Best Neuroscience Podcasts (2024)

1
299 - Debunkbot 1:09:17

2d ago1:09:17

1:09:17

Our guests in this episode are Thomas H. Costello at American University, Gordon Pennycook at Cornell University, and David G. Rand at MIT who created Debunkbot, a GPT-powered, large language model, conspiracy-theory-debunking AI that is highly effective at reducing conspiratorial beliefs. In the show you’ll hear all about what happened when they p…

1
298 - Tribal - Michael Morris 1:33:46

21d ago1:33:46

1:33:46

In this episode we sit down with renowned cultural psychologist Michael Morris to discuss his new book, Tribal, in which he makes the case for seeing humans as an "us" species, not a "them" species. Morris says that since we genetically predisposed to collaborate, coordinate, and cooperate. He believes we can leverage our innate desire to work toge…

1
297 - Project Alpha - Brian Brushwood (rebroadcast) 1:10:06

1M ago1:10:06

1:10:06

Brian Brushwood tells us how he put together the most recent season of The World's Greatest Con, his podcast about incredible scams and over the top chicanery. This season is all about how two teenagers pulled off an incredible hoax called Project Alpha, a con job and a publicity stunt meant to improve scientific rigor and methodology when it comes…

1
296 - Job Therapy - Tessa West 55:09

2M ago55:09

55:09

Are you unhappy at your job? Are you starting to consider a change of career because of how your current work makes you feel? Do you know why? According to our guest in this episode, Dr. Tessa West, a psychologist at NYU, if you are currently contemplating whether you want to do the work that you do everyday you should know that although this feeli…

51
295 - Easy Crafts for the Insane - Kelly Williams Brown 1:15:17

2M ago1:15:17

1:15:17

In this episode we sit down with author Kelly Williams Brown, an old friend who (I recently learned) had attempted suicide, which is the subject of this episode – suicide prevention and awareness. In the show we learn about Kelly's latest book, Easy Crafts for the Insane, in which she recounts how, after she gained fame and success as a NYT bestsel…

1
294 - Living Constitutionally - A.J. Jacobs 1:28:25

3M ago1:28:25

1:28:25

In this episode we sit down with A.J. Jacobs, a journalist who noticed some striking similarities between Biblical fundamentalism and constitutional originalism, and since he once wrote a NYT bestselling book about titled The Year of Living Biblically in which he tried to live for a year as a fundamentalist, he tried to do something similar by livi…

101
293 - Do Your Own Research - Sedona Chinn (rebroadcast) 45:00

3M ago45:00

45:00

Sedona Chinn, who studies how people make sense of competing claims – scientific, environmental, health-related – joins us to discuss her latest research into doing your own research. Her research has found that the more a person values the concept of doing your own research, the less likely that person is to actually do their own research. In the …

151
292 - The Society Library - Jamie Joyce 1:23:36

3M ago1:23:36

1:23:36

Our guest in this episode is Jamie Joyce who is the president and executive director of The Society Library, an organization that extracts arguments, claims, and evidence from various forms of media to compile databases that map all the bickering and debating taking place across our species. They take all our conversations about all the major issue…

1
291 - Tough - Terry Crews (rebroadcast) 1:11:09

4M ago1:11:09

1:11:09

Terry Crews, actor, athlete, artist, President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Camacho, star of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, host of America’s Got Talent - that Terry Crews joins us to discuss his new book, Tough. In the book, Terry shares the raw story of his quest to find the true meaning of toughness and in so doing fundamentally change his concept of himse…

151
290 - The Intention Action Gap - Britt Frank 1:11:05

4M ago1:11:05

1:11:05

In this episode, we sit down with therapist Britt Frank to discuss the intention action gap, the psychological term for the chasm between what you very much intend to do and what you tend to do instead. It turns out, there's a well-researched psychological framework that includes a term for when you have a stated, known goal – a change you'd like t…

