Robert Sapolsky: “The Brain, Determinism, and Cultural Implications“ | The Great Simplification #88

On this episode, neuroscientist and author Robert Sapolsky joins Nate to discuss the structure of the human brain and its implication on behavior and our ability to change. Dr. Sapolsky also unpacks how the innate quality of a biological organism shaped by evolution and the surrounding environment - meaning all animals, including humans - leads him to believe that there is no such thing as free will, at least how we think about it today. How do our past and present hormone levels, hunger, stress, and more affect the way we make decisions? What implications does this have in a future headed towards lower energy and resource availability? How can our species manage the mismatch of our evolutionary biology with our modern day challenges - and navigate through a ‘determined’ future? About Robert Sapolsky: Robert Sapolsky is professor of biology and neurology at Stanford University and a research associate with the Institute of Primate Research at the National Museum of Kenya. Over the past thirty years, he has divided his time between the lab, where he studies how stress hormones can damage the brain, and in East Africa, where he studies the impact of chronic stress on the health of baboons. Sapolsky is author of several books, including Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, A Primate’s Memoir, Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst, and his newest book coming out in October, Determined: Life Without Free Will. He lives with his family in San Francisco. For Show Notes and More visit: 00:00 - Episode highlight 00:15 - Guest introduction 03:10 - When did Robert know he wanted to study animal behavior? 04:40 - When was his last research trip? 05:46 - Challenges that come from differences from modern and ancestral environments 07:20 - Physiology and our emotions 09:37 - Divide in evolutionary beliefs 12:13 - Behavioral science and religion 14:40 - Past students’ impacted by Robert 16:48 - Testosterone 21:07 - Dopamine 29:02 - Oxytocin 32:19 - Hormones affecting social behavior 38:21 - Changing the environmental stimuli of pregnant people to positively impact fetus’ development. 41:55 - Free will 57:24 - Science of attractiveness 58:55 - Do people have free will? 1:13:12 - Emergence 1:18:17 - Quantum and indeterminacy 1:19:18 - Complexity of free will 1:23:46 - Difference between free will and agency 1:26:43 - How to use Robert’s work to change policies around the world in a positive way 1:29:15 - What’s the difference between a deterministic world and a fatalistic one? 1:34:39 - Robert’s thoughts on his newest book, Determined: Life Without Free Will 1:40:48 - Key components in a new systems society understanding this science 1:45:30 - What should listeners take away from this podcast? 1:47:32 - Robert’s recommendations for the polycrisis 1:52:20 - What Robert cares most about in the world 1:53:00 - Robert’s magic wand 1:54:36 - Future topics of conversations #natehagens #thegreatsimplification #neuroscience #dopamine #freewill #testosterone