Podcasts about East India Company

16th through 19th-century British trading company

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Best podcasts about East India Company

Latest podcast episodes about East India Company

For the Ages: A History Podcast
Friends Until the End: Edmund Burke and Charles Fox in the Age of Revolution

For the Ages: A History Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 6, 2025 28:08


If ever there was proof that opposites attract, it was the friendship between the personally and politically conservative Edmund Burke and the liberal-leaning libertine Charles Fox, who formed a united front in 18-century British politics for a quarter of a century. Biographer James Grant joins David M. Rubenstein to demonstrate how, despite their many differences, Fox and Burke remained friends and political allies through the American Revolution and the dramatic impeachment of East India Company governor-general Warren Hastings, but ultimately fell out, both personally and professionally, over the French Revolution.Recorded on August 21, 2025

More or Less with the Morins and the Lessins
#118 Elon vs Altman: The $10B Capital War Reshaping Tech

More or Less with the Morins and the Lessins

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 26, 2025 46:57


No Morins this week—just Jess and Sam, trading Gossip Girl “dear listener” asides for a tour of tech's new power map. From Meta's in-store glasses push to Apple's “Find My” doubling as Gen Z's stealth social network, the real story is how distribution and lock-in shape the future. Sam frames “mercantilism 2.0,” where global trade routes of capital now run through Silicon Valley, Tel Aviv, and Riyadh, with figures like Elon Musk and Sam Altman acting as brokers of $10B+ flows.In true Sam fashion, the conversation highlights why LLMs aren't true moats, pointing instead to the infrastructure layer (chips, power, data centers) and the UX layer (distribution, product polish). Nvidia's securitized GPU deals illustrate how structured finance and alliances are reshaping competition.The takeaway: early-stage VC may finally be moving past hype, becoming sober—and therefore interesting—again.Chapters:02:02 – Meta Ray-Bans: friction as onboarding strategy05:31 – Mercantilism 2.0: Tech's new trade routes07:56 – Elon's real genius: moving $10B+ into frontier tech09:27 – Sam Altman as mega-capital trade-route broker12:40 – Starlink V3 and the network-layer power shift16:08 – Could Elon own planetary communications?18:35 – Find My = stealth social network21:04 – Strategy assets over DCF: power, data centers, chips23:41 – LLMs aren't the moat; moats shift lower/higher27:44 – AI's expense revives structured finance30:56 – Nvidia as the East India Company of compute33:50 – Will a handful of players control all the assets?39:57 – Early-stage VC is sober (and exciting) again43:05 – TikTok's heat moved to AI: the attention shiftWe're also on ↓X: https://twitter.com/moreorlesspodInstagram: https://instagram.com/moreorlessSpotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/moreorlesspodConnect with us here:1) Sam Lessin: https://x.com/lessin2) Dave Morin: https://x.com/davemorin3) Jessica Lessin: https://x.com/Jessicalessin4) Brit Morin: https://x.com/brit

Glynn Vivian Art Gallery - On Air
Tigers, Dragons and Libraries – connections between Swansea and India

Glynn Vivian Art Gallery - On Air

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 26, 2025 45:35


A look at some fascinating historic links between Swansea and India such as how a scholar of Hinduism played a significant role in bringing public libraries to Swansea in this the 150th anniversary of the founding of Swansea Public Libraries in 1875. As well as looking at the visits to Victorian Swansea by members of the Indian National Congress and tales of the Swansea Captain John Jones of the East India Company. Gwilym Games, Librarian: Local Studies, Swansea Libraries Teigrod, Dreigiau a Llyfrgelloedd – cysylltiadau rhwng Abertawe ac India (cynhelir y sgwrs yn Saesneg yn unig). Cewch gip ar gysylltiadau hanesyddol diddorol rhwng Abertawe ac India, er enghraifft sut gwnaeth ysgolhaig Hindŵaeth chwarae rôl arwyddocaol wrth ddod â llyfrgelloedd cyhoeddus i Abertawe, wrth i ni nodi 150 mlynedd ers sefydlu Llyfrgelloedd Cyhoeddus Abertawe ym 1875. Yn ogystal, bydd yn trafod ymweliadau aelodau o Gyngres Genedlaethol India ag Abertawe yn oes Victoria a hanesion Capten John Jones o Abertawe a oedd yn gweithio i East India Company. Gwilym Games, Llyfrgellydd: Astudiaethau Lleol, Llyfrgelloedd Abertawe

New Books Network
Rosinka Chaudhuri, "India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire" (India Viking, 2025)

New Books Network

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 25, 2025 52:09


In 1831, the India Gazette wrote about a group of radical young thinkers that it credited for an upheaval in social and religious politics in Calcutta. These were the Young Bengal, the proteges of Henry Derozio of Hindu College. These thinkers, according to Rosinka Chaudhuri, were India's first radicals, trying to reshape Indian politics as it came under the sway of the East India Company and the British Empire. Rosinka joins the show to talk about her book India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire (India Viking, 2025) and the British Empire, and where this group sits in the long history of Indian nationalist, anti-colonial and anti-imperial thought. Rosinka Chaudhuri is director and professor of cultural studies at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. Her books include Gentlemen Poets in Colonial Bengal: Emergent Nationalism and the Orientalist Project (2002), Freedom and Beef Steaks: Colonial Calcutta Culture (2011) and The Literary Thing: History, Poetry and the Making of a Modern Cultural Sphere (2013). She has edited many books, among which are Derozio, Poet of India: The Definitive Edition (2008), A History of Indian Poetry in English (2016), and most recently, George Orwell's Burmese Days for Oxford World's Classics (2021). Many of her journal articles, reviews and book chapters have been published worldwide, while her translation of Rabindranath Tagore's letters, titled Letters from a Young Poet (1887–1895), was published as a Penguin Modern Classic in 2014. London-based business and culture journalist Prarthana Prakash joins me on the show today as a guest host. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of India's First Radicals. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Asian Review of Books
Rosinka Chaudhuri, "India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire" (India Viking, 2025)

Asian Review of Books

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 25, 2025 52:09


In 1831, the India Gazette wrote about a group of radical young thinkers that it credited for an upheaval in social and religious politics in Calcutta. These were the Young Bengal, the proteges of Henry Derozio of Hindu College. These thinkers, according to Rosinka Chaudhuri, were India's first radicals, trying to reshape Indian politics as it came under the sway of the East India Company and the British Empire. Rosinka joins the show to talk about her book India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire (India Viking, 2025) and the British Empire, and where this group sits in the long history of Indian nationalist, anti-colonial and anti-imperial thought. Rosinka Chaudhuri is director and professor of cultural studies at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. Her books include Gentlemen Poets in Colonial Bengal: Emergent Nationalism and the Orientalist Project (2002), Freedom and Beef Steaks: Colonial Calcutta Culture (2011) and The Literary Thing: History, Poetry and the Making of a Modern Cultural Sphere (2013). She has edited many books, among which are Derozio, Poet of India: The Definitive Edition (2008), A History of Indian Poetry in English (2016), and most recently, George Orwell's Burmese Days for Oxford World's Classics (2021). Many of her journal articles, reviews and book chapters have been published worldwide, while her translation of Rabindranath Tagore's letters, titled Letters from a Young Poet (1887–1895), was published as a Penguin Modern Classic in 2014. London-based business and culture journalist Prarthana Prakash joins me on the show today as a guest host. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of India's First Radicals. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/asian-review

New Books in British Studies
Rosinka Chaudhuri, "India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire" (India Viking, 2025)

New Books in British Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 25, 2025 52:09


In 1831, the India Gazette wrote about a group of radical young thinkers that it credited for an upheaval in social and religious politics in Calcutta. These were the Young Bengal, the proteges of Henry Derozio of Hindu College. These thinkers, according to Rosinka Chaudhuri, were India's first radicals, trying to reshape Indian politics as it came under the sway of the East India Company and the British Empire. Rosinka joins the show to talk about her book India's First Radicals: Young Bengal and the British Empire (India Viking, 2025) and the British Empire, and where this group sits in the long history of Indian nationalist, anti-colonial and anti-imperial thought. Rosinka Chaudhuri is director and professor of cultural studies at the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta. Her books include Gentlemen Poets in Colonial Bengal: Emergent Nationalism and the Orientalist Project (2002), Freedom and Beef Steaks: Colonial Calcutta Culture (2011) and The Literary Thing: History, Poetry and the Making of a Modern Cultural Sphere (2013). She has edited many books, among which are Derozio, Poet of India: The Definitive Edition (2008), A History of Indian Poetry in English (2016), and most recently, George Orwell's Burmese Days for Oxford World's Classics (2021). Many of her journal articles, reviews and book chapters have been published worldwide, while her translation of Rabindranath Tagore's letters, titled Letters from a Young Poet (1887–1895), was published as a Penguin Modern Classic in 2014. London-based business and culture journalist Prarthana Prakash joins me on the show today as a guest host. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of India's First Radicals. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/british-studies

Lloyd's List: The Shipping Podcast
IUMI Singapore: is marine insurance entering its Asian century?

Lloyd's List: The Shipping Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 24, 2025 21:18


Singapore literally would not exist without the shipping industry. In 1819 the East India Company reached agreement with the local ruler to use it as a waystation for vessels carrying opium to China. Five years later, it bought the entire country for cash. Two hundred years later, it would not be much of a stretch to describe it as a powerhouse port with a small southeast Asian city-state attached. But until last month, the International Union of Marine Insurance conference had not taken place there since 2004. Even then, Singapore's standing in the maritime industries was undeniable. But at that point it remained an emerging market in marine insurance terms. As the 600-plus delegates who assembled for this year's event were told, that is clearly no longer the case. It is now the fourth-largest hull market in the world. Its share of the global hull book now stands at 7.9%, leaving it just a fraction of a percentage point behind the once-almighty Lloyd's. Nor is it the only Asian nation to see its marine insurance presence take a great leap forward. China is now writing around 12% of world hull premiums and must now be counted as a core market for H&M. It also writes 17% of cargo business, which is more than Lloyd's and the London companies markets put together. The late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping - who died in 1997 - argued that the twenty-first century would be the Asian century. If marine insurance is anything to go by, he may have had a point. Joining David on the podcast are: Veith Huesmann, chief analyst, IUMI Sean Dalton, head of marine underwriting North America, Munich Re Alicia Leong, head of marine liabilities Asia, Markel Jun Lin, vice president, Gard

We'd Like A Word
36. Banu Mushtaq & Deepa Bhashti at Jaipur Lit Fest London + more

We'd Like A Word

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 20, 2025 38:05


36. International Booker prize winners, author Banu Mushtaq & translator Deepa Bhashti talk to co-hosts Paul Waters & Jonathan Kennedy on the We'd Like A Word books & authors podcast at the 2025 Jaipur Literature Festival at the British Library in London.We talk about Banu's short story collection Heart Lamp; whether foreign language words should be italicised - Deepa says no; why Heart Lamp stands out as the first notable translation from Kannada (the language of Karnataka in southern India) into English; and the dynamic between author & translator.We also hear from Lisa Honan of the East India Walking Tour & playwright Dr Anu Kumar, together creators of A London Lark Rising - a moving, walking, street theatre all about the East India Company which ruled large swathes of India from London. Is this tour better than reading The Anarchy by William Dalrymple or listening to the Empire Podcast hosted by William with Anita Anand? (Personally, I'd say it's complementary. You should read both Anita's & William's books.)By the way, Lisa Honan used to be the Governor of St Helena - yup, the island to which Napoleon was banished for the second and final time. She has some stories - including about plumed hats - yes or no, and why.And we hear from Sanjoy Roy, author and one the geniuses behind the international web of festivals known as the Jaipur Literature Festival on providing platforms for diverse conversations which are not publisher driven, focusing on the ideas behind the books, rather than the books themselves; and about it's getting more difficult these days to have free flowing varied conversations.Plus we touch on Singaporean author Ivy Ngeow, Indian-German artistic due Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser, Anil & Kiran Agarwal & their Riverside Studios arts space in London, Catalan literature, who makes the best tea, whether only British people queue, & should seagulls eat cigarette butts?WHO IS JONATHAN KENNEDY? Jonathan was Director of Arts in India for 5 years for the British Council. He's been everywhere in India and knows everyone there involved in culture. He was also for 12 years the Executive Director of Tara Arts, looking at the world through a South Asian lens. Jonathan is doing some India & South Asian episodes of We'd Like A Word with us every now & then. We'd Like A Word is a podcast & radio show from authors Paul Waters & Stevyn Colgan. (And sometimes Jonathan Kennedy.) We talk with writers, readers, editors, agents, celebrities, talkers, poets, publishers, booksellers, & audiobook creators about books - fiction & non-fiction. We go out on various radio & podcast platforms. Our website is http://www.wedlikeaword.com for information on Paul, Steve & our guests. We're on Twitter @wedlikeaword & Facebook @wedlikeaword & our email is wedlikeaword@gmail.com Yes, we're embarrassed by the missing apostrophes. We like to hear from you - questions, thoughts, ideas, guest or book suggestions. Perhaps you'd like to come on We'd Like A Word to chat, review or read out passages from books.Paul is the author of a new Irish-Indian cosy crime series set in contemporary Delhi. The first in the series is Murder in Moonlit Square, which published by No Exit Press / Bedford Square Publishers & Penguin India in October 2025. Paul previously wrote the 1950s Irish border thriller Blackwatertown.We can also recommend Cockerings, the comic classic by Stevyn Colgan, and his hugely popular YouTube channel @Colganology

The History Chap Podcast
205: The White Indian Mutiny 1858

The History Chap Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 19, 2025 14:25


Send me a messageThe forgotten story of the White Indian Mutiny.Following the Indian Sepoy Revolt, which began in 1857, the British government took over ruling India from the East India Company.As part of that transfer, they proposed that the European regiments within the EIC army would become part of the regular British army.Believing that their pay and promotion opportunities would be adversely impacted and the traditions of their old regiments (some older than almost all British army regiments) wold be eradicated the men of the European Regiments mutinied.Chris Green is The History Chap; telling stories that brings the past to life.Ways You Can Support My Channel:Become A PatronMake A DonationSupport the show

LibriVox Audiobooks
The Afghan Wars 1839-42 and 1878-80, Part 1

LibriVox Audiobooks

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 10, 2025 302:55


Support Our Cause at https://libri-vox.org/donateThe First Anglo–Afghan War was fought between British India and Afghanistan from 1839 to 1842. It was one of the first major conflicts during the Great Game, the 19th century competition for power and influence in Central Asia between the United Kingdom and Russia, and also marked one of the worst setbacks inflicted on British power in the region after the consolidation of British Raj by the East India Company. (Summary by Phil)Donate to LibriVox: https://libri-vox.org/donate

Macroaggressions
#576: The American East India Company

Macroaggressions

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 9, 2025 70:50


When Trump announced that the American government would be taking an equity stake in Intel, Mussolini likely turned over in his grave. The blending of Big Business with Government was not invented by Trump or Mussolini, but really is best exemplified by the British East India Company. The most powerful company in the history of Western civilization was the East India Company, which later merged with the British government. They cornered the market on textiles for over a century, while simultaneously running the global opium industry and slave trade. Its creation and use of private mercenary armies allowed it to control India long before the British government did, while the East India Company's leased troops massively outnumbered the Indian military for centuries. The Octopus of Global Control Audiobook: https://amzn.to/3xu0rMm Hypocrazy Audiobook: https://amzn.to/4aogwms Website: www.Macroaggressions.io Activist Post: www.activistpost.com Sponsors: Chemical Free Body: https://www.chemicalfreebody.com Promo Code: MACRO C60 Purple Power: https://c60purplepower.com/ Promo Code: MACRO Wise Wolf Gold & Silver: www.Macroaggressions.gold LegalShield: www.DontGetPushedAround.com EMP Shield: www.EMPShield.com Promo Code: MACRO Christian Yordanov's Health Program: www.livelongerformula.com/macro Above Phone: abovephone.com/macro Promo Code: MACRO Van Man: https://vanman.shop/?ref=MACRO Promo Code: MACRO The Dollar Vigilante: dollarvigilante.spiffy.co/a/O3wCWenlXN/4471 Nesa's Hemp: www.NesasHemp.com Promo Code: MACRO Augason Farms: https://augasonfarms.com/MACRO Activist Post: www.ActivistPost.com Natural Blaze: www.NaturalBlaze.com Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/macroaggressionspodcast

