922 episodes

Sometimes all it takes is one little fact or one little piece of wisdom to change your life forever. That's the purpose and the hope of "Something You Should Know." In each episode, host Mike Carruthers interviews top experts in their field to bring you fascinating information and advice to help you save time and money, advance in your career, become wealthy, improve your relationships and help you simply get more out of life. In addition, Mike uncovers and shares short, engaging pieces of "intel" you can use to make your life better - today. Right now.

Something You Should Know Cumulus Podcast Network

    • Science
    • 5.0 • 1 Rating

Sometimes all it takes is one little fact or one little piece of wisdom to change your life forever. That's the purpose and the hope of "Something You Should Know." In each episode, host Mike Carruthers interviews top experts in their field to bring you fascinating information and advice to help you save time and money, advance in your career, become wealthy, improve your relationships and help you simply get more out of life. In addition, Mike uncovers and shares short, engaging pieces of "intel" you can use to make your life better - today. Right now.

    The Strange Intelligence of Plants & Why Restaurants Seem So Expensive

    The Strange Intelligence of Plants & Why Restaurants Seem So Expensive

    If you ever feel down, anxious or get that sense of doom, you might want to take some Tylenol. You are probably wondering how in the world that could help. Well, it can, and this episode begins with an explanation as to why. https://www.livescience.com/28770-tylenol-eases-existential-dread.html
    Do plants have intelligence? It seems unlikely. After all, they don’t have a brain so how could they “think” or react to situations? Well, think again. It seems plants can sense danger, communicate with other plants and resort to devious behavior in order to protect themselves that all sounds a lot like intelligence. That’s according to Zoë Schlanger. She is an award-winning staff writer for the Atlantic and author of the book The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth (https://amzn.to/4deE12f). Listen and you may never look at a plant the same way again.��
    Dining out can get quite expensive. Yet some people believe restaurants are actually underpriced! Still, I bet you have had sticker shock more than once when the restaurant check arrived. Then on top of that you are expected to tip. It all adds up. To help you understand why restaurants may seem expensive and to give you a glimpse into what goes on behind the scenes is Andrew Friedman. He is co-author of more than twenty-five cookbooks, memoirs, and other projects with some of the best known chefs; he is producer and host of the podcast “Andrew Talks to Chefs”(https://andrewtalkstochefs.com/podcasts) and he is author of the book, The Dish: The Lives and Labor Behind One Plate of Food (https://amzn.to/3xWJjiE).
    Let yourself have a good sigh! It appears that sighing is something people all over the world do. It expresses a feeling to others, and it also is good for you. Listen as I explain. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/brain-babble/201304/why-do-we-sigh
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Luckily for those of us who live with the symptoms of allergies, we can Live Claritin Clear with Claritin-D!
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 51 min
    Why Misperception is So Common & Animal Superpowers We Might Have - SYSK Choice

    Why Misperception is So Common & Animal Superpowers We Might Have - SYSK Choice

    It feels natural to hold a grudge when someone betrays you or upsets you. After all, you are the injured party, so you are entitled to hang on to that grudge -right? Maybe. However, there are excellent reasons to let go of that grudge. This episode begins with an explanation of those reasons plus an interesting quote about grudges to drives the point home. Source: Judith Kuriansky author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to a Healthy Relationship (https://amzn.to/3KQEetb)
    No matter how smart you are, your brain does things to trick you. For example, your brain has trouble making sense of fractions – it just does. You are usually going to be less open-minded to ideas that conflict with what you already believe even if the evidence is clear and obvious. Those are just a few examples of how your thinking gets distorted – and there are many others. Here to explain them is James Zimring, Professor of Experimental Pathology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine and author of the book Partial Truths: How Fractions Distort our Thinking (https://amzn.to/3LxUj85).
    We may live on the same planet as other animals, but we live in very different worlds. The world animals experience is very different than ours. Largely, it is because the way they sense their surroundings is so different than ours. There are some animals that can see things we can’t. Other animals hear things or taste things we simply cannot. This is important because the more we know about all of this, the better we can understand how our own senses work. Joining me to discuss this is Jackie Higgins. She is a writer, producer and director of films about animals and she is author of a book called Sentient: How Animals Illuminate the Wonder of Our Human Senses (https://amzn.to/3OUqY9S).
    You may not realize this but if you struggle with your weight, it could be your allergy medicine to blame – at least partially. Research show that some common antihistamines seem to be linked to weight gain in some people. Listen to discover more. https://www.verywellhealth.com/do-antihistamines-cause-weight-gain-83094
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    We love the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast! https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/think-fast-talk-smart-podcast
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    Luckily for those of us who live with the symptoms of allergies, we can Live Claritin Clear with Claritin-D!
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Dell Technologies and Intel are pushing what technology can do, so great ideas can happen! Find out how to bring your ideas to life at https://Dell.com/WelcomeToNow
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 48 min
    New Tech That Is Changing Your Life Now & The Best Way to Fail

