Think Again A Big Think Podcast

Fantasy can save your life but how much is too much? This week on Big Think's podcast we discuss three surprise ideas with game developer and researcher Jane McGonigal, author of the new book SuperBetter: A Revolutionary Approach to Getting Stronger, Happier, Braver and More Resilient--Powered by the Science of Games. Archival Big Think interview clips from President Grimsson of Iceland, last week's guest Salman Rushdie, and business guru Jerry Kaplan launch three in-depth discussions that may change the way you think about games and gaming forever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“For most of the time, writing any book, it's not going well."–– Salman Rushdie on Think Again This week on Big Think's popular podcast, we're joined by the brilliant and occasionally notorious Salman Rushdie, author of the new book Two Years, Eight Months, and Twenty Eight Nights. Surprise video clips from Big Think's archives launch a fascinating conversation about reason, imagination, bad grammar on Twitter, theoretical physics, literary hoaxes and the late Oliver Sacks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are Pirate Bay (illegal, free) and Spotify (legit, really cheap) undermining artists' incentive to create? This week on Big Think's podcast, we're joined by Freakonomics' Stephen Dubner. An interview clip from film producer Jonathan Taplin launches an in-depth discussion of the way we consume and pay (or don't pay) for media in the post-Napster age. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can we escape our own irrationality? Is weaponized DNA something we should be worrying about? Does the future look like "Mad Max"? This week on Big Think's podcast, we're joined by the astounding Alex Goldman and PJ Vogt, creators and hosts of "Reply All," (one of our very favorite podcasts, EVER) and the astonishing Matt Farley writes us a theme song in under an hour. Interview clips from futurist Steven Kotler, psychologist Dan Ariely and actor/activist George Takei get us talking (and laughing) about all kinds of unexpected things, and result in the aforementioned song. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is attention an endangered species? How do you collaborate with someone who hates you? Is xenophobia a natural side effect of religion? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by actor, activist, and internet superhero George Takei. Interview clips from Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Ben Parr, and Daniel Kahneman launch a lively conversation about religion,human rights, and the three types of attention. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do colors affect us psychologically? Will a less hierarchical, more collaborative society lead inevitably to robot wars? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by Tina Roth Eisenberg (AKA Swissmiss), Swiss-born designer and entrepreneur who runs the popular SwissMiss blog and the Creative Mornings lecture series. Interview clips from Adam Alter and Chris Fussell launch a lively discussion of design, entrepreneurship, and the purpose-driven life Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will nanobots someday deposit Shakespeare directly into our brains? If we paid politicians tons of money would they do a better job? Does epigenetics solve the nature/nurture debate? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by Mark Epstein, Buddhist-influenced psychiatrist and author of Thoughts Without a Thinker and The Trauma of Everyday Life. Interview clips from Stephen Dubner, Kayt Sukel, and Nicholas Negroponte launch a probing discussion of education, free will, and a contemporary twist in the "nature/nurture" debate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can anything cure what ails America? What's a "genius", exactly? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, we air part two of our conversation with legendary hardcore musician and spoken word artist Henry Rollins. Interview clips from Paul Ekman and James Gleick launch a discussion of a nation divided and the character traits of "geniuses". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can "positive thinking" keep you physically and mentally young? Do schools kill creativity? Should white boys ever rap or breakdance? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by Maria Konnikova, author of The Confidence Game and Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes. Interview clips from Kelly McGonigal, Lawrence Krauss, and Tavis Smiley launch a discussion of 21st century education, racial identity, and the powers and limits of positive thinking. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At what point do sex robots become sex slaves? How are bandwidth and storage capacity changing our lives? Can you have a "personal brand" and "be yourself" at the same time? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by author and tech pundit Baratunde Thurston, "a philosopher comedian fighting for the future." Interview clips from Rick Smolan, Lawrence Krauss, and Guy Kawasaki launch a discussion of human potential, social status, identity, and how Kim Kardashian's butt didn't actually "break the internet". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can anyone afford college anymore? Would it help if we sold stock in students? Would Young Einstein have been a popular commodity? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots and sometime co-host Eric Sanders are joined byBrian Greene, theoretical physicist, director of the World Science Festival, and author of The Elegant Universe. An interview clip from economist Daniel Altman launches a discussion of why we bother to learn anything in the first place. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will our brainpower soon be exponentially enhanced by technology? Or will the world turn into a Terminator movie? Can genetics overcome its early history of racism? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by poet and educator Clint Smith. Two interview clips from Ray Kurzweil and Alain de Botton launch a discussion of human potential, social status, and identity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Was Einstein a fashion genius? Why is Malcolm Gladwell unimpressed by search engines? What will money look like in 500 years? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by beloved actor/educator Bill Nye, host of the "Tuesdays With Bill" series on Big Think. Big Think interview clips from Simon Doonan, Malcolm Gladwell, and Kabir Sehgal launch Bill and host Jason Gots on a spirited discussion that spans continents and centuries. And Bill Nye commits, on record, to wearing a matching bow tie and kilt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the modern world designed to kill you? Do Fitbit and meditation apps make us healthier and happier? Are women changing science for the better? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, host Jason Gots is joined by neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki, author of the book Healthy Brain, Happy Life. Two interview clips from Dan Ariely and Arianna Huffington spark lively conversation about healthy living in the modern world and the changing face of science. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is monogamy ridiculous? Does this change with age? What do we really want out of love and sex? In this week's episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, we're joined by legendary hardcore musician and spoken word artist Henry Rollins. This clip from columnist Dan Savage launches Henry and host Jason Gots on an intense, personal conversation about love, big cities, and whether the two are incompatible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Dealing with the everyday requires us to close ourself off. . . But when you see art you want the opposite of shutdown.. . . .How do you adjust the treble and the bass of experience as it’s coming in?" With everything competing for your attention, how do you decide what to pay attention to? Can a movie, a song, or a novel transform your life? Your society? This week, on the first ever full episode of Big Think's Think Again podcast, we're joined by psychedelic pop philosopher and futurist Jason Silva. The surprise topic of the day is . . . art and awe in the age of information overload. "To enrich ourselves we’ve got to curate ourselves." This video idea from Big Think's archives launches a far-ranging discussion that touches on Banksy, the movie Ex Machina, and the complicated relationship between the creators and the consumers of art in every medium. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You've got 10 minutes with Einstein. What do you talk about? Black holes? Time travel? Why not gambling? The Art of War? Contemporary parenting? Some of the best conversations happen when we find ourselves outside of our comfort zones, thrust into unfamiliar, unexpected territory. So each week on Think Again, we surprise some of the world's brightest and most energetic minds with ideas they're not at all prepared to discuss. We listen together to a short interview clip from Big Think's archives and let the conversation take us where it will. Join Host Jason Gots and special guests including Bill Nye, Henry Rollins, Jason Silva, and many more each week for a spontaneous journey of intellectual surprise, discovery, and occasional bewilderment, as we go boldly where no talk show has gone before. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices