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  • Is your workout routine giving you a brain boost? This neuroscientist thinks it might | Wendy Suzuki
    Want to be more intelligent? Here’s why you should hit the gym, according to neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki Wendy Suzuki studies exercise's transformative effects on the brain. Drawing inspiration from animal studies, particularly those involving the growth of hippocampal brain cells in rats, she explores the possible connection between increased exercise and brain expansion.  Suzuki also looks into the multifaceted relationship between exercise, sleep, cardiovascular function, and brain health. ------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  • Anne-Laure Le Cunff: The 3 cognitive scripts that rule over your life | Full Interview
    "We try to stick to routines and we try to go through very long lists of tasks, often ignoring our mental health in the process. There is a lot more to think about on a daily basis, but our brains haven't evolved." This episode explores how cognitive overload and the pressure to maximize productivity lead to anxiety, burnout, and rigid goal-setting. Neuroscientist Anne-Laure Le Cunff introduces the concept of the "maximized brain," where ambition overrides curiosity, often resulting in overwhelm. She contrasts this with the "experimental mindset," which embraces small, curiosity-driven experiments instead of rigid goals. Drawing from her own journey—leaving Google, failing at a startup, and rediscovering her passion for neuroscience—she explains how tiny experiments can lead to personal growth. She also discusses three limiting mindsets (cynical, escapist, and perfectionist) and how shifting to an experimental approach can lead to a more fulfilling, conscious life. 00:00 Taking control of your mindset00:16 The experimental mindset01:22 What is the maximalist brain?02:20 How did you discover the experimental mindset?04:29 Why is mindset so important?05:18 What are the mindsets that hold us back?07:29 What mindset should we strive for?08:39 How do you cultivate an experimental mindset?12:04 How do you analyze the collected data?13:43 How have you personally employed the experimental mindset?15:20 What are some tiny experiments anyone can do?16:33 Why should we commit to curiosity?17:29 The illusion of certainty19:13 How are uncertainty and anxiety linked?20:07 Why did our brains evolve to fear uncertainty?21:10 How should we approach uncertainty instead?22:20 What is the linear model of success?23:50 How can we go from linear success to fluid experimentation?24:36 How can labeling emotions help manage uncertainty?27:28 Why do humans struggle with transitional periods?30:04 The 3 cognitive scripts that rule your life30:44 What is a cognitive script?32:11 What is the sequel script?33:35 What is the crowd pleaser script?34:20 What is the epic script?36:29 What should we do when we notice we are following a cognitive script?38:04 In defense of procrastination40:38 How can the triple check inform what we do next?42:09 What are magic windows?43:02 What is mindful productivity?43:41 What is mindful productivity’s most valuable resource?44:27 How does managing emotions influence productivity?45:10 What does death by two arrows mean?45:54 What’s the hardest part of knowing what to do next?46:34 How can we practice self-anthropology? About Anne-Laure Le Cunff:Anne-Laure Le Cunff is a neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and writer. A former Google executive, she went back to university to earn a Ph.D. In Psychology & Neuroscience from King’s College London. As the founder of Ness Labs and author of its widely read newsletter, she writes about evidence-based ways for people to make the most of their minds, navigate uncertainty, and practice lifelong learning. Her work has been featured in peer-reviewed academic journals and mainstream publications such as WIRED, Forbes, Rolling Stone, Fortune, Entrepreneur, and more Folllow this Podcast for daily Episodes ------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  • You don’t need a 10-year plan. You need to experiment. | Anne-Laure Le Cunff
    Folllow this Podcast for daily Episodes ------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  • The biggest lies about good sex and how to have it, debunked | Emily Nagoski: Full Interview
    "Virtually everything we're taught about sexuality for the first two decades of our lives is wrong." Most of us were taught a version of sex education that veered into fiction rather than fact – stories that were rooted in shame, stereotypes, and outdated science. If you’ve ever wondered why your experience of sex doesn’t match what you were told it “should” be, Emily Nagoski wants to help you unlearn widespread misinformation, and have better sex. Nagoski shares the truth about spontaneous vs. Responsive desire, explains the real function of pleasure in the brain, and shows how unlearning toxic sexual scripts can transform not just relationships, but self-worth. Chapters: 00:00:00 Sex education 00:04:09 Understanding desire 00:17:59 What prevents great sex? 00:34:13 Understanding yourself 00:40:17 The orgasm 01:01:50 Redefining sex 01:21:01 Expanding orgasms ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Emily Nagoski: Emily Nagoski is the award-winning author of the New York Times bestselling Come As You Are and The Come As You Are Workbook, and coauthor, with her sister, Amelia, of New York Times bestseller Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle. She earned an M.S. In counseling and a Ph.D. In health behavior, both from Indiana University, with clinical and research training at the Kinsey Institute. Now she combines sex education and stress education to teach women to live with confidence and joy inside their bodies. She lives in Massachusetts with two dogs, a cat, and a cartoonist. ------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  • What the darkest sky on Earth reveals about humanity | Dispatches from The Well Ep.1
    Are the answers to humanity’s biggest questions written in the stars? Our host Kmele Foster is on a journey to find out. Why are we here? What is our purpose? Are any of our scientific efforts actually adding up to important revelations? Does understanding our cosmic origins really contribute to humanity as a whole? We know what it’s like to be “street-level,” to understand our cities, our social behaviors, our day-to-day lives — but what happens if we look up? How does our understanding of humanity change when we raise our attention to the space beyond our skylines? These are the questions that our host Kmele Foster is exploring in this episode of The Well podcast. Helping Kmele along the way is Sean Dougherty, the director of ALMA Observatory in Northern Chile, home of Earth’s darkest skies and 50% of the world’s megatelecopes. If the answers to humanity’s questions are written in the stars, this observatory might be the one to translate them. ------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Big Think is the leading source of expert-driven, actionable, educational content -- with thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, we help you get smarter, faster. Get actionable lessons from the world’s greatest thinkers & doers. Our experts are either disrupting or leading their respective fields. We aim to help you explore the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century, so you can apply them to the questions and challenges in your own life.
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