Crazy Wisdom
Episode #487: Stablecoins as Weapons, Bitcoin as Escape: A Conversation on Money and Control

Crazy Wisdom

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 8, 2025 49:24


On this episode of Crazy Wisdom, Stewart Alsop sits down with Abhimanyu Dayal, a longtime Bitcoin advocate and AI practitioner, to explore how money, identity, and power are shifting in a world of deepfakes, surveillance, automation, and geopolitical realignment. The conversation ranges from why self-custody of Bitcoin matters more than ETFs, to the dangers of probabilistic biometrics and face-swap apps, to the coming impact of AGI on labor markets and the role of universal basic income. They also touch on India's refinery economy, its balancing act between Russia, China, and the U.S., and how soft power is eroding in the information age. For more from Abhimanyu, connect with him on LinkedIn.Check out this GPT we trained on the conversationTimestamps00:00 Stewart Alsop opens with Abhimanyu Dayal on crypto, AI, and the risks of probabilistic biometrics like facial recognition and voice spoofing.05:00 They critique biometric surveillance, face-swap apps, and data exploitation through casual consent.10:00 The talk shifts to QR code treasure hunts, vibe coding on Replit and Claude, and using quizzes to mint NFTs.15:00 Abhimanyu shares his finance background, tying it to Bitcoin as people's money, agent-to-agent payments, and post-AGI labor shifts.20:00 They discuss universal basic income, libertarian ideals, Hayek's view of economics as critique, and how AI prediction changes policy.25:00 Pressure, unpredictability, AR glasses, quantum computing, and the surveillance state future come into focus.30:00 Open source vs closed apps, China's DeepSeek models, propaganda through AI, and U.S.–China tensions are explored.35:00 India's non-alignment, Soviet alliance in 1971, oil refining economy, and U.S.–India friction surface.40:00 They reflect on colonial history, East India Company, wealth drain, opium wars, and America's rise on Indian capital.45:00 The conversation closes on Bitcoin's role as reserve asset, stablecoins as U.S. leverage, BRICS disunity, and the geopolitics of freedom.Key InsightsA central theme of the conversation is the contrast between deterministic and probabilistic systems for identity and security. Abhimanyu Dayal stresses that passwords and private keys—things only you can know—are inherently more secure than facial recognition or voice scans, which can be spoofed through deepfakes, 3D prints, or AI reconstructions. In his view, biometric data should never be stored because it represents a permanent risk once leaked.The rise of face-swap apps and casual facial data sharing illustrates how surveillance and exploitation have crept into everyday life. Abhimanyu points out that companies already use online images to adjust things like insurance premiums, proving how small pieces of biometric consent can spiral into systemic manipulation. This isn't a hypothetical future—it is already happening in hidden ways.On the lighter side, they experiment with “vibe coding,” using tools like Replit and Claude to design interactive experiences such as a treasure hunt via QR codes and NFTs. This playful example underscores a broader point: lightweight coding and AI platforms empower individuals to create experiments without relying on centralized or closed systems that might inject malware or capture data.The discussion expands into automation, multi-agent systems, and the post-AGI economy. Abhimanyu suggests that artificial superintelligence will require machine-to-machine transactions, making Bitcoin an essential tool. But if machines do the bulk of labor, universal basic income may become unavoidable, even if it drifts toward collectivist structures libertarians dislike.A key shift identified is the transformation of economics itself. Where Hayek once argued economics should critique politicians because of limited data, AI and quantum computing now provide prediction capabilities so granular that human behavior is forecastable at the individual level. This erodes the pseudoscientific nature of past economics and creates a new landscape of policy and control.Geopolitically, the episode explores India's rise, its reliance on refining Russian crude into petroleum exports, and its effort to stay unaligned between the U.S., Russia, and China. The conversation recalls India's Soviet ties during the 1971 war, while noting how today's energy and trade policies underpin domestic improvements for India's poor and middle class.Finally, they critique the co-optation of Bitcoin through ETFs and institutional custody. While investors celebrate, Abhimanyu argues this betrays Satoshi's vision of money controlled by individuals with private keys. He warns that Bitcoin may be absorbed into central bank reserves, while stablecoins extend U.S. monetary dominance by reinforcing dollar power rather than replacing it.

Historical Homos
Queer Georgians: A History of Gay Homemaking (feat. Anthony Delaney)

Historical Homos

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2025 69:29


Powdered wigs. Satin breeches. Candlelit salons.And of course: sodomy.This week we're swanning back into Georgian England (1714–1837), a century of empire, cholera, imperialism, and very flouncy coats – but also one of the gayest domestic revolutions in history.With special guest Dr. Anthony Delaney (author of Queer Georgians, out today!), we explore the LGBTQIA+ pioneers who didn't just hook up in parks or "molly houses," but built full-fledged homes, lives, and legacies together.Inside this episode:

New Books Network
Faisal Chaudhry, "South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law" (Oxford UP, 2024)

New Books Network

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 76:49


South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law (Oxford UP, 2024) considers the legal history of colonial rule in South Asia from 1757 to the early 20th century. It traces a shift in the conceptualization of sovereignty, land control, and adjudicatory rectification, arguing that under the East India Company the focus was on 'the laws' factoring into the administration of justice more than 'the law' as an infinitely generative norm system. This accompanied a discourse about rendering property 'absolute' defined in terms of a certainty of controlling land's rent-and made administrable mainly as a duty of revenue payment--rather than any right of ostensibly physical dominion. Leaving property external to its ontology of 'the laws, ' the Company's regime thus differed significantly from its counterparts in the Anglo-common-law mainstream, where an ostensibly unitary, physical, and disaggregable notion of the property right was becoming a stand in for a notion of legal right in general already by the late 18th century. Only after 1858, under Crown rule, did conditions in the subcontinent ripen for 'the law' to emerge as a purportedly free-standing institutional fact. A key but neglected factor in this transformation was the rise of classical legal thought, which finally enabled property's internalization into 'the law' and underwrote status and contract becoming the other key elements of the Raj's new legal ontology. Formulating a historical ontological approach to jurisprudence, the book deploys a running distinction between the doctrinal discourse of (the) law and ordinary-language discourse about (the) law that carries implications for legal theory well beyond South Asia. Arighna Gupta is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His dissertation attempts to trace early-colonial genealogies of popular sovereignty located at the interstices of monarchical, religious, and colonial sovereignties in India and present-day Bangladesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

New Books in History
Faisal Chaudhry, "South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law" (Oxford UP, 2024)

New Books in History

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 76:49


South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law (Oxford UP, 2024) considers the legal history of colonial rule in South Asia from 1757 to the early 20th century. It traces a shift in the conceptualization of sovereignty, land control, and adjudicatory rectification, arguing that under the East India Company the focus was on 'the laws' factoring into the administration of justice more than 'the law' as an infinitely generative norm system. This accompanied a discourse about rendering property 'absolute' defined in terms of a certainty of controlling land's rent-and made administrable mainly as a duty of revenue payment--rather than any right of ostensibly physical dominion. Leaving property external to its ontology of 'the laws, ' the Company's regime thus differed significantly from its counterparts in the Anglo-common-law mainstream, where an ostensibly unitary, physical, and disaggregable notion of the property right was becoming a stand in for a notion of legal right in general already by the late 18th century. Only after 1858, under Crown rule, did conditions in the subcontinent ripen for 'the law' to emerge as a purportedly free-standing institutional fact. A key but neglected factor in this transformation was the rise of classical legal thought, which finally enabled property's internalization into 'the law' and underwrote status and contract becoming the other key elements of the Raj's new legal ontology. Formulating a historical ontological approach to jurisprudence, the book deploys a running distinction between the doctrinal discourse of (the) law and ordinary-language discourse about (the) law that carries implications for legal theory well beyond South Asia. Arighna Gupta is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His dissertation attempts to trace early-colonial genealogies of popular sovereignty located at the interstices of monarchical, religious, and colonial sovereignties in India and present-day Bangladesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

Willy Willy Harry Stee...
Summer Book Club - Travellers in the Golden Realm

Willy Willy Harry Stee...

