Episodes

  • #48: Film and Thinking Creatively

    #48: Film and Thinking Creatively
    Dec 9 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Ty Burr about film and thinking creatively. They discuss: •The origin of his interest in movies and why he wanted to become a critic. •His favorite movies and directors. •The factors that go into a movie review. •The importance of subjectivity in art and enjoying the experience. •How smart phones are sculpting the movie landscape through attention competition. •An appreciation for craft. •Thinking creatively. •And other topics. Ty Burr is a film critic and pop culture columnist for The Boston Globe for two decades. From 2002 to 2021, he currently writes “Ty Burr's Watch List,” a popular e-newsletter for movie and TV recommendations. He is the author of the critically acclaimed books “Gods Like Us: on Movie Stardom and Modern Fame,” “The Best Old Movies for Families,” and “The 50 Movie Starter Kit: What to Know if You Want to Know What You're Talking About.” As a senior writer and editor for Entertainment Weekly throughout the 1990s, he wrote reviews, features and oversaw the magazines initial coverage of the internet and new media. A member of the National Society of Film Critics and the Boston Society of Film Critics, he teaches courses in film and criticism at Boston University and Emerson College. In 2017, he was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Criticism. Website: https://bit.ly/3FhdnW3 Twitter: https://bit.ly/3Bl0RDU LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3HqxGDh You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3BnTT0V Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 19 mins
  • #47: The Leak

    #47: The Leak
    Nov 30 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Robert Crease about science, politics, and the importance of building trust between scientists and the public. They discuss: •The origins of his interest in philosophy and science. •His book “The Leak: Politics, Activists, and Loss of Trust at Brookhaven National Laboratory” and why he decided to write it. •What exactly the leak was and how the public was never in any danger. •How the dose makes the poison. •The importance of building trust between scientists and the community. •Celebrities as disinformation superspreaders. •How media prefers narratives that elicit a strong emotional response over facts. •And other topics. Dr. Robert Crease is a professor in the Department of Philosophy at Stony Brook University, New York, and chairman of the department. He has written, translated, or edited over a dozen books on history and philosophy of science. He is Co-Editor-in-Chief of Physics in Perspective, and writes a monthly column, “Critical Point,” for Physics World magazine, on the philosophy and history of science. His articles and reviews have appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Newsday and elsewhere. Website: https://www.robertpcrease.com/ You can find this episode on YouTube here: http://bit.ly/3XHcmiC Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 10 mins
  • #46: The Science of Longevity

    #46: The Science of Longevity
    Nov 9 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Steven Austad about the science of longevity. They discuss: •How he became interested in science and ended up in longevity research. •Why we age. •His recent book "Methuselah's Zoo: What Nature Can Teach Us About Living Longer Healthier Lives." •Scaling laws, metabolic rate, and the longevity quotient. •Longevity of Bats and Birds. •Cancer and Naked mole-rats. •Elephants and tumor suppressor genes. •And other topics. Dr. Steven Austad is the Distinguished Professor and Protective Life Endowed Chair in Healthy Aging Research of the Department of Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Scientific Director of the American Federation for Aging Research. In addition, he directs the NIH-supported UAB Nathan Shock Center of Excellence in the Basic Biology of Aging, one of only six such Centers in the United States. He is also the Co-director of the Nathan Shock Centers Coordinating Center and serves on the Executive Committee of the National Institute on Aging’s Research Centers Collaborative Network. His current research seeks to understand the underlying causes of aging with a long-term goal of developing medical interventions that slow the age-related decay in human health. He is the author of more than 200 scientific peer-reviewed publications covering nearly every aspect of aging from cells to societies. Website: https://www.stevenaustad.com/ You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3EjXy1V Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 25 mins
  • #45: Tornado of Life

    #45: Tornado of Life
    Oct 27 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Jay Baruch about critical thinking in the ER. They discuss: •How he became interested in science and medicine. •The importance of using stories to communicate information. •How writing can help you to refine your understanding and spark creativity. •Why his book “Tornado of Life” is written in a particular style. •How his career in the ER has impacted his thinking. •Uncertainty and that experts don't have definitive answers all the time. •The availability bias and peoples' preference for anecdotes. •And other topics. Dr. Jay Baruch is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at Alpert Medical School of Brown University, where he serves as the director of the Medical Humanities and Bioethics Scholarly Concentration. He's a practicing emergency physician, writer, medical educator, and accidental academic whose interdisciplinary work evolved in response to medicine's unaddressed messiness, which requires creativity as a clinical skill, and physicians who think like creative writers and artists. He is the author of two award-winning short fiction collections, "What's Left Out" and "Fourteen Stories: Doctors, Patients, and Other Strangers." Most recently, he has authored "Tornado of Life: A Doctor's Journey Through Constraints and Creativity in the ER." Website: https://bit.ly/3W874fm Twitter: https://bit.ly/3TGtLWl LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3SF4udG You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3TLMgso Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 9 mins
  • #44: Who's Counting?

