Shows
On HumansThe Origins of Humankind: Where Do We Really Come From?Happy 2026! On Humans has typically marked the coming of January by revisiting the previous year’s most popular episode. This time, the New Year special packs the five-hour-long "Origins of Humankind" series into one fast-paced dive through deep time.By mixing highlights from the original interviews with fresh narration, this episode offers a captivating journey through many of the great topics around human origins, such as:Who were the first primates The role of fruits, snakes, and predators The human solution to dangerHow to grow a human brain?What did our ancestors eat?Effects of our up...
2026-01-1028 minOn HumansWhy Do We Laugh? Philosophers on Jokes, Humor, and the Human Condition ~ Mira Magdalena Sickinger“The podcast is great, but one thing hasn’t been covered yet: humour. It’s an essential part of our human condition, and would certainly be worth an episode.”This listener feedback was easy to agree with. From standup comedy to nervous laughter, our lives are filled with chuckles and giggles. Why? Why do adults laugh at witty jokes whilst children laugh at the simple pleasures of peek-a-boo? And why should any of us laugh in the first place?My guest is Mira Magdalena Sickinger. a poet and a philosop...
2025-12-241h 02On HumansRestless Humanity: The Epic Migrations Into the Americas, Polynesia, and... Beyond? ~ Andrés Moreno-EstradaWe are a movable species. In less than 50 thousand years, Homo sapiens has penetrated practically all corners of the earth. This is an episode about those epic migrations, with a focus on the two furthest edges of the human migratory map: the Americas in the West and the Polynesian islands in the East. In the end, we discuss emerging evidence that those branches met each other -- work coming directly out of the work of my guest, Andrés Moreno-Estrada.Enjoy!DECODING OUR STORYThis is episode 3 in t...
2025-12-0525 minOn HumansBeyond Race: A New Outlook on the Shape of Humanity ~ Diyendo MassilaniEuropean thinkers once divided humanity into distinct "races". The idea stuck, even if the science moved on. The shape of humanity, it turned out, is far messier than the old race theorists ever imagined.This much is well known.Still , genetics does study different human "populations". Biological differences between these populations are reported every day. So have we simply changed words? Has anything really changed?Yes, everything has changed. To explain why, I'm glad to have Diyendo Massilani on the show.Trained in France and Gabon, Massilani runs a...
2025-12-0114 minOn HumansThe Neanderthal Mirror: Latest Findings About the Lines Between Us ~ David GokhmanGenetics is rewriting the human story. This week, On Humans takes you behind the scenes of this rapidly evolving frontier via three live-recordings, captured at the Salk Institute's CARTA symposium on ancient DNA. The first episode explores the differences between us and the Neanderthals.For centuries, we tried to understand Neanderthals through stones and bones alone. Now genetics is offering a new tool, allowing researchers to see how ancient bodies and brains developed. In this opening episode, David Gokhman explains what these new tools are revealing about us, Neanderthals, and the lines between us.
2025-11-2721 min
On HumansCan We Tell a (True) Story of Human Origins? Live from UC San DiegoThe science of human origins keeps producing new theories. But are we any closer to telling a true story of human origins? Or are we simply drowning in data? Earlier this November, the chair of UCSD’s Department of Anthropology invited me to explore this question in a campus talk. My optimistic claim was that underneath many of the field’s important debates, a powerful story has been emerging. At its core, this is a story about calories, cooperation, and climate change. And at the centre of it are not men hunting or women gathering.At th...
2025-11-2442 minOn HumansEpilogue: Is the Brain Free to Choose? ~ Tim CoulsonYou decided to start reading this. But could you have chosen otherwise? In this short epilogue to this fall's brain science -series, Oxford biologist Tim Coulson gives his defense of free will. (The episode is an unheard clip from the conversation with Tim Coulson, originally recorded as part of the Origins of Humankind -series in March 2025. )LINKS For highlights, longer quotes, and references, see my essay at OnHumans.Substack.com.Tim Coulson's book is called The Universal History of Us (in the UK) and The Science...
2025-11-0516 minOn HumansCan the Brain Understand Itself? The Glories and the Limits of Neuroscience ~ Matthew CobbScience has learned much about the brain. But how well do we understand this organ of the mind? Are we even close to cracking the neural code? Is a groundbreaking theory of consciousness just around the corner?In this final episode of the brain science -series, Matthew Cobb takes us on a tour of the story of neuroscience. We meet many colourful characters, but this is not just a history for history’s sake. More importantly, this is a reflection on the increasingly clear limits that brain science is coming up against — limits often left invisible behind the...
2025-10-171h 00On HumansFrom Alcohol to Antidepressants: What Drugs Teach Us About Brain Chemistry ~ Judy GriselDopamine. Serotonin. Endorphins. We have all heard these terms. And these are not just scientific curiosities. Few are those who have never wondered if their brain chemicals are "just off balance". So how accurate are the popular theories about these mythic molecules? To guide us through the topic, I'm joined by Judy Grisel—an ex-addict and a world-leading neuroscientist of addiction. We will discuss all the main elements of brain chemistry by using drugs and addictions as a window into the topic. Towards the end, we also search for ways to better help th...
2025-10-0257 minOn HumansInside the Brain: A Journey Through the Halls and the Songs of Consciousness ~ Pria AnandOur brains can feel remote and abstract. Hidden behind Latin names and textbook diagrams, they rarely feel as personal to us as our hearts and stomachs. In this episode, neurologist and author Pria Anand helps us get a little more intimate with that grey, wrinkly seat of our consciousness.Together we explore both the structural architecture and the musical synchronies of the brain. We travel across the left and the right brain, "listen" to the meaning of different brain waves, and discuss some of the most perplexing examples from the annals of neuroscience. What emerges...
2025-09-1754 minOn HumansNot So Simple After All? Apes, Einstein, and the Many Mysteries of the Human Brain ~ Dean FalkHere is a simple story about the origins of the human brain: All primate brains are dense with neurons—they are the supercomputers of the animal world. What's more, the human brain is just what you’d expect from a primate of our size: big, packed with neurons, but no more special than that. It's the chimps and gorillas who are special: without cooked food, their brains lacked the fuel to keep up with the growing body.Or so argued Suzana Herculano-Houzel, my guest in last week's episode. In today's episode, paleo-neurologist Dean Falk explains why...
2025-09-0330 minOn HumansPrologue: The (Very Simple) Story of the Human Brain ~ Suzana Herculano-HouzelI'm excited to announce that On Humans is launching a new series this fall! This one will explore the wonders of the human brain. The new episodes will drop throughout September and early October. To set the stage, we will revisit a conversation with neuroscientist Suzana Herculano-Houzel, newly re-edited and remastered. It’s the simplest and most elegant story I’ve heard about how our brains came to be — and it sets the stage for the debates to follow. Enjoy! DIG DEEPERHerculano-Houzel's book is called The Human Advant...
