Do you think your phone is breaking your brain? Is the stress of the news cycle rewiring our physiology? And why do we feel so behind our Jan 1 resolutions … only 3 weeks in? Nayeema asks the Qs we all have to stress expert Dr. Aditi Nerurkar — a physician on faculty at Harvard Medical School and the author of the book: The Five Resets.

They get into the science of neuroplasticity (yes, your brain is changing every day), why your brain needs time to build new circuits, and why multitasking is basically “task-switching” in a trench coat — weakening attention, memory, and cognition.

Plus: the case for 10-second breaks, an explanation of “revenge bedtime procrastination”and why stress can turn into emotional eating (hi, amygdala).

Note: this conversation was taped in December.

Want to be on SGDQ? Send us your “dumb questions” on IG/TikTok @smartgirldumbquestions or by calling 1-855-MyDumbQ. 

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And obvi: SHARE THE SHOW WITH YOUR FRIENDS/MOM.

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The US is making unwanted moves on Denmark and toying with the idea of intervening in Iran —  but one country where the administration waltzed in and was welcomed? Venezuela. So … what’s up with that? Nayeema talks to 3 millennial Venezuelans to make sense of this moment — journalist Mariana Atencio, comedian/writer Joanna Hausmann, and comedian/actor Francisco Ramos. It’s an exploration. of nuance in the form of a dumb question dinner party (minus the dinner). 

You can follow our guests on Instagram and TikTok @marianaatencio @johaus @framoscomedy

Want to be on SGDQ? Send us your “dumb questions” on IG/TikTok @smartgirldumbquestions or by calling 1-855-MyDumbQ. 

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And obvi: SHARE THE SHOW WITH YOUR FRIENDS/MOM.

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Whether it’s the MAHA movement or COVID-19 management, can we trust American public health? Nayeema talks to NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya. He was appointed by President Trump last year, but originally came to fame in late 2020 as a Stanford Medical School Professor who challenged pandemic-era lockdowns. 

On the agenda: Why does the USA spend more for worse healthcare outcomes? Is Ozempic our magic bullet? With China moving so fast in biomedicine, will we rather go to Beijing or Boston for healthcare in 2050? What’s up with these changes to the childhood vaccine schedule? And what does the Director make of a White House that memes healthcare or proposes 40% cuts to his budget? Finally: by the time we’re old, can we forget that HIV or Alzheimer's ever existed?

To read more about the vaccine changes you can read the HHS report or reporting from WSJ or NYT. To learn more about the NIH visit nih.gov

Want to be on SGDQ? Send us your “dumb questions” on IG/TikTok @smartgirldumbquestions or by calling 1-855-MyDumbQ. 

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And obvi: SHARE THE SHOW WITH YOUR FRIENDS/MOM.

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Are we headed to another Great Depression? The 2026 market is booming, but economic vibes are no bueno.  Have we learned enough from the 2008 recession or past crashes to avoid another? That’s the big Q for Andrew Ross Sorkin, the  journalist behind New York Times DealBook and CNBC’s Squawk Box and co-creator of Showtime’s Billions. He’s out with a hot new book 1929 that makes sense of what precipitated the greatest tumult the American economy has ever seen. 

Nayeema asks Sorkin - Is our Roaring 20s rockets to Mars instead of towers to the sky? Why does money feel like our new religion? Are we in an AI bubble, a crypto hype dream, or “mark-to-make-believe” froth? And who could make better stock pics: Andrew Ross Sorkin? Or Nancy Pelosi's?

Want to be on SGDQ? Send us your “dumb questions” on IG/TikTok @smartgirldumbquestions or by calling 1-855-MyDumbQ. 

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And obvi: SHARE THE SHOW WITH YOUR FRIENDS/MOM.

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In this extended cut of the very first SGDQ Nayeema asks Mark Cuban if America's love-hate relationship with billionaires is justified, if we can count on rich dudes to solve problems like universal healthcare, and what happens on the group chats of the rich + famous. Also new: what does he make of a Kamala Harris 2028 run?

They're pressing questions as the world’s wealth — and power —  seems to be getting even more concentrated in our AI future, and candidates like Zohran Mamdani are willing big on an affordability agenda that focuses on those of us, um, NOT billionaires. 

Also: If capitalism broke health care, can capitalism fix it? Why does buying life-saving medicine feel like getting mugged at CVS? And what actually changes when you go from your first million… to your first billion? And does Mark Cuban believe in UBI?

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok for our latest and greatest.

