logo
episode-header-image
Aug 18
1h 22m

How Our Brains Learn

Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
About this episode

Have you ever fallen asleep in school or during a work meeting? Maybe you felt your eyes glaze over as your boss or a teacher droned on and on about a topic that had no relevance to you. What's missing from these classrooms and conference rooms is engagement: A state of being absorbed, alert, and eager to learn. This week, psychologist and neuroscientist Mary Helen Immordino-Yang explores why so many of us feel apathetic at school and at work, and how to cultivate the magic of engagement.

Do you have follow-up questions or comments after listening to this episode? If you’d be willing to share your thoughts with the Hidden Brain audience, please record a voice memo on your phone and email it to us at ideas@hiddenbrain.org. Use the subject line “learning.” Thanks! 

Episode photo by Ismail Salad Osman Hajji dirir on Unsplash

 


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Up next
Oct 6
Love 2.0: How to Fix Your Marriage, Part 2
When things go wrong in our relationships, we often try to change the way our partners behave. But usually, trying to fix a person only makes things worse. Last week, we talked to psychologist James Cordova about why this tendency can be so damaging, and what to do instead. This ... Show More
1h 44m
Sep 29
Love 2.0: How to Fix Your Marriage, Part 1
Many love stories end when the characters are still in the heady, euphoric early stages of a relationship. But what comes after that intoxicating first phase of love is over? Today, we kick off a new series on the challenges specific to long-term relationships. We'll talk with ps ... Show More
1h 41m
Sep 22
Passion vs. Paycheck
The idea of being driven by a calling goes back centuries. It was the language used to describe religious people who were called to the priesthood. Today, millions of people in secular professions yearn to be similarly galvanized by their work. This week, researcher Jennifer Tost ... Show More
53m 25s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2024
The Science of Mind Reading: Unlocking the Secrets of Human Thought
The Science of Mind Reading: Unlocking the Secrets of Human ThoughtJoin us in this fascinating episode of The Science of Mind Reading, where we delve into the intriguing world of understanding human thoughts and emotions. Can we read minds, or is it just an illusion? In this epis ... Show More
12m 48s
Feb 2023
Focus - When Our Senses Intermingle
How can some people taste sounds? What’s happening in the brain of those who feel other’s sensations as their own? And why might we have evolved some of these extraordinary abilities in the first place? In this focus episode of How We’re Wired, join producer Dr Eva Higginbotham a ... Show More
32m 25s
Oct 2024
Ep. 5: Teachers Break the Silence about Telepathy
In this powerful fifth episode of The Telepathy Tapes, the focus shifts to educators who have witnessed telepathy among non-speaking autistic students. The episode shares testimonies from brave teachers like Mary Ann Harrington, Suzy Miller and others, who risked their reputation ... Show More
47m 44s
Jan 2025
Why do we dream?
Did you have a dream last night? Do you remember it? Dreams hold a lot of significance throughout history – but how much should we be reading into them, and is there any science to back up the theories we have for what we experience in our dreams? Dr Manuela Kirberg is a research ... Show More
18m 58s
Dec 2022
Focus - When We Sleep
What’s happening in our brains when we sleep? Why are autistic people more likely to struggle with sleep? And how might new sleep technology help improve memory? In this episode of How We’re Wired, join producer Dr Eva Higginbotham as she looks at how autism affects sleep, and wh ... Show More
19m 53s
Aug 17
Talk Tracks Ep. 16: The Story of Jes and Asher
In this episode of the Talk Tracks, we revisit Jes and Asher from episode 5 of the Telepathy Tapes season one, in which we only breached the surface of their amazing true story. Retired teacher Jes Kerzen recounts her decades-long friendship with her former student, Asher.Their c ... Show More
40m 39s
Sep 12
Unpacking the Brain’s Role in Inventing Your Perception
Human brains don’t just perceive reality—they invent it. In this episode of Science Quickly, cognitive neuroscientist Daniel Yon speaks with host Rachel Feltman about how perception is an active process of prediction in which the brain constructs theories about the world that can ... Show More
15m 37s
Feb 2025
How to Master Small Talk & Why We Do Things Without Knowing Why- SYSK Choice
Is there a reason we have eyebrows? Pretty much every part of the human body has a reason for being there and eyebrows actually have three reasons. I begin this episode by explaining what they are. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/58424/why-do-we-have-eyebrows Every relationsh ... Show More
49m 35s
Sep 22
The Mystery of Common Knowledge & Why Some People Are Never On Time
If I showed you some photos of yourself and asked you to pick out the one that most accurately represented what you really looked like – could you do it? Listen as I begin this episode by explaining why you most likely could not. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/06/1506 ... Show More
49m 11s
Jul 2022
How We Hear
How do we hear? What parts of our brain respond to sound? And how can we use vibrations to expand the way we enjoy music? In this episode of How We’re Wired, join evolutionary anthropologist Dr Anna Machin on a sensory journey exploring the world of sound, and how we hear it. We’ ... Show More
33m 38s