All Videos

"Loneliness has been described as a chronic disease with no redeeming features. But it is very important for the survival of our species. It contributes to our humanity." —John Cacioppo Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: The Roseto mystery 2:26 The social neuroscience perspective 4:08 Loneliness induces short-term self-preservation 5:17 Loneliness is contagious 6:35 Conclusion: A public health crisis References: - John Cacioppo: The growing problem of loneliness - Malcolm Gladwell: Outliers: The Story of Success - Stephanie Cacioppo et al: Toward a Neurology of Loneliness Image: Nighthawks by Edward Hopper

"Is technology driving a wedge between our individual interests and our collective interests?" —Robert Putnam Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: American exceptionalism 2:08 Declining civic engagement in the twentieth century 3:22 The theory of social capital 5:02 Reasons for the decline 7:03 Conclusion: Technology erodes social capital References: - Alexis de Tocqueville: Democracy in America - Robert Putnam: Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community - Robert Putnam: Bowling Alone: America's Declining Social Capital Image: Early Sunday Morning by Edward Hopper

"It may be said without hesitation that for man the most important stressors are emotional." —Hans Selye Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Obligatorily gregarious 1:26 Homeostasis 2:13 Why zebras don’t get ulcers 3:33 The stress response: fight or flight 4:34 Inescapable stress induces learned helplessness 5:32 The role of oxytocin: tend and befriend 7:30 Touch starvation 8:26 Conclusion: Displaced aggression References: - Christopher Ryan: Civilized to Death: The Price of Progress - John Cacioppo and William Patrick: Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection - Robert Sapolsky: Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers - Robert Sapolsky: The Influence of Social Hierarchy on Primate Health - James W. Prescott: Body Pleasure and the Origins of Violence Image: Office in a Small City by Edward Hopper

It’s better to have peer pressure than to not have peers. Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Critical periods for healthy development 1:53 Arrested development 3:13 Relationships provide a secure base to explore from 4:27 Adolescence is a critical period for mating intelligence 6:14 Sociometer theory of self-esteem and mate value 7:18 Different developmental histories for boys and girls 8:32 Conclusion: Teenage love is a rite of passage References: - Meg Jay: The Defining Decade - Brian Gilmartin: Shyness and Love: Causes, Consequences, and Treatment - John L. Locke and Barry Bogin: Language and life history: A new perspective on the development and evolution of human language - Lee Kirkpatrick and Bruce Ellis: What is the Evolutionary Significance of Self-Esteem? The Adaptive Functions of Self-Evaluative Psychological Mechanisms - Lars Penke et al: How Self-Assessments Can Guide Human Mating Decisions Image: Summer Evening by Edward Hopper

"A rising tide can indeed lift a variety of boats, but in a culture of social isolates, atomized by social and economic upheaval and separated by vast inequalities, it can also cause millions to drown." —John Cacioppo Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: The epidemiologic transition 2:12 The three fastest-rising causes of death 3:57 Economic inequality and rent-seeking 6:07 The opioid crisis 7:43 Conclusion: Social dislocation References: - Anne Case and Angus Deaton: Deaths of Despair and the Future of Capitalism - Thomas Piketty: Capital in the Twenty-First Century - Gabor Maté: In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction Image: Illusions of Reality by Mark Henson

"Human beings were never designed for the poorly nourished, sedentary, indoor, sleep-deprived, socially isolated, frenzied pace of twenty-first-century life." —Stephen Ilardi Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Mismatch diseases 3:14 Affluenza? 6:00 Cultural neuroscience: the role of serotonin 7:50 Conclusion: Therapeutic Lifestyle Change References: - Loren Cordain et al: Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health implications for the 21st century - Sebastian Junger: Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging - Brandon Hidaka: Depression as a disease of modernity: Explanations for increasing prevalence - Joan Chiao and Katherine Blizinsky: Culture–gene coevolution of individualism–collectivism and the serotonin transporter gene - Stephen Ilardi: The Depression Cure: The 6-Step Program to Beat Depression without Drugs Image: Simple Pleasures by Mark Henson

"When we feel lonely, people may see us as aloof, less than empathic, socially insensitive, perhaps even ungenerous, when, deep down, what's really going on is that our cognition and self-regulation are being distorted by fear." —John Cacioppo Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: An age of anxiety 0:50 The aetiology of social anxiety 2:45 Social baseline theory 4:23 Social isolation leads to short-term self-preservation 6:05 Social isolation increases the predicted cost of the environment 7:39 Conclusion: Perceived social isolation makes us anxious References: - Murray B. Stein and Dan J. Stein: Social anxiety disorder - Joan Chiao and Katherine Blizinsky: Culture–gene coevolution of individualism–collectivism and the serotonin transporter gene - Lane Beckes and James A. Coan: Social Baseline Theory: The Role of Social Proximity in Emotion and Economy of Action - John Cacioppo et al: Social isolation Image: The Desperate Man by Gustave Courbet

"Autistic-like creatures, capable only of the most simple behaviors compatible with physiological survival… Their spirit has died." —John B. Calhoun Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Women most affected? 0:57 The demographic transition 2:00 An evolutionary mismatch? 3:03 Supernormal stimuli 4:13 A male autism epidemic? 5:33 A female narcissism epidemic? 6:44 Overpopulation in Utopia 8:44 The behavioral SINK 10:42 Conclusion: Death of the spirit References: - David Buss: The Mating Crisis Among Educated Women - Satoshi Kanazawa: Bowling with our imaginary friends - Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying: A Hunter-Gatherer's Guide to the 21st Century: Evolution and the Challenges of Modern Life - Jean Twenge and W. Keith Campbell: The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement - John B. Calhoun: Death Squared: The Explosive Growth and Demise of a Mouse Population Image: The Lovers II by René Magritte

"Every philosophy is the philosophy of some stage of life." —Friedrich Nietzsche Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: The three metamorphoses 1:13 The problem of nihilism 3:45 Self-overcoming 6:07 Blue pill = camel 7:21 Red pill = lion 8:47 Black pill = saint of knowledge 10:27 White pill = child References: - Friedrich Nietzsche: Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for All and None Image: The Two Majesties by Jean-Léon Gérôme

"Power is in inflicting pain and humiliation. Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing." —Nineteen Eighty-Four Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction: Social groups 0:51 Abusive men 1:55 Abusive women 4:12 Force vs power 5:17 Hard totalitarianism 7:20 Soft totalitarianism 9:54 Conclusion: Room 101 References: - David Buss: When Men Behave Badly - Esther Vilar: The Polygamous Sex - Diana Fleischman: How to Train Your Boyfriend - Samuel T. Francis: Leviathan and Its Enemies - George Orwell: Nineteen Eighty-Four - Aldous Huxley: Brave New World Image: Cost of Freedom by Mark Henson