Big Think

Sean Carroll: Physics will challenge your ideas of free will

16. Okt. 2025

“The universe clicks along in perfect accord with the laws of physics forever.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, Sean Carroll explains why physics is both simple and impossible | Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TBNJyztai0 What if the universe is a machine, and every moment in our past, present, and future is already encoded in the positions of its particles? Physicist Sean Carroll explores the unsettling implications of classical mechanics, from Newton’s laws to Laplace’s thought experiment, showing how determinism challenges the very idea of free will. 0:00 Is reality a clockwork machine? 0:57 The determinism of classical mechanics 2:03 The spherical cow and simplified models 2:58 The universe as an equation 6:53 When the clockwork universe meets the human mind Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/sean-carroll-clockwork-universe/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Sean Carroll: Dr. Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy — in effect, a joint appointment between physics and philosophy — at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. Most of his career has been spent doing research on cosmology, field theory, and gravitation, looking at topics such as dark matter and dark energy, modified gravity, topological defects, extra dimensions, and violations of fundamental symmetries. These days, his focus has shifted to more foundational questions, both in quantum mechanics (origin of probability, emergence of space and time) and statistical mechanics (entropy and the arrow of time, emergence and causation, dynamics of complexity), bringing a more philosophical dimension to his work.

Willpower likely won’t save you from your bad habits. Science explains why

15. Okt. 2025

Become a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more: https://bigthink.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=yt_desc We created this video in partnership with Unlikely Collaborators. Your brain makes habits stick. The good news? The same science shows how to replace the bad ones. Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Why are bad habits so hard to break? Neuroscientist Carl Hart, PhD, journalist Charles Duhigg, and psychologist Adam Alter, PhD explain how your brain wires habits as cue-routine-reward loops that control nearly half of your daily life. They show why willpower alone rarely works, why technology fuels new forms of addiction, and why habits can only be replaced, not erased. Read more from this interview ► https://bigthink.com/perception-box/brain-briefs-addictions-and-habits-explained/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description Explore the Perception Box series hub ► https://bigthink.com/perception-box/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more. https://members.bigthink.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ►Get Big Think+ for Business Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business. https://bigthink.com/plus/great-leaders-think-big/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Carl Hart, PhD: Dr. Hart is an Associate Professor of Psychology in both the Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology at Columbia University, and Director of the Residential Studies and Methamphetamine Research Laboratories at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. A major focus of Dr. Hart’s research is to understand complex interactions between drugs of abuse and the neurobiology and environmental factors that mediate human behavior and physiology. About Charles Duhigg: Charles Duhigg is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and the author of The Power of Habit, which spent over three years on bestseller lists and has been translated into 40 languages, and Smarter Faster Better, also a bestseller. Mr. Duhigg writes for The New Yorker magazine and is a graduate of Yale University and the Harvard Business School. He has been a frequent contributor to CNBC, This American Life, NPR, The Colbert Report, NewsHour, and Frontline. About Adam Alter, PhD: Adam Alter is an Associate Professor of Marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, with an affiliated appointment in the New York University Psychology Department.

The psychology of loneliness

14. Okt. 2025

This interview is an episode from ‪@The-Well, our publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the @TempletonFoundation. Subscribe to The Well on YouTube ► https://bit.ly/thewell-youtube Watch all of Kross’s interviews ► https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_B7bI1QVmJCicywliIA6EcD5U1ks8HZN Popular media has made loneliness look bad, but is it really? Author and psychologist Ethan Kross explains his study of loneliness, finding that it is actually our response to loneliness – rather than the act of being alone itself – that has negative effects. If we reframe loneliness as an opportunity instead of a threat, it can have surprising benefits for our creativity, well-being, and relationships with ourselves. Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/the-science-of-being-alone-vs-loneliness/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description_bigthink ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Ethan Kross: Ethan Kross is one of the world’s leading experts on controlling the conscious mind. An award-winning professor and bestselling author in the University of Michigan’s top-ranked Psychology Department and its Ross School of Business, he studies how the conversations people have with themselves impact their health, performance, decisions and relationships. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Well Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds. Together, let's learn from them. Subscribe to the weekly newsletter ► https://bit.ly/thewellemailsignup ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join The Well on your favorite platforms: ► Facebook: https://bit.ly/thewellFB ► Instagram: https://bit.ly/thewellIG