1
289 - Hack Your Bureaucracy - Marina Nitze (rebroadcast) 41:59

5M ago41:59

41:59

Marina Nitze is a professional fixer of broken systems – a hacker, not of computers and technology, but of the social phenomena that tend to emerge when people get together and form organizations, institutions, services, businesses, and governments. In short, she hacks bureaucracies and wants to teach you how to do the same. - Hack Your Bureaucracy…

1
288 - Fluke - Brian Klaas 50:44

5M ago50:44

50:44

In this episode we sit down with Brian Klaas, author of Fluke, to get into the existential lessons and grander meaning for a life well-lived once one finally accepts the power and influence of randomness, chaos, and chance. In addition, we learn not to fall prey to proportionality bias - the tendency for human brains to assume big, historical, or m…

1
287 - The Complexity of Genius - David Krakauer and Dean Simonton 1:04:57

6M ago1:04:57

1:04:57

In this episode, we are exploring the complexity of the concept of "genius" with two experts on the topic. First you’ll hear from David Krakauer, the president of The Santa Fe Institute, a research institution in New Mexico dedicated to the study of complexity science, and then you'll hear from professor Dean Keith Simonton, one of the world’s lead…

1
286 - Notes on Complexity - Neil Theise 57:46

6M ago57:46

57:46

In this episode we sit down with professor Neil Theise, the author of Notes on Complexity, to get an introduction to complexity theory, the science of how complex systems behave – from cells to human beings, ecosystems, the known universe, and beyond – and we explore if Ian Malcolm was right when he told us in Jurassic Park that "Life, um, finds a …

1
285 - What Do You Mean? - Celeste Kidd (rebroadcast) 48:50

7M ago48:50

48:50

Is a hotdog a sandwich? Well, that depends on your definition of a sandwich (and a hotdog), and according to the most recent research in cognitive science, the odds that your concept of a sandwich is the same as another person's concept are shockingly low. In this episode we explore how understanding why that question became a world-spanning argume…

1
284 - Awe - Dacher Keltner (rebroadcast) 54:18

7M ago54:18

54:18

In this episode we sit down with psychologist Dacher Keltner, one of the world’s leading experts on the science of emotion, the man Pixar hired to help them write Inside Out. In his new book – Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life – he outlines his years of work in this field, the health benefits of awe, the evo…

1
283 - Cultures of Growth - Mary C. Murphy 1:05:07

8M ago1:05:07

1:05:07

In this episode we welcome psychologist Mary C. Murphy, author of Cultures of Growth, who tells us how to create institutions, businesses, and other groups of humans that can better support collaboration, innovation, performance, and wellbeing. We also learn how, even if you know all about the growth mindset, the latest research suggests you not ma…

1
282 - They Thought We Were Ridiculous - Andy Luttrell 1:09:15

8M ago1:09:15

1:09:15

In 1974, two psychologists, Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, as the New Yorker once put it, "changed the way we think about the way we think." The prevailing wisdom, before their landmark research went viral (in the way things went viral in the 1970s), was that human beings were, for the most part, rational optimizers always making the kinds of ju…

1
281 - More Chat, Less Bot - Jeremy Utley, Kian Gohar, Henrik Werdelin 1:10:52

9M ago1:10:52

1:10:52

Jeremy Utley, Kian Gohar, and Henrik Werdelin sit down to discuss the surprising results of a new study into what happens when groups of people work together to brainstorm solutions to problems with the help of ChatGPT. Based on their research, Utley and Gohar created a new paradigm for getting the most out of AI-assisted ideation which they call F…

1
280 - Supercommunicators - Charles Duhigg 1:14:43

9M ago1:14:43

1:14:43

Our guest in this episode is Charles Duhigg, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and writer for the New Yorker Magazine who is also the New York Times Bestselling author of The Power of Habit and Smarter Faster Better. His new book is Supercommunicators, a practical and approachable guide to what makes great conversations work. In the episode we di…