    #44: Who's Counting?
    Sep 28 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with John Allen Paulos about mathematical thinking. They discuss: •How he studied a number of subjects and then eventually settled on mathematics as a major. •Mathematics as a way of thinking. •The Monty Hall problem. •The concept of scaling and how it leads to size limitations in biology. •The Prosecutor's fallacy and conditional probabilities. •The conjunction fallacy and Wolf's dilemma. •The parallels between denial-of-service attacks on computer networks and the unmitigated spread of false information. •And other topics. Dr. John Allen Paulos is a bestselling author, mathematician, public speaker, and formerly a monthly columnist for ABCNews.com and occasionally for the Guardian and Scientific American. He grew up in Chicago and Milwaukee and received his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin and now is a professor of mathematics at Temple University in Philadelphia. In addition to being the author of a number of scholarly papers on mathematical logic, probability, and the philosophy of science, Dr. Paulos has written Mathematics and Humor, I Think, Therefore I Laugh, Innumeracy - Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences, Beyond Numeracy - Ruminations of a Numbers Man, and more. His most recent book is “Who's Counting?: Uniting Numbers and Narratives with Stories from Pop Culture, Puzzles, Politics, and More.” Website: https://bit.ly/3SEClnt Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnAllenPaulos You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3xXyhXo Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 21 mins
  • #43: Curious Minds

    #43: Curious Minds
    Sep 16 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Perry Zurn and Dani Bassett about the science and philosophy of curiosity. They discuss: •Growing up as twins and their respective interests in science and philosophy. •Why they decided to coauthor the book "Curious Minds." •The concept of complexity and emergence versus reductionism. •Network science and curiosity. •Philosophy, networks, and how it relates to curiosity. •The archetypes of curiosity. •How curiosity is also breaking connections to make new ones. •And other topics. Dr. Perry Zurn is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at American University, and affiliate faculty in the Department of Critical Race, Gender, and Culture Studies. He researches in political philosophy, critical theory, and trans philosophy, with special expertise in feminist philosophy, philosophies of resistance, and network theory. Dr . Dani Bassett is the J. Peter Skirkanich Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, with appointments in the Departments of Bioengineering, Electrical & Systems Engineering, Physics & Astronomy, Neurology, and Psychiatry. They are also an external professor of the Santa Fe Institute. Bassett is most well-known for blending neural and systems engineering to identify fundamental mechanisms of cognition and disease in human brain networks. Both have authored numerous books and publications including their most recent book, which they authored together, “Curious Minds: The Power of Connection.” Dani's Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaniSBassett Perry's Twitter: https://twitter.com/perryzurn Perry's Website: https://www.perryzurn.com/ You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3BlHE4i Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 47 mins
  • #42: The Importance of Public Health

    #42: The Importance of Public Health
    Sep 9 2022
    In this episode, Patrick is speaking with Donna Bean about the importance of public health. They discuss: •How she came to find herself working in public health. •Higher education and the uniquely American problem of crippling student debt. •Her experience with the US Peace Corps. •Her experiences as a public health nurse in Alaska. •How her childhood experience of not fitting in has helped her to live all over the world. •Her career plans after her CDC fellowship. •How the pandemic has politicized public health. •And other topics. Donna Bean is a PHI/CDC Global Health Epidemiology Fellow working with CDC Dominican Republic in the Division of Global HIV/TB (DGHT) as well as in emergency preparedness efforts. Donna earned her BS in Nursing from the University of Miami’s School of Nursing and Health Studies and her MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Arizona’s Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. She has over a decade of experience in public health, with extensive experience in HIV/AIDS, TB, and COVID-19 control. Her career has been driven by a firm belief in individual and community’s right to quality health care. You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3ezRIik Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 19 mins
  • #41: How to Stay Smart in a Smart World

    #41: How to Stay Smart in a Smart World
    Aug 17 2022
    In this episode, Jonathan is speaking with Gerd Gigerenzer about how to stay smart in a smart world. They discuss: •Origins of his interest in science and why he chose psychology. •Why he chose to write his most recent book, “How to Stay Smart in a Smart World.” •How he prefers the strategy of teaching how to think versus nudging. •Artificial intelligence, it's various stages, and our current stage given our latest technology. •The stable world principle and the limitations of AI. •The recency heuristic and the concept of ecological rationality. •Viral spread of false information, deep fakes, and the need for more critical thinking. •And other topics. Dr. Gerd Gigerenzer is Director of the Harding Center for Risk Literacy at the University of Potsdam, Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg and partner of Simply Rational - The Institute for Decisions. He is former Director of the Center for Adaptive Behavior and Cognition at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and at the Max Planck Institute for Psychological Research in Munich, Professor of Psychology at the University of Chicago and John M. Olin Distinguished Visiting Professor, School of Law at the University of Virginia. You can find this episode on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/3Ptgiyb Also, don't forget about our book “Thinking Critically. From Fake News to Conspiracy Theories. Using Logic to Safely Navigate the Information Landscape” if you're interested in exploring how logic can be used to better help you to discern fact from fiction. The information landscape is perilous, but with the help of this book as your guide, you will always be able to find your way towards truth. It's available on Amazon today! Book: https://amzn.to/3nWdawV This show is supported and produced by Final Stretch Media. Final Stretch believes in creating something that disrupts attention spans and challenges the marketing status quo. They do this by creating high quality visual content that captivates your audience. Website: https://bit.ly/3AsP3wZ This show is also supported by QuikLee; the creators of Brain Racers. The world's first ever live racing competition for the brain. Download their app and play live on the weekends on an iOS device against the world. We have raced and it's a blast! App Download: https://apple.co/33n8aJs
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    1 hr and 31 mins