Men are dying at alarming rates | Richard Reeves

10. Okt. 2025

“It's certainly clear that the issues of boys and men haven't gone away in the last few years. If anything, they're getting even more attention, which is good when it's the right kind of attention.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, The real reasons young men are checking out of society | Richard Reeves: Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLIEpbLWWao The conversation around masculinity is a political battlefield, devolving into extreme caricaturization: uncritical celebration or outright demonization. Where does the nuance of this discussion live? Richard Reeves argues that this binary leaves out the real story: how changing economies, shifting cultural expectations, and the absence of strong male role models have left many young men without a clear path forward. 0:00 Blaming young men 1:24 Rethinking how we talk about masculinity 2:45 The rise in male deaths from drugs 3:17 The male rate of suicide 4:14 Male representation in different professions 6:10 Men and purpose 6:52 Median annual earnings of men 8:54 Men and the “get rich quick” scheme 10:31 Online gambling addiction 12:15 What does non-toxic masculinity look like? 13:17 Policy for young males 14:46 Male support systems 19:08 GPA distribution amongst boys and girls Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/richard-reeves-masculinity-crisis/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Richard Reeves: Richard V. Reeves is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, where he directs the Future of the Middle Class Initiative and co-directs the Center on Children and Families. His Brookings research focuses on the middle class, inequality and social mobility. Richard writes for a wide range of publications, including the New York Times, Guardian, National Affairs, The Atlantic, Democracy Journal, and Wall Street Journal. He is the author of Dream Hoarders (Brookings Institution Press, 2017), and John Stuart Mill – Victorian Firebrand (Atlantic Books, 2007), an intellectual biography of the British liberal philosopher and politician. Dream Hoarders was named a Book of the Year by The Economist, a Political Book of the Year by The Observer, and was shortlisted for the Goddard Riverside Stephan Russo Book Prize for Social Justice. In September 2017, Politico magazine named Richard one of the top 50 thinkers in the U.S. for his work on class and inequality. A Brit-American, Richard was director of strategy to the UK’s Deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2012. Other previous roles include director of Demos, the London-based political think-tank; social affairs editor of the Observer; principal policy advisor to the Minister for Welfare Reform, and research fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research. Richard is also a former European Business Speaker of the Year and has a BA from Oxford University and a PhD from Warwick University.

How fiction reveals truths journalism cannot | Lawrence Wright

9. Okt. 2025

“As a reporter, you can look into the eyes of the people you're talking to and try to evaluate what they're thinking when they say what they say. But you are not really gonna get into their brain. There's only one artistic form that allows you to do that. “ Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, 12 traits emotionally intelligent people share (You can learn them) ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr8sLxde1m8 What can fiction reveal that history and journalism leave hidden? Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Lawrence Wright turns to the novel to explore the lives caught in conflict in Israel and Palestine. His book The Human Scale uses narrative to confront the unequal ways lives are valued in this region, asking whether storytelling can expose truths that politics can obscure. 0:00 The Human Scale 1:37 Deriving truth and meaning from fiction 2:26 The uneven weight of human life 4:28 Why narrative can get into the mind of another 6:28 Confronting uncomfortable truths 10:27 The setting of The Human Scale Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/lawrence-wright-truth-fiction/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Lawrence Wright: Lawrence Wright is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, journalist, and screenwriter whose work focuses on politics, religion, and culture. A longtime staff writer for The New Yorker, Wright is best known for The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11. Beyond his landmark works on extremism, Wright has explored the complexities of Scientology in Going Clear, the global response to pandemics in The End of October, and the role of Texas as both a cultural crucible and a political bellwether in God Save Texas.

