How do the oceans work? And how have they influenced human history? In this episode of the Blue Humanities podcast of the Humanities Institute at Arizona State University, Jonathan Bate interview Helen Czerski - Professor of Mechanical Engineering at University College London, presenter of TV science documentaries, and author of Blue Machine: How the Ocean Shapes our World (subtitle of US edition: How the Ocean Works). Listen for an array of fascinating stories: why did Antony and Cleopatra lose the world-changing battle of Actium that heralded the rise of the Roman empire? What does the earwax of whales tell us about their stress levels during the Second World War? How do you build a ship to withstand the crushing weight of ice in the Arctic?

You can listen to Helen's Ocean Matters podcast here and follow her on any of these platforms:
Mastodon: @helenczerski@fediscience.org
BlueSky: @helenczerski.bsky.social
Instagram: helen_czerski https://www.instagram.com/helen_czerski/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/helen-czerski-045b956/
Threads: @helen_czerski

You can follow Jonathan on Twitter/X here and the Humanities Institute here.
For more on ASU's Blue Humanities Initiative, follow this link.
New episodes featuring leading scholars will be uploaded regularly.
This episode was edited by Dave Waugh at Scrubcast.
Music: from Claude Debussy, La Mer (rights-free recording).