1
YANSS 279 - Pluralistic Ignorance (rebroadcast) 1:25:48

10M ago1:25:48

1:25:48

There are several ways to define pluralistic ignorance, and that’s because it’s kind of a brain twister when you try to put it into words. On certain issues, most people people believe that most people believe what, in truth, few people believe. Or put another way, it is the erroneous belief that the majority is acting in a way that matches its int…

1
278 - An Admirable Point - Florence Hazrat 1:00:07

10M ago1:00:07

1:00:07

On this episode we learn about the history of the exclamation point, the question mark, and the semicolon (among many other aspects of language) with Florence Hazrat, a scholar of punctuation, who, to my great surprise, informed me that while a lot of language is the result of a slow evolution, a gradual ever-changing process, punctuation in the En…

1
277 - Visual Thinking - Temple Grandin (rebroadcast) 47:58

11M ago47:58

47:58

Temple Grandin didn’t develop speech until much later than most children, and she might have led a much different life if it hadn’t been for people who worked very hard to open up a space for her to thrive. In this episode we discuss all that as well as her latest book, Visual Thinking, about three distinct ways that human brains create human minds…

1
276 - How to Stand up to a Bully - Andrea Chalupa 54:09

11M ago54:09

54:09

In this episode David McRaney is interviewed by Andrea Chalupa about the psychological research covered in How Minds Change that could help if you expect to spend time with a family member this holiday who can't wait to pull you into an argument about politics, a wedge issue, or something else buzzing in the zeitgeist over which they'd love to star…

1
214 FREE Transcript PDF

11M ago

—

This is the FREE Transcript for BS 214: Seventeenth Annual Review. If you are a Premium (MyLibsyn) Subscriber LOGIN to access additional transcripts in your browser or in the free Brain Science mobile app. Click here if you are a Patreon supporter. Scroll up/down for the audio.

1
BS 214 Seventeenth Annual Review Episode 52:27

11M ago52:27

52:27

This is the 17th Annual Review episode of Brain Science, celebrating the first episode which aired on December 15, 2006. We review the highlights of 2023, which included both new guests and the return of several favorites. Episodes Released in 2023: BS 204 (Encore) and BS 205 featured molecular biologist Guy Caldwell, PhD from the University of Ala…

1
275 - Blight - Emily Monosson 47:18

11M ago47:18

47:18

How likely is the fungal infection in The Last of Us? The one that takes over human brains and brings humanity to the brink of extinction, could something like that really happen? In this episode we sit down with Emily Monosson, an expert on deadly fungal infections, and discuss the handful of fungi (we know of) that are today, right now, causing c…

1
274 - Cascades - Greg Satell 1:10:40

12M ago1:10:40

1:10:40

In this episode we sit down with Greg Satell, a communication expert whose book, Cascades, details how rapid, widespread change can sweep across groups of people big and small, and how understanding the psychological mechanisms at play in such moments can help anyone looking to create change in a family, institution, or even nation, prepare for the…

1
273 - The Conspiracy Test - Jesse Richardson 58:52

12M ago58:52

58:52

In this episode Jesse Richardson tells us all about ConspiracyTest.org, a new project designed to be a weird, fun, and cleverly educational way to explore just how skeptical you are (and could be) about a variety of conspiracy theories. The whole thing is designed to be very sharable and very viral, and it's launching right before Thanksgiving 2023…

1
213 Premium Transcript PDF

1y ago

—

This is the Premium Transcript for BS 213 with Kevin Mitchell, author of Free Agents: How Evolution Gave Us Free Will. If you are a Premium (MyLibsyn) Subscriber LOGIN to access this transcript in your browser or the free Brain Science mobile app. Click here if you are a Patreon supporter. You may also buy this transcript separately at https://brai…