2025-08-2850 minOn HumansThe Great Question of History: India, Britain, and the Fates of Nations | Live at the British AcademyWhy did the great powers of Asia stagnate whilst Europe was rising? This question—often called the Great Divergence—is one of the most defining questions of modern history.Few case studies illuminate this question as well as the contrast between Britain and India. Did colonialism make Britain rich and India poor? Or was Britain’s rise already underway before conquest? And what does all this tell us about the everyday experiences of the people of on two sides of the divide?This episode is a live recording from the British Academy, where I was invite...
2025-08-1626 minOn HumansEncore | Why Agriculture? Climate Change and the Origins of Farming ~ Andrea MatrangaClimate. Weathers. History.Here's an encore episode to wrap up the mini-series on these themes!This episode on the puzzling origins of farming is one of my all-time favourites on the show. I thought it was a good time to put it out again.You can also read my essay on the topic here.Enjoy!~ORIGINAL SHOW NOTESAgriculture changed everything. Traditionally, this “Neolithic Revolution” was celebrated for opening the gates of civilisation. Recently, it has been compared to the original sin. But whatever our take on...
2025-08-0658 minOn HumansClimate, Water, and the Origins of Colonialism ~ Tirthankar RoyBefore they built empires, the Europeans built ports.Across Africa and Asia, European sailors arrived as merchants. They traded and negotiated. They defended their interests—sometimes with cannon fire. But they were not trying to govern a foreign land.Yet things changed. Why?Historian Tirthankar Roy has a bold new answer. Roy is a professor at the London School of Economics, where he teaches a renowned course on the economic history of colonialism. His most recent book isThe Origins of Colonialism. And in it, Roy explains that we...
2025-07-1955 minOn HumansHow Climate Crafted Humanity (Or Did It?) ~ Jessica ThompsonOn Humans is back from the break! To mark the summer heat, here is a two-part series on how climate has shaped the human story. In next week's episodes, we will explore the role of water and weather in the origins of European colonialism. But today, we start by crawling deeper into the past: to the origins of humanity itself.In this episode, Yale professor Jessica Thompson helps us navigate one of the most influential ideas in human evolution: that an ancient climate change pushed our ancestors out of the jungle, onto the savanna, and...
2025-07-071h 06On HumansAn Essential Difference? Males, Females, and the Spaces In Between ~ Augustín FuentesBinary thinking is out of fashion. But what about biological sex?Whatever we might say about diversity and fluidity, the ideas of “male” and “female” seem essential in biology. I’ve taught the subject. I’ve drawn bees and flowers, with arrows from anthers to ovaries. I’ve used the terms “dad cell” and “mother cell” while doing so. I don’t know how I could have done it any differently.And maybe that’s just fine. Human sex cells are binary: sperm and egg. But here’s the twist: humans aren’t sex cells. Humans are animals. And animal...
2025-05-091h 01On HumansThe Rest is History: From the Origins of Farming to the Dawn of Modernity ~ Johannes KrauseAnd so it ends! In the final episode of The Origins of Humankind, we explore the aftermath of the story so far—the story of how one peculiar species, Homo sapiens, evolved, spread, and outlived its relatives.Guiding us through this final chapter is Johannes Krause once again. Together, we uncover the emerging picture of the global spread of farming, pastoralism, and other key ingredients of modernity. Along the way, we explore some of the central questions of history—from the origins of inequality to the surprisingly pivotal role played by the peoples of the Eurasian steppe. (Yes...
2025-04-251h 03On HumansA Human Like No Other: The Rise of Homo Sapiens ~ Johannes KrauseThe time has come: This is where our story truly begins.In Episode 4 of The Origins of Humankind, we finally turn the spotlight on Homo sapiens. Guiding us through this journey is Johannes Krause, director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and a pioneer of one of the greatest scientific revolutions of our time: the science of ancient DNA.This ability to extract DNA from fossils has transformed our understanding of the human past—giving us tools to tell a genuinely global history of our species. In this episode, we use the magic of...
2025-04-171h 10On HumansWhy Humans? The New Science of the Genus Homo ~ Chris StringerThings are about to get personal... In episode 3 of The Origins of Humankind, we zoom into the birth and spread of humanity itself. Our guide is the iconic Chris Stringer, one of the most influential paleoanthropologists alive. Together, we trace the origins of our genus and the emergence of Homo sapiens as the last surviving human species. While doing this, we meet many oddities, such as rhino hunting along the River Thames, but we also explore some of the biggest questions in human evolution:What is a human?Why did we evolve big brains?Why do...
2025-04-091h 06On HumansAn Unusual Ape: The Deep Origins of Our Human Oddities ~ Dean FalkThe story continues! In part 2 of the Origins of Humankind, we trace the first steps of our ancestors after they left the chimpanzee lineage.To get humanity going, our ancestors had to wander through millions of years of what anthropologist Dean Falk has called the Botanic Age. It's a time shrouded in mist, yet it may hold the key to some of humanity’s most defining traits — from language and music to our clumsy toes and our large brains.On this walk through the mysteries of the Botanic Age, our guide is Dean Falk herself. She...
2025-04-0250 minOn HumansThe Big Picture: From the Origin of Life to the Rise of Humans ~ Tim CoulsonWelcome to the first episode of the Origins of Humankind! In this sweeping pilot, we cover the entire planetary backstory of human existence – from the origins of life to the climate change that kickstarted human evolution. Our expert guide on this journey is Tim Coulson, the Head of Biology at the University of Oxford and the author of A Universal History of Us. The episode explores questions such as:What is "life”? How did it begin?The surprising role of meteors (even before dinosaurs)Why animals? “Ediacaran Garden” and the dawn of predatorsBlood, bones, and t...
2025-03-251h 04On HumansTrailer | Origins of HumankindWhere do we come from? How did we get here? What kind of creature are we?The science of human origins has made great progress in answering these timeless questions. From carbon isotopes to ancient DNA extraction, we now have unprecedented tools to explore our past. But with all this detail, it’s easy to miss the forest from the trees.To fill this gap, On Humans has partnered with CARTA — a UC San Diego-based research unit on human origins. Together, we have designed a five-episode journey to dig deep into the new science of the or...
2025-03-2402 minOn HumansWhat About India? Part II: Success and Stagnation In the World’s Largest Democracy ~ Bishnupriya GuptaIndia’s history isn’t just the story of one nation—it’s the story of one-sixth of humanity. It’s also a lens for understanding how colonialism, democracy, and globalization shaped the modern world. This mini-series offers a human-centred perspective on that remarkable story, focusing on how politics and trade impacted the lives of ordinary Indians. In Part 1, we explored the decline of the Mughals and the long stretch of British rule. In Part 2, we turn to India's independent journey as the world’s largest democracy. To guide us through this complex history, I’m j...
