Big Brains - University of Chicago

Big Brains - University of Chicago

By University of Chicago Podcast Network

The award-winning Big Brains podcast features stories about the pioneering research and pivotal breakthroughs by scholars at the University of Chicago and leading universities across the country.

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08/07/25

How Microplastics Are Invading Our Bodies, with Matthew Campen

You’ve heard of plastic polluting oceans. But what if it’s polluting you—your brain, your reproductive system, even your unborn children? In this eye-opening episode, we speak with Prof. Matthew Campen, a scientist at the University of New Mexico, wh… Read more

07/24/25

Why We Get Stuck—And How to Finally Move Forward

Hello listeners…we're re-releasing one of our favorite Big Brains episodes—an incredibly insightful conversation with psychologist Adam Alter. If you've ever felt stuck in your life or career, this episode offers practical strategies and surprising s… Read more

07/10/25

Inside the AI Debate: Hope, Hype, Or Harm? A Big Brains Panel Weighs In

One of the benefits of producing this podcast at the University of Chicago is that there are often events on campus that bring in not just one Big Brain, but many in order to find answers to the some of the most complex problems of our time. I recent… Read more

06/26/25

Are Your Medications Safe And Effective?, with Jerry Avorn

For a more than a century, the Food and Drug Administration has worked to protect public health. In his research, Harvard University physician-researcher Jerry Avorn has examined how the FDA’s once-rigorous gold standard approval process has been aff… Read more

06/12/25

Are We Making AI Too Human?, with James Evans

Prof. James Evans, a University of Chicago sociologist and data scientist, believes we’re training AI to think too much like humans—and it’s holding science back. In this episode, Evans shares how our current models risk narrowing scientific explorat… Read more

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