TED Radio Hour

Ethan Kross, psychologist and neuroscientist at the University of Michigan who studies emotion regulation and self-control. He compares emotions to instruments we can learn to play. Topics include how intense feelings derail decisions, distanced self-talk using your own name, sensory shifts like music and awe, when venting backfires, and assembling an emotional advisory board.

Francesca Hoagie, a relationship coach who teaches flirting as a skill, John Wixted, a memory researcher who studies eyewitness reliability, and Alex Rosenthal, TED editorial director who speaks about aphantasia. They explore how mental imagery varies, why confident memories can be wrong, and how small social cues shape connection. Short, surprising takes on perception, memory, and everyday chemistry.

Pico Iyer, travel writer and essayist known for meditations on culture and silence, tells how a TED talk about ping pong led to an unlikely acting turn in Marty Supreme. He recounts the communal spirit of doubles play, cultural contrasts around ambition and winning, and the improvised, surprising moments of being on set. Short, reflective, and delightfully unexpected.

Laurel Braitman, author who explores grief and emotional coexistence. Avi Loeb, Harvard astrophysicist hunting answers about interstellar visitors. Philip Johns, biologist who studies urban otters and people-wildlife ties. They discuss city otters and human-wildlife design. They debate the nature of Oumuamua and searching for extraterrestrial artifacts. They explore holding joy and sorrow at once.

Magdalena Höhler, a linguist who studies intercultural couples, explains how language shapes emotion, humor, and power in relationships. Alex Carter, a law professor and mediator, shares mediation techniques and practical questioning strategies. They discuss listening to stories, using open questions, the power of silence, steering relationships, language pitfalls in cross-cultural love, and building a shared microculture.

Anna Malaika Tubbs, sociologist and author of The Three Mothers, recovers the overlooked lives of the women who raised MLK Jr., Malcolm X and James Baldwin. She traces a pastor mother’s faith and activism, a Grenadian organizer’s brave resistance, and a single mother’s fierce love that propelled a writer to Paris. Short, powerful stories about motherhood, resilience and historical impact.

Maximilian Milovidov, a Gen Z advocate and Columbia student, pushes for open dialogue and tech literacy. Catherine Price, author on attention and wellbeing, offers ways to reclaim true fun off screens. Jonathan Haidt, social psychologist, argues for policy limits and design changes to protect youth. They debate bans, regulation, AI risks, practical parenting strategies, and how to foster real-world play.

Anil Anandaswamy, science writer who examines the neuroscience of self. Elise Hu, journalist who covers beauty culture and K-beauty trends. Dolly Chugh, social psychologist studying moral identity and ethical growth. David Suh, portrait photographer focused on natural posing and body confidence. They discuss how photos shape self-image, moral self-protection and growth, K-beauty’s global influence, and the brain’s constructed sense of self.

Maoz Inon, Israeli peace activist who builds dual-narrative dialogue; Aziz Abu Sarah, Palestinian speaker who chose reconciliation after personal loss; Aqeela Sherrills, community organizer who negotiated the LA gang ceasefire. They discuss moving from violence to trust, organizing ceasefires and community safety, and building shared narratives and practical roadmaps for peace.

Chance Kokenauer, a digital archaeologist who 3D scans endangered heritage. Amy Kurzweil, a cartoonist who built a chatbot from her grandfather’s archives. Pau Aleikum-Garcia, a technologist creating AI 'synthetic memories' for displaced communities. They discuss AI-made memories, chatbots from archives, 3D scanning of ruined monuments, ethical limits, cultural bias, and uses for migration and dementia.