2025-02-2430 minOn HumansWhat About India? Part I: Mughals, British, and the Causes of Poverty ~ Bishnupriya GuptaFollowing the success of last year’s What About China -trilogy, I’m delighted to introduce a two-part series on the economic history of India. This series examines the origins of modern India by focusing on politics, poverty, and the experience of ordinary Indians from 1600 till today.The first episode covers the decline of the Mughals and the hugely controversial rule of the British East India Company and, later, the British Crown.One thing is clear: Most Indians lived in poverty when the British left. So, how much of Indian poverty was due to British policies...
2025-02-141h 07On HumansWhy Patriarchy? Foragers, Farmers, and the Origins of Gender Inequality ~ Angarika DebWhy are history books so full of men? Why have so many societies treated women as property? In short, why is patriarchy so pervasive?A casual thinker might find an easy answer from biology. Men tend to be bigger and stronger. Hence, they get to run the show. “Just look at chimpanzees!” But this explanation has obvious problems. Indeed, female chimpanzees don’t have much power in their groups. But female bonobos do. And looking at humans, not all human societies are patriarchal — not nearly to the same extent. We don’t need to...
2025-01-2854 minOn HumansBonus | Evolution Beyond the Selfish Gene (with Eva Jablonka)“We are survival machines – robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes.” - Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene
In 1976, Richard Dawkins published one of the most iconic science books of all time. It has inspired a generation of science enthusiasts. But unsurprisingly, many readers disliked the idea of being but a “robot vehicle” or a “survival machine” for some tiny molecules — especially if these molecules are best served by repeated pregnancies or donations to a sperm bank.
Yet Dawkins was right on one thing: “however much we may deplore something, it does not stop b...
2025-01-1619 minOn HumansBonus | The Real Lessons From The World Happiness Report (with Lara Aknin)Each year, the World Happiness Report ranks countries based on their citizen's life satisfaction. My home country, Finland, tends to come at the top. Sure. But lessons can we draw from all this? Beyond patting Finns on the back, can we distil some more insights from the report?I got to discuss this with Lara Aknin, co-editor of the World Happiness Report. In this previously unpublished clip, Aknin explains the major findings from the World Happiness Report and reveals the “single best predictor of happiness” across countries. If you want to hear more about Aknin’s work...
2025-01-0916 minOn HumansBonus | Some Myths About Human Mating (with Katie Starkweather)Many traditional societies accept polygyny (one man, many wives). Monogamy, too, is practised across the globe. But what about polyandry — one woman, many husbands? Is this a "dubious idea" as sometimes suggested by evolutionary theorists?
In this bonus clip, anthropologist Katie Starkweather offers interesting examples of formal and informal polyandry from around the world. She also brings nuance to theories about jealousy in men and women.
(This is a previously unpublished clip from my conversation with anthropologist Katie Starkweather, as published in episode 43.)
LINKS
Scholars mentioned
Do...
2025-01-0511 minOn HumansEncore | The Mindbending Conversation That Topped 2024 (with Donald Hoffman)Happy New Year 2025! To celebrate, here is an encore of what proved to be the most popular episode of 2024.
This rerun combines episodes 30 and 31 into one epic journey towards the frontiers of human understanding. My guest is Donald Hoffman. Our topics are consciousness, cosmos, and the meaning of life.
Enjoy!
Original show notes
Laws of physics govern the world. They explain the movements of planets, oceans, and cells in our bodies. But can they ever explain the feelings and meanings of our mental lives?
This problem...
2024-12-311h 28On HumansLive from London | Yasheng Huang on the Origins of Modern ChinaThis was fun! Last Wednesday saw the first-ever live recording of On Humans. The event was held at the London Business School, courtesy of the LBS's China Club. My guest was MIT Professor Yasheng Huang, familiar to regular listeners from the China trilogy published earlier this fall. In this new episode, we keep tackling the origins of modern China. This time, we draw insights from Huang's two upcoming books: Revisiting the Needham Question and Statism With Chinese Characteristics. The conversation is structured around five themes: 1) the "Needham Question"; 2) Keju exams; 3) Scale; 4) Scope; and 5) The Eighties. Ex...
2024-12-231h 25On HumansA New Theory on the Broadest Patterns of History ~ Ideen Ali RiahiPersians. Romans. Chinese. Guptas. Abbasids. Mongols. British.The list of the world’s largest empires is a list of different peoples of Eurasia. With the sole exception of ancient Egypt, the Eurasian landmass has been the breeding ground for the largest empire of each moment in history.Why has Eurasia been so prone to large empires? Similarly, why did so many technological breakthroughs — from writing to gunpowder — occur in Eurasia? And how did these broader patterns of Eurasian history enable the dark chapters of European colonialism?These questions constitute some of the “broadest patterns...
2024-12-021h 08
On HumansIs War Inevitable? Lessons from East Asia ~ David C. KangWhy do wars begin? How can we avoid them? Do countries wage wars whenever it suits their own goals? Or are wars a product of failed understanding and military madmen? These are questions at the centre of the study of war and peace. But for too long, the field of international relations has answered them by scavenging data from European history alone. To better understand the human capacity for peace, we need to understand military history more broadly. Or so argues David C. Kang, a professor of global politics at the University of Southern California.
2024-11-1551 minOn HumansIs War Natural After All? Revisiting the Debate ~ Luke GlowackiOur ancestors did not wage war. Warfare emerged only when humans started settling down and storing food. Indeed, some modern hunter-gatherers still enjoy the peaceful existence that once was the natural state of our species.Or so argued Douglas P. Fry, my guest in episode 8. I found many of his arguments convincing. For example, ancient cave art is surprisingly void of depictions of warfare. You can hear many more of his arguments in that episode, titled "Is War Natural For Humans?"But not all scholars agree. Far from it. And I owe a voice to...
2024-11-021h 06On HumansNobel-Prize Special | Daron Acemoglu on Why We Should Celebrate HumanityDaron Acemoglu has been awarded the 2024 Nobel-prize for Economic Science. This is a great testament to his impressive career. But the award was given for his early work on global inequality, together with Johnson and Robinson. The Swedish Riksbank did not pay attention to his new work on inequality within rich countries. Should we? And is his new theory even consistent with the old?
I got to ask this from Acemoglu during our 2023 interview. I thought this would be a good time to re-post his answer. In this highlight, we also discuss:
The hidden tragedy behind...
2024-10-1820 minOn HumansThis Might Be The Nicest Thing About Human Nature ~ Lara AkninYou are given 20 dollars in cash. You can use it as you wish, but with one condition: you have to use it to treat yourself.Now imagine getting another 20 dollars next week. This time, the rules have changed: you must use the money to treat someone else. Which do you think will make you feel better?Contrary to many people's predictions, we tend to feel much better after spending the money on others. Whether we act it out or not, it seems that the human psyche is fine-tuned for generosity. Why? A...
2024-10-0255 minOn HumansWhat About China? Part III: A Brief History of China’s Future ~ Yasheng HuangWhere is China today? Will its rise continue to benefit the vast majority of its population? Or is Xi Jinping's increasingly repressive government committing one of the biggest blunders of modern history? This is the final episode in the China-trilogy, the product of hours of conversations I've had with ChinaTalk's Jordan Schneider and MIT professor Yasheng Huang. In part 1, we discussed the deep currents of Chinese history, shaping the country's destiny from its early technological lead to its more recent decline and stagnation. In part 2, we discussed China during and after Mao, trying our best...
