Robert Sapolsky | Father-Offspring Interviews

Epizode

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  Ape Laughter; Mirror Cells | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 30.07.2026 28min

  Episode 122 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include the potential danger that is mirror cells, and whether other apes laugh like we do.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Mirror Cells)00:16:58 Question 2 Part 1 (Ape Laughter)
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  The Truth About Peptides; Spelling Bees & Demographics | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 23.07.2026 34min

  Episode 121 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode discusses the recent craze that is peptides and whether they really help strength and muscle growth, and how one trains their brain for a Spelling Bee, along with how a trend in Bees reflects a larger pattern of demographics in the U.S.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro and Corrections00:01:20 Question 1 (Peptides and muscle growth)00:16:02 Question 2 Part 1 (Training for Spelling Bees)00:25:52 Question 2 Part 2 (Bees and Demographic trends)
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  Biracial Identities; Intersectionality; Eye Floaters | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 16.07.2026 37min

  Episode 120 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include how the amygdala processes “us” and “them” in biracial individuals, as well as in other cases of intersectional identities, and what the mysterious eye floaters we all see really are.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Biracial individuals and amygdala categorization)00:28:32 Question 2 (Eye floaters)
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  Bad Boy Appeal; Human Speciation; “Shared” Genes | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 09.07.2026 35min

  Episode 119 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode includes discussion of whether humans will evolve into different subspecies, inter- versus intra- genetic similarities of species, and why so many people are so attracted to bad boys.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Will humans speciate?)00:13:20 Question 2 (“Shared” genes)00:20:27 Question 3 (The appeal of bad boys)
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  Armenian Genocide; Snake and Fish Cooperations | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 02.07.2026 37min

  Episode 118 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include moral scrupulosity OCD and whether it may be rooted in intergenerational trauma, with the the Armenian Genocide as an example lens, and the (slightly terrifying) case of a snake and fish cooperative hunting technique.  BBC Krait and Trevally Clip:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XO07dZWNtccSocial & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 Part 1 (Moral scrupulosity OCD)00:08:21 Q1 Part 2 (Armenian Genocide)00:17:43 Q1 Part 3 (Intergenerational Trauma)00:27:39 Question 2 (Snake and Fish Cooperative Hunting)
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  Plant Intelligence | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 25.06.2026 37min

  Episode 117 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode focuses on work around plant intelligence and the amazing – though often oversold – things plants do.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Plants Part 100:14:26 Part 200:22:48 Part 3
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  Handshakes; Marchetti’s Constant of Commuting | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 18.06.2026 32min

  Episode 116 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode includes discussion of Marchetti’s constant of human commuting, as well as why we humans shake hands and how other species do the same.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolskySpotify: https://spoti.fi/3OuG4UDApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4ibqCdF00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Marchetti’s Constant and Commuting)00:15:06 Question 2 (Handshakes)
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  Bird Language; Stress Eaters | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 11.06.2026 37min

  Episode 115 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include why some people eat more and others eat less under stress, and groundbreaking work that has shown the complex language skills of birds.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolskySpotify: https://spoti.fi/3OuG4UDApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4ibqCdF00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Stress and Eating)00:20:10 Question 2 (Birds and Language)
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  Chimp Civil War; Bipolar II | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 04.06.2026 33min

  Episode 114 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode focuses on the difference between Bipolar I and II, and the chimp civil war that has recently made Scientific headlines. Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:37 Question 1 (Bipolar II)00:08:47 Question 2 (Chimp Civil War)
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  Sexual Reproduction; Acquired Savants; Human Dominance | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 28.05.2026 38min

  Episode 113 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include Acquired Savant Syndrome, how humans evolved to be dominant as generalists, and why organisms began to do sexual reproduction.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:01:07 Question 1 (Acquired Savant Syndrome)00:12:51 Question 2 (Human dominance)00:27:36 Question 3 (Sexual reproduction)
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  Chimps & Crystals; Gendered Colors; COVID fetuses | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 21.05.2026 31min