Stop fighting your anxiety and start using it | Jesse Eisenberg for Big Think+

8. Okt. 2025

Become a Big Think member and watch Jesse Eisenberg’s full class: https://bigthink.com/my-classes/leading-through-anxiety-5/leading-through-anxiety-6/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=membership-class&utm_content=bt-ytdesc-text-lesson-eisenberg-h-MHHlZqVaI “The way my mind works is just out of anxiety and catastrophization.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, The smartest people have mastered these 6 core skills | Michael Watkins for Big Think+ ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32z8Ax1j-Q4 Anxiety doesn’t vanish with practice. In fact, in actor Jesse Eisenberg’s experience, it can grow even sharper even after repetition. Eisenberg’s stories from stage and film sets reveal what performance anxiety teaches us about how the brain works, and how we can rewire it to work better for us. Rather than treating panic as a flaw, the actor argues it can be redirected into focus and authenticity. 0:00 Performance anxiety 0:32 Recognize catastrophic thinking 3:57 Normalize your panic 6:24 Reframe negative feelings as motivation Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/jesse-eisenberg-anxiety/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Jesse Eisenberg: Jesse Eisenberg is an Academy Award nominated actor and an acclaimed playwright and author. Eisenberg’s film credits include Roger Dodger, The Squid and the Whale, Adventureland, Zombieland, The Social Network, Now You See Me, The Double, Night Moves, The End of Tour, American Ultra, Louder Than Bombs, Batman v. Superman, Now You See Me 2, Café Society, Justice League, The Hummingbird Project, The Art of Self Defense, Zombieland: Double Tap, Resistance, Vivarium,Wild Indian, Manodrome, and Sasquatch Sunset which sees him play the urban legend Sasquatch. On the small screen, Eisenberg was recently seen playing the titular character of ‘Toby Fleishman’ in the FX limited series Fleishman Is in Trouble based on Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s best-selling novel of the same name. Eisenberg made his directorial debut with A24’s When You Finish Saving the World, which premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival to glowing reviews and screened as a part of Critics Week at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. The film is based on the Audible Original of the same name, both of which were written by Eisenberg. Eisenberg’s second directorial effort, A Real Pain, recently had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. The film, which Eisenberg stars alongside Kieran Culkin, tells the story of two estranged cousins who travel to Poland after their grandmother dies to see where she came from and end up joining a Holocaust tour, won Eisenberg the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for his screenplay The film was bought at the festival by Searchlight Pictures for a release later in the year. Eisenberg has written four plays, including “The Spoils,” which had a box-office record-breaking run-on West End. He also wrote and starred alongside Vanessa Redgrave in his play “The Revisionist,” and “Asuncion.” His play, “Happy Talk” starring Susan Sarandon and Marin Ireland opened April 2019 at the Signature Theater in New York. Born in New York, Eisenberg is a frequent contributor to The New Yorker, the author of the collection, Bream Gives Me Hiccups from Grove Press and the Audible Original When You Finish Saving the World, which won “Best Original Work” at the 2021 Audie Awards.

The power of criticism — and the cost of silence

7. Okt. 2025

This interview is an episode from ‪@The-Well, our publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the ‪@TempletonFoundation Subscribe to The Well on YouTube ► https://bit.ly/thewell-youtube Watch Mchangama’s next interview ► True free speech, explained in 6 minutes https://youtu.be/F4HTlRwMdlI America’s real danger isn’t free speech. It’s silence. Founder of The Future of Free Speech Jacob Mchangama argues that free speech is not a threat but society’s strongest safeguard against violence. Suppressing expression creates a pressure cooker that can push people toward violent action when peaceful dissent is denied. While acknowledging its harms — especially in the digital age — Mchangama warns that censorship is far worse. Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/the-power-of-criticism?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description_bigthink ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Jacob Mchangama: Jacob Mchangama founded and leads The Future of Free Speech, is a research professor at Vanderbilt, and a Senior Fellow at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). A prolific commentator and author on free speech and human rights, he created the podcast “Clear and Present Danger” and wrote the 2022 book “Free Speech: A History From Socrates to Social Media.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Well Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds. Together, let's learn from them. Subscribe to the weekly newsletter ► https://bit.ly/thewellemailsignup ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join The Well on your favorite platforms: ► Facebook: https://bit.ly/thewellFB ► Instagram: https://bit.ly/thewellIG

