In 2022, Howard Burton launched the Pandemic Perspectives Project: a documentary film, podcast series and this engagingly candid collection of essays that chart his personal quest to make some sense of the COVID-19 pandemic through his interaction with a diverse array of 32 experts. Directly inspired by the award-winning writer, physician and self-professed "biology watcher" Lewis Thomas, Howard takes us on a thought-provoking tour of a wide range of key societal issues, from biology to politics to contemporary morality. Examples of societal issues that are examined:The need to rethink current educational practices The future of scientific research The challenges of making evidence-based public policy in an age of rapid information and misinformation The widespread confusion about how science actually works The importance of balancing basic and applied research The implications for coherently addressing climate change The tension between individual liberties and communitarian ideals The need to critically evaluate the level of care in our society The importance of looking at history during a time of crisis The perils of nationalism and the necessity of thinking globally To what extent the pandemic has revealed our true moral nature Visit our website for details about the documentary film, Pandemic Perspectives: https://ideasroadshow.com/.