How To Academy Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Stephen Fry Meets Steven Pinker - Enlightenment Now Oct 04, 2022

Show notes

In anticipation of our next in-person live event with Steven Pinker in conversation with Richard Dawkins, we wanted to share a previous appearance from 2019, in conversation with actor and broadcaster Stephen Fry.

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Clover Stroud - The Red of My Blood Sep 30, 2022

Show notes

A few weeks before Christmas, Clover Stroud’s sister Nell Gifford, founder of Gifford’s Circus, died of breast cancer, aged forty-six. Just days before, she had been given years to live. Nell’s sudden death split Clover's life apart. Clover charts her fearless passage through the first year after her sister's death.

This is the story of what life feels like when death interrupts it, and about bearing the unbearable and describing an experience that seems beyond words.

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Dr Gabor Maté - Why We Get Sick Sep 27, 2022

Show notes

Dr Gabor Maté will return in-person to How To Academy next month. In anticipation, we're sharing our podcast interview recorded on his last visit in 2019. Find out how you can join us at Gabor's next talk at howtoacademy.com.

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John Higgs - Bond, the Beatles, and the British Psyche Sep 23, 2022

Show notes

60s Britain produced not only the most biggest band in the history of music, but the most successful movie character of all time.

In this episode of the podcast, cultural historian and novelist John Higgs investigates how and why the Beatles and James Bond defined our aspirations and fantasies, and the role they continue to play in shaping British identity. Why did the Beatles really split up? Is Daniel Craig's James Bond "superwoke"? And how did these twin icons of British culture change the way we think about ourselves? John answers all these questions and more.

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Dr Ellen Vora - The Anatomy of Anxiety Sep 21, 2022

Show notes

Backed by the latest scientific research and her own clinical work, Dr Ellen Vora offers a fresh, much needed look at mental health, offering actionable strategies for managing our moods.

Dr Vora challenges the conventional view of anxiety as a mental disorder, suggesting instead that much of what we call anxiety begins in the body. Rather than our troubled thoughts creating physical symptoms, she argues that many types of anxiety are the result of states of imbalance in our bodies, whether blood sugar crashes, caffeine highs or sleep deprivation.

Her clinical observation shows this type of anxiety is far more preventable than we may realise, responding almost immediately to straightforward adjustments to diet and lifestyle. And other forms of anxiety, when listened to and honoured instead of suppressed, can be seen as a course correction to help nudge us back to a more balanced life.

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Adrian Hon - How Corporations and Governments Use Videogames to Control Us Sep 16, 2022

Show notes

The creator of the wildly successful running app Zombies, Run! and a columnist for the prestigious videogame industry magazine EDGE, Adrian Hon makes games that make real world activities more rewarding and fun.

He joins the podcast not to celebrate the gamification of real world activities, but warn us against the abuse of these techniques -- from corporations using games to exploit and control their workers to governments gamifying the rights of and privileges of their citizens.

And not all gamification is imposed upon us by authorities. From terror attacks to far right conspiracy theories, elements of gamification have spread into political extremism with horrifying and tragic consequences.

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Cornelia Parker Meets Carlo Rovelli - The Hidden Nature of Things Sep 13, 2022

Show notes

One of Britain's most acclaimed visual artists, Cornelia Parker's sculptures challenge our sense of what an artwork can be.

Both an eminent theoretical physicist and a bestselling author, Carlo Rovelli has not only advanced humanity's understanding of its place in the cosmos but made the revelations of physics intelligible to the rest of us, in books such as The Fabric of Reality, The Order of Time, and his latest, Helgoland,

This episode of the podcast brings the two together with science filmmaker David Malone for a journey into the hidden depths of reality.

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Mark Bergen - Inside YouTube's Chaotic Rise to Global Domination Sep 09, 2022

Show notes

In conversations about the role of Big Tech in the spread of misinformation and propaganda, YouTube rarely receives the same attention as Facebook, Twitter, and its parent company Google. But alongside the cat videos and video game streamers, counteless extremists have found a found on the platform - and their actions sometimes have real-world, life-and-death consequences.

In this episode of the podcast, Bloomberg News journalist Mark Bergen tells the story of YouTube: how it upended traditional media, created stars of everyday people, and grew into a ruthless advertising conglomerate with little regard for its impact beyond the bottom line.

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Charlotte Fox Weber - A Journey Into Human Desire Sep 07, 2022

Show notes

The lives and problems of psychotherapist Charlotte Fox Weber's clients vary, but all are united by a common question: what do I really want?

In this episode of the podcast Charlottes brings us behind the closed doors of her practice. She reveals how she gently guides her clients towards a deeper understanding of themselves, she invites them - and us - to find a fuller way of living.

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Melanie Joy - How to Get Relationships Right Sep 02, 2022

Show notes

Relationships are complicated. Yet it's an unfortunate reality that while most of us have to learn complex geometry that we'll probably never use, we don't get a single formal lesson in how to relate to others.

In conversation with David Malone, Melanie Joy reveals the common psychological dynamics that underlie all kinds of relationships. Understanding these dynamics can enable you to make all your relationships healthier and more resilient, and help you contribute to creating a better world.

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