How to Change the World: The History of Innovation
Claim This Podcastby How To Change The World | Sam Webster Harris
Podcast Authority
Beta
Podcast Overview
<p>Sam Webster Harris chronicles the complete history of innovation from the Stone Age to the modern day. Learn how transformative ideas build upon each other to change the world and shape the future of humanity.</p><br><p>Every breakthrough that changes civilization begins with curiosity. From the first controlled fire to artificial intelligence. Follow the journey, step-by-step, tracing the evolution of human progress and society. On the way, uncovering the nerdy stories and fun facts behind world-changing inventions and the mental models that drive systemic change.</p><br><p>Each episode is a deep dive into innovation patterns and the threads that shape our world:</p><p> - From Leonardo Da Vinci dissecting human bodies to editing our own DNA</p><p> - Maritime Navigation sets the course for Interstellar exploration</p><p> - Hammurabi's legal code is relevant in algorithmic governance</p><br><p>Modern revolutions in technology and the future of AI are a continuation of core needs of their human creators. Our desire for leverage shows up time and again in the history of civilization.</p><br><p>Drawing insights from psychology, economics, and anthropology, we explore how change makers in history like Galileo, Newton, and Tesla didn't just discover big ideas. They transformed civilization itself. Their playbooks reveal timeless strategies for anyone seeking to understand how the world works.</p><br><p>This isn't surface-level history. It's intellectual history told through narrative learning—connecting past invention stories to the future of technology, future of society, and patterns of history that will define the Anthropocene.</p><br><p>Whether you're fascinated by the timeline of human history, founder stories, or the psychology of change, each episode delivers actionable mental models wrapped in engaging storytelling. Learn something new about human progress while discovering your own potential to change the world.</p><br><p>For the intellectually curious seeking to understand innovation, drive progress, and glimpse the future of humanity.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
5/19/2025
Unlock The Full Podcast Authority Score Report
See how your podcast performs across key metrics
Podcast Authority
BetaRecommendations available
Unlock the full report to see detailed tips
Recommendations available
Unlock the full report to see detailed tips
Unlock comprehensive insights including:
- • YouTube presence analysis
- • Social media reach metrics
- • RSS compliance scoring
- • Podcast 2.0 features
- • Technical standards
Detailed Analytics
- Complete breakdown of all 19 authority metrics
- Personalized recommendations for each metric
- Industry benchmarks and comparisons
- Technical RSS feed analysis and compliance scoring
Growth Strategies
- Step-by-step action plans for improvement
- Quick wins to boost your score immediately
- Pro tips from successful podcasters
See how your show performs across every key metric
High authority scores make your podcast more attractive to industry leaders and influencers who want to appear on credible shows.
Sponsors look for podcasts with proven authority and engagement. Your score demonstrates your podcast's value to potential partners.
Understanding your strengths and weaknesses helps you make data-driven decisions to expand your listener base effectively.
1 verified contact email on file for How to Change the World: The History of Innovation
Pitch yourself as a guest, propose sponsorships, or reach out directly to the host.
