The Armen Show

Episode 247 is on the scene with science journal Lydia Denworth, author of Friendship: The Evolution, Biology, and Extraordinary Power of Life’s Fundamental Bond. It covers the basis behind why we as people become friends, and how it can be so powerful. Some of the greatest things done by people came from strong friendships. Lydia Denworth has contributed to Scientific American, and writes the ‘Brain Waves’ blog for Psychology Today. Her work is regularly across such publications as Scientific American Mind, Parents, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg News. Regarding Friendship, Dr. Nicholas Christakis of episode 232 said “If you care about what really matters in life, read this fantastic natural history of human friendship.” Show notes: what led to Lydia getting into the field of science journalismanalyzing and discussing the concept of friendshiphow science benefits from reaching out to other work in related fieldswhy friendship is the piece of the relationship story that was left out for a long timewhere long-running research in field sites is done on animals like macaques to see their social patternshow neuroscientists can see differences in brain activity in early years of a person’s life, representing rapid growth/adjustmenthow empathy and theory-of-mind is developed at a certain age rangewhat macaques do to subjugate other ones, and how stress responses are a part of the social win/loss paradigmthe way that public speaking or math can be used to examine stress levelwhat loneliness represents about the person in that position, regarding their mental healththe lunch time that exists in middle school, and what it represents for socialization and internal battlessome of the illumination on women in science in the book, as well as one way that expanded a direction of researchthe types of friendships that are more valuable in the long-term, and how many close friends the average person hashow there needs to be back-and-forth in a successful long-term friendshipwhat face-to-face interaction means for friendship and its growth Having Lydia on the show was a nice opportunity to learn about friendship and its value. You can check out her TED Talk “The Science of Friendship”, her home page and updates, or look at Friendship on Amazon.

When it comes to sustainable energy solutions, Larry Rogero has been implementing them for corporations for decades. I first met Larry through his wife Christel, who is my friend and mother of episode 208 guest nutritionist Erika Stowe-Madison. Larry brings a focus and deliberation to what he does that is necessary for long-lasting results. Larry is Chief Operating and Strategy Officer at Summit Inspection Services, and has worked in environmental affairs for decades. He got his Masters in Environment Management at Yale University, and his Bachelors in Biological Sciences from my institution of higher learning, UC Santa Barbara. Show notes: a superb intro by Christelwhat led Larry into the field of environmental concern in the first placehow wind power has been used in recent years, and where it is going in coming yearsthe ways that Larry has contributed to his organization, and what it takes to get a wind power project in place and goingsome of the issues with installing wind turbines in new placesenvironmental concerns in coming years, and the amount of renewable energy we currently have in placea reverse interview with Larry asking me many questions about the show and my ideas behind itbooks read by both of us, and people we both look to as representative people to check out or followand much more It was great to have Larry on the show, and it was neat to explore his methodical nature that he has displayed in his field for decades.

We dive into the collective consciousness of humans on episode 245 with Dr. Sarah Rose Cavanagh, author of “Hivemind”. The book takes us through how group elements and stories spread among people, the ways that people can build each other up or tear each other down via the internet, vulnerabilities of certain groups of people, and lessons for people to take through their days. Dr. Cavanagh is Associate Professor of Psychology at Assumption College, and got her PhD in Experimental Psychology from Tufts University. Her research is on how patterns of emotional reactivity illuminates trajectories of risk and resilience in individuals. Show notes: how Dr. Cavanagh got into psychology in the first placethe way that elements can spread from group to groupwhat the hivemind represents, and how we operate as a collective consciousnessthe way that stories can propel a fiction or nonfiction from a small form to a societal beliefthe impact that online frameworks have had on people, whether to build them up or tear them downwho is most vulnerable to manipulation due to their current life condition and physiologyhow many are walking through life in the form of a constant form of minor fight-or-flight responsea lesson about how serendipity can be built or supported in one’s existence Glad to have Dr. Cavanagh on the show, and you can check out her faculty page, Hivemind on Amazon, or follow her on Twitter.

