I love it when Robert Sapolsky says, "Wow". I'm always waiting for it when I hear him speak. 😃

So fascinating how our brains are conditioned to categorize and assign meaning to symbols. Ghandi was a British educated lawyer who wore British style suits in his professional life, but when he changed to wearing a traditional dhoti, he became "other" to the tribe hed aligned with for his education and professional life. He immediately changed member affiliation to a different tribe with world changin results...sports team cap phenomenon in another guise. Amazing!

Wonderful, I could listen to Dr. Sapolsky all day. Brilliant.

I listen to doctor to Sapolsky in a lot of podcasts but you managed to pull this knowledge out of him with your question. Thanks. 1:00:11 to 1:03:43

Initial resistance - then curiosity and decision to know more! Thank you so much

We don't cause what causes what happens to us. And obviously what happens, happens; the universe cannot do otherwise, and your mind is part of the universe (final truths are like this). We shouldn't confuse being aware that something happened with that we were the single complete cause (with absolutely no other forces involved) of what happened. All of existence is simply flowing causal forces - this ultimate truth doesn't change the possibility of pursuing a good life.

After Vietnam they did PTSD assessments on men in the infantry and found that 70% did not have PTSD. What was common among the 30% was early childhood trauma. Imprinting.

This was incredible. And thank you for introducing me to Robert. I just got some of his books!

It's one thing to talk about this. but another to really experience it!!

Love this discussion. It reminded me of a brilliant quote attributed to Mark Twain...."I have been through some terrible things in my life. Some of which actually happened." Clearly, Zebra brains don't do that! 😂

Super!

You /Ali changed my life!!!! 0h I follow you NEwhere!! Ty~

I see an alignment of this lens on free will with the work of neuroscientist, Lisa Feldman Barrett's constucted emotion paradigm. Id love to here Dr Sapolsky and Dr. Feldman Barrett dicuss these concepts...that would be fascinating!

I love ur channel

Humans have culture, we make up our world. A hippo never wonders about the harvest, human depend on what we imagine and the behavior our imagination inspires. Of course we are concerned about cultural dynamics that are detrimental to our thriving, others surviving or people over there starving. A zebra simply goes back to eating grass

Great

One Love! Always forward, never ever backward!! ☀️☀️☀️ 💚💛❤️ 🙏🏿🙏🙏🏼

What an amazing conversation will definitely listen to this one again, in my observations I think maybe it’s the 🧬 genes and the hand you’re dealt with which play a more significant role in how you are, wow the adrenaline and the anticipation before it that is eye opening, loved this conversation 😊❤

A wise man once said, "see it, don't be it" ...could the awareness and conscious processing of our thoughts and impulses also be determined, i.e.; beyond our control?

This interview points me to God!!!

I disagree with Sapolsky on free will because of the following: - We can never do REAL experiments determining if free will is real - Therefore, we can never know if it is real - Therefore, if we have free will and assume it's not real, we might really be fucking up and excusing bad behavior as "meh, it's just pre determined" We should assume it's real to a degree that is somewhat rational, I think.

God!!!!