2024-09-2130 minOn HumansWhat About China? Part II: Explaining the Chinese Miracle ~ Yasheng HuangChina's rise has shook the world. It has changed the lives of over a billion people in China. It has flooded humanity with cheap goods, from single-use toys to high-tech solar panels. And it has changed the logic of war and peace in the 21st Century.But how to explain China's dramatic rise? Was it due to the wisdom of China's leaders after Mao? Or was it all about foreign investors searching for cheap labor? Both and neither, argues MIT professor Yasheng Huang. Yes, the Chinese leaders learned from the mistakes of Mao. And yes, f...
2024-09-191h 05On HumansWhat About China? Part I: The Deep Currents of Chinese History ~ Yasheng HuangThe West has ruled history — at least the way history has been written. This is a shame. To tell the story of humans, we must tell the story of us all.So what about the rest? What themes and quirks does their history hide? And what forces, if anything, prevented them of matching Europe’s rise? I aim to cover these topics for several countries and cultures over the next year. But I wanted to start with China. To do so, I’ve teamed up with Jordan Schneider, the host of ChinaTalk.Our guest i...
2024-09-021h 12On HumansDoes It Matter Who Brings In The Meat? ~ Katie StarkweatherHow do hunter-gatherers live? Do they wage war? Are they egalitarian? Do they really work for less?These are fascinating questions. I’ve tried my best at covering them on the show. (You can see a list of episodes below). But since 2023, the most controversial question has been on the role of women. Is it true that men hunt and women gather? Or is this theory, nicknamed “Man the Hunter”, a myth that should be buried for good?I've covered this sensitive topic on the podcast and in writing. And for a moment, I though...
2024-08-0148 minOn HumansWhy Agriculture? Climate Change and the Origins of Farming ~ Andrea MatrangaAgriculture changed everything. Traditionally, this “Neolithic Revolution” was celebrated for opening the gates of civilisation. Recently, it has been compared to the original sin. But whatever our take on agriculture, we should be puzzled by one thing: Why did our ancestors start to farm in the first place? It's not like early farmers had improved lives. Quite the opposite, they worked harder and suffered from worse health. So why did so early farmers stick to it? And why did farming spread so far and wide?Andrea Matranga thinks he has the answer. An econo...
2024-07-1558 minOn HumansWhat Can Moral Dilemmas Tell Us About Ourselves? ~ Peter RailtonYou are driving a car. The brakes stop working. To your horror, you are approaching a busy street market. Many people might be killed if you run into them. The only way to prevent a catastrophe is by turning fast to the right. Unfortunately, a lonely pedestrian might be killed if you do so. Should you turn? Many people say you should. After all, killing one is better than killing many. But following the same logic, would you kill an individual to collect their organs for people in dire need of one? In this case, too, you wo...
2024-06-301h 11On HumansThe Birth of Modern Prosperity, Part IV: Grasping Towards Equality (with Branko Milanovic)The Industrial Revolution played in the hands of the rich. A century after James Watt revealed his steam engine in 1776, the richest 1% owned a whopping 70% of British wealth. Then things changed. Across rich countries, inequality plummeted for decades. Join Branko Milanovic on this quest to understand the evolution of inequality during the building of modern prosperity. Our conversation ranges from Karl Marx to the "golden age” of American capitalism and from Yugoslavia’s market socialism to China's rise.To explore this theme with the help of graphs and visuals, see my essay at OnHumans.Substack.com.
2024-06-1836 minOn HumansThe Birth of Modern Prosperity, Part III: Power to the People (with Daron Acemoglu)The Industrial Revolution did not create modern prosperity. Indeed, the British workers saw little or no improvements in their wages between 1750 and 1850. They did, however, experience ever-worsening working conditions. Then things changed. Britain became a democracy. And with democracy, the economy changed, too.Or so argues Daron Acemoglu, one of the most influential economists alive. You can either listen to the episode here, or read some highlights and commentary at Onhumans.Substack.com/ANNOUNCEMENTI'm writing a book! It is about the history of humans, for readers o...
2024-06-1236 minOn HumansThe Birth of Modern Prosperity, Part II: Laboratories of the New Era (with Brad DeLong)For millenia, patriarchy, population growth, and extractive elites made the world a bleak place for most humans. But there are good news, too: everything changed around 1870. And the changed happened due to the taming of the genius of people like Nikolai Tesla. So runs the argument my guest today, Brad DeLong. I will let him explain it to you. You can either listen to the episode here, or read some highlights and commentary at Onhumans.Substack.com/ANNOUNCEMENTI'm writing a book! It is about the history of humans, for...
2024-06-0435 minOn HumansThe Birth of Modern Prosperity, Part I: The Shape of the Story (with Oded Galor)We live longer and grow taller than ever before. We are healthier and wealthier. Our ancestors could hardly have imagined a life of such prosperity. A future archaeologist would be equally puzzled. How did we become so rich so fast? What changes could have been so dramatic as to literally change the height of our species? Our modern prosperity is not the outcome of slow and steady progress. For most of human history, there was no upward trend in the health and wealth of the average human. The big events of history rarely changed the life of...
2024-05-2829 minOn HumansMothers, Fathers, And The Many Myths We Have Held ~ Sarah Blaffer HrdyOver half a century, Sarah Blaffer Hrdy has challenged many of our myths about parenting, attachment, and "human nature". In this conversation, we dive into her remarkable career, culminating in her new book, Father Time.[You can now order Father Time via Amazon or Princeton Uni Press]We discuss a variety of topics, from hunter-gatherer parenting to the limitations of comparing humans to chimpanzees. We also discuss "allomothers", attachment theory, and the tragedy of infanticide. We finish with a discussion on the remarkable social changes in fatherhood and the neuroscience that has enabled...
2024-05-0859 minOn HumansDid Humans Evolve In Small Groups? ~ Cecilia Padilla-IglesiasModern cities are unique. Never before have so many people lived so close to each other. But just how unique is our modern cosmopolitanism?Completely unique, says a traditional theory. Humans evolved in tiny groups. These groups were not only smaller than modern cities. They were smaller than medieval towns. Indeed, hunter-gatherers often move in bands of 25 people or so. These bands might draw people from a "meta-group" of 150 people — but not more. And so, 150 people is the "maxiimum" group size natural for humans. Or so the theory goes.My guest today thinks th...
2024-04-1648 minOn HumansCan We Understand Infinity? ~ Adrian MooreInfinity is a puzzling idea. Even young children ponder its various manifestations: What is the biggest number? Does the universe have an edge? Does time have a beginning?Philosophers have tried to answer these questions since time immemorial. More recently, they have been joined by scientists and mathematicians. So what have we learned? Can we finally understand infinity? And what has this quest taught us about ourselves? To explore this topic, I am joined by philosopher Adrian W. Moore. Professor Moore is a special guest for two reasons. First, he is a...
