How prominent is the male gaze in music reviews? Why are there no guilty pleasure songs? And how authentic can artists in an industry like the music industry really be?

In this episode, Antonia delves into the world of music, more specifically, music reviews. Together with her guest, Alex van der Hulst, she explores the shift from rockism to popism, asks whether we can separate artists from their art, and remembers iconic and extremely inauthentic pop groups (yes, it’s Milli Vanilli and Boney M.).

Alex van der Hulst is a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Arts, where he researches popular music. His research focuses on how music reviews have shaped popular music and how they were shaped by it. Next to doing research, Alex also works as a journalist and is a writer of music reviews himself.

If you want to know more about music reviews and popular music, make sure to follow Alex’s suggestion and read or watch High Fidelity.

Edit: Jara Majerus

Cover: Antonia Leise

Do we need to treat nature differently? How can philosophy help us do so? And what makes documentaries about cats a good starting point?

In this week’s episode, Jara explores nature. More specifically, she investigates how humans relate to nature, why we like to see ourselves as separate from it, and why we treat nature the way we do. As always, she does so with an expert guest. For this episode, Marjolein Oele joins the podcast to offer insights and explanations on why humans and nature might not be so different after all.

Marjolein is a professor in the Humanities at the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Philosophy, Theology, and Religion at Radboud University. One of her many interests is environmental philosophy, which examines the natural environment and the place humans occupy within it.

If you want to follow this train of thought and explore the human-nature relationship further, take Marjolein’s advice and watch the documentary Inside the Mind of a Cat.

Poison, medicine or magic potion? Drugs can probably be all of that. But what makes a drug legal or illegal? Or rather: who decides on that?

“Who will ever relate the whole history of narcotics? It is almost the history of ‘culture’,” wrote Friedrich Nietzsche more than a hundred years ago – and he might be onto something. In today’s episode, Antonia and this week’s guest, Brigitte Adriaensen, talk about how drugs have been perceived throughout time and why colonialism wasn’t only built on the drug trade but continues to influence how we view substances like cocaine.

Brigitte Adriaensen is a professor of Hispanic Literature and Culture. For her VICI project ‘Poison, Medicine or Magic Potion’, she and her team research the perception of peyote, ayahuasca and coca across time.

Would you like to learn more about the history of drugs? Then follow Brigitte’s recommendations and watch the movie Embrace of the Serpent (2015), visit the website Microcosms: A Homage to Sacred Plants of the Americas or read the book One River by Canadian anthropologist Wade Davis.

What makes scrolling on our phones dangerous? What does our scrolling have to do with digital surveillance? And who is surveilling whom, and for what reason?

In this episode, Jara explores the unsettling world of digital surveillance. Together with this week’s guest, Guilel Treiber, she uncovers who the surveillers of the digital world are and peeks behind the curtains of their sleek self-staging to reveal their hidden desires. Yes, this episode will probably make you feel a strong urge to throw your phone away. But luckily, Guilel has some ideas on how to resist digital surveillance without having to live off the grid.

Guilel is an assistant professor of ethics and political philosophy at the Faculty of Philosophy, Theology, and Religious Studies. One of his specializations is the societal stakes of digitalization.

If you want to delve deeper into the rabbit hole of digital surveillance, follow Guilel’s suggestions and listen to the podcasts Black Box by The Guardian and The Coming Storm by the BBC. Or read the books suggested by Guilel (best in conjunction): Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

Edit: Jara Majerus

Cover: Antonia Leise

Why do insects in the house make us jump? Have we always hated bugs that much? And what do the small animals have to do with morality – and warfare?

In this episode of In a Nutshell, Antonia takes a peek at insects that make people’s skin crawl and, together with this week’s guest researcher Charlotte Meijer, answers the question of why we’re so bugged by bugs. Spoiler alert: there hasn’t always been such straightforward hatred against flies, worms, cockroaches and co.

Charlotte is a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Arts, where she researches the history of insects, focussing on the development of a negative narrative surrounding the little animals. In her research, she is answering, amongst other things, why many insects today are seen as dirty and undesirable.

Would you like to learn more about the history of insects? For literature about insects and warfare, follow Charlotte’s recommendation and read Edmund Russell’s book War and Nature or J. R. Mcneill’s book Mosquito Empires. For literature about insects and disease, read J. L. Cloudsley-Thompson’s book Insects and History or Plagues and Peoples by William McNeill. For more information on insects and pests, read Getting under our skin by Lisa Sarasohn. And if you're interested in insects and the arts and sciences, read Onderkruipsels (in Dutch) by Jan de Hond, Eric Jorink and Hans Mulder.

Edit: Jara Majerus

Cover: Antonia Leise

Why are the current treatments for depression not effective enough? How can a what-fits-who approach help solve this problem? And can the already overwhelmed mental health sector actually provide more customized treatments?

Welcome back to In a Nutshell – a podcast of Vox in which we explore everything you never knew you needed to know more about. We kick off the second season by taking a critical look at the current depression treatments. Together with Ellen Driessen, we discuss the role the match between a patient and a therapist plays, how to make the mental health sector more sustainable, and we get some tips on what to do when experiencing depression.

Ellen is an assistant professor at Radboud University’s Department of Clinical Psychology and a licensed mental health care psychologist at Pro Persona’s Depression Expertise Centre. Currently, Ellen also leads an international research team that aims to create a tool to help select the optimal treatments for people with depression based on their personal characteristics.

Do you want to know more about depression and its treatments? Follow Ellen's suggestions and visit the following websites: For more information on antidepressants, click ⁠here⁠. For more information on depression, follow ⁠this link⁠. And, here you can visit the website of the ⁠Depression Association⁠.

⁠Here ⁠you find a guide to mental healthcare in the Netherlands if you want to know where to turn to.

Are you thinking about suicide? Take it seriously and don't try to deal with it alone. Reach out to ⁠113 suicide prevention.⁠ Phone number: +31 800 0113; Chat: ⁠https://www.113.nl/chatten⁠.

Edit: Jara Majerus

Cover: Antonia Leise

What makes a good political humour scandal? Why does what we find funny change over time? And what is the state of jokes today?

In the final episode of In a Nutshell’s first season, we take a look at jokes, politics, and how the combination of both can (and has) lead to historic scandals. With the help of assistant professor and comedy critic Ivo Nieuwenhuis, we detangle modern humour – and look for an answer to the question of what the jokes that make the headlines (and that make us laugh) say about us.

Ivo Nieuwenhuis is a researcher of Dutch literature with a strong interest in political humour scandals. Next to his work at the Faculty of Arts, Ivo also works as a comedy critic for the Dutch newspaper Trouw.

Would you like to learn more about humour and the scandals that come with it? Then follow Ivo’s tips and have a look at his book, Het was maar een grapje: Nederland in tien humorschandalen (in Dutch), this video clip about why humour is not as innocent as one might think (in Dutch), and this podcast, where Ivo talks more in-depth about his research (in English).

Edit: Jara Majerus

Cover: Antonia Leise

What is the history of Dutch slavery? Where can we see the impacts of Dutch slavery today? And how can a day like Ketikoti lead to a more inclusive society?

In the nineteenth episode of In a Nutshell, we delve into past realities and present traces of Dutch slavery. Together with this week’s guest, Coen van Galen, we will remember the histories of enslaved people, reflect on how the Dutch are dealing with their historic role in slavery today, and find traces of slavery on the train tracks between Arnhem and Nijmegen.

Coen van Galen is an associate professor at the Department of History, Art History and Classics. Furthermore, Coen is the program manager of the Historical Data Base of Suriname and the Caribbean and played a crucial role in publishing the slave registers of Suriname and Curaçao.

Do you want to know more about the history of Dutch slavery? Follow Coen’s tip and read “We Slaves Of Suriname” by Anton de Kom.

Edit: Jara Majerus Cover: Antonia Leise