Episode one is being made.
It’s out in late October 2026. Full episodes go on YouTube and Spotify, with five short clips from each one on Shorts, TikTok and Reels.
Everything that comes before recording is done.
Done
- 35 Penn professors researched in full: their papers, their quotes and the arguments they’re in.
- Outreach emails written and sent to the professors.
- Titles and episode plans written.
- Studio agreement signed for the Hechtman Recording Studio in Van Pelt Library.
- Name, logo and brand finished.
In progress
- A student video team, built from Penn’s film and animation classes. Join the crew
Next
- Book the first guest.
- Record episode one.
- Publish it, late October.
As of 8 October 2026. Nothing is recorded yet, and no guest is booked.
What every episode gives you
- The full conversation
- 45 to 60 minutes, on YouTube and Spotify.
- Five short clips
- For Shorts, TikTok and Reels, so new people can find us.
- The research itself
- Linked, so you can read it and make up your own mind.
- One thing to try
- Something from the research you can use in your own life.
Professors whose work would change how you live, and who will argue back.
Open one to see the questions we’d ask.
PsychologyThe psychologist who gave dogs electric shocks to discover “learned helplessness”. Fifty years later, he admitted they’d got it backwards.
Aly would ask“Do you ever feel bad about the dogs?”
Mo would ask“What is learned helplessness, and how would I know if I had it?”
ForecastingThe professor who found the average expert predicts the future about as well as a dart-throwing chimp. Then he found amateurs who beat professional intelligence analysts.
Aly would ask“So is everyone on the news basically a chimp with a dartboard?”
Mo would ask“What makes someone good at guessing what happens next?”
Medical ethicsThe doctor who wrote that he wants to die at 75. He’s 69 now, and he still means it.
Aly would ask“Do you still mean it, now that 75 is six years away?”
Mo would ask“Why 75, and not 80 or 90?”
Classical studiesThe translator who said she’d be ashamed to have written any part of the new Odyssey film.
Aly would ask“Millions of people will love that film. Why would you be ashamed?”
Mo would ask“What actually happens in the Odyssey?”
South Asia studiesThe professor who says the classical Indian dance your daughter learns was invented in the 1930s.
Aly would ask“So is the “ancient” dance a fake?”
Mo would ask“How do you invent a tradition?”
Episode ideas from our own research. Nobody is booked yet.
Suggest a professor