Big Picture Science for Jan. 29 2024 - Skeptic Check: Hypnosis

 

Big Picture Science - Skeptic Check: Hypnosis

REPEAT
You are getting sleeeepy and open to suggestion. But is that how hypnotism works? And does it really open up a portal to the unconscious mind? Hypnotism can be an effective therapeutic tool, and some scientists suggest replacing opioids with hypnosis for pain relief. And yet, the performance aspect of hypnotism often seems at odds with the idea of it being an effective treatment.

In our regular look at critical thinking, Skeptic Check, we ask what part of hypnotism is real and what is an illusion. Plus, we discuss how the swinging watch became hypnotism’s irksome trademark

Guests:

• David Spiegel – Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine
• Devin Terhune – Reader in the Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of London

This repeat podcast originally aired on June 27, 2022

Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/skeptic-check-hypnosis

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/

Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!

Big Picture Science for Jan. 22 2024 - Inside Planets

Big Picture Science - Inside Planets

With planets and moons, it’s what’s inside that counts. If we want to understand surface features, like volcanoes, or their history, such as how the planet formed or whether it’s suitable for life, we study their interiors. Astronomer Sabine Stanley takes us on a journey to the centers of Venus, Saturn’s large moon Titan, Jupiter’s moon Io, and of course Earth, to help us understand how they, and the solar system, came to be.

Guest:

• Sabine Stanley - Planetary scientist at Johns Hopkins University and the author of What’s Hidden Inside Planets.

Download podcast at  - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/inside-planets

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/

Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!

Big Picture Science for Jan. 15 2024 - Tech in Check

Big Picture Science - Tech in Check

Worried that AI will replace you? It may not seem like the Hollywood writers’ strike has anything in common with the Luddite rebellion in England in 1811, but they are surprisingly similar. Today we use the term “Luddite” dismissively to describe a technophobe, but the original Luddites – cloth workers – organized and fought Industrial Revolution automation and the factory bosses who were replacing humans with cotton spinning machines and steam powered looms. Find out what our age of AI can learn from textile workers of 200 years ago about keeping humans in the loop.

Guest:

• Brian Merchant - Los Angeles Times tech columnist and author of “Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech”  

Download podcast at  - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/tech-in-check

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/

Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!

Big Picture Science for Jan. 08 2024 - Your Mind On Movies

Big Picture Science - Your Mind On Movies

By one estimate we spend a fifth of our lives watching movies or TV. In fact, we consume entertainment almost as habitually as we eat or sleep, activities that receive scientific scrutiny and study. So why not consider the effects that watching movies and TV have on our minds and bodies too? When we do, we find that they are not mere escapism. A data scientist reveals why we are what we watch, and how scientists and filmmakers work, often with competing agendas, to create sci-fi entertainment.

Guest:

• Walt Hickey - journalist, data scientist, and author of “You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything”

Download podcast at  - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/your-mind-on-movies

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!

Big Picture Science for Jan. 01 2024 - Eclectic Company

Big Picture Science - Eclectic Company

REPEAT

We present a grab bag of our favorite recent science stories – from how to stop aging to the mechanics of cooking pasta. Also, in accord with our eclectic theme – the growing problem of space junk.

Guests:

• Anthony Wyss-Coray – Professor of neuroscience at Stanford University.
• Oliver O’Reilly – Professor of mechanical engineering, University of California Berkeley.
• Moriba Jah – Professor of aerospace and engineering mechanics, University of Texas.

This repeat podcast originally aired on March 1, 2021

Download podcast at - https://bigpicturescience.org/episodes/eclectic-company

You can listen to this and other episodes at http://bigpicturescience.org/, and be sure to check out Blog Picture Science, the companion blog to the radio show.

Get early access to ad-free versions of every episode by joining us on Patreon. Thanks for your support!