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:04 *🤖 Introduction to the guest, Dr. Robert Sapolsky* - Mo Gawdat introduces his guest, Dr. Robert Sasky, a renowned neuroscientist and primatologist. - Gawdat expresses his admiration for Sapolsky's work, specifically mentioning several of his books. 00:45 *🧠 The link between biology and human behavior* - Gawdat highlights Sapolsky's expertise in explaining how biology shapes human behavior. - The discussion will focus on the biology of stress and how it affects humans. 01:14 *📚 The upcoming book "Unstress" and the series on stress* - Gawdat introduces the upcoming book "Unstress" and the series on stress, which this conversation is a part of. - He encourages the audience to pre-order the book and attend the opening seminar. 02:09 *🧬 The evolutionary basis of the stress response* - Sapolsky explains the ancient evolutionary origins of the stress response, which is shared by many species. - He highlights the unique ability of humans to experience psychological stress and chronic stress, which can lead to problems. 04:44 *🗺 Humans' ability to create abstract stressors* - Sapolsky discusses how humans can create psychological stressors that are not based on immediate threats, unlike other species. - This ability to be stressed by abstract concerns is a double-edged sword for humans. 07:02 *🦓 The difference between human and animal stress responses* - Sapolsky contrasts the stress response of animals, which is focused on immediate threats, with the stress response of humans, which can be triggered by abstract concerns. - He explains how humans' ability to anticipate and ruminate on stressors can lead to problems. 09:17 *🌍 The challenge of empathy and compassion for distant others* - Sapolsky discusses the human capacity for empathy and compassion, and the difficulty in extending it to those who are psychologically or physically distant. - He highlights the tendency for people to feel more empathy for those who are similar to them or part of their "in-group". 11:07 *🧘‍♀ Strategies for managing stress and maintaining perspective* - Sapolsky suggests strategies for distinguishing between controllable and uncontrollable sources of stress, and focusing on information that is genuinely useful rather than merely stress-inducing. - He emphasizes the importance of developing the ability to maintain emotional distance and detachment in order to act compassionately. 15:10 *💬 The tendency to focus on one's own emotional needs rather than the victim's* - Gawdat observes that much of the outrage and commentary on current events seems to be driven by people's own emotional needs, rather than genuine concern for the victims. - Sapolsky agrees, highlighting the challenge of extending empathy to those who are psychologically or culturally distant. 18:05 *🎥 The complexity of human attitudes towards violence and love* - Gawdat reflects on Sapolsky's previous comments about the human capacity for both violence and compassion, and the nuanced contexts in which these traits are expressed. - Sapolsky expands on the paradoxical nature of human behavior, explaining how the same person can exhibit both extreme violence and extreme compassion. 25:18 *🧠 The role of empathy and bias in perceiving others' pain* - Sapolsky explains how people's empathetic responses can be affected by factors like the race or appearance of the person in pain. - The anterior cingulate cortex, which is involved in empathy, can be less responsive when people are stressed. 28:12 *🗺 How stress narrows people's circles of empathy and concern* - Stress hormones like cortisol can make the brain more selfish and focused on its own needs, reducing empathy for those outside one's immediate "in-group". - Stress can bring out the best in some people, but more often brings out the worst, making it harder to feel concern for distant or unfamiliar others. 30:03 *🤔 The innate tendency to divide the world into "us" and "them"* - Studies show that the amygdala, involved in fear and anxiety, can be triggered within a fraction of a second when seeing faces of a different race. - This suggests an innate tendency to categorize the world into in-groups and out-groups, even based on arbitrary cues like clothing or hats. 33:23 *🌎 The arbitrariness of human loyalties and hatreds* - Sapolsky explores how easily people's sense of "us" and "them" can be manipulated based on superficial cues like sports team affiliations or religious/ideological symbols. - He emphasizes the fundamental arbitrariness of the factors that determine who people are willing to kill or die for. 41:18 *🤑 The role of dopamine in human motivation and the "happiness of the pursuit"* - Sapolsky explains how dopamine, often associated with reward, is actually more about the anticipation of reward rather than the reward itself. - This helps explain the human tendency to be driven more by the pursuit of pleasure than the pleasure itself, and the resulting dissatisfaction with attained goals. 46:45 *🔁 The need to constantly reset the "gain" on the dopamine system* - Humans have an extraordinary ability to experience dopamine-driven pleasure from a wide range of stimuli, from poetry to orgasms. - However, this requires the brain to constantly recalibrate the "gain" on the dopamine system, leading to a perpetual state of wanting more and being unsatisfied. 48:33 *🤖 The vulnerability of humans to manipulation by understanding the dopamine system* - Sapolsky notes that the science of how the dopamine system works can be exploited by those who understand it, leading people to feel increasingly hungry and less satisfied. - This highlights the challenge of maintaining contentment in a world designed to constantly stimulate our dopamine-driven desires. 50:35 *🧠 The role of biology and environment in shaping behavior* - Sapolsky explains his view that there is no free will, as our behaviors are the result of our biological and environmental history, over which we have no control. - He argues that even moments of apparent choice or resistance to one's nature are still shaped by the person's past experiences and predispositions. 51:02 *🔑 An example of a transformative moment overriding one's "nature"* - Gawdat shares a personal story of a moment when his daughter's distress led him to act in a way that went against his typical driven, business-focused behavior. - Sapolsky acknowledges that while this was not a free choice, it was a pivotal moment that shaped Gawdat's future actions and character. 53:46 *🤔 The role of one's personal history in shaping how we respond to experiences* - Sapolsky explores how two people can have vastly different responses to the same event or experience, based on their unique biological and environmental histories. - He suggests that the factors that lead someone to be profoundly impacted by a particular moment are not a matter of chance, but a result of who that person has become. 55:19 *🎢 Reconciling determinism with the capacity for change and growth* - Sapolsky acknowledges the scientific view that our behaviors are largely determined by factors outside our control, but also highlights our ability to use our knowledge and reflective capacity to shape our future actions. - He suggests that while we may lack free will in a strict sense, we can leverage our understanding of how our brains and behaviors work to consciously reconfigure our responses and make positive changes. 01:00:05 *🌍 The potential for positive change despite societal determinism* - Gawdat expresses concern that the deterministic forces shaping human behavior and society may lead to increasingly negative outcomes, like more conflict and inequality. - Sapolsky responds by emphasizing that while we are all biological machines, we are uniquely capable of using our knowledge and reflective abilities to consciously shape our individual and collective futures for the better. 01:03:53 *💪 Empowering ourselves to make positive changes* - Sapolsky explains that while our behaviors are shaped by factors beyond our control, we can still use our understanding of how our "biological machines" work to reconfigure our responses and become a more positive force in the world. - He encourages the audience to find the experiences and perspectives that empower them to make a difference, even in the face of societal and biological determinism. Made with HARPA AI

