Radio In Our Time is a weekly live BBC radio discussion programme in which the broadcaster Melvyn Bragg and several academics elucidate a topic of a philosophical, historical, cultural or scientific nature. It's been on air since October 1998 and its format has changed little in that time, a moment in the week to listen to a group of very clever people saying some very clever things for forty-five minutes.
The series has clocked up nearly a thousand episodes and its inevitable with an archive that rich that a listener is more likely to catch-up on instalments which cover subjects with which they might casually be interested or being studying at school or university. Except the website only sorts the episodes into very broad topics, culture, history, philosophy, religion and science so someone wanting to hear about mathematics or theatre has to wade through many pages of other topics.
Which is why, with my librarian's brain, I hit upon the idea of sorting the episodes using a library classification system and after the comparing a few decided Dewey Decimal Classification system (DDC) would suit the purpose because it's less complicated to work through than others and will be most familiar to readers due to its prevalence in public libraries. Also Library of Congress can be astonishingly obtuse with all of its letters AND numbers.
Find below the results of my free time this past week and a half. As you can see it's pretty logically ordered, a combination of following an abridged copy of DDC designed for small libraries originally published in 1979, Classify (an experimental classification site which aggregates the choices of thousands of librarians across the planet) and this Wikipedia page which has the most recent names for class names and hierarchical divisions.
Classification is automatically a compromise. You're applying a numerical label to an object which it wasn't really designed for, so on some occasions, especially with something like In Our Time which revels in obtuse topics, there isn't a perfect place for the episode to go. Also I've only used the a heading when it pertains to an episode which is why it looks like there are gaps in the sequence. Melvyn and the gang haven't covered every sub-division in the DDC.
Every title below links to the episode's page on the Radio 4 website. The original plan was to include the "shelf" number for each episode in-line but it looked messy and unreadable so they're relegated to labels when you hover your mouse pointer over the links. You may find that the odd mouse-over DDC number doesn't match the section its in - I've moved a couple of things around so that they make sense in this list and have forgotten to edit the number. Sigh, I'll check it again.
You might also like to hear, Melvyn talk to Mishal Husain on the Today programme to mark the 1000th episode.
Anyway, I hope this is of some use to you and if it is, please consider leaving a Ko-Fi donation. The most recent episodes are here and I'll try to keep this list updated as much as possible.
000 COMPUTER SCIENCE, KNOWLEDGE AND SYSTEMS
001 Knowledge
004 Data processing and computer science
006 Special computer methods (e.g. AI, multimedia, VR)
027 General libraries
030 Encyclopedias and books of facts
100 PHILOSOPHY AND PSYCHOLOGY
100 Philosophy
The Consolations of Philosophy
111 Ontology
114 Space
115 Time
121 Epistemology (Theory of knowledge)
123 Determinism and indeterminism
128 Humankind
133 Specific topics in parapsychology and occultism
141 Idealism and related systems and doctrines
142 Critical philosophy
144 Humanism and related systems and doctrines
145 Sensationalism
146 Naturalism and related systems and doctrines
149 Other philosophical systems and doctrines
150 Psychology
Neuroscience in the 20th Century
152 Sensory perception, movement, emotions, and physiological drives
153 Conscious mental processes and intelligence
154 Subconscious and altered states and processes
155 Differential and developmental psychology
160 Logic
170 Ethics
Nietzsche's Genealogy of Morality
171 Ethical systems
Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics
172 Political ethics
174 Occupational ethics
177 Ethics of social relations
179 Other ethical norms
180 Ancient, medieval & eastern philosophy