2024-03-251h 17On HumansHow Did Humans Evolve? Why Did We? ~ Ian TattersallWhy are we furless? Why do we cook our food and use spoken language? And how does climate change, sashimi, or the banks of Central America relate to human origins? Human evolution is a deeply puzzling topic. But behind this dense mist lies many keys to our self-understanding. To guide us through the foggy territory, I am joined by Dr Ian Tattersall, a curator emeritus at the American Museum of Natural History (New York). In this episode, Dr Tattersall and I discuss:(04.00) An ancient climate change(07:20) First humans(11:20) Fire...
2024-03-121h 09On HumansHow Did Consciousness Evolve? Did It? ~ Eva JablonkaWe are conscious creatures. But why? Why did consciousness evolve? Can we use biology to explain the origins of feeling and meaning? Or will consciousness forever escape the grip of the scientific method? Eva Jablonka has thought hard about these issues. An eminent evolutionary biologist, she became famous for her pioneering work on epigenetic inheritance. More recently, she has produced very original work on the evolution of consciousness with her colleague, neuroscientist Simona Ginsburg. So invited him on the show to discuss the evolution of consciousness, or what she beautifully calls "the sensitive soul".In th...
2024-02-1455 minOn HumansWhy Do We Love? ~ Arthur AronWhy do we love? What brings us together? How to heal ethnic hatred? According to my guest, the answer to all these questions lies in the human desire to grow ourselves through connecting with others. Arthur Aron is a psychologist who studies human bonding in all its forms. A pioneer in the field, he has studied topics from connecting with strangers to maintaining romance in life-long marriages. And many of his findings are ultimately hopeful. In this conversation, we discuss topics such as:(4:30) Why we love (12:50) Tools to cultivate l...
2024-02-0138 minOn HumansMental Health Bonus | The Origins of ADHD, Anxiety, and Depression ~ Nikhil ChaudharyCan evolution shed light on our mental health?
Nikhil Chaudhary thinks so. He is an anthropologist at the University of Cambridge who specialises in the links between evolution and psychiatry. In this clip, Dr Chaudhary explores the evolutionary origins of ADHD, depression, and anxiety.
For our longer conversation on parenting and family life, see episode 34 of the On Humans Podcast.
2024-01-2314 minOn HumansFamily Lessons From Hunter-Gatherers ~ Nikhil ChaudharyWe expect a lot from parents, especially from mothers. “Maternal instincts” are such, we are told, that mothers should gain almost literal superpowers from the joy of parenting. Unfortunately, many parents face a different reality. Having children can be one of the most stressful times of life, amplified by feelings of guilt and inadequacy. Why is this? Is this an inevitable part of the human condition? Or is the fault in our modern society? And how would we know the answer? To address these questions, anthropologists have started comparing family lives in industrial societi...
2024-01-151h 04On HumansEncore | This Conversation Touched The Most Hearts in 2023 ~ Helen FisherHappy New Year 2024! To celebrate the new year, Spotify sent me a bunch of data points about 2023. I was particularly interested in one question: which conversation moved people the most? I already knew which episode people played the most. (That's episode 17 with Bernardo Kastrup.) But to listen is one thing. To share with friends and family is another. The most shared episode was my conversation with Helen Fisher, titled "A Cultural Biology of Sex, Love, and Monogamy". It was one of my favourite conversations, too. Fisher offered a sweeping take on romantic love, combining fascinating...
2024-01-071h 38On HumansCould Homo Floresiensis Be Alive Today? ~ Gregory ForthThis is the final episode of 2023. And it is a very odd episode.My guest is Gregory Forth. He is an anthropologist who specializes in the biological theories of indigenous peoples. Forth was doing this work on the Flores Island, Indonesia, during the 2003 discovery of a new hominin species: Homo floresiensis. This was an exciting discovery for many. But Forth was, in his own words, "gobsmacked". In his own studies, Forth had been puzzling over a species the local people called lai ho'a, a creature that was not quite human and not quite...
2023-12-241h 02On HumansThe Evolution of Inequality Under Capitalism ~ Branko MilanovićCapitalism can cause massive economic inequalities. Indeed, a century after Adam Smith wrote the Wealth of Nations, the richest 1% owned a record-breaking 70% of England’s wealth. Not surprisingly, this era saw the rise of a very different economic theorist: Karl Marx. [You can see this and many other graphs here.]But does capitalism have to increase inequality? If so, why was the golden age of American capitalism an era of rapidly decreasing inequality? Was this “Great Levelling” a natural product of capitalist development, as theorised by Simon Kuznets? Or was it a historical anomaly resulting from the two wo...
2023-12-161h 00On HumansMeaning of Life Beyond Space and Time ~ Donald HoffmanThe tension between science and religion is perhaps the greatest tension of our age. Is the world fundamentally made of atoms, quarks, and quantum fields? Or is the material world but a secondary realm, lesser in meaning to the kingdom of God? There are many iterations of this tension. But there are also bridge-builders; thinkers who want to bridge science and religion — or at the very least, science and spirituality. My guest today is one of them. Donald Hoffman is a vision scientist, who has come to the dramatic conclusion that space and time are no...
2023-11-2833 minOn HumansCould Consciousness Explain The Laws Of Physics? ~ Donald HoffmanThe world is governed by objective laws of physics. They explain the movements of planets, oceans, and cells in our bodies. But can they ever explain the feelings and meanings of our mental lives? This problem, called the hard problem of consciousness, runs very deep. No satisfactory explanation exists. But many think that there must, in principle, be an explanation.A minority of thinkers disagree. According to these thinkers, we will never be able to explain mind in terms of matter. We will, instead, explain matter in terms of mind. I explored this position in...
2023-11-221h 03On HumansDid Men Hunt and Women Gather? ~ Cara OcobockHow natural is a sexual division of labour? Very natural, claims a popular theory. Indeed, it was the secret to our success: men evolved to hunt, women to forage. This allowed women to focus on childcare while staying economically productive; after all, one can gather food with children. Men, on the other hand, could focus on high-risk hunting. At the end of the day, everyone could have steak and veggies for dinner.But why exactly do we say this? Is this based on solid evidence? Or are we simply projecting our gender roles onto the human past?
2023-11-091h 28On HumansA Natural History of Equality ~ Sarah Brosnan“Why do we care about equality? Is it an invention of the European Enlightenment? Or is it something rooted in human nature?”These questions launched episode 15 with philosopher Elizabeth Anderson. Titled “A Deep History of Equality”, our conversation ranged from Pleistocene hunter-gatherers to Chinese communism. Today’s episode continues the quest. But this time, we go further and contrast humans to other apes and monkeys. My guest is the primatologist Sarah Brosnan. Her research is famous for a wildly popular video clip of a monkey who, frustrated by unequal treatment, throws a cucumber at the exper...
