Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan

Take a peregrination of the mind. Chris Ryan’s Tangentially Speaking podcast, aptly titled, has deeply enriched my life both spiritually and intellectually. It is the kind of thing that makes road-rage dissipate and the long way home pleasing, with just a few more moments of listening. With an impressively eclectic choice of guests, the tone remains consistently compelling. Ever wonder what geniuses like multidisciplinary scientist, spacecraft architect, designer and author Bruce Damer has to say about the origins of life, the universe and our future in space? Ever mull over the personal life of pornstar Asa Akira? What her parents think or how she’s maintained relationships? Heard of Jeff Leach? His is one of the worlds’ leading microbiome experts, well known for self-experimenting with faecal transplants from hunter-gatherer tribes. What about author and journalist Johann Hari’s touching yet cogent approach to depression and its root societal causes? From psychedelics and ethnobotany, to minimalism, a rattlesnake expert and dominatrices, subject matters vary drastically. Learn about people who have walked across continents, documentary filmmakers and environmentalists like Josh Fox (Gasland), who by the way is also an incredible banjo player. Chris frequently plays out his listeners with his various tastes in international music or pieces suggested by the audience, he’ll even occasionally recite us some lovely poetry. In 2010 Chris Ryan, PhD, and his wife Cacilda Jethā, wrote Sex at Dawn, How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships, which blossomed into an unexpected New York Times bestseller. Having read it nearly a decade ago, I was struck by the backlash it received, considering that its most vehement opposition was from those who had clearly not read or understood the crux of its message. Some interpreted it as an excuse to go out and cheat on your spouse. This is an obvious misrepresentation to anyone who got past the title. It is an argument (and an often funny one) for how in my ways; our ancestral hunter-gathers were happier and healthier than we are contemporarily. How the sexual environment of our not so distant progenitors was permissive of multiple partners and how this may be an explanation for modern infidelity and divorce rates. None of which, seems all that controversial. It is a critique of “civilization” and the “standard narrative”, as we know it. It is a crash course in primatology, ranging from the sex lives of bonobos to the testicle measurements of silverbacks. One of the things I admire about this man is his profoundly honest approach to life and his audience. In a recent episode he mentioned that a quote (from another researcher), he had used in his book, nearly ten years ago, had been disproven and was therefore false. He was completely frank in admitting that there was a mistake in the book! How refreshingly admirable. This is practically unheard of in the pseudo-pious world of “gotcha” culture, pundits, polemics and perhaps most significantly, the mainstream media. Many of us yearn to distance ourselves from the status quo. We crave a heuristic approach through real, unscripted stories and ideas from people of all walks of life. This is why podcasts are ultimately so important, they are the uncensored, untethered expression of concepts through one of the oldest things we do as humans, the spoken word. Podcasts are in some ways the modern version of sitting around a campfire, except with people you would have probably never been able to meet, had it not been for Tangentially Speaking and its host Dr. Christopher Ryan. And for those perhaps wondering, a peregrination is a long and often meandering journey, I learned that from Chris.

I’ve always loved Chris Ryan’s perspective.He asks very thoughtful questions to generate easy to understand responses. Never too profound or fantastical, just straight to the point. 10/10

I have been a long time listener - and I love that I am continually surprised by the range of guests Chris brings on the show! His thoughtful interactions, willingness to engage and dedication to hearing his guests is inspiring. He more than most inspired me to create a podcast of my own - so thank you Chris! You keep me inspired and informed.

One I have been listening to for years!! So happy he takes the time to make these for me to listen to! Thank you!!