Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt’s new book ‘The Anxious Generation’ argues we’re overprotecting our children in real life, and underprotecting them online. In this special episode he tells Evgeny why he believes smartphones and social media have led to rises in anxiety, depression and suicide among young people, and why we have to “put the technology genie back in the bottle”. They also discuss:

· The polarisation of politics and how it began before social media

· Why the evolution of social media has led to the return of “tribalism” in society

· Why war between competing powers is “likely to return”

· How ideas spread on US college campuses can go viral across the world

· What happens when you introduce fear into a liberal democracy

· How we “utterly failed” with the introduction of AI

· Has social media “rewired our children’s brains”?

· Why parents have to let their kids go out again, and learn to fend for themselves

· Why he believes Mark Zuckerberg “could and should have done more” to protect young people

The second season of Brave New World is coming soon, hit the follow button on your podcast provider so you don’t miss an episode, and if you enjoyed this show please leave us a rating and review.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final episode of our first season, Evgeny talks to psychologist and researcher Bill Richards, whose book Sacred Knowledge: Psychedelics and Religious Experiences is considered a seminal work in the field and is now in its 10th edition. In this discussion, they talk about:

· Why science and spiritualism don’t have to be separate from each other

· How he thinks transcendental experiences like those provoked by psychedelics are the "origin of most of the world's religions"

· His research into their benefits for those near the end of their lives

· Why is there a taboo against psychedelics research in health?

· What is our definition of “normal” and should we think about it differently.

· Bill’s summer as an ordained minister, and his first psychedelic experience

· Why he doesn’t think people should “pop psychedelics” just for fun.

Brave New World will return after the Easter break. Make sure you’re following the channel to get the first episode of season two as soon as it drops. And please do leave us a rating and review.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Evgeny meets Wim Hof to learn more about the Dutch athlete’s ‘Method’; a combination of breathing and cold-water immersion that he claims can have health and psychological benefits. Rita Ora also joins the show and talks about her own experience using Wim’s techniques as part of her wellness routines. And musician Marcus Flaherty tells us how he thinks the Method has helped him with some of the symptoms of MS. In this episode:

· Wim Hof reveals he developed ‘The Method’ to recover from the “emotional agony” following the death of his wife

· What happened the first time he entered ice cold water, and why did he want to do it again?

· How he’s trained his body to stay under the ice “for up to seven minutes”

· The scientific studies he says support his claims

· Rita Ora tells us about the surprise birthday visit she arranged with Wim for her husband Taika Waititi – and how he stayed in an ice bath for 30 minutes

· Her own use of both heat and cold as part of her wellness routine

· Her struggles with anxiety and panic attacks, and the techniques she uses to overcome them

· Why she wants Wim to release a playlist of music he gave her as an album.

If you enjoyed this episode of Brave New World, please leave us a rating and review. Hit your follow button to make sure you never miss an episode.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.