1
272 - Quit! - Annie Duke (rebroadcast) 59:24

1y ago59:24

59:24

I recently sat down for a live event and Q&A with the great Annie Duke to discuss her new book, Quit: The power of knowing when to walk away. This episode is the audio from that event. Quit is all about how to develop a very particular skill: how to train your brain to make it easier to know which goals and plans are worth sticking to and which are…

1
BS 213 Kevin Mitchell explores Free Will 1:26:15

1y ago1:26:15

1:26:15

In the this episode of Brain Science we talk with neuroscientist Kevin Mitchell about his new book Free Agents: How Evolution Gave Us Free Will. While many neuroscientists and philosophers argue that free will is an illusion, Mitchell argues that the ability to make meaningful choices is part of our evolutionary heritage. He also addresses the impo…

1
271 - Survival of the Richest - Douglas Rushkoff (rebroadcast) 1:01:24

1y ago1:01:24

1:01:24

In this episode we sit down with Douglas Rushkoff, a media scholar, journalist, and professor of digital economics who has a new fire in his belly when it comes to the world of billionaire preppers, which comes across in his new book Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires – inspired by his invitation to consult a group o…

1
270 - Defining Genius 1:12:25

1y ago1:12:25

1:12:25

In this show you'll hear the first episode of a documentary series I made for Himalaya, an audio service devoted to inspirational and educational content that asked me if I had any ideas for a book that I had yet to pursue, and sure enough, I did. The series is all about the difficulty of defining the word "genius," and out of that launching point …

1
212 FREE Episode Transcript

1y ago

—

This is the FREE Transcript for BS 212 with is an encore presentation of an interview with Thomas Metzinger, author of The Ego Tunnel: The Science of the Mind and the Myth of the Self. Additional transcripts are available to Premium (MyLibsyn) subscribers and some Patreon supports. Learn more at https://brainsciencepodcast.com/premium. Scroll up/do…

1
BS 212 Thomas Metzinger on "The Ego Tunnel" (Encore) 1:06:36

1y ago1:06:36

1:06:36

This month's episode of Brain Science features Thomas Metzinger, author of "The Ego Tunnel: The Science of the Mind and the Myth of the Self." Metzinger is a philosopher with a longstanding interest in Philosophy of Mind with a focus on incorporating the findings of neuroscience. We discuss the implications of the discovery that consciousness is a …

1
269 - Deconstructing How Minds Change - Michael Taft 1:04:42

1y ago1:04:42

1:04:42

In celebration of How Minds Change, my new book, turning one-year-old, in this episode Michael Taft interviews David McRaney about how minds do and do not change, the process behind writing a book about that, and what he has learned since writing and promoting it. Michael is a meditation teacher, bestselling author, and a mindfulness coach – and he…

1
268 - The Status Game - Will Storr (rebroadcast) 1:16:23

1y ago1:16:23

1:16:23

In this episode we welcome back author Will Storr whose new book, The Status Game, feels like required reading for anyone confused, curious, or worried about how politics, cults, conspiracy theories communities, social media, religious fundamentalism, polarization, and extremism are affecting us - everywhere, on and offline, across cultures, and ac…

1
BS 211 Molecular Biologist Seth Grant 1:10:15

1y ago1:10:15

1:10:15

This episode of Brain Science features the return of molecular biologist Seth Grant. We briefly review his decades of research into the complexity of the protein structure of the synapse and then we focus on his most recent paper, which describes how the life-span of synapse proteins appears to change as animals age. Grant reflects of the significa…

1
267 - Do Your Own Research - Sedona Chinn 41:53

1y ago41:53

41:53

Sedona Chinn, who studies how people make sense of competing scientific, environmental, and health-related claims, joins us to discuss her latest research into doing your own research. In her latest paper she found that the more a person values the concept of doing your own research, the less likely that person is to actually do their own research.…

