The Re-engineered You

Would losing your fear of death cure your anxiety? Or kill your ambition?

In 2014, a chatbot passed the Turing Test by pretending to be a clumsy 13-year-old boy. A decade later, teenagers are dating them…should we be worried?

Everyone asks for favors. But if you’re too available, too nice, too accommodating, does that actually lower your value in other people’s eyes?

The news keeps saying there are millions of open jobs, so why does applying feel like screaming into a void?

Most people avoid feelings of inferiority at all costs. But what if embracing it could make you unstoppable?

Meg Ryan's affair ended her career, whereas Russell Crowe won an Academy Award. Who decides which cheaters we forgive, and why?

The nation is getting more divided, and the entertainment media keeps pushing us further apart. When this is all over, can we really go back to being neighbors?

From Joe Rogan to Steven Bartlett to Clavicular: online creators are in a rush to become “extreme.” So why are they all starting to sound like clones?

Your brain is biologically wired to stop noticing the people around you, so why do self-help gurus pretend it's a willpower problem?

Do kids really listen when parents preach values? Or is "monkey see, monkey do" the only real rule?

Are “Grief Bots” an A.I. skip-button for feeling bad after a death? Or are they just another A.I. grift?

Can curiosity be trained, or is it something you’re born with?

Can talking about yourself in the third person re-wire your brain to be more stoic, and more self-aware?

Toxic lovers will “neg” you, tease you, lovebomb you, and act surprised when you demand attention. So why does inconsistency keep us “hooked” for so long?

The Biggest Loser did permanent harm to its contestants, allegedly. But it’s okay, because the show producers were trying to save the lives of obese people…right?

What does it really mean to be the best version of yourself? Lambos? Tigers? Cigars and women?

When every decision is framed like a war, how can we decide what’s important?

If being famous on the internet pays less than minimum wage, why are millions still chasing it?

Sherlock has his ‘Memory Palace’ and Mike Ross from Suits has his photographic memory. But what’s the real-life equivalent to these skills, and how do we get them?

Why are we evolved to be brave, especially if being too brave could get you pruned from the evolutionary tree? And who was the gritty ‘Mulan’ of the Revolutionary War?

Everyone wants a job with meaning that also pays the bills. Is that even possible in the current economy?

As humans we need each other...desperately. Yet we can’t help rank each other, measure each other, and compare each other. Today we’ll dig into that instinct.

Last week a Burger King in Lincoln Nebraska became internet-famous when the entire staff walked out. Then it happened again, at a Hardees. And again at Wendys. What gives?

If your partner never touches another person—but shares their secrets and their soul—is it still cheating?

Are human minds capable of coping with social media? Political polarization, teen bullying, rising depression...no wonder our ability to ‘social network’ responsibly has come under question.