289 episodes

You Are Not So Smart is a show about psychology that celebrates science and self delusion. In each episode, we explore what we've learned so far about reasoning, biases, judgments, and decision-making.

You Are Not So Smart You Are Not So Smart

    • Science
    • 4.5 • 1.7K Ratings

You Are Not So Smart is a show about psychology that celebrates science and self delusion. In each episode, we explore what we've learned so far about reasoning, biases, judgments, and decision-making.

    292 - The Society Library - Jamie Joyce

    292 - The Society Library - Jamie Joyce

    Our guest in this episode is Jamie Joyce who is the president and executive director of The Society Library, an organization that extracts arguments, claims, and evidence from various forms of media to compile databases that map all the bickering and debating taking place across our species.

    • 1 hr 23 min
    291 - Tough - Terry Crews (rebroadcast)

    291 - Tough - Terry Crews (rebroadcast)

    Terry Crews, actor, athlete, artist, President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Camacho, star of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, host of America’s Got Talent - that Terry Crews joins us to discuss his new book, Tough. In the book, Terry shares the raw story of his quest to find the true meaning of toughness and in so doing fundamentally change his concept of himself by uprooting a deeply ingrained toxic masculinity and finally confronting his insecurities, painful memories, and limiting beliefs.

    • 1 hr 11 min
    290 - The Intention Action Gap - Britt Frank

    290 - The Intention Action Gap - Britt Frank

    In this episode, we sit down with therapist Britt Frank to discuss the intention action gap, the psychological term for the chasm between what you very much intend to do and what you tend to do instead.

    • 1 hr 11 min
    289 - Hack Your Bureaucracy - Marina Nitze (rebroadcast)

    289 - Hack Your Bureaucracy - Marina Nitze (rebroadcast)

    Marina Nitze is a professional fixer of broken systems – a hacker, not of computers and technology, but of the social phenomena that tend to emerge when people get together and form organizations, institutions, services, businesses, and governments. In short, she hacks bureaucracies and wants to teach you how to do the same.

    • 41 min
    288 - Fluke - Brian Klaas

    288 - Fluke - Brian Klaas

    In this episode we sit down with Brian Klaas, author of Fluke, to get into the existential lessons and grander meaning for a life well-lived once one finally accepts the power and influence of randomness, chaos, and chance.

    • 50 min
    287 - The Complexity of Genius - David Krakauer and Dean Simonton

    287 - The Complexity of Genius - David Krakauer and Dean Simonton

    In this episode, we are exploring the complexity of the concept of "genius" with two experts on the topic. First you’ll hear from David Krakauer, the president of The Santa Fe Institute, a research institution in New Mexico dedicated to the study of complexity science, and then you'll hear from professor Dean Keith Simonton, one of the world’s leading researchers into the psychological mechanisms and influences that generate the phenomenon we so often refer to as "genius."

    • 1 hr 4 min

Customer Reviews

4.5 out of 5
1.7K Ratings

1.7K Ratings

MWOTR ,

Eye-opening

David McRaney’s podcast has led me to read many books (including his) and introduced me to one of my passions (trying to learn how to listen to and learn from those who disagree with me—Braver Angels). I used to mainly read historical fiction—now I just can’t get enough social psychology and behavior science. And he does it all with humility and humor.

kcdrummer ,

Could be better

I’ve enjoyed this podcast on and off for a few years. Unfortunately, I can’t take it for more than a few episodes at a time because David, much like many amateur Hosts, he fills about 50% of the interview with his thoughts instead of letting the expert speak. It’s normal to want to engage, share your thoughts, and your “oh yeah, that reminds me of this” moments when you’re having a conversation. But this is a conversation for others to listen to, and we want to hear the expert.

I often look at who is being interviewed and find them on another podcast where the host knows how to ask good questions and get out of the way.

Sonneveldt ,

Thoughtful

This podcast presents in a way that causes me to stop, think… sometimes reframe. I always appreciate it.

Top Podcasts In Science

Hidden Brain
Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
Radiolab
WNYC Studios
Ologies with Alie Ward
Alie Ward
StarTalk Radio
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Something You Should Know
Mike Carruthers | OmniCast Media
Short Wave
NPR

You Might Also Like

People I (Mostly) Admire
Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
Hidden Brain
Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam
Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford
Pushkin Industries
Inner Cosmos with David Eagleman
iHeartPodcasts
No Stupid Questions
Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

More by Boing Boing

Boars, Gore, and Swords
Ivan and Red
RiYL
Brian Heater
Tell Me Something I Don't Know
Boing Boing
HOME: Stories From L.A.
Bill Barol
Boing Boing Gadgets
Boing Boing Gadgets
The New Disruptors
Glenn Fleishman