Episodes
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The story of the life of Jesus Christ is one of the most quintessential in all of humanity, and is celebrated across many cultures. And yet, many argue that parts of his life are still shrouded in mystery. His complicated relationship with the enigmatic Mary Magdalene, for instance, is one such mystery. Some scholars argue that Mary Magdalene was more than just a follower of Jesus, but a spiritually realized partner who would continue to teach after his death and resurrection. What are the teachings of Mary Magdalene? How was her role in the life of Jesus Christ marginalized in history? How does an acknowledgment of a divine feminine side of the Jesus mythology change-and potentially enrich-the understanding of his teachings? Join Dr. Morelos as he interviews author and fellow transpersonal scholar Lauri Ann Lumby about the secret teachings of Mary Magdalene. This special bonus episode drops Wednesday, January 12th!!!
SPOILER ALERT: David and Lauri discuss plot lines from the The Matrix Resurrections movie in this episode! Hopefully we don’t give away too much! -
In January of 2002 the Spotlight investigative team for the Boston Globe dropped a bombshell when they revealed a story about sexual abuse within the local archdiocese of the Catholic Church. Boston, a heavily Catholic city, was left reeling as it learned of a total of 87 priests who had been accused of child sexual assault but were never brought to justice. Instead, the church leadership at the time opted to treat the offenders within the church or to simply move them to a different parish. The most egregious perpetrator of these crimes was one Father John Geoghan, who, over the course of his career, was accused of raping over 130 minors. The Boston Globe expose would be a catalyst for the church to finally confront the issue of child sexual abuse within its ranks, and would lead to a number of oversight improvements and operational changes. It would also help put child sexual abuse within religious institutions front and center in an American conversation on spirituality, politics, and power. What was the true scope of these Catholic priests’ crimes against children? What created these men and why did they choose to abuse children? How do we reconcile our deepest held spiritual beliefs in the face of crimes like these? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos this week as they discuss sexual abuse and the Catholic Church.
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After his death, Vincent van Gogh’s work became some of the most instantly recognizable paintings ever laid to canvas. While he was alive he was relatively unknown, broke, in poor health, and suffering from what was most likely a severe mental illness. Van Gogh would help create the story of the “tortured artist,” or one whose mental illness blessed his art but destroyed his life. This concept has become so common place in western culture that many have referred to it as a cliché, with countless other famous artists being diagnosed with mental illnesses posthumously. What is the connection between mental illness and creativity? Why does it seem that the most creative artists can also be the most mentally unstable? Can talented artists harness some of this so-called creative madness to create art without losing themselves to it completely? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they explore the connection between artistic expression and mental illness.
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1980 would change the lives of Robert Shafran, Edward Galland, and David Kellman forever. Each had been living separate lives as young men growing up in New York during the 1970s. When a case of mistaken identity led Shafran to Galland, a beautiful story started to emerge of long-lost twins, each adopted to different parents in their infancy. As news of the remarkable story spread, the mother of David Kellman also noticed. Could it be that the story of long-lost twins was actually one of long-lost triplets? The story was an instant success, and the young brothers enjoyed their new found fame . . . for a while. But secrets, buried for years, threatened their joyful reunion. To date, nothing has captured the imagination of psychological researchers quite like identical siblings. Are we products of our genetics or of our environments and life experiences? How does our DNA and our environment interact together to make up who we are? What are some of the unethical and horrifying ways identical siblings have been used in the name of research? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss twin studies.
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TRIGGER WARNING: This episode describes extreme acts of sexual violence and murder. Listener discretion is advised.
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka met on a balmy summer night in Toronto, Canada, in 1987. They had an instant attraction, as each seemed to indulge the dark psychological longings of the other. Paul, who had already begun building a career as a prolific serial rapist, seemed to find his perfect mate: a dependent, sexually extreme and emotionally unaffected woman who catered and indulged his every twisted whim. Together their relationship created an incredibly toxic and dark collaboration that would see at least three young women brutally sexually assaulted and murdered. How do paraphilias like sexual sadism manifest in people and how does this differ from psychopathy? How does the darkness of two sick personalities come together in a destructive kind of synergy that amplifies the other and creates something horrifically new? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the case of the Ken and Barbie Killers. -
From a humble beginning in Littlefield, Texas, to Professor Emeritus at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor, Dr. Richard Nisbett has lived an extraordinary life as a widely influential social psychologist, the key points of which he explores in his new book, Thinking: A Memoir. In this interview, Dr. Nisbett talks about his contributions to psychological research including common thinking errors people make as it pertains to thinking rationally, and teaching people how to correct them; how Asian cultures think differently than Westerners; how Americans from the South think differently than those from the North, the importance of understanding base rates and statistics in psychology, to what and how we attribute our decision making processes, and how to pick a good graduate program. Along the way, Dr. Nisbett affectionately reflects on some well-known intellectuals and researchers whom he has worked with, encounters with vastly different cultures and the implications for western psychology, and being one of the architects of a “golden age” in psychological research. Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they interview researcher, author, and Professor Emeritus Richard E. Nisbett.
