Inner Cosmos with David Eagleman
Episodes
Ep62 "Is it possible to rehumanize the enemy?"
10 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The brain easily forms ingroups and outgroups – and shows different responses when viewing one or the other. At the extreme, the brain stops seeing ...
Ep61 "When should you (not) trust your intuition?"
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why do you sometimes feel that you trust this person but not that one -- for reasons you can't quite put your finger on? What signals does the brain v...
Ep60 "Can we think better by wrestling with conflicting ideas?"
27 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we believe our own truths so strongly? What is steel-manning, and why is it so important? What does any of this have to do with F. Scott Fitzge...
Ep59 "Do you visualize like I do?"
20 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How do brains picture things internally, and how might you and I imagine differently? How have recent discoveries completely changed the debate and th...
Ep58 "What do brains teach us about whether AI is creative?"
13 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From a neuroscience point of view, what is creativity? How does it shine light on the current lawsuits over large language models and whether they pr...
Ep57 "When should new technologies enter the courtroom?"
06 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can we measure a lie from a blood pressure test, or pedophilia from a brain scan? And how should a judge decide whether the technology is good enough?...
Rebroadcast of Ep7 "Is AI truly intelligent? How would we know if it got there?"
29 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
David is taking his birthday week off and wanted to re-share this episode due to it's ongoing relevance. Modern AI is blowing everyone’s mind. But i...
Ep56 "Why do we care so much about touch?"
22 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why does a cold pool feel warmer the second time you dip your toes in? Why does a safecracker run his fingers over sandpaper? Why do Mediterranean cul...
Ep55 "Could a brain plugin instantly teach you to fly a helicopter?"
15 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Could you instantaneously learn to fly a helicopter -- not by practicing, but instead by uploading instructions directly to your brain? What would soc...
Ep54 "Where do you end and others begin?"
08 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From the brain’s point of view, what is the self? How do 30 trillion cells come to feel like a single entity? Does the "self" of a blind person incl...
Ep 53 " Can societies fight better? "
01 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Presumably we're not going to solve the problem of conflict between groups of people -- but what would better conflict look like? And what does that...
Ep 52 "What is lucid dreaming?" (Sleeping & Dreaming Part 3)
25 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can you become conscious inside a dream? Can a researcher convey information to a dreamer, and can the dreamer find some way to answer back? Does 10 ...
Ep 51 "Why do brains dream?"
18 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why do brains dream, and why are dreams so bizarre? Why doesn't your clock work in your dreams? And even though you spend much of your working day loo...
Ep50 "Why do we spend 1/3 of our lives asleep?" (Sleeping & Dreaming Part 1)
11 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we spend 1/3 of our lives in the strange doppelganger state of sleep? Can we die from a lack of sleep? How long is it possible to keep yourself...
Ep49 "Can you read the brain to detect a lie?
04 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Could you get convicted of a crime based on your brain activity? Are brain scan lie detectors accepted in court, or would that count as illegal searc...
Ep48 "Why do brains become depressed?"
26 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is depression? Why are brains able to slip into it? Is depression detectable in animals? Do animals have options beyond fight or flight? And what...
Ep47 "Wheels rotate backwards on TV, but do they ever in real life?"
19 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do our visual systems see in frames like a movie camera or instead analyze the world continuously? Why do you see multiple hands when you clap under y...
Ep46 "Who says you're dead?"
12 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can a person be declared legally dead even though he is very much alive? In December of 2010, why did a number of families choose to pull their loved ...
Ep45 "Why did a man shoot himself after hearing the lottery numbers?" (Time Traveling: Part 3)
05 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Who is the most disappointed medalist at the Olympics? How do brains simulate what might have been? How can you get your kid to wear a jacket in the c...
Ep44 "Why can't you tickle yourself?" (Time Traveling Part 2)
29 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why are people who can't remember their past also unable to picture their future? Why do we get so anxious about the world changing around us? What sh...
Ep43 "How do we remember?" (Time Traveling Part 1)
22 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How do billions of neurons store your home address, your ability to ride a bike, and the history of your life? How does memory work in the brain, a...
