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Explain It Like I’m Smart

35 episodes

Even the smartest people benefit from more context. These experts are here to provide just that.

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All Episodes (35)

a clock that is in the middle of a circle.

The science of super longevity

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7 min

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the cover of a magazine with a picture of a man's face.

Why high-ranking leaders should be psych tested

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6 min

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a pink computer keyboard with the word sex spelled on it.

How porn f*cked our minds

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6 min

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a man sitting in a box with a plant in it.

The friendship recession

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8 min

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Harvard professor explains Bayes’ rule

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5 min

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Master divergent and convergent thinking

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5 min

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The physics of time, entropy, and death

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5 min

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Sabine Hossenfelder

The neuroscience of loving music

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8 min

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Michael Spitzer

The mind-bending physics of time

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8 min

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Only high performers pass this kind of job interview

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4 min

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Sun Tzu: 4 battle principles for business leaders

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8 min

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How dirty debaters win against better opponents

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5 min

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The 3 dimensions of secrets: What are you hiding and why?

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7 min

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Michael Slepian

Why your brain thinks you’re Matt Damon

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4 min

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How psychedelics work

Why psychedelics change your reality

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6 min

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Matthew W. Johnson

war technology

Google’s secret “Project Maven”: Evil—or moral?

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Metaverse games

Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnite: The world’s future superpowers?

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Are drugs really frying your brain?

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5 min

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Umwelt: The hidden sensory world of animals

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Our ancient ancestors weren’t jacked. They were energy savers.

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4 min

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Daniel Lieberman

exercise myths

Harvard professor debunks the biggest exercise myths

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Daniel Lieberman

toxic work culture

Toxic work culture: Are you in one?

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3 min

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Mind hack: Revive your focus with this 12-minute exercise

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7 min

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How Earth’s 23.4° tilt makes life beautiful

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4 min

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flow state

How ‘flow state’ can treat anxiety and depression

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4 min

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Finding happiness in life

“How I reversed my unhappiness”

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3 min

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digital amnesia

Is technology melting your memory? Or helping it?

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3 min

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encoding memory

Our best guesses at the mystery of memory

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Social media addiction

Social media addiction – how it changes your brain

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5 min

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Mimetic desires

How to know what you really want

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5 min

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Related

a group of five matches on a pink background.

Signs you’re burned out — and how to bounce back

If you don’t feel better after the weekend, the “burnout paradox” could explain why.

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7 min

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a birthday cake with the number 100 on it.

How to eat if you want to age slowly

Former Yale professor Dr. Morgan Levine shares 3 ways to change your diet to extend your life.

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5 min

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An evolutionary history of the human brain, in 7 minutes

Plato and Carl Sagan were wrong about the human brain, says a top neuroscientist.

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7 min

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Lisa Feldman Barrett

a hand holding a tiny group of mushrooms.

The ultimate psychedelics explainer

Johns Hopkins professor Dr. Matthew Johnson answers 24 huge questions about psychedelics.

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02:09:03 min

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Matthew W. Johnson

a woman with grey hair and a blue jacket.

Berkeley professor explains gender theory

Sex, gender, and the debate over identity explained by Berkeley professor Judith Butler.

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13 min

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