How trauma stays in the body and how to remove it with Bessel van der Kolk | Full Interview

3. Okt. 2025

Become a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more: https://bigthink.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=yt_desc "One of the largest mitigating factors against getting traumatized is who is there for you at that particular time." Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, How the body keeps the score on trauma | Bessel van der Kolk for Big Think+ ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTefkqYQz8g Trauma doesn’t vanish when danger does. According to psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk, the body acts as an archive, holding fear, pain, and survival instincts long after the moment passes. Van der Kolk explains why conventional treatments for trauma fall short, and the promising new pathways to healing that science is revealing. 0:00 Chapter 1: Trauma, explained 1:21 PTSD in veterans 2:09 Connecting with others after trauma 4:28 The prevalence of trauma 5:35 What is trauma? 8:19 The greatest protector of trauma 9:37 Trauma in the brain 11:46 Automatic responses 14:56 The brain and our experiences 16:52 Re-experiencing trauma 19:58 Brain development and trauma 27:29 Chapter 2: Shaping childhood trauma 28:27 Reenacting trauma in relationships 31:41 Understanding each other’s trauma 34:59 Long term effects of child abuse 36:34 Chapter 3: How to treat trauma 36:57 “A post-alcoholic culture” 37:27 Zoloft, Prozac, and other PTSD drugs 39:15 The Adverse Childhood Experiences study 40:48 Drug addiction 43:02 Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) 45:48 Unconventional trauma treatments 46:30 The brain-body connection Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/full-interview/trauma-brain-body-connection/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Bessel van der Kolk: Bessel van der Kolk MD spends his career studying how children and adults adapt to traumatic experiences and has translated emerging findings from neuroscience and attachment research to develop and study a range of treatments for traumatic stress in children and adults.

Brian Cox: Why even Einstein doubted the existence of black holes

2. Okt. 2025

Become a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more: https://bigthink.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=membership&utm_content=bt-ytdesc-text-seg-cox-hjR8rHjqS9A "Could black holes be the key to a quantum theory of gravity, a deeper theory of how reality, of how space and time works? Well, I think so." Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, Brian Cox: The quantum roots of reality | Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO41iURud9c Black holes sit at the crossroads of the two most powerful ideas in physics: relativity and quantum theory. Physicist Brian Cox explains why the mysterious giants force us to confront the deepest questions about space, time, and the structure of reality itself. Cox traces the unlikely history of black hole thought, from the 18th-century notion of “dark stars” to Stephen Hawking’s breakthroughs. 0:00 What are black holes hiding? 2:29 The history of black holes 3:33 Mitchell and Laplace 5:10 Einstein and black holes 9:35 The implications of black holes 12:49 What lies at the center of a black hole? 16:29 Hawking and modern thought about black holes Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/black-holes-history/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Brian Cox: Brian Cox obtained a first class honors degree in physics from the University of Manchester in 1995 and in 1998 a Ph.D. in High Energy Particle Physics at the DESY laboratory in Hamburg. He is now Professor of Particle Physics at the University of Manchester, The Royal Society Professor for Public Engagement in Science and a Fellow of the Royal Society. Brian is widely recognized as the foremost communicator for all things scientific, having presented a number of highly acclaimed science programs for the BBC watched by billions internationally including ‘Adventures in Space and Time’ (2021), ‘Universe’ (2021), ‘The Planets’ (2018), ‘Forces of Nature’ (2016), ‘Human Universe’ (2014), ‘Wonders of Life’ (2012), ‘Wonders of the Universe’ (2011) and ‘Wonders of the Solar System’ (2010). As an author, Brian has also sold over a million books worldwide including ‘Black Holes’, ‘Universal: A Guide to the Cosmos’, ‘Quantum Universe’ and ‘Why Does E=mc2?’ with co-author Professor Jeffrey Forshaw. He has set several world records for his sell-out live tours, including his most recent tour Horizons which has taken in venues across the globe.