Ep42 "Is there any such thing as true news?" (Truth Part 3: Artificial Intelligence)
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What role will AI play in the future of fake news and misinformation? What does this have to do with our brains’ internal models, with voice passwor...
Ep41 "Is there any such thing as true news?" (Truth Part 2: the Internet)
08 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What is the future of misinformation on the internet? Is it possible that the invention of the internet has improved access to truth? What does any of...
Ep40 "Is there any such thing as true news?" (Truth Part1)
01 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We all worry about fake news. But is misinformation and disinformation really new? Join Eagleman for a deep dive into the past, present, and future of...
Ep39 "What is the future of AI relationships?"
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why are our brains so wired for love? Could you fall head over heels for a bot? Might your romantic partner be more satisfied with a 5% better version...
Ep38 "Why is it hard to teach an old brain new tricks?"
11 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is it always harder to teach an old dog new tricks? Why is an older person slower to learn a new language but able to learn new faces easily? Why do...
Ep37 "What is Insanity?" Part 2
04 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What does the insanity defense mean in a court of law? And is there such a thing as temporary insanity? Is the twinkie defense a real thing? Can some...
Inner Cosmos Inbox 2
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Eagleman answers listeners questions.
Ep36 "What is Insanity?" Part 1
27 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is the insanity defense? Are some people’s brains so different that it makes sense to use a different legal category? How does a legal system d...
Ep35 "What sticks in your brain and what doesn’t? "
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
f you look at a brain, how can you immediately tell if it belongs to a piano player or a violinist? How can a dog learn how to walk on its rear legs? ...
Ep34 "What is intelligence?"
13 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What would it be like to have a much lower or higher IQ than you currently have -- for example, to be a squirrel or an advanced space alien? This week...
Ep33 "Why do they start sprinters with a bang instead of a flash?"
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why do they use a gun at the Olympics? And why can you get off the blocks after the bang but still be disqualified for jumping the gun? Few things are...
Ep32 "Is death reversible?"
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Does life end inevitably or instead only because we don’t understand biology well enough yet? Today’s episode is about understanding what happens ...
Inner Cosmos Inbox 1
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Eagleman answers listeners questions.
Ep31 "Why do we see #TheDress differently?"
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why can you hear some sounds two different ways, depending on which word you’re looking at? Why do electrical outlets sometimes look like a face? Ho...
Ep30 "What does it mean to know thyself in the age of neuroscience?" Part 2
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can we explain our rich experience of life only by studying the molecules that compose us? How is the color of your passport related to your chances ...
Ep29 "What does it mean to know thyself?" Part 1
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Did Joan of Arc turn the tide of the 100 Years War as the result of a brain disorder? Would you appreciate Taylor Swift if you only had an internal ca...
Ep28 "Does your language shape your thinking?"
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are there really dozens of words for snow in northern cultures? What did the movie Arrival have to do with language and cognition? Why are Russians be...
Ep27 "Can we read brains at an airport to know who's going to bomb a plane?"
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can your thoughts be read with neurotechnology? When is measuring the brain like reading the mind? How close or far are we from being able to know if ...
Ep26 "Why do people dislike moist more than moose, but not as much as merts?"
18 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We all know people who hate the word "moist". But why are they fine with synonyms such as "damp" or "wet"? What’s going on in their brains, and what...
Ep25 "Why are we so easy to fool?"
11 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why are we humans so easily deceived? What are the tricks of the trade, and how can we train ourselves to be more aware of them? What does all this ha...
Ep24 "What does drug withdrawal have in common with heartbreak?"
04 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why do you still feel the waves after getting off a boat? Why does the wall seem to come at you faster after you step off the treadmill? Why do the ro...
Ep23 "How can we learn to speak alien?"
28 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If we meet extraterrestrials someday, how will we figure out what they're saying? We currently face this problem right here at home: we have 2 million...
Ep22 "What do we find beautiful?"
21 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why do briefly glimpsed people appear to be more attractive? Why did portrait photographers put Vaseline on their lenses, and what does that have to d...