181 Eastern philosophy
182 Pre-Socratic Greek philosophies
183 Sophistic, Socratic, related Greek philosophies
184 Platonic philosophy
185 Aristotelian philosophy
186 Skeptic and Neoplatonic philosophies
187 Epicurean philosophy
188 Stoic philosophy
189 Medieval Western philosophy
190 Modern western philosophy
The Continental-Analytic Split
192 Philosophy of the British Isles
193 Philosophy of Germany and Austria
194 Philosophy of France
198 Philosophy of Scandinavia and Finland
199 Philosophy in other geographic areas
200 RELIGION
209 Sects and reform movements
210 Philosophy & theory of religion
223 Poetic books of Old Testament
226 Gospels and Acts
227 Epistles
228 Revelation (Apocalypse)
229 Apocrypha, pseudepigrapha, and inter-testamental works
230 Christianity & Christian theology
231 God
234 Salvation and grace
235 Spiritual beings
236 Eschatology
238 Creeds, confessions of faith, covenants, and catechisms
242 Devotional literature
248 Christian experience, practice, life
Margery Kempe and English Mysticism
262 Ecclesiology
264 Public worship
270 History of Christianity
271 Religious congregations and orders in church history
The Dissolution of the Monasteries
272 Persecutions in church history
273 Doctrinal controversies and heresies in general church history
283 Anglican churches
Titus Oates and his Popish Plot
284 Protestant denominations of Continental origin and related body
287 Methodist churches; churches related to Methodism
290 Other religions
William James's The Varieties of Religious Experience
291 Hinduism
292 Classical religion (Greek and Roman religion)
293 Germanic religion
294 Religions of Indic origin
295 Zoroastrianism (Mazdaism, Parseeism)
296 Judaism
297 Islam, Bábism and Baháʼí Faith
299 Religions not provided for elsewhere
300 SOCIAL SCIENCES
301 Sociology and anthropology
302 Social interaction
303 Social processes
Writing and Political Oppression
Cultural rights in the 20th Century
304 Factors affecting social behavior
305 Groups of people
306 Culture and institutions
Booth's Life and Labour Survey
307 Communities
The History of the City (1 of 2)
The History of the City (2 of 2)
310 Statistics
320 Political science
Machiavelli and the Italian City States
Tocqueville: Democracy in America
321 Systems of governments and states
322 Relation of state to organized groups and their members
323 Civil and political rights
324 The political process
325 International migration and colonization
326 Slavery and emancipation
329 Political movements and social change
330 Economics
The Economic Consequences of the Peace
The Theory of the Leisure Class
332 Financial economics
333 Economics of land and energy
335 Socialism and related systems
338 Production
The Enclosures of the 18th Century
340 Law
342 Constitutional and administrative law
351 Public administration
355 Military science
362 Social problems of and services to groups of people
363 Other social problems and services
History's relevance in the 20th century
370 Education
378 Higher education (Tertiary education)
381 Commerce (Trade)
382 International commerce (Foreign trade)
394 General customs
398 Folklore
400 LANGUAGE
401 Philosophy and theory, international languages
411 Writing systems of standard forms of languages
418 Standard usage (Prescriptive linguistics)
500 SCIENCE
500 Science
501 Philosophy and theory
502 Scientific Miscellany
506 Science Organizations and management
The History of the Royal Society
508 Natural history
509 History, geographic treatment, biography
Women and Enlightenment Science
510 Mathematics
The Unintended Consequences of Mathematics
Maths in the Early Islamic World
511 General principles of mathematics
Gödel's Incompleteness Theorems
512 Algebra
513 Arithmetic
514 Topology
515 Analysis
516 Geometry
519 Probabilities and applied mathematics
520 Astronomy
522 Techniques, procedures, apparatus, equipment, materials
523 Specific celestial bodies and phenomena
527 Celestial navigation
528 Ephemerides
529 Chronology
530 Physics
The Measurement problem in Physics
Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle
531 Classical mechanics
535 Light and related radiation
536 Heat
The Second Law of Thermodynamics
537 Electricity and electronics
538 Magnetism
