dash

Arthur Brooks, author and Harvard professor, has some startling news: In order to be happy, we also need to be unhappy, at least a little bit.

To explain this theory, Brooks reflects on the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus, who proposed that the key to happiness is to simply suffer less, not by seeking constant pleasure but by eliminating sources of discomfort.

This idea, although intuitive, has significant implications. Avoiding the relationships and activities that cause friction can indeed make us happier. However, Brooks warns against the modern trend of overprotecting ourselves and our children from any form of suffering or conflict. In the long run, these types of “protection” could actually be more harmful than beneficial.

Suffering is a natural part of life that teaches resilience and helps us especially appreciate the good moments we experience. As Carl Jung noted, we need contrast in our lives to truly experience joy.

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About Arthur Brooks:

Arthur C. Brooks is a professor at both the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School, where he teaches public and nonprofit leadership and management practice. Before joining Harvard in July 2019, he spent ten years as the president of the American Enterprise Institute, a well-known public policy think tank in Washington, DC.

Brooks has written 11 books, including the bestsellers "Love Your Enemies" (2019), "The Conservative Heart" (2015), and "The Road to Freedom" (2012). He writes a column for The Atlantic, hosts the podcast "The Art of Happiness with Arthur Brooks," and is featured in the 2019 documentary "The Pursuit." He also serves on the board of the Legatum Institute, a think tank in London.

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About The Well

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds.

Together, let's learn from them.

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Sean Carroll: We might solve free will one day. But here’s why I doubt it.

Debates about the existence of free will have traditionally been fought by two competing camps: those who believe in free will and those who don’t because they believe the Universe is deterministic.

Determinism is the thesis that every event — from when a volcano erupts to what cereal you buy at the supermarket — is a theoretically predictable result of the long chain of events that came before it. Free will, it was long thought, cannot exist in a world where all events are already causally determined.

But free will and determinism aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive. As physicist Sean Carroll told Big Think, the compatibilist conception of free will argues that it makes sense to conceptualize ourselves as able to make free decisions, regardless of whether the Universe is deterministic or indeterministic.

Why? The main argument centers on the phenomenon of emergence.

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Chapters for easier navigation:-

0:00 Free will vs. determinism

0:27 Determinism

0:51 The biggest mistake in the free will debate

1:07 Libertarian free will

2:39 Compatibilist free will

4:01 Objection to compatibilism

5:06 The experience of free will

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About Sean Carroll:

Dr. Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy — in effect, a joint appointment between physics and philosophy — at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. Most of his career has been spent doing research on cosmology, field theory, and gravitation, looking at topics such as dark matter and dark energy, modified gravity, topological defects, extra dimensions, and violations of fundamental symmetries. These days, his focus has shifted to more foundational questions, both in quantum mechanics (origin of probability, emergence of space and time) and statistical mechanics (entropy and the arrow of time, emergence and causation, dynamics of complexity), bringing a more philosophical dimension to his work.

----------------------

About Big Think | Smarter Faster™

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The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century.

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This interview is an episode from The Well, our new publication about ideas that inspire a life well-lived, created with the John Templeton Foundation.

Is our experience of time different from how time actually works? Jim Al-Khalili, theoretical physicist and author of The Joy of Science, offers a lesson on the science of time — from Newton to Einstein to quantum thermodynamics.

Going beyond the classical “common sense” view of time as absolute, Al-Khalili explains how Einstein changed everything when he taught us that time is relative and time and space are connected.

“Time," says Al-Khalili. “ticks by at different rates for different people depending on your frame of reference, and it’s malleable and it’s stretchable.”

--------------------------------------------------------------

About Jim Al-Khalili:

Jim is a multiple award-winning science communicator renowned for his public engagement around the world through writing and broadcasting and a leading academic making fundamental contributions to theoretical physics, particularly in nuclear reaction theory, quantum effects in biology, open quantum systems and the foundations of quantum mechanics.

Jim is a theoretical physicist at the University of Surrey where he holds a Distinguished Chair in physics as well as a university chair in the public engagement in science. He received his PhD in nuclear reaction theory in 1989 and has published widely in the field. His current interest is in open quantum systems and the application of quantum mechanics in biology.

----------------------------------------------------------------

About The Well

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds.

So what do they think?

How is the power of science advancing understanding? How are philosophers and theologians tackling these fascinating questions?

