Tides of History

Latest Episodes:

The Ghosts of Archaic Humans Jul 09, 2020

Show notes

Until very recently, Homo sapiens - our species - was only one of several varieties of humans on this planet. As our ancestors spread outward from Africa in their great migration, they encountered those other species. The results of those encounters left us a genetic legacy that is still with us today.

If you'd like to see some visuals of the things in this episode, check out this post on my Substack blog.

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Bone, Stone, and Genome: Understanding Humanity's Deep Past Jul 02, 2020

Show notes

Welcome to a new season of Tides of History! Over the next year, we'll be traveling from the very origins of our species through the peopling of the planet, the Ice Age, and then to the beginnings of agriculture, cities, metalworking, and states. Today, we cover our deepest past, from the divergence from our closest ape relatives to the first appearance of anatomically modern humans.

To see visuals of our earliest ancestors, and how-to videos for making ancient stone tools, check out Patrick's website.

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Did I End My Early Modern Series in the Right Place? Interview with Keith Pluymers Jun 18, 2020

Show notes

How do we tell when one period ends and another begins? What are the fundamental characteristics of the early modern period? My dear friend (and friend of the show!) Keith Pluymers, assistant professor of history at Illinois State University, returns to chat with me about periodization, the Great Divergence, and riots in the early modern period.

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The Globalization of the Year 1000: Interview with Professor Valerie Hansen Jun 11, 2020

Show notes

Around the year 1000, merchants, explorers, and missionaries linked the world together from Newfoundland to China. Trade goods, people, and above all ideas flowed across a rich assortment of routes, connecting previously distant places into a single unit. This was the first instance of what we can call globalization, according to Professor Valerie Hansen of Yale, who wrote a compelling new book on the topic: The Year 1000: When Explorers Connected the World - and Globalization Began.

Get Professor Hansen's book here.

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Alaric, the Goths, and the Sack of Rome: Interview with Professor Douglas Boin Jun 04, 2020

Show notes

Alaric was one of the most famous barbarians of antiquity, and yet we know little about him - or at least, we knew very little, until Douglas Boin's excellent new book came out. It's entitled Alaric the Goth: An Outsider's History of the Fall of Rome. In today's episode, I chat with Professor Boin about the book, the Goths, and how we should understand this period of Roman - and Gothic - history.

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John Maynard Keynes and His Legacies: Interview with Author and Journalist Zach Carter May 28, 2020

Show notes

John Maynard Keynes was one of the most important figures of the 20th century, creating the economic structures and ideas that defined the Second World War and its aftermath. I spoke with Zach Carter, author of the wonderful new Keynes biography The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes, about Keynes's wild life and enduring legacies.

Get Zach's book here.

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Malta, Lepanto, and the End of an Era May 14, 2020

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We reach the epic conclusion of our series on the early modern period with the Great Siege of Malta and the Battle of Lepanto.

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The Battle for the Mediterranean May 07, 2020

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For much of the 16th century, the Habsburgs of Spain and the Ottoman Empire waged an epic conflict for control over the Mediterranean. Follow along with two composite characters, a Barbary corsair and a Hospitaller knight, as they raid, pillage, and fight a holy war for decades on end.

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Charles V and the Failure of Empire Apr 30, 2020

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Charles V controlled more of Europe than any ruler in centuries, with resources other monarchs could only dream of. But that was never enough to give the Holy Roman Emperor more than a momentary victory; there was always a new enemy, some unforeseen calamity, waiting around the corner.

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Mike Duncan on Pandemics, Revolutions, and COVID-19 Apr 23, 2020

Show notes

DISCLAIMER: If you do not think that this pandemic is a big deal; if you do not want to hear our personal political views; if you don’t care about present-day politics; if you think that this will somehow offend you; then please don't listen to this episode.

Author and history podcaster extraordinaire Mike Duncan joins me to talk about pandemics, social instability, and present-day politics.

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