539 Modern physics
540 Chemistry
543 Analytical chemistry
546 Inorganic chemistry
547 Organic chemistry
548 Crystallography
550 Earth sciences & geology
551 Geology, hydrology, meteorology
The Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum
553 Economic geology
560 Fossils & prehistoric life
567 Fossil cold-blooded vertebrates
571 Physiology
573 Specific physiological systems in animals, regional histology and physiology in animals
574 Biology
The Challenger Expedition 1872-1876
576 Genetics and evolution
Darwin: On the Origin of Species
Darwin: The Voyage of the Beagle
Darwin: On the Origins of Charles Darwin
577 Ecology
578 Natural history of organisms and related subjects
579 Natural history of microorganisms, fungi, algae
580 Plants (Botany)
589 Thallophytes and prokaryotes
591 Specific topics in natural history of animals
593 Miscellaneous marine and seashore invertebrates
594 Mollusca and Molluscoidea
597 Cold-blooded vertebrates
599 Mammalia (Mammals)
600 TECHNOLOGY
600 Technology
610 Medicine & health
611 Human anatomy, cytology, histology
612 Human physiology
613 Personal health and safety
614 Forensic medicine; incidence of injuries, wounds, disease; public preventive medicine
615 Pharmacology and therapeutics
616 Diseases
The Origins of Infectious Disease
618 Gynecology, obstetrics, pediatrics, geriatrics
620 Engineering and applied operations
621 Applied physics
623 Military and nautical engineering
625 Engineering of railroads, roads
628 Sanitary and municipal engineering
630 Agriculture
641 Food and drink
652 Processes of written communication
660 Chemical engineering
669 Metallurgy
680 Manufacture for specific uses
700 ARTS AND RECREATION
701 Philosophy and theory of fine and decorative arts
The Avant Garde's Decline and Fall in the 20th Century
709 History, geographic treatment, biography
710 Landscaping & area planning
720 Architecture
Architecture in the 20th Century
745 Decorative arts
750 History of Painting
Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People
Bruegel's The Fight Between Carnival and Lent
Giorgio Vasari's Lives of the Artists
760 Graphic arts
780 Music
781 General principles and musical forms
782 Vocal music
790 Sports, games & entertainment
791 Public performances
792 Stage presentations
Comedy in Ancient Greek Theatre
793 Indoor games and amusements
800 LITERATURE
808 Rhetoric and collections of literary texts from more than two literatures
809 History, description, critical appraisal of more than two literatures
810 American literature in English
811 American poetry in English
813 American fiction in English
818 American miscellaneous writings in English
Thoreau and the American Idyll
820 English & Old English literatures
Seventeenth Century Print Culture
821 English Poetry
The Charge of the Light Brigade
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Songs of Innocence and of Experience
822 English Drama
Shakespeare and Literary Criticism
Twelfth Night, or What You Will
Is Shakespeare History? The Romans
Is Shakespeare History? The Plantagenets
823 English Fiction
Elizabeth Gaskell's novel North and South
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Aldous Huxley's Brave New World
Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
824 English Essays
The Field of the Cloth of Gold
827 English Humour and Satire
828 English Miscellaneous Writings
829 Old English (Anglo-Saxon) literature
830 German & related literatures
831 German Poetry
832 German drama
Goethe and the Science of the Enlightenment
833 German fiction
839 Other Germanic literatures
841 French poetry
842 French drama
843 French fiction
844 French essays
851 Italian poetry
863 Spanish fiction
868 Spanish miscellaneous writings
869 Literatures of Portuguese and Galician languages
870 Latin & Italic literatures
871 Latin poetry
873 Latin epic poetry and fiction
874 Latin lyric poetry
876 Latin letters
877 Latin humor and satire
878 Latin miscellaneous writings
881 Classical Greek poetry
882 Classical Greek drama
883 Classical Greek epic poetry and fiction
884 Classical Greek lyric poetry
885 Speeches
888 Classical Greek miscellaneous writings
891 East Indo-European and Celtic literatures
892 Afro-Asiatic literatures
893 Non-Semitic Afro-Asiatic literatures