1
266 - Project Alpha - Brian Brushwood 1:06:03

1+ y ago1:06:03

1:06:03

We sit down with Brian Brushwood to discuss how he put together this most recent season of The World's Greatest Con, his podcast about incredible scams. This season is all about how two teenagers pulled off an incredible hoax called Project Alpha, a con job and a publicity stunt, meant to improve scientific rigor and methodology when it comes to st…

1
BS 210 Introduction to Neurotransmitters 1:06:48

1+ y ago1:06:48

1:06:48

This episode is our first review of neurotransmitters since episode 8 way back in 2007. We start with some basics of neuron function and brain anatomy, but the meat of the episode is a discussion of neurotransmitters and how they work. The key idea is that a simple molecule, such as dopamine, can have a wide variety of effects because of the existe…

1
265 - Chess Queens - Jennifer Shahade (rebroadcast) 58:29

1+ y ago58:29

58:29

In this episode we sit down with Jennifer Shahade, a two-time U.S. Women’s Chess Champion, author, speaker, and professional poker player whose new book, Chess Queens, is the true story of the greatest female players of all time interwoven with her own experiences as a chess champion. Jennifer Shahade’s Website Jennifer Shahade’s Instagram Jennifer…

1
264 - Nobody's Fool - Dan Simons and Christopher Chabris 48:46

1+ y ago48:46

48:46

In an era in which we have more information available to us than ever before, when claims of “fake news” might themselves be, in fact, fake news, Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris, authors of The Invisible Gorilla, are back to offer us a vital tool to not only inoculate ourselves against getting infected by misinformation but prevent us from sp…

1
263 - The Truth Wins - Tom Stafford (rebroadcast) 45:48

1+ y ago45:48

45:48

Deliberation. Debate. Conversation. Though it can feel like that’s what we are doing online as we trade arguments back and forth, most of the places where we currently gather make it much easier to produce arguments in isolation rather than evaluate them together in groups. The latest research suggests we will need much more of the latter if we hop…

1
262 - If It Sounds Like a Quack - Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling 49:58

1+ y ago49:58

49:58

At the peak of COVID-19, Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling set out to write a book about the widespread pushback against masks and vaccines as away to discuss the rise of the medical freedom movement in America. But after meeting a series of people within that movement his efforts took a sharp turn into the motivations, tribulations, and personal lives of t…

1
BS 209 Luiz Pessoa "The Entangled Brain" 1:07:22

1+ y ago1:07:22

1:07:22

This month's episode of Brain Science is an interview with Luiz Pessoa, author of The Entangled Brain: How Perception, Cognition, and Emotion Are Woven Together. This is Pessoa's first book aimed at a general audience and it provides a concise overview of our current understanding of basic brain function. However, he also explains the limitations o…

1
261 - Hack Your Bureaucracy - Marina Nitze 42:01

1+ y ago42:01

42:01

Marina Nitze is a professional fixer of broken systems – a hacker, not of computers and technology, but of the social phenomena that tend to emerge when people get together and form organizations, institutions, services, businesses, and governments. In short, she hacks bureaucracies and wants to teach you how to do the same. - Hack Your Bureaucracy…

1
260 - The Science of Stuck - Britt Frank (rebroadcast) 49:27

1+ y ago49:27

49:27

Feeling stuck? Can't build momentum to escape all the loops keeping you from moving forward? Our guest in this episode is professor, author, therapist, and speaker Britt Frank, a trauma specialist who treats people with unique and powerful techniques and approaches which help clients to get out of the feeling of being stuck. In the show, we nerd ou…

1
BS 208 "Foolproof" with Sander van der Linden 1:09:21

1+ y ago1:09:21

1:09:21

This month's episode is an interview with Cambridge Psychology professor Sander van der Linden, author of "Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects Our Minds and How to Build Immunity." We discuss the important topic of how techniques like appealing to emotion contribute to the spread of misinformation. Dr. Campbell reflects on why this topic is impor…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Neuroscience Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Quick Reference Guide