Memory is a central part of what makes us who we are. It is a necessary ingredient to having a sense of self. I sat down with Dr. Jarrod Lewis-Peacock to talk about his research on memory and forgetting. We talk about what memory is and how memories are stored in the brain as distributed networks of connections. He shares why some memories remain strong for a lifetime and others fade quickly. We discuss the power of emotion in memory and why memories get tied to particular senses like smell. And we also talk about Jarrod's winding path of exploration before landing in cognitive neuroscience studying memory. A linear career path is becoming less and less common and his perspective and story are valuable to anyone homing in on their own "thing". hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did- we'd love to hear what you thought. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Mar 30, 2020
1 hr 46 min
We have a strange disgust for bugs in the West. The truth is they're chock full of vital nutrients, they're economic, they resource efficient, and they can be prepared in all sorts of tasty ways. Plus, most humans have eaten them as a staple in the diet for ALL of our history. I sat down with Robert Nathan Allen, the founder and director of Little Herds, who educates kids on the value of eating bugs and supports businesses getting insect food products out to the market. This guy is awesome and we cover just about every angle of this. Listen and then get online and find some bug-based foods to order...and let us know what you think! I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did- we'd love to hear what you thought. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Mar 16, 2020
1 hr 41 min
Art Markman is a cognitive psychologist who studies human behavior, motivation, habits, and cognition. I had a fascinating conversation with Art about the adaptive purpose of our tendency towards habitual behavior and thinking, the use of metaphor and analogy in thinking creatively and solving new problems, how failure is our greatest teacher, his journey learning the saxophone as an adult, the value of scientists sharing their work with the general public, and much more. Art is a wise human and I'm grateful to have had the chance to talk with him and share it with you. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Mar 9, 2020
1 hr 3 min
I spent 3 weeks in Israel with my cousin Joe Voigts. He's been traveling the world for over 15 years and lived on nearly every continent teaching English, taking portrait photos, interviewing strangers for his podcast, and making friends around the globe. We talk about the consistent kindness he's experienced everywhere he's gone, the relativity of our cultural norms, and what one gains through travel. We talk about his love of story and literature and why humans use stories to make sense of our experiences. I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did- we'd love to hear what you thought. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Feb 24, 2020
1 hr 38 min
I sat down with my good friend, embodiment coach, and author Jamie Lee Finch. We talk all about the insanely complex bodies we inhabit and the experience of trauma, both large and small, that often leads us to dissociate from that body. In her own healing and with her clients she practices active embodied listening where we stop referring to the body as an "it" but rather as a "he, she, or they" worthy of our appreciation. We talk about the useful signals and messages our body sends us, the healing that comes through facing our pain, and the process of making a home in our bodies. This is an important one that I'm very excited about- we'd love to hear what you thought. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Feb 17, 2020
1 hr 35 min
I sat down with my old friend, Daniel Oppong, to pick his brain on what I didn't realize was his birthday. Daniel has found success in most things he's done in life, most recently in venture capital and starting a company in the health sector. But, what I admire most is his unwavering vision for what really matters to him. Authenticity, connection, presence. These are the things he measures success with, allowing money, prestige, and the rest to come along as extras. We get into his approach to prioritizing his life, defining success, and spend quite a bit of time talking about his experience as a black man in America with parents from Ghana. He's one of the most well-spoken, clearing thinking humans I know, so I always appreciate his take. We dive into polarization in our culture, the lack of nuance in conversation, and how essential it is for each of us to see the "oppressor" and "oppressed" in ourselves to begin healing. I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did- we'd love to hear what you thought. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Feb 10, 2020
1 hr 25 min
What if every moment was the meditation? Life itself, with all the ups and downs, is our great teacher. In this solo episode, I explore the possibility that everything that "brings us down" or "gets us high" are our guide posts. Anxious thoughts, negative emotions, resisting reality as it is- these are all arrows pointing us towards our growth and healing. It's all about learning to apply curiosity to our experiences and, especially, the experience of our own mind. Join me for another solo cast about being present and paying attention. And let us know what you thought. Did you enjoy it? Let me know on Instagram @mapofeverythingpodcast or email me at [email protected]. Don't forget to subscribe on iTunes and to our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Get outside, my friends!
Feb 5, 2020
24 min
05 The Network of Life, Reimagining Our Place As Humans, & Ecological Crises w/ David George Haskell
I sat down with ecologist, David George Haskell, author of award winning books "The Forest Unseen" and "The Songs of Trees". In his books, he sets aside his scientific research for a moment to simply be in the forest and observe. The conclusion that he, and ecology as a whole, are coming to is that the fundamental unit of biology is not the organism, but the complex network of life. The community. We dive deep into this fundamental way of things. We talk about the ecological crises we face from climate change, deforestation, and mass extinction, as well as how humans might reimagine our place on the planet. We talk about the need for experiential education actually out in the forest, political activism, economic restructuring, and much more. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Feb 3, 2020
1 hr 39 min
Attention is EVERYTHING. It determines the quality of every experience we have in life. That's why I come back to it over and over. In this solo episode, I dive into how I think about attention and being present. Despite the fluffy words we have to describe these things, they are tangible and practical. I spend a bit of time setting the stage with some context before we go headlong into a guided meditation and two thought experiments meant to help us consider the fundamental experience of our senses. The subjective experience we're all having through sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing, thought, and more. Come along for a some mind-bendy visualizations! And let us know what you thought about this first, true solo cast. Did you enjoy it? Let me know on Instagram @mapofeverythingpodcast or email me at [email protected]. Don't forget to subscribe on iTunes and to our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Get outside, my friends!
Jan 29, 2020
50 min
I sat down with my good friend, artist and spiritual seeker, Ben Griffith. Ben has built a career as an artist and has done so without a hint of pretension. In fact, he insists that art and creativity is nothing to do with talent- that it's as essential as breathing and that everything is art in some way. He shares his story of learning to let go of the voices in his head in order to create consistently and why he loves bright colors. And perhaps, most importantly, he shares his experience with depression and anxiety. As you'll hear in his beautiful laugh throughout this episode, he's found ways to build momentum towards a life where he feels consistently good and he shares some of what that journey has looked like. Go follow us on Instagram at @mapofeverythingpodcast and sign up for our email list at www.mapofeverythingpod.com. Cheers!
Jan 27, 2020
1 hr 53 min
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