148. What Is Fun, Exactly?

FromNo Stupid Questions

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148. What Is Fun, Exactly?

FromNo Stupid Questions

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Length:

35 minutes

Released:

May 28, 2023

Format:

Podcast episode

Description

Why does time fly when you’re having fun? How do you teach rats to play hide and seek? And what does all this have to do with Anne Boleyn?

Released:

May 28, 2023

Format:

Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Stephen Dubner (co-author of the Freakonomics book series) and research psychologist Angela Duckworth (author of Grit) really like to ask people questions, and came to believe there’s no such thing as a stupid one. So they made a podcast where they can ask each other as many “stupid questions” as they want. New episodes each week. No Stupid Questions is a production of the Freakonomics Radio Network.

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12. Does “As If” Thinking Really Work?: Also: how effective is the placebo effect? by No Stupid Questions
33 min listen
Introducing "No Stupid Questions": Stephen Dubner, the host of Freakonomics Radio, and Angela Duckworth, the psychologist and author of Grit, explore the weird and wonderful ways in which humans behave. In each episode, they take turns asking each other questions, with conversations ranging from friendship and parenting to immortality and whether dogs are better than people. No Stupid Questions premieres May 18th. by No Stupid Questions
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7. How Do You Handle Criticism?: Also: is it better to send a congratulatory note to someone who deserves it or a condolence note to someone who needs it? by No Stupid Questions
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14. Are You a Maximizer or a Satisficer?: Also: what is the best question you’ve ever been asked in a job interview? by No Stupid Questions
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3. What Does It Mean to Be a “Hard Worker”?: Also: how does age affect happiness? by No Stupid Questions
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6. Is Incompetence a Form of Dishonesty?: Also: should we all have personal mission statements? by No Stupid Questions
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How Much of Your Life Do You Actually Control? (Ep. 15 Rebroadcast): Also: why do we procrastinate? by No Stupid Questions
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10. Why Are Stories Stickier Than Statistics?: Also: are the most memorable stories less likely to be true? by No Stupid Questions
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4. Does All Creativity Come From Pain?: Also: is life precious because it’s finite? by No Stupid Questions
32 min listen
8. Wouldn’t It Be Better to Hear Your Eulogy Before You’re Dead?: Also: how does a comedian cope with tragedy? With Eugene Mirman. by No Stupid Questions
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2. What is the Optimal Way to Be Angry?: Also: why do we treat pets better than people? by No Stupid Questions
35 min listen
How Much Do Your Friends Affect Your Future? (NSQ Ep. 31 Replay): Also: which professions have the happiest people? by No Stupid Questions
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30. Why Do We Seek Comfort in the Familiar?: Also: is a little knowledge truly a dangerous thing? by No Stupid Questions
35 min listen
16. What’s the Downside to Being Goal-Oriented?: Also: how does a cook become a chef? With Gabrielle Hamilton. by No Stupid Questions
32 min listen
1. Did Covid-19 Kill the Handshake?: Also: why can't humans handle uncertainty already? by No Stupid Questions
38 min listen
13. How Can You Stop Comparing Yourself With Other People?: Also: how can we stop confusing correlation with causation? by No Stupid Questions
34 min listen
27. How Should You Ask for Forgiveness?: Also: why is behavior change so darn hard? by No Stupid Questions
38 min listen
29. How Do You Know When It’s Time to Quit?: Also: why is it so hard to predict success? by No Stupid Questions
32 min listen
9. Why Is It So Hard to Be Alone With Our Thoughts?: Also: how do you avoid screwing up your kids? by No Stupid Questions
33 min listen
37. How Do You Know if People Don’t Like You?: Also: do self-help books really help? by No Stupid Questions
40 min listen
22. Why Do We Buy Things We’ll Never Use?: Also: how is social media like a knife? by No Stupid Questions
31 min listen
19. Is There Such a Thing as Good Estrangement?: Also: how do you know if you have a “bad personality”? by No Stupid Questions
34 min listen
11. Are Ambitious People Inherently Selfish?: Also: why do we habituate to life’s greatest pleasures? by No Stupid Questions
36 min listen
5. What Do Tom Sawyer and the Founder of Duolingo Have in Common?: Also: is there such a thing as too much science? With special guest Luis von Ahn. by No Stupid Questions
29 min listen
18. How Do You Raise a “Likable” Kid?: Also: what’s so great about friendship? by No Stupid Questions
30 min listen
44. Is Empathy in Fact Immoral?: Also: is it better to “go with the wind” or to “be the wind”? by No Stupid Questions
36 min listen
38. What Does It Mean to Be a “Good” Man?: Also: how can you stop ruminating? by No Stupid Questions
34 min listen
21. How Can You Identify Hidden Talent? With Eric Schmidt.: Also: is there a downside to billionaire philanthropy? by No Stupid Questions
35 min listen
58. What’s So Gratifying About Gossip?: Also: why do people hate small talk? by No Stupid Questions
37 min listen
34. Are Humans Smarter or Stupider Than We Used to Be?: Also: how can you become a more curious person? by No Stupid Questions
36 min listen