Recent Episodes
April 9, 2026
[~39,000BC] Music - The Surprising History of Rhythm (that secretly created civilization)
<p>Did civilization start with a beat?</p><br><p>You might think music is a perfectly lovely but non-essential tool for survival and world domination. However, music might well be most misunderstood superpower of humanity. This episode explores one of the most impactful and overlooked inventions of history and how it shaped our species into the dominating power it is today.</p><br><p>Long before we were writing sonnets or splitting atoms, we were humming. The origins of rhythm gave our ancestors a staggering advantage. By singing and dancing, early humans flooded their brains with bonding chemicals, transforming isolated apes into cooperative powerhouses. They used melodies as ancient memory drives, encoding massive geographical maps and survival guides into memorable tunes.</p><br><p>Human civilization wasn't forged purely in grim struggle, but through the joyous, rhythmic act of making sound together:</p><ul><li>Discover why the history of music is actually the history of human survival.</li><li>Learn how rhythm hacks your brain's memory systems to store crucial information.</li><li>Understand the psychological reason singing together builds unbreakable trust.</li></ul><p>Hit play to discover how a simple beat built the modern world.</p><br><p><br></p><p><strong>Become a Member</strong></p><p><a href="https://igmlpi.short.gy/Patreon" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Patreon.com/ChangeTheWorldPod</a></p><ul><li>Access to behind the scenes episodes</li><li>Ask Sam anything</li><li>Support the show</li></ul><p><br></p><br><p><strong>ABOUT</strong></p><br><p>How to Change the World is an independent podcast on a mission to document the entire history of innovation. One world-changing event at a time. In the process we are building out frameworks and mental models to think more coherently about global change.</p><br><p>Written, edited, recorded, and produced by Sam Webster Harris.</p><br><p><strong>🤓 Website:</strong> <a href="https://igmlpi.short.gy/change-world" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ChangeTheWorldPod.com</a></p><br><p>🤗 <strong>Join the Patreon: </strong><a href="https://igmlpi.short.gy/Patreon" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Patreon.com/ChangeTheWorldPod</a></p><br><p>Help from:</p><p>👩🎨 Design - Francisca Correia (<a href="https://igmlpi.short.gy/FranciscaLI" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">available to hire</a>)</p><p>🧙♂️ Mentorship - Jeremy Enns (<a href="https://igmlpi.short.gy/Jeremy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">available to hire</a>)</p><br><p><br></p><p><strong>Resources</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt17kk95h" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Million Years of Music</a> - Gary Tomlinson</p><p><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Origins-Music-Bradford-Book/dp/0262731436#:~:text=and%20related%20issues.-,The%20book%20can%20be%20viewed%20as%20representing%20the%20birth%20of,structure%20of%20acoustic%2Dcommunication%20signals%2C" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Origins of Music</a> - Steven Brown</p><p><a href="https://youtu.be/8uHh1x6gJ68?si=0X6_bpP6D4p4JpcF" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Andre 3000 on Tetragrammaton</a> - Ruck Rubin</p><br><p><br></p><p><strong>CHAPTERS</strong></p><p>00:00 Unexplainable events</p><p>04:56 Is Music Just Cheesecake?</p><p>07:41 Music Is Everywhere</p><p>09:56 ACT 1- COMMUNICATION</p><p>09:57 Musical Babies</p><p>12:24 Motherese</p><p>13:59 Music Before Language</p><p>14:56 Rhythm and Rock Music</p><p>16:29 Chants, Bonding, Dopamine</p><p>20:49 Dance, Ritual and Combat</p><p>23:07 Neural Combat Training</p><p>25:29 Evolution of Storytelling</p><p>29:14 ACT 2 - EDUCATION</p><p>29:15 Thoughts Surviving</p><p>33:02 Songlines</p><p>36:46 Music as Memory Hack</p><p>37:36 Emotions Drive Decisions</p><p>38:41 Anthems and Shared Feeling</p><p>40:07 When Songs Change Meaning</p><p>41:42 Music takes you on a Journey</p><p>45:59 Music is uncontrollable</p><p>47:51 Songs Write the Laws</p><p>51:40 ACT 3 - FIRST INSTRUMENT</p><p>51:45 First Flutes and Melody</p><p>54:32 Flutes Today</p><p>57:07 ACT 4 - CONCLUSION</p><p>57:08 The path of music to today</p><p>01:03:36 AI and Music’s Future</p><p>01:08:33 Ranking Music on the Richter Scale</p><p>01:09:28 Wrap up</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>
February 6, 2026
Immortal Beings: A History of Things That Spread and Refuse To Die - From DNA & Religion to Memes & Digital Gods
Host Sam Webster Harris explores the history of innovation, tracing the evolution of self-replicating entities from ancient molecules to religions and algorithms, examining their quest for immortality and impact on society.