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According to legend, President Abraham Lincoln once had a dream that foreshadowed his death at the hands of an assassin. In the dream, he even saw the exact location his body would be laid to rest. Legend also had it that Lincoln was a known follower of the spiritualist movement, and that there were many instances where he seemed to predict the future. Is time a linear construct or something more fluid? Why do we sometimes feel as if we can foretell events that have yet to pass? How does the wisdom of our body give us information in which to make sometimes fateful decisions? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the lesser-known history of President Abraham Lincoln and the concept of precognition.
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On June 20, 2001, a woman named Andrea Yates called her local police dispatch and requested the presence of officers to her home, refusing to give any specific reason for the request. When officers arrived, they found that Andrea had killed all five of her young children by drowning them in the family bathtub. In the spectacular trial that followed, America became fixated on Andrea’s religious motivations, her comprehension of the wrongfulness of her actions, and the issue of postpartum psychosis, a serious mental illness that can afflict 1 to 2 women out of every 1,000 who give birth. How do we understand the nature of insanity in the contemporary legal system? Is there a deeper meaning behind experiences that we would normally label as psychotic episodes? Can we start to expand our definition of psychosis so as to more compassionately treat people having these experiences? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they look at the case of Andrea Yates.
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In the 1970s, the CIA, motivated by intelligence about Soviet espionage experiments, developed a program to create so-called “psychic spies.” Using first-person accounts of astral projection popularized by the New Age movement of the 1960s, the military began experimenting with protocols meant to create conditions in the brain that would, theoretically, allow a person’s consciousness to leave the physical body. It was hoped that this “remote viewing” practice would allow spies to then obtain useful and actionable information about enemies of the United States. It was reported that before the program was officially ended in 1995, the US Army would spend a total of 20 million dollars on the project and return with no useful military information. How does our consciousness dance with the physical limitations of our bodies? Can our brains be trained to experience supernatural occurrences? Just how “real” are these experiences? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss Project Stargate.
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Molly Maeve Eagan met Lizzy Hershberger when Lizzy was working on a book about her experiences growing up as a daughter in a devout Amish family. Molly, working as a memoir coach and ghost writer, eagerly agreed to help. Something interesting happened as Lizzy and Molly talked more about the project, however, and a larger and darker narrative started to emerge. Eventually, Molly convinced Lizzy to tell a much more personal and powerful story; one of abuse, trauma, escape, and vindication. This seemed to be a natural fit for Molly as she had also experienced abuse and trauma at a young age, and was able to use her own experiences to help Lizzy find her own unique voice. Together, they crafted a moving portrait of growing up Amish, including some of the dark secrets that lay behind the blue curtains. Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they interview trauma-informed writer Molly Maeve Eagan about her contributions to the book, Behind Blue Curtains: A True Crime Memoir of an Amish Woman’s Survival, Escape, and Pursuit of Justice.
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On February 1, 2012, barista Samantha Koenig was abducted from her job in a small coffee kiosk in Anchorage, Alaska. Samantha’s disappearance kicked off a frantic manhunt for her kidnapper who used her debit card to withdraw money across the southwest. When a keen-eyed Texas State Trooper pulled over a suspicious white Ford Focus, it was then that law enforcement got their first look at Israel Keyes. With items belonging to Samantha in his car, Alaskan police and the FBI would soon learn the grisly full extent of Israel Keyes’ crimes, leading some to refer to him as “the most meticulous serial killer of the 21st century.” Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the psychology of serial killer Israel Keyes.
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Approximately 3,500 babies die unexpectedly each year. This often kicks off a spiral of grief that parents will carry with them for the rest of their lives. In this special bonus episode, Drs. Micono and Morelos interview Jen Iacino-Taylor, founder of Little Man’s Legacy Foundation, about her experience losing her three-month old son and how it inspired her work to raise awareness and help grieving parents. Join us as we talk about a topic that’s near and dear to our hearts and hear about how you can help!
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Ever wonder what goes through the mind of a horror film creator? Mix yourself a libation, get cozy, and find out how some of our dark psychological corners can inspire some amazing art. On this dark and stormy night, Drs. Micono and Morelos have an intimate conversation with indie film director Jess Costa.
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In July of 1984, a man broke into the apartment of Jennifer Thompson in Burlington, North Carolina, and raped her at knifepoint. During the attack, the perpetrator uttered a threat that became forever imprinted in the mind of Thompson. This threat would eventually lead to the arrest and conviction of one Ronald Cotton who was picked out from a line-up, in part, by the sound of his voice. Ronald Cotton would go on to serve 11 years for the crime until a chance meeting with another prisoner would give Cotton the legal grounding he needed to finally appeal the conviction. It also helped bring problems with eyewitness testimony, and the wrongful convictions of innocent people, into the national conversation about the criminal justice system. Why is it so easy to be fooled by what we think we see and hear? How do our false perceptions lead to the convictions of innocent people? What are the psychological consequences of being falsely accused and imprisoned? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the wrongful conviction of Ronald Cotton.