    New Tech That Is Changing Your Life Now & The Best Way to Fail

    The season during which you were born may have an effect on your health. This episode begins by revealing a study from a few years ago that shows some interesting differences in children who were born in the summer versus those born in winter, spring and fall. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/babies-born-in-winter-are-bigger-brighter-and-more-successful-5336850.html
    Some new and fascinating technologies are already starting to change lives around the world and will soon be affecting you. These are not far off in the distance technologies – they are here right now - from sponge cities to meat grown in a laboratory, to all the things that AI can do. Here to reveal and explain some of these new technologies is Jay Ingram. He hosts 2 national science programs in Canada, “Quirks & Quarks” on CBC radio and “Daily Planet” on Discovery Channel Canada. Jay is author of 19 books including, The Future of Us: The Science of What We'll Eat, Where We'll Live, and Who We'll Be (https://amzn.to/3WdMNqX).
    Failure is no fun – but it is inevitable. Failure turns out to be an excellent way to learn and improve our skills and abilities. Still, failure carries a stigma. People often believe that when you fail, it makes you a failure. Parents often want to protect their kids from failure. That turns out to be a very bad idea. So, we are going to talk about how to fail well with my guest, Amy Edmonson. Amy is a professor of leadership and management at the Harvard Business School and she is author the bestselling book, Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well (https://amzn.to/3xRCxe0).
    How you handle and store the food you buy at the grocery store can lengthen or shorten the time before the food goes bad and you have to throw it away. Listen as I explain the best tips to keep food fresher longer. Source: Shop Smart magazine (no link)
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    We love the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast! https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/think-fast-talk-smart-podcast
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Dell Technologies and Intel are pushing what technology can do, so great ideas can happen! Find out how to bring your ideas to life at https://Dell.com/WelcomeToNow
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 49 min
    3 Things to Fix Your Life & Finding Awe Everyday

    3 Things to Fix Your Life & Finding Awe Everyday

    There is a good chance you have thought your cellphone was ringing or vibrating when it wasn’t. It seems weird and makes you wonder why it is such a common experience for people. This episode begins with an explanation.  https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20130701-why-you-feel-phantom-phone-calls
    Here are three things many of us wish were different in our lives are: We wish we had more friends; we wish we didn’t worry so much; we wish we were more confident. If any or all of those apply to you, you will want to hear my guest Helen Thomson. She is a writer and consultant who is author of This Book Could Fix Your Life. (https://amzn.to/3p2oERA). Helen researched these topics in depth and joins me to offer some very practical strategies to address these three common concerns.
    You most certainly have experienced awe and wonder in your life. It’s that feeling when you first see the Grand Canyon or you see an incredible rainbow or when you see your own child minutes after being born. That is awe. What we often don’t pay attention to is that there is wonder and awe in a lot of things we see and experience every day – if we just take time to notice. And when you do, that feeling contributes to your overall health and happiness. Allen Klein, author of The Awe Factor (https://amzn.to/3wGSwWh) explains how to capture that sense of awe and wonder in your everyday life and explains the interesting research that shows the benefits.
    Many of us are afraid of bees because we don’t want to get stung. That’s fair. And you probably should be afraid of killer bees or murder hornets. But what about those everyday honeybees? Are they dangerous? Listen as I reveal some truths and myths about bees and just how dangerous they really are. https://www.pestworldforkids.org/pest-guide/bees/
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    We love the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast! https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/think-fast-talk-smart-podcast
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Dell Technologies and Intel are pushing what technology can do, so great ideas can happen! Find out how to bring your ideas to life at https://Dell.com/WelcomeToNow
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 52 min
    Communication Secrets for Divided Times & The Anatomy of Anxiety - SYSK Choice

