Life Examined

The secret lives of cats, past and present

Jonathan Losos, evolutionary biologist at Washington University and author of “The Cat's Meow: How Cats Evolved from the Savanna to Your Sofa,” explores the evolution, peculiarities, and joys of our feline friends. Long before grumpy cat memes, cats were worshiped by the ancient Egyptians, and archaeological evidence suggests they were domesticated as far back as 10,000 years ago on the island of Cyprus. 
The ancestor of the domestic cat is a species called the North African Wildcat. Losos explains the evolution of the cat, their history of domestication, and how they have evolved from an ancient divine symbol to the common and loveable house cat.
“Cats are consummate predators. There's this wildness to them and they are as good a predator as there is on the planet,” Losos says. “I think one of the appeals to many people of having cats as pets is that you've got a little bit of the Serengeti in your own living room.”

’Til death do us part’: Hard truths on marriage and divorce with Tracy McMillan

Tracy McMillan, TV writer and author of Why You're Not Married . . . Yet: The Straight Talk You Need to Get the Relationship You Deserve discusses how her traumatic childhood and series of failed relationships led her on a voyage of personal self discovery and “correction.”  Married and divorced three times, McMillan draws on her personal experience as well as the hundreds of couples she’s talked to on her reality TV show Family or Fiancé, which she hosts on The Oprah Winfrey Network. She dives deep into her own shortcomings, demystifies the stigma of divorce and talks about why attachment and avoidance are the key indicators as to whether a relationship will last or not.

Biology’s new era: How mRNA and AI are impacting vaccines, medicine, and reproduction

Michael Specter, MIT professor, science journalist, and author of “Higher Animals: Vaccines, Synthetic Biology, and the Future of Life,” explains the enormous impact that new technologies like mRNA, CRISPR, and A.I. are having on our lives, particularly when it comes to medicine. New Yorker staff writer and author of “Future Sex: A New Kind of Free Love” Emily Witt talks about some of the latest research into reproduction and women's fertility.

Becoming a Buddhist: Two renowned teachers, two stories of transformation

Tara Brach, Buddhist teacher, psychologist, podcaster, and founder and guiding teacher of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, talks about journey into Buddhism and the importance of meditation, mindfulness, and trusting our “inner gold.” Brach is author of “Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha” and “Trusting the Gold: Uncovering Your Natural Goodness.”
Later, Sharon Salzberg, educator, co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society, and author of “Real Life: The Journey from Isolation to Openness and Freedom,” shares experiences from her early life traveling to India and discovering meditation, and the “unparalleled” sense of learning she discovered while studying under S.N. Goenka and others.

Estrangement: Why are adult children cutting off their parents?

Joshua Coleman, psychologist, senior Fellow with the Council on Contemporary Families, and author of “The Rules of Estrangement: Why Adult Children Cut Ties and How to Heal the Conflict,” describes firsthand his experience of family estrangement, which he says was “incredibly painful.” Coleman explains how his personal experience led to further research on family estrangement, including interviewing thousands of parents whose adult children have broken contact with them. 

Why minimalism: A history, practice and industry

Minimalism is enjoying a resurgence, but can a minimalistic lifestyle and aesthetic bring peace and calm? Does having less stuff bring happiness?

Effective altruism and our collective human heritage

Philosopher Will MacAskill argues that protecting the future of humanity is the moral priority of our time. Historian Tyrone McKinley Freeman explains philanthropy’s rich tradition within the African American community.

A perfect childhood, an elite education, and the horror of schizophrenia

Jonathan Rosen, writer and author of “The Best Minds: The Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions,” tells the story of his childhood best friend Michael Laudor and his demonic battle with schizophrenia. The story is a cautionary tale of what can happen when good intentions lead to the worst possible outcome. Rosen describes how Michael’s life spiraled out of control, the challenges of dealing with mental illness, and addresses some of the ongoing failures to help the mentally ill.

The science, language, and many dimensions of pain

University of Washington Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Mark Sullivan, co-author of “The Right to Pain Relief and Other Deep Roots of the Opioid Epidemic,” explains common misconceptions surrounding pain and what some doctors and the medical community get wrong when it comes to diagnosing pain and managing relief.  
Elaine Scarry, author of “The Body in Pain: The Making and Unmaking of the World,” describes the many dimensions of pain and why, when we are in pain, language and words fail us.
“A key — absolutely key — feature of physical pain is the elimination of agency, the elimination of consent,” Scarry says. 

MDMA, Ecstasy, Molly: Coming soon to a therapist near you

LSD and Ecstasy were once the hippy-trippy illegal substances for concerts, raves, and parties. Now these psychedelics are back in the news — this time for their positive impact on trauma and depression. 
Today nearly one in five American adults lives with a mental illness, and PTSD will affect an estimated 7.7 million Americans at some point in their life. That’s according to NAMI, the National Alliance of Mental Illness. 
Over the past 30 years, researchers and psychotherapists have discovered the transformative benefits of treating trauma, depression, anxiety and drug addiction in controlled therapy sessions using methylenedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA). KCRW explores how psychedelics and specifically MDMA have shifted the paradigm when it comes to the treatment of trauma, and what the de-stigmatization and medical legalization of these drugs could mean for future treatments of mental disorders.