Big Brains University of Chicago Podcast Network

Today, you can find claims about how to improve your gut health with foods in grocery stores, to the supplement aisle at your local pharmacy. But, do those claims hold true? The science about what constitutes a "healthy gut" is still uncertain, but what scientists do know is that our gut microbiome holds the keys to a lot about our overall health. Our gut microbiome can impact our brain, mental health, digestion...and even our likelihood of developing food allergies or catching common colds.

On this episode, Profs. Cathy Nagler and Eric Pamer of the University of Chicago discuss the science of our gut microbiome and the questions their labs are investigating about the function of our gut. Nagler is an immunologist and the Bunning Family Director in the Biological Sciences Division and the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; Eric Pamer is professor in the Department of Medicine, Microbiology, and Pathology, and director of the Duchossois Family Institute.

Mourning is an inevitable part of our human existence. But what exactly does it mean to mourn, and why is it an essential part of our well-being and survival? These questions have long fascinated Prof. Jonathan Lear, a philosopher at the University of Chicago.

In his new book, Imagining the End: Mourning and Ethical Life, Lear unpacks why mourning contributes to a life well lived. He dissects the many ways we mourn in our everyday lives; when attachments are taken away from us, and even when we express gratitude.

We’re re-releasing this incredibly special episode about the history of Black cinema in honor of Black History month. Just a quick note to say that since this recording Prof. Stewart has been appointed as the Director and President of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

Prof. Jacqueline Stewart’s career has examined the histories of overlooked Black filmmakers and Black audiences. Two years ago, the University of Chicago film scholar Stewart won a prestigious MacArthur fellowship for “illuminating the contributions that overlooked Black filmmakers and communities of spectators have made to cinema’s development as an art form.”

On this episode, Stewart explores the history of Black cinema and explains how preservation and archiving are not neutral acts, but contribute to how we contextualize and understand Black history.

What is the key to living a happy and fulfilling life? The answer is actually quite simple, according to the two scholars behind the longest scientific study of happiness every conducted.

Beginning in 1938, the Harvard Study of Adult Development tracked three generations of families to uncover what contributed to their happiness. In their new book, The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness, Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz tell the stories behind their participants' lives and provide key insights on the recipe to happiness.

Marc Schulz, a professor at Bryn Mawr College, joins the podcast to discuss the book and their study.

Almost a century ago, the origins of sleep science research began at the University of Chicago with the opening of the world's first sleep laboratory. Since then, sleep science has evolved into a multi-disciplinary field — with scientists focusing on diagnosing the causes of sleep disorders, to how sleep affects our metabolic health, and improving methods for good sleep hygiene. But at the core of sleep science, one fundamental question remains: Why do we sleep?

In our special series, The Day Tomorrow Began, we speak with two of the world's leading sleep researchers: Assoc. Prof. Esra Tasali, director of the UChicago Sleep Center; and Prof. Emmanuel Mignot, director of the Stanford Center for Narcolepsy.

As we approach the second anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, we wanted to reflect on a few questions that many Americans are asking these days: Is democracy on the brink of the collapse? Why are U.S. politics so polarized? And are we headed for another civil war? These questions seem incredibly daunting, so we wanted to understand what the data really tell us.

William Howell, a University of Chicago professor and director of the Center for Effective Government, has been thinking about these questions, along with political scientists across the country. In this episode, Howell explains why claims of another civil war are overexaggerated, and instead, offers some correctives.