The Ghost of Dopamine Past | Frankly 103

The Ghost of Dopamine Past | Frankly 103

In this week's Frankly, Nate reflects on a moment of unexpected insight during a morning bike ride, which catalyzed a larger meditation on the modern human predicament. This episode explores the neuroscience of dopamine, and offers a reflection on the ways it plays into distraction, technology, and how we interact with the hyperstimulating world around us.

What is the "ghost of dopamine past," and how does it shape not only our individual lives, but our collective economic and ecological behavior? Why does the urge to scroll on our phones override the deep calm of watching wildlife? And how might tactics like dopamine fasting or socialization help us rebalance our nervous systems in a culture engineered to constantly produce more?

(Recorded July 28th, 2025)

Show Notes and More

Watch this video episode on YouTube

Want to learn the broad overview of The Great Simplification in 30 minutes? Watch our Animated Movie.

---

Support The Institute for the Study of Energy and Our Future

Join our Substack newsletter

Join our Discord channel and connect with other listeners

Avsnitt(371)

Wide Boundary News 2/23/26: Biodiversity Depletion, Iran & the Strait of Hormuz, and the Green Wedge

Wide Boundary News 2/23/26: Biodiversity Depletion, Iran & the Strait of Hormuz, and the Green Wedge

This week's Frankly is another edition of Nate's Wide Boundary News series, where he invites listeners to view the constant churn of headlines through a wider-boundary lens. Today's edition features r...

23 Feb 18min

Humanity as Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde: The Symptoms, Patterns, and Drivers | Frankly 126

Humanity as Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde: The Symptoms, Patterns, and Drivers | Frankly 126

In this week's Frankly, Nate looks at how aggregate human behavior changes as groups scale from small tribes to large and complex societies. He uses the framing of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde throughout t...

20 Feb 40min

The Future is Rural: Reclaiming Food Sovereignty through Farming Clubs? with Jason Bradford

The Future is Rural: Reclaiming Food Sovereignty through Farming Clubs? with Jason Bradford

With grocery prices skyrocketing and supply chain disruptions becoming more frequent, the average person has more and more incentive to get involved in growing their own food – but how does one even g...

18 Feb 1h 23min

Uncomfortable Questions in Unstable Times | Frankly 125

Uncomfortable Questions in Unstable Times | Frankly 125

This week's Frankly marks a new recurring segment on this platform where Nate poses questions about our shared future: Uncomfortable Questions in Unstable Times. In this edition, he explores what woul...

13 Feb 18min

The Misunderstood History of CO2: The Science Behind Earth's Most Controversial Molecule with Peter Brannen

The Misunderstood History of CO2: The Science Behind Earth's Most Controversial Molecule with Peter Brannen

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is often seen as the problematic byproduct of modern lifestyles that threatens our planet's stability – at least within conversations among environmentalists. But this perspective...

11 Feb 1h 9min

Wide Boundary News: Peak Oil (Not!), Peak Dispatchability, and WEF Risks

Wide Boundary News: Peak Oil (Not!), Peak Dispatchability, and WEF Risks

This week's Frankly is another edition of Nate's Wide Boundary News series, where he invites listeners to view the constant churn of headlines through a wider-boundary lens. Today's edition features r...

9 Feb 14min

The Consumption Pyramid

The Consumption Pyramid

This week's Frankly unpacks humans' current identification with the label "consumer." Consumption is something much deeper and more nuanced than shopping or spending. Nate highlights the ways that it ...

6 Feb 22min

How to Read the Signs of Collapse: Economic Stagnation, Resource Scarcity, and Europe's Industrial Decline with Balázs Matics

How to Read the Signs of Collapse: Economic Stagnation, Resource Scarcity, and Europe's Industrial Decline with Balázs Matics

Collapse has long been discussed in the public imagination as something that happens suddenly, immediately turning the world upside down. But history shows that collapse is more often characterized by...

4 Feb 1h 16min

Populärt inom Vetenskap

dumma-manniskor
p3-dystopia
svd-nyhetsartiklar
allt-du-velat-veta
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
rss-vetenskapsradion-2
rss-vetenskapsradion
medicinvetarna
det-morka-psyket
rss-ufo-bortom-rimligt-tvivel-2
bildningspodden
halsorevolutionen
hacka-livet
sexet
rss-geopodden-2
rss-arkeologi-historia-podden-som-graver-i-vart-kulturlandskap
vetenskapsradion
har-vi-akt-till-mars-an
rss-spraket
matfrihet