music. In this lecture entitled 'An Orchid in the Land of Technology', Professor Alexander Goehr asks whether a recording devalues the original performance. He explores how...

Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge and English composer Alexander Goehr gives his third Reith Lecture from his series 'The Survival of the Symphony'. He diagnoses the stifling and possibly fatal pressures of contemporary music-making. In this lecture entitled 'Past and Present', Alexander Goehr explains that despite the near ubiquity of music, there is a drastic shortage of major ne...

Once an iconoclastic force, the avant-garde is now comfortably absorbed into modem society. These are the sentiments of English composer Professor Alexander Goehr in his fourth Reith Lecture entitled 'A Licence for Licence'. Speaking in his series 'The Survival of the Symphony', Professor Alexander Goehr warns of the creative death such acceptance can bring. Avant-garde is supposed to be nonconfor...

English composer Alexander Goehr gives his fifth Reith Lecture from the series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony'. In this lecture entitled 'Let the People Sing', Professor Goehr looks at modern composers who aim to break down the barriers between the audience, the performer and the composer. This fracture allows for composers to create a 'community' of music, but can composers adequately ful...

English composer Alexander Goehr gives his sixth Reith Lecture from the series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony'. In this lecture entitled 'Stand Up and Be Misunderstood', he concludes his series by stressing why musicians and the public alike should fight to renew the symphony. Extolling it as the greatest and yet most often rejected musical institution. Professor Goehr warns that the 'negl...

Geoffrey Hosking, Professor of Russian History at University College London, discusses the changes in Soviet society in his first Reith lecture from the series entitled 'The Rediscovery of Politics'. In this lecture entitled 'A Great Power in Crisis', Professor Hosking discusses the relationship between the Soviet economy and the 'glasnost'. This transparency of government institutions, introduced...