    Communication Secrets for Divided Times & The Anatomy of Anxiety - SYSK Choice

    While it may seem that life moves at a faster pace, we are the ones who set that pace. Many of us like to do things quickly but that doesn’t mean we have to. This episode begins by exploring what good things might happen if we just slow down a bit. Source, Debbie Mandel, author of Addicted to Stress (https://amzn.to/3v9JpzD).
    It seems almost impossible to have a civil political debate. Why is that? Why must things get so nasty? Is there a way to discuss our differences and still be kind to one another and not accuse the other person of being ignorant and uninformed? The answer is yes according to Monica Guzman. She is a journalist who wants to show people how to depolarize a conversation so people can talk in a way that fosters understanding without offending those who disagree. Monica is author of the book I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times (https://amzn.to/3LcQK7i) 
    Anxiety abounds. People just seem more anxious and worried than ever before. Of course, not all anxiety is bad. We have to worry about some things. Yet we often find that many of the things we worry about are never as horrible as we anticipate. So, how do we control our own anxiety so it doesn’t control us? Here with some insight is Ellen Vora. She is a psychiatrist and author of the book The Anatomy of Anxiety (https://amzn.to/3863pKp)
    If you want to sharpen up your memory a bit, you might try stepping outside. Listen as I reveal how nature can improve memory. https://www.spring.org.uk/2009/01/memory-improved-20-by-nature-walk.php
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    We love the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast! https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/think-fast-talk-smart-podcast
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Dell Technologies and Intel are pushing what technology can do, so great ideas can happen! Find out how to bring your ideas to life at https://Dell.com/WelcomeToNow
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 51 min
    How to Improve Your Luck & A Much Better Way to Die

    How to Improve Your Luck & A Much Better Way to Die

    Just how much pesticides residue is on the produce you buy? Should you be concerned? Should you buy organic? Consumer Reports recently did an investigation into pesticides on fruits and vegetables and I begin this episode with some of the surprising results. https://www.consumerreports.org/health/food-contaminants/produce-without-pesticides-a5260230325/
    Luck is just around the corner. It may be good luck or it may be bad luck but chance and luck have a huge impact on how things turn out for you. When you understand how luck and chance work in your life, you can do things to improve your good luck and minimize the bad. Joining me to explain how all this works is Mark Robert Rank, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis and author of the book The Random Factor: How Chance and Luck Profoundly Shape Our Lives and the World around Us (https://amzn.to/3W1mDb4).
    Every living thing will die one day. What’s interesting is that some living things - for instance a butterfly - may live only a few days before it dies while a tortoise or whale might live hundreds of years. Why do something age quickly and others slowly. Can we somehow slow down human aging so we live longer than we do now? A lot is going on to understand the aging process and slow it down according to my guest Venki Ramakrishnan. He is a Nobel Prize-winning molecular biologist and author of the book Why We Die (https://amzn.to/49KII0z) Listen as he offers some fascinating insight into how aging works and we can slow down the inevitable.
    You’ve probably heard the advice to, “Stop and smell the roses.” While that’s certainly a good idea, you may also want to stop and listen to the birds sing and chirp. Listen and I will explain how bird songs are good for your soul. https://www.treehugger.com/why-do-birds-sing-5179422
    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS!
    Indeed is offering SYSK listeners a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to get your jobs more visibility at https://Indeed.com/SOMETHING
    We love the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast! https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/business-podcasts/think-fast-talk-smart-podcast
    NerdWallet lets you compare top travel credit cards side-by-side to maximize your spending! Compare & find smarter credit cards, savings accounts, & more https://NerdWallet.com
    TurboTax Experts make all your moves count — filing with 100% accuracy and getting your max refund, guaranteed! See guarantee details at https://TurboTax.com/Guarantees
    Dell Technologies and Intel are pushing what technology can do, so great ideas can happen! Find out how to bring your ideas to life at https://Dell.com/WelcomeToNow
    eBay Motors has 122 million parts for your #1 ride-or-die, to make sure it stays running smoothly. Keep your ride alive at https://eBayMotors.com
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 49 min

Customer Reviews

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1 Rating

AdriPatricia ,

From a listener in Uruguay

Very interesting and entertaining podcast. I recommend it to native speakers and non-native ones, because it’s very helpful for English learners too. Thanks for preparing it

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