894 Literatures of Altaic, Uralic, Hyperborean, Dravidian languages; literatures of miscellaneous languages of South Asia
895 Literatures of East and Southeast Asia
900 HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY
900 History
901 Philosophy and theory of history
904 Collected accounts of events
907 Education, research, related topics of history
909 World history
Consequences of the Industrial Revolution
History and Understanding the Past
910 Geography & travel
912 Graphic representations of surface of earth and of extraterrestrial worlds
913 Geography of and travel in the ancient world
914 Geography of and travel in Europe
915 Geography of and travel in Asia
920 Biography & genealogy
930 History of ancient world (to ca. 499)
931 China to 420
Sources of Early Chinese History
932 Egypt to 640
933 Palestine to 70
934 South Asia to 647
935 Mesopotamia to 637 and Iranian Plateau to 637
936 Europe north and west of Italian Peninsula to c. 499
The Geological Formation of Britain
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
937 Italian Peninsula to 476 and adjacent territories to 476
The Roman Empire's Collapse in the 5th century
Tacitus and the Decadence of Rome
Spartacus938 Greece to 323
939 Other parts of ancient world
940 History of Europe
941 British Isles
942 England and Wales
Alfred and the Battle of Edington
943 Germany and neighbouring central European countries
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
944 France and Monaco
The French Revolution's Reign of Terror
The French Revolution's Legacy
Napoleon's Retreat from Russia
945 Italy, San Marino, Vatican City, Malta
Rome and European Civilization
Garibaldi and the Risorgimento
946 Spain, Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal
947 Russia and neighboring east European countries
Tsar Alexander II's assassination
948 Scandinavia
949 Other parts of Europe
950 History of Asia
951 China and adjacent areas
Matteo Ricci and the Ming dynasty
952 Japan
953 Arabian Peninsula and adjacent areas
954 India and neighboring south Asian countries
955 Iran
958 Central Asia
959 Southeast Asia
1816, the Year Without a Summer
960 History of Africa
962 Egypt, Sudan, South Sudan
964 Morocco, Ceuta, Melilla Western Sahara, Canary Islands
965 Algeria
966 West Africa and offshore islands
968 Republic of South Africa and neighboring southern African countries
The Rise and Fall of the Zulu Nation
972 Mexico, Central America, West Indies, Bermuda
973 United States
Washington and the American Revolution
The Franco-American Alliance 1778
974 Northeastern United States (New England and Middle Atlantic states)
975 Southeastern United States (South Atlantic states)
979 Great Basin and Pacific Slope region of United States
980 History of South America
990 History of other areas
11 comments:
This is the best thing anyone's ever done. Thank you so much!
Fimding episodes in which I would be interested has, until now, been hugely tedious.
I applaud you.
Heavens above, really good, hats off to you and thank you for an extraordinary piece of work. Wonderful.
Yes a very valuable endeavour. Well done and thank you.
This is amazing! Well done!
I completely agree. It is both wonderful and hugely impressive. Thank you.
This has uncovered a whole host of episodes I can't wait to hear, and which I would never have found through scrolling through the In Our Time timeline. Thank You!
Thank you for your effort. This has already uncovered lots of new programmes for me to hear. It is greatly appreciated.
Nice work! All of the 934 playable episodes can be found here https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/search/0/20?order=first&filt=b006qykl&playable=1 .
Hi, great post but can you please change the categorization of the In Our Time on Fungi. Fungi are not plants and are in fact a kingdom of their own, with vastly more species than animals or plants. Please this website for more: https://faunaflorafunga.org/
Hi Mark. Thanks. I had actually catagorised it correctly but neglected to put the category title above it as I have with everything else. It's there now. Let me know if you see anything else.
This is a fantastic piece of work - delighted that I came across it. Thank you.
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