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In 1972 Dr. George Owen, a university lecturer, geneticist, mathematician and member of the Toronto Society for Psychical Research, recruited eight other members of the TSPR for an experiment. The experiment, designed to determine if ghosts were real or mental projections of the living, tasked the participants with creating a character with a vaguely historical persona, but not based on any single known person from the past. The eight participants would then attempt to summon one fictional Philip Aylesford, as he was named, with widely known séance techniques used to communicate with the dead. A series of unexplained and disturbing events quickly followed, with many witnessing the participants seemingly interacting with the fictional entity. Can we truly communicate with forms of disembodied consciousness? Can a group of people, working together, project psychic energy capable of manipulating the physical world? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the historical Philip Experiment.
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On October 29, 1901, police inspectors arrested Jane Toppan on suspicion of the murder of four members of the prominent Davis family to whom Toppan was employed as a private nurse. Generally well-regarded by her peers, “Jolly” Jane, so-called for her sunny disposition, was born Honora Kelly, the daughter of Irish immigrants. With a mother who passed away from tuberculosis when Jane was only one year old, and a father who was committed to an asylum for the insane soon after, Jane used her intelligence and social graces to become a nurse, and to begin a covert and murderous rampage that would shake what was known about serial killers at the time to its foundations. What is the nature of “healthcare serial killers?” What could motivate someone to prey on the sick and injured when they are most vulnerable? Join us as Drs. Micono and Morelos discuss the case of healthcare serial killer Jane Toppan.
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On the morning of April 27th, 2017, flights carrying roughly 500 people from Miami began landing on the island of Great Exuma in the Bahamas for what was promised to be the most luxurious and exclusive musical festival ever produced. The event, named Fyre Festival by entrepreneur Billy McFarland and rapper/celebrity Ja Rule, was a marketing promotion for the Fyre App, an application created to hire talent for social events. While initially an exciting idea promoted by numerous supermodels and other social media influencers, planning for the music festival was quickly plagued by logistical hurdles, beginning when McFarland and Ja Rule lost the lease on the original location when they violated an agreement made with the island’s owners. With four months left to organize the festival, McFarland and his team pushed forward, piecing together what would become an infamous disaster as every aspect of the festival quickly broke down, leaving the attendees stuck on a remote part of the island without a way off. How does marketing in the digital age interact with our psycho/social programming? Who are “con men” and how do they use our basic psychology against us? How did this fiasco reinforce common stereotypes about the psychology of the Millennial generation? Join us as Drs. Micono and Morelos discuss Fyre Festival.
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In October of 2013, a crypto-anarchist named Ross Ulbricht was arrested and charged with being the primary administrator of a website called The Silk Road, a place hidden in the so-called dark web where illegal drugs could be bought and sold with complete anonymity. While the United States government was aware of the illegal sale of these controlled substances on the dark web, it took them a full two years to identify the website’s primary administrator due to the use of Tor software and Bitcoin currency. Ulbricht’s arrest shed light on the larger issue about the use of technology and how it can be used to ensure personal freedoms in the face of government overreach as well as exacerbate harmful and destructive criminal enterprises. How does contemporary technology simplify, and complicate, these basic questions of autonomy and personal freedom? How can high-minded ideals be hijacked by our more primitive psychology? Join us as Drs. Micono and Morelos discuss The Silk Road with Brains Byte Back podcast creator and host Sam Brake Guia.
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In 1983 a mother named Judy Johnson accused teachers at a preschool in Manhattan Beach, California, of physically and sexually abusing her young son. A number of other employees, many of whom were related to the owner and founder of the school, were also named as perpetrators. As police began an investigation into the matter, Judy Johnson’s stories became more and more extreme, involving numerous other children, and suggesting what would later become known as “Satanic Ritual Abuse.” Problems acquiring physical evidence and reliable information from the children further inflamed the accusations against the school and its employees. What followed was the single most expensive and spectacular prosecutorial failure in United States history, as well-meaning law enforcement officials and child advocates became swept up in the “satanic panic” hysteria. How do we advocate for our children without succumbing to irrational fears about their safety? How do we avoid scapegoating others in a rush to justify our own feelings of anxiety? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the McMartin Trial.
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In April of 2000, 10 year old Candace Newmaker was treated with a controversial therapy meant to help her deal with her mental health diagnosis of Reactive Attachment Disorder. Referred to a well-regarded clinic in Evergreen, Colorado, Candace and her adoptive mother would undergo a technique known as “rebirthing,” whereby Candace was wrapped in pillows and blankets and forced to fight her way out while the therapists resisted her efforts. It was hoped Candace would be reborn, figuratively, in order to attach to her adoptive mother as if she were a newborn. Over an hour later, Candace Newmaker would lay motionless, her death later ruled to be by asphyxiation. How can abuse and neglect change the young brains of children? How do behavioral issues in children like Reactive Attachment Disorder drive loving parents to controversial and extreme treatments? How do people, desperate to be parents, sometimes fail to understand the challenges of raising psychologically injured children? Join Drs. Micono and Morelos as they discuss the death of Candace Newmaker
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