Inquiring Minds
Indre Viskontas
Each week we bring you a new, in-depth exploration of the space where science and society collide. We’re committed to the idea that making an effort to understand the world around you though science and critical thinking can benefit everyone—and lead to better decisions. We want to find out what’s true, what’s left to discover, and why it all matters.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Apr 25, 2020 • 39min
The behavioral economics of baseball
We talk to writer Keith Law about the behavioral economics of baseball and his new book The Inside Game: Bad Calls, Strange Moves, and What Baseball Behavior Teaches Us About Ourselves.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Apr 14, 2020 • 29min
Up To Date | Plastic-eating enzymes; 5,000-year-old egg decorating; why you still can’t buy love; and the neural basis of creativity
This week: New research on a biological enzyme that can break down the plastic we use for water bottles; a brief look into the history of egg decorating; a new study on the social consequences of a financially contingent self-worth; and a summary of new research involving jazz guitarists improvising while wearing EEGs on their heads.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Apr 7, 2020 • 35min
Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn't Designed for You
We talk to journalist and founder of the Neurodiversity Project Jenara Nerenberg about her new book Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn't Designed for You.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Mar 31, 2020 • 32min
Revisiting the Dunning-Kruger Effect with David Dunning
We talk to social psychologist David Dunning about his well-known 1999 study on why people are so bad at knowing how smart they are. He explains what people get wrong about it today, and what he’s learned since then.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Mar 24, 2020 • 38min
How the internet is changing the English language
We talk to linguist Gretchen McCulloch about her new book Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Mar 17, 2020 • 38min
The science of streaks and the hot hand
We talk to Wall Street Journal reporter Ben Cohen about his new book The Hot Hand: The Mystery and Science of Streaks.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Mar 10, 2020 • 37min
The neuroscience of how we learn
We talk to French neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene about his new book How We Learn: Why Brains Learn Better Than Any Machine … for Now.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Feb 25, 2020 • 40min
A Totally Fictional but Essentially True Silicon Valley Story
We talk to Jessica Powell, a writer and former VP of Communications for Google, about her new book The Big Disruption: A Totally Fictional but Essentially True Silicon Valley Story.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Feb 12, 2020 • 18min
Up To Date | Ancient Dates; Mummy Voices; Mouse Memories
This week: scientists successfully germinated 2,000-year-old date palm seeds and we might soon know what 2,000-year-old dates taste like; another group of researchers 3D modeled a 3,000-year-old mummy’s vocal tract and what they may have sounded like; and new research on how support cells in brains, called microglia, affect memory in mice.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
Feb 4, 2020 • 40min
The Poison Squad
We talk to science journalist Deborah Blum about her new book The Poison Squad: One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/inquiringminds