I study patience in a lab. Here’s what I’ve found.

30. Sept. 2025

This interview is an episode from ‪@The-Well, our publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the ‪@TempletonFoundation. Subscribe to The Well on YouTube ► https://bit.ly/thewell-youtube Watch Schnitker’s next interview ► Is virtue worth pursuing? A psychologist explains https://youtu.be/qIUnvXZHkkg Feeling more impatient lately? It’s not entirely your fault. Sarah Schnitker, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor University, explains how a culture of instant gratification — fueled by our use of smartphones and on-demand everything — has made patience feel unnecessary. But her research shows that patience helps people stay regulated, persist through challenges, and feel more satisfied with their progress. Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/the-science-of-patience/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description_bigthink ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Sarah Schnitker: Dr. Sarah Schnitker, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Baylor University and Director of the BRIGHTS Center, researches virtue development in youth. Specializing in patience, self-control, and gratitude, she has 100+ publications, $10M in grants, and mentors doctoral students in science and virtue. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Well Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds. Together, let's learn from them. Subscribe to the weekly newsletter ► https://bit.ly/thewellemailsignup ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join The Well on your favorite platforms: ► Facebook: https://bit.ly/thewellFB ► Instagram: https://bit.ly/thewellIG

Millennials: the immobile generation | Derek Thompson

26. Sept. 2025

“This is a world in which we've essentially given ourselves the tools to stop the construction of the most important product in American lives in the places where Americans often most want to move.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, One generation’s solutions, this generation’s disease | Derek Thompson: Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dn6NVGOu0w Behind the outcome of the 2024 election lies a deep fracture in the American dream: the choice between affordable places that stall mobility, and dynamic cities that lock people out with impossible prices. 0:00 The “affordability election” 1:17 America’s housing crisis 2:39 The opposite of The American Dream 2:57 Big cities, housing supply, the rise of NIMBY 5:50 Homeowners vs. non-homeowners 8:29 A tragedy of good intentions 12:28 A new age of institutional renewal Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/upwards-immobility/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Derek Thompson: Derek Thompson is a staff writer at The Atlantic and host of the podcast Plain English. He is the author of Hit Makers and the co-author of Abundance alongside Ezra Klein, which explores the case for renewing the politics of plenty in the modern world.

The brain mechanisms that unlock human potential | Steven Kotler

25. Sept. 2025

"If you're interested in human performance, what you want is something that's reliable and repeatable, and thus you want neurobiology because neurobiology gives you mechanism." Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, The science of effortlessness: How to activate flow | Steven Kotler: Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZIn9tfeQ2I Most explanations of human performance lean on psychology or philosophy, but best-selling author Steven Kotler argues that these frameworks are only metaphors. If you want repeatable, measurable science, you need to use biology. By understanding brain networks, Kotler explains how we can engineer peak states like flow, creativity, and focus for peak performance. 0:00 The biology of peak performance 3:28 The functional networks of the brain 4:33 Fear and attention circuitry in the brain 6:20 How to turn on peak performance 7:13 Motivation, learning, creativity, and flow Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/science-of-flow/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Steven Kotler: Steven Kotler is a New York Times bestselling author, an award-winning journalist, and the Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective. He is one of the world’s leading experts on human performance. He is the author of ten bestsellers (out of thirteen books total), including The Art of Impossible, The Future Is Faster Than You Think, Stealing Fire, The Rise of Superman, Bold and Abundance. His work has been nominated for two Pulitzer Prizes, translated into over 40 languages, and appeared in over 100 publications, including the New York Times Magazine, Wired, Atlantic Monthly, TIME and the Harvard Business Review. Steven is also the cohost of Flow Research Collective Radio, a top ten iTunes science podcast. Along with his wife, author Joy Nicholson, he is the cofounder of the Rancho de Chihuahua, a hospice and special needs dog sanctuary.

