Ian Marcus Corbin is an essayist and a philosopher at Harvard Medical School who works on loneliness in society. During our conversation, Ian defines loneliness, discusses Robert Putnam's book Bowling Alone, the importance of close social relationships, the decline in civic participation in America, the risk of isolation to human beings and society, and the recent assassination attempt of Donald Trump.

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00:00 Intro

00:38 Defining loneliness

05:29 Growing evidence of modern loneliness

07:29 Robert Putnam's work in "Bowling Alone"

19:17 Advice for combating loneliness

22:48 What causes loneliness?

27:30 The Harvard study on happiness - good relationships are most important

31:37 How to prioritize a wise, flourishing life

38:38 Trade-offs between working for money and having meaningful work

44:22 Loneliness and the threat of totalitarianism

46:17 The assassination attempt of Donald Trump

51:52 Loneliness and modern men

58:22 The lack of a script for men today

1:00:31 What communities or societies are flourishing today?

Joe Henrich is a professor and the author of multiple best-selling books, including The Secret of Our Success and The WEIRDest People in the World. During our conversation, Joe talks about the interplay of genes and culture in human evolution, the importance of our "collective brains," what we misunderstand about human nature, what he's learned from visiting other indigenous cultures, how culture influences testosterone levels in men, how we might help modern, struggling western men, what we've learned about menopause from grandmother killer whales, the frontier of knowledge in human nature, and more.

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00:00 Intro

00:37 We're not individually intelligent

02:49 The reason for green and blue eye color in humans

06:01 A unique psychological aspect of status and prestige in humans

08:55 Human's competitive superpower: our ability to sweat

11:53 A story from Joe's experience with the Machiguenga in the Amazon

16:37 The variability and stability of human nature

18:37 What Westerners misunderstand about human nature

21:23 The link between prestige, good information, and human survival

23:41 Ideas to help modern men

28:21 Where Joe thinks our culture is heading with dating and mating

32:18 We have far more female ancestors as male ancestors

34:07 Testosterone in men in monogamous and non-monogamous cultures

37:02 Big 5 personality traits are not found in non-WEIRD cultures

40:53 Gerontocracy mating cultures in Africa

43:56 What we learn about menopause from grandmother killer whales

46:39 Joe's views on cultural relativism

51:23 Why Joe is so interested in human nature

56:19 What is our best understanding of what it means to be human?

59:10 Joe's forthcoming new book

David Blankenhorn is an author, an activist, a community organizer, and the co-founder and President of Braver Angels. During our conversation, David talks about polarization in the United States, the workshops that Braver Angels puts together to bring together politically opposed Americans for conversation and common ground, the threat of division to the future of the country, the receding of a "civil religion" in the U.S., the importance of approaching disagreements with a sense of goodwill, and having hope in this dark time.

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

Book a meeting with Dan

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

Keep Talking Substack

Rate on Spotify

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Social media and all episodes

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

Support via Venmo

Support on Substack

Support on Patreon

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

00:00 Intro

00:37 The state of civic friendship in America

04:27 The growth of Braver Angels

11:22 What motivates Braver Angels' members?

16:46 The work and mission of Braver Angels

23:29 We're less polarized than we've been told

27:34 Who is benefiting from social division?

33:12 Habits to maintain one's humanity

40:23 Politics replacing civic virtues in modern times

49:37 George Kennan's threat of internal division

55:34 The example of Daryl Davis