Let’s dive into The Well.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Dan Shapiro, the head of Harvard’s International Negotiation program, shares 3 keys to a better argument. Americans are increasingly falling into the “tribal trap,” according to Dan Shapiro, author of “Negotiating the Nonnegotiable: How to Resolve Your Most Emotionally Charged Conflicts.” The tribal trap often centers on politics. Those ensnared in it will do anything they can to shut down the other side in an effort to prove that their side is right, just, and the only way forward. But from abortion to immigration, the problem is often not what we’re arguing about, it’s how. So, how can we have more productive conversations? In this Big Think interview, Shapiro uses his negotiating expertise to outline several strategies to escape the tribal trap and communicate effectively, including understanding the core values of the other side, listening intently to what they’re saying, conveying that you understand what they’re saying, and finding common ground.

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About Dan Shapiro: The founder and director of the Harvard International Negotiation Program, Daniel Shapiro teaches a highly evaluated course on negotiation at Harvard College; instructs psychology interns at Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital; and leads executive education sessions at the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School, Harvard Kennedy School, and Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital. He also has served on the faculty at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, and at the Sloan School of Management at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is author of Negotiating the Nonnegotiable, which Matthew Bishop of the Economist Group called “quite simply, the best book I have ever read on negotiating in situations of extreme conflict.” He also is coauthor with Roger Fisher of the negotiation classic “Beyond Reason: Using Emotions as You Negotiate.”

-----------------------------------------

About Big Think | Smarter Faster™ ► Big Think The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century....

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Discover Big Think | Smarter Faster™

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"I believe our society's gotten to the point where you can't question. You can't provoke. You just have to adhere to consensus."

Cultural norms are a lubricant that make socializing easier, but if we’re not careful we can overly rely on conformity.

We need to catch ourselves from our natural tendency to go along with the group and we need to speak up with innovative ways to change and make progress.

In the end, you might even find that the group agreed with you all along.

Collective Illusions is a 9-part series brought to you by Stand Together: a community of changemakers tackling our biggest challenges.

----------------------------------------

About Todd Rose:

Todd Rose is the co-founder and president of Populace, a think tank committed to ensuring that all people have the opportunity to pursue fulfilling lives in a thriving society. Prior to Populace, he was a faculty member at Harvard University where he founded the Laboratory for the Science of Individuality and directed the Mind, Brain, and Education program. Todd is the best selling author of Collective Illusions, Dark Horse, and The End of Average. He lives in Burlington, Massachusetts.

-----------------------------------------------------------

About Big Think | Smarter Faster™

► Big Think

The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century.

Go Deeper with Big Think:

►Become a Big Think Member

Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more

►Get Big Think+ for Business

Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business

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Acclaimed psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk, author of “The Body Keeps The Score,” discusses the widespread existence of trauma and how it manifests in our bodies. Bessel van der Kolk also discusses the pervasive nature of trauma and its impact on individuals. He reflects on his experiences working with traumatized populations, particularly Vietnam veterans, and highlights the commonality of trauma in various forms, such as abuse and violence. Van der Kolk challenges traditional psychiatric approaches, emphasizing the importance of understanding and addressing trauma rather than merely trying to "fix" individuals. He explains the physiological and psychological effects of trauma, particularly in terms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and stresses the need for society to acknowledge and address the prevalence of trauma. The script underscores the significance of creating a safe space for individuals to share their experiences, fostering self-compassion, and working towards societal awareness and support for those who have endured trauma. Bessel van der Kolk has studied trauma for 50 years. Though we once considered trauma exclusive to veterans and people growing up in extreme circumstances, we now know it is an extremely common experience. Van der Kolk discusses the impact of trauma and the pathway to healing.

About Bessel van der Kolk: Bessel van der Kolk MD spends his career studying how children and adults adapt to traumatic experiences and has translated emerging findings from neuroscience and attachment research to develop and study a range of treatments for traumatic stress in children and adults

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Dr. Frank Wilczek is the newly announced recipient of the 2022 Templeton Prize, which, valued at over $1.4 million, is one of the world's largest annual individual awards.

Dr. Wilczek is celebrated for his investigations into the fundamental laws of nature that have transformed our understanding of the forces that govern our universe. In this video, Dr. Wilczek explores the question, ‘does the world embody beautiful ideas?’ through science and humankind’s relationship to (and love for) symmetry.

