How to Change the World: The History & Future of Innovation
If you want to change the world, you need to dissect the past to build a blueprint for tomorrow. Follow the epic journey through the history of invention, science and technology - told in chronological order. --- Long before the rise of Empires, before the invention of the written word and before humans ever tamed fire. Curiosity was shaping the fate of our species. This podcast breaks down the messy, complicated, often accidental ways humanity pushes forward—and shows you exactly how you can do the same. This isn’t surface-level history. Starting at the dawn of civilisation, we trace the thread of human innovation in the order it happened. Covering the stories of the world's greatest inventors and most powerful ideas. Each episode is a masterclass - with all the nerdy details and side-quests that matter across science, economics, psychology and more: From Maritime navigation to Interstellar exploration Hammurabi’s legal code to Algorithmic governance Da Vinci’s human dissection to Genome editing Studying the patterns of history and invention shows how every world-changing idea is but a conversation between what has been and what could be. Journey with us as we untangle the playbooks of the disruptors who change things here on earth and beyond. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
What is the best way to tackle the question "How to change the world"? Learn about our plan to dissect the history and future of innovation.
This show will dissect how the world really works and the impact of the biggest inventions that lead to a step change. We'll also tell the stories of the greatest innovators from history and understand their mental models, mindsets and habits.
In this promo, Host Sam Webster Harris expla...
"The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it" - Alan Watts
This opening episode invites you on a journey, not just through time, but through perspective.
From fire-starting hominids to spacefaring technologists, we are going to trace the ripples of human imagination that turned tools into empires, and sparks into systems.
In this introduction episode:
- Set the tone for the podcast
- Explain what the show is an...
What lies at the core of human progress?
This episode sets the scene for all human innovation. For 3.5 million years, humans and our ancestors were stuck in the Stone Age.
We cover:
- What were we busy with for 97% of our existence?
- Why were we so slow at innovating?
- How did we eventually overcome these fundamental forces?
From personal pressures to global forces, we trace the blocks on human development. The answers h...
How to rank the impact of innovations on humanity and how much they really changed the world.
Everything seems so important these days:
- A new iPhone update changes EVERYTHING
- This war will BREAK the economy
- If you feed your toddler THIS, you don't deserve to be a parent...
Learn to rationally understand what matters to humanity and what is just noise.
It's easy to tell that the invention of Writing itself is more imp...
Do we really control fire?
While you're patting yourself on the back for lighting that barbecue, fire has been pulling the strings for 2 million years, reshaping our anatomy, rewiring our brains, and dictating our social structures.
It transformed us from ape-like creatures that had a neat standing trick into the cunning apex predator of the world. Along the way, it upended both ecosystems and gender roles but most importantl...
Why do some ideas and technologies proliferate, whilst others die painfully?
Innovations aren't just bound merely the laws of Physics, but also the powerful laws of Nature and Biology.
In the "Lessons of History", Will and Ariel Durant propose the 3 Laws of Biology. Extending on the work of Charles Darwin, they explain the rules that govern life on earth and how it applies to humanity. In this episode, Sam extends the concept whi...
How language and cooperation shaped our world and human society.
Discover how language transformed from simple signals to complex communication, enabling us to cooperate, create cultures, and build civilizations. We explore the evolution of human imagination, the role of gossip, the development of societal morals, and the paradoxical nature of human violence and compassion.
Additionally, we discuss the future of communication...
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