Converging Dialogues

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Alfonso Martinez Arias about the cell and its importance for organisms. They talk about why many people overemphasize genes and underemphasize cells, provide a basic overview of the cell, and discuss the role of gametes. They talk about cells and embryos, embryonic stem cells, bioethics, science communication, polygenic index scores, cancerous ce...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jacob Mikanowski about the past and present history of Eastern Europe. They define the contours of Eastern Europe and why this region is often forgotten. They talk about the Slavs possibly originating from Romania, Ashkenazi Jews, Paganism, Christianity, and Judaism in Eastern Europe. They talk about Muslim majority countries in Eastern Europe, i...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Andrew Jones about the impact that Kant had on biology. They discuss philosophy of science, Kant’s influence on biology, and how transcendental idealism of Kant impacts biology. They talk about Kant’s idea of the natural world and reality, Straussian interactions with Kant, the need for distinct disciplines, and some spiritualism in biology. They...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Mackenzie Cooley, Anna Toledano, & Duygu Yildirim about natural things in early modern worlds. They discuss how they wrote and edited their book together, Bezoar stones and their medicinal purposes, and ambergris and its medicinal purposes along with aesthetic uses. They also talk about coffee in the middle Ottoman Empire and the relationship of...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue about the life and impact of J. Robert Oppenheimer. They talk about the elusive nature of Oppenheimer, how he became involved with theoretical physics, and the creation of the atomic bomb. They discuss his involvement with communism, AEC hearings, his last years, the legacy of Oppenheimer, and many more topics. Kai Bird is a historian, journalist, and...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Nancy McWilliams about psychoanalysis and the evolution of psychoanalytic theory and practice. They discuss the origins of psychoanalysis and misconceptions about Freud and the evolution of psychoanalytic theory from drive theory to object relations to self psychology to relational theory. They talk about the strengths and areas of improvement fo...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Sean Kirkland about Heidegger’s destruction of Aristotle. They discuss how he came to write on Heidegger and Aristotle together, destruction of the philosophical tradition, and the differences between positive and negative destruction. They provide and overview of Heidegger’s philosophy and provide an overview of Aristotle’s philosophy. They talk...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Blair LM Kelley about the roots of the Black working class in the United States. They discuss why she wrote the book with some biographical content along with the historical events, class and race for Black Americans, and the impact of slavery for Black working class folks. They talk about the role of the church for building and organizing commun...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Frank Putnam about our various states of being. They discuss states of being, the continuous self, and states of being in development. They also talk about different states of being in rapid cycling with those that have Bipolar Disorders, importance of memory, and how critical is personality and the Big-5. They discuss mental disorders within a s...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with C.W. Goodyear about the life and presidency of James Garfield. They provide an overview of Garfield and talk about the background context and temperament of Garfield. They discuss how he rose to being a General in the Civil War very quickly, his tenure in the US House of Representatives, and his emphasis on Civil Service reform and a Department o...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Salomé Sibonex about identity, creation, and embracing the ambiguity of life. They share immigration stories, shifting political sides, and being incentivized for being “anti.” They discuss why people believe in their belief systems so hard, being undefined, broad spectrum of opinions, and many more topics. Salomé Sibonex is an artist, writer, an...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Richard Wolin about the dark side of Martin Heidegger. They discuss the black notebooks of Heidegger and what are the nature and intentions of these black notebooks. They dialogue about reading the antisemitic and Nazi themes in these notebooks with Heidegger’s philosophy. They talk about Heidegger being a member of the Nazi party, editing and re...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Randy Nesse about evolutionary psychiatry. They define evolutionary psychiatry, critics of evolutionary psychiatry, and how we define disorders. They also discuss emotions mood regulation, disease model of addiction, and many more topics. Randy Nesse is Research Professor of Life Sciences, and Founding Director of The Center for Evolution and Med...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Lewis Dartnell about his triptych of books on the earth and humanity. They talked about how he came to write his trilogy of books, our essentials for survival, and diversification of hominids. They also discuss plate tectonics, fertile crescent, and East African rift. They talk about the differences and similarities of different human species, im...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Celine Kasem about the various ways she culturally identifies, her work in Syria, and activism in our current age. They begin by discussing how she became involved in activism and political work in Syria, and Gen Z’s use of digital media tools to spread awareness about issues. They also talk about the various places she has lived, concept of home...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Toby Matthiesen about Sunni and Shiism within the Islamic religion. They talk about the “divide” between Sunni and Shia Muslims and how this is not an accurate framing of these groups. They discuss the origins of Islam with the prophet Mohammad and the role of succession, school of jurisprudence, and the Shia century and interactions with the cru...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Peter Kramer about psychiatry and the role of anti-depressants. They discuss the inspiration for his new book and some of the major themes, the Goldwater rule and role of diagnosis, and the importance of truth. They discuss whether therapy is always valued for everyone, past and current depression research, anti-depressants, and many more topics....

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with James Costa about the life of Alfred Russel Wallace. They discuss the radical and revolutionary nature of Wallace, his inquisitiveness about nature since an early age, apprenticeship, trip to the Amazon, and scientific publications. They also talk about his trip to Asia, the interactions with Darwin, spiritualism, social justice, his legacy, and...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Lawrence Sherman and Dennis Plies about the neuroscience of music. They discuss how they wrote the book together, define music, discuss the different parts of the brain involved in music, and the different elements of music. They also discuss musical preferences, differences between composing and improvising, curiosity, memory, truth in art, and...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Andrew Koppelman about Libertarianism. They discuss why Libertarianism is so popular, how it is a mutated form of liberalism, Hayek and his views, and on rights. They also talk about taxation, the philosophy of Ayn Rand, role of regulation, Liberalism today, Obamacare, and many more topics. Andrew Koppelman is the John Paul Stevens Professor of L...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with David Veevers about the various perspectives around the British Empire. They talk about why people ignore some parts of history but emphasize others, Irish resistance, how the British colonized North America, and their interactions with various Native peoples. They discuss the British empire and the hegemony in Asia, meeting resistance in Africa,...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jaime Green about the origins of life, other planets, and meaning. They discuss the origins of life on earth, why humans ask the big questions of life, and life on other planets. They talk about AI, machine learning, utility of sci-fi films, UFOs and many more topics. Jaime Green is a writer, editor, and essayist. She is the series editor for The...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Peggy O’Donnell Heffington about women’s rights, choice, and children. They talk about some of the reasons why women don’t have children, Millennials having children later, and structural aspects of choice. They discuss the history of abortion, contraception laws, Roe V. Wade, Dobbs ruling, the history and origins of the nuclear family, grandmoth...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Scott Fulford about the economical paradox during the COVID-19 pandemic. They discuss what is the pandemic paradox ( spending less and saving more), income vs. wealth, state of the economy pre-pandemic, and the economy during the beginning of the pandemic. They talk about the CARES act, subsequent acts after the CARES act, the American Rescue Pla...

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Lionel Page about rational decision-making and behavioral economics. They discuss the history and contours of behavioral economics, work of Kahneman and Tversky, and why an evolutionary framework is important for behavioral economics. They also talk about heuristics, cognitive biases, gains and loses, game theory, Nash equilibrium, cooperation, b...