Changing Our Mental Maps
Our brains navigate the world by coming up with mental maps. These maps act like an autopilot system. But sometimes, they can lead us astray.
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Hidden Brain
Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 2
Last week, we talked with psychologist Lisa Miller about the science of spirituality. Today, we explore what those ideas can look like in everyday life.
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Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 1
Food, safety, and strong relationships are essential to our survival. Psychologist Lisa Miller says our brains also crave something else: transcendence. She suggests that spirituality is a universal human capacity, and that feeling connected to something larger than ourselves may be essential to a fulfilling life. If you enjoy listening to Hidden Brain, we think you’ll enjoy
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Stepping Out of the Shadows
Why does one bad experience have the power to overshadow an otherwise good day? We explore the negativity bias, and ways to rebalance our attention.
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A Secret Source of Connection
What keeps us from taking a moment to help someone in need? We explore the “prosociality paradox,” and how to overcome this barrier. Then, psychologist Gordon Flett responds to listener comments about the importance of feeling that we matter.
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Who Are You, Really?
You’re not the same person with your friends as you are with your co-workers or your kids. So who are you, really? This week, political scientist Eric Oliver explores why we often feel divided within ourselves, and how we can learn to live more peacefully with those contradictions. Then, psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman answers your questions on the science
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Unleashing Your Creativity
For centuries, people have described creativity as something mysterious: a flash of insight, a whisper from the muse, a sudden idea that seems to arrive out of nowhere. Psychologist Ap Dijksterhuis explores the hidden mental processes that lead to these moments of inspiration, and why breakthroughs often emerge when the mind is at rest. Should you worry
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The Past is Never Dead
How does the culture in which you live shape the life that you lead? We all know that culture affects the languages we speak and the foods we eat. But anthropologist Joseph Henrich says the impact of culture goes even further, reaching into our bodies and our minds. He takes us on a journey through time to
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The Empathy Gym
Psychologist Jamil Zaki argues that empathy isn’t a fixed trait. This week: how to exercise our empathy muscles.
The Cowboy Philosopher
In 2009, an old man died in a California nursing home. His obituary included not just his given name, but a long list of the pseudonyms he’d been known to use. In this episode, which we originally released in 2019, we trace the life of Riley Shepard, a hillbilly musician, writer, small-time con man and, perhaps, a genius.
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