Experts from 4 different fields define consciousness

24. Sept. 2025

Become a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more: https://bigthink.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=yt_desc We created this video in partnership with Unlikely Collaborators. How does self-awareness connect us to others, society, and the universe? 4 experts explain. Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Christof Koch, PhD, Daniel Dennett, PhD, Sam Harris, PhD, and Deepak Chopra, MD—four thinkers from neuroscience, philosophy, biology, and medicine—each share their own interpretation of consciousness, combining their ideas to paint one massive, mysterious picture of what it means to be an awakened being. Read more from this interview ► https://bigthink.com/perception-box/brain-briefs-experts-define-consciousness?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description Explore the Perception Box series hub ► https://bigthink.com/perception-box/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more. https://members.bigthink.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ►Get Big Think+ for Business Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business. https://bigthink.com/plus/great-leaders-think-big/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Christof Koch, PhD: Christof Koch is a Meritorious Investigator at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and Chief Scientist at the Tiny Blue Dot Foundation. He is a pioneering neuroscientist celebrated for his influential work on the neuronal basis of consciousness, including jointly developing Integrated Information Theory and exploring the neural correlates of conscious experience. About Daniel Dennett, PhD: Daniel C. Dennett was the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy and director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University. About Sam Harris, PhD: Mr. Harris is a graduate in philosophy from Stanford University and holds a PhD in neuroscience from UCLA, where he studied the neural basis of belief with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). He is also a Co-Founder and CEO of Project Reason. About Deepak Chopra, MD: Deepak Chopra MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation and co-founder of The Chopra Center for Wellbeing, is a medical doctor, public speaker, and author of 90 books, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. He is regarded as a major advocate for the use of alternative medicine.

Not all effort leads to character. Here’s why.

23. Sept. 2025

This interview is an episode from ‪@The-Well, our publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the ‪@TempletonFoundation. Subscribe to The Well on YouTube ► https://bit.ly/thewell-youtube Watch Schnitker’s next interview ► Is virtue worth pursuing? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIUnvXZHkkg Does self-discipline always build character? Not necessarily. Psychologist Sarah Schnitker explains why virtue grows best when rooted in purpose beyond the self. Through studies of marathon runners fundraising for clean water, she shows how pro-social and spiritual motivations—not just personal fitness goals—led to deeper growth in generosity, patience, and self-control. This research challenges the idea that self-improvement alone leads to virtue. When moral purpose and shared meaning enter the picture, transformation becomes more than personal: it becomes relational and lasting. Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/what-makes-discipline-meaningful?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description_bigthink ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Sarah Schnitker: Dr. Sarah Schnitker, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Baylor University and Director of the BRIGHTS Center, researches virtue development in youth. Specializing in patience, self-control, and gratitude, she has 100+ publications, $10M in grants, editorial leadership, and mentors doctoral students in science and virtue. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Well Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds. Together, let's learn from them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join The Well on your favorite platforms: ► Facebook: https://bit.ly/thewellFB ► Instagram: https://bit.ly/thewellIG

A simple tool for better communication during toxic conflict | Amanda Ripley

19. Sept. 2025

“We can have that fight for a 1,000 years, but we could have a shot at figuring out what we both need and noticing when there's opportunities to make that happen.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, Conflict, crisis, consumption: What’s eating our nation? Amanda Ripley: Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE_MEu7xn8Y Conflict can be constructive, inspiring learning, growth, and vulnerability when well-managed. But when it spirals into what Amanda Ripley calls high conflict, it becomes corrosive. Instead of solving problems, high conflict traps us in a cycle where arguments feed on themselves, eroding trust and entire relationships. So, why are we so susceptible to it? Ripley explains, sharing our psychological tripwires and how to avoid them. 0:00 The paradox of high conflict 0:30 Breaking the cycle 2:50 How to get to the understory 5:00 High conflict is a tar pit 6:30 The idiot driver reflex (why we don’t give people benefit of the doubt) 7:50 Fear leads to a desire for simplicity 8:20 The saturation point 10:50 Good, healthy conflict 11:15 Looping (how to prove you are listening) 14:00 The most common understories 17:30 Practice under stress 20:00 How to keep conflict healthy 21:00 The magic ratio of positive interactions to conflict 21:55 Who high conflict benefits 22:55 There’s no winning a marriage Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/high-conflict-ripley/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Amanda Ripley: Amanda Ripley is a New York Times bestselling author, Washington Post contributor, and co-founder of consultancy firm, Good Conflict. Her books include The Smartest Kids in the World, High Conflict, and The Unthinkable.