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 44:12


In this edition of Charlie Higson's Summer Reading History Book Club, he looks at the history between England and India.Before the East India Company and before the British Empire, England was an unimportant backwater. Seeking better fortunes, 16th and 17th century merchants ventured to the empire of the mighty Mughals, attempting to sell coarse woollen broadcloth that nobody really wanted.It was a land ruled from the palatial towers by women – the formidable Empress Nur Jahan Begim, the enterprising Queen Mother Maryam al-Zamani, and the intrepid Princess Jahanara Begim. Their collision of worlds helped connect East and West, launching a tempestuous period of globalisation spanning from the Chinese opium trade to the slave trade in the Americas.Joining Charlie to explain this fascinating story is Dr Lubaaba Al-Azami, whose book 'Travellers in the Golden Realm' traces the origins of a relationship between two nations – one outsider and one superpower – whose cultures remain inextricably linked to this day. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New Books in South Asian Studies
Faisal Chaudhry, "South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law" (Oxford UP, 2024)

New Books in South Asian Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 76:49


South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law (Oxford UP, 2024) considers the legal history of colonial rule in South Asia from 1757 to the early 20th century. It traces a shift in the conceptualization of sovereignty, land control, and adjudicatory rectification, arguing that under the East India Company the focus was on 'the laws' factoring into the administration of justice more than 'the law' as an infinitely generative norm system. This accompanied a discourse about rendering property 'absolute' defined in terms of a certainty of controlling land's rent-and made administrable mainly as a duty of revenue payment--rather than any right of ostensibly physical dominion. Leaving property external to its ontology of 'the laws, ' the Company's regime thus differed significantly from its counterparts in the Anglo-common-law mainstream, where an ostensibly unitary, physical, and disaggregable notion of the property right was becoming a stand in for a notion of legal right in general already by the late 18th century. Only after 1858, under Crown rule, did conditions in the subcontinent ripen for 'the law' to emerge as a purportedly free-standing institutional fact. A key but neglected factor in this transformation was the rise of classical legal thought, which finally enabled property's internalization into 'the law' and underwrote status and contract becoming the other key elements of the Raj's new legal ontology. Formulating a historical ontological approach to jurisprudence, the book deploys a running distinction between the doctrinal discourse of (the) law and ordinary-language discourse about (the) law that carries implications for legal theory well beyond South Asia. Arighna Gupta is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His dissertation attempts to trace early-colonial genealogies of popular sovereignty located at the interstices of monarchical, religious, and colonial sovereignties in India and present-day Bangladesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

New Books in Law
Faisal Chaudhry, "South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law" (Oxford UP, 2024)

New Books in Law

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 76:49


South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law (Oxford UP, 2024) considers the legal history of colonial rule in South Asia from 1757 to the early 20th century. It traces a shift in the conceptualization of sovereignty, land control, and adjudicatory rectification, arguing that under the East India Company the focus was on 'the laws' factoring into the administration of justice more than 'the law' as an infinitely generative norm system. This accompanied a discourse about rendering property 'absolute' defined in terms of a certainty of controlling land's rent-and made administrable mainly as a duty of revenue payment--rather than any right of ostensibly physical dominion. Leaving property external to its ontology of 'the laws, ' the Company's regime thus differed significantly from its counterparts in the Anglo-common-law mainstream, where an ostensibly unitary, physical, and disaggregable notion of the property right was becoming a stand in for a notion of legal right in general already by the late 18th century. Only after 1858, under Crown rule, did conditions in the subcontinent ripen for 'the law' to emerge as a purportedly free-standing institutional fact. A key but neglected factor in this transformation was the rise of classical legal thought, which finally enabled property's internalization into 'the law' and underwrote status and contract becoming the other key elements of the Raj's new legal ontology. Formulating a historical ontological approach to jurisprudence, the book deploys a running distinction between the doctrinal discourse of (the) law and ordinary-language discourse about (the) law that carries implications for legal theory well beyond South Asia. Arighna Gupta is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His dissertation attempts to trace early-colonial genealogies of popular sovereignty located at the interstices of monarchical, religious, and colonial sovereignties in India and present-day Bangladesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/law

New Books in British Studies
Faisal Chaudhry, "South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law" (Oxford UP, 2024)

New Books in British Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2025 76:49


South Asia, the British Empire, and the Rise of Classical Legal Thought: Toward a Historical Ontology of the Law (Oxford UP, 2024) considers the legal history of colonial rule in South Asia from 1757 to the early 20th century. It traces a shift in the conceptualization of sovereignty, land control, and adjudicatory rectification, arguing that under the East India Company the focus was on 'the laws' factoring into the administration of justice more than 'the law' as an infinitely generative norm system. This accompanied a discourse about rendering property 'absolute' defined in terms of a certainty of controlling land's rent-and made administrable mainly as a duty of revenue payment--rather than any right of ostensibly physical dominion. Leaving property external to its ontology of 'the laws, ' the Company's regime thus differed significantly from its counterparts in the Anglo-common-law mainstream, where an ostensibly unitary, physical, and disaggregable notion of the property right was becoming a stand in for a notion of legal right in general already by the late 18th century. Only after 1858, under Crown rule, did conditions in the subcontinent ripen for 'the law' to emerge as a purportedly free-standing institutional fact. A key but neglected factor in this transformation was the rise of classical legal thought, which finally enabled property's internalization into 'the law' and underwrote status and contract becoming the other key elements of the Raj's new legal ontology. Formulating a historical ontological approach to jurisprudence, the book deploys a running distinction between the doctrinal discourse of (the) law and ordinary-language discourse about (the) law that carries implications for legal theory well beyond South Asia. Arighna Gupta is a doctoral candidate in history at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His dissertation attempts to trace early-colonial genealogies of popular sovereignty located at the interstices of monarchical, religious, and colonial sovereignties in India and present-day Bangladesh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/british-studies

The Napoleonic Quarterly
Battlefield despatches: Assaye, Sep 23rd 1803

The Napoleonic Quarterly

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2025 131:17


This episode offers a deep dive into the pivotal Battle of Assaye fought on September 23, 1803, a clash that shaped British dominance in India and forged the reputation of Arthur Wellesley—better known to history as the Duke of Wellington. Host Clemens Bemmann welcomes a special panel to explore the campaign, armies, personalities, and chaos that defined one of the most dramatic battles on the Indian subcontinent during the Napoleonic era. Josh Provan is the battlefield correspondent; Zack White is the East India Company expert; Andy Copestake is the Maratha army expert. Featuring: The Maratha Confederacy: European mercenaries, regular brigades, and command strugglesBritish Army composition: The rise of Arthur Wellesley, Indian sepoys, and logistical prowessLead-up to Assaye: The Treaty of Bassein, Maratha-British diplomacy, and campaign maneuversThe battlefield: Terrain, climate, and strategic optionsThe battle unfolds: Surprise encounters, flanking maneuvers, massed artillery, discipline under fireLeadership and morale: Command breakdowns vs. individual heroism on both sidesThe outcome: Heavy losses, psychological aftermath, and the reshaping of Indian and British military futuresThe panel considers how the mix of European mercenaries and Indian soldiers within the Maratha army both enhanced and undermined its fighting ability at Assaye; what the leadership style of Arthur Wellesley at Assaye—and the razor-thin margin of his victory—reveal about the nature of military success and reputation in the colonial era; and, in a battle filled with confusion, split-second decisions, and shifting morale, the role of discipline, training, and individual initiative in determining battles like these.Help us produce more episodes by supporting the Napoleonic Quarterly on Patreon: patreon.com/napoleonicquarterly

