Where the unexpected is expected, Special Edition is StarTalk’s place for a medley of general interest science subjects including human performance, health, technology, and more! Special Edition covers more human and lifestyle aspects of science to help illuminate the world around us.
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Do the fractal nature of the universe and the human brain have anything to do with each other? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly welcome back Geek-In-Chief Charles Liu, for a grab bag covering deep space travel, fractal mathematics, multiverse theory, and what we might never know about the universe.
What if you could reopen your childhood brain? Neil deGrasse Tyson, Chuck Nice, and Gary O’Reilly explore the cutting edge of psychedelic science, critical periods, and what a high octopus can teach us about the human mind with neuroscientist and psychedelics expert Gül Dölen.
What are the limits of the human mind? Neil deGrasse Tyson, Chuck Nice, and Gary O’Reilly explore sensory perception, dreaming, synesthesia, time, and the flexibility of the human brain with neuroscientist David Eagleman. Why does time seem to slow down during an emergency?
Could there be other universes out there? On this episode, Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly answer science questions from celebrities like Steven Spielberg, Josh Scherer, Emily Blunt, and more.
Is there such a thing as objective truth? Are we living in a post-truth world? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly sit down to build a toolkit for finding the truth in an era of motivated reasoning, misinformation, and alternative facts with science historian and professional skeptic, Michael Shermer.
What’s the real difference between dreaming and waking consciousness? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly sit down with sleep expert Matt Walker to answer fan questions about the most mysterious thing humans do every single night: sleeping & dreaming.
Did evolution never give us the ability to see reality as it actually is? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly sit down with cognitive scientist Donald Hoffman to explore what neuroscience, evolutionary game theory, and consciousness suggest about the nature of reality itself.
Is the fear of heights innate or learned? Neil deGrasse Tyson, Chuck Nice, and Gary O’Reilly explore taking risks, the neuroscience of fear, and how to overcome it with freestyle rock climber and subject of the film Free Solo, Alex Honnold, and neuroscientist Heather Berlin.
Can we put the data centers in space? Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly map out the future of human habitation, research, and industry in low Earth orbit with Ariel Ekblaw, founder and CEO of the Aurelia Institute.
Is the internet too far gone or can we still fix it? Neil deGrasse Tyson, and co-hosts Negin Farsad and Gary O’Reilly, sit down with Jaron Lanier, Microsoft scientist, and father of virtual reality, to diagnose what went wrong with the web, how it’s changed with AI, and ideas for a new path back.
