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Minding the Brain

English, Sciences, 1 season, 80 episodes, 1 day, 21 hours, 14 minutes
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Cognitive & brain science episodes from Jim Davies & Kim Hellemans
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Mommy Brain and the Mental Load of Motherhood

Kim interviews Dr. Jodi Pawluski about mommy brain and the mental load of motherhood. How is society failing mothers? Is it okay to take anti-depressants [...]
9/1/20241 hour, 2 minutes, 19 seconds
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Personality Disorders with Dr. Pete Kelly

Dr. Kim Hellemans interviews Dr. Pete Kelly about personality disorders. What are personality disorders and what are some common symptoms? What does therapy look like for [...]
8/1/20241 hour, 58 seconds
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Mantra Meditation – #75

Jim talks to Dr. Doug Oman, a scientist and scholar with a special interest in spirituality and health. They discuss the practice of mantra meditation, [...]
7/1/202444 minutes, 51 seconds
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Cultural Evolution – #74

Jim and Kim explore the role of cultural evolution in shaping human behavior and survival. What has enabled humans to dominate the globe more successfully [...]
6/1/202436 minutes, 57 seconds
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Q&A: Magic Mushrooms, Chat GPT in Academia, Ice Baths, Caffeine & More – #73

Jim and Kim answer student questions about magic mushrooms, Chat GPT in academia, ice baths, caffeine, the impact of listening to music, self-efficacy and reducing [...]
5/1/202437 minutes, 22 seconds
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Fake News with Gordon Pennycook – #72

Jim interviews Gordon Pennycook about the phenomenon of fake news. What types of misinformation tend to spread? What role will generative AI play in the [...]
4/1/202424 minutes, 11 seconds
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#71 Nutritional Neuroscience

Kim interviews Orsha Magyar about the emerging field of nutritional neuroscience. How can we combat nutritional pseudoscience on social media? Are there such things as [...]
3/1/202443 minutes, 13 seconds
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#70 Aloneliness and the Value of Solitude

Kim interviews Dr. Robert Coplan about aloneliness and the value of solitude. What are the benefits of solitude? How should we balance solitude and social [...]
2/1/202453 minutes, 25 seconds
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#69 AI & Existential Risk

Jim interviews Darren McKee, author of Uncontrollable: The Threat of Artificial Superintelligence and the Race to Save the World. What are the long-term dangers of [...]
1/1/202435 minutes, 12 seconds
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#68 Eating Disorders

Jim interviews Kim about the topic of eating disorders. They discuss clinical and behavioral symptoms of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and the [...]
12/1/20231 hour, 18 seconds
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#67 The Psychology of Soundtracks with Joe Kraemer

Jim interviews Hollywood composer Joe Kraemer about the psychology of soundtracks. Joe is responsible for the music in films such as The Way of the [...]
11/1/20231 hour, 11 minutes, 42 seconds
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#66 Money and Spending

Jim interviews Johanna Peetz about money and spending. Why does money cause so many problems in relationships? What does the research say about how best [...]
10/1/202334 minutes, 6 seconds
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#65 Distinguishing Fantasy From Reality

How are false memories created? Do children believe their imaginary friends really exist? Why aren’t we always mistaking our imaginings for reality? Join Jim and [...]
9/1/202336 minutes, 59 seconds
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#64 Animal Consciousness

Are other animals conscious? Why is animal consciousness important to understand? What function does consciousness serve? Take a deep dive into the fascinating world of [...]
8/1/202341 minutes, 11 seconds
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Multitasking

Kim and Jim discuss the scientific evidence surrounding multitasking. Does multitasking make you more or less efficient? When should you multitask? Is it safe to [...]
7/1/202332 minutes, 58 seconds
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#63 Schizophrenia

What does it feel like to have schizophrenia? What is the history of the schizophrenia diagnosis and are there effective treatments for the condition? Find [...]
6/1/202344 minutes, 19 seconds
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#62 Theories of Consciousness

In this episode of Minding the Brain, Jim and Kim explore various theories of consciousness. What are the most popular theories of consciousness? What is [...]
5/1/202338 minutes, 53 seconds
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#61 Handedness

Some people are left handed and some people are right handed, why? Join Kim and Jim as they explore the science behind the phenomenon of [...]
4/1/202330 minutes, 53 seconds
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#60 20 More Questions with Kim & Jim

Do brain training apps work? Is reading fiction a waste of time? How dangerous is artificial intelligence? Join Kim and Jim for a special Q&A [...]
3/1/202342 minutes, 50 seconds
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#59 Time

Why does time seem to pass slowly when you’re a child and more quickly when you’re an adult? How does the brain measure time? What [...]
2/1/202334 minutes, 46 seconds
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#58 Goals

Why are goals important? Why are we successful in the pursuit of certain goals, but not others? Jim Davies interviews Marina Milyavskaya about how science [...]
1/1/202334 minutes, 9 seconds
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#57 Video Game Addiction

Can someone get addicted to video games? Join Kim and Jim as they talk about the science of addiction as applied to video games. Featuring [...]
12/1/202239 minutes, 14 seconds
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#56 Video Games

Do video games increase aggression? Are they addictive? Can video games make you smarter? Jim and Kim discuss the research on video games in this [...]
11/1/20220
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#55 Caffeine

Why did plants evolve to be caffeinated? When did humans start using caffeine? What are the benefits of caffeine? Can caffeine be dangerous and is [...]
10/1/20220
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#54 Where Are All the Aliens?

If the universe is teeming with life, and even a fraction of that life is intelligent, where are all the aliens? Join Jim and Kim [...]
9/1/20220
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#53 Alcohol

Alcohol is, by far, the most commonly used addictive drug, but how much do you really know about it? How does alcohol interact with the [...]
8/1/20220
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#52 Hacking Your Reward System

Kim and Jim tell you how to hack your reward system! What is the brain’s reward system and why did it evolve? Is it possible [...]
7/1/20220
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#51 The Future of Depression Treatment with Dr. Benicio Frey

Kim interviews Dr. Benicio Frey about the future of depression treatment. What is depression and what are the symptoms? How is depression treated? How important [...]
6/1/20220
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#50 Happiness

Jim Davies and Darren McKee talk about happiness. What is happiness? What does science say about how people can be happier? Find out the answers [...]
5/1/20220
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#49 Eastern and Western Thinking

Jim interviews Dr. Richard E. Nisbett about Eastern and Western thinking. What are the differences between Eastern and Western thinking? How do economic differences impact [...]
4/1/20220
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#48 Pain

Kim interviews Michael Hildebrand about the topic of pain. Does everyone experience pain the same way? Why do we experience pain? Is there such a [...]
3/1/20220
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#47 Where Are All the Geniuses?

Kim interviews Jim about the phenomenon of geniuses. Are there as many geniuses born today as there were previously? Are groundbreaking scientific discoveries still being [...]
2/1/20220
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#46 Testosterone

Jim interviews Carole Hooven, Harvard evolutionary biologist and author of the new book T: The Story of Testosterone, the Hormone that Dominates and Divides Us. [...]
1/1/20220
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#45 Seasonal Affective Disorder

Jim interviews Kim about the phenomenon known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Why do searches for “depression” peak in November and February? What kinds of [...]
12/1/20210
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#44 Free Will

What is free will? Can humans make conscious decisions? What does the scientific evidence tell us about the existence of free will? Find out on [...]
11/1/202122 minutes, 21 seconds
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#43 Right Brain / Left Brain

The idea of brain lateralization has attained a high degree of popularity in culture. People will often refer to themselves as being “right brained” or [...]
10/1/20210
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#42 Conspiracy Theories

Kim interviews Jim about conspiracy theories. What makes conspiracy theories so appealing? What is the relationship between scientific literacy and the likelihood that someone will [...]
9/1/202135 minutes, 35 seconds
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Alien Abduction

Is there a scientific explanation for the alien abduction phenomenon? Is there a link between nocturnal alien visitations and the many similar stories that have [...]
8/1/202123 minutes, 23 seconds
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Concussions

Dr. Jim Davies and Dr. Kim Hellemans interview two experts on the topic of concussions, Andree-Anne Ledoux, a Research Associate at Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario [...]
7/1/202145 minutes, 13 seconds
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#41 Talking

Dr, Jim Davies interviews Dr. Iva Ivanova about the psychology of talking. Do different languages change the way we formulate meaning? What is syntax and how [...]
6/1/202152 minutes, 25 seconds
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#40 Neurodiversity

