Evolutionary biologists Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying welcomed as feature speakers at Ralston College’s third annual Sophia Lectures

Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying, co-hosts of DarkHorse podcast, attract sold-out crowd, laud new liberal arts university for offering education which prioritizes free speech on campus.

Evolutionary biologists Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying, whose podcast DarkHorse has gained millions of followers around the world, were welcomed this week by hundreds at Ralston College for a rousing lecture series delivered over two days.

As the feature speakers of the College’s third annual Sophia Lectures, Weinstein and Heying spoke to more than 300 guests over two evenings about the miraculous aspects of human life, arguing that these can be viewed as natural phenomena of adaptation over millions of years. The wondrous faculties of humans, and the brilliant complexity of human culture, can be understood as evolutionary phenomena for long-term survival.

Some of the arguments advanced in their lectures challenge ideas that students of Ralston's Master of Arts in the Humanities program have spent the academic year considering. The spirited Q&A that followed the lectures modelled for audiences the goal of the series: to engage in truth-seeking through open debate, says President Stephen Blackwood.

“Ralston College is proud to help facilitate students’ and the public’s discussion with individuals as perceptive and interesting as Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying,” he said. “There is an urgent need in our society for the sciences and humanities to be brought together in constructive conversation. Free speech, and free inquiry are integral to the College’s mission, wherever they may lead.”  

Weinstein and Heying launched DarkHorse–a now-top-ranked Apple podcast–following a legal settlement against the university where they were both tenured professors, and have also co-authored a New York Times best-selling non-fiction book about science, A Hunter-Gatherer's Guide to the 21st Century.

About Ralston College’s Sophia Lectures by Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying

Ralston College’s flagship series expanded in 2025 to include two speakers, Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying, whose combined lectures were presented under the title Tractable Miracles.

Four talks—each presented back-to-back on April 9th and 10th at Soho South in Savannah—explored the "radical specialness" of our species, arguing that the miraculous aspects of human life are natural phenomena of gradual adaptation. Even though some aspects of the human condition are not understood, and some perhaps never will be, all can be viewed as evolutionary responses to our ever-changing world. The more that we understand our culture to be the reflection of a long-term strategy for perpetuating a human lineage, the better can we balance and reconcile the competing goals of our species.

Dr Weinstein argued, however, that the scientific community has stagnated: major breakthroughs are rare, and both academic and societal factors constrain innovation. The true scientist, he argued, should seek out instances of paradox, where two apparent truths seem irreconcilable: here is an “X marks the spot” for where science needs to make a new advance. Such a breakthrough will require one person to stand against the current consensus, and pursue his or her convictions against the widespread scepticism or outright denial of the majority. Yet no question should be off the table.

Dr Heying set out the fundamental principles of natural selection and human evolution before demonstrating how some of the characteristics commonly thought to mark out our species—childhood play, creative problem solving, friendship, love, grief—can be evidenced in other mammals and birds. Our species stands, however far removed, on a continuum with these creatures who share our planet.

Turning to the challenges that humans face, Weinstein characterized modern culture as operating in an age of "hypernovelty" which robs individuals of the opportunity to commune with the past and stymies humankind’s adaptation. "We are living in an era where almost nothing we interact with has stood the test of time," he said. The result is a mismatch, and indeed maladaptation as a species. Despite being collectively faced with the "conundrum of modernity", however, humans are gifted with the faculty of consciousness, whose primary role is a tool for responding to novelty.

About Ralston College's Sophia Lectures

In each year since its launch in 2022, Ralston College has welcomed to Savannah dozens of world-renowned scholars and public intellectuals, including those who debut aspects of their recent academic work before a public audience at The Sophia Lectures.

Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying’s campus visit this week follows the tradition of years past with speakers offering to Ralston College students: lectures, conversation as well as private seminars, and shared meals. 

Following a week-long stay on campus, Weinstein and Heying lauded Ralston College, a new liberal arts university, for championing a return of free speech to campuses, wondering aloud if such freedom helped account for the spirit of fellowship among students, and the depth of intelligence and curiosity their many questions made clear.

Dr Iain McGilchrist, psychiatrist, philosopher and acclaimed author Dr Iain McGilchrist was the feature speaker of the series in 2023, providing three lectures on recovering wholeness in an age of fragmentation and reductionist thinking.

Each has been enthusiastically received online, attracting tens of thousands of viewers to Ralston College’s YouTube channel and podcast.

In 2022, the College welcomed University of Cambridge Professor Douglas Hedley to debut his academic work on the spirit of play. In addition to confirming the public’s appetite for enriching conversations and debate, Professor Hedley’s five-part Sophia Lecture, The Spirit of Play, is also popular online.