You and Betty and the Nancy's and Bill's and Joes and Jane's will find in the study of science

a richer, more rewarding life.

Welcome to Inquiring Minds. I'm Indravis Gontas.

This is a podcast that explores the space where science and society collide.

We want to find out what's true, what's left to discover, and why it matters.

Those of us that have small children in our lives have probably spent more time with them than we might ever have wished over the last, oh, say, year and a half.

And that has made us question our own parenting decisions for those of us that are parents.

In ways, I think, just wasn't happening a couple years ago.

There was one particular rough day where I was doom scrolling on Twitter, and I came across a bunch of posts about a new book

that hadn't come out yet by a woman named Melinda Wenner Moyer. And the book was called How to Raise Kids

Who Aren't Assholes. I have to say, from the title alone and from the discussion that was

happening on Twitter, I thought to myself,

I need to talk to this woman. So I sent her a direct message and sure enough, she agreed to come

on inquiring minds. Because it turns out that this book isn't just your regular parenting

book where a parent with some experience tells you what worked for them, which in

general probably won't work for you. Because after all, you're different, kids are different,

and that's what science is for. But instead of just espousing advice from her own experience,

Melinda did the research. And so how to raise kids who aren't assholes

is a whole book about science-based strategies for better parenting from tots to teens.

Although I think the sweet spot, really, well, at least in my case, because I don't have teens yet,

is that space in between tottering and teening, when so many other parenting

books just kind of give up on you. Melinda is an award-winning contributing editor at Scientific

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