Drinking water is what keeps you from becoming dehydrated. What you may not know is that there are other factors that can speed up your dehydration that may require you drink even more water than you think. This episode begins by explaining what causes this to happen even when you think you are taking in plenty of water. https://www.eatingwell.com/article/8034255/sneaky-reasons-youre-dehydrated-nothing-to-do-with-water/ Have you ever felt stuck? May you've felt stuck in a job or a relationship o...
May 17, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1205
A lot of people drink coffee in the morning to kickstart the day. Interestingly, how you drink it (when, how many cups, length of time between cups, etc.) influences the kick that you get. This episode begins by explaining the best way to consume your morning brew for maximum benefit. https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a15327/coffee-most-caffeine/ I’m sure you’ve had a gut feeling about something. You didn’t have to think about it – you just knew! That is your intuition at work. But...
May 15, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1204
It is so tempting. The gas pump clicks off indicating that your tank is full but there is that urge to squeeze out a few more drops. Should you? This episode begins by explaining what happens when you do that. https://cluballiance.aaa.com/the-extra-mile/advice/car/seo-should-you-really-top-off-your-gas-tank Apple is a huge company worth $3 trillion. It makes money from products (iPhone, computers, smart watch etc.) and services (App store, Apple Pay etc.). Most Apple products are made and asse...
May 12, 2025•53 min•Ep. 1203
If someone tells you how a book or movie ends - does it spoil the whole thing? Is it not worth watching or reading it? Or could knowing the ending first make the experience even better? Listen and find out. https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/spoiler-alert-spoilers-make-you-enjoy-stories-more You may not remember this but about 20 years ago, personal computers and other electronic devices came with big instruction manuals. Of course, now they don’t. We expect computers and just about e...
May 10, 2025•53 min•Ep. 1202
Which side is your good side? You know, the side of your face you point toward the camera when someone takes your picture. We all have a good side. And I bet I know which one yours is. https://newsfeed.time.com/2012/04/24/which-side-is-your-good-side-here-comes-the-science/ You are exposed to a lot of music every day. Sometimes it is music you seek out and want to listen to as well as music that plays in the background – in stores, in elevators, in a doctor’s office. All that music affects your ...
May 08, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1201
Why is salmon pink? What is the shelf life of a Twinkie? What do almonds and peaches have in common? These are just a few of the fun food facts we cover to kick off this episode. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/food-facts_n_4788746 How many times would you guess the “Like” button is pressed by people every day around the world? You are about to find out and it is a lot! Where did the like button come from? Why is it so important? What does it do for the person who does the liking and for the pers...
May 05, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1200
Are you one of the many people who enjoys a morning cup of coffee? If so, listen to the beginning of this episode which explains why you should smell your coffee when you drink it because it can help you think better and be more productive. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6881620/ In many urban areas, the number one use of land is for – parking. In fact, the United States has 4 parking spaces for every car. So, it makes you wonder then why it is so hard to find a parking spot when y...
May 03, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1199
Want to get someone to like you – or like you more? If so, there is a simple thing you can do that can work wonders to improve your likeability. This episode begins with this simple technique. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/let-their-words-do-the-talking/201608/people-will-you-if-you-make-them-laugh Why are we here? You must have thought about this question. I mean, here we are, intelligent creatures hurtling through the universe on this tiny little planet. Why? What’s the point of it a...
May 01, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1198
Kibosh, chicanery, affluent and Seuss (as in Dr. Seuss) are words a lot of people mispronounce. This episode begins with the correct pronunciation of these and other mispronounced words you may not be aware you are saying incorrectly. http://mentalfloss.com/article/32273/11-common-words-youre-probably-mispronouncing You (or someone you know) have most likely dropped your phone in the toilet, spilled coffee on your laptop or had some other electronic device suffer “death by liquid.” Our electroni...
Apr 28, 2025•55 min•Ep. 1197
What is beginner’s luck? After all, it has a name so it must happen often enough to be a thing. But could it just be an odd and occasional coincidence or is there really something to it? We begin this episode with a look at the phenomenon of beginner’s luck and why it may not be luck at all. Source: Sian Beilock author of Choke (https://amzn.to/3Nj53uE) Quitting? You can’t quit! Quitting is for losers – you should finish what you start. That’s the message many of us have playing in our head when...
