Mind & Matter

Updated: 23 Jul 2025 • 245 episodes
mindandmatter.substack.com

Whether food, drugs or ideas, what you consume influences who you become. Learn directly from the best scientists & thinkers alive today about how your mind-body reacts to what you feed it. The weekly M&M podcast features conversations with the most interesting scientists, thinkers, and technology entrepreneurs alive today. Not medical advice. At M&M, we are interested in trying to figure out how things work, not affirming our existing beliefs. We prefer consulting primary rather than secondary sources and independent rather than institutional voices. If we encounter uncomfortable truths or the evidence suggests unfashionable ideas may be valid, so be it. As the host, my aim is to help you better understand how the body & mind work by curating & synthesizing information in a way that yields science-based insights that you can choose to use or disregard in your own life. Taking ownership of your health starts with taking ownership of your information diet. I am motivated to connect the dots and distill general principles from what I learn, preferring to ask questions and play devil’s advocate to debating or incessantly pushing my own viewpoint. My beliefs: Taking ownership of your health starts with taking ownership of your information diet.All knowledge is provisional and we must work hard to prevent ourselves from becoming attached to our favorite ideas & preferred conclusions.Wisdom comes from an iterative, trial-and-error process of learning and unlearning. Letting go of pre-conceived notions can be painful, but pain is information. Sometimes modern discoveries teach us we must unlearn received wisdom. Other times, modern information overload & historical chauvinism cause us to forget ancient wisdom which stills applies. The framework for learning that I embody is inspired by three Ancient Greek maxims inscribed in the Temple of Apollo at Delphi: “Γνῶθι σεαυτόν” (Know thyself)“Μηδὲν ἄγαν” (Nothing in excess)“Ἐγγύα πάρα δ Ἄτα” (Certainty brings insanity)

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Send us a text How brain synapses work and fuel themselves with fat. Episode Summary: Dr. Timothy Ryan talks about the high energy costs of synapses, the role of mitochondria and glycolysis, and challenge the long-held view that the brain relies solely on glucose by discussing new evidence that neurons burn fats from l

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Send us a text Episode Summary: Dr. Eugene Chang talks about the microbiome’s role as a vital organ, the impacts of antibiotics and Western diets on microbial health, and strategies for restoring a damaged microbiome through diet and fecal microbial transplants. They delve into microbiome dysbiosis, its links to modern

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Send us a text The genetics of sleep duration and sleep timing. Episode Summary: Dr. Ying-Hui Fu discusses her research on the genetics of sleep, focusing on natural short sleepers who thrive on 4-6 hours of sleep and the heritability of sleep traits like duration and timing. She explores how sleep efficiency, rather t

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Send us a text A blend of biology, philosophy, and history exploring how hormones and endocrine disruptors affect social behavior and society. Episode Summary: Dr. Charles Cornish-Dale discusses the decline of masculinity in modern society, linking it to falling testosterone levels, environmental endocrine disruptors,

93 min
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Send us a text How our biological clocks shape biology from the molecular to behavioral level. Episode Summary: Dr. Joseph Takahashi discusses circadian rhythms, exploring their biological basis, from molecular mechanisms to their impact on metabolism and health; the discovery of circadian clock genes; role of the supr

112 min
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Send us a text Cellular self-organization, cytoskeleton dynamics, and membrane wound healing. Episode Summary: Cell Biologist Dr. Bill Bement explains the dynamic world of the cell cortex, discussing how actin filaments and microtubules drive processes like cell division and wound healing through self-assembly and self

91 min
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