Future Shock: Back in 1970, Alvin Toffler's book "Future Shock" envisioned a future human civilization outpaced, overstimulated and mentally stunned by relentless technological and social change. Today, we live in the very future Toffler warned everyone about. How did his predictions hold up and how can we stave off the terrors of future shock? Find out in this two-part episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com...
May 08, 2014•33 min
Future Shock: Back in 1970, Alvin Toffler's book "Future Shock" envisioned a future human civilization outpaced, overstimulated and mentally stunned by relentless technological and social change. Today, we live in the very future Toffler warned everyone about. How did his predictions hold up and how can we stave off the terrors of future shock? Find out in this two-part episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com...
May 06, 2014•40 min
The Cuckoo Mafia: Sure, humans have their organized crime, but what about the Earth's other residents? Are their animal mafias? How does "crime" even work outside the confines of human culture? Find out in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Apr 29, 2014•30 min
The Habitable Epoch: What if we're wrong. What if life isn't a rarity in a dead cosmos, but rather a common occurrence in the habitable epoch 10 to 20 million years after the Big Bang? Explore the mind-blowing possibility with Robert and Julie. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Apr 24, 2014•29 min
Rise of the Vampire Bat: It's a hard-knock life for an exclusive blood drinker, yet somehow three species of vampire bat take full honors as the only obligate sanguivores. How did they evolve? How does vampire physiology work? Tune into this bloodthirsty episode of Stuff to Blow your Mind to find out. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 22, 2014•42 min
Do strange shadow people haunt the corners of our existence, or is there a scientific answer within the human brain? Join Robert and guests Ben and Matt of Stuff They Don't Want You To Know as they discuss the answers. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Apr 17, 2014•48 min
The season of rebirth may be one of the most uplifting seasons humans experience, with a sense of renewal and meaning materializing before their eyes in nature. But could it change our perception and behavior. And is there a dark side to spring? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Apr 10, 2014•30 min
What are we to make of the mirror world? We surround ourselves with looking glasses, yet rarely understand exactly what we're observing. Our reflected doubles gaze back at us, affecting the way we carry ourselves and the way we experience our own bodies. Travel through the looking glass in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 08, 2014•37 min
Extreme Survivors of the Animal World: Think you've got what it takes to hack it in an unforgiving world? You may have the brains, human, but creatures such as the Saharan silver ant, the Pompeii worm and the tardigrade have the brawn. Learn all about them in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Image: © Science Picture Co./Corbis Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 03, 2014•28 min
Outsourcing Memory: From digital photography to Internet spellcheckers, we allocate more and more of our cognitive processes to the cloud. But what do we ultimately gain from all of this - and what do we lose? Find out in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 01, 2014•40 min
Labyrinths: Join Robert and Julie once more for their classic series on mazes and labyrinths. Having escaped from the confusion of the Minoan maze, it's time to walk the serene, calming paths of the Chartres Labyrinth. Why is this experience so different? Learn all about the calming effects of labyrinths on the mind. Image: © Sylvain Sonnet/Corbis Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 27, 2014•30 min
Mazes: Join Robert and Julie once more for their classic series on mazes and labyrinths. In this episode, enter the Minoan maze and wander its endless halls. Feel your heart race. Feel your limbs quiver as the minotaur's roar echoes through the walls. Explore the world of mazes and how they affect the brains of humans and rats. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 25, 2014•40 min
Acid Flashbacks: Are acid flashbacks real or are they merely a ghost story of psychedelic culture or anti-drug messaging? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Julie discuss the misconceptions as well as the real science of Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder or HPPD. Image credit: David Crausby/Flick/Getty Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 20, 2014•36 min
A Musical Time Machine for the Brain: What is music doing to our perception of time? It seems to transport us to the past. It speeds things up and slows things down. And just how do others exploit these qualities to manipulate us? Find out in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind with Robert and Julie. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 18, 2014•37 min
Your Body Odor,Your Destiny: Can body odor be destiny? Can it portend health or illness, who we're attracted to and repulsed by? Find out in this pungently scientific episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Image: © H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Corbis Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mar 13, 2014•24 min
Maneater: What happens when an animal turns maneater? Is it the irresistible taste of human flesh? Is it the ease of a human kill? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Julie look to the environmental, biological and bad-luck causes that land humans on a predator's dinner menu. About the Art: "Two Followers of Cadmus devoured by a Dragon," by Cornelis van Haarlem. Read more about it here in the Art Spotlight post. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetw...