Ep21 "How far would you follow authority?"
14 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Would you torture someone if you were commanded by an authority figure? To what degree are your decisions contextual, and what does this have to do wi...
Ep20 "Why does your brain care more about some people than others?"
07 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we so naturally form ingroups and outgroups? And what does that have to do with evolution, monkeys, Greeks, psychopaths, Syndrome E, and propag...
Ep19 "How far can you trust your memory?"
31 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How good is your memory, really? Why do we feel so certain about our memory, even while it is so suspect? Can something told to you after an event ch...
Ep18 "Could you upload your brain to live forever?"
24 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How would we know if we were living in a simulation? What if you were a butterfly having a dream it was a human? What does any of this have to do wi...
Ep17 "What is consciousness?"
17 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How do your billions of tiny brain cells build consciousness as they chatter away with electrical spikes and chemical signals? And why is your laptop...
Ep16 "Why is everyone who disagrees with you misinformed?"
10 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why is there so much polarization, and what does this have to do with neuroscience? Why do people on all sides of the political spectrum feel that if ...
Ep15 "What should happen when someone with a brain tumor breaks the law?"
03 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When does neuroscience overlap with the legal system? Do we have free will or don't we? Did changes in Charles Whitman's brain have something to do wi...
Ep14 "Why do we have so little access to what’s happening under the hood?"
26 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Who is doing the choosing when you make a choice? Is there someone in your head but it’s not you? What is a chicken-sexer, and what do they have to ...
Ep13 "Will you perceive the event that kills you?"
19 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How far in the past do you live? Why are live television shows not actually live? What does any of this have to do with nuclear bombs, car accidents, ...
Ep12 "Can we create new senses for humans?"
12 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can a blind person come to see through her tongue? What would it be like to smell with the nose of a dog? How can we perceive streams of information t...
Ep11 "What does dreaming have to do with the rotation of the planet?"
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why are some of the best musicians blind? Can blind people learn how to echolocate, like a bat? What do your nightly dreams have to do with the rotati...
Ep10 "Why is it so hard to spot a counterfeit bill?"
29 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What do charlatans have to understand about human perception? Why are you so bad at recognizing a real penny among fakes? What did Eagleman have to do...
Ep9 "What does eating that cookie have to do with the hero of the Trojan war?"
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We all have goals, and we all face temptations that get in the way. So what's happening in the brain when we act in a manner that isn't in accordance...
Ep8 "How does your brain decide what to buy?"
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What’s happening when you stand in the supermarket aisle and stare at the shelf full of options? It may not look like there’s much going on from t...
Ep7 "Is AI truly intelligent? How would we know if it got there?"
08 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Modern AI is blowing everyone’s mind. But is it intelligent like humans, or is it just playing impressive statistical games? Could AI reach or exc...
Ep6 "What will AI mean for artists?"
02 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Will writers, artists, and musicians find themselves unemployed by AI? What are the new capabilities we’re seeing and what does it all mean for huma...
Ep5 "How is your brain like a team of rivals?"
24 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Would you kill one person to save the lives of five others? Why do you find yourself on the horns of a dilemma when someone offers you a chocolate cak...
Ep4 "Do people experience different realities?"
17 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Do you see blue the same way I do on the inside? Why do some people think the northern lights make noise? Why do you think the low note on the piano i...
Ep3 "Could animals learn to speak human?"
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is intelligence? Why don’t gophers write novels? Why didn't crows invent the internet? And what does any of this have to do with brain algorith...
Ep2 "What would you do with robotic wings? (or How to get a better body)"
03 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How is it possible for a dog to become a champion surfer? Why does the world’s best archer have no arms? Why might someone come to believe that her ...
Ep1 "Does time really slow down when you're in fear for your life?"
27 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When he was a child, Eagleman fell off a roof and time seemed to run in slow motion. When he became a neuroscientist, he grew curious about the experi...
Introducing: Inner Cosmos with David Eagleman
20 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Neuroscientist and author David Eagleman discusses how our brain interprets the world and what that means for us. Through storytelling, research, inte...