Our first guest of 2020 is Dr. Scott Grafton, Bedrosian Coyne Presidential Chair in Neuroscience at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is author of the book Physical Intelligence: The Science of How the Body and the Mind Guide Each Other Through Life. It was great to talk with Dr. Grafton because his book connected with some concepts from some authors/researchers in past episodes, and described a way of thinking about the physical element of intelligence, and how our motor function is connected with our layers of brain processing. I also went to UCSB, and that is a nice point of similarity. Dr. Grafton is director of the UCSB Brain Imaging Center and codirector of the Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies. He received BA’s in Mathematics and Psychobiology from the University of California at Santa Cruz and his MD degree from the University of Southern California. Show notes: brain scans and positron emission tomography (PET) for understanding of brain functionDr. Grafton’s career, and what led him to brain and motor function researchrunning the brain imaging center, and how imaging has developed in recent yearswhere all the action in the brain is locatedvisual perception, and how the percentage of vision someone gives to an object relates to its importance in a broad perspectivehow it is difficult to maneuver over rocks, and to create robots that would walk across rough rocksbody schema, as it compares with attention schema theory, for physical sensationthe way that practicing something in your mind connects with ability to do the motor actionhow the brain creates synergies of muscle movementshow babies have plasticity, and take risks in order to understand their physical environment from scratchhow nature serves as a medicine to people and their well-beingthe way that entropy is key to a healthy life, and how one does not benefit from distancing from entropic conditions You can check out Dr. Grafton’s faculty page, or check out Physical Intelligence on Amazon.

Hello my fellow podcast listeners, associates, colleagues, individuals, audience members, and personnel. We here at The Armen Show Podcast (known for its consistency, variety, depth, and goal-oriented nature) are glad to walk right into the new year of 2020. The show starts on a noticeably different footing as compared with its presence at the same time last year, and this is a springboard into the forward progression at hand. Show notes: where we are at in the great year of 2020how TikTok is the place where a lot of energy is currently goingsome of the plans or ideas for 2020speaking or some form of speech-providingways I can improve my end of the show throughout the yearemotional awareness and better blending with gueststelling more stories, and including more of my own experiences, along with mentions of past guestshow I will be including more elements without thinking if X or Y or Z is the right thing to add inhow I will be looking at other podcasters/creators to see what I can add in or improve uponwhat the podcast represents and is meant to express Keep up with the show and you are keeping up with the movement. Let’s roll onward.

Long live the year, the decade, and the dynamics that have progressed over time. This episode is me closing out the decade with some descriptions of my content creation over time, what I have noticed of the internet as it shifted over the years, and what changes I have seen in the planet in the past decade. I like to do recaps and compilations to get a broader sense of what has happened. We can only see so much from a smaller view, but I don’t like to stick with that view. The bigger picture is the world I like to inhabit, and at times, I share that with you. Show notes: progression of my social media content over the yearsmy blog Timeless Information and its various contentsYouTube videos with strangers in publicSnapChat themes across different messagesPodcast audios and shared insightsTikTok clips of insights, or shared with strangersthe development of the internet over the past 10 yearswhat people have used and shifted towardsome global dynamics I have noticedwhat cultures have more recently gone online in big numberswhat I have liked to do Glad to have you all on the show in these times. We progress to the next decade in smooth fashion, and there is a world of opportunity for those who seek it out. To more great things~

The year of 2019 is shortly coming to a close, and we start to bring it home with episode 241, featuring guest Dr. Brian Sweis of the University of Minnesota. He was listed as one of the recipients of the Forbes 30-under-30 description in the category of Science for 2019, and his focus is neuroscience. He completed the PhD part of his MD/PhD program in 2018, and continues through his MD at this time. His research exists “…at the intersection of affective, behavioral, and cognitive neuroscience and clinical psychiatry and neurology, particularly focused on neuromodulation interventions.” The work he does “… aims to understand how the brain processes information during decision-making and how lasting changes in the synaptic mechanisms of plasticity, particularly in the context of addiction and other psychiatric disorders, give rise to maladaptive behaviors.” Show notes: how Dr. Sweis got to where he is in the MD/PhD neuroscience program at the University of Minnesotawhy is it relevant that one study the intersection of multiple fields like affective, cognitive, and behavioral science, along with neurology and neuroeconomicswhat some of Dr. Sweis’ work on neuromodulation efforts looks like in terms of description and examplehow there are biomarkers that are more or less reliable than others to inform researchers of an attribute in placewhy decisions are multi-faceted, and can arise from distinct circuit-specific neural computationsthe difference between decisions made from an emotional standpoint, versus from a logical basis, and how each can be beneficial in different scenariosthe kinds of animal and human trials that are done to research how the brain is impacted, and what kinds Dr. Sweis performswhat it means to look at decision-making in a neuroeconomic way, assessing comparative values to choiceshow disorders can alter how stored information is processedsome of the scientists and advisors along the way that have guided or informed Dr. Sweis, along with the reasons why I can see why Dr. Sweis was selected for the Forbes designation, and enjoyed discussing with him while he currently is in a study program. He has long-term goals for research, teaching, and medical work, which is a full-throttle set of items. Some of his research application qualities remind me of Dr. Daniel Z. Lieberman from episode 201, who discussed his research on dopamine. Dr. Sweis also mentioned my interview with Dr. Robert Sapolsky in this episode, and I have always liked Dr. Sapolsky’s book Behave. You can check out Dr. Sweis’ material on his University of Minnesota page, follow him on Twitter, or look at some of his publications.