My only caveat is dogs have extreme anxiety to stress that hasn’t happened, this maybe either learned by environmental trauma or genetically selected for by selective breeding. Dogs can’t read books feel upset to the very fact that others are stressed. Chimps.. rats I think they’ve shown stress or anxiety.. but I know from growing up with dogs and finding them fascinating that they have real fear of perspective stressors that may not even be real.

I'd like to see a discussion with the handful of people who downvoted this video. Just curious

I'm always confused by Sapolsky. So we don't have free will, but we do have the ability to act on knowledge learned. But how do we learn this knowledge if not by choice? If I have no free will, the knowledge presented to me was predetermined. Consequently, what knowledge I choose to act on will be predetermined as well? Like, he's saying I don't have a choice in where the ship goes, but I can steer the ship in a certain direction, but that sounds contradictory in itself. I'm open to further explanation here.

...as a German Bio Chemist Ph D Sa Polski is a re incarnated Gil Ga Mesh a meso Potamian King nothing disturbs his eternal Mind ever we Pedestrians are Sheeple on the Farm...

What is the most expensive thing? A human life. What is the cheapest thing? Another human life. I do not find the human capacity to stress over things that are not immediately happening as bizarre, like Sapolsky. One would want to avoid the situation or cope with the situation in the future. The situation could have serious life consequences, including how others treat you. It matters if it is likely to happen in the future. If the stress disappeared immediately after the event, then that would not help dealing with it. What if it cannot be dealt with? To some extent, dealing well with stress requires accepting life, come what may, and brushing it off. One does not want to be cold either. That requires different things from different people, different people face different situations, and not all people have the same capabilities. Putting up with “useless” stress might be unavoidable and how much must be put up with depends on who the person is. How people interact socially is a very big factor; meaning that general behaviour can be the cause of other’s misery, even if unintended.

@RESPECT " EARN " KNOWING " WHO YOU BECOME" needs no Explanation " RARE " as long FLY on the wall *** hidden Meaning " YOU KNOW"

Why were we given brains by our creator if there are no free thoughts?

About free will, Gawdat does not appear to be looking at the objective evidence (he intuitively wants to believe in free will). The objective evidence supports determinism. With determinism there is no free will.

Yeap another comment ! Hope people who believe or worship are listening to this episode and understand why religions hack our brains through flags or territories.

stop watching CNN

He lost me at vaccines