2023-10-181h 10On HumansIs the Human Brain Special? ~ Suzana Herculano-HouzelThe human brain is sometimes called the "most complex thing in the universe”. It allows us to study ourselves, other animals, and the cosmos itself. Indeed, we often think of our brain as the pinnacle of animal evolution.But what do we actually know about the human brain? How different is it from the brain of an elephant? A chimpanzee? A raccoon? And if our brain is not the biggest in the animal kingdom (it is not), then what, if anything, makes it worth the hype?To discuss this topic, I am joined by the Bra...
2023-10-041h 10
On Humans1-Year Anniversary Announcements!On Humans is one year old today! To celebrate, I am announcing some novel ways for you to consume this content. Some of these are operational already. Some will start soon. All will benefit from your support today. Check these out!
Thank you as always for listening. Without your attention, this work would not be worthwhile.
Novel offering and ways to support:
Subscribe to On Humans on YouTube! This way, you will be notified of the upcoming video content. This also helps me massively in getting the attention of the...
2023-10-0107 minOn HumansEncore | How Love Synchronises Our Brains ~ Ruth FeldmanHow literally can we be in "synch" with someone?
Very literally, said my guest in episode 3. Originally titled “A Musical Biology of Love”, this was a fascinating episode with jazz musician and neuroscientist Ruth Feldman. We recorded the episode one year ago, almost to the day. I have thought a lot about it ever since. So here it is again, with remastered audio and a new introduction. Original show notes are below. Enjoy!
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Please consider becoming a supporter of On Humans. Even small monthly donations can make a huge...
2023-09-1840 minOn HumansDo Machines Improve the Human Condition? ~ Daron AcemogluMachines allow us to do more work with less effort. They sound like an obviously good thing. But there is a tension here. New gadgets and new technologies - new simple “machines” - have been invented throughout history. But it looks like the living standard of the average person did not change for most of that time. So what happened to all the extra output from new technologies? And how is this relevant to our age of computers, robots, and AI? To discuss these themes, I am joined by MIT professor Daron Acemoglu. Acemoglu is a tru...
2023-09-1048 minOn HumansEncore | Is War Natural For Humans? ~ Douglas P. FryTo complete a trilogy on the anthropology of war, here is episode 8 from the archives. Enjoy!
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Visit: Patreon.com/OnHumans
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Thomas Hobbes famously wrote that life in the state of nature was “nasty, brutish, and short”. Recently, various scholars have claimed that Hobbes was basically right: our ancestors lived in a state of...
2023-08-261h 15On HumansWhat Can Chimpanzees Tell Us About War and Peace? ~ Brian FergusonIs war natural for humans? This question launched episode 8 of this podcast. In that episode, anthropologist Douglas Fry argued that war is a new phenomenon. Yes, history is full of wars. But war arrived on stage only 10-15 thousand years ago – or in many areas, much later. And while war is undoubtedly part of human capacity, it is hardly our hardwired inclination. But what about chimpanzees, I asked him. They wage war. And according to many chimpanzee experts, they gang up on strangers whenever they can do so with ease. Does this not show that humans, too, are...
2023-08-191h 16On HumansHow War Shapes Our Humanity ~ Greta UehlingWhat does war do to the human psyche? It can traumatise. It can cause grief. It can normalise violence and make demons out of the enemy. But difficult times can also elevate our care and compassion. And while much of the new solidarity is focused on those on “our side”, the helping hand does not always stop at the border.Or so argues anthropologist Greta Uehling, the author of Everyday War (2023). Building on over 150 interviews with Ukrainian civilians and ex-combatants, Uehling’s work brings depth and nuance to the topic - a topic often simplified by naive contra...
2023-08-1455 minOn HumansWalking Towards the Human Condition ~ Jeremy DeSilvaHumans are odd in many ways. But perhaps the oddest of our features is our upright posture. We walk on two legs. And we are the only mammal to do so. So why do we walk upright? And why does it matter? Jeremy DeSilva is a fossil expert and a professor of paleoanthropology at Dartmouth College. He is also the author of a remarkable book, aptly titled First Steps: How Upright Walking Made Us Human [An audio version of First Steps is now offered to you for free from Audible! See links and el...
2023-07-171h 22On HumansDo Young Children Care About Others? Searching For The Seeds Of Human Morality ~ Amrisha VaishHere is a common view on human development: In the beginning, children can only think about themselves. Slowly, they learn to care about others — or more cynically, they learn to pretend that they care about others. Variations of this view have been promoted by thinkers from Sigmund Freud to Richard Dawkins. This view has then been used to make predictable conclusions about ethics: human morality is either a social construct — fearfully internalized — or a clever tactic, used by selfish individuals to reap the benefits of teamwork. But what evidence do we actually have about young children’s motivation...
2023-07-021h 18On HumansWhat Kind of Apes Are We? ~ Richard WranghamWhat would a Neanderthal think about our species? What about a chimpanzee? When compared to our cousins, how friendly or violent are we? Richard Wrangham is a chimpanzee expert and professor of human biology at Harvard. He is one of the most important evolutionary anthropologists alive and truly one of the dream guests for this podcast. It was a great honour to have him on the show. We discuss topics such as: What makes studying chimpanzees interesting Why you could not put 100 chimps on a plane (and not see a fight) What about bonobos? The goodness...
2023-06-181h 02On HumansSeason Highlights ~ Living With True Egalitarians (with Vivek Venkataraman)Season 2 is out this Saturday, 17th of June!
In this final highlight from season 1, anthropologist Vivek Venkataraman talks to Ilari about living with Batek hunter-gatherers. The Batek live in the rainforests of Malaysia and are famous for being one of the most egalitarian society ever studied: things are shared, decisions are made together, and men don't dominate over women. The Batek lifestyle was inspirational in many ways, Dr Venkataraman tells, but one of their norms was particularly difficult to follow...
2023-06-1307 minOn HumansSeason Highlights ~ Was Marx Right About History But Wrong About The Future? (with Brad DeLong)Season 2 is kicking off on the 17th of June! In the meanwhile, we have time for a couple of more highlights. This one is from episode 18 with economic historian Brad Delong, author of Slouching Towards Utopia.
2023-05-3113 minOn HumansSeason Highlights ~ How Geography Shaped Patriarchy, Slavery, and Enlightenment Philosophy (with Oded Galor)In this highlight from season 1, Ilari talks with economist Oded Galor about how factors such as soil quality can explain cultural differences, such as variations in the level of patriarchy. For the full episode and show notes, see episode 13. For the first episode with Galor, see episode 12.
Season 2 is out in June! Do consider subscribing to stay updated.
2023-05-1723 minOn HumansSeason Highlights ~ What Makes Romantic Love Last? (with Helen Fisher)In this highlight from season 1, Helen Fisher discusses her research with couples deeply in love after 20 years of marriage. The clip also includes Fisher's 7 science-based tips for fostering romantic relationships.
2023-05-0214 minOn HumansSeason Highlights ~ How Climate Changes Brought Us Together (with Kristen Hawkes)In this highlight from season 1, Kristen Hawkes presents an intriguing hypothesis about the human past. According to Hawkes, ancient climate changes pushed our ancestors away from the rainforests. On the savannas, teamwork was finally rewarded.
For more notes and links, see the original episode 6 (Are Grandmothers the Key to Our Evolutionary Success).
2023-04-2807 minOn HumansSeason Highlights ~ Why Is It So Difficult To Cure Mental Illness? (with Gregory Berns)Season 1 is over. Season 2 is coming. In the meanwhile, please enjoy some highlights from the archives.
This highlight revisits episode four, where Ilari talks with psychiatrist and neuroscientist Gregory Berns about his recent book, Self Delusion. In this flashback, Berns explains why he thinks psychiatry has been led astray by "medicine envy" and why we misunderstand many of the root causes of mental illness.
For more show notes and links, see the original episode.
2023-04-1511 minOn HumansDistorting Darwinism, Or Why Evolution Does Not Prove That We Are Selfish ~ SOLOIn the final episode of season 1, Ilari addresses one of the underlying themes in many of the season's episodes: Darwinism. Is Darwinism dangerous? Is Darwinism linked to vicious ideologies? Does Darwinism prove that we are all selfish?These questions have been addressed in many of this season's episodes (most notably episodes 1 and 2, but also 6, 8, and 11). In this short solo episode, Ilari connects some dots by reading his essay Distorting Darwinism, published in the Skeptic Magazine. Topics include: The early links between Darwinism and far-right ideologies Why do even professional evolutionists make rookie mistakes...
2023-04-0814 minOn HumansHow To Build A Free Society ~ Karl WiderquistThe idea of Universal Basic Income (UBI) is simple: Everyone should have an income. And that they should have it whether they work or not. Indeed, its simplicity has made UBI an attractive policy suggestion for many on both the left and the right. But sometimes the practical virtues of UBI can distract us from the deeper significance of this idea.Karl Widerquist is an economist and political philosopher who has campaigned for UBI since the 90s. And he thinks that it is a practical idea. But he also thinks that it can remedy something deeper than...
2023-03-261h 13On HumansHuman Condition in the Long 20th Century; Or How Economics Changed Everything ~ Brad DeLongMost histories of the 20th century focus on world wars and ideological conflicts. Others focus on the fall of European empires. Yet others focus on the slow but inevitable progress of social justice movements.Important themes.But according to Brad DeLong, the real story of “the long 20th century” (1870-2010) is an economic story. It is the story of how humanity, for the first time in its existence, was able to generate prosperity for the masses–so much so that it became technically possible to eradicate poverty altogether.DeLong is an economic historian and th...
2023-03-121h 19On HumansCould Mind Be More Fundamental Than Matter? ~ Bernardo KastrupOur mental lives are full of purpose and feeling. Yet the world is governed by laws of physics which seem to lack a sense of either purpose or feeling. So how do we explain consciousness in terms of matter? The problem of consciousness is at the forefront of many dialogues between philosophy and science. So how deep is it?Dr Bernardo Kastrup argues that it is very deep indeed. Or rather, it is a pseudo-problem that arises from us attacking it incorrectly. Kastrup's argument is as surprising as it is simple. He claims th...
2023-02-261h 14On HumansDoes Poverty Make Us Selfish? ~ Jacqueline MattisSocial science paints a bleak picture of unprivileged life. Poverty is certainly treated as a social problem - as a harsh condition to live in. But it is also painted as a condition which blunts humanity's capacity for altruism and virtue. Jacqueline Mattis is a psychologist who has studied altruism and prosociality in deeply deprived areas, such as majority African-American inner-city housing projects. Her work demonstrates that altruism does not vanish amongst those who struggle for survival. No, living in racialised poverty is not fun. But yes, people are still doing beautiful things daily. And they might even do so mo...
2023-02-141h 16On HumansA Deep History of Equality ~ Elizabeth AndersonWhy do we care about equality? Is it an invention of the European Enlightenment? Or is it something rooted in human nature? If so, why does equality require constant fighting for?Elizabeth Anderson is a philosopher at the University of Michigan. She is one of the essential egalitarian theorists of our times. Her essay What's the Point of Equality is one of the must-reads of the contemporary philosophy of political equality. And her recent essay on the history of equality and social justice is a tour-de-force on using the long view of history to shed light on...
2023-02-041h 20On HumansWhat Can Hunter-Gatherers Tell Us About Our Origins? Going Beyond the Bestsellers ~ Vivek V. VenkataramanWhat was life like before agriculture? Was it "nasty, brutish, and short?" Or was it quite peaceful and relaxing, making agriculture the "worst mistake in human history"? There are plenty of theories about our ancestral lives. And these are not just neutral hypotheses about a past epoch. They are often used as an origin story of our species. They shape the way we think of ourselves, our natural inclinations, and the virtues or vices of civilisation. But how can we go beyond origin myths? Is there a science of the past? For a lon...
2023-01-191h 13On HumansTracing the Roots of the Wealth of Nations ~ Oded GalorWealth on planet Earth is not evenly distributed. Indeed, our country of birth predicts a huge amount of our access to food and technology. Although such differences have always existed, they have become dramatically accentuated in the past two centuries. During the early 1800s, the average income of a person living in the richest region of the world was 3 times higher than that of a person living in the poorest region. Today, it is 15 times, or even 100 times higher.*To understand the human condition today, we have to understand our economic geography. This is the t...
2023-01-141h 25On HumansAn Economic History of Homo Sapiens ~ Oded GalorIf you take a moment to reflect on the economic condition of our species, you are likely to be puzzled over two mysteries. One is the mystery of wealth: How is it that humanity has been able to generate such a dramatic increase in wealth (e.g. in access to food, transportation, and medical technology)?The other is the mystery of inequality: Why is this wealth so unevenly distributed? Why are certain countries able to offer historically unprecedented standards of wealth to the majority of their population, while some countries still struggle with dire poverty? ...
2023-01-0443 minOn HumansHoliday Highlights ~ Patricia Churchland on Free Will & NeurophilosophyIlari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations.
This highlight revisits episode 1, where Ilari and Patricia Churchland discuss free will and neurophilosophy. For links and references, see the original episode.
2023-01-0117 minOn HumansHoliday Highlights ~ Ruth Feldman on Empathy, Xenophobia, and Gay DadsIlari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations.
This highlight revisits episode 3, where Ruth Feldman explores the tricky relationship between the neurobiology of love and xenophobia. The discussion also touches upon early attachment as a source of our capacity to bond with others.
This discussion includes studies on building relationships between Israeli and Palestinian youth, as well as studies on the capacity of fathers, including gay fathers, in providing equal care as primary caregivers. For links and references, se...
2022-12-2918 minOn HumansHoliday Highlights ~ Philip Kitcher on Secular Humanism & ReligionIlari is taking some time off for Christmas and New Year. Instead of new episodes, this holiday season features some highlights from this fall's conversations.
This highlight revisits episode 2, where Philip Kitcher explores the relationship between secular humanism and religion. For links and references, see the original episode.
2022-12-2716 minOn HumansA Cultural Biology of Sex, Love, and Monogamy ~ Helen FisherWhy do we love? And how much does our culture shape the way we do so?In this episode, Ilari talks with Helen Fisher about the powers that drive and shape our romantic relationships. Ilari and Professor Fisher discuss: Is romantic love a modern invention? Is monogamy a social invention? Do men care more about sex? Do women care more about romance? Why agriculture, especially with the plough, caused havoc in romantic relationships. Why divorces might be on the decline. A science-based guide for maintaining romantic relations (based on couples who are still in love after 25 ye...
2022-12-221h 37On HumansWhat Can Science Tell Us About Happiness? ~ Anna AlexandrovaIn this episode, a philosopher of science from Cambridge offers us a cautiously optimistic guide to the science of happiness. Dr Anna Alexandrova, the author of A Philosophy for the Science of Well-being, and Ilari discuss questions such as: What do happiness questionnaires measure? Are rich countries happier than poorer ones? Should the science of happiness measure concepts such as “flourishing”? Or focus on simple questions like “how satisfied are you with your life”? Why psychologists and economists are averse to qualitative measures? When is this a problem? Why are some scholars so pessimistic about the science of happines...
2022-12-101h 16On HumansDo Dogs Feel Love & Other Questions in Animal Neuroscience ~ Gregory BernsWhat is it like to be a non-human animal? Can neuroscience tell us the answer?In one of the most famous philosophy essays of the 20th century, Thomas Nagel suggested that we can never use science to know what it is like to be another animal, say, a bat. Neuroscience can describe bat physiology. But it can never tell us “what it is like to be a bat”.Gregory Berns is an animal neuroscientist. As you might guess, he disagrees with Nagel.Berns is a pioneer in using fMRI scanning on dogs (who in h...
2022-12-0341 minOn HumansIs War Natural For Humans? ~ Douglas P. FryThomas Hobbes famously wrote that life in the state of nature was “nasty, brutish, and short”. Recently, various scholars have claimed that Hobbes was basically right: our ancestors lived in a state of constant raiding and chronic warfare. Indeed, some have suggested that as many as 15% of ancestral humans died due to war. And the claims are made with the utmost confidence.But there is something disturbing about this confidence. The earliest archaeological records of war are only c. 14 000 years old. And many anthropologists working with modern-day hunter-gatherers claim that they tend to be remarkably peaceful. The...
2022-11-191h 13On HumansPsychology of Love & Hate ~ Robert SternbergWe often treat love as a single emotion. But simple questions like “how much do you love me?” can be misleading. Love is not a single dimension. It is a multitude. To really understand romantic bonds, a more nuanced vocabulary is needed.Robert Sternberg is famous for creating such vocabulary.Sternberg is a professor at Cornell University, where he teaches legendary classes on topics like intelligence (beyond IQ), wisdom, creativity, and of course, love and hate. But he is more than your average psychology professor: he is the 2nd most cited psychologist alive.*In t...
2022-11-1241 minOn HumansAre Grandmothers the Key to Our Evolutionary Success? ~ Kristen HawkesHumans live long, much longer than any of our closest relatives. For human females, this means living a large part of adulthood without being able to produce new offspring. This is an evolutionary puzzle. Indeed, menopause is exceedingly rare in the animal kingdom, typical only in humans and some species of whales.Kristen Hawkes has a theory to explain this puzzle. Hawkes is an evolutionary anthropologist, best known for her pioneering role around the so-called “grandmother hypothesis”.In this episode, Ilari and Professor Hawkes discuss two aspects of the grandmother hypothesis. First, why would humans have...
2022-11-0550 minOn HumansPsychology of Conspiracy Theories & The Limits of Science ~ Michael ShermerWhy do conspiracy theories seduce the minds of so many? Michael Shermer is a historian of science, best-selling author, founder of the Skeptic Society, and the host of a popular science podcast, Michael Shermer Show. His most recent book, Conspiracy, explores the causes and consequences of human gullibility regarding conspiracies. Ilari and Dr Shermer discuss the psychological reasons behind conspiracy theories, and what to do about them. This discussion touches upon topics from QAnon to flat earth, and from the 2020 election to the war in Ukraine. All of this does raise a question, tho...
2022-10-251h 07On HumansThe Harmful Delusion of a Singular Self ~ Gregory BernsWe like to box things into neat categories. We like to box ourselves into a ‘Self’, a ‘Me’, an independent ‘Soul’, caged away from the rest of the world by the bags of our skin. When something goes wrong in our mental health, we like to box the issue into neat buckets of mental health disorders and search for an answer from within this individuated cage. On the other hand, we like to think of the ‘Self’ as a solid, unified, and permanent ‘Me’, making any fundamental change to ourselves difficult.What if this is all a mistake?Today...
2022-10-1847 minOn HumansA Musical Biology of Love ~ Ruth FeldmanCan biology expand our appreciation of love? What is the relationship between jazz and neuroscience? What does it mean to be in "synch" with someone? Ruth Feldman is a professor of neuroscience at Reichman University, Israel, with a joint appointment at the Yale Child Story Centre. A jazz musician before being a neuroscientist, Feldman combines musical ideas of synchrony into her research on the neurobiology of attachment, bonding, and love.Ilari and professor Feldman discuss topics such as: Why study the biology of love What happens in the brain when we love Brain-to-brain synchrony: Ho...
2022-10-1339 minOn HumansHumanistic Ethics in a Darwinian World ~ Philip KitcherIs there a tension between biology and philosophy? Why should Homo sapiens care about ethics? What, if anything, does evolution tell us about human nature?To discuss these topics, Philip Kitcher joins your host, Ilari Mäkelä.Philip Kitcher is an emeritus professor of philosophy at Columbia University. He is the author of numerous books, such as Living With Darwin and The Ethical Project.Ilari and professor Kitcher discuss topics such as:01.35: Kitcher's theory of morality as a social technology designed to solve problems resulting from the fragility of human altruism.
2022-10-0858 minOn HumansOrigins of Our Warm-Blooded Morality ~ Patricia ChurchlandWhy do we care for others? Why did morality evolve? Is unselfish behaviour possible in a Darwinian world? Patricia Churchland joins to discuss these topics with your host, Ilari Mäkelä.Author of Conscience: Origins of Moral Intuition, Patricia Churchland is an emerita professor of Philosophy at UC San Diego.Ilari and Professor Churchland discuss topics such as: Warm-bloodedness and morality Psychological egoism vs unselfish behaviour Neurobiology of care: Oxytocin, cannabinoids, opioids Elements of morality: How much of morality is about care, vs problem-solving, cooperation, and social learning? Churchland’s criticism of Western moral phil...
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