It may be hard to think about "uncertainty" as a good things right now, but hear me out.Certain words keep coming up in this curiosity context: exploration, innovation, creativity, trust-building, learning -- and uncertainty. Not the "uncertainty" of the world today--which feels very heavy right now--but the "uncertainty" of allowing room for new t…

Leland Ko came on my radar when he was one of four gifted young cellists selected by Yo-Yo Ma to participate in a program called Music-Art-Life in 2023. It was, for me, a chance to luxuriate in curiosity. I wondered: Did their knowledge, skill, and feel for the music mean their curiosity about it was qualitatively different than my own? If so, how?…

Periodically I set myself a curiosity scavenger hunt theme with a fixed duration – 77 days of feet, a long hot summer of art, a month of biophilia, a week in the kitchen – and then I just keep my eyes open and my camera handy.It's a joy. The thrill of the hunt; the challenge and delight in finding something new in the very familiar; the excuse to g…

I found myself thinking about the exquisite agony of a Hitchcock suspense when I came upon an article in Scientific American, "Why Curiosity Makes Us Patient."Abby Hsuing & Alison Adcock assert curiosity makes us hungry for knowledge, but not necessarily in a hurry to get it. It's a finding that runs in the face of a whole lot of curiosity theory t…

The Ig Nobel Prizes recognize research efforts that make you laugh...and then think. They celebrate the unusual and honor the imaginative.They are, in my mind, a delightful and very deliberate celebration of curiosity.Ig Nobel Prize founder and editor of the magazine Annals of Improbable Research Marc Abrahams joins me to talk about the origins and…

What if museums were sticky, stinky, noisy places?What if they were sensational?Psychologist Alison Eardley is on a mission to make museums more accessible and inclusive -- physically and conceptually -- for all audiences. Her work draws on all of our senses, engaging us far more deeply with what's before us.What if museums helped us tap our collec…

For the 250th episode of this brave little enterprise, I invited psychologist and curiosity researcher Todd Kashdan to join me to rethink some of the old curiosity standards.The research has evolved and we're going with it.What better way to keep the curiosity alive than by questioning what we think we know?More about Todd Kashdan: https://toddkash…

...In today's conversation, Todd Kashdan and I touched on evolving understandings about curiosity across the life span, the challenges inherent in certain kinds of curiosity, and a more nuanced way to think about "the curiosity zone".But I couldn't fit the whole conversation in 28 short minutes, so here's a little bonus -- a peek behind the product…

From the moment I set foot on campus, it was clear that Olin College of Engineering has a special and very intentional relationship with curiosity. Olin embodies a willingness to try something new, make mistakes, and learn from those experiences.Gilda A. Barabino, Ph.D., is president of Olin and sets that curiosity tone.More about Olin College of E…

The big questions of astrophysicist Mario Livio's new book Is Earth Exceptional? The Quest for Cosmic Life are as close as we get to an ultimate curiosity -- questions about the origin of life, the universe, and where and how those two intersect.Dr. Livio worked with the Hubble Space Telescope and is a bestselling author of seven books. Together wi…

In 2007-2008, Chris Kolenda led an 800-paratrooper task force in eastern Afghanistan. While there, he motivated a large insurgent group to switch sides, the only example of such success in the 20-year history of the war.We can learn a lot from his stories.Find Chris Kolenda here: https://chriskolenda.comTheme music by Sean Balick; “Turning to You" …

Once you know it, you see it everywhere. Ever since Gregg Potter put collaboration on my curiosity radar, I'm seeing it in everything.Gregg is a collaboration coach and founder and executive director of the International Institute on Collaboration. He knows a thing or two about how people work together toward shared objectives -- whether they think…

Curiosity, biodiversity, rewilding -- these are the exciting places Carolin Sommer-Trembo Ph.D. takes us today.Carolin is an evolutionary biologist. Her big goal is to focus attention on animal behavior as it effects evolution and biodiversity. To get there, she has studied curiosity in cichlid fish in Africa's Lake Tanganyika, combining some good …

I could listen to peace-builder and story-teller Kiran Singh Sirah all day.Not because he's a gifted and generous story-teller -- he most certainly is -- but because his world view is so encompassing, so uplifting, so empowering. So beautiful.Our conversation about curiosity, stories and belonging gets to the heart of who we are as humans, and what…

We all want to understand the world around us, but sometimes our curiosity can lead us down some strange paths.Dr. Joe Stubbersfield is a senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Winchester in the UK. He's curious about how our various stories and narratives might shape -- and are shaped by -- our curiosity.Joe has researched how morbid c…

I'm intrigued by the concept of social enterprises -- businesses with a sense of purpose larger than themselves.Timothy D. Craggette is founder and Chief Education Officer of NAASBI, The National Association for the Advancement of Small Business Innovation. He trains business owners and supports small business innovation through the association and…