Apr 26, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1196
You are familiar with the advice that you shouldn’t go grocery shopping when you are hungry because you will spend more money and buy more junk. However, that’s just a piece of story. Hunger and shopping are related in other ways. This episode begins by explaining how. https://phys.org/news/2015-03-hungry-people-food.html#google_vignette The idea that spending too much time on your phone, tablet or computer is bad for you has become conventional wisdom. But is that true? What does the research s...
Apr 24, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1195
Since you were a child you have heard that it is important to wash your hands. But even if you do, you may not be doing it correctly and you may be missing some key spots. This episode begins by explaining some often overlooked details of washing your hands. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/hand-washing/art-20046253 There is a human need for fun. And there are a million ways to indulge yourself including amusement parks, board games, sports, toys, festivals, vid...
Apr 21, 2025•55 min•Ep. 1194
There is probably something you are worrying about right now. After all, that’s what we do – we worry. This episode begins with some optimistic news about whatever you are worrying about https://www.huffpost.com/entry/85-of-what-we-worry-about_b_8028368 Advice on success isn’t hard to find. The problem is, there are a lot of different ways to become successful and you have to find out which way works for you. That is why you should listen to my guest Ozan Varol. Ozan has some interesting insight...
Apr 19, 2025•53 min•Ep. 1193
Would you like to be more persuasive? Listen as I reveal what one expert says is the key to winning people over to your side. Source: Rick Maurer author of Why Don’t You Want What I Want? (https://amzn.to/4j7xgBX). Time anxiety is that feeling of always feeling pressured because there isn’t enough time to get everything done and always worrying you are going to be late. But wait! What if everything didn’t really need to get done? What if this sense of urgency you have is an illusion? I want you ...
Apr 17, 2025•53 min•Ep. 1192
Why do airplanes have ashtrays if smoking is prohibited? Could someone open the airplane door in mid-flight? What are the green and red flashing lights on the plane for? These are some of the common questions about air travel that I answer to start this episode. https://www.smartmeetings.com/tips-tools/103099/answers-random-airplane-questions Are you the kind of person who likes to explore and try something new or are you more likely to stick to the tried and true and do what you did before? Of ...
Apr 14, 2025•54 min•Ep. 1191
Strange but true - people with difficult names to pronounce are discriminated against. It is often not intentional, but it happens. The result can be that you don’t advance personally or professionally just because people have trouble saying your name. This episode begins by taking a look at this problem and what you can do to help yourself if your name is tough to say out loud. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-power-of-names When you think about it, some of the most succe...
Apr 12, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1190
It sounds weird but there is strong evidence that wearing certain clothes can change your thoughts and behavior. Here’s one example: wearing a white lab coat like a doctor wears can boost your score on a test. But it gets even more interesting. Listen as I explain. https://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/9410/enclothed-cognition-we-are-what-we-wear What if you could have a great day every day? That’s the goal of Therese Huston, PhD, a cognitive scientist at Seattle University. Therese has...
Apr 10, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1189
Do you know your blood type? Do you know why we have different blood types? This episode begins with some interesting intel about blood types, why you should know yours and why some people actually have no blood type. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20140715-why-do-we-have-blood-types You have probably heard about the value of validating someone else’s feelings and experience. What you may not have heard is the science that proves just how powerful it is when you want to connect with someone ...
Apr 07, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1188
Who doesn’t love the smell of freshly cut grass? While there may be some people who don’t like that smell, it seems most people do. Why is it so universally liked? This episode starts with an explanation and reveals why that scent may actually be good for you. https://www.prevention.com/life/a20432070/spending-time-outside-relieves-stress/ Something special happens when people touch each other. It could be a handshake a passionate embrace or a welcome hug – something magical occurs. What is that...
Apr 05, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1187
Online retailers make it pretty easy to return items you purchase if you are not satisfied. But what happens to those items? Are they just put back in the system and sold to someone else? This episode begins with the surprising answer. https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/30/business/online-shopping-returns-liquidators/index.html Just because you can get a medical test for something you are concerned about doesn’t mean you should. That’s according to my guest Dr. Suzanne O’Sullivan. She is a consultant n...
