The Podcast For Inquiry

A podcast for scientific, skeptical, secular, rational and humanistic inquiry. They've got answers? We've got questions.

The Podcast For Inquiry is a science podcast hosted by Centre For Inquiry Canada, with 124 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Centre For Inquiry Canada hosts The Podcast For Inquiry, a science show with 124 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #15

  ENCORE: Kelly Weinersmith asks: Are we ready to live off-planet?

  Aug 5, 20261h 3mS5

  Dr. Kelly Weinersmith ( @FuSchmu ) is the co-author (with her husband Zach) of Soonish and A City on Mars. Kelly maintains that while having humans living off Earth would be awesome, we're simply not ready for it yet. She answers many of Leslie's questions: Why can't we go to Mars if we have the will? Why can't we all just get along? Why should we expand? Why is building a habitable space station harder than settling on Mars or the moon? What laws would apply in any off-Earth settlement? Where should we focus our space research efforts? Kelly also goes on a rant about Helium 3. There are two great conferences taking place in Ontario in August 2026: World Humanist Congress August 7-9 in Ottawa https://www.worldhumanistcongress.org/ BAHACON August 21-23 in Sarnia https://bahacon.com/ Podcast for Inquiry is hosted by Leslie Rosenblood and brought to you by the Centre for Inquiry Canada . Join today ! Produced by Zack Dumont, Martin Zielinski, and Leslie Rosenblood. Support Podcast for Inquiry on Patreon: https://patreon.com/PodcastforInquiry . Send your thoughts and feedback to podcast@centreforinquiry.ca .

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  Episode #14

  ENCORE: Solomon, Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, Gandalf: All fictional! With David Fitzgerald

  Jul 22, 20261h 5mS5

  After years of research, David Fitzgerald has come to a surprising conclusion: that all the main characters in the world's major religions are entirely the product of human imagination. While many have long doubted the supernatural feats that religious figures are purported to have done, the assumption that these are grounded in at least a kernel of historical fact is widely held. David explains how the stories we are familiar with today accreted over time, and the utter lack of evidence that any of the major figures of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Jainism, or Buddhism ever actually existed. There are two great conferences taking place in Ontario in August 2026: World Humanist Congress August 7-9 in Ottawa https://www.worldhumanistcongress.org/ BAHACON August 21-23 in Sarnia https://bahacon.com/ Podcast for Inquiry is brought to you by the Centre for Inquiry Canada . Join today ! Produced by CFIC volunteers. Support Podcast for Inquiry on Patreon: https://patreon.com/PodcastforInquiry . Send your thoughts and feedback to podcast@centreforinquiry.ca .

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  Episode #13

  ENCORE: Saving civilization is about more than climate change, says Professor Katherine Richardson

  Jul 8, 20261h 32mS5

  All life on earth ultimately depends on energy and how it flows between biological and geochemical systems on the planet. Katherine Richardson and her team identified nine boundaries which need to be respected if our planet is to remain conducive to human thriving. Climate change is just one of them. We are exceeding six boundaries, and in recent years they are all getting worse. Katherine discusses how she and her team identified the nine planetary boundaries and why it is essential to consider how they interact, instead of viewing them as independent issues. The effects of exceeding planetary boundaries are affecting life today, disrupting air travel, causing severe flooding, and contributing to more frequent and powerful storms. (For the most up to date overview, read Planetary Boundaries guide humanity's future on Earth , published in Nature magazine on November 8, 2024.) We have the knowledge and technology to live within the planetary boundaries; the question remains whether we have the will, and the time, to implement them. The nine planetary boundaries are: Climate change Biosphere integrity Stratospheric ozone depletion Ocean acidification Phosphorus and nitrogen biogeochemical flows Land system change Freshwater change Atmospheric aerosol loading Novel entities There are two great conferences taking place in Ontario in August 2026: World Humanist Congress August 7-9 in Ottawa https://www.worldhumanistcongress.org/ BAHACON August 21-23 in Sarnia https://bahacon.com/ Podcast for Inquiry is hosted by Leslie Rosenblood and brought to you by the Centre for Inquiry Canada . Join today ! Produced by Zack Dumont, Martin Zielinski, and Leslie Rosenblood. Support Podcast for Inquiry on Patreon: https://patreon.com/PodcastforInquiry . Send your thoughts and feedback to podcast@centreforinquiry.ca .

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  Episode #12

  We've been here before: Apocalypses past and present with Lizzie Wade

  Jun 24, 20261h 1mS5

  Lizzie Wade is the author of APOCALYPSE : How Catastrophe Transformed Our World and Can Forge New Futures. She is a science writer focusing on archaeology and anthropology, a contributing correspondent for Science, and her work has also appeared in Wired, Archaeology, National Geographic, and Slate. Follow her work via The Antiquarian newsletter at theantiquarian.email The conversation starts with how ancient Egypt, which was very hierarchical and funneled lots of resources to its ruling class, collapsed when a prolonged drought struck. Lizzie explains how the Mayan civilization still very much existed when it was first contacted by the Spanish, despite the centralized state dissolving centuries earlier. Lizzie ponders whether there are grand themes in the study of history, or if it's just one damn thing after another. According to Lizzie, contemporary society is facing its own apocalypse, but there are options available to us to address it. There are two great conferences taking place in Ontario in August 2026: World Humanist Congress August 7-9 in Ottawa https://www.worldhumanistcongress.org/ BAHACON August 21-23 in Sarnia https://bahacon.com/ Podcast for Inquiry is hosted by Leslie Rosenblood and brought to you by the Centre for Inquiry Canada . Join today ! Produced by Zack Dumont, Martin Zielinski, and Leslie Rosenblood. Support Podcast for Inquiry on Patreon: https://patreon.com/PodcastforInquiry . Send your thoughts and feedback to podcast@centreforinquiry.ca .

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  Episode #1

  Leslie's Diatribes #5: The Arc of the Moral Universe

  Jun 10, 20266 minS5

  Leslie spoke about CFIC for a few minutes at the 2026 WeCanReason conference in early May. The brief talk wasn't recorded but seemed to resonate with many attendees, so today's bonus episode is Leslie recreating the speech for Podcast for Inquiry subscribers. As with all Diatribes, the opinions expressed are Leslie's alone and do not represent CFIC or any other organization. Podcast for Inquiry is hosted by Leslie Rosenblood and brought to you by the Centre for Inquiry Canada . Join today ! Produced by Zack Dumont, Martin Zielinski, and Leslie Rosenblood. Support Podcast for Inquiry on Patreon: https://patreon.com/PodcastforInquiry . Send your thoughts and feedback to podcast@centreforinquiry.ca .

  ListenShow Notes

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