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In this episode, April drags herself out of bed while recovering from a wicked case of Influenza A (you might notice her somewhat gravelly vocal quality) to record this episode about an important and timely topic--the language of demagoguery. While we tend to think of it as something politicians and other powerful people use, she discovers to her dismay that we are all capable of being "nascent demagogues" and using this rhetorical technique in our everyday discussions about politics. Hey, let's try not to do that, okay?

Episode 37 Show Notes

https://gordoncstewart.com/2023/12/05/the-language-of-demagoguery-2/
Social commentator and blogger Gordon Stewart discusses how language is used for social manipulation, referencing Senator Newt Gingrich.

https://feps-europe.eu/powerless-arguments-demagogue-and-populist-language/
Robert Feustel is a researcher at Friedrich Schiller University, and this article discusses the difficulty of arguing with someone using demagogic language.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02773945.2019.1610636
Skinnell and Murphy's excellent article on the pervasiveness of the language of demagoguery.

https://www.mediaethicsmagazine.com/index.php/browse-back-issues/209-spring-2017-vol-29-no-2/3999195-media-rhetoric-and-the-demagoguery-of-the-elite
Good article by rhetorician Patricia Roberts-Miller of the University of Texas at Austin, who also wrote the book Demagoguery and Democracy.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00963402.2024.2388461#abstract
I didn't really reference this excellent treatise about the way that demagogues destroy democracy by John Keane, but I highly recommend that you read it anyway.

https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/en/publications/demagoguery-technology-and-cognition-addressing-the-threats-to-de
Stephen Lewandowsky's paper on demagoguery and how it threatens democracy.

https://www.historyhit.com/culture/anti-jewish-propaganda-in-nazi-germany/
Some examples of how the Nazis used anti-Jewish propaganda to influence German citizens.

https://brainapps.io/blog/2025/01/stand-up-against-demagogy-protect/
This article contains some very helpful tips about how to recognize and stand up to demagogic rhetoric.

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In this episode, April reveals that her husband is a rain god. Well, he's not, but he thinks he is. She discusses this uniquely human thing we do called magical thinking.
Episode 36 Show Notes (oooh, so many sources!)

Good basic explanation of magical thinking:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/magical-thinking
Wait, here's another one:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/magical-thinking
How is magical thinking a cognitive distortion?
https://www.goodrx.com/health-topic/mental-health/magical-thinking-effects-cognitive-distortion
Amanda Montell's awesome book:
https://www.amazon.com/Age-Magical-Overthinking-Modern-Irrationality/dp/1668007975
Scientific American articles on the topic:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-come-some-people-believe-in-the-paranormal/
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-can-you-fight-conspiracy-theories/
Do dead people pinch us while we sleep? Probably not:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/theory-and-praxis/202310/the-benefits-and-consequences-of-magical-thinking
Healthline's article:
https://www.healthline.com/health/magical-thinking#:~:text=Magical%20thinking%20involves%20the%20belief%20that%20you%20can,something%20that%20has%20no%20bearing%20on%20the%20circumstances.
Matthew Hutson and the positive side of magical thinking:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12933497-the-7-laws-of-magical-thinking
How magical thinking and OCD are connected:
https://www.verywellhealth.com/magical-thinking-ocd-5220558
Salon.com articles on the topic:
https://www.salon.com/2018/09/10/a-neuroscientist-explains-how-religious-fundamentalism-hijacks-the-brain_partner/
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/09/from-conspiracy-theories-to-manifesting-how-to-navigate-the-age-of-magical-overthinking/
How to Talk to Conspiracy Theorists:
https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking-pseudoscience/zen-and-art-talking-conspiracy-theorists
Interview with Eric Oliver:
https://news.uchicago.edu/podcasts/big-brains/science-conspiracy-theories-and-political-polarization-eric-oliver
Mick West is awesome. Links for his book and his webpage, Metabunk:

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In this episode, April discusses an unfair and unethical debate tactic used by many politicians, conspiracy theorists, and anyone else who insists on "winning" arguments. She also revisits Brandolini's Law, which means she gets to say "bullshit" more than a few times.

Episode 35 Show Notes

https://www.logicallyfallacious.com/logicalfallacies/gish-gallop.html
A good basic description of the Gish Gallop.

https://effectiviology.com/gish-gallop/
Itamar Schatz's website, Effectiviology, is one of my go-to places for everything fallacy-related.

