This Is Going Well, I Think With David Cooper

Cognitive scientist ⁠⁠⁠Mark Miller⁠⁠⁠ explains the neuroscience of ⁠why social media makes us feel terrible about who we really are⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tony Five from the UK opens the show by covering the Swedish musician who taught an octopus to play piano, and then talks about his upcoming trip to New York and Toronto. Cognitive scientist ⁠⁠Mark Miller⁠⁠ explains the neuroscience of why social media makes us feel terrible about who we really are. Marketing professor Linnéa Chapman reveals how self-improvement gifts may spark backlash. Freelance reporter ⁠⁠Matthew Alston reports on how best – in the current job landscape – to deal with the office freeloader and feeling burned out but trapped in your job. Professor of technology and society Taha Yasseri shares results from his study showing how humans bring gender bias to their interactions with AI. Economics professor ⁠⁠Dr. Eric Kam weighs in on whether you should ask your adult child living at home to pay rent and a woman who cancelled her vacation, but whose friends refused to give her a refund. Medical psychology (in psychiatry) professor Dr. Matthew Lebowitz describes how people think kindness is in yo

Anatomy professor ⁠Adam Taylor⁠ warns of ⁠the surprising threat of swallowing pills: esophagitis⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Christiane Hahn⁠ and ⁠Claudio Moratto⁠ from the European Space Agency reveal ⁠how astronauts could consume protein made from urine in the near future⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lecturer ⁠Allan Wright⁠ from The University of Alberta goes over his course that covers witchcraft and the occult. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foreign correspondent ⁠Tony Five⁠ opens the show by covering ⁠the Kazakh man who divorced his actual doll wife for a new (human) lover⁠, but gets sidetracked discussing whether cash makes a good wedding gift. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois⁠ – host of ⁠The Food Professor podcast⁠ – explains how ⁠people misinterpret best before dates on food, leading to significant waste⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foreign correspondent Tony Five opens the show by covering the Kazakh man who divorced his actual doll wife for a new (human) lover, but gets sidetracked discussing whether cash makes a good wedding gift. Dr. Sylvain Charlebois – host of The Food Professor podcast – explains how people misinterpret best before dates on food, leading to significant waste. Lecturer Allan Wright from The University of Alberta goes over his course that covers witchcraft and the occult. Anatomy professor Adam Taylor warns of the surprising threat of swallowing pills: esophagitis. Former president of the Ontario Medical Association Dr. Sohail Gandhi describes the benefits and side effects of GLP-1 drugs, sexual and otherwise. Dr. Christiane Hahn and Claudio Moratto from the European Space Agency reveal how astronauts could consume protein made from urine in the near future. Psychology professor Konrad Jankowski shares details of his study showing how you view time may influence depression by shaping your sleep rhythm. Segments:

On Conspiracy Corner, professor of conspiracy studies Nathan Radke uses the public discovery of ⁠MKUltra⁠, ⁠Watergate⁠, and the ⁠Iran-Contra scandal⁠ as examples of the awesome power of incompetence. That leads to a discussion of the ⁠Dunning-Kruger effect⁠ and its origins in analyzing ⁠the 1995 Greater Pittsburgh bank robberies⁠. Check out Nathan's podcast The Uncover Up here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Pet Talk – or perhaps Vet Talk – veterinarian ⁠Dr. Cliff Redford⁠ explains why he's traveling to Jamaica to assist animals in need after Hurricane Melissa. Cliff then shares ⁠how raccoons are showing early signs of domestication⁠. Listen to Cliff's podcast Vet Life here⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On It's Time For Technology Time, tech expert ⁠Carmi Levy⁠ covers: Sales of AI-enabled teddy bear suspended after it gave advice on BDSM sex and where to find knives⁠; Robotic kitchen with AI cooks and serves 120 meals an hour without human help⁠; Nvidia beats earnings expectations, even as AI bubble concerns mount⁠; Jeff Bezos will head a new engineering-focused AI startup called Project Prometheus⁠; and How Epstein used SEO to bury news about his crimes⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foreign correspondent ⁠Tony Five⁠ from the UK bashes into the show covering ⁠a New York City subway station ad that smells 'Christmassy'⁠. Tony says why certain small signs in life can feel huge, and David warns that misreading them can snowball into anxiety about future depression. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neuroscientist ⁠Carlos Coronel⁠ explains ⁠how creative activities are linked to slower brain aging⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foreign correspondent Tony Five from the UK bashes into the show covering a New York City subway station ad that smells 'Christmassy'. Tony says why certain small signs in life can feel huge, and David warns that misreading them can snowball into anxiety about future depression. On It's Time For Technology Time, tech expert Carmi Levy covers: Sales of AI-enabled teddy bear suspended after it gave advice on BDSM sex and where to find knives; Robotic kitchen with AI cooks and serves 120 meals an hour without human help; Nvidia beats earnings expectations, even as AI bubble concerns mount; Jeff Bezos will head a new engineering-focused AI startup called Project Prometheus; and How Epstein used SEO to bury news about his crimes. Neuroscientist Carlos Coronel explains how creative activities are linked to slower brain aging. On Conspiracy Corner, professor of conspiracy studies Nathan Radke uses the public discovery of MKUltra, Watergate, and the Iran-Contra scandal as examples of the awesome power of incompetence

On Therapy Thursdays on a Wednesday, therapist and social worker ⁠Gary Direnfeld⁠ and David discuss how to break up with your therapist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Social psychologist and sexuality researcher Tanja Oschatz shares ⁠her studying connecting how a woman's choice of words for her privates is tied to her sexual well-being⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Social and personality psychology researcher ⁠Hanieh Naeimi⁠ talks about ⁠how friends' support protects intercultural couples⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Astrophysics professor ⁠Jesse Rogerson⁠ joins David to cover the following science stories: Humans are evolving in front of our eyes on the Tibetan plateau⁠; Earliest chemical traces of life on Earth discovered in a 3.3 billion year-old rock⁠; Giant stars are eating planets, and we finally know why⁠; and The eye's maximum resolution is even higher than we thought⁠. Jesse fields a listener question. Got a science question for us? Leave a voicemail at ⁠1-888-505-6644⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Music psychologist ⁠Scott Bannister⁠ explains how ⁠musicians frequently experience frisson while performing⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Astrophysics professor Jesse Rogerson joins David to cover the following science stories: Humans are evolving in front of our eyes on the Tibetan plateau; Earliest chemical traces of life on Earth discovered in a 3.3 billion year-old rock; Giant stars are eating planets, and we finally know why; and The eye's maximum resolution is even higher than we thought. Jesse fields a listener question. (Got a science question for us? Leave a voicemail at ⁠1-888-505-6644⁠.) Music psychologist Scott Bannister explains how musicians frequently experience frisson while performing. On Therapy Thursdays on a Wednesday, therapist and social worker Gary Direnfeld and David discuss how to break up with your therapist. Computer scientist Zainab Iftikhar reveals how AI chatbots can often violate ethical standards in mental health contexts. Social psychologist and sexuality researcher Tanja Oschatz shares her studying connecting how a woman's choice of words for her privates is tied to her sexual well-being. Social and personality