Strange Customs with Sasha Sagan

Sasha Sagan talks to constitutional attorney ANDREW SEIDEL and professor of criminology DR. MEREDITH ROSSNER about an area of life that we don't usually think of as being full of ritual. But it's saturated with it—for better and worse.

Sasha Sagan talks to NICOLE RICHIE about her long, happy relationship with a very common, very strange custom.We'll also hear from experimental psychologist DR. ROHAN KAPITANY, a specialist in rituals and supernatural beliefs, about this and other lesser deities who populate the minds of our children—usually because we put them there ourselves.

Sasha sits down with author and adventurer JEDIDIAH JENKINS to explore a human custom that can be fun and games—or life and death.We’ll also hear from historian JORDAN GIRARDIN about the surprising origins of the custom and the ways we're still not getting it quite right.

Why do we do things the way we do them? Sasha Sagan kicks off Strange Customs with actor, author, and activist BRANDON KYLE GOODMAN in a thoughtful and hilarious conversation about an ancient custom that is a major part of Brandon’s life—but one they couldn’t have participated in even a few years ago.We’ll also hear from historian STEPHANIE COONTZ about how changeable and varied this “traditional” custom has actually been over the centuries.

Why do we do things the way we do them? We take on customs from our ancestors, act them out, then teach them to the next generation, often without thinking. But when we take a step back, they can seem bizarre, arbitrary...and sometimes, profoundly beautiful.Join Sasha Sagan, author of "For Small Creatures Such as We," as she talks to smart, funny, interesting celebrities and scholars, uncovering just how weirdly wonderful we Earthlings can be.