Even before Covid-19 the patterns of human interaction were changing. More of us were living alone than ever before with lives increasingly lived online contributing to record rates of loneliness. Then the pandemic and with it forced isolation and separation. The most basic of human experiences and contacts ripped from our lives. Handshakes became elbow bumps, workplaces reduced to zoom meetings, many of us forced to lock ourselves away at home far from friends and family. The changes to our lives and our communities have been comprehensive but as we start to open up, just how normal will our new normal be? From workplace to dating, from socialising with friends and family to interacting with strangers, we explore what our social world will look like beyond the pandemic. Featuring: Author and commentator Sarah Wilson, whose most recent book, This One Wild and Precious Life, tackles the disconnection of modern life.  Psychologist Sabina Read, whose podcast Human Cogs explores all the things that bring us together and tear us apart.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.