Linnaeus

This BBC podcast episode of "In Our Time" features Melvyn Bragg and three guests—Steve Jones, Stella Sandford, and Staffan Muller-Wille—discussing the life and work of Carl Linnaeus. The discussion covers Linnaeus's early life and education, his contributions to taxonomy and the development of binomial nomenclature, his "sexual system" of plant classification, and the Linnaean hierarchy. The panel also explores Linnaeus's views on evolution and human beings, his research methods, and his lasting impact on biology, including the formal aspects of naming and classification that persist today. The conversation touches on the influence of theology and philosophy on scientific discovery, and the challenges of defining species in the context of evolution.