September 8, 2023February 27, 2024Rethinking Mortality: Exploring the Intersection of Life and DeathScientific advances in the 21st century have led to major breakthroughs in the understanding of death. One in five survivors of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) who are revived back to life recall experiencing a heightened and transcendent state of consciousness that often follows a specific narrative arc. What can these remarkable experiences ultimately tell us about the nature of human consciousness?September 8, 2023January 9, 2024Spiritual Materialism: Transcendent Encounters with the SacredWhat is the origin of our transcendent experiences? How should we interpret feelings of being connected to nature and the...September 8, 2023February 27, 2024The Spiritual Impulse: Understanding the Experience of GodNumerous polls have consistently shown that most people around the world believe in the existence of God or some higher...September 7, 2022November 14, 2023Cultivating the Mind: Reason and the Pursuit of Ethical TransformationRationality, long considered a distinctive characteristic of the human mind, provides us with the capacity for understanding and discernment, as well as the ability to introduce order into our thoughts by allowing us to form higher-order volitions, adopt values, establish priorities, and achieve a level of consistency in our actions across time. The ancient Socratic ideal of the “examined life” in pursuit of truth and justice relied on a definition of human nature that was to be cultivated in a systematic way.September 6, 2022September 11, 2023Fathoming the Mind: A Closer Look at the Formation of SelfRecent research in animal behavior and culture shows that the mental capacities of animals have been largely undervalued. And yet it is hard to resist the impression of a gap—a difference in nature rather than degree—between humans and non-humans when it comes to certain tasks involving abstraction, planning, sustained attention, or the transmission of culture over generations. How different is the human mind from the minds of non-human animals?September 5, 2022September 11, 2023Unraveling the Mind: The Mystery of ConsciousnessFew words in our language appear to cover such a broad and flexible swath of ideas as “the mind.” But what, actually, is the human mind? How does it relate to and differ from its seemingly inseparable companion, the brain? Where does the mind begin or emerge from? Is it merely a by-product of neural activities within the brain, or does it connect with deeper and more fundamental features of physical reality that possibly span across nature beyond the realm of living forms?December 28, 2021May 3, 2022The Enigma of Life: Confronting Marvels at the Edges of SciencePhysicist Marcelo Gleiser, experimental psychologist Tania Lombrozo, and physician Gavin Francis analyze the impact of awe and wonder on their own work and on the mindsets of their colleagues carrying out cutting-edge scientific research.December 4, 2019September 28, 2022Beyond Oneself: The Ethics and Psychology of AweProf. of religious studies and ethicist Lisa Sideris joins psychologists Jennifer Stellar and Piercarlo Valdesolo to explore our understanding of how awe shapes our perspectives and views on everything from science to morality.October 10, 2019September 25, 2022Unpacking Wonder: From Curiosity to ComprehensionSocial psychologist Michelle "Lani" Shiota, writer Caspar Henderson, and astrophysicist Alex Filippenko unpack the emerging science behind the emotion of awe and wonder, and its function in our ongoing quest for understanding and knowledge.April 6, 2019September 28, 2022The Musical Art of Ostad Elahi Hosted by New York Public Radio’s John Schaefer, the sold-out event began with a debut documentary film screening on the...April 5, 2019September 28, 2022The Musical Legacy of Ostad ElahiThe sold-out program featured opening remarks by Ken Moore, Curator Emeritus of the Department of Musical Instruments, and Dr. Ebby...February 7, 2019March 28, 2022Reality Is Not As It SeemsCognitive scientist Donald D. Hoffman and neurologist Suzanne O’Sullivan join Steve Paulson to discuss the elusive quest to understand the fundamental nature of consciousness, and why our perception of reality is not necessarily what it seems.December 6, 2018March 28, 2022Human Cognition and the AI RevolutionLogician/mathematician Roger Antonsen and computer science pioneer Barbara J. Grosz join Steve Paulson to break down the fundamental elements of human understanding and analyze what lies ahead on the horizon of AI.October 10, 2018March 28, 2022The Mystery of Our Mathematical UniverseTheoretical physicist S. James Gates Jr. and science writer Margaret Wertheim join Steve Paulson to explore the mystery of our universe and the uncanny potential of mathematics to reveal the laws of nature.February 7, 2018March 28, 2022A Touch of Awe: Crafting Meaning from the Wonder of the CosmosTheoretical physicists Paul Davies and Ard Louis, and astrophysicist Lucianne Walkowicz tackle the “big questions” of existence, sharing their perceptions based on years of gazing upward and beyond our own intimate planet. Load More Posts
September 8, 2023February 27, 2024Rethinking Mortality: Exploring the Intersection of Life and DeathScientific advances in the 21st century have led to major breakthroughs in the understanding of death. One in five survivors of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) who are revived back to life recall experiencing a heightened and transcendent state of consciousness that often follows a specific narrative arc. What can these remarkable experiences ultimately tell us about the nature of human consciousness?