Dr. Kim Hellemans discuses neurodiversity with Tara Connolly, Patricia Berube and Kait Bowser. What is neurodiversity? Why is it important to recognize neurodiversity in higher education? How [...]
5/1/202138 minutes, 35 seconds
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#39 Control: Why You Do What You Do

Kim and Jim discuss the science of why we do what we do. How long does it take to form a habit? How is it [...]
4/1/202142 minutes, 37 seconds
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#38 Synesthesia

Some people perceive colors when they see certain words, letters or numbers, and some people experience geometric shapes as associated with certain tastes. These are [...]
3/1/202133 minutes, 54 seconds
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#37 Behavioral Addiction

Kim and Jim take a deep dive into the topic of behavioral addiction. What is behavioral addiction? Can you be addicted to food? What about [...]
2/1/20211 hour, 8 minutes, 21 seconds
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#36 Dreams

Kim interviews Jim about dreams. What are dreams and why did we evolve to have them? Are dreams symbolic representations of events in our lives? [...]
1/1/202133 minutes, 30 seconds
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#35 Depression

Jim interviews Kim about Depression. What exactly is Depression, and how many people have it? What’s the difference between being depressed, and being diagnosed with [...]
12/1/202050 minutes, 9 seconds
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#34 Personality Disorders

Dr. Kim Hellemans interviews Dr. O. Pete Kelly about personality disorders. What are personality disorders and what are some common symptoms? What does therapy look like [...]
11/1/20201 hour, 58 seconds
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#33 Don’t Choke! Why we sometimes fail under pressure

Why does stress sometimes make us choke at the most critical moment? Jim interviews cognitive scientist Sian Beilock about this phenomenon and they discuss psychological tools [...]
10/1/202031 minutes, 14 seconds
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#32 Sleep

Kim and Jim discuss how sleep relates to the mind and the brain. Why did sleep evolve? What is the function of dreaming? How do [...]
9/1/202037 minutes, 35 seconds
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#31 How Imagination Can Make You Happy or Miserable

Kim interviews Jim about imagination and imagines a future podcast all about star nosed moles. Can imagination make us miserable? Does fantasizing about future events [...]
8/1/202036 minutes, 49 seconds
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#30 Student Mental Health

Jim interviews Kim about the important topic of student mental health. What is the impact of substances of like alcohol and marijuana, on mental health? [...]
7/1/202045 minutes, 30 seconds
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#29 Climate Change Psychology

Jim, Kim and special guest, Florence Daviet, CPAWS’ National Forest Program Director, discuss the important topic of climate change. What is the best way to [...]
5/31/202031 minutes, 56 seconds
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#28 Wrapping Your Brain Around the Coronavirus

Kim and Jim help are here to help you wrap your brain around the Coronavirus. Why are people drawn to Coronavirus conspiracy theories? What is [...]
5/1/202041 minutes, 8 seconds
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#27 Emotional Expression

Dr. Davies interviews Gerald Cupchik about emotions. What do people misunderstand about emotions? How does emotional expression differ between cultures? Do childhood events have ramifications [...]
4/1/202035 minutes, 44 seconds
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#26: Imaginary People

Kim interviews Jim about imaginary people. Why do people we meet in our dreams seem to have a mind of their own? Why do authors [...]
3/1/202040 minutes, 31 seconds
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#24: ADHD

Dr. Davies interviews Dr. Hellemans about ADHD. What is the difference between ADHD and ADD? How is ADHD diagnosed? Are there risks associated with the [...]
1/1/202046 minutes, 35 seconds
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#23: Hallucinations

Dr. Hellemans interviews Dr. Davies about hallucinations. What are the neural correlates of hallucinations? How many types of hallucinations are there? What is the difference [...]
12/1/201949 minutes, 54 seconds
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#22: Relationships

Dr. Davies interviews Cheryl Harasymchuk about relationships. What types of people tend to start relationships with each-other? What makes people physically attracted to each-other? Find out [...]
11/1/201946 minutes, 28 seconds
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#21: Trauma

Dr. Hellemans interviews psychologist Matthew Rippeyoung about trauma. What is trauma and how does it impact us? Where does trauma come from and what is [...]
10/1/201935 minutes, 21 seconds
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#20: Morning People & Night People

