Welcome to On Humans!

This is Ilari Mäkelä, the producer and host of the show.

I interview world-leading scholars about their research on humanity. I keep pondering topics such as: Where do we come from? How did we get here? What kind of creatures are?

I’m also writing a book on these topics, supported by generous grants from two independent foundations: The Finnish Committee for Public Information and Kansan Sivistysrahasto. I have finished drafts on several chapters, including on the origins of agriculture, the birth of empires, and the story of Abrahamic and Brahmanic religions. Send me a message if you’d like to take a look!

Reviews & Recommendations

On Humans is trusted by several leading scholars and best-selling authors.

• “An incredible program… Deep and interesting“

  Yasheng Huang, author of The Rise and Fall of the East

• “Terrific… Deep and meaningful”

  Patricia Churchland, author of Conscience

• “Widely admired and well worth subscribing to”

  Tirthankar Roy, author of Origins of Colonialism

• “Absolutely incredible”

  Helen Fisher, author of Why We Love

• "I highly recommend On Humans!”

  Brad DeLong, author of Slouching Towards Utopia

I’ve been lucky enough to interview two of the recent Nobel Prize winners in economics. Both thanked me for a well-researched production.

• “This was a great conversation!”

  Daron Acemoglu, Nobel laureate 2024.

• “A terrific interview! One of the best.”

  Joel Mokyr, Nobel laureate 20251

How to listen?

You can listen to On Humans on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your shows. You can also read my essays and insights right here on Substack. If you like videos, you can also find shorter highlights on YouTube.

Whether you prefer reading or listening, I encourage you to sign up for the On Humans newsletter! This way, you will not miss either.

What’s on the Menu?

A lot of my current work concerns human origins. This has given me the privilege of interviewing giants like Richard Wrangham, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, and Ian Tattersall. In March 2025, I launched a five-part series on human origins, produced in collaboration with the great folks at CARTA (UC San Diego).

I am also interested in the history of everyday life. This makes me a big consumer of economic history. If you share this interest, you might be interested in my four-part series on the “Birth of Modern Prosperity”. You’ll learn a lot of quirky history and hear Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu give his ode to humanity.

To move beyond the “Western canon”, check out my country-specific series, such as What About China? or What About India?.

I occasionally cover topics in my original fields of Philosophy and Psychology. For example, you can learn about the philosophy of infinity here or the psychology of generosity here. To enjoy a full series on the mysteries of the human brain, check this out!

About me

I got hooked on philosophy during my high school years in Finland. I then studied Philosophy and Psychology at Oxford before specialising in Chinese Philosophy at Peking University (北大).

After graduating, I turned to more general questions about the human condition. My academic publications investigate the neuroscience of culture, the psychology of inequality, and the philosophy of human nature. I’ve also written for larger audiences about the fallacies of modern Darwinism and the lifeways of hunter-gatherers.

I am also interested in mental health, especially mindfulness-related techniques in CBT. I am currently training to be a CBT therapist.

“So wait, how do I access all of this?

You can jump straight to Spotify here or Apple Podcast below.

All the episodes are also available on YouTube as audio-only podcasts!

Check out shorter video material, too. For example, this:

You’ll get access to all the good stuff by subscribing here on Substack. Hit the button and join the journey!