Wohlstand für Alle
Ep. 314: Von der Boston Tea Party zu Donald Trump

Wohlstand für Alle

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 13, 2025 40:45


Aufstände gegen Zölle und Steuern, eine irrlichternde Großmacht, Eliten, die populistische Töne anschlagen, um ihre Interessen durchzusetzen. Willkommen in der Gegenwart oder im Jahr 1773, im Jahr der Boston Tea Party. Die britischen Kriege gegen Frankreich hatten enorme Schulden verursacht, weshalb London 1765 die umstrittene Stempelsteuer einführte. Die Kolonien in Amerika, ohne Vertretung im Parlament, sahen darin einen Verstoß gegen das Prinzip „No taxation without representation“ und reagierten mit Boykotten und Protesten. Zwar zog Großbritannien viele Steuern zurück, behielt jedoch den Tee-Zoll bei. Die Krise der East India Company führte 1773 außerdem zu dem unausgegorenen Plan, deren Tee durch Steuererstattung günstiger als den holländischen Schmuggeltee zu machen – verbunden mit einem Handelsmonopol für wenige ausgewählte Importeure. Für amerikanische Konsumenten wäre der Tee eher billiger geworden, doch es regte sich der Widerstand in Teilen der Elite, schließlich wurden von den Sons of Liberty in Boston 342 Kisten Tee ins Hafenbecken geworfen. Die Boston Tea Party gilt bis heute als Anti-Steuer-Protest, obwohl sie vor allem das Resultat von Handelsinteressen war, die sich mit einem breiten Freiheitsdrang und viel Populismus verbanden und bis heute das amerikanische Selbstverständnis prägen. Mehr dazu von Ole Nymoen und Wolfgang M. Schmitt in der neuen Folge von „Wohlstand für Alle“. Literatur: Wesley S. Griswold: The Night the Revolution Began. The Boston Tea Party, S. Greene Press. Alexander Thiele: Der konstituierte Staat. Eine Verfassungsgeschichte der Neuzeit, Campus. Joseph J. Thorndike: "A Tax Revolt or Revolting Taxes?", online verfügbar unter: https://www.taxnotes.com/tax-history-project/tax-revolt-or-revolting-taxes/2005/12/20/y97m?highlight=boston%20tea%20party. Termine: Wolfgang tritt gemeinsam mit Stefan am 23.8. in Frankfurt auf: https://diekaes.reservix.de/tickets-die-neuen-zwanziger-sonderformat-liveshow-in-frankfurt-am-main-saalbau-bornheim-buergerhaus-am-23-8-2025/e2373505 Wolfgang ist am 6.9. auf einem Podcast-Festival in Zürich zu erleben, vergünstigte Tickets gibt es mit dem Code "APOKALYPSEJETZT": https://eventfrog.ch/de/p/festivals/weitere-festivals/theolounge-mit-wolfgang-m-schmitt-und-manuel-schmid-7332662809740711767.html?showAccesscodeCatsOnly=true Unsere Zusatzinhalte könnt ihr bei Apple Podcasts, Steady und Patreon hören. Vielen Dank! Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/wohlstand-f%C3%BCr-alle/id1476402723 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/oleundwolfgang Steady: https://steadyhq.com/de/oleundwolfgang/about

popular Wiki of the Day
Berners Street hoax

popular Wiki of the Day

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 12, 2025 2:23


pWotD Episode 3023: Berners Street hoax Welcome to popular Wiki of the Day, spotlighting Wikipedia's most visited pages, giving you a peek into what the world is curious about today.With 88,264 views on Monday, 11 August 2025 our article of the day is Berners Street hoax.The Berners Street hoax was perpetrated by the writer Theodore Hook in Westminster (now part of London) in 1810. After several weeks of preparation he made an apparently spontaneous bet with a friend that he could transform any property into the most talked-about address in London. Hook spent six weeks sending between a thousand and four thousand letters to tradespeople and businesses ordering deliveries of their goods and services to 54 Berners Street, Westminster, at various times on 27 November 1810. Several well-known people were also invited to call on the address, including the chairmen of the Bank of England and the East India Company, the Duke of Gloucester and the Lord Mayor of London.Hook and his friends rented rooms in the house opposite number 54 to view proceedings. Chimney sweeps began arriving at the address at 5:00 am on the day, followed by hundreds of representatives of several trades and businesses, including auctioneers, undertakers, grocers, butchers, bakers, pastry chefs and dancing masters; goods deliveries included organs, furniture, coal, wedding cakes, food, drink and a coffin. The police were called to try and manage the crowd but they were not able to clear the street until after the final influx of visitors at 5:00 pm: domestic servants who thought they were to be interviewed for a job.Hook was unidentified at the time, but admitted his involvement in a semi-autobiographical novel published twenty-five years after the event. The hoax was repeated across Britain and Paris, and was retold on stage, in song and by cartoonists.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 01:38 UTC on Tuesday, 12 August 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Berners Street hoax on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm standard Justin.

New Books in History
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

New Books in History

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 11, 2025 85:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

featured Wiki of the Day
Berners Street hoax

featured Wiki of the Day

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 11, 2025 2:24


fWotD Episode 3020: Berners Street hoax Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia's finest articles.The featured article for Monday, 11 August 2025, is Berners Street hoax.The Berners Street hoax was perpetrated by the writer Theodore Hook in London in 1810. After several weeks of preparation he made an apparently spontaneous bet with a friend that he could transform any property into the most talked-about address in London. Hook spent six weeks sending between a thousand and four thousand letters to tradespeople and businesses ordering deliveries of their goods and services to 54 Berners Street, London, at various times on 27 November 1810. Several well-known people were also invited to call on the address, including the chairmen of the Bank of England and the East India Company, the Duke of Gloucester and the Lord Mayor of London.Hook and his friends rented rooms in the house opposite number 54 to view proceedings. Chimney sweeps began arriving at the address at 5:00 am on the day, followed by hundreds of representatives of several trades and businesses, including auctioneers, undertakers, grocers, butchers, bakers, pastry chefs and dancing masters; goods deliveries included organs, furniture, coal, wedding cakes, food, drink and a coffin. The police were called to try and manage the crowd but they were not able to clear the street until after the final influx of visitors at 5:00 pm: domestic servants who thought they were to be interviewed for a job.Hook was unidentified at the time, but admitted his involvement in a semi-autobiographical novel published twenty-five years after the event. The hoax was repeated across Britain and Paris, and was retold on stage, in song and by cartoonists.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:55 UTC on Monday, 11 August 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Berners Street hoax on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm generative Danielle.

New Books Network
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

New Books Network

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 89:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

New Books in South Asian Studies
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

New Books in South Asian Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 89:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/south-asian-studies

New Books in the History of Science
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

New Books in the History of Science

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 89:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Exchanges: A Cambridge UP Podcast
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

Exchanges: A Cambridge UP Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 89:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making.

New Books in British Studies
Jessica Ratcliff, "Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution" (Cambridge UP, 2025))

New Books in British Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 28, 2025 89:51


In the book Monopolizing Knowledge: The East India Company and Britain's Second Scientific Revolution (Cambridge UP, 2025), author Jessica Ratcliff traces the changing practices of knowledge accumulation and management at the British East India Company, focusing on the Company's library, museum, and colleges in Britain. Although these institutions were in Britain, they were funded by taxes from British India and they housed, so it was argued, the “national” collections of British India. The book examines how these institutions emerged from the Company's unique form of monopoly-based colonial capitalism. It then argues that this “Company science” would go on to shape and eventually become absorbed into Britain's public (i.e. state-funded) science in the later nineteenth century. Soumyadeep Guha is a PhD candidate in the History Department at the State University of New York, Binghamton, with research interests in Agrarian History, the History of Science and Technology, and Global History, focusing on 19th and 20th century India. His MA dissertation, War, Science and Survival Technologies: The Politics of Nutrition and Agriculture in Late Colonial India, explored how wartime imperatives shaped scientific and agricultural policy during the Second World War in India. Currently, his working on his PhD dissertation on the histories of rice and its production between colonial and early post-colonial Bengal, examining the entangled trajectories of agrarian change, scientific knowledge, and state-making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/british-studies

Colonial Era to Present Day History Buff
Getting Acquainted With The British East India Company

