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This is a podcast that aims to create moments of being “pulled up short” -- experiences of surprise and curiosity when we encounter an idea, text, or experience that challenges our ways of thinking and deeply held assumptions about the world.Each episode features a different insight, with each one asking us to entertain the possibility of a different worldview and re-examine some of our presuppositions.
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Featuring Micah Lott (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Daniel Groll (commentator) Science fiction books and movies help us to imagine what a utopian society may look like. Though many representations have been offered, one common theme is the absence of challenge and hardship. In this episode, Micah Lott considers why a “good” life might need…
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Does collaboration have a dark side? (Amy Shuffelton)
26:40
26:40
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26:40
Featuring Amy Shuffelton (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and David Blustein (commentator) In schools and workplaces, people are often encouraged to be “good collaborators” or "team players." However, in this episode, Amy Shuffelton problematizes this virtuous skill to claim that collaboration can also be understood to describe a particular kind…
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Can boredom lead to flourishing? (Kevin Gary)
29:35
29:35
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29:35
With Kevin Gary (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Jeffery Frank (commentator) "I'm bored" is a phrase often met with disdain from parents, teachers, and friends alike. It seems obvious that we should do our best to avoid boredom, instead working toward being engaged in school, staying curious in work, and seeking enjoyment in life. In this ep…
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Should teachers indoctrinate their students? (Douglas Yacek)
38:23
38:23
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38:23
Featuring Douglas Yacek (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Caitlin Bolton (commentator) Since the start of common schooling, indoctrination has remained a central concern. Today, cries of "liberal brainwashing" undergird moves toward incorporating Critical Race Theory into the curriculum, and people continue to worry about the undue influence …
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Have we ignored the individual in assessment? (Richard Lerner)
35:22
35:22
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35:22
Featuring Richard Lerner (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Carol Lee (commentator) We think we know a good deal about human development, based on our current research and measurement about people. There's an assumption that we measure "individuals" - a given person's standardized test scores, grades, sleep habits - but in reality, most of our…
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Does the medium override the message? (Michael Serazio)
39:52
39:52
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39:52
Featuring Michael Serazio (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Chip Zuckerman (commentator) In an era where accusations of fake news run rampant, it might provide us with some comfort in knowing that we at least hold conscious control over choosing our media sources and what information we are critically consuming. In this episode, however, Mich…
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Is the search for authenticity futile? (Lauren Bialystok)
43:43
43:43
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43:43
Featuring Lauren Bialystok (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Regina Bendix (commentator) Most of us have been inundated with the seemingly well-intentioned advice to "be authentic" or simply, to "be yourself." In this episode, Lauren Bialystok troubles this fascination with authenticity to ask, what does it really mean to be "true to ourselve…
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What's the risk of avoiding risk? (Eduardo Duarte)
41:14
41:14
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41:14
Featuring Eduardo Duarte (guest) with Samantha Ha DiMuzio (host) and Jessica Harless (commentator) Eduardo Duarte has often been labeled an "adrenaline junkie" by his friends given his interest in activities like mountain biking and skiing. However, this label raises some dominant assumptions about what activities and domains "count" as risky. Join…
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Can coding make us more human? (Marina Bers)
37:35
37:35
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37:35
Featuring Marina Bers (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and David Goodman (commentator) Coding is usually understood as a neutral tool that we use for practical purposes and to solve technical problems. However, in this episode, Marina Bers offers an alternative vision of coding as an ethical enterprise, which provides an opening to better contem…
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Is hope worth hoping for? (Kieran Setiya)
32:44
32:44
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32:44
Featuring Kieran Setiya (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Gregory Fried (commentator) The conventional wisdom is that hope is a good thing. Hope is valorized, especially in the face of hardship and the many challenges of life. However, in this episode, Kieran Setiya offers us reasons why we ought to be skeptical of hope as a pacifying force, …
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Do things happen for a reason? (Karin Nisenbaum)
36:01
36:01
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36:01
Featuring Karin Nisenbaum (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Scott Seider (commentator) Do you believe in fate? Whether you think everything happens for a reason or is completely up to chance, tune into this episode to reimagine the role of fate in our lives. Join Karin Nisenbaum as she offers an interpretation of character as a kind of destin…
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Is individuality impossible? (Kenneth Gergen)
41:31
41:31
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41:31
Featuring Kenneth Gergen (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Samantha Ha DiMuzio (commentator) Usually, we envision ourselves as individuals who build relationships, comprise communities, and make our own decisions. In this episode, Ken Gergen troubles this notion of individualism and instead offers an alternative perspective based on relationa…
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Have we forgotten about social class? (Andy Hargreaves)
43:05
43:05
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43:05
Featuring Andy Hargreaves (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Allison Skerrett (commentator) In conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion, it is not uncommon to discuss differences along axes of race, gender, or sexual orientation. However, what about the pervasive impact of socioeconomic status? In this episode, Andy Hargreaves expl…
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Could dementia be a gateway to mystical experience? (Mark Freeman)
36:01
36:01
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36:01
Featuring Mark Freeman (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Suzanne Kirschner There is no doubt that dementia is a painful and heartbreaking disease. However, in accompanying his mother in her own experience with dementia, Mark Freeman comes to some unexpected insights about how dementia can sometimes be understood as more than just loss and det…
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Is purpose both backward and forward-looking? (William Damon)
40:28
40:28
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40:28
Featuring William Damon (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Howard Gardner (commentator) In conversations about human development, talk about purpose often centers on providing meaning to the present and guiding our future life trajectory. However, William Damon draws upon his own experience unpacking his family history as an example to conside…
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Where is the boundary between reality and fiction? (Constantine Nakassis)
43:44
43:44
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43:44
Featuring Constantine V. Nakassis (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Michael Lempert (commentator). We often feel that there is a sharp distinction between the world of fiction and the "real world." For example, is there really any doubt that the Marvel superheroes are not real, that they only live in fictional representations? Costantine Naka…
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Featuring Marina McCoy (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Alexandra Michel (commentator) We often turn to experts in our lives for all kinds of matters. It isn't uncommon, for example, to turn to surgeons for medical expertise or call upon expert testimonies in the court room. However, Marina McCoy argues that our commonsense understandings of…
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Featuring Anna Stetsenko (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Megan Laverty (commentator) It is far from a secret that contemporary schools aren't perfect, but should we really stop teaching students? In this episode, Anna Stetsenko offers us the provocation to stop teaching as we know it and radically reimagine a kind of teaching that might be …
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Are prisons separate from society? (Matt DelSesto)
35:43
35:43
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35:43
Featuring Matt DelSesto, David Sellers, and Allison Pyo (guests) with Stanton Wortham Large walls and secure perimeters physically isolate prisons from the rest of society. This episode, however, draws on insights from the Boston College Inside-Out Program to explore how what happens within prison walls is often more connected to the rest of societ…
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What if we are not alone in the universe? (Andrea Vicini)
40:24
40:24
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40:24
Featuring Andrea Vicini (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Kristina Wirtz (commentator) The possibility of extra-terrestrial or beyond human life is a common theme in popular culture. However, in this episode, Andrea Vicini asks us to seriously entertain what an encounter with the Other might help us learn about our own humanity.…
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What if art and science aren't opposites? (Ellen Winner)
44:30
44:30
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44:30
Featuring Ellen Winner (guest) with Stanton Wortham (host) and Keith Sawyer (commentator) There is a seemingly age-old division between art and science, which on one hand attributes emotions and creativity to art, and on the other hand, espouses science with logic and reason. Join Ellen Winner in this episode as she troubles this dichotomy and help…
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What is the complexity in simplicity? (Howard Gardner)
39:02
39:02
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39:02
Featuring Howard Gardner (guest) and Stanton Wortham (host) with Gabrielle Oliveira (commentator) Everyone has heard the mantra: keep it simple. Why make something more complicated than it needs to be? In this episode, Howard Gardner reflects on the complexities inherent in simplicity via the global uptake of his famous theory of multiple intellige…
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Have we lost touch with our most important sense? (Richard Kearney)
36:45
36:45
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36:45
Featuring Richard Kearney with Stanton Wortham (host) and Colleen Griffith (commentator). In our current era of the pandemic and of social distancing, we are confronted with the challenges of prolonged periods without contact. In this episode, Richard Kearney claims that the basic human need for touch has never been so prevalent as it is today. Tun…
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Does neuroscience indicate that humans have no free will? (Greg Fried)
36:24
36:24
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36:24
Featuring Greg Fried with Stanton Wortham (host) and Liane Young (commentator) Though it has become a commonsense assumption that humans indeed have control over their decision-making, Greg Fried offers a neurological insight in this episode that raises questions about whether or not humans really have free will.…
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Did school children learn more during the pandemic? (Rebecca Lowenhaupt)
33:22
33:22
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33:22
Featuring Rebecca Lowenhaupt with Stanton Wortham (host) and Vincent Cho (commentator) As COVID-19 rages on, there is increasing conversation and controversy about the impact of the pandemic on education and school children. Many have characterized this school year as one of disruption and learning loss. In this episode, Becca Lowenhaupt proposes a…
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How can education be about acquiring nothing? (René Arcilla)
43:21
43:21
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43:21
Featuring René Arcilla with Samantha Ha (guest host) and Chris Higgins (commentator) Like most people, René Arcilla thought that the purpose of education was to equip students with the skills and knowledge needed to address pressing social problems. This episode highlights what he discovered instead -- a purpose of education that isn’t focused on a…
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Is Adam Smith a friend of social justice? (Ryan Hanley)
36:42
36:42
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36:42
Featuring Ryan Hanley with Stanton Wortham (host) and Greg Kalscheur (commentator) The central figure in this episode is Adam Smith, an economist and philosopher most notorious for being the “Father of Capitalism.” Ryan Hanley draws from his own research to demonstrate how Smith’s focus on markets is compatible with commitments to social justice an…
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Are we all in arranged marriages? (Usha Tummala-Narra)
34:47
34:47
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34:47
Drawing from the widespread fascination with Netflix’s show, Indian Matchmaking, Usha Tummala-Narra addresses the ways in which South Asian arranged marriage practices might be more common in Eurocentric relationships and conceptions than we might think.
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In this episode, Stanton Wortham draws on anthropological research to illustrate why a belief in witchcraft is rational. His definition of witchcraft - not defined by pointy hats or Halloween - might challenge you to consider not only whether witches exist, but whether you could be a witch as well.
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Is it your responsibility to end world poverty? (Scott Seider)
40:16
40:16
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40:16
World poverty is a humanitarian issue that is nearly unanimous in stance -- you don’t find many people who would want global poverty and hunger to persist. However, what if there was something tangible you could do to address this problem? In this episode, Scott Seider considers Peter Singer’s Solution to world poverty and what it asks of everyday …
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Is faith as reasonable as reason? (Thomas Groome)
39:17
39:17
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39:17
In this episode, Thomas Groome troubles the stereotypical divide between faith and science using examples from his own experience, including a chat with his bee-keeper neighbor. Tune in to consider the many ways in which atheism and theism are on level ground - by way of reason.
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Should six-year olds get to vote? (Gabrielle Oliveira)
42:52
42:52
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42:52
Stanton Wortham hosts Gabrielle Oliveira with discussant Samantha Ha. In this episode, Gabi Oliveira asks us to let kids have a seat at the adults’ table, or rather, take a seat at the child’s table when it comes to decision-making that will affect youth’s lives. Drawing on her own ethnographic research, she explores the possibilities when young ch…
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Are you interested in piquing your curiosity and reimagining the world anew… in only 35 minutes? Tune into a new podcast that aims to create moments of being “Pulled Up Short" — experiences of surprise when we encounter an idea, text, or experience that challenges our ways of thinking and deeply held assumptions about the world. Our first season wi…
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