Audiobooks by Robert L. Kuhn

Join Pulitzer-Prize-winning, bestselling author Jared Diamond in asking some of the biggest questions of our existence. Do you create your own destiny? Or do you merely play whatever hand the universe has dealt you? This provocative audio series will stimulate your mind by raising these and other timeless questions about free will and determinism. As you analyze these competing philosophies, you will find that every answer raises fascinating new questions about morality, fate, consciousness, and the existence of a higher power. In this fascinating audio series, host Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn welcomes a total of 13 guest experts to discuss free will, identity, and the possibility of the afterlife. Each episode is crafted as a series of one-on-one interviews. Kuhn's interlocutors include Jared Diamond, Peter van Inwagen, and Daniel Clement Dennett III. A Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of field-spanning books on human societies, Diamond is a professor of geography at UCLA. Meanwhile, Notre Dame philosophy professor van Inwagen is a leading figure in contemporary metaphysics, philosophy of religion, and philosophy of action. Dennett, a philosophy professor and cognitive scientist, is director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University. Recent neuroscientific discoveries have fanned the flames of the free will debate. The implications of this debate are far-reaching and potentially paradigm-shifting. Explore its vital questions with the world's greatest minds. Note: Lectures 1 and 3-"Is Free Will an Illusion?" and "Why Is Free Will a Mystery?"-were funded in part by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. This course is part of the Learn25 collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook

How to Wrap Your Head Around the Universe

Join a host of brilliant minds, including Nobel physicist Steven Weinberg, in a mind-bending exploration of the cosmos There is little more humbling than contemplating the magnitude of the known universe. That is, until you consider the possibility of worlds beyond that universe. How did our universe begin, and when and how will it end? Is the universe infinitely expanding, as the theory of cosmic inflation insists? If alien life exists, what are the chances of our encountering it, and what would such an encounter mean for humanity? Now, you can sit in on conversations with the world's leading cosmology experts as they answer these and many other fascinating questions. In this captivating audio series, Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn, creator and host of the hit PBS series Closer to Truth, probes the origins and magnitude of the cosmos with 13 luminaries in astrophysics, cosmology, and astronomy. Kuhn's esteemed interviewees include Astronomer Royal Martin Rees, an expert on galaxy formation and a leader in examining humanity's effects on the universe, as well as Avi Loeb, professor of theoretical physics at Harvard University, known for his groundbreaking research on black holes. You'll also hear from no fewer than four Nobel laureates, among them astrophysicist Steven Weinberg, celebrated for his work on elementary particles. Experience Kuhn's thought-provoking interviews on the cosmos today. This course is part of the Learn25 collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Cosmos: Exploring the Universe's Biggest Mysteries

Join three Nobel laureates in physics and cosmology in a captivating quest to solve the mysteries of the universe. Is time travel possible? What does it mean to say the universe is fine-tuned? Could our universe be fake? Or, if it is real, is it part of a multiverse? In an attempt to solve such mysteries, leading experts attempt to break the world down to its smallest particles and build it back up-to understand the universe by understanding the atom. In this compelling audio course, Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn, creator and host of the hit PBS series Closer to Truth, examines the riddles of the universe with 13 luminaries in physics, cosmology, astronomy, philosophy, mathematics, and chemistry. Kuhn's interlocutors include three Nobel laureates: University of California, San Francisco physics professor David Gross, recognized for his contributions to particle physics and string theory; Massachusetts Institute of Technology physics professor Frank Wilczek, celebrated for his research in fundamental particle physics, cosmology, and the physics of materials; and Saul Perlmutter, head of the Supernova Cosmology project at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. You'll learn a great deal from Kuhn's interviewees, but you'll also join them in marveling at what remains unknown. For, as Kuhn says, "the more we comprehend, the greater the mystery." This course is part of the Learn25 collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook

What is Religion Really? Surprising Answers from Leading Thinkers

Join Templeton Prize recipient Alvin Plantinga, perhaps the world's greatest living Christian philosopher, and a host of other brilliant minds in discussing the persistent questions and quandaries of religious belief. Whether you're a devoted believer, a staunch atheist, or a wavering skeptic, you likely have unanswered questions about religion. If you adhere to a certain religion, you may wonder how the tenets of a different faith may intersect or conflict with yours. If you are a nonbeliever or agnostic, you may wonder how others can have such unwavering faith. In this riveting audio series, Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn welcomes 13 esteemed guest experts to help him tackle religion's most confounding questions. Each episode compiles a series of Kuhn's one-on-one interviews with some of the world's greatest living thinkers. Among Kuhn's interlocutors are philosophers, theologians, and novelists. They include Oxford philosophy professor Richard Swinburne, author of The Existence of God, a celebrated defense of theism; renowned Anglican priest and Cambridge professor emeritus of systematic theology Sarah Coakley; and Templeton Prize recipient Alvin Plantinga, analytic philosopher and professor at the University of Notre Dame. Searching for and questioning the evidence of God's existence is a quintessential part of the human condition. And as Kuhn discovers, the matter is far more complex than whether we have or lack faith. Join Kuhn for this provocative and meaningful series today. This course is part of the Learn25 collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook

What Is Human Nature? Surprising Insights into Free Will, Personal Identity, and Existence

Join Pulitzer-Prize-winning, bestselling author Jared Diamond in asking some of the biggest questions of our existence. Do you create your own destiny? Or do you merely play whatever hand the universe has dealt you? This provocative audieries will stimulate your mind by raising these and other timeless questions about free will and determinism. As you analyze these competing philosophies, you will find that every answer raises fascinating new questions about morality, fate, consciousness, and the existence of a higher power. In this series, host Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn welcomes a total of 13 guest experts to discuss free will, identity, and the possibility of the afterlife. Each episode is crafted as a series of one-on-one interviews. Kuhn's interlocutors include Jared Diamond, Peter van Inwagen, and Daniel Clement Dennett III. A Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of field-spanning books on human societies, Diamond is a professor of geography at UCLA. Meanwhile, Notre Dame philosophy professor van Inwagen is a leading figure in contemporary metaphysics, philosophy of religion, and philosophy of action. Dennett, a philosophy professor and cognitive scientist, is director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University. Recent neuroscientific discoveries have fanned the flames of the free will debate. The implications of this debate are far-reaching and potentially paradigm-shifting. Explore its vital questions with the world's greatest minds. Note: Lectures 1 and 3-"Is Free Will an Illusion?" and "Why Is Free Will a Mystery?"-were funded in part by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. This course is part of the Learn25 Collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook

God: Big Questions, Surprising Answers

Join NIH Director Francis Collins and other luminaries as they explain their answers to the question "Does God Exist?" Do you believe God exists? This bold audio series invites you to join some of the world's leading thinkers in taking on this profound question. In 13 riveting episodes, your host, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, tackles this topic in one-on-one interviews with leading figures across fields. Among many other provocative questions, Kuhn asks, Does belief in God need to be justified? Does God make sense? and What are the most persuasive arguments for atheism? A gifted moderator, he creates equilibrium through his even-handed questions and eagerness to give everyone a seat at the table. You'll hear from Christian, Jewish, and Muslim philosophers as well as prominent atheists. Topping the chart of Christian philosophers are Alvin Plantinga and Peter van Inwagen, both professors at the University of Notre Dame. From the atheistic camp you'll meet the founder of The Skeptics Society, Michael Brant Shermer. You'll also hear from thinkers who bridge the science/religion divide, such as Robert John Russell, Director of the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences. Addressing issues ranging from the problem of evil to how the discovery of alien life might affect our belief systems, this series will engage your mind and heart in some of the universe's biggest questions. This course is part of the Learn25 Collection.

Robert L. Kuhn (Author), Robert L. Kuhn (Narrator)

Audiobook