Your brain: the most important sex organ in the body | Emily Nagoski

18. Sept. 2025

“The sexual excitation system is the accelerator or the gas pedal, and it notices all the sex-related information in the environment.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, You were lied to about sex. Here’s the truth | Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3mDt4oV88o Past decades of sex research have focused mainly on mechanics, overlooking the concept of desire. Now, we’re understanding how vital environment, emotion, and perception are in the science of sex. Sex educator Emily Nagoski emphasizes how critical context can be in amplifying or killing sexual desire. 0:38 The role of desire in orgasm 2:15 The gas pedal vs. the brakes 4:15 Why people struggle with sex 5:15 How to apply neuroscience in the bedroom 7:02 The power of context Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/your-brain-on-sex/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Emily Nagoski: Emily Nagoski is the award-winning author of the New York Times bestselling Come As You Are and The Come As You Are Workbook, and coauthor, with her sister, Amelia, of New York Times bestseller Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle. She earned an M.S. in counseling and a Ph.D. in health behavior, both from Indiana University, with clinical and research training at the Kinsey Institute. Now she combines sex education and stress education to teach women to live with confidence and joy inside their bodies. She lives in Massachusetts with two dogs, a cat, and a cartoonist.

The case for free speech (even when it’s harmful)

16. Sept. 2025

This interview is an episode from ‪@The-Well, our publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the @TempletonFoundation. Subscribe to The Well on YouTube ► https://bit.ly/thewell-youtube “Defending free speech, even for your enemies, is essential for minorities, and for freedom and equality to thrive.” Jacob Mchangama, founder of The Future of Free Speech, explains how free speech has shaped America, from Frederick Douglass fighting slavery to Supreme Court cases protecting voices that promote hate. He argues that today, tech platforms twist our view by promoting extremists for clicks, making it feel like free speech is the problem. But free speech only works if all voices are allowed. According to Mchangama, it is silence that truly damages equality and democracy. Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/the-well/true-free-speech?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description_bigthink ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Jacob Mchangama: Jacob Mchangama founded and leads The Future of Free Speech, is a research professor at Vanderbilt, and a Senior Fellow at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). A prolific commentator and author on free speech and human rights, he created the podcast “Clear and Present Danger” and wrote the 2022 book “Free Speech: A History From Socrates to Social Media.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Well Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds. Together, let's learn from them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Join The Well on your favorite platforms: ► Facebook: https://bit.ly/thewellFB ► Instagram: https://bit.ly/thewellIG

