Inner Cosmos with David Eagleman

Why will you make different moral decisions in similar circumstances? Why do some people make different choices than you? What happens when ancient moral instincts collide with modern problems such as pandemics, AI alignment, and political tribalism? Could a simple online game reduce polarization? Could you contribute to charities more effectively if you understood how your moral brain decides? Join Eagleman this week with guest Joshua Greene as we open the hood of human morality.

Why do people sometimes buy into ideas that seem obviously false from the outside, as with conspiracy theories? Is this kind of misbelief a universal feature of human brains? Does it offer clarity and belonging when reality feels chaotic and threatening? What would it take for you (under the right emotional conditions) to begin believing something that your past self would find unbelievable? Today we’ll speak with behavioral economist Dan Ariely, who has thought a lot about misbelief: for him it's a scientific question, but also an interest that started very personally.

If AI can do everything from writing novels to designing proteins, what remains that only humans can do? What's the human advantage in a world where machines can outperform us at almost any measurable task? What does any of this have to do with Stephen King’s nightmares, Tom Cruise’s stunts, the first shoeshine caught on camera, the shortage of air conditioner repairmen, and why hyper-capable AI might actually increase the demand for unexpected jobs? Today we speak with author and technologist Andrew Mayne.

How do societies work their way out of polarization? And what does the answer have to do with broken trucks, the Apollo program, the movie 'Watchmen', Iroquois Native Americans, a new idea for social media algorithms, moral taste buds, and how we can take advantage of the common threads that bond us -- coming to see each other again as fellow travelers improvising their way through the same noisy world?

What do propaganda posters have in common across nation and time, and how is that related to the medial prefrontal cortex? What is behind repeating cycles of societal polarization? What does any of this have to do with the American Civil War, hippies vs soldiers, border ruffians vs free-staters, hanging chads, Pearl Harbor, and why education can serve as an immune response to mind viruses?

Would a utopia be possible? Or does our innate tribalism and jealousy make perfect societies difficult to achieve? Do we secretly love hierarchies? Why are primate brains such excellent detectors of unfairness? Why do things become more desirable when we’re told we can’t have them? Did the church’s disavowal of first-cousin marriage lead to better politics? This week Eagleman talks with psychologist Paul Bloom about the (im)possibility of achieving societal utopias.

Imagine we eventually meet some alien scientists. If they can see electrons or smell photons, would their science look like ours? Is physics a universal language, or just a local dialect of the human brain? Would aliens use math, or might their truths be organized unrecognizably? Are the “laws of nature” really laws, or simply our interpretations? Join Eagleman with particle physicist Daniel Whiteson, author of the new book “Do Aliens Speak Physics?”

What is a brain-computer interface? How can a paralyzed person use her brain to control a robotic arm? How can someone who's lost the gift of speech use brain signals to broadcast his voice again? Can we eventually restore autonomy and dignity so seamlessly that the technology disappears and the person reappears? Where are the ethical boundaries between restoring function and spying on private thought? Who owns the stream of neural data that represents you? Join this week with guest neuroscientist Sergey Stavisky as we dive into the world of interfacing brains and machines.

How is sci-fi like a cultural research and development lab? Will we someday have AI agents that live in robot bodies, and will we be liable if they commit murder? What happens when reality is no longer verifiable? How can we create AI advocates that guide us toward self-actualization over distraction? What is a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer? This week we talk with researcher Bethany Maples about science fiction and how it might prepare us to wrestle with the deepest questions about AI, identity, and the future of humanity.

Why do human brains need social interaction? Why might AI chatbots be insufficient to scratch the itch? What do we love so much about real human touch and in-person interaction? Why do so many of us live with dogs? From empathy to introversion to social media to isolation (and what to do about it), we’ve got it all this week with guest Ben Rein, author of the new book Why Brains Need Friends.

How is your consciousness like a flame that continually goes out and gets re-lit? Why can you see other people's eyes move, but you can't see your own eyes move in the mirror? And what does any of this have to do with deep sleep, anesthesia, comas, amnesia, and empires of soft-bodied creatures that came before us? Tune in this week for some science that will shift your view of reality.

On the one hand, AI companions are (increasingly) amazing at rectifying isolation. But on the other hand, loneliness is a biological signal that pushes us toward improving ourselves socially. So what's the right balance here? And does everyone have the same need to cure loneliness? In other words, might AI relationships mess up our young even while providing a critical lifeline to our seniors? Join this week as we dive deep with psychologist Paul Bloom.

Why do people on a date speak in innuendo? Why do dictators squelch protests? Why do humans stand apart from the rest of the animal kingdom by blushing, laughing, and crying? And what does any of this have to do with bullies, George Costanza, or cancel culture? Join this week with cognitive scientist Steven Pinker as we discuss his new book on common knowledge: “When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows”.

Is AI going to go the same way as computing: from colossal LLMs owned by a few companies to billions of networked AI agents? How does that parallel one of the great underappreciated secrets of the human brain? Join this week with guest MIT Media Lab professor (and AI-decentralizer) Ramesh Raskar.

Will AI end up building us into stronger, more talented humans? What might this have to do with linguistics, the movie Arrival, self-driving cars, debate, video games, elections, chess, and the ancient game of Go? Are we going to be taken over, or instead exposed to ideas and concepts that stretch the boundaries of our thinking? Join this week to see how AI might just up the human game.

Why are brains superstitious? Would you wear a nice sweater that belonged to a murderer? What does this have to do with lucky socks, ghosts, our interpretation of coincidences, why kids often need their special blankets, and what any of this has to do with the brain? Join this week with guest Bruce Hood to learn why it's so natural for brains to take incomplete data and infer causes.

How have humans through the ages tried to crack the mysteries of the brain, and why are our theories always yoked to the most recent technologies? What does the history of brain science have to do with bumps on the skull, electricity, Frankenstein, animatronics, telegraphs, telephone exchanges, computers, and LLMs? What's the next metaphor we'll use to try to capture the brain’s magic? Join this week with guest Matthew Cobb.

Most people claim to be in favor of free speech, but they often mean speech from their own side (and not whatever those crazy people on the other side want to say). But from the point of view of the brain, why does free speech need to be rigorously defended? What does this have to do with internal models, printing presses, college campuses, John Stuart Mill, online indecency, cultures of honor, Robinson Crusoe, cancel culture, the importance of literature, and why free speech makes everyone safer?

Are there new colors you could see? And why are they impossible to imagine before you've seen them? Can you lose your color vision? And what does any of this have to do with linguistic color terms, why the military likes colorblind people for a particular task, and why Eagleman suggests that the cultural history of Thailand was influenced by one single, unknown neurodivergent?

Why do birds and bees choose different flowers? Why do mammals' eyes seem to be optimized for moving around at night, and what does that have to do with hairless humans getting angry? What does any of this have to do with road signs, camouflage, mantis shrimp, the sun, the dress that broke the internet, and women who can see more colors than you can?