In his famous “Two Cultures” lecture in 1959, the British author and physical chemist CP Snow lamented the widening gap between “literary intellectuals” and “natural scientists”. Snow argued that this blinkered outlook was bad for society and a hindrance to tackling the global challenges of the day. While the book was not without its critics, the central premise has remained relevant over the years – as illustrated by physicists Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow declaring in 2011 that “philosophy is dead”. Today, the need to bridge this cultural divide is arguably far more grave than in 1959, particularly at a moment when rational debate itself is being threatened by misinformation and identity politics.

In this video for our 100 Second Science series, Lincoln Carr of the Colorado School of Mines in the US argues that for all its great achievements science still has a lot to learn from the humanities. Find out why by watching the video.