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142. Is Pride the Worst Sin?: Is pride an emotion? Where’s the line between self-esteem and hubris? And what does Stephen have against peacocks? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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144. What Should Be the Eighth Deadly Sin?: We asked you to nominate the worst sins of the modern age. Which one do Stephen and Angela think belongs on the list? And which does Angie struggle with the most? by No Stupid Questions
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145. Do You Have a Scarcity Mindset or an Abundance Mindset? by No Stupid Questions
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155. How Do You Deal With Big Life Changes?: What’s more stressful, divorce or jail? Are you in the middle of a “lifequake”? And should we all be taking notes from Martha Stewart? by No Stupid Questions
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147. Is Nudging Enough?: Is it enough to toss a soda can in the recycling? Why is Maria obsessed with Nobel Prize lectures? And wait — is that a news alert or a tiger? by No Stupid Questions
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156. How Do You Connect With Someone You Just Met?: How vulnerable should you get with your coworkers? What’s the benefit of telling strangers about your relationship with your mother? And why did Mike’s childhood home burn down — twice? by No Stupid Questions
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141. Is Greed Good?: Who’s greedier — gamblers or casinos? What’s the difference between betting on sports and entering a charity raffle? And does Angela know the name of her city’s football team? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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140. Is Envy Healthy?: What does social media do to our self-esteem? How is envy affecting our politics? And should you go to your high school reunion? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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150. Why Do People Get Scammed?: What makes a con succeed? Does snake oil actually work? And just how gullible is Angela? by No Stupid Questions
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143. How Sinful Are "No Stupid Questions" Listeners?: What does the Seven Deadly Sins survey tell us about the people who listen to this podcast? Are we more afflicted by sloth or by lust? And what does Angela mutter under her breath? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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146. How Do You Avoid Freezing Under Pressure?: Should you visualize success or failure? How do you bounce back from a mistake? And will Maria hustle Angela into a poker game? by No Stupid Questions
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135. What Should You Do on Your Birthday?: Birthdays! Why do Americans prefer Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July to theirs? Why do they make Stephen think of molasses and chicken feed? And is “Happy Birthday” the worst song ever written? by No Stupid Questions
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152. What’s the Worst Kind of Regret?: Is it worse to regret something you’ve done, or something you haven’t done? What’s the upside of rejection? And which great American short-story writer convinced Angela to quit driving? by No Stupid Questions
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138. Why is Everyone Having Less Sex?: Are we too busy watching Friends? Is porn driving us apart? And why did New Yorkers stop vacationing in the Catskills? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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157. How Can You Get Closer to the People You Care About?: How well do you know the people in your life, really? Are you stuck having surface-level conversations? And should we all be in couples therapy? by No Stupid Questions
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153. Should You Spend More Time in Nature?: Is a walk through the city as good as a walk through the woods? Who’s most likely to die while taking a selfie? And how does Angela protect herself from the beer cans falling onto her deck? by No Stupid Questions
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149. Is It Harder to Make Friends as an Adult?: How do friendships change as we get older? Should you join a bowling league? And is Angela more important to Mike than Mike is to Angela? by No Stupid Questions
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139. Why Do We Get Angry?: What’s the difference between anger and indignation? What’s Angela’s problem with turkey sandwiches? And why wasn’t a "No Stupid Questions" listener angry at the men who assaulted him? Take the Seven Deadly Sins survey: freakonomics.com/nsq-sins/ by No Stupid Questions
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My Body, My Stones: Poet and playwright Malcolm Tariq on listening, field trips with his brother, and the perils of dating while Black. by Poetry Off the Shelf
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167. Is GPS Changing Your Brain?: Is it better to be an egocentric navigator or an allocentric navigator? Was the New York City Department of Education wrong to ban ChatGPT? And did Mike get ripped off by Michael Jackson’s cousin? by No Stupid Questions
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What’s the Best Advice You’ve Ever Received? (Replay from Ep. 65): What risks are worth taking? When should you ignore feedback and go with your gut? And what did Stephen learn on a fishing trip with the town barber? by No Stupid Questions
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169. Can We Disagree Better?: Do you suffer from the sin of certainty? How did Angela react when a grad student challenged her research? And can a Heineken commercial strengthen our democracy? by No Stupid Questions
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162. How Can You Be Kinder to Yourself?: How do you practice self-care if you don’t have time for a break? Is it weird to talk to yourself? And does Mike need a bag of Doritos — or just a hug? by No Stupid Questions
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148. What Is Fun, Exactly?

148. What Is Fun, Exactly?

Description

Titles in the series (100)

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