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PODCAST

Converging Dialogues

Converging Dialogues

Converging Dialogues is a podcast that is designed to have honest and authentic conversations with a diversity of thoughts and opinions. Wide-ranging topics include philosophy, psychology, politics, and social commentary. A spirit of civility, respect, and open-mindedness is the guiding compass. convergingdialogues.substack.com

science social sciences

All Episodes

64:17

#126 - Dogs Without Humans: A Dialogue with Jessica...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/04/07

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jessica Pierce and Marc Bekoff about a canine future without humans. They talk about how dogs could potentially survive and evolve in a post-human world. They mention the difference between breeds vs. individualized dogs, generations of dogs post-human, and how dogs have evolved with humans thus far. They also talk about features of dogs in a post-human world, skull morphology, ethics, and how people can treat dogs better in the present. Jessica

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105:48

#125 - A Geological History of The Earth: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/04/04

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Andrew Knoll about the geological history of the earth. They discuss how light, gravity, dark energy, and dark matter explain the early origins of the universe and earth. They also talk about the various layers of the earth, zircons, tectonic plates, and how one defines life. They also talk about how geology can assist in telling the time of earth, why the geologic timescale is important, and the early Ediacaran and Cambrian periods. They also talk

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89:33

#124 - Living In the Grey with Neurodiversity: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/31

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jenara Nerenberg about the complexities of neurodiversity. They begin by defining neurodiversity and highly sensitive people. They also talk about Jenara's critiques of psychiatry and psychology, specifically the diagnostic process. They discuss the curious evolution of diagnoses and the grey areas where people have challenges but not a full diagnosis. They also talk about the difference between diagnosis and treatment and many other topics. Jenara

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98:48

#123 - The Process of Animal Domestication: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/28

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Marcelo Sanchez-Villagra about animal domestication. They define domestication and how it is a process. They talk about niche construction and the three pathways of domestication. They mention the impact of agriculture, wild and semi-domestication, hybridization and adaptive radiation, as well as the impact of globalization and urbanization. They discuss the ethics of domestication, evolutionary developmental biology, morphological variation and

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126:15

#122 - Virtues and Limits: A Dialogue with David...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/24

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with David McPherson about the virtues of limits. They discuss the six limiting virtues and 4 limits. They discuss the origins of virtues and the two stances of these virtues. They talk about the difference between virtues and values and the importance of worldviews. They also discuss various opinions about Nietzsche's ideas on values and engage about authenticity, political and economic limits, healthy nationalism, and many other topics.David McPherson

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188:15

#121 - Unifying the Bayesian Brain Model and Free...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/21

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a discussion with Karl Friston about the Free Energy Principle, Bayesian Brain, and many neurobiological principles. They give an overview of the history of the models of the brain and discuss the evolutionary components of the brain. They also mention how important executive functioning and abstraction are for various organisms. They give an overview of the Bayesian brain, discuss predictive coding, and the two classes of neurons for prediction and prediction

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244:58

#120 - Is Psychology A Failing Science?: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/19

In this special episode, Xavier Bonilla has an extended and wide ranging discussion about emotions, current state of psychology, and sexuality. They discuss emotions and their function, expression of emotions, fear as a spectrum and instinctual vs. learned fear. They discuss the history of substance abuse and challenges with the American Psychological Association (APA) such as their reduction in scientific rigor and focus on activism. They discuss APA's recent guidelines and their shift to social

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103:28

#119 - The Communication of Whales: A Dialogue with...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/17

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Mel Cosentino about whales, their behavior and their communication. They give an overview of the taxonomy of whales, interactions between porpoises and orcas, and how whales communicate. They talk about memory and executive functioning in whales, how humans can understand how they communicate, and the environment in which they reside. They also talk about the impact of climate change, science communication, and many other topics. Mel Cosentino has

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77:43

#118 - The Origins of The East India Company (1/4): A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/14

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with William Dalrymple about the origins of the East India Company (EIC). They start by discussing his quartet of books on the EIC and his motivations for writing this history. They talk about the origins of the EIC, what was traded, and the large influence the company had in India. They discuss how the EIC went from trading to overthrowing the Mughal empire and ruling India. They also discuss how the EIC dealt with famine and became semi-nationalized,

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150:13

#117 - Cooperation and The Social Lives of Animals: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/10