"We can look at the record of what people have found beautiful, what they were hoping for in their understanding of the world with what the remarkable understanding of the world we've achieved in recent years looks like. And we can therefore frame a meaningful discussion and a meaningful question, a meaningful meditation, on the issue.”

The Templeton Prize was established by the late global investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton. It is given to honor those who harness the power of the sciences to explore the deepest questions of the universe and humankind’s place and purpose within it.

----------------------------------------------------------

About Frank Wilczek:

Frank Wilczek is an American theoretical physicist, mathematician and a Nobel laureate. He is currently the Herman Feshbach Professor of Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Wilczek, along with David Gross and H. David Politzer, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2004 for their discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction. He is on the Scientific Advisory Board for the Future of Life Institute. His new book is titled A Beautiful Question: Finding Nature's Deep Design.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

About The Well

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds.

So what do they think?

How is the power of science advancing understanding? How are philosophers and theologians tackling these fascinating questions?

Let’s dive into The Well.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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5 health experts, including Harvard professor Daniel Lieberman, share the exact ways exercise can lead to a healthier lifespan. In this interview, health experts Eric Kandel, Daniel Lieberman, Morgan Levine, Jillian Michaels, and Wendy Suzuki discuss the controllable nature of aging, citing how exercise can lead to a healthier lifespan. They highlight the specific ways exercise can reduce memory loss, prevent diseases, and maintain overall health.

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Go Deeper with Big Think:

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Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more

►Get Big Think+ for Business

Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business

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Adam Grant's #1 phrase to unlock potential

The science of super longevity

Beat anxiety with the most addictive experience on Earth

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Discover Big Think | Smarter Faster™

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Quantum biology examines quantum effects inside cells. This is a tricky field, as physicists are not comfortable working with messy biological systems, while biologists are not comfortable with complex (and seemingly irrelevant) particle physics equations.

But chemists, who straddle the space between physics and biology, know that biological molecules are part of the quantum world.

It is likely that there are quantum effects in several biological processes, such as those that generate mutations — which means that particle physics has played a role in the evolution of life on the planet.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

About Jim Al-Khalili:

Jim is a multiple award-winning science communicator renowned for his public engagement around the world through writing and broadcasting and a leading academic making fundamental contributions to theoretical physics, particularly in nuclear reaction theory, quantum effects in biology, open quantum systems and the foundations of quantum mechanics.

Jim is a theoretical physicist at the University of Surrey where he holds a Distinguished Chair in physics as well as a university chair in the public engagement in science. He received his PhD in nuclear reaction theory in 1989 and has published widely in the field. His current interest is in open quantum systems and the application of quantum mechanics in biology.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

About The Well

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional? There are no simple answers to life’s biggest questions, and that’s why they’re the questions occupying the world’s brightest minds.

So what do they think?

How is the power of science advancing understanding? How are philosophers and theologians tackling these fascinating questions?

Let’s dive into The Well.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Economist Tyler Cowen confirms there are good reasons to be crypto-skeptical.

Cryptocurrency is truly a new idea, and it's rare for society to encounter fundamentally new ideas.

Cryptocurrency is well positioned to serve a crucial financial and transactional role as a globalized internet grows to include more of our lives.

Crypto enthusiasts espouse grand plans that do not sound realistic, while crypto skeptics fail to appreciate the revolutionary nature of the technology.

--------------------------------------------------------

About Tyler Cowen:

Tyler is the Holbert L. Harris Chair of Economics at George Mason University and serves as chairman and general director of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He is co-author of the popular economics blog Marginal Revolution and co-founder of the online educational platform Marginal Revolution University.

Tyler also writes a column for Bloomberg View, and he has contributed to The Wall Street Journal and Money. In 2011, Bloomberg Businessweek profiled Tyler as “America’s Hottest Economist” after his e-book, The Great Stagnation, appeared twice on The New York Times e-book bestseller list.

He graduated from George Mason University with a bachelor's degree in economics and earned a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University. He also runs a podcast series called Conversations with Tyler. His latest book Talent: How to Identify Energizers, Creatives and Winners Around the World is co-authored with venture capitalist Daniel Gross.

---------------------------------------

About Big Think | Smarter Faster™

► Big Think

The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century.

Go Deeper with Big Think:

►Become a Big Think Member

Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more

►Get Big Think+ for Business

Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices