The Big Think Interview

Afleveringen

1. Mimetic desire, social contagion, and the fight for your true self | Luke Burgis

   23 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 17 min

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   In 1936, a shipyard worker in Hamburg kept his arms folded while hundreds of men around him raised theirs for Hitler. Luke Burgis, author of Wanting and The One in the 99, wants to know what it takes to become that person, and he traces the answer back to the family. Drawing on psychiatrist Murray Bowen’s distinction between the solid self and the pseudo self, Burgis shows how anxiety and opinion pass through groups by contagion, and how our screens have multiplied the crowds we have to stand within. Lees meer

2. Pantheism: A third way between religion and atheism | Jack Symes

   16 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 5 min

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   For decades, atheists have used one move to dismantle the case for God: swap in an evil one and show that the arguments work just as well. Philosopher Jack Symes was convinced by it, and was 50,000 words into a book defending atheism when he noticed that the exercise kept tipping toward goodness. He threw out the manuscript and started over. Lees meer

3. The theory that connects the origin of life to the rise of intelligence | Blaise Aguera

   9 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 24 min

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   From von Neumann's blueprint, which predated the discovery of DNA, to viral genes that now help form our memories and placentas, Blaise Agüera y Arcas argues that function defines life more than material does, and that AI belongs in the same story. He explains why he thinks AGI is already here, and gives a blueprint for using AI without sacrificing your own mind. Lees meer

4. The political philosophy under attack from both the left and the right | Jonathan Rauch

   2 oktober 2026 · 1 uur 30 min

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   Jonathan Rauch, author and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, dives into the philosophy of liberalism, how it has created and transformed our institutions, and the state of truth in a world rife with misinformation.

5. The minimum viable intervention for a happier life | Tal Ben-Shahar

   25 september 2026 · 1 uur 22 min

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   Most of us can recite the benefits of exercise, gratitude, and patience while doing none of it. Tal Ben-Shahar calls this the Knowing-Doing gap, and our typical interventions, like retreats and month-long overhauls keep it open.

6. The lost art of rhetoric, from a 2x debate world champion | Bo Seo

   18 september 2026 · 1 uur 11 min

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   Two-time debate champion Bo Seo breaks down why arguments fail: the 4 bad-faith personas that hijack conversations, a four-question framework for picking fights worth having, and the surprising Cold War standoff between Nixon and Khrushchev that shows what staying composed under pressure actually looks like. Lees meer

7. The science, medicine, and mythology of menstruation and menopause | Jen Gunter

   11 september 2026 · 1 uur 14 min

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   OBGYN Jen Gunter unpacks the science, history, and mythology of menstruation and menopause, and offers a guidebook to navigate the modern healthcare landscape.

8. The invisible forces that create talent and elite performance | Daniel Coyle

   4 september 2026 · 1 uur 25 min

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   Talent isn’t a gift we're born with – it’s a signal we’ve been reading completely wrong. Author Daniel Coyle breaks down the common traits shared by successful people, and why environment, not innate ability, is the variable that ties them all together. Lees meer

9. The world's greatest mathematician explains 6 essential concepts of math | Terence Tao

   28 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 24 min

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   Terence Tao has spent decades solving problems most people can't even state, and he says he's never had a single eureka moment. In this conversation, the UCLA mathematician and Fields Medalist breaks math down to six essential ideas: numbers, algebra, geometry, probability, analysis, and dynamics. Lees meer

10. The #1 predictor of relationships that are doomed to fail | Julie & John Gottman

    21 augustus 2026 · 1 uur 1 min

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    Every marriage’s disintegration is marked by the same four warning signs that researchers John and Julie Gottman can spot before a couple even finishes their first sentence. Lees meer

    The founders of the Gottman Institute break down decades of lab research on why relationships collapse, and what to look for in a partner so they can make it 50 years by your side.

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