Converging Dialogues

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with David Haig about evolution, causes, and the meaning of life. They discuss how bits of matter can help us understand purpose and value. They talk about the four causes of Aristotle, adaptation, group selection vs. cooperation, and the three types of genes. They discuss replicators and vehicles, types and tokens, memes, and the extended phenotype. They mention the gene selection network, instinct, using biology for understanding meaning, various interpretations, and many other topics. David Haig is the George Putnam Professor of biology at Harvard University. He has multiple degrees in biology including his PhD in biology from MacQuarie University. He was a Royal Society fellow at St. John's College at Oxford University. He is an independent researcher, professor, and author of numerous books. His most recent, From Darwin to Derrida: Selfish genes, Social Selves, and the Meanings of Life, can be found here. You can also find much of his research at his website.  Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Mark Atwood Lawrence about the foreign policy of the United States in the 1960s. They discuss why his book focuses on other foreign policy elements outside of Vietnam during the 1960s. They mention the political opinions of communism, how lower officials managed day-to-day foreign affairs, and why he used the term “third world.” They talk about the transition from Eisenhower to Kennedy and the style of governance that Kennedy used for foreign affairs.  They dialogue about the four strands of thinking on American foreign policy and how Johnson used the “Johnson treatment” to manage foreign affairs diplomacy. They discuss the five case studies in Brazil, India, Iran, Indonesia, and Southern Africa, and how Nixon’s foreign affairs was different.Mark Atwood Lawrence is Associate professor of History, Distinguished Fellow at the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law, and Director of Graduate Studies at the Clements Center for National Security at The University of Texas, Austin. He has his PhD in history from Yale where he also taught before joining UT Austin in 2000. He is the author of several book including his most recent, The End of Ambition: The United States and the Third World in the Vietnam Era. You can find his work here. Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Wolfram Eilenberger about four German philosophers at the turn of the 20th century. They focus on the central theme of whether one can separate the ideas from the biography of a person. They talk about the embodied view vs. the pursuit of eternal truths. They discuss how institutional changes have impacted philosophy in the modern era. They mention the challenges of analytic philosophy and why the four philosophers in his book do not focus on morals/ethics. They talk about Heidegger's relationship with Hannah Arendt along with Heidegger's dark political preferences. They mention why Wittgenstein is seen as so great, the philosophy of soccer, and where the future of philosophy lies. Wolfram Eilenberger is a writer and philosopher. He is the founding editor of Philosophie Magazin and is the program director of phil.cologne and is moderator of the TV program Sternstunde Philosophie. He is the author of the book, Time of the magicians: Wittgenstein, Benjamin, Cassirer, and Heidgger, and the Decade that Reinvented Philosophy. Additionally, he holds DFB football trainer's license and writes for the monthly football column, Eilenbergers Kabinenpredigt for the online German newspaper ZEIT ONLINE. You can find his work at his website. Twitter: @weilenberger Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Kenneth Catania about various animals that are outliers for evolution. They discuss how evolution helps understand these animals that are outliers. They talk about the anatomy and features of the star-nosed moles. They mention the importance of the neocortex in moles and shrews. They discuss the fascinating features of the tentacled snake and the electric eel along with the "zombie" effect the female jewel wasp conducts and many other topics. Kenneth Catania is a professor of biological sciences at Vanderbilt University. He has his PhD in Neuroscience from the University of California, San Diego. His research focus is on comparative neurobiology in different animal sensory systems. His latest book, Great Adaptations: Star-Nosed Moles, Electric Eels, and Other Tales of Evolution's Mysteries Solved, can be purchased here. You can also find his lab here.  Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Richard Lane about the neuroscience of psychotherapy and enduring change. They give an overview of how the neuroscience of psychotherapy can impact enduring change. They provide an overview of memory and the integrated memory model. They mention experiences outside of memory and the three types of unconscious memory along with the cognitive map model. They discuss emotion focused therapy, defining emotion, the social constructivist model, and many other topics. Richard D. Lane is a Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at the University of Arizona. He is a clinical psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and holds a PhD in Experimental Psychology. He is a renowned expert on emotion research and is the author of over 190 papers and book chapters. He was President of the American Psychosomatic Society in 2005-2006, elected member of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and elected Honorary Fellow of the American College of Psychoanalysts. He is the co-editor of the new book, Neuroscience of Enduring Change: Implications for Psychotherapy. You can find his work here.  Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Owen Flanagan about emotions, specifically the emotions of anger and shame. They discuss a definition of emotion and the distinction between feelings and affect. They discuss how emotions are active and whether one can choose their emotions. They dialogue about the social constructivist model of emotions and some of the critiques. They define anger and distinguish between different types of anger. They talk about why pain-passing and payback anger should be significantly minimized and also how we see emotions cross-culturally. They discuss shame and the global self and the difference between an emotion and the expression of an emotion. They mention how shame is expressed in pop culture and what a mature sense of shame looks like. Owen Flanagan is the James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Duke University. He has his PhD from Boston University. He taught philosophy at Wellesley College before arriving at Duke. He has written many books including the most recent, How To Do Things with Emotions: The Morality of Anger and Shame Across Cultures, which can be purchased here. You can find his work at his website.  Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Richard Firth-Godbehere about the history of human emotions. They provide a definition of emotion and how it is different from affect and feelings. They explain emotional regimes, communities, and scripts. They talk about how the Greeks understood emotions and some of the differences between positive and negative emotions. They discuss the system of desire developed by the Hindus in India and the distinction between desire and disgust. They also talk about Paul and the stoics, Mohammad and the emotion of fear, and how abomination fits with disgust. They mention the witch trials and the role of dogma and misogyny. They discuss the role of shame in various cultures, anger in some African cultures, and some of the modern-day theories of emotion.Richard Firth-Godbehere is an Honorary Research Fellow at the Centre for the History of Emotions, Queen Mary University of London. He has his MPhil from the University of Cambridge and his PhD from Queen Mary, University of London. He is a leading researcher on emotions, specifically disgust and desire. His latest book, A Human History of Emotions: How the way we feel built the world we know, can be purchased here. You can follow his work here. Twitter: @drrichfg Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Stuart Shanker about the neuroscience and philosophical underpinnings of self-regulation. They discuss his clinical and research background in working with children and why he emphasizes a just society with self-reg. They discuss the 5-step method of self-reg and why stress management is important. They talk about infant development and the "4th trimester." They expound upon the evolutionary development of the triune brain and the current critiques of this concept. They talk about the complexities of the cortical and subcortical systems of the limbic system and prefrontal cortex in brain development. They discuss the interbrain and the importance of Allan Schore's work on attachment and the developing brain. They engage about Wittgenstein's concepts around aspects shifts and first person psychological utterances and how we understand temperament and personality in development. They mention the vagus nerve and his ideas about virtue.Stuart Shanker is the Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Psychology at York University. He is also the CEO of MEHRIT Centre, Ltd. He is the author of many books including, Reframed: Self-Reg for a Just Society. You can purchase his books here. You can find his work, research, and resources at his website. Twitter: @stuartshanker Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Danna Staaf about the history of cephalopods. They discuss the taxonomy of cephalopods and some of their anatomical features. They talk about how scientists understand cephalopods from the fossil record. They discuss the genesis of cephalopods and their first common ancestor along with the three sub-categories: ammonoids, coleoids, and nautiloids. They explain the importance of ammonoids, their shell, and how it became internalized. They mention the distinct features of Coleoids and the fascinating mystery of the enduring nautilus. They end by discussing current-day cephalopods and where their future is headed. Danna Staaf holds a PhD in invertebrate biology from Stanford university and is an expert on cephalopods. She continues to do research on cephalopods and has had her writing published in the Journal of Experimental Biology and numerous textbooks. She is the author of, Monarchs of the Sea: The Extraordinary 500-Million-Year History of Cephalopods which can be purchased here. You can find her work at her website. Twitter: @dannastaaf Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Peter Coleman regarding toxic polarization in society. They define toxic polarization and what makes the current moment unique from other moments in social history. They talk about in-group/out-group dynamics and why dialogue is essential. They discuss attractors and the importance of Kurt Lewin's field theory. Peter explains his five-factor model of the way out (reset, bolster, complexity, movement, and adaptation) and how we can use complexities to have dialogue with others. They discuss how people can fix polarization at the individual level and possibly at higher scales. Peter Coleman is Professor of Psychology and Education at Columbia University at Teachers College and The Earth Institute. Peter directs the Morton Deutsch International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (MD-ICCCR), is founding director of the Institute for Psychological Science and Practice (IPSP), and is co-executive director of Columbia University’s Advanced Consortium on Cooperation, Conflict, and Complexity (AC4).  He is the first recipient of the Early Career Award from the American Psychological Association (APA), Division 48: Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict, and Violence, and has also been awarded the Morton Deutsch Conflict Resolution Award by APA and a Marie Curie Fellowship from The European Union. In 2018, Dr. Coleman was awarded the Peace Award from Meaningful World, in celebration of their 30th anniversary and the UN’s International Day of Peace. He is the author of numerous books, including his most recent book, The Way Out: How to Overcome Toxic Polarization which can be purchased here. You can find many of his published work here and here.  Get full access to Converging Dialogues at convergingdialogues.substack.com/subscribe