Podcast
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Hosted by Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery · EN
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg provides a fascinating look into the human brain, with each episode asking new questions — and finding new answers — about our most mysterious organ. Together with his expert guests, Dr. Stieg takes us on a journey that reveals unexpected secrets at every turn, and redefines what we know about ourselves and our place in the world.
The podcast explores the many fascinating aspects of neuroscience, ranging from how the brain is wired for both sudden bursts of violence and the pervasive inner calm of meditation. Where does confidence come from? How do we remember traumatic events – or do we? How do other animals experience consciousness? Does storytelling change our brains?
Take the journey with us as we explore the very foundation of what makes us human.
20episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
"Awestruck!" - Part 2 with Beau Lotto, PhD
2w ago00:20:20Tap to summarizeThe human brain resists uncertainty — whether it's an approaching tiger or a global pandemic, we've evolved to move from fear and chaos to order and resolution. Dr. Beau Lotto, founder of the Lab of Misfits, explains why the brain takes small steps instead of large leaps, and why we need to teach kids to think more like scientists. Plus... why we react to a pandemic by hoarding toilet paper! https://www.beaulotto.com/ Since this episode was first released in 2021, Dr. Lotto has launched a new project - "Evolvable.Me" "Our interactive AI-powered platform reveals precise, science-backed insights into how you think, relate, and behave – drawn from your responses and real-life conversations." Try it for free at https://www.evolvable.me/
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"Awestruck!" - Part 1 - with Beau Lotto, PhD
3w ago00:19:51Tap to summarizeWhat is awe? It's not wonder, or surprise, or pleasure — it's a state of mind that Dr. Beau Lotto calls "finding the impossible in the common." Dr. Lotto is a neuroscientist who specializes in perception; he once actually measured awe in the brains of people watching Cirque du Soleil. Learn where awe originates, why it evolved, and even how military leaders might weaponize it. Plus... why Dr. Lotto says babies are born "useless". https://www.beaulotto.com/ Since this episode was first released in 2021, Dr. Lotto has launched a new project - "Evolvable.Me" "Our interactive AI-powered platform reveals precise, science-backed insights into how you think, relate, and behave – drawn from your responses and real-life conversations." Try it for free at https://www.evolvable.me/
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The Mercurial Genius of Candace Pert
Jul 1000:29:38Tap to summarizeCandace Pert discovered the opioid receptor, created a drug to stop AIDS in the brain, and identified stress as a cause of disease. She also inadvertently unleashed the overdose epidemic, got kicked out of the NIH, and was denied credit for much of her work. Largely forgotten, Pert was a trailblazing yet mercurial neuroscientist. Emmy award winning writer and producer Pamela Ryckman shines a light on Pert's breakthroughs and her fascinating legacy on the podcast. For a transcript and more information about this episode use this link: https://bit.ly/4vuMoiG For more about our guest's book: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/contributor/pamela-ryckman/
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The Mother of all Brain Changes - Chelsea Conaboy
Jun 2600:27:47Tap to summarizeNew parents - especially moms - experience profound changes in the brain when they are expecting and welcoming a new baby. Health journalist Chelsea Conaboy explains how the caricature of "mommy brain" and its cognitive fog has it all wrong - parenthood actually has a neuroprotective effect, as the brain adapts to meeting the needs of children. It happens to all parents, not just mothers, but it's most dramatic in gestating parents. Plus... how it takes a troop to raise a monkey. For a transcript and further information use this link: https://bit.ly/4ovUTay
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Cultivating Confidence
Jun 1200:30:22Tap to summarizeWhere in the brain is that little something that makes top performers feel so confident in their ability? Can that confidence be developed in someone who is naturally more timid? Dr. Nate Zinsser, director of West Point's Performance Psychology Program and author of The Confident Mind, explains how a sense of mastery develops, and why butterflies in your stomach are a signal from the brain when you're about to do something great. Plus… why Ted Lasso wants us all to be a little more like goldfish. For transcript and further information, use this link: https://bit.ly/4ocC0cE
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Why We Procrastinate -- with Joseph Ferrari
