Rationally Speaking #61 - Willpower

Rationally Speaking Podcast

New York City Skeptics

Society & Culture, Skepticism, Science, Philosophy

4.6 • 787 Ratings

🗓️ 20 May 2012

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This episode of Rationally Speaking is all about the age-old problem of willpower: why don't we do what we know is best for us? Massimo introduces some of the early philosophical approaches to this puzzle, and then Massimo and Julia go over more recent scientific research on the issue (for example: does resisting temptation deplete your reserves of willpower, or does it strengthen your willpower "muscle"?). They also examine possible solutions to the problem, including betting and precommitment, and online programs that can help.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Rationally speaking is a presentation of New York City skeptics dedicated to promoting critical thinking, skeptical inquiry, and science education.
0:22.6	For more information, please visit us at NYCCEPTICs.org.
0:31.6	Welcome to Rationally Speaking, the podcast where we explore the borderlands between reason and nonsense.
0:41.1	I'm your host, Massimo Piliucci, and with me, as always, is my co-host, Julia Galev.
0:45.8	Julia, what are we going to talk about today?
0:48.1	Massimo, today our topic is the age-old issue of willpower or lack thereof.
0:53.9	We're going to talk about what, starting out with
0:57.0	what philosophers have had to say about willpower and the eternal puzzle of why we often don't
1:02.5	do what we know to be in our own best interest, and then move up into more modern times and talk
1:08.3	about what science is found about what affects people's willpower. And then even more modern times and talk about what science is found about what affects people's willpower.
1:12.4	And then even more modern times with the discussion of various clever technological
1:18.1	solutions to the problem of willpower in the form of pre-commitment solutions online and
1:24.9	applications for iPhone and Android. Wow.
1:27.6	We're actually going to give practical advice.
1:29.5	It's amazing.
1:30.5	I know.
1:31.0	I know.
1:31.3	I thought this was a philosophy show.
1:33.0	I know.
1:33.7	And we also should talk at some point about the pseudoscience of world power because there's
1:38.6	something about that.
1:39.8	So, okay, you said about, you mentioned the philosophy.
	...

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