Look at the world with a fresh perspective

Dr Fritjof Capra is a world famous systems theorist and activist who has reached mainstream audiences with his international bestsellers connecting ‘conceptual changes in science with broader changes in our worldview’.

His books on the systems view of life, a term he coined, have been seminal works in advancing understanding about the interconnected relationships between nature and the structures of society. 

“Systems thinking and the systems view of life is inherently multi-disciplinary and so we touch on all these dimensions of life, the biological, the cognitive, the social, the ecological and we integrate them into a synthesis,” he said.

And Capra’s book Patterns of Connection contains essential essays from five decades of his life, which he says provide ‘not only an account of my intellectual journey but also an account of the various social movements that I encountered and became part of’. The book opens with a detailed account of his experiences in the 1960s, a time which saw him study eastern philosophy and take psychedelics, and a time which he says were the ‘great formative years of my life’.

“Patterns of Connection is a collection of essays with a narrative that interweaves the essays, and gives the historical and philosophical context,” he said “And it is really the story about how my thinking evolved over five decades. So in this narrative I talk about all my books so when you read this one, you get all the references because it’s really an account of my journey.”

Catch up with what was a memorable podcast for more from the pages of Patterns of Connection.

For Small Creatures Such As We

Sasha Sagan was one of my first guests on Inside Ideas. Inspired in part by the work of her parents, Carl Sagan and Ann Druya, she expounds eloquently in essays and interviews on death, history, and ritual through a secular lens, and has appeared in The Cut, O, the Oprah Magazine, Literary Hub, Mashable, Violet Book, and beyond.

Her book: For Small Creatures Such As We: Rituals for Finding Meaning in Our Unlikely World, is an exploration of the marvels of nature, as revealed by science. It is an exercise in skepticism without cynicism, told through memoir and social history. 

Catch up with the full podcast for more from the pages of For Small Creatures Such As We.