Exploring Language with David Shariatmadori (BI 77)

Exploring Language with David Shariatmadori (BI 77)

This month’s episode of Books and Ideas is an interview with David Shariatmadari author of "Don't Believe a Word: The Surprising Truth About Language." We explore some of the common myths about language. This includes a follow up of our recent discussion on Brain Science about the evidence against the assumption that language is an instinctive.

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Jeremy Sherman on the Origins of Purpose (BI 76)

Jeremy Sherman on the Origins of Purpose (BI 76)

Episode 76 of Books and Ideas features Jeremy Sherman, author of Neither Ghost nor Machine: The Emergence and Nature of Selves. We explore the mystery of how purpose arose in a purposeless universe. (Hint: the answer is not supernatural!)

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Amanda Poppei: Humanism and Unitarian Universalism (BI 75)

Amanda Poppei: Humanism and Unitarian Universalism (BI 75)

Episode 75 of Books and Ideas is an interview with Amanda Poppei, President of the Unitarian Universalist Humanist Association. We talk about the longstanding relationship between Humanism and Unitarian Universalism.

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Brian Keating Searches for the Origin of the Universe (BI 74)

Brian Keating Searches for the Origin of the Universe (BI 74)

This month's episode of Books and Ideas is an interview with astronomer Brian Keating about his memoir Losing the Nobel Prize: A Story of Cosmology, Ambition, and the Perils of Science's Highest Honor. His book is a first hand look at the hard work behind the scientific effort to determine how the universe really began, but as the title implies, it also contains a candid account of how striving for the Nobel Prize can be both motivating, but strangely counterproductive.

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Explore "The Hidden World of the Fox" with Adele Brand (BI 72)

Explore "The Hidden World of the Fox" with Adele Brand (BI 72)

The latest episode of Books and Ideas features Adele Brand, author of a fascinating new book called The Hidden World of the Fox. Learn some surprising things about this distant relative of dogs, wolves, and coyotes.

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A Podcasting Retrospective (BI 71)

A Podcasting Retrospective (BI 71)

Books and Ideas 71 is an adaption of the talk I gave in Atlanta in October 2019. I look back on my 13 years in podcasting and share a few lessons I have learned along the way. You do not have to be interested in podcasting to enjoy this episode, but if you think you might want to give podcasting a try some day, don’t miss this episode.

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Historian Liz Covart explores "Ben Franklin's World" (BI 70)

Historian Liz Covart explores "Ben Franklin's World" (BI 70)

For Books and Ideas #70 it was an honor to interview historian Liz Covart, host of the highly regard show Ben Franklin’s World, which is a podcast that explores Early American history. We talked about why this period of our history remains vitally important as well as some of the challenges that face historians.

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Dr. Pamela Gay from Astronomy Cast and CosmoQuest (BI 69)

This month Books and Ideas features Dr. Pamela Gay, co-host of the long running show Astronomy Cast. In 2018 Dr. Gay was inducted into the Academy of Podcasting Hall of Fame. She is a professional astronomer with a deep commitment to public outreach and she is very involved with the citizen science project Cosmos Quest. Her passion for science is contagious.

In this interview she also reflects on life as a woman in science and also the rewards of being a podcasting pioneer. I am honored to have her as a friend and very pleased to have her back on the show.

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The Science of Video Games with Dr Pete Etchells (BI 68)

This episode of Books and Ideas is an interview with psychologist Dr Pete Etchells about his new book Lost in a Good Game: Why we play video games and what they can do for us. We explore both the myths and the science behind video games and consider why the effects of video games are actually quite difficult to study. It seems strange that many people in this field don't play games themselves. Most of the bad things you have heard about video games do not stand up to the basic standards of good science. Whether or not you enjoy video games yourself this is a fascinating interview.

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Jonathan Losos: Surprises from Evolutionary Biology (BI 63)

Jonathan Losos: Surprises from Evolutionary Biology (BI 63)

Episode 63 of Books and Ideas an interview of Jonathan Losos, author of Improbable Destinies: Fate, Chance, and the Future of Evolution. This fascinating book reveals the surprising world of experimental evolutionary biology. We explore how experiments both in the laboratory and in the wild are answering long-standing questions about how evolution works.

Send screen shot of your iTunes review to docartemis@gmail.com for a chance to win an Amazon gift card.

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Phenomenology with Anthony Chemero (BI 59)

Phenomenology with Anthony Chemero (BI 59)

Episode 59 of Books and Ideas is an interview with philosopher Anthony Chemero about his book Phenomenology: An Introduction. We put phenomenology into historical perspective and explore how it is making contributions to contemporary cognitive science. This episode doesn't require any prior knowledge.

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Why Podcast? with Elsie Escobar (BI 57)

Why Podcast? with Elsie Escobar (BI 57)

Episode 57 is the first episode of Books and Ideas that I have produced in 2015. It is a conversation with experienced podcaster Elsie Escobar. Elsie brings a unique perspective to the question Why Podcast? because she does it all: she hosts and produces 2 shows, works for Libsyn, the company that hosts my shows and many others, and she listens to more podcasts than seems humanly possible.

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