Colonial Era to Present Day History Buff

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 25, 2025 68:02


Learn what piece of legislation Parliament enacted into law come early May 1773. Get introduced to the British East India Company, originally known as the East India Company. Determine if the company was involved with other commodities besides tea. Understand why smuggled tea posed such a huge problem for both England & East India Company. Find out why John Hancock including others fiercely opposed the newest legislation involving tea. Learn who became the tea recipients. Get an in depth analysis behind when the transporting of East India Company Tea took place including its end user destinations. Get introduced to the following ships of Dartmouth, Eleanor, & Beaver. Learn what Dartmouth & Beaver were originally built to transport. Go behind the scenes and discover where Dartmouth & Beaver were located come summer 1773 including what both ships obtained cargo wise for their return trip back to the colonies. Determine when the first of the three ships arrived into Boston Harbor prior to December 16, 1773. Learn what strategy John Hancock developed to deter the first of the three ships from being unloaded under the cover of night. Agree if there were a specific set of days required to unload goods prior to deadline date of December 17, 1773. Find out if John Hancock was present at Griffin's Wharf come evening of December 16, 1773. Discover end outcome behind what unraveled on December 16. Learn who went on to replace Thomas Hutchinson as Massachusetts's new governor come May 1774. Determine exactly how long it took for news to reach England following aftermath of Boston Tea Party Incident. Discover what Parliament does in response to what happened from December 1773 come early 1774. Learn what major meeting assembly event took place come September 5, 1774 and whether or not John Hancock himself attended the event. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Past Present Future
Politics on Trial: Warren Hastings vs the British Empire

Past Present Future

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 20, 2025 64:14


To start our new instalment of episodes about the most consequential political trials in history David explores the trial of the eighteenth century: the impeachment of Warren Hastings that ran in the British parliament from 1788-95. Hastings had been Governor-General of Bengal, controlling much of India for Britain and for the East India Company and making himself and many others rich in the process. So why did his former allies turn on him? Why did his trial last for seven years? Why did it end up as a festival of hypocrisy and madness? And why would its closest twenty-first century parallel be the impeachment of Elon Musk? Out now on PPF+: Part 2 of David's conversation with Alexander Douglas in which they talk about how Silicon Valley took a philosophical concept of identity and turned it into a commodity to be marketed. Plus, how should we think about ‘impostor syndrome'? To get this and all our bonus episodes plus ad-free listening sign up now to PPF+ https://www.ppfideas.com/join-ppf-plus For all the information about our autumn season of screenings and live recordings, 'Films of Ideas', and to book tickets, go to our website: https://www.ppfideas.com/events Next time in Politics on Trial: Louis XVI vs the People Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

New Books Network
Jessica Patterson, "Religion, Enlightenment and Empire: British Interpretations of Hinduism in the Eighteenth Century"

New Books Network

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2025 40:40


In the second half of the eighteenth century, several British East India Company servants published accounts of what they deemed to be the original and ancient religion of India. Drawing on what are recognised today as the texts and traditions of Hinduism, these works fed into a booming enlightenment interest in Eastern philosophy. At the same time, the Company's aggressive conquest of Bengal was facing a crisis of legitimacy and many of the prominent political minds of the day were turning their attention to the question of empire. In this original study, Jessica Patterson situates these Company works on the ‘Hindu religion' in the twin contexts of enlightenment and empire. In doing so, she uncovers the central role of heterodox religious approaches to Indian religions for enlightenment thought, East India Company policy and contemporary ideas of empire. Dr Jessica Patterson is an Assistant Professor in History and Politics at the University of Cambridge. The host, Shruti Jain, is a PhD candidate at SUNY Binghamton University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

New Books in Hindu Studies
Jessica Patterson, "Religion, Enlightenment and Empire: British Interpretations of Hinduism in the Eighteenth Century"

New Books in Hindu Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2025 40:40


In the second half of the eighteenth century, several British East India Company servants published accounts of what they deemed to be the original and ancient religion of India. Drawing on what are recognised today as the texts and traditions of Hinduism, these works fed into a booming enlightenment interest in Eastern philosophy. At the same time, the Company's aggressive conquest of Bengal was facing a crisis of legitimacy and many of the prominent political minds of the day were turning their attention to the question of empire. In this original study, Jessica Patterson situates these Company works on the ‘Hindu religion' in the twin contexts of enlightenment and empire. In doing so, she uncovers the central role of heterodox religious approaches to Indian religions for enlightenment thought, East India Company policy and contemporary ideas of empire. Dr Jessica Patterson is an Assistant Professor in History and Politics at the University of Cambridge. The host, Shruti Jain, is a PhD candidate at SUNY Binghamton University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/indian-religions

New Books in Religion
Jessica Patterson, "Religion, Enlightenment and Empire: British Interpretations of Hinduism in the Eighteenth Century"

New Books in Religion

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2025 40:40


In the second half of the eighteenth century, several British East India Company servants published accounts of what they deemed to be the original and ancient religion of India. Drawing on what are recognised today as the texts and traditions of Hinduism, these works fed into a booming enlightenment interest in Eastern philosophy. At the same time, the Company's aggressive conquest of Bengal was facing a crisis of legitimacy and many of the prominent political minds of the day were turning their attention to the question of empire. In this original study, Jessica Patterson situates these Company works on the ‘Hindu religion' in the twin contexts of enlightenment and empire. In doing so, she uncovers the central role of heterodox religious approaches to Indian religions for enlightenment thought, East India Company policy and contemporary ideas of empire. Dr Jessica Patterson is an Assistant Professor in History and Politics at the University of Cambridge. The host, Shruti Jain, is a PhD candidate at SUNY Binghamton University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

Exchanges: A Cambridge UP Podcast
Jessica Patterson, "Religion, Enlightenment and Empire: British Interpretations of Hinduism in the Eighteenth Century"

Exchanges: A Cambridge UP Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2025 40:40


In the second half of the eighteenth century, several British East India Company servants published accounts of what they deemed to be the original and ancient religion of India. Drawing on what are recognised today as the texts and traditions of Hinduism, these works fed into a booming enlightenment interest in Eastern philosophy. At the same time, the Company's aggressive conquest of Bengal was facing a crisis of legitimacy and many of the prominent political minds of the day were turning their attention to the question of empire. In this original study, Jessica Patterson situates these Company works on the ‘Hindu religion' in the twin contexts of enlightenment and empire. In doing so, she uncovers the central role of heterodox religious approaches to Indian religions for enlightenment thought, East India Company policy and contemporary ideas of empire. Dr Jessica Patterson is an Assistant Professor in History and Politics at the University of Cambridge. The host, Shruti Jain, is a PhD candidate at SUNY Binghamton University.

Write About Now
The Truth Behind One of History's Most Misunderstood Men

Write About Now

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2025 50:26


Captain William Kidd is one of the most famous names in pirate lore. But what if he wasn't actually a pirate at all? In this episode, bestselling author and scientist Samuel Marquis joins me to talk about his new book Captain Kidd: A Story of Treasure and Betrayal. Marquis has a personal stake in the story — he's Captain Kidd's ninth great grandson. We talk about Kidd's rise from colonial sea captain to pirate-hunter, the murky politics of the time, his dramatic trial in London, and the love story that's rarely told. Marquis argues Kidd was less Blackbeard and more fall guy — a man caught in a scandalous power struggle between the English crown, shady investors, and the East India Company.  Subscribe to Jon's Substack Small Talk  This episode is sponsored by AG1. 

Short History Of...
The East India Company

Short History Of...

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 13, 2025 59:36


Over 400 years ago, a bold commercial venture was established to allow an ambitious group of English merchants to send ships halfway around the world in search of spices, skills, and profit. It was known as The East India Company. Over the next 250 years, the Company grew into one of the most powerful and controversial enterprises in history. At its height, it had the powers of a sovereign state - fighting wars, extracting wealth, and changing the fate of nations.  But how could a private company be allowed to wield so much control? What are the consequences when capital rules without conscience? And what does its rise and fall reveal about the economic and political empires that shape our world today? This is a Short History Of The East India Company. A Noiser Production, written by Sean Coleman. With thanks to Dr Mark Williams, a Reader in Early Modern History at Cardiff University, who has published widely on the English East India Company.  Get every episode of Short History Of... a week early with Noiser+. You'll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser podcast network. Click the subscription banner at the top of the feed to get started. Or go to noiser.com/subscriptions Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Farm Podcast Mach II
Westphalian Blues & Future Visions Part II w/ Jarrad Hope & Recluse