September 8, 2023January 9, 2024Spiritual Materialism: Transcendent Encounters with the SacredWhat is the origin of our transcendent experiences? How should we interpret feelings of being connected to nature and the...
September 8, 2023February 27, 2024The Spiritual Impulse: Understanding the Experience of GodNumerous polls have consistently shown that most people around the world believe in the existence of God or some higher...
September 7, 2022November 14, 2023Cultivating the Mind: Reason and the Pursuit of Ethical TransformationRationality, long considered a distinctive characteristic of the human mind, provides us with the capacity for understanding and discernment, as well as the ability to introduce order into our thoughts by allowing us to form higher-order volitions, adopt values, establish priorities, and achieve a level of consistency in our actions across time. The ancient Socratic ideal of the “examined life” in pursuit of truth and justice relied on a definition of human nature that was to be cultivated in a systematic way.
September 6, 2022September 11, 2023Fathoming the Mind: A Closer Look at the Formation of SelfRecent research in animal behavior and culture shows that the mental capacities of animals have been largely undervalued. And yet it is hard to resist the impression of a gap—a difference in nature rather than degree—between humans and non-humans when it comes to certain tasks involving abstraction, planning, sustained attention, or the transmission of culture over generations. How different is the human mind from the minds of non-human animals?
September 5, 2022September 11, 2023Unraveling the Mind: The Mystery of ConsciousnessFew words in our language appear to cover such a broad and flexible swath of ideas as “the mind.” But what, actually, is the human mind? How does it relate to and differ from its seemingly inseparable companion, the brain? Where does the mind begin or emerge from? Is it merely a by-product of neural activities within the brain, or does it connect with deeper and more fundamental features of physical reality that possibly span across nature beyond the realm of living forms?
December 28, 2021May 3, 2022The Enigma of Life: Confronting Marvels at the Edges of SciencePhysicist Marcelo Gleiser, experimental psychologist Tania Lombrozo, and physician Gavin Francis analyze the impact of awe and wonder on their own work and on the mindsets of their colleagues carrying out cutting-edge scientific research.
December 4, 2019September 28, 2022Beyond Oneself: The Ethics and Psychology of AweProf. of religious studies and ethicist Lisa Sideris joins psychologists Jennifer Stellar and Piercarlo Valdesolo to explore our understanding of how awe shapes our perspectives and views on everything from science to morality.
October 10, 2019September 25, 2022Unpacking Wonder: From Curiosity to ComprehensionSocial psychologist Michelle "Lani" Shiota, writer Caspar Henderson, and astrophysicist Alex Filippenko unpack the emerging science behind the emotion of awe and wonder, and its function in our ongoing quest for understanding and knowledge.
April 6, 2019September 28, 2022The Musical Art of Ostad Elahi Hosted by New York Public Radio’s John Schaefer, the sold-out event began with a debut documentary film screening on the...
April 5, 2019September 28, 2022The Musical Legacy of Ostad ElahiThe sold-out program featured opening remarks by Ken Moore, Curator Emeritus of the Department of Musical Instruments, and Dr. Ebby...
February 7, 2019March 28, 2022Reality Is Not As It SeemsCognitive scientist Donald D. Hoffman and neurologist Suzanne O’Sullivan join Steve Paulson to discuss the elusive quest to understand the fundamental nature of consciousness, and why our perception of reality is not necessarily what it seems.
December 6, 2018March 28, 2022Human Cognition and the AI RevolutionLogician/mathematician Roger Antonsen and computer science pioneer Barbara J. Grosz join Steve Paulson to break down the fundamental elements of human understanding and analyze what lies ahead on the horizon of AI.
October 10, 2018March 28, 2022The Mystery of Our Mathematical UniverseTheoretical physicist S. James Gates Jr. and science writer Margaret Wertheim join Steve Paulson to explore the mystery of our universe and the uncanny potential of mathematics to reveal the laws of nature.
February 7, 2018March 28, 2022A Touch of Awe: Crafting Meaning from the Wonder of the CosmosTheoretical physicists Paul Davies and Ard Louis, and astrophysicist Lucianne Walkowicz tackle the “big questions” of existence, sharing their perceptions based on years of gazing upward and beyond our own intimate planet.