Episode 27: Losing Alaska

When historian Kate Bowler was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer, she became fascinated by the ways people try to impose order on events they can't control. She joins us to explore what it means to live fully when life offers no satisfying explanation for the tragedies we may face. ... Show More

Think about the last time you had a discouraging thought. Maybe you told yourself, "This won't work. I'm not cut out for this." Did you take that thought as fact? Last week, we talked with psychologist Martin Seligman about why some people come to believe that their actions don’t ... Show More

Why do some people act on the possibilities before them, while others come to believe that nothing they do will make a difference? Psychologist Martin Seligman describes his groundbreaking research on learned helplessness, and explains how the stories we tell ourselves about setb ... Show More

The biggest obstacle to dealing with climate disruptions lies between your ears, says psychologist and economist Per Espen Stokes. He's spent years studying the defenses we use to avoid thinking about the demise of our planet -- and figuring out a new way of talking about global ... Show More

<p>On this episode of <em>The Disappearing Spoon</em>, Sam Kean delves deep into the science behind the evolution of animal and human bodies. Like animals, human bodies have also evolved to adhere to the demands of ever-changing climates. This raises a question: how will human bo ... Show More

Scientists Zoe Courville and Lora Koenig work to study the impact of climate change — which pulls them away from their children for weeks at a time. In our last episode of the season, they share some hard-earned wisdom with parents who may be struggling during the pandemic.See pc ... Show More

You may think you know yourself, but humans have a striking inability to predict their own behavior in differing emotional states. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the hot-cold empathy gap.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

<p><strong> </strong></p><br><p>For thousands of years, humans have had ideas about mankind's potential impact on the climate.</p><p>In this episode, we look at how these ideas have changed, the men and women who have contributed to them, and ask ourselves why it has taken so lon ... Show More

Could altering the Earth’s atmosphere to reflect back some of the sun’s rays be a solution to climate change? It would likely decrease global temperatures, but it might lead to climate wars. Humanity might become “addicted” to it for survival. And ultimately, would this technolog ... Show More

In this episode, we discuss backlash for selling in “a time like this,” taking social distancing to a whole other level, and anticipating a financial storm that hasn’t even happened yet. We all love watching people struggle in books and movies, but we don’t want to experience it ... Show More