December 3, 2025
[~52,000BC] The Eyed Needle: The History of Clothes, Fashion, Beauty and Status Games
Sam Webster Harris explores the history of clothing, examining its impact on human psychology, the development of civilization, and the evolution of beauty standards in this episode.
14 total episodes available with 8 transcripts
Similar Podcasts
Discover related shows you might enjoy
Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
Hidden Brain
Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
The Economics of Everyday Things
Freakonomics Network & Zachary Crockett
Your Undivided Attention
The Center for Humane Technology, Tristan Harris, Aza Raskin
Throughline
NPR
The Ancients
History Hit
Radiolab
WNYC Studios
In Our Time
BBC Radio 4
Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford
Pushkin Industries
Modern Wisdom
Chris Williamson
Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe
iHeartPodcasts
The Rest Is History
Goalhanger
The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway
Vox Media Podcast Network
Something You Should Know
Mike Carruthers | OmniCast Media
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
DOAC
Deep-dive analytics for How to Change the World: The History of Innovation
Frequently asked questions
Have a different question and can't find the answer you're looking for? Reach out to our support team by sending us an email and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.
- What is How to Change the World: The History of Innovation?
<p>Sam Webster Harris chronicles the complete history of innovation from the Stone Age to the modern day. Learn how transformative ideas build upon each other to change the world and shape the future of humanity.</p><br><p>Every breakthrough that changes civilization begins with curiosity. From the first controlled fire to artificial intelligence. Follow the journey, step-by-step, tracing the evolution of human progress and society. On the way, uncovering the nerdy stories and fun facts behind world-changing inventions and the mental models that drive systemic change.</p><br><p>Each episode is a deep dive into innovation patterns and the threads that shape our world:</p><p> - From Leonardo Da Vinci dissecting human bodies to editing our own DNA</p><p> - Maritime Navigation sets the course for Interstellar exploration</p><p> - Hammurabi's legal code is relevant in algorithmic governance</p><br><p>Modern revolutions in technology and the future of AI are a continuation of core needs of their human creators. Our desire for leverage shows up time and again in the history of civilization.</p><br><p>Drawing insights from psychology, economics, and anthropology, we explore how change makers in history like Galileo, Newton, and Tesla didn't just discover big ideas. They transformed civilization itself. Their playbooks reveal timeless strategies for anyone seeking to understand how the world works.</p><br><p>This isn't surface-level history. It's intellectual history told through narrative learning—connecting past invention stories to the future of technology, future of society, and patterns of history that will define the Anthropocene.</p><br><p>Whether you're fascinated by the timeline of human history, founder stories, or the psychology of change, each episode delivers actionable mental models wrapped in engaging storytelling. Learn something new about human progress while discovering your own potential to change the world.</p><br><p>For the intellectually curious seeking to understand innovation, drive progress, and glimpse the future of humanity.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p> - How often does this podcast release new episodes?
This podcast updates daily.
- Where can I listen to this podcast?
This podcast is available on 4 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.
- Does this podcast accept guests?
No, this podcast does not typically feature guests.
Legal Disclaimer
Pod Engine is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected with any of the podcasts displayed on this platform. We operate independently as a podcast discovery and analytics service.
All podcast artwork, thumbnails, and content displayed on this page are the property of their respective owners and are protected by applicable copyright laws. This includes, but is not limited to, podcast cover art, episode artwork, show descriptions, episode titles, transcripts, audio snippets, and any other content originating from the podcast creators or their licensors.
We display this content under fair use principles and/or implied license for the purpose of podcast discovery, information, and commentary. We make no claim of ownership over any podcast content, artwork, or related materials shown on this platform. All trademarks, service marks, and trade names are the property of their respective owners.
While we strive to ensure all content usage is properly authorized, if you are a rights holder and believe your content is being used inappropriately or without proper authorization, please contact us immediately at hey@podengine.ai for prompt review and appropriate action, which may include content removal or proper attribution.
By accessing and using this platform, you acknowledge and agree to respect all applicable copyright laws and intellectual property rights of content owners. Any unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or commercial use of the content displayed on this platform is strictly prohibited.