May 2800:25:52Tap to summarizeWe all do it - put things off, tell ourselves we'll start tomorrow, and somehow still miss the deadline. But chronic procrastination isn't just a bad habit; it's self-sabotaging behavior that can derail our goals, relationships, and even our health. Psychologist Dr. Joseph Ferrari, a leading expert on procrastination, breaks down the emotional roots of procrastination, debunks the myth that we "work best under pressure," and offers science-backed strategies for change. Plus - meet one of history's most legendary procrastinators: Leonardo da Vinci. Find out how his epic delays shaped the Mona Lisa, and why some believe he never truly finished it. Thanks for enjoying this archive episode of This Is Your Brain. For a transcript and further background information please use this link. https://bit.ly/4uDBUgM
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"Not Just Another Victim" – Nancy Jarecki's recovery from a stroke
May 1500:35:09Tap to summarizeNancy Jarecki's stroke could have reduced her to a statistic. But her determination, humor and style paved a different path to recovery. For our Season Six Finale we are recognizing Stroke Awareness Month with a very special episode of This Is Your Brain. This is a story told by Nancy Jarecki, - a businesswoman, wife and mother - whose resilience and good humor while recovering from a serious brain aneurysm was inspiring to all of us who treated her here at New York – Presbyterian Hospital. What follows is a dramatic, funny and heart-warming story of one woman's journey back from a life-altering experience. For more information, transcripts, and all episodes, please visit https://thisisyourbrain.com For more about Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery, please visit https://neurosurgery.weillcornell.org
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"I Think I Look Ugly" – Body Dysmorphia
May 100:31:57Tap to summarizeMost of us have a bad hair day or we're not happy if we have a little pimple on our face. But that's quite different from the experience of people with body dysmorphic disorder. (BDD) More than simple insecurity about one's appearance, BDD is a disorder in which a person's perception of their appearance becomes all-consuming and deeply distressing. Perfectly normal looking people can see themselves as horribly ugly. Or one minor detail becomes an enormous fixation, like the patient who said they felt they were just one giant pimple with hands and feet. In this episode, Dr. Phil Stieg speaks with psychiatrist and BDD expert Dr. Katharine Phillips about how altered visual processing in the brain leads individuals to fixate on minor and often imagined flaws, while behaviors like mirror-checking and reassurance seeking reinforce the cycle of negative perception. Dr. Phillips highlights the serious mental health risks associated with this condition and discusses evidence-based treatments that have led many patients to a meaningful recovery. For more information, transcripts, and all episodes, please visit https://thisisyourbrain.com For more about Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery, please visit https://neurosurgery.weillcornell.org
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I Never Forget a Face
Apr 1700:27:10Tap to summarizeImagine a world where everyone looks the same and you can't recognize one person from another – even you own child! It sounds like a frightening episode from the "Twilight Zone", but it's just every day life for people with prosopagnosia, better known as "Face Blindness". We humans use parts of our brains to see, process and recognize faces that are different from recognizing anything else in our lives, which is not surprising when you consider how important faces are to understanding the situations we are in and the emotions of the people closest to us. In this episode, Dr. Brad Duchaine, a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Dartmouth College and one of the world's experts on face recognition, explains how how the face blind perceive the world, the strategies they use to mange their lives, and the unfortunate people who experience the rare (and almost unpronounceable) condition of "prosopometamorphopsia." Plus, hear how "Super Recognizers" are using the opposite of face blindness to help fight crime. For more information, transcripts, and all episodes, please visit https://thisisyourbrain.com For more about Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery, please visit https://neurosurgery.weillcornell.org
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Why We Drink Too Much
Apr 300:28:48Tap to summarizeWhy do we sometimes drink too much, even when we know the risks? In this episode, surgeon, author, and recovering alcoholic Dr. Charles Knowles joins us to explore the neuroscience of alcohol use and addiction. Drawing from his book "Why We Drink Too Much" and his own lived experience, Dr. Knowles describes how alcohol alters the brain's reward pathways, and how drinking problems exist on a spectrum. Through neuroscience and deeply personal insight, he speaks to alcohol's impact on mental and physical health and gives inspiration to others through sharing his own journey to recovery. For more information, transcripts, and all episodes, please visit https://thisisyourbrain.com For more about Weill Cornell Medicine Neurological Surgery, please visit https://neurosurgery.weillcornell.org
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