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This is Part II of The Godfather (of AI) trilogy — where we learn if we can survive what we’ve built with one of the men who actually helped build it: Turing Prize Winner and Nobel Laureate Dr. Geoffrey Hinton. If you missed Part I you can scroll down to how AI (and your brain) actually work. 

Today, the “Godfather of AI” returns to map out the risks and the weird hope of finding  “mama” in this machine. So is AI alive? And if so, is it alive like a weed, a bee, a baby, or something we don’t have words for yet? Can these systems really be conscious or sentient? What’s the real “p(doom)” number - 1%, 10–20%, or are we all just guessing into the fog? And if AI does take over, are we headed for extinction… or will we just be kept around as pets?

HIT FOLLOW OR SUBSCRIBE to get AI Godfather, Part III where we learn what the future will look like!. And please share this with your Mom, best friend or the “AI expert in your life” that may not get it at all.

If you have Qs for Part 3 - What Should We Do and How Should We Govern an AI World? call 1-855-MYDUMBQ or post a video on YouTube, IG or TikTok tagging @smartgirldumbquestions and we’ll select some to ask the Godfather!

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And please share 

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We all pretend to understand AI but Dr. Geoffrey Hinton actually does - he's the “Godfather of AI” who's spent a half-century of work on machine learning and neural networks.

So what does this Nobel Prize-winning Al Pacino make of our AI age? Is this an industrial revolution, or the start of something more alien? How does AI … even work? Is it more neuroplastic than a baby's brain? How far away is super intelligence? Can’t we just unplug the thing off like Jack Bauer in 24, or will it manipulate and blackmail us before we can do that? And, oh, are the Swedish meatballs served at the Nobel Prize reception actually tasty?

AI, says Hinton is a “know-it-all,” but Nayeema definitely isn’t: she asks the “dumb” questions we all have about this new weird world of AI to Geoffrey Hinton, the Turing Award winner, 2024 Physics Nobel Laureate and Professor Emeritus at University of Toronto. In the process, we all get a lot smarter.

HIT FOLLOW OR SUBSCRIBE to get Godfather, Part II where we learn if AI is alive like a weed or like a person .. and send in your questions for Godfather, Part III by calling 1-855-MY-DUMBQ and leaving us a voicemail, or tagging @smartgirldumbquestions in a video on TikTok, IG or YT

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.  And please share 

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What's with the boyfriend backlash? Should you have swiped right on Zohran? And are AI boyfriends our future? Today, we have a friendly feed drop to give you a taste of a convo Nayeema had on the fab pod of our former guest Maria Avgitidis. It's called Ask A Matchmaker and you can get the full convo and more episodes on Spotify or YouTube and check out her book, "Ask a Matchmaker", for the kinda tough love Nayeema loves!

Send us your hot takes — or, better yet, your “dumb questions" - email [email protected] 

Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Stay curious, stay hot!  

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What is Rhythm? Melody? Harmony? Do we all have these elements ingrained in us? Will AI make better music than humans can? What is a Weenus? And would Kendrick or Drake be a better collab? Five-time Grammy-winning musician Jacob Collier joins Nayeema to unpack the science and soul of sound.

From Collier's early viral videos to performances with legends like Herbie Hancock to Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Jacob reveals what he’s learned about emotion, math, and meaning along the way – and how he turns live audiences into one giant choir (available as a plug-in for any musician to play with).

Plus, Jacob breaks down why infinity plagues him and how low-fidelity and high-constraints can create unexpected magic. For more of this wiggly music, check out jacobcollier.com and his latest album, “Light for Days” music on Spotify or Apple.

Send us your secrets — or at least your “dumb questions" [email protected] 

Also the new season continues every week! Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Stay curious, stay hot! 

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If someone pays for love, is it easier to find? Does it twist the power dynamic? Do professional matchmakers take a Hippocratic Oath? And how long do they think you should wait before….?

Fourth-generation matchmaker, Maria Avgitidis joins Nayeema to unpack the economics of love, from the 12 Date Rule to the $150,000 price tag of high-end matchmaking, and explore how dating has evolved from community introductions to algorithms and apps. Maria reveals why texting “doesn’t count,” why your mom is a better matchmaker than your best friend, and how your apartment may be keeping you single.  

Plus, Maria shares the one “IKEA test” every couple should take before moving in together.

For more Matchmaker Maria, check out her book and her podcast: Ask a Matchmaker.

Send us your secrets — or at least your “dumb questions" - [email protected] 
Also the new season continues every week! Make sure you’re following Nayeema and the show on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. Stay curious, stay hot! 

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