Neanderthals and Us: A Complex Story of Coexistence and Hybridization
The Michael Shermer Show
Michael Shermer
4.4 • 921 Ratings
🗓️ 17 May 2025
⏱️ 93 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this eye-opening episode, Michael Shermer chats with evolutionist Telmo Pievani about the surprising coexistence—and hybridization—of Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.
They discuss recent scientific discoveries, the evolving understanding of race and biology, and the crucial role of serendipity in advancing scientific knowledge.
This episode offers a nuanced perspective on how unexpected findings continue to reshape our understanding of human origins and the scientific process itself.
Telmo Pievani is Full Professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Padua, where he covers the first Italian chair of Philosophy of Biological Sciences. A leading evolutionist, science communicator, and columnist for Corriere della Sera, he is the author of The Unexpected Life, Creation Without God, and Imperfection (MIT Press). His new book is Serendipity: The Unexpected in Science.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're listening to The Michael Shermer Show. |
| 0:15.6 | All right. |
| 0:16.6 | Hey, everybody. |
| 0:17.0 | It's Michael Shermer. |
| 0:17.8 | It's time for another episode of the Michael Shermer show. |
| 0:21.7 | My guest today has a special new book called serendipity here it is it is the unexpected in science i'm |
| 0:30.3 | going to go ahead and describe it as the unexpected in science and life he is telmo pivani |
| 0:36.7 | full professor in the department of Biology at the University |
| 0:39.7 | of Padua, where he covers the first Italian chair of philosophy of biological sciences, |
| 0:47.0 | a leading evolutionist, science communicator, and columnist for, what is this, Corere de la Cera, |
| 0:54.0 | am I saying that right? He is the author of The Unexpected |
| 0:58.6 | Life, Creation Without God. We have to talk about that at some point after we talk about your new book. |
| 1:05.1 | In Perfection, I remember when that book came out, it has a really interesting cover with like a wolf |
| 1:09.1 | with a blue eye or something like that, right? Exactly. And other books again, Serendipity, The Unexpected in Science and Life. |
| 1:17.5 | Tell them, nice to see you. How are you? Thank you, Mike. It's a great pleasure to be with you. |
| 1:21.7 | Thanks for the invitation. Thank you. Yeah. So what's your story? I always like to ask people how they got into whatever it is they're doing. |
| 1:28.8 | What led you into the study of the history of science, philosophy of science, |
| 1:32.5 | and the role of chance and randomness and all that? |
| 1:36.9 | Yes, I'm an evolutionist as my main training. |
| 1:41.4 | And I studied at the American Museum of Natural History in New York with Ian |
| 1:45.2 | Tatarsal, who is an expert in human evolution. And then I came back to Italy and now I'm professor |
| 1:51.2 | of philosophy, biological sciences. That means theoretical biology. But my group in Padua is mainly |
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