Apr 03, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1186
You know that feeling you get when you eat comfort food? There is something magical about it. This episode begins by exploring why some foods become comfort food while other food does not and what causes us to feel so fondly about certain foods but not others. https://www.buffalo.edu/news/releases/2015/03/052.html What are the secrets to being a successful adult? That’s a hard question to answer but Gretchen Rubin joins me to take a swing at it. Gretchen is wildly successful expert on happiness ...
Mar 31, 2025•49 min•Ep. 1185
The clothes you wear project an image to others. But those same clothes you wear influence you as well. Listen and discover how different clothes and different colors you wear change the way you act and even how you think of yourself. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/03/science/clothes-and-self-perception.html Think of all the different kinds of popular music there are: country, rock, hip-hop, pop, R&B, jazz and more. All that music came from somewhere. And those musical origins tell some fascina...
Mar 29, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1184
Wisdom comes with age. That’s a common belief – but is it necessarily true? Can you acquire wisdom when you are young? This episode begins by looking at the science of wisdom, where it comes from and when it shows up. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8493820/ Doesn’t it seem like the world is safer? Cars are safer, equipment is safer, people wear helmets, warning signs are everywhere. So it makes sense to believe that we are safer today than ever before but that’s not true according to m...
Mar 27, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1183
I am sure you know people who love to offer unsolicited advice. And if you think back to the last time someone offered it to you – you likely didn’t follow it. No one does. This episode starts by revealing why people hate unsolicited advice and what works so much better if you want to get someone to do something. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/do-the-right-thing/201407/giving-people-advice-rarely-works-does We have known for a long time that the human heart is not really involved with emot...
Mar 24, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1182
When you feel that urge to go to the bathroom – it just might be a good time to make an important decision. That probably sounds weird. What could the connection possibly be? Listen as I start the episode by explaining why and then it will make perfect sense. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/full-bladder-better-decisions-controlling-your-bladder-decreases-impulsive-choices.html We live in a noisy world which is only getting noisier. Not only is there noise coming at you from th...
Mar 22, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1181
Some people just seem to have more luck. Things seem to go their way. When you look closer, those lucky people often have some interesting traits in common. If you want to become luckier in life, listen to the beginning of this episode. https://www.popsci.com/luck-real/ Are you stuck being who you are – or can you change your personality – or at least parts of it? The evidence is clear that not only is personality change possible but also, the people who do make changes are generally happy they ...
Mar 20, 2025•49 min•Ep. 1180
At some point, most men have likely been told they eat too fast – that they should slow down and enjoy their food more. Do men really eat faster than women? Should they slow down? This episode begins with a brief exploration and explanation. https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/study-men-and-women-chew-differently/ Here is something you likely haven’t thought about much – it’s a paradox really… Humans are dependent on one another. Our happiness and survival require that we connect with others...
Mar 17, 2025•52 min•Ep. 1179
This may be hard to imagine but trees can fight crime. Not all types of crime but they the fight some crime – and no one really knows how they do it. Listen to hear the explanation. https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/04/trees-crime-cincinnati-philadelphia-ida-b-wells-chicago/ People believe things like goldfish have a 3-second memory. Or that lightning never strikes twice in the same place. And I bet you believe that water is a good conductor of electricity. None of these things are tr...
Mar 15, 2025•50 min•Ep. 1178
Everyone knows that $19.99 is really $20. And we know that gas sold at $3.49 and 9/10 per gallon is really $3.50. We get it. So why do retailers and gas stations still price things this way? The answer is more interesting than you might think so we begin this episode by explaining what’s going on.https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/01/the-psychological-difference-between-1200-and-1167/384993/ Your memory isn’t as good as you like to think. You forget a lot of things and your memory...
Mar 13, 2025•49 min•Ep. 1177
Who hasn’t had to wait at a doctor’s office well past the appointment time. It sucks. What is a reasonable amount of time to have to wait? Should you complain to someone? This episode starts with some interesting research that explains what you should do so your doctor knows your time is valuable and you shouldn’t have to wait so long. https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/practices/ppatients-switched-doctors-long-wait-times-vitals Peer pressure is a powerful force – more powerful than people realize...
Mar 10, 2025•51 min•Ep. 1176