The Farm Podcast Mach II

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 7, 2025 68:40


Peace of Westphalia, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, archives, decentralization as a way of preserving archives, Byzantine Fault Tolerance(BFT), how BFT applies to Bitcoin, smart contracts, Decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), how DOAs could prevent another FTX, how blockchain technology would work as governance, Balaji Srinivasan, network state, network state vs a cyberstate, cyberstate vs a nation-state, the pitfalls facing a blockchain community, the Ethereum DOA hack, Neo-Medievalism and what it means for the nation-state, the rights of a blockchain community, warfare, psychological operations, the use of PMCs in Africa during the 90s, can blockchains defend themselves against a neo-East India Company?, soft war and cyberwar, EMPs, how can blockchains counter EMP threats, will a cyberstate become more viable with the elapse of the Boomers, the Bay area Rationalist community as a social experimentMusic by: Keith Allen Dennishttps://keithallendennis.bandcamp.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan Snow's History Hit
Pirates: Piracy in the South China Seas

Dan Snow's History Hit

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 6, 2025 38:48


Zheng Yi Sao was a pirate leader so formidable that she made Blackbeard and Captain Morgan look like amateurs. From humble beginnings as a sex worker in Canton, she rose to command a vast pirate fleet that wrought havoc in the South China Sea. She took on the Qing Dynasty, the Portuguese and the East India Company and still managed to walk away free.In the second episode of our 'Pirates' mini-series, Dan is joined by Andrew Choong, Curator of Historic Photographs & Ship Plans at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, to uncover the story of one of history's most successful buccaneers.You can discover more about the exhibition and book tickets here.Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore.Join Dan and the team for the first-ever LIVE recording of Dan Snow's History Hit on Friday 12th September 2025! To celebrate 10 years of the podcast, Dan is putting on a special show of signature storytelling, never-before-heard anecdotes from his often stranger-than-fiction career as well as answering the burning questions you've always wanted to ask! Get tickets here, before they sell out: https://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/words/dan-snows-history-hit/You can now find Dan Snow's History Hit on YouTube! Watch episodes every Friday here.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.We'd love to hear your feedback - you can take part in our podcast survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on.You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

Willy Willy Harry Stee...
Summer Book Club - The Sun Rising

Willy Willy Harry Stee...

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 3, 2025 37:20


Yes, Summer is here and for many, that means a break and the chance to dig into a good book.In this special set of episodes, to run through July and August, Charlie Higson delves headfirst into some of the current crop of history books and invites the authors onto the podcast.In 1603 England was on the edge of crisis. Queen Elizabeth I had died, bringing the Tudor line to an end.Enter King James, who reached London after an unprecedented procession from Scotland. James established a new dynasty on the English throne and the first 'united' kingdom of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales was born. The Stuarts had arrived.But first, this new 'Great Britain' had to play catch up. England was behind, but James's global ambitions began to shift the tide. Ships departed London for America, Russia, Persia, India and Japan, and as the fledgling East India Company became ever closer to the crown, the seeds of the future British Empire were sown.Professor Anna Whitelock's new book The Sun Rising: James I and the Dawn of a Global Britain tells this fascinating story and is the subject of this episode of Willy Willy Harry Stee. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Worlds Turned Upside Down
Episode 16: The Tea

Worlds Turned Upside Down

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 30, 2025 68:39 Transcription Available


British Americans' unquenchable thirst for tea and a looming financial disaster for the East India Company leads to a new crisis in North America when seven tea-laden ships are sent to the colonies in 1773, inspiring Bostonians to dump much of the cargo in Boston Harbor.  Featuring: Benjamin Carp, James Fichter, Deepthi Murali, and Mary Beth Norton. Voice Actors: Craig Gallagher, Margaret Hughes, Grace Mallon, Norman Rodger, Annabelle Spencer, and John Turner. Narrated by Dr. Jim Ambuske. Music by Artlist.io This episode was made possible with support from a 2024 grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities.  Help other listeners find the show by leaving a 5-Star Rating and Review on Apple, Spotify, Podchaser, or our website. Follow the series on Facebook or Instagram. Worlds Turned Upside Down is a production of R2 Studios at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.

Consistently Eccentric
The Second Coming of Robert Clive - Trying to get out of a black hole (Robert Clive Part Two)

Consistently Eccentric

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 22, 2025 74:42


We are returning to our tale of Robert Clive, picking back up with his return to England as a celebrity and the way he managed to blow through a fortune in only two years.Luckily the East India Company were more than happy to welcome him back with open arms, provided he agree to settle down into the life of an administrator in Madras......so naturally part two features pirates, political coups and lots of battles, fought in the traditional Robert Clive manner: All attack, all the time.But will Robert be able to revive his fortune? Will he finally lose a fight? And how big a bribe should you extort from your puppet rulers?We answer all these questions and more!Guest Host: Ollie Green Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Retrospectors
Inside The Black Hole of Calcutta

The Retrospectors

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 20, 2025 12:21


When the East India Company surrendered Fort William (in modern-day Kolkata) to the Nawab of Bengal on 20th June, 1756, dozens of British captives were imprisoned in a cell measuring only 18ft long and 14ft wide, with just two tiny windows - ‘the Black Hole of Calcutta'. Among the prisoners was John Zephaniah Holwell, whose pamphlet describing the terrors of the airless room caused a sensation back in Britain and became a cause célèbre in the idealization of imperialism in India. Holwell claimed 123 men lost their lives in the cell, although it is now thought the number of deaths was exaggerated. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly uncover Holwell's mixed feelings around colonialism; consider how ‘the black hole of Calcutta' became an enduring term of phrase; and reveal what connected Kolkata with Olly's home village in Hertfordshire… Further Reading: • ‘A Genuine Narrative of the Deplorable Deaths of the English Gentlemen, and Others, who Were Suffocated in the Black-Hole in Fort-William, at Calcutta, in the Kingdom of Bengal, in the Night Succeeding the 20th Day of June, 1756, in a Letter to a Friend - By John Zephaniah Holwell' (A. Millar, 1758): https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/A_Genuine_Narrative_of_the_Deplorable_De/xGg0Cg9WVNcC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Holwell+%2B+Calcutta&printsec=frontcover • ‘The Black Hole of Calcutta – Kolkata, India' (Atlas Obscura): https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-black-hole-of-calcutta • ‘The Story of The Black Hole Of Calcutta - Britain's Secret Homes' (ITV Daytime, 2016): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbjFxITtXwU This episode first aired in 2021 Love the show? Support us!  Join 

Empire
265. Danish Greenland: Eradicating Inuit Culture (Ep 3)

Empire

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 18, 2025 42:33


How did the Danish missionary Hans Egede combine capitalism and religion in his colonisation of Greenland in the 1700s? Why have we forgotten about Danish colonialism in India and Greenland? When did Greenlanders gain self-determination?  Anita and William discuss how the Danes colonised Greenland in the 18th century, using a system not too dissimilar to the East India Company: royal monopolies and efforts to eradicate Indigenous culture.  ----------------- Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members' chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com. ----------------- Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk Blue Sky: @empirepoduk X: @empirepoduk Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tin Foil Hat With Sam Tripoli
#894: Colonizing the Mind: Schooling, Empire & Control with Richard Grove