Anne-Laure Le Cunff is a Choose to Be Curious trifecta: researcher, theoretician -- and practitioner. A neuroscientist and deep thinker about the personal and social implications of our curiosity, she conducts tiny experiments to focus closely on how we use our time and energy to best effect.Anne-Laure is the founder of Ness Labs, a collective plat…

What do people who know and appreciate a place deeply see that I might not? The Mount Vernon Trail winds its way along the river, a combination national park and major commuter artery. It's a place I find myself frequently and I wondered: what am I not seeing in this place that is so familiar?The Trail is there because the Potomac River is there, a…

Annabelle Tometich -- writer, editor, former food critic and now author -- joins me to explore the tricky, high-traffic intersection of identity and curiosity.Who gets to decide identity? How do we determine our own, let alone someone else's, identity? How might we allow ourselves and others a little grace to figure these things out?Find Annabelle …

"Curiosity is fundamental to writing and to everything that I treasure," said writer Rachel Kadish as we opened our conversation. Hard to imagine, but it just kept getting better from there...Inspired by her New York Times opinion essay on teaching writers to seek "unflinching empathy", I invited her to join me for a conversation about putting our …

Peder Söderlind describes himself as a Swedish author, researcher and entrepreneur, but I believes he's an important emerging curiosity theorist. His writing and thinking on the topic are rich in all the best ways -- evocative, provocative, constructive.Our conversation moved from "local, difficult, and meaningful" problems for keeping our minds cu…

Can we capture what makes us curious? Where does our curiosity cross into confusion, or frustration? Can we place it? Might we experience it in one domain, but not another?These are the kinds of questions that animate the work of Emily Grossnickle Peterson, Ph.D., director of the Educational Neuroscience Lab at American University.Years after first…

Can curiosity be meaingfully infused into design processes? Cassini Nazir thinks so.From curiosity journals to bookmarks and Valentine's Day celebrations, he's full of ideas about how to invite curiosity in, by design.Cassini Nazir teaches interaction design and user experience courses in the College of Visual Arts and Design at University of North…

Summer's coming. Time to take that curiosity out for a little spin!Whether you're traveling far from home or enjoying a little "staycation," author, tour manager and explorer extraordinaire Andréa Seiger has tips for getting the most of your adventures.Why visit cemeteries, science associations and bus stops? Can you smell green? What do your knees…

"We live in an experimenting society" Nobel Laureate Saul Perlmutter reassures us, "The fact that we can use partial information and do better is actually one of our superpowers."Third Millennium Thinking: Creating Sense in a World of Nonsense by Saul Perlmutter, John Campbell and Robert MacCoun takes the optimism and tools of science and helps us …

It’s been ten years since self-described “questionologist" Warren Berger first published his best-selling book A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas.Now, more than ever, we need the power and importance of thoughtful — and, as he would say: beautiful — questions.And what of the intersection of curiosity and que…

I came across the heading "DISCOVERY MATTERS" as I dug around the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation's website and I knew I was on to something.Janet Coffey, Ph.D., directs the Moore Foundation's Curiosity-Driven Science Initiative. She aims to enhance opportunities for active public engagement with science as a means to help cultivate a curious and…

In his new and surprisingly uplifting book ASK:Tap Into the Hidden Wisdom of People Around You for Unexpected Breakthroughs in Leadership and Life, Jeff Wetzler distills the many lessons he’s learned into a curiosity-centric approach – “The Ask Approach” – that offers a way for all of us to tap into our desire for connection and into the wisdom hid…

A few months ago, I got a text message from a friend: “I’m at a writing conference,” she typed, “listening to a panel of agents answer the question 'What are you looking for?' Kayla’s answer began: 'I’m looking for fearless curiosity.'”Kayla Lightner is a writer and a literary agent with Ayesha Panda Literary. Together we explored how she knows "fe…

We talk a lot about questions here on Choose to Be Curious. But talking about questions is one thing, really wresting with them is another.Ken Woodward not only curates questions, he leans into them. Big time. And that has changed his life in ways large and small that are an inspiration to me. I think they will be for you, as well.“Wrestling with t…

The first in a series: looking at a place from multiple perspectives. I call it "A Mile in Their Shoes". We begin with people who have chosen to care for a bit of the Earth, the big-hearted, hard-working, fun-loving Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail. They have found community, purpose and lots to be curious about...Check out Friends of the Mount Ve…

I’ve been thinking that foraging – going from place to place looking for things one can eat – is a lot like the sampling and prioritizing of information gathering that neuroscientists are studying, just applied to things many of us readily dismiss as "weeds".Tama Matsuoka Wong is a finance lawyer turned professional forager. She got curious about t…

Today’s conversation with Ben Rein, PhD is a Choose to be Curious trifecta: a neuroscientist, who studies empathy, has devoted himself to science communication, and willingly stands in the chaotic swirl where curiosity can go weirdly very awry.Ben is a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Robert Malenka's lab at Stanford University and a science communic…

