State of the Human

We can't live without stories, so today on State of the Human, we're investigating what stories do to us and for us. Whe... Read more

The mind’s ability to envision more than what is physically present in the world is an astounding fact of life. We’re al... Read more

Almost 100 years ago, a rogue geologist named Alfred Wegener proposed his theory of continental drift. It didn't matter ... Read more

Teaching seems pretty straightforward: one person knows something better than someone else and teaches it to them. But t... Read more

We’ve come to think of healing in mechanical terms, as repairing something broken, like fixing a flat tire. But for most... Read more

Nearly three decades ago, Psychologist James Pennebaker discovered a shocking correlation between secrets and health out... Read more

The human voice was once considered sacred. Priests and shamans would speak into ceremonial vessels made to preserve its... Read more

In 1971, Dr. Philip Zimbardo created a mock prison in the basement of Jordan Hall, the psychology building at Stanford. ... Read more

Listening is way more than just paying attention, and this week's show explores how. To find out just what listening can... Read more

Sometimes, marching steadily through the steps of life—we crash right into something entirely unexpected. In one instant... Read more

October is full of ghosts, but in our show we will not be talking about little kids who wear white sheets. We're embraci... Read more

Recovery can be pretty straightforward - you take medicine, you sleep, you wait. But sometimes getting back on your feet... Read more

When you lose something, there’s an emptiness, a hole, where that something used to be. And you have to figure out a way... Read more

When we joke with our friends, our coworkers and our family, it’s not just about hearing them laugh. More often than not... Read more

This week on State of the Human, we're looking at obsessions, the helpful and the debilitating. We've got four stories o... Read more

Since the days of Narcissus and the looking pool, we've known there's a danger in seeing ourselves. There's a possibilit... Read more

Sometimes you’re in your own country, your own home, and you know in your bones you don’t belong. That feeling pushes yo... Read more

In this show, we are talking about a very special kind of belief—belief in something. Often considered a defining human ... Read more

Breath and spirit have been closely related in human thought—for millennia. In a lot of human languages, we use the same... Read more

When asked what trait they want to instill in their children, most parents answer “honesty.” But in truth, learning to l... Read more