2019 has been a fabulous year for the podcast. There will be a couple episodes after this one, but this episode serves to describe and summarize the episodes that were covered this year, along with how they link to one another progressing through them. This year took the show into a different bracket, as far as guests, video, and messages being provided. There was more of authors, researchers, notable individuals, speakers, and stories that resonate. I was glad it went in this direction, and the show is in a good space to start out 2020. There are no show notes in this description, because the episode itself is a review of the past episodes. The podcast went to many different sources this year, including Spotify, iTunes, and Google Play, and was then added to YouTube with the selection of episodes that have the guest on video, either from in-person, or on Skype. May there continue to be more wonderful guests, things learned, and connection. Subscribe, let people know, like on iTunes or other services, leave a review, or do whatever you would like to help the show become more known, reach a larger audience, and lead to greater guest opportunities.

How does our focused attention relate to what we call “consciousness”? What types of attention are out there, and what are the functions of each type? Professor Michael Graziano explores this and more in his book Rethinking Consciousness: A Scientific Theory of Subjective Experience. Author Michael Graziano is Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Princeton University, and he has written multiple books on neuroscience, evolution, and human nature. The Graziano Lab at Princeton focuses on the brain basis of consciousness, based on attention schema theory, which was formulated by Professor Graziano. I talked with Professor Graziano about his book and concepts related to consciousness. The mechanistic approach he brings to the topic is something that I am able to relate with. Show notes: what Professor Graziano works on with students in the Graziano labhow the brain basis of consciousness is studied, and ways that we accept consciousness as definedwhat the attention schema theory is, and how the model has two functions for daily livingthe way that signals compete with each other in the computational process of attentionhow a frog’s form of attention differs from that of a person, and the types of awareness that existwhat “biased competition” is, and and the battle for incoming stimuli to the cortexwhy covert and overt attention are both needed, and how they differconsciousness only being present in a few types of organisms/mammalsthe concept of affordance, and how the brain works tirelessly as a prediction machinewhy consciousness is defined as a hard problem, and if that difficulty can be usurped with some research method It was swell to have Professor Graziano on episode 239 of the show. You can check out his lab page at Princeton, see his research publications, or check out his book Rethinking Consciousness on Amazon.

I like people who put their thoughts out there, and furthermore, when they have a “Principles” page on their website that describes the thoughts that guide them. Cameron Porter joins on episode 238 of the show, not only as a former Major League Soccer striker on various teams, but as a current founder and funder for AlleyCorp, an organization that builds transformative companies in New York City. At AlleyCorp, Cameron “…is responsible for new company R&D, due diligence on seed investments, as well the development of internal tools/initiatives.” Regarding his academic experience, he “… studied computer science at Princeton University where he was recognized as an Academic All-American and William Winston Roper Trophy finalist for high scholastic rank and outstanding qualities of sportsmanship.” Before the episode, I had checked out his speaking with David Perell on The North Star Podcast, and enjoyed their discussion. My discussion with Cameron ranged from his mindset, to his soccer experiences, to his founding and funding practice. Show notes: how Cameron ended up in the founding/funding category at AlleyCorp, transitioning away from his professional soccer career [2:20]the concept of how greatness is not able to be planned, and the way this message has attached to Cameron’s path [3:40]what a long-term perspective can provide, and an example of a project that took this perspective into account [5:20]some of the takeaways that Cameron got from his time at Princeton, including those related to people [6:55]the way that Cameron sees the soccer portion of his career in relation to what he currently does [10:20]some differences that may have existed between Cameron and some of his fellow soccer players [12:00]what led Cameron to playing in the position of striker on the field [14:00]examples of a fork in life that Cameron had other than the knee injury that impacted his career [14:00]the concept of whether something will matter in 5 years [18:20]creation versus consumption, and Cameron’s principle of looking at output instead of input, personally or in the workplace [22:45]incompetence over malice, and how to look at the feedback or commentary that others send to you [26:45]perspective on fear, alternatively looked at as uncertainty [30:00]whether Cameron thought he might have some sort of large injury before it happened on the field [32:10]entropy in socialization and life, and the way that Cameron would want entropy to be represented in his outputs/projects [34:00]how podcasts are not as constrained in direction as some other mediums that exist [37:30]if Cameron would make a podcast, and what it would be about [39:00]whether audio, video, or text input/output is most preferred by Cameron for content purposes [42:45] I sure enjoyed having Cameron on the episode. His thoughts are clear, and on point, and he has a warm nature. To the potential of a follow-up episode in a year, to compare the deltas from where he and I were at during the time of this episode. To more good things. You can check out his website at incremental.nyc