Author, journalist, sailor and community radio host Katya Gordon says radio pulls together everything she believes in: a shared purpose, old fashioned connection to one another, a vast array of differing ideas and priorities, and plain old hard work and commitment. We had a lovely and candid conversation about curiosity, spirituality, our many medi…

Business and popular magazines are riddled with assurances that the best leaders are curious. That where curiosity goes, success will follow. I blithely encourage people to “choose to be curious.”But the truth is: it isn’t that simple.There is some skill involved. And, not surprisingly, more than a few social constructs.So, today we’re digging into…

Do you have things you do, with any regularity, that feed your curious soul? Things that you just know will energize and enliven your day, your week, your whole month?You should. They make a difference.Allow me to introduce you to CreativeMorning, a global network of monthly breakfast gatherings "for the creative community" -- meaning: for you, me,…

What might the rest of us learn from someone whose job it is to observe places really closely?I met movie location scout Aaron Hurvitz at a wedding last summer and immediately thought (1) cool suit, and (2) interesting job – seems like a curiosity enterprise to me! Aaron’s location scouting credits include Joker, West Side Story, Indiana Jones and …

Addie Bracy is a professional ultra trail runner, coach, and sport psychology consultant. She helps athletes of all ages and abilities to prepare for the mental demands of competing. She says curiosity is key.Check out Addie Bracy here: https://www.strivementalperformance.comTheme music by Sean Balick; “Glass Runner" by Marble Run, via Blue Dot Ses…

Matt Rogers is a political strategist by profession and nature. I wondered what insights he might have about how curiosity shows up in politics. More than anything else, this ended up being a conversation about the risks of incuriosity. Matt sees the dangers for his beloved Eagles, in his experience as a political candidate, and in personal relatio…

The folks at The Center of Brain Health at the University of Texas, Dallas, want to empower people to be the architects of their own brains.At the heart of the the Center's work is the science of neuroplasticity – that our brains are works in progress, capable of remarkable continuous growth and strengthening.How might curiosity contribute? Dr. Jul…

Rob Lawless has set himself the goal of having one-on-one, hour-long conversations with ten thousand people. He has four conversations a day, which he carefully documents on Instagram. I was #6041.If ever there were a curiosity enterprise, this is it.You, too, can be one of Rob's Ten Thousand Friends. Reach him at @robs10kfriends on Instagram. Tell…

Ep. #216: Curiosity & Aging, with Michiko Sakaki by Lynn BortonDoor Lynn Borton

Soren Meibom, scientist turned visual artist, situates himself at the intersection of curiosity, creativity, art and science. His work blends the techniques of visual arts with the tools of science: data, formulae, charts, and graphs. His unique combination – what he calls “SciArt” – seeks to trigger our curiosity and ignite our joy of discovery.Ch…

Journalist and genealogist Jennifer Mendelsohn helps rediscover and tell stories that might otherwise be lost. She specializes in helping Eastern European Jewish families shattered by the Holocaust reclaim their history. In 2022, she co-founded the DNA Reunion Project at the Center for Jewish History, which seeks to promote DNA testing as a tool fo…

If you think poetry isn't your thing, spend some time with David Keplinger.David is the author of eight books of poetry and a professor at American University. We got to know one another through a humanities workgroup that was looking at how curiosity might be more effectively woven into the fabric of life at AU. He was a warm and profoundly though…

Happy New Year, friends! I hope the new year is landing gently for you.I thought it would be nice to start 2024 not in overdrive, but in a conversation about taking our curiosity out for a leisurely ride, and I figured Justine Ickes was just the person for it.Justine is an instructional designer, facilitator, trainer, and ICF-certified coach. She h…

Ask Andres Marquez-Lara what it takes to lead in the 21st century, and his answer will come swift and sure: facilitation.And facilitation? That’s nothing more — and nothing less— than putting curiosity to work in powerful ways personally, professionally, individually and collectively.Andres is founder and CEO of UFacilitate, a global platform for m…

Yasmine Arrington Brooks was a teenager when she became the potential answer to a challenge. The child of incarcerated parents with a passion for making things happen, she founded ScholarCHIPS and hasn't looked back since.ScholarCHIPS provides college scholarships, mentoring, mental health supports, and a peer support network to college-bound young…

Ilya Monosov invites us to rethink our understanding of the brain -- and to wrestle with the implications of how we define "curiosity".Ilya studies neuronal circuits of motivation, emotion, and learning at the Department of Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. But this conversation about how one neuroscientist expl…

Part two of a wonderful conversation with curiosity activist Scott Shigeoka. Scott has just released his new book SEEK: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Life & Change the World.In this second episode, we focus on a few of his favorite practices, including "Quicksanding" -- how to survive those scary, suffocating moments by slowing down. We explore …