Kim and Jim discuss the apparent phenomenon of morning people and night people. Is there a biological difference between “morning people” and “night people”? Why [...]
9/1/201923 minutes, 50 seconds
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#19: Pet Therapy

Kim and Jim interview Dr. Colleen Dell and Shannon Noonan about their work with therapy dogs. Why do dogs make such good therapy animals? Can [...]
8/1/201946 minutes, 30 seconds
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#18: Voices in the Head

Dr. Davies interviews Gregory Shankland about his experiences with hearing voices in his head. Gregory tells the fascinating story of how he began to hear voices, how [...]
7/1/20191 hour, 9 minutes, 14 seconds
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#17: Religious Experiences

Jim and Kim explore the science of having religious experiences, with the help of special guest Dr. Ann Taves. Why do people have religious experiences? [...]
6/1/201943 minutes, 7 seconds
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#16: Social Media & Addiction

Kim and Jim dive into the topic of social media and addiction. Can you be addicted to social media? Does using social media too much affect [...]
5/1/201936 minutes, 31 seconds
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#15: Multitasking

Kim and Jim discuss the scientific evidence surrounding multitasking. Does multitasking make you more or less efficient? When should you multitask? Is it safe to [...]
4/1/201932 minutes, 58 seconds
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#14: Alcohol and the Developing Brain

Jim and Kim are joined by special guest Audrey McFarlane to discuss the impact of alcohol on the developing brain. What are the effects of [...]
3/1/201939 minutes, 31 seconds
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#13: Beauty and Neuroaesthetics

Many people think beauty is something ephemeral, subject to the arbitrary whims of individual taste and cultural trends. But philosophers have been studying beauty and [...]
2/1/201932 minutes, 11 seconds
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#12: Why We Like Sports

People love to watch sports. The Superbowl, for example, is incredibly popular. About 111 million people, a third of everyone in the united states, watched [...]
1/1/201929 minutes, 36 seconds
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#11: Nutrition and the Brain

According to the world health organization, obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than 1 billion adults overweight, and at least 300 million of [...]
12/1/201840 minutes, 27 seconds
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#10: Alien Abduction

Is there a scientific explanation for the alien abduction phenomenon? Is there a link between nocturnal alien visitations and the many similar stories that have [...]
11/1/201824 minutes, 15 seconds
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#9: 20 Questions with Kim & Jim

This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at an event sponsored by Carleton University’s Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. The audience [...]
10/1/20181 hour, 3 minutes, 34 seconds
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#8: Exercise

Jim interviews Kim on the topic of exercise. What is the impact of exercise on the brain? Can exercise be used to treat depression? The [...]
9/1/201840 minutes, 10 seconds
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#7: Estrogen and the Brain

What role does estrogen play in the brain? Why do people experience PMS? Is PMS a real phenomenon? For this episode we’ve partnered with the [...]
8/1/201827 minutes, 22 seconds
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Brain: The Inside Story Walkthrough – Bonus Episode

Welcome to a special bonus episode of Minding the Brain! Follow Dr. Hellemans and Dr. Davies to the Canadian Museum of Nature as they explore [...]
7/15/201831 minutes, 14 seconds
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#6: Old Drugs, New Uses

Can cannabis products be used to treat epilepsy? Can ketamine be used to treat depression? For this episode we’ve partnered with the Canadian Museum of [...]
7/1/201832 minutes, 34 seconds
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#5: Concussions

For this episode we’ve partnered with the Canadian Museum of Nature in conjuncture with their special exhibition, Brain: The Inside Story, for an in depth discussions [...]
6/1/201848 minutes, 18 seconds
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#4: Social Networks

Kim interviews Jim on the topic of social networks. Does social media make us happy? How does it compare with face-to-face interaction or a phone [...]
5/1/201828 minutes, 35 seconds
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#3: Cannabis

Jim interviews Kim on the topic of cannabis. Is cannabis addictive? Is it an effective method for reducing anxiety? What does the legalization of cannabis [...]
4/1/201823 minutes, 26 seconds
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#2: Imagining the Future

Kim interviews Jim about imagining the future. How does the way we imagine the future impact our lives? What is temporal discounting and how can [...]
3/1/201838 minutes, 33 seconds
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#1: Stress

Jim interviews Kim about the phenomenon of stress. What are the neural correlates of stress? Are there gender differences in levels of stress? What steps [...]
1/30/201835 minutes, 53 seconds