Know What You See with Brian Lowery

Latest Episodes:

Awe: a Pathway to Meaning Apr 09, 2024

Show notes

In the day-to-day of our lives, how often do we feel truly moved? Many of us think we have to get away from our daily reality to experience awe--the feeling that something is so wondrous and mysterious it's a little scary. It can feel like only extraordinary encounters with say art or majestic experiences of nature evoke awe, and we are left with too little of it. But maybe we can learn to cultivate awe and by doing so bring greater meaning to our lives.

Guest:

Dacher Keltner, Professor of Psychology at UC Berkeley, founder and director of the Greater Good Science Center, and host of the podcast The Science of Happiness.

Is Free Will Real? Mar 27, 2024

Show notes

We like to believe that we are masters of our own fate, that we are the cause of our choices and actions. But what if that's not true? Imagine that all of our choices and actions are simply the product of history—whether that goes back one minute or 1000 years—and biological and environmental forces that we often don’t even understand. In this episode we're exploring the question of whether free will exists and whether we should even want it to.

Brian’s guest is Robert Sapolsky: Professor of Biology, Neurology, Neurological Sciences, and Neurosurgery at Stanford University and author of Determined: A Science of Life without Free Will.

Blurring the Boundaries of Race Mar 12, 2024

Show notes

Race and gender are thought by many to be immutable features of our biology. In some places and spaces, we see significant challenges to this way of thinking about gender, but the biological view of race has proved more durable. How do we understand racial identity from individual and community perspectives? What’s changing about how we define race and how that shapes our interactions with the world around us?

Our guest:

Rebecca Tuvel: Associate Professor and Chair of Philosophy at Rhodes College.

Society Self and Gender Feb 21, 2024

Show notes

For many of us, gender is an important part of how we understand ourselves. It affects everything, from the way we present ourselves physically, to how we make sense of others' interactions with us. But what determines our gender? The answer to this question is more complicated than we might think. The way we understand gender can reveal a lot about who we are and who we can be.

Our guests:

Schuyler Bailer: author, educator, American swimmer and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights.

Rebecca Tuvel: Associate Professor and Chair of Philosophy at Rhodes College.

Watching Work…from Home Dec 27, 2023

Show notes

With so many of us now working at home or on a hybrid schedule, the line between our employment and our personal lives has been blurring. What does work/life balance mean when the boundaries keep shifting? What does our nostalgia for pre-pandemic workplace comedies like The Office say about who we are and who we used to be? And is the dystopian drama series Severance a warning, or a kind of wish fulfillment?

Guests:

Dr. Pamela Rutledge, Director of the Media Psychology Research Center, Fielding Graduate University

Katie Glasser, production intern

For more about host Brian Lowery, go to knowwhatyousee.com.

Finding Home Dec 19, 2023

Show notes

What goes into making a home? For many, it means a physical space, that’s true, and the useful objects we collect within. But it’s also a repository for our memories and aspirations. How we build or decorate our homes signals who we are, our tastes and values, and the signs of our success. It’s where we feel safe and connected, and where we welcome others we trust. But does a home need to be a fixed place to be a stable one?

Guests:

Le'Shaun Williams - Rapper, designer, photographer and YouTube content creator, current ex-pat

Noami Grevemberg - Author of "Living The Vanlife" and Founder of Diversify Vanlife.

For more on Brian Lowery, visit knowwhatyousee.com.

The Endless Swipe For Love Nov 28, 2023

Show notes

A spouse, a soul-mate, a life partner - however you define “the one”, the search for that person is often confusing and fraught with challenges and doubt. And in a world with so much choice, is it better to enlist the opinions of those who know you best, like your family and friends? Or can more “objective” support like matchmakers and algorithms narrow down the field and yield true love?

Guests:

Barry Schwartz, Professor Emeritus in Social Theory and Social Action at Swarthmore

Radha Patel, founder of Single to Shaadi

For more about host Brian Lowery and the show, go to knowwhatyousee.com.

Different Friends at Different Times Nov 21, 2023

Show notes

This season Brian explores some of the topics from his book “Selfless: The Social Construction of You”. Specifically, how we see ourselves, and how our relationships and social interactions shape the way we live. Even before the pandemic, there was evidence our social lives were fraying. Engagement in social clubs, civic organizations, churches have been in decline and the traditional ways of meeting new people has lost ground to apps and smartphones. So what does this mean for modern day friendships, and what we all need from these connections?

Guests:

Danielle Bayard Jackson, Friendship Coach and Educator

Anita Gupta, Associate Dean for Student Affairs at Tisch School of the Arts, NYU

Riley and Kenji Enright - Friendship “Board Meetings”

For more about Brian and the show, go to knowwhatyousee.com.

Bonus: How Others Define Us from Think Fast, Talk Smart May 12, 2023

Show notes

Here’s another podcast to add to your queue. Matt Abrahams is a Lecturer in Organizational Behavior here at Stanford, and in his podcast, Think Fast, Talk Smart. he speaks with experts about the real world challenges of communicating effectively. From emails, to giving presentations or speaking at family functions, how can we best get our point across in business and in life? Brian Lowery was a guest on a recent episode, and he talked about his new book, Selfless: The Social Creation of "You". Be sure to check out more episodes of Think Fast Talk Smart, wherever you get your podcasts. Stay tuned for new episodes of Know What You See coming this summer!

Bonus: Brian Lowery on the Talk Nerdy Podcast with Cara Santa Maria Apr 21, 2023

Show notes

Cara Santa Maria is the science correspondent on National Geographic's popular television series Brain Games and she hosts the weekly science podcast Talk Nerdy with Cara Santa Maria.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara invited me to talk about my new book, "Selfless: The Social Creation of "You." Hope you enjoy our conversation and be sure to check out the other episodes of Talk Nerdy, wherever you get your podcasts.