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Ashley Ward about cooperation and the social lives of various animals. They talk about the importance of krill and how they cooperate, locusts and their exchange of serotonin, and the social lives of roaches. They also talk about inclusive fitness with bees, ant colonies, social connection of birds, and the adaptive flexibility of rats. They also discuss animal domestication and the ethics of farmed animals. They talk about the social hierarchy of

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84:15

#116 - John F. Kennedy: The Formation of An American...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/07

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Fredrik Logevall about the early life of the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy. They discuss why JFK's story is important for telling America's story. They mention the Irish immigrants that came to the United States and how his family gravitated to politics shortly after their immigration from Ireland. They provide the familial, national, and global backdrop for Jack along with the major characteristics of his psychological

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83:41

#115 - Should We Care About the Culture Wars?: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/03/03

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Meghan Daum about various aspects of culture and society. They discuss how the focus in society is about many cultural challenges. They talk about generational and technological shifts and the impact of fear and loneliness. They mention the new thought leaders, the ethics of podcasting, and much more. Meghan Daum is an author and podcaster who has previously been an op-ed columnist for the The Los Angeles Times. She is the recipient of the 2015

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106:01

#114 - Bridging Divides Through Curiosity: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/28

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Monica Guzman on the power of curiosity. They discuss the main theses of her book on seeing the humanity of others by using curiosity. They talk about the three challenges of human nature (sorting, othering, & siloing). They mention the challenge of scaling individual interactions to the group level, us vs. them, and whether people change their opinions. They discuss the assumptions of other groups, the intoit model, filling the knowledge gaps, and

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53:12

#113 - Building Life Over Billions of Years: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/21

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Neil Shubin about the building blocks of life over billions of years. They discuss why the fossil record is so essential for understanding the history of the earth and for understanding the history of past and present organisms. They talk about the importance of the discovery of Tiktaalik. They also talk about the four arches that make up all heads within embryology along with the continuity that is seen with eyes and ears. They discuss Darwin's

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119:31

#112 - Recalibrating Our Views on Anger and Shame: A...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/17

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Daniel Sznycer about the theoretical and empirical data on anger and shame. They discuss the recalibration theory of anger and the place of social valuation of anger. They also mention some of the recent cross-cultural finding of anger. They discuss the global self in how shame is defined. They talk about the other-dependent aspects of shame and the attributional theory of shame. They also explore how much pride impacts shame. Daniel Sznycer is

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74:41

#111 - Are We Evolved to Exercise?: A Dialogue With...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/14

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Daniel Lieberman about the evolutionary history of exercise. They discuss why evolution and adaptation are important to understand the human body, use of energy, myths of sitting, and how much sleep do we really need. They talk about why speed and endurance are important for humans, aggression, walking and running, the active grandparent hypothesis, and many other topics. Daniel Lieberman is a paleoanthropologist and is a Professor in the

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89:13

#110 - The Power of Convergent Evolution: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/10

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jonathan Losos about convergent evolution. They begin by defining convergent evolution and what the role of the environment is for convergent evolution. They discuss the importance of phenotypes and behaviors, speciation, and adaptive radiation. They mention how evolution can work fast using examples from nature. They also talk about evolution in the lab, the LTEE, and E. Coli. They also discuss the future of evolution, life on other planets, and

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116:44

#109 - Genetic History of the Americas: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/07

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jennifer Raff about the genetic history of the Americas. They discuss why respect and care for the histories and cultures of indigenous groups should be respected when doing research. They talk about the Clovis peoples, diversification of early people groups, and coastal migration. They outline the earliest evidence of humans in the Americas, Indigenous groups in Latin America, and past and present Inuit peoples. They discuss the ethics of genetics

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217:19

#108 - Structural Figures of Continental Philosophy:...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/02/03

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a discussion with John Macready about many figures and concepts in continental philosophy. They begin the conversation by talking about the two camps of analytic and continental philosophy. They talk about Plato and his conception of reality, allegory of the cave, and the logos. They discuss Descartes' methodology, cogito, and free will. They mention Hume and his epistemology, sentiments, free will, and racial naturalism. They discuss Kant and his concepts of

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118:12

#107 - Biophysics of the Living World: A Dialogue...

Converging Dialogues ·

2022/01/31

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Raghuveer Parthasarathy about four basic principles of the living world. They define what is the hybrid discipline of biophysics and why he chose the four physical laws he lays out in his book. They discuss the mechanics of self-assembly, regulatory circuits, browning motion, predictive randomness, and scale. They provide an overview of genes and discuss sheaths, helices, histones and how they contribute to humans genetic makeup. They also discuss

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466 results

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