The Innovation Show

There are reasons we are the way we are; we are optimized for other purposes, not the least of which is thinking in stories not logic. So we did something else instead: we taught rocks how to think. Intrigued? So was I and I’m delighted to host the man who’ll answer this strange question in Act III of “Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think: How Humans Learned to See the Future--and Shape It” Byron Reese, welcome back to the show Find Byron here: www.byronreese.com

We're often told that humans make bad decisions and that more data is better. But this is backwards: people are good at decisions precisely because we use mental models and can envision new realities outside of data. Great outcomes don't depend so much on the final moment of choosing but on generating better alternatives to choose between. That's framing. It's a cognitive muscle we can strengthen to improve our lives, work and future. Today’s book shows us how. We welcome the author of Framers: Make Better Decisions In The Age of Big Data Kenneth Cukier. Find Kenneth here: http://www.cukier.com @kncukier https://www.economist.com/books-and-arts/2021/05/11/imaginative-framing-is-the-key-to-problem-solving

Today’s book is about the impossible, but it starts with the invisible.  Over the four decades, an unlikely collection of men and women  have pushed human performance farther and faster than at any other  point in the 150,000-year history of our species.  In this evolutionary eyeblink, they have completely redefined the limits  of the possible.  But here’s the stranger part: this unprecedented flowering of human  potential has taken place in plain sight, occasionally with millions  of people watching–yet almost no one has noticed. Today’s guest will explain why, he is a friend of the show and author of multiple titles and the focus of today’s episode is “The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance”, Steven Kotler, welcome. More about Steven: https://www.flowresearchcollective.com/flow-blocker-quiz

It is a pleasure to welcome back the author of “The Matter With Things: Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World”, Iain McGilchrist In this episode, we explore intuition, imagination and more. Find Iain here: http://channelmcgilchrist.com

Today we focus on ACT II of Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think: How Humans Learned to See the Future and Shape It with Byron Reese Act II is set In 17th century France, the mathematical framework known as 'probability theory' is born—a science for seeing into the future that we used to build the modern world. We welcome back the author of “Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think: How Humans Learned to See the Future--and Shape It” friend of the show, Byron Reese. Find Byron here: www.byronreese.com

In Part I of “The Matter With Things: Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World” Iain McGilchrist addresses the means to truth, in the sense of the faculties with which we are endowed for this task. He takes these to be: attention, perception, judgment, apprehension, emotional and social intelligence, cognitive intelligence and creativity. In each case, he looks at what either hemisphere contributes to the process. We don’t stand a hope of diving into each but I felt we should share some of your writing on attention and Perception before we focus today on some of the more philosophical chapters such as intuition. We touched on it on the last day, but for those who know your work! We will know how we attend to the work is of utmost importance to what and how we experience the world? “Attention changes the world. How you attend to it changes what it is you find there. What you find then governs the kind of attention you will think it appropriate to pay in the future. And so it is that the world you recognise (which will not be exactly the same as my world) is ‘firmed up’ – and brought into being. This raises a core question then, What is attention?

Look around. Clearly, we humans are radically different from the other creatures on this planet. But why? Where are the Bronze Age beavers? The Iron Age iguanas? In today’s episode, our guest argues that we humans owe our special status to our ability to imagine the future and recall the past, escaping the perpetual present that all other living creatures are trapped in.    Envisioning human history as the development of a societal superorganism he names Agora, our guest shows us how this escape enabled us to share knowledge on an unprecedented scale, and predict—and eventually master—the future. He unravels our history as an intelligent species in three acts:   Act I: Ancient humans undergo “the awakening,” developing the cognitive ability to mentally time-travel using language Act II: In 17th century France, the mathematical framework known as 'probability theory' is born—a science for seeing into the future that we used to build the modern world Act III: Beginning with the invention of the computer chip, humanity creates machines to gaze into the future with even more precision, overcoming the limits of our brains We welcome back the author of “Stories, Dice, and Rocks That Think: How Humans Learned to See the Future--and Shape It” friend of the show, Byron Reese. Find Byron here: www.byronreese.com

Part 2 of this extended episode with Eric Maisel Imagine solving problems and increasing creativity while you sleep. Grounded in current brain research, today’s book introduces a simple but revolutionary program that shows how to do just that by learning to tune into your deepest intuitions. Case studies illustrate the effects of sleep thinking on ordinary individuals, from a failing college student to an engineer with anger management issues. This tool for idea generation and life-purpose clarification offers answers that lead to actions and result in positive changes, all by getting clear on the real nature of a problem and learning to listen for the answers. We welcome back for part 2 the author "The Magic of Sleep Thinking: How to Solve Problems, Reduce Stress, and Increase Creativity While You Sleep", Eric Maisel More about Eric: https://ericmaisel.com

Imagine solving problems and increasing creativity while you sleep. Grounded in current brain research, today’s book introduces a simple but revolutionary program that shows how to do just that by learning to tune into your deepest intuitions. Case studies illustrate the effects of sleep thinking on ordinary individuals, from a failing college student to an engineer with anger management issues. This tool for idea generation and life-purpose clarification offers answers that lead to actions and result in positive changes, all by getting clear on the real nature of a problem and learning to listen for the answers. We welcome the author of a multitude of titles but the focus of today’s episode is, The Magic of Sleep Thinking: How to Solve Problems, Reduce Stress, and Increase Creativity While You Sleep, Eric Maisel More about Eric: https://ericmaisel.com

In this landmark new book, our guest addresses some of the oldest and hardest questions humanity faces – ones that have a practical urgency for all of us today. Who are we? What is the world? How can we understand consciousness, matter, space and time? Is the cosmos without purpose or value? Can we really neglect the sacred and divine? In doing so, he argues that we have become enslaved to an account of things dominated by the brain’s left hemisphere, one that blinds us to an awe-inspiring reality that is all around us, had we but eyes to see it. He suggests that in order to understand ourselves and the world we need science and intuition, reason and imagination, not just one or two; that they are in any case far from being in conflict; and that the brain’s right hemisphere plays the most important part in each. And he shows us how to recognise the ‘signature’ of the left hemisphere in our thinking, so as to avoid making decisions that bring disaster in their wake. Following the paths of cutting-edge neurology, philosophy and physics, he reveals how each leads us to a similar vision of the world, one that is both profound and beautiful – and happens to be in line with the deepest traditions of human wisdom. It is a vision that returns the world to life, and us to a better way of living in it: one we must embrace if we are to survive. He is one of my favourite writers and his previous appearance on the show remains one of my favourites and each time I listen to I learn something new, he is back to introduce his latest book, which I consider an oeuvre as in the French word for a body of work and this is a magnificent oeuvre. It is a pleasure to welcome the author of “The Matter With Things: Our Brains, Our Delusions, and the Unmaking of the World” Iain McGilchrist, you are very welcome. More about Iain: http://channelmcgilchrist.com