Mar 11, 2014•45 min
Strange Sleep and Past Lives: In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Julie once again call forth the robot and take care of some accumulated listener mail on strange sleep, lucid dreaming, reincarnation and other topics. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mar 06, 2014•22 min
The Barry White Effect: What does voice quality tell us about sexual fitness in a potential mate? Do the deep, velvet tones of Barry White have a scientifically-proven effect on our libido? What about Marilyn Monroe's high, breathy voice? All shall be revealed in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind. Be sure to watch Julie's video on the topic as well. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 04, 2014•20 min
Empathic Elephants: The elephant is Earth's largest surviving land creature and an example of nature at its most majestic. But these amazing creatures also boast self awareness, a high intelligence and a startling capacity for empathy. Join Robert and Julie as they discuss humanity's troubled relationship with elephant kind. Image source: Neil Emmerson/Robert Harding World Imagery/Getty Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...
Feb 27, 2014•30 min
The Illusion of Continuity: What is perceptual constancy and how does the illusion of continuity pull a fast one over our brains? Find out in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind as Robert and Julie discuss the science behind Dancing Spider-Man, the whole Pink Floyd/Wizard of Oz thing and the roots of magical thinking. About the Image: Man doing back flip on a trampoline by Eadweard Muybridge, 1881, in his Attitudes of Animals in Motion P&P Case © CORBIS Learn more about your ad-choices a...
Feb 25, 2014•25 min
The metaphysics of reincarnation are nothing short of enthralling, from the notion of an immortal soul drifting through myriad life forms to the intimidating Wheel of Samsara with its heavenly and hellish realms. Why does this version of immortality appeal to us? And what, if anything, can science tell us about the survival of the soul? Join Robert and Julie for a rich discussion on the reincarnation. Image source: Godong/Universal Images Group/Getty Learn more about your ad-choices at https://w...
Feb 20, 2014•36 min
The Night Janitors of the Brain: Do you think other species ever look at humans and raise an eyebrow at the amount of sleep we need? Do cockroaches and eyelash mites leave messages on our foreheads in microscopic Sharpies? Perhaps "I just popped on an apex predator's head." We may be the most successful species in existence, but that doesn't mean sleep is just another one of our "choices" as a human being. It is a necessity for survival, even though it requires immobility and vulnerability. Prep...
Feb 18, 2014•16 min
Slug Sex: Whether you're a hopeless romantic or a Valentine's hater, Robert and Julie have quite the episode for you. Prepare to have your mind blown as they expose the daring, disgusting, weaponized, cannibalistic and marathon lovemaking ways of slugs and snails. Originally published in 2013, the episode is now updated with a new page from the slug Kama Sutra that will leave you squirming. Be sure to explore this accompanying mini-gallery for maximum terror. Image Credit: "Slug Sex" by Erica Ne...
Feb 13, 2014•23 min
Humans are haunted by death. It awaits us all with open arms and all we can do is dream of its blissful antithesis: immortality. And so we've constructed a fortress of ideas to protect us against the terror of impermanence: astral bodies, bodily resurrection, reincarnation and the immaterial soul. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Julie discuss the Terror Management Theory, which holds that fear of death and the quest for immortality command every facet of our lives. Discove...
Feb 11, 2014•42 min
The Power of Leeches: Are leeches mere bloodsucking parasites or do these creatures have a place in modern medicine? Plus learn about the very real 19th century invention that incorporated bottled leeches. Tune into this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind for all sorts of vein-tapping goodness. Image credit: Garry DeLong/Oxford Scientific/Getty Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Feb 06, 2014•23 min
The Meaning of Stonehenge: Stonehenge remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of the ancient world. Was it a burial ground for aristocratic families, a Druid temple or pilgrimage for those observing the seasons? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 04, 2014•23 min
The Building of Stonehenge: Rising up from the plains of Salisbury, England is a mammoth structure that has existed for 5,000 years. How was it constructed and what can it tell us about the Neolithic and Bronze Age people who built it? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 30, 2014•26 min
It's a Trap: Humans aren't alone in their ability to craft a clever trap out of their surroundings. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Julie look to the insect and arachnid world for deadly examples. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 28, 2014•34 min
Ever wish you could take a troubling event from your past and dial down the memory without subjecting yourself to total recall erasure? Explore the science of memory/story editing in this Stuff to Blow Your Mind episode. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jan 23, 2014•36 min
The Werewolf Principle: Will astronauts of the future be able to adapt their physiology for long-term space travel and life on other planets? In this classic STBYM episode, Robert and Julie explore the ideal physical modifications that could theoretically create the world's best astronaut. 'The Werewolf Principle' cover image by artist Ian Miller Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Jan 21, 2014•35 min