Don't chase happiness. Become antifragile | Tal Ben-Shahar: Full Interview

12. Sept. 2025

Become a Big Think member to unlock expert classes, premium print issues, exclusive events and more: https://bigthink.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=yt_desc Become a Big Think member and watch Tal Ben-Shahar’s full class: https://bigthink.com/my-classes/building-your-antifragile-systems-the-spire-model/building-your-antifragile-systems/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=yt_desc “There's research showing that people who are curious, who ask questions, are not just happier, they're not just more successful, they also live longer.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, Antifragility: How to use suffering to get stronger ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISjRSek5Xbs Success, status, and achievements promise to deliver happiness, but often come up empty when realized. Tal Ben-Shahar’s own experience with this personal dissatisfaction drove him to study the science and philosophy of wellbeing. Ben-Shahar outlines how anti-fragility and post-traumatic growth reframe hardship as opportunity and how happiness can be found through connection, purpose, and clarity instead. 00:00:00 Happiness studies 00:00:20 The paradox of chasing happiness 00:00:56 Two questions about happiness 00:02:39 The science of happiness in difficult times 00:03:41 Why isn’t there a field that studies happiness? 00:06:57 What is anti-fragility? 00:08:24 PTSD vs PTG 00:14:25 SPIRE: the 5 dimensions of well-being 00:15:23 Why not include financial wellness in SPIRE? 00:16:19 Exercising your spirit, body, and mind 00:17:17 3 archetypes of work 00:24:26 Physical wellbeing and the mind-body connection 00:27:09 3 levels of recovery 00:32:20 Time off and wellness 00:37:10 Curiosity and engaging deeply with others 00:40:37 The importance of relational and emotional health 00:41:06 The #1 condition to increase anti-fragility: The quality of our relationships 00:46:31 Generosity in connections 00:47:49 Sustainable generosity 00:48:21 Is the pursuit of happiness selfish? 00:51:13 The 2 kinds of people who do not experience difficult emotions 00:52:44 The importance of gratitude 55:37 Gratitude and growth 00:57:47 Learning to fail Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/full-interview/anti-fragile-happiness/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Tal Ben-Shahar: Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar is an internationally renowned teacher and author in the fields of happiness and leadership. After graduating from Harvard with a BA in Philosophy and Psychology and a PhD in Organizational Behavior, Tal taught two of the most popular courses in Harvard’s history: Positive Psychology and The Psychology of Leadership. He then taught Happiness Studies at Columbia University. A prolific writer, Tal's books have appeared on best-sellers lists around the world and have been translated into more than 30 languages. Tal Ben-Shahar consults and lectures to executives in multinational corporations, educational institutions, and the general public. Topics include leadership, education, ethics, happiness, self-esteem, resilience, goal setting and mindfulness. Dr. Tal Ben-Shahar is the co-founder of the Happiness Studies Academy, as well as the creator and instructor of the Certificate in Happiness Studies and the Happier School programs. Tal is an avid sportsman and a certified yoga instructor whose work bridges Eastern and Western traditions, ancient wisdom and modern technology, science and art.

Inside the mind of a white-collar criminal | Kelly Richmond Pope

11. Sept. 2025

“Fraud is a trillion dollar problem, about $5 trillion today with that number increasingly rising annually.” Subscribe to Big Think on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvQECJukTDE2i6aCoMnS-Vg?sub_confirmation=1 Up next, The 4 financial statements every smart person should understand | Full Interview ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7KyehyBxH0 We often think of fraud as the work of greedy masterminds, but the reality can be far more complex. Forensic accounting expert Kelly Richmond Pope, explains how ordinary people can be perpetrators, under the right conditions. Drawing from years of interviews with white-collar criminals, whistleblowers, and victims, Pope introduces a framework that challenges our common assumptions about who can commit this crime. 00:00 How fraud happens 01:05 Understanding why good people do bad things 01:55 The Fraud Triangle 03:04 Is fraud a victimless crime? 06:29 The different perpetrators of fraud 09:36 Infamous fraud perpetrators 13:41 Why are we addicted to stories of fraud? 14:35 Righteous perpetrators 22:53 Accidental perpetrators Read the video transcript ► https://bigthink.com/series/the-big-think-interview/fraud-triangle/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think: ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive content, early, ad-free access to new releases, and more. https://www.youtube.com/@bigthink/membership/ ►Subscribe to Big Think on Substack Explore content that enlightens, inspires, and transforms. https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/subscribe/ ►Get Big Think+ for Business Engage learners like never before with high-impact video microlearning from the biggest thinkers in the world. https://bigthink.com/plus/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=youtube_description ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Kelly Richmond Pope: Dr. Kelly Richmond Pope is the Dr. Barry Jay Epstein Endowed Professor of Accounting at DePaul University in Chicago, IL. Pope is a nationally recognized expert in risk, forensic accounting, and white-collar crime research, and an award-winning educator, researcher, author, and award-winning documentary filmmaker. She’s the author of Fool Me Once: Scams, Stories, and Secrets from the Trillion Dollar Fraud Industry (Harvard Business Review Press, March 2023). Pope teaches managerial and forensic accounting both at the undergraduate and graduate level.