Best Of: The Power of Thinking Outside Your Brain

Best Of: The Power of Thinking Outside Your Brain

Author: Next Big Idea Club June 8, 2026 Duration: 1:12:49
Modern life has not been easy on our brains. Average IQ scores rose steadily throughout the last century. Now they appear to be leveling off. The problem, according to neuroscientists, may be that we have reached our neurobiological limits. Our brains simply can’t work any harder. Luckily, science writer Annie Murphy Paul has a solution. In her book The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain, she draws on a wealth of scientific research to show that we’re smarter when we get out of our heads. By offloading our memories onto our phones, making decisions based on our bodily sensations, using tactile tools to solve abstract problems, drawing inspiration from our surroundings, and arguing with our friends, we can access intelligence that exists beyond the confines of our craniums. In this episode, Annie explains how to do it. This episode first aired in June 2021. Sponsored By: Fora — Build and scale your own travel business by becoming a Fora Advisor today at foratravel.com/idea Northwest Registered Agent — Helping small business owners and entrepreneurs launch and grow businesses for nearly 30 years. Learn more at northwestregisteredagent.com/nbifree Shopify — Launch your business for just $1/month. Start selling today at shopify.com/nbi

Each week on The Next Big Idea, hosts Rufus Griscom and Caleb Bissinger sit down with authors and researchers whose ideas are shaping our culture, education, and understanding of society. The conversations are guided by a unique group of curators-Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant, Susan Cain, and Daniel Pink-who help frame these discussions around the most compelling new concepts in science and social thought. This isn't just an interview podcast; it's a deep exploration of the books and theories that have the potential to shift perspectives and spark meaningful change. You'll hear the stories behind the ideas, the personal journeys of the thinkers, and practical insights that extend beyond the page. The dialogue is structured yet spontaneous, offering listeners a genuine sense of being part of a substantive conversation. Episodes are released every Thursday, providing a consistent dose of intellectual curiosity. The podcast is produced by the Next Big Idea Club, an organization dedicated to surfacing and discussing transformative knowledge. Whether you're looking to understand the nuances of human behavior, the latest scientific discoveries, or the forces driving social change, this series serves as an accessible gateway to complex topics. The aim is to make big ideas feel relevant and engaging, without oversimplifying their importance. Tune in for a thoughtful break from the noise, where the focus is entirely on understanding what comes next.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

The Next Big Idea
Podcast Episodes
AI Has Gone Rogue. Here’s What We Should Do About It. [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:59
"This Is Really Bad." That's the not-so-comforting headline of Stephen Witt's mega-viral New York Times essay about a dawning realization among Silicon Valley researchers that "AI may no longer be entirely within human c…
You Don't Have Free Will. That's Good News. (NBI Vault) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:15
Do we have free will? Do we have a choice in what we do? Philosophers and theologians have debated these questions for centuries; Robert Sapolsky answered them when he was 14. Free will, he concluded, simply does not exi…
The Art of Fighting [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:08
We’ve gotten very good at cutting people off. But have we forgotten how to work through our differences? In The Art of Fighting, bestselling author and conflict resolution expert Priya Parker challenges the idea that dis…
Is America a ‘Country of Lords’? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:12
America was founded on a radical promise: all people are created equal. But for 250 years, some of the country’s most powerful thinkers have been arguing the opposite. In Country of Lords, historian Kim Phillips-Fein tra…
A Storytelling Masterclass with Will Storr (NBI Vault) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:34:41
Will Storr is the author of the dazzling books The Science of Storytelling and A Story Is a Deal, and in this episode, he tells us everything he knows about humanity’s greatest invention: story. More than just entertainm…
What Can Henry David Thoreau Teach Us About Work? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:33
Henry David Thoreau was a philosopher, poet, and pencil-maker. He was a great resigner and, above all, a superb writer whose masterpiece, "Walden," is considered by many to be America's first environmentalist manifesto.…
How French Philosophy Wired Modern Thinking [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:12
How did a group of notoriously difficult French philosophers become intellectual rock stars on American college campuses — and how much do their ideas matter today? In The Frenchmen, writer and editor Emily Eakin traces…
A Nobel Prize Winner’s Plan to Save Democracy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:08
Democracy is in the dumps. OK, that's a bit dramatic. But it's definitely not working as well as it used to. Good thing Daron Acemoglu — Nobel laureate, MIT Institute Professor, and one of the world's most-cited economis…
How to Unlock the Creativity You Already Have [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:26
What if creativity isn’t a talent you’re born with, but a muscle you’ve simply stopped using? In Daily Creative, Blythe Harris and Mallory May make the case that everyone is creative — even the people convinced they can’…
Caroline Webb on the Leadership Skills AI Can’t Replace [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:48
Want to be a better leader? Start by doing less. In her new book, Leadership Intelligence, Caroline Webb shows how smart delegation, ruthless prioritization, and the right time management techniques can help you make bet…