“On the Trail With RFK Jr." On the Media. Podcast. June 30, 2023.
Um, not sure how to link to this, but you can certainly search for it on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. RFK Jr. is well-known for using the Gish Gallop in his speeches and interviews.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=murvOaHB66A
Wanna see some really fast talkers? These student debaters can speak at 500 words per minute, which is twice as fast as Congressman Jim Jordan. But unlike him, they have to make sense and provide evidence for their claims.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-FGKxaCdS0
I took Congressman Jordan's Gish Gallop example from this succinct YouTube video about how to counter the Gish Gallop technique.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/02/11/readout-of-president-bidens-video-call-with-transatlantic-leaders/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/02/17/readout-of-president-bidens-call-with-president-zelenskyy-of-ukraine-13/
Here are two readouts of diplomatic calls President Biden has made.

https://qz.com/905252/donald-trumps-lies-are-all-part-of-a-debate-tactic-called-the-gish-gallop
Carl Alvioni's excellent article on Gish Gallops.

Everything below has to do with the Trump-Ukraine call:
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/09/25/donald-trump-ukraine-call-analysis-000039

https://www.npr.org/2019/10/12/768935251/trump-ukraine-and-the-path-to-the-impeachment-inquiry-a-timeline

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/10/14/pelosi-trump-impeachment-ukraine-00061649

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-ukraine-transcript-moved_n_5dba4ec5e4b0bb1ea37476e5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/27/us/politics/nsc-ukraine-call.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-lawyer-moved-transcript-of-trump-call-to-classified-server-af

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In this episode, April warns people that they might need a break while listening; but in the end, it's surprisingly positive. Just like her!!!

Episode 34 Show Notes

https://www.webmd.com/mental-health/what-to-know-existential-dread
Good discussion of the basics of existentialism, existential dread, why existential crises occur and how to handle them.

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220929-the-unsettling-power-of-existential-dread
David Robson's article explains how existential dread changes the way we think, reporting on the upswing in conspiracy theories after distressing events that trigger existential dread.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Denial_of_Death
Yep, I'm citing Wikipedia here, but it's a decent discussion of Ernest Becker's groundbreaking work.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jul/31/the-worm-at-the-core-on-the-role-of-death-in-life-solomon-greenberg-pyszczynski-review
Excellent review of Solomon, Greenberg, and Psyzczynski's seminal work about terror management theory.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.595990/full
Great article about how many individuals used creative expression to alleviate their distress during the Covid-19 pandemic.

https://www.un.org/africarenewal/web-features/i-was-tested-limit-%E2%80%94-rwanda-genocide-survivor
The harrowing story of a Rwanda genocide survivor.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7498956/
The original researchers of terror management theory apply their understanding of it to the Covid-19 pandemic.

https://mymodernmet.com/what-are-the-lascaux-cave-paintings/
Take a look at these beautiful cave paintings--that's how you live forever, people! Do something amazing.

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To kick off a new year, April looks at the impact that the emotion of gratitude can have on our mental, emotional, and even physical health. The message here is--the better you feel about yourself and the world around you, the better your cognitive processes will be.

Episode 33 Show Notes

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy's article on gratitude is, um, kinda deep and intense (and hard to read), but then, it IS the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, so...
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/gratitude/

What gratitude is, and some ways to show it:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-wise-brain/202102/how-show-gratitude

LinkedIn article about gratitude in the workplace:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/power-thank-you-how-engage-your-company-gratitude-/

Glenn Fox on gratitude:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/what_can_the_brain_reveal_about_gratitude

A.J. Jacob's wonderful gratitude journey:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brainstorm/201811/adventures-in-gratitude

I reference Kendra Cherry a lot, because her articles are always spot on:
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-gratitude-5206817#History%20of%20Gratitude

Robert Emmons discusses gratitude:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/gratitude/definition

Interesting article about how gratitude evolved:
https://grateful.org/resource/the-evolution-of-gratitude/

How practicing gratitude affects the brain:
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain

Another great article about neuroscience and gratitude:
https://positivepsychology.com/neuroscience-of-gratitude/

This article focuses on the importance of gratitude in our lives:
https://positivepsychology.com/gratitude-appreciation/#:~:text=Many%20of%20us%20express%20gratitude%20by,emotion%20that%20serves%20a%20biological%20purpose.&text=Many%20of%20us%20express,serves%20a%20biological%20purpose.&text=us%20express%20gratitude%20by,emotion%20that%20serves%20a

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In this episode, April admits that she doesn't always calmly and rationally think things through; but hey, neither do you. Why? Heuristics, that's why. She discusses these handy, if sometimes problematic, mental shortcuts that help get us through the day without our brains literally exploding. And by literally, I mean figuratively; but literally sounds better, plus it makes a great mental image--KABOOM!!!