  Episode 112 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode discusses why women perceive more colors than men, the impact of long-term COVID on fetuses, and our closest relatives’ interest in crystals.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Gendered color perception)00:09:56 Question 2 (COVID fetuses)00:20:43 Question 3 (Chimps and crystals)
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  Fart Jokes, Handedness, SuperAgers | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 14.05.2026 43min

  Episode 111 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include why we developed handedness and if we’re the only species, what work on “SuperAgers” can teach us about cognitive longevity, and why we find flatulence so darn funny.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:34 Question 1 (Handedness)00:16:20 Question 2 (SuperAgers)00:31:40 Question 3 (Why farts are funny)
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  Sex Changing Fish, Sleepwalking, Gays’ Parents | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 07.05.2026 26min

  Episode 110 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode includes discussion of whether parenting styles can influence sexual orientation, what sleepwalking is and how other animals “sleepwalk,” and the many other species that undergo sex changes. Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Parenting and Sexual orientation)00:05:23 Question 2 (Sleepwalking and other animals)00:19:20 Question 3 (Sex Changing Species)
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  Call of the Void, Animals Adopting, Robert Trivers | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 30.04.2026 47min

  Episode 109 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include the work of the late Robert Trivers, the intrusive thoughts that are the Call of the Void, and when animals adopt their own and other species.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Robert Trivers)00:23:57 Question 2 (Call of the Void)00:35:58 Question 3 (When Animals Adopt)
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  Hurricane Births, Black Plague, Too Much PFC | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 23.04.2026 33min

  Episode 108 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include why the Bubonic (Black) Plague went away, how hurricanes induce labor, and when the prefrontal cortex is too effective.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:13 Question 1 (How the Black Plague disappeared)00:16:00 Question 2 (Hurricanes and births)00:24:04 Question 3 (Overactive PFC’s)
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  Hobbits and Hallucinations | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 16.04.2026 31min

  Episode 107 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode includes discussion of how one mushroom causes a very specific hallucination, and the real-life hobbits who once existed.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Tiny People hallucinations)00:09:42 Question 2 (Hobbits)
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  Punch the Monkey, White Replacement, Glymphatic System | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews 09.04.2026 27min

  Episode 106 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode discusses if there’s any validity to the White/Great Replacement Theory, the details of the glymphatic system, and the global phenomenon of Punch the Monkey.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (White Great Replacement Theory)00:11:30 Question 2 (Glymphatic system)00:21:19 Question 3 (Punch the monkey)
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  The Price of Atheism, Mania, Shock Bracelets | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews #105 02.04.2026 36min

  Episode 105 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include Rachel’s shock bracelets, the price of atheism, how to discuss banned topics, and the pathological “happiness” of mania. Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (Rachel’s shock bracelets)00:04:08 Question 2 (Atheism and Taboo Topics)00:21:20 Question 3 (Pathological happiness in mania)
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  Cranial Deformation, Spontaneous Monogamy | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews #104 26.03.2026 37min

  Episode 104 of Father-Offspring Interviews. This episode discusses how the Default Mode Network fails in depression, why cultures do cranial deformation, and the evolutionary journey of monogamy.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:13 Question 1 (Default Mode Network in depression)00:16:20 Question 2 (Cranial Deformation)00:24:26 Question 3 (Pair-bonding in mammals)
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  The Woman Who Smells Parkinson’s, Flagellation | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews #103 19.03.2026 32min

  Episode 103 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include the woman who is able to smell Parkinson’s, the ratio of brain to body mass, and the role of ritualistic physical harm in religion.NOTE this episode contains semi-graphic discussion of acts of physical harm.Social & WebsitesQuestion Submission: https://ha66meqrpqz.typeform.com/sapolskyInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/robert.sapolsky00:00 Intro00:00:14 Question 1 (The Woman Who Smells Parkinson’s)00:14:25 Question 2 (Brain body ratios)00:19:38 Question 3 (Ritualistic harm in religion)