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Templeton Ideas

A John Templeton Foundation Podcast

A show about the most awe-inspiring ideas in our world and the people who investigate them.

Our Hosts

Thomas Burnett

Tom has one foot steeped in research, one foot in journalism, and a head swirling with ideas about how to bring the two together. His heroes include Baruch Spinoza, Blaise Pascal, and Alexander von Humboldt. Tom takes special delight in moral philosophy, evolutionary biology, and the history of science. He is passionate about riding bikes, reading books, planting trees, and the performing arts.

Abby Ponticello

Abby brings the Foundation’s stories to life in the digital world. As a longstanding podcast fanatic, she is thrilled to finally find herself behind the mic. Abby especially enjoys learning about social psychology, neuroscience, and entrepreneurship. She is regularly awe-inspired by beautiful running trails, ’70s rock, and her dog, Leo.

Thomas Burnett

Tom has one foot steeped in research, one foot in journalism, and a head swirling with ideas about how to bring the two together. His heroes include Baruch Spinoza, Blaise Pascal, and Alexander von Humboldt. Tom takes special delight in moral philosophy, evolutionary biology, and the history of science. He is passionate about riding bikes, reading books, planting trees, and the performing arts.

Abby Ponticello

Abby brings the Foundation’s stories to life in the digital world. As a longstanding podcast fanatic, she is thrilled to finally find herself behind the mic. Abby especially enjoys learning about social psychology, neuroscience, and entrepreneurship. She is regularly awe-inspired by beautiful running trails, ’70s rock, and her dog, Leo.

Recent Episodes

December 7, 2023

Kevin Mitchell (Free Will)

Kevin joins the podcast to discuss how natural selection could have favored the development of agency and free will in humans and other complex organisms, and how consciousness provides major advantages in the natural world.

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November 20, 2023

Maggie Jackson (Uncertainty)

Maggie joins the podcast to explain why we should rethink our attitudes on uncertainty, how uncertainty and curiosity are related, and the potential applications of uncertainty for artificial intelligence.

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November 9, 2023

David Brooks (Human Connection)

David joins the podcast to discuss the social and relational crisis in our society, why it’s better to be an illuminator than a diminisher, and his practical advice on how we can become better people.

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October 26, 2023

Sara Algoe (Love)

Sara joins the podcast to explain the difference between love and gratitude, describe the features of a loving person, and unpack the impact of technology on the landscape of love.

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October 12, 2023

Bill Courtney (Football)

Bill Courtney is a football coach and entrepreneur who is widely known for his role in the Oscar-winning documentary Undefeated. In this special episode, we pull back the curtain on Bill’s experience coaching football at Manassas High School in Memphis Tennessee, and reveal what “building character” truly means.

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September 28, 2023

Eboo Patel (Activism)

Eboo joins the podcast to discuss the roots of his own love-based activism, how social change actually works, and why so many influential social activists have been people of faith.

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September 14, 2023

David Sloan Wilson (Evolution)

David joins the podcast to discuss the theory of group selection, the advantages of ultra-social “super organisms,” and why it’s important to create an alignment between the way that we think about spirituality intellectually and the way we feel it experientially.

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August 31, 2023

Jennifer Wallace (Toxic Achievement)

Jennifer joins the podcast to discuss the concept of "mattering" and the origins of the toxic achievement culture — and how those caught in its cycle can begin to step off the hamster wheel.

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August 17, 2023

Tara Isabella Burton (Self-Making)

Tara joins the podcast to discuss self-making in contemporary society, the definition of dandyism, and the mysterious “it factor” associated with both modern and historical celebrities.

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August 3, 2023

Mona Siddiqui (Hospitality)

Mona joins the podcast to discuss the importance of hospitality as facet of spiritual life, the impact of the pandemic on our ability to practice hospitality, and her advice for cultivating gratitude and hope.

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July 21, 2023

Ethan Kross (Inner Voice)

Ethan joins the podcast to discuss the advantages and potential pitfalls of introspection, the relationship between goal-setting and self-control, and why all emotions are useful if experienced in the right dosages.

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July 6, 2023

Robert Hazen (Minerals)

Robert joins the podcast to discuss the co-evolution of life and minerals, the stories rocks can tell us if we learn to read them properly, and why humans are drawn to the search for life outside of our planet.

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June 22, 2023

Carol Graham (Combatting Despair)

Carol joins the podcast to discuss what she calls ‘deaths of despair’ and explains why cultivating hope is essential for societies mired in deeply entrenched problems.

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June 8, 2023

David DeSteno (Spiritual Technologies)

Dave joins the podcast to discuss how religion “scooped” his scientific findings by thousands of years, why religious rituals are so effective, and what he believes we can gain by talking about science and religion together.

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May 25, 2023

Philip Goff (Consciousness)

Philip joins the podcast to discuss his lifelong struggle with the problem of consciousness, the relationship between panpsychism and physics, and why he believes there is good philosophical reason to be optimistic about the future of our world.

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May 11, 2023

Jimmy Lin (Cancer Research)

Jimmy joins the podcast to discuss his experience mapping the cancer genome, his spiritual journey, and why he identifies as a 'scientific doxologist.'

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April 27, 2023

Sarah Schnitker (Patience)

Sarah joins the podcast to discuss the role of patience in our society, the difference between patience and passivity, and how narrative identity shapes our experiences — including her own experience with chronic illness.

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April 13, 2023

Gretchen Rubin (Happiness)

Gretchen joins the podcast to discuss how she became a writer, the books and spiritual teachers that have inspired her, and how a case of pink eye led her to investigate the human senses.

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March 30, 2023

Alison Gopnik (Children)

Alison joins the podcast to discuss flaws in our popular understanding of children and babies, the connection between children and awe, and how caregiving contributes to a meaningful life.

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March 30, 2023

Dacher Keltner (Awe)

Dacher joins the podcast to discuss his personal experiences with awe, how awe relates to life and death, and the many ways people can cultivate awe in their daily lives.

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March 30, 2023

Jennifer Wiseman (The Universe)

Jennifer joins the Templeton Ideas podcast to discuss her journey from the Ozarks to the edges of the universe, and the pure delight of space exploration.

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March 30, 2023

Season One Trailer

Hosts Thomas Burnett and Abby Ponticello sit down with inspiring thinkers to discuss how their investigations have transformed their lives… and how they may transform yours.

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