Episode 32 Show Notes:

I've recommended Daniel Kahneman's book before, and I'll probably do it again:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11468377-thinking-fast-and-slow

Interesting article about the history and origins of heuristics: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-heuristic-2795235

A basic discussion of heuristics:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/heuristics

Dr. Weinberger's blog explaining our unconscious mind: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-unconscious/202001/how-the-unconscious-works

An easy to read but fairly comprehensive article discussing many aspects of heuristics, including the different types of heuristics and when our brain is likely to use them: https://www.simplypsychology.org/what-is-a-heuristic.html

You're probably aware that some of these jobs are dangerous, but others may surprise you with their position on this list: https://www.ishn.com/articles/112748-top-25-most-dangerous-jobs-in-the-united-states

The Decision Lab's article goes into some detail about how our brains use heuristics:
https://thedecisionlab.com/insights/society/tdl-perspectives-what-are-heuristics

Over-reliance on heuristics can lead to stereotyping in the workplace: https://www.engagetu.com/2020/01/28/heuristics-and-workplace-bias/

Kendra Cherry's excellent article about decision making: https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-affect-heuristic-2795028#:~:text=The%20affect%20heuristic%20is%20a%20type%20of%20mental,role%20in%20the%20choices%20and%20decisions%20you%20make

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In this episode, April realizes that the difference between science and pseudoscience isn't a distinct line, it's more of a continuum. Nevertheless, science remains scientific, while pseudoscience is, well, not so much.

Episode 31 Show Notes:

Here's the Science Council's definition of science:
https://sciencecouncil.org/about-science/our-definition-of-science/

Great discussion of the topic by Lillienfeld, Lynn, and Amaratti:
https://scottlilienfeld.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/lilienfeld2015-5.pdf

An extensive discussion of the differences from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/pseudo-science/

Mario Bunge's article on "cognitive fields:"
https://cursosist2010.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/bungepseureduc.pdf

Great article from the Boston Review about Karl Popper and the pros and cons of falsification:
https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/michael-d-gordin-fate-falsification/

Newsweek article about "Behind the Curve:"
https://www.newsweek.com/behind-curve-netflix-ending-light-experiment-mark-sargent-documentary-movie-1343362

Good article that explains "bad" science:
https://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science/why-some-science-is-actually-bad-science/article/455538

ThoughtCo's article about "hard" and "soft" science:
https://www.thoughtco.com/hard-vs-soft-science-3975989

Well, yeah, bad and fraudulent science is a problem:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/aug/09/scientific-misconduct-retraction-watch

Fun and interesting (but ultimately serious) webpage with lots of great information about pseudoscience by Dr. Rory Koker:
https://web2.ph.utexas.edu/~coker2/index.files/distinguish.htm

Emily Willingham's Forbes artlcle about commercial pseudoscientific claims:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2012/11/08/10-questions-to-distinguish-real-from-fake-science/?sh=156ddfb6146c

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In this short episode, April discusses how grief affects our brains--hers in particular, because she just lost one of her best friends and it hurts. So this might be more for her than for you, but you should listen anyway.

The good news is that she'll be ok. Eventually...

Episode 30 Show Notes

Great article from the Today Show website about how our mind deals with death:
https://www.today.com/health/mind-body/grief-changes-brain-rcna13613

Two excellent NPR articles that reference works and interviews with grief specialist Mary Frances O'Connor:
https://www.npr.org/2021/11/04/1052498852/what-happens-in-the-brain-when-we-grieve

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/12/20/1056741090/grief-loss-holiday-brain-healing

Dr Lisa Shulman discusses brain neuroplasticity and dealing with loss:
https://www.americanbrainfoundation.org/how-tragedy-affects-the-brain/#:~:text=Grief%20and%20loss%20affect%20the%20brain%20and%20body,lead%20to%20cognitive%20effects%2C%20such%20as%20brain%20fog

Psych Central article about how grief affects your physical and mental health:
https://psychcentral.com/lib/your-health-and-grief