Tin Foil Hat With Sam Tripoli

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 12, 2025 121:36


In Episode #894, Richard Grove joins to unravel the long-running conspiracy to undermine critical thinking, hijack American education, and steer society toward technocracy and surveillance. From the East India Company's role in subverting the American republic to the Rothschild-backed colonization of Palestine, this episode traces the hidden threads of empire, AI control, and globalist agendas. Richard reflects on his time with the legendary John Taylor Gatto, exposing how compulsory schooling became a tool for obedience, not empowerment. History, geopolitics, and the future of freedom—all decoded in one explosive conversation. Check out Richard Grove's special gift for Swarm: https://bit.ly/Richard-Grove-TFH-Gifts Please subscribe to the new Tin Foil Hat youtube channel:  https://www.youtube.com/@TinFoilHatYoutube Check out Sam Tripoli new crowd work special "Black Crack Robots" now for free. https://youtu.be/_FKugOeYaLc Check out Sam Tripoli's 2nd New Crowd Work Special “Potty Mouth” on YouTube for free. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22j3Ds5ArjM Grab your copy of the 2nd issue of the Chaos Twins now and join the Army Of Chaos: https://bit.ly/415fDfY Check out Sam "DoomScrollin with Sam Tripoli and Midnight Mike" Every Tuesday At 4pm pst on Youtube, X Twitter, Rumble and Rokfin! Join the WolfPack at Wise Wolf Gold and Silver and start hedging your financial position by investing in precious metals now!  Go to samtripoli.gold and use the promo code "TinFoil" and we thank Tony for supporting our show. CopyMyCrypto.com: The ‘Copy my Crypto' membership site shows you the coins that the youtuber ‘James McMahon' personally holds - and allows you to copy him. So if you'd like to join the 1300 members who copy James, then stop what you're doing and head over to: CopyMyCrypto.com/TFH You'll not only find proof of everything I've said - but my listeners get full access for just $1 LiveLongerFormula.com: Check out LiveLongerFormula.com/sam — Christian is a longevity author and functional health expert who helps you fix your gut, detox, boost testosterone, and sleep better so you can thrive, not just survive. Watch his free masterclass on the 7 Deadly Health Fads, and if it clicks, book a free Metabolic Function Assessment to get to the root of your health issues.  Want to see Sam Tripoli live?  Get tickets at SamTripoli.com: Cleveland, OH:  Tin Foil Hat Comedy Live At Hilarities on June 13th https://hilarities.com/shows/310175   Pittsburgh, PA:  Tin Foil Hat Comedy Live At West View Fire Hall At 7pm on June 14th https://bit.ly/3GmbxaS   Pittsburgh, PA:  Swarm Tank Live At West View Fire Hall At 9pm on June 14th https://bit.ly/4jQWi8l   Boston, MA:  Tin Foil Hat Comedy Night Headlines Nick's Comedy Stop  August 1st https://www.nickscomedystop.com/event-details/special-event-tin-foil-hat-comedy-with-sam-tripoli-and-eddie-bravo-live   Broadbrook Ct: Tin Foil Hat Comedy and Swarm Tank at 8pm on August 2nd https://broadbrookoperahouse.thundertix.com/events/246069   Please check out Richard Grove's internet: Website: https://grandtheftworld.com Linktree: https://linktr.ee/richardgrove   Please check out Sam Tripoli's internet: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/samtripoli Please Follow Sam Tripoli's Stand Up Youtube Page: https://www.youtube.com/@SamTripoliComedy Please Follow Sam Tripoli's Comedy Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/samtripolicomedy/ Please Follow Sam Tripoli's Podcast Clip Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samtripolispodcastclips/   Thank you to our sponsors:  Cornbread Hemp: If you're looking for a healthier way to enjoy a carefree moment, you have to give Cornbread Hemp a try! They've created the first-ever USDA Organic THC gummy that's 100% legal. As a special offer for Tin Foil Hat listeners, you can get 30% off your first order! Just visit cornbreadhemp.com/TinFoil and use promo code TinFoil at checkout. Again that's cornbreadhemp.com/TinFoil and use code TinFoil for 30% off your first order. Cheers to a healthier happy hour HIMS: No man wants to lose his hair, but for men, it's actually very common. And now with Hims, the solution is simple. Try Hims' hair loss solutions and you'll be joining hundreds of thousands of subscribers who got their flow back.  Start your free online visit today at Hims dot com slash TINFOILHAT.  That's hims.com/TINFOILHAT for your personalized hair loss treatment options.    

Keen On Democracy
The Empire Strikes Back: Karen Hao on OpenAI as a Classic Colonial Power

Keen On Democracy

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 9, 2025 46:56


Karen Hao has been warning us about Sam Altman's OpenAI for a while now. In her bestselling Empire of AI, she argues that the Silicon Valley startup is a classic colonial power, akin to Britain's East India Company. Like those colonial merchants and policy makers who wrapped profit-seeking in civilizing missions, OpenAI cloaks its relentless scaling ambitions behind the noble goal of "ensuring artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity." But as Hao reveals, this pursuit comes at enormous cost—environmental devastation, exploited labor, and the extraction of data from communities worldwide. The parallels are striking: a private corporation accumulating unprecedented resources and power, operating with minimal oversight while externalizing the harms of its empire-building to those least able to resist. Five Key Takeaways 1. OpenAI is a Modern Corporate Empire Hao argues OpenAI operates like the British East India Company—a private corporation wrapped in a "civilizing mission" that extracts resources globally while externalizing costs to vulnerable communities. The company's stated goal of "benefiting all humanity" serves as ideological cover for profit-driven expansion.2. AI Development Didn't Have to Be This Destructive Before OpenAI's "scaling at all costs" approach, researchers were developing smaller, more efficient AI models using curated datasets. OpenAI deliberately chose quantity over quality, leading to massive computational requirements and environmental damage that could have been avoided.3. The Climate and Social Costs Are Staggering McKinsey estimates global energy grids need to add 2-6 times California's annual consumption to support AI infrastructure expansion. This means retired coal plants staying online, new methane turbines in working-class communities, and data centers consuming public drinking water in drought-prone areas.4. The Business Model May Be Unsustainable Despite raising $40 billion (Silicon Valley's largest private investment), OpenAI hasn't demonstrated how to monetize at that scale. Subscriptions don't cover operational costs, leading to considerations of thousand-dollar monthly fees or surveillance-based advertising models.5. Resistance is Possible and Already Happening Communities worldwide are successfully pushing back—from Chilean residents stalling Google data centers for five years to artists suing over intellectual property theft. Hao argues collective action across AI's supply chain can force a shift toward more democratic, community-centered development.Karen Hao is an award-winning journalist covering the impacts of artificial intelligence on society. She writes for publications including The Atlantic and leads the Pulitzer Center's AI Spotlight Series, a program training thousands of journalists around the world on how to cover AI. She was formerly a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, covering American and Chinese tech companies, and a senior editor for AI at MIT Technology Review. Her work is regularly taught in universities and cited by governments. She has received numerous accolades for her coverage, including an American Humanist Media Award and American National Magazine Award for Journalists Under 30. She received her Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from MIT.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting the daily KEEN ON show, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy interview series. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.Keen On America is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

KPFA - Letters and Politics
The Corporate Origins of Colonialism: The East India Company

KPFA - Letters and Politics

Play Episode Listen Later May 7, 2025 49:09


Guest: William Dalrymple is the author of The Anarchy: The East India Company, Corporate Violence, and the Pillage of an Empire. The post The Corporate Origins of Colonialism: The East India Company appeared first on KPFA.

Empire
251. Victorian Narcos: Flooding China With Indian Opium (Ep 5)

Empire

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 30, 2025 57:18


Who were Jardine and Matheson? What was life like for workers growing opium in India? How does George Orwell relate to the East India Company opium trade?  William and Anita explore how William Jardine and James Matheson accumulated immense power and wealth by becoming international drug dealers in the 1830s… Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members' chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com.  Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk  Blue Sky: @empirepoduk  X: @empirepoduk Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Empire
248. Victorian Narcos: The Opium Agency (Ep 2)

Empire

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 21, 2025 46:10


How did Britain create a violent monopoly on opium production in India in the 1700s? What was the Opium Agency? Why did Chinese elites use opium during sex?  Anita and William discuss how the East India Company competed with other traders to sell Indian opium to China despite it being outlawed…  _____________ Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members' chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com.  Empire UK Live Tour: The podcast is going on a UK tour! William and Anita will be live on stage in Glasgow, Birmingham, York and Bristol, discussing how the British Empire continues to shape our everyday lives. Tickets are on sale NOW, to buy yours head to empirepoduk.com. Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk  Blue Sky: @empirepoduk  X: @empirepoduk Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Empire
247. Victorian Narcos: Tea Starts A Drug War (Ep 1)

Empire

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2025 39:17


How did the British taste for tea start a war over the right to sell drugs to China? When did tea become fashionable in Britain? How did the Dutch bring tea to India?  William and Anita explore how the nation's love of tea created a domino effect that led to the East India Company running a more prolific international drug cartel than Pablo Escobar…  _____________ Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members' chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com.  Empire UK Live Tour: The podcast is going on a UK tour! William and Anita will be live on stage in Glasgow, Birmingham, York and Bristol, discussing how the British Empire continues to shape our everyday lives. Tickets are on sale NOW, to buy yours head to empirepoduk.com. Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram: @empirepoduk  Blue Sky: @empirepoduk  X: @empirepoduk Assistant Producer: Becki Hills Producer: Anouska Lewis Senior Producer: Callum Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices