Category

Science

Non Fiction, Science

Jul 17: Jaime Green Explores The Possibility of Life Beyond Earth

July 18, 2024

Science, Imagination, and Our Quest for Kinship in the Cosmos

The Possibility of Life with author Jaime Green

One of the most frequently asked – yet unanswered – questions we humans ask about the cosmos, is: Are we alone?

Author Jaime Green says, while the science behind this is fascinating, it doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s a reflection of our values and aspirations, our fears and anxieties. And most importantly, our enduring sense of hope.

Jaime shares why the question we should really ask is, not “Is there life out there?“, but “What if … ?” We explore how science has influenced our history and culture, and the role that science fiction plays – think Star Trek and Avatar. Jaime also reveals if she’s answered the big question for herself … the question of what it means to human.  

Meet Jaime Green: Award-winning Science Author

Jaime Green is a freelance writer, editor, and writing teacher. The Possibility of Life was an NPR Science Friday Book Club Pick, a Wired Book to Read for Spring, and a TODAY Show Summer Pick. The series editor for The Best American Science and Nature Writing, Jaime Green is a lecturer at Smith College and at the Johns Hopkins Science Writing Master’s Program.

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Environment, Journalism, Non Fiction, Science, Social Issues

Jun 26: The Parrot & The Igloo with NYT Bestselling Author David Lipsky

June 26, 2024

Climate and the Science of Denial

The Parrot and the Igloo with author David Lipsky

“Lipsky spins top-flight climate literature into cliffhanger entertainment.” ~ The New York Times

He’s known as a writer who finds the stories behind the stories. In The Parrot And The Igloo: Climate And The Science Of Denial, David Lipsky explores how the virulent “anti-science” movement in America was no accident. It was planned, programmed, and paid for.

Today, David Lipsky shares why he describes his book as a story about ingenuity and folly. We look at some of the inventors who created our world. Scientists who sounded warning bells. Why Mark Mills is one of David’s favorite people in this story. How we went from being a country that supported science, to a population divided into science supporters versus science deniers, hucksters, and propagandists.

We learn when, how, and why planned “denial” movements began (think Christmas 1953 and cigarette companies). And who won the casting call to become the first Celebrity Doubter and “paid voice” behind the massive Climate Denial Campaign.

Meet Bestselling Author David Lipsky

David Lipsky is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Absolutely American and Although Of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself, the basis for the movie The End of the Tour. He’s written for The New York Times, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Harper’s Magazine, and is a recipient of the National Magazine Award and the GLAAD Media Award. His work has appeared in The Best American Short Stories and The Best American Magazine Writing anthologies. Lipsky teaches writing and literature at NYU and lives in New York City. The Parrot And The Igloo is a NYT Editors’ Choice, a New Yorker and Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2023, and a USA Today Must Read.

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Health & Wellness, Nature, Non Fiction, Personal Development, Psychology, Science, Self-help

Jun 05: PTSD, Anxiety, Depression, Burnout – Why Mother Nature May Be Your Best Cure

June 5, 2024

“Nature Calls Us Home To Our True Selves. She reminds us that we are … intimately connected … beautifully unique.” ~ Dr. Rochelle Calvert

While it saves us time in some ways, today’s digital world also demands more of us – from self-managed online accounts, form-filling, and appointment setting, to 24/7 business emails, DMs, IMs, texts, meetings, presentations … the list goes on.

Add to that the trauma of stressful life situations, ever-increasing living costs, job struggles, job losses, toxic work environments, and longer working hours, and Americans around the country are experiencing more PTSD, trauma, anxiety, and depression than ever before.

Dr. Rochelle Calvert, author of Healing with Nature: Mindfulness and Somatic Practices to Heal from Trauma, says combining nature with mindfulness and somatic practices can often be THE best prescription. She helps us unpack the science behind these therapies and explore the benefits provided – free of cost – by Mother Nature’s Rx. We also share how to incorporate simple therapeutic practices into everyday life.

Meet Dr. Rochelle Calvert

A clinical psychologist, Rochelle Calvert, PhD, specializes in life transitions, depression, anxiety, PTSD, trauma, and pain. She’s the founder of New Mindful Life, with a private practice in California. An expert on mindfulness, nature-based therapy, and somatic experiencing, Rochelle’s book is Healing with Nature: Mindfulness and Somatic Practices to Heal from Trauma.

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Health & Wellness, Psychology, Science, Self-help

Feb 07: The Busy Brain Cure with Dr Romie Mushtaq

February 7, 2024

Stuck on the work, sleep, work cycle? Dr Romie’s 8 week plan to find focus, tame anxiety, & sleep again.

The Busy Brain Cure with author Dr. Romie Mushtaq

Many of us wear stress as a badge of honor, but the reality is that chronic stress kills. Just ask Dr. Romie Mushtaq who suffered major career burnout, while simultaneously undergoing life-saving surgery.

As a brain doctor, she says she should have known better. But her wake-up call set Dr. Romie on a global journey to research and heal the negative impacts of stress responses on our brains, bodies, and teams. The Busy Brain Cure: The Eight Week Plan to Find Focus, Tame Anxiety, & Sleep Again takes an integrated approach to reduce stress, avoid burnout, and live with zest.

Learn why you should ditch diets, forget cleanses, and occasionally embrace certain comfort foods to combat stress. We discuss how to overcome the stimulant-sedative cycle, reduce dependence on caffeine by day and sleep aids at night. And Dr. Romie shares how to heal the root cause of ADHD, anxiety, and insomnia without addictive medications.

About Dr. Romie Mushtaq

Dr. Romie is a board-certified physician, award-winning wellness speaker, and the founder of brainSHIFT. She combines over 20 years of authority in neurology, integrative medicine, and mindfulness to deliver programs and create cultural change. Dr. Romie currently speaks and consults for Fortune 500 companies, professional athletes, & global associations. She is also the Chief Wellness Officer (CWO) for Great Wolf Lodge. And was formerly the CWO for Evolution Hospitality, where she scaled a mindfulness & wellness program for over 7,000 employees. Her expertise is featured in the national media, such as NPR, NBC, TED talks, and Forbes. Find the cure for your busy brain at

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Creativity, Journalism, Non Fiction, Science

AUG 10: Matt Richtel’s Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul

August 10, 2022

Harness Your Creativity Through Inspiration

Few things in a creator’s life cause more frustration than staring at an empty page or blank canvas in search of that spark of inspiration.  Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Matt Richtel weaves scientific evidence with insight from great creators and his own personal experiences to help you discover how to optimize your creative potential.

“Creative people actually physically see more of the world,” says Richtel.  We talk about The Muse and Hope.  How impact and openness are vital components of creativity.  Why intelligence doesn’t always factor into creativity.  How anyone can become more creative. And more delicious insight from  Inspired: Understanding Creativity, A Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul.

About Matt Richtel

Narrative storyteller and New York Times Science reporter Matt Richtel was awarded the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for a series on distracted driving. He’s authored three narrative nonfiction books, several novels, and a daily comic strip. His latest book is Inspired: Understanding Creativity, A Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul.

Catch our previous podcast with Matt Richtel right here A Deadly Wandering.

 

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Health & Wellness, Journalism, Non Fiction, Psychology, Science, Self-help

JUL 06: Caroline Williams with MOVE

July 6, 2022

How the Science of Body Movement Can Set Your Mind Free

If you hate working out, loathe gong to the gym, listen up!  New science shows how even simple movement can boost your mental health.

Journalist Caroline Williams interviews Nobel prize winning scientists, yoginis, athletes, and health experts and learned that while going to the gym is great, it may not be the best solution for you.

We share how stretching lifts the draining effects of an overactive immune system. What dance can do for your emotional literacy. How core strength can help control stress and anxiety. And why emotional resilience is strengthened by physical strength.

About Caroline Williams

Veteran science journalist Caroline Williams says “I like talking almost as much as I like writing”. She has produced radio programs and reports for the BBC, across Science, Natural History, and Children’s Radio. Caroline writes regularly for New Scientist magazine, and her work’s been featured in the Boston Globe, BBC Earth, and the Guardian. She was co-presenter of the New Scientist podcast. Move! How the Science of Body Movement Can Set Your Mind Free is Caroline’s second book.

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Creativity, Journalism, Non Fiction, Science

Jun 15: Inspired–Understanding Creativity with Matt Richtel

June 15, 2022

A Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul

How do we define creativity? How does it work? Where does inspiration spark? How can we optimize our own creative potential? And what do great creators have to share with us?

Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Matt Richtel takes a deep dive into the new science behind creativity and creative minds, and blends it with insight from great creators, and stories of his own. We talk about The Muse and Hope. Why intelligence doesn’t always factor into creativity.  How anyone can become more creative. And more delicious insight from  Inspired: Understanding Creativity, A Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul.

About Matt Richtel

An American writer, narrative storyteller, and New York Times Science reporter Matt Richtel was awarded the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting for a series on distracted driving. He’s the author of three narrative nonfiction books, several novels, and a daily comic strip. His latest book is Inspired: Understanding Creativity, A Journey Through Art, Science, and the Soul.

Catch our previous podcast with Matt Richtel right here A Deadly Wandering.

 

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Health & Wellness, Non Fiction, Science

Feb 02: Use the New Science of Body Movement to Set Your Mind Free with Caroline Williams

February 2, 2022

Move! by the author of My Plastic Brain

Studies say sitting is the new smoking — and the average American adult spends 70% of their time sitting or lying down. Imagine what that does to your body over time. And now, we know, it also affects your mind and mental health.

In Move! journalist Caroline Williams explores the emerging science of how movement opens up a hotline to our minds. Interviewing Nobel prize winning scientists, yoga gurus, and practitioners of all kinds of movement, she reveals that while going to the gym is great, it’s not necessarily the best or only solution.

Today we discuss how core strength is linked to stress and anxiety control. Why stretching can override the mood-sapping effects of an overactive immune system. What dance can do for our emotional literacy. Why physical strength translates into emotional resilience … and more.

About Caroline Williams

Science journalist Caroline Williams says “I like talking almost as much as I like writing”, and over the years she has produced and presented radio programs and reports for the BBC, across Science, Natural History, and Children’s Radio. She has more than 20 years of experience in science journalism and writes regularly for New Scientist magazine, Her work’s been featured in the Boston Globe, BBC Earth, the Guardian, and more. She was  also co-presenter of the New Scientist podcast. Move! How the Science of Body Movement Can Set Your Mind Free is Caroline’s second book.

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Environment, Memoir, Non Fiction, Science, Social Issues

OCt 06: Dr Samantha Montano & Disasterology–Dispatches From the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis

October 6, 2021

“At the start of every disaster movie, is a scientist being ignored.”

Dr Samantha Montano became passionate about studying disasters after spending years in New Orleans, working with various nonprofits on recovery efforts, related to Hurricane Katrina and the BP Oil Disaster.

Disasterology is part memoir, part expert-analysis. Dr. Montano shares insights on how climate crisis impacts what we call ‘natural disasters’. She discusses how media, politicians, and communities can hinder and help in such disasters. Why disaster resilience is the responsibility of every citizen. And what happens to those left behind after networks turn off their cameras.

About Dr. Samantha Montano

Dr. Samantha Montano has a B.S. in Psychology, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Emergency Management. She is currently an assistant professor of emergency management at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. She’s been interviewed in the New York Times, The Atlantic, National Geographic, Los Angeles Times, and published in the Washington Post, Teen Vogue, among others. Dr Montano is the author of Disasterology: Dispatches from The Frontlines of The Climate Crisis.

 

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Non Fiction, Science

AUG 25: It’s Elemental-The Hidden Chemistry in Everything with Dr. Kate Biberdorf

August 25, 2021

“Dr. Biberdorf shows that science is everywhere & it’s fun!” — Bill Nye

STEM trailblazer Dr. Kate Biberdorf smashes stereotypes as a leader & mentor for women & girls entering the world of science.

Kate the Chemist’s new book is as dynamic as its author.  It’s Elemental: The Hidden Chemistry in Everything shares fascinating insights into things we may have been told, but never quite understood, such as: How fat leaves the body. Do humans really give off pheromones? Do aphrodisiacs really boost libido? From eating breakfast and putting on makeup, to baking a pie and sipping your morning coffee, Dr. Kate Biberdorf shows that chemistry is pretty cool … and the more you know, the more you understand.

About the Author

Dr. Kate Biberdorf is a scientist, science entertainer, and chemistry professor at The University of Texas. She has a PhD in inorganic chemistry from The University of Texas, and has published her work in Catalysis, Science, and Technology. Her 6-book series for kids with Penguin Young Readers breaks down the image of the stereotypical scientist, while reaching those who might otherwise be intimidated by science. She has appeared on The Today Show, Wendy Williams Show, and Late Night with Stephen Colbert. 

 

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