Prof Richard Miles | Public engagement | Queen's University Belfast

Professor Richard Miles

Provost, Deputy Vice-Chancellor, and Interim Pro-Vice-Chancellor AHSS

TEDx Talk Title -“Boiling the Ocean” Why predicting the end of the world is the oldest trick in the politician’s playbook

Catastrophising and dire predictions of the end of the world have dominated the national and global geo-political conversation over the past few years. The world seems to be constantly teetering on the edge of an apocalyptic civilisational implosion as a result of decision-making on a wide range ecological, geo-political and economic issues. In this TEDx Talk, Richard Miles will argue this type of doom-mongering has been a staple of the political lexicon since the Roman Empire, and that many of these ‘crises’ are in fact amplified by the very political classes who are charged with solving them. After exploring some of the motivations and agendas that lie behind keeping us in a constant state of fear and agitation, Richard will consider whether societies that remain in a state of hyper-vigilance over their imminent demise are any better at overcoming major crises than those with a more optimistic viewpoint of the future.

About the Speaker

Richard Miles is the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Queen’s University, Belfast. He was previously Pro-Vice Chancellor (Education and Enterprise,) and Professor of Roman History and Archaeology at the University of Sydney, and before that, taught at the University of Cambridge. Richard is the author of a number of books on the ancient world, and has written and presented documentaries, including 'Carthage, the Roman Holocaust' (ABC), 'Ancient Worlds' (BBC) and 'Archaeology: A Secret History’ (SBS).