Original broadcast date: March 11, 2022. From our planet's underwater caves to its ancient soils, there are entire worlds right beneath our feet. This hour, we explore the subterranean forces that shape our lives above the ground. Guests include cave diver Jill Heinerth, death care advocate Katrina Spade, soil scientist Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, and paleontologist Nizar Ibrahim.

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There are two sides to every coin — and sometimes our strengths become weaknesses. This hour, TED speakers explore the mixed blessings and volatile flip sides of mental health, parenting and AI. Guests include developmental psychologist Yuko Munakata, entrepreneur Andy Dunn and AI researcher Yejin Choi.

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Original broadcast date: September 9, 2022. In an era dominated by labels, how can we fully embrace the nuances of being human? This hour, TED speakers share ideas for reconciling conflicting emotions and circumstances to make art and find joy. Guests include authors Gabby Rivera and Susan Cain, musician and podcast creator Hrishikesh Hirway, and Olympian Allyson Felix.

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Original broadcast date: October 21, 2022. True crime mysteries can be dark and thrilling. But what if humans can't crack the case? What if the suspect ... isn't human? This hour, TED Radio Hour investigates crimes with a wild twist. Guests include forensic scientist Lauren Pharr Parks, author Mary Roach, dog trainer and conservationist Megan Parker, wildlife intelligence analyst Sarah Stoner.

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In part two: host Manoush Zomorodi delves into how we met and fell hard for the personal computer—and why we continue to have this committed, yet tortuous relationship. We hear from historian Laine Nooney on how the computer revolution forever changed the way we use our bodies at work, at school and at home.

Manoush also visits the Exercise Testing Laboratory at Columbia University Medical Center where researchers collect data on how her body responds to a day of sitting compared to a day of constant movement breaks.

Click here to find out more about the project: npr.org/bodyelectric

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In part three: host Manoush Zomorodi explores how our tech habits are causing our eyes to change shape—to elongate—which causes nearsightedness. She investigates why rates of myopia among kids are soaring. She speaks with Maria Liu, an optometrist with a quest to slow down the progression of myopia in children by opening the first ever myopia control clinic in the United States.

Later in the episode, we hear from a team of employees who tried incorporating "movement snacks" into their days for one week.

Click here to find out more about the project: npr.org/bodyelectric

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In part four: host Manoush Zomorodi explores the connection between our posture and our mood. A lot of us associate our neck and back pain with spending hours hunched over our phones and laptops. But what if that hunched posture is also making us feel tired, stressed, and anxious? Neuroscientist Peter Strick discusses his groundbreaking research on why exercising our core muscles lowers our stress.

Also in this episode: how a faulty, incorrect study went viral — claiming smartphones were causing people to grow horns on their backs. Science journalist Nsikan Akpan sets the record straight. Later, writer Paul Ingraham shares his daily strategy for doing movement snacks and strength building while balancing deadlines.

Click here to find out more about the project: npr.org/bodyelectric

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In part six: host Manoush Zomorodi digs into the preliminary results of the listener study with Columbia University researcher Keith Diaz. He shares the surprising — and encouraging — initial findings from more than 20,000 listeners who tried to incorporate movement breaks into their day.

Also on this episode, listener Dana Lopez Maile shares how the study was a "game changer" for her health. Yiliu Shen-Burke, founder of the augmented reality app SoftSpace, explains his vision of augmented reality. Finally, Manoush explores the future of screen time in a new era of artificial intelligence, and the inextricable convergence of humans and machines.

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We'd love to hear what you thought of the Body Electric series. Go to npr.org/tedsurvey to share your feedback.

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Around the world, democratic ideals are being tested in surprising ways. As the curtains rise on a big election year, TED speakers explore what can keep people united and what drives them apart. Guests include journalist and Broadway producer Jose Antonio Vargas, civil war expert Barbara Walter, and political scientist Yascha Mounk.

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Ariel Waldman is a filmmaker and Antarctic explorer who first appeared in our 2021 episode, "Through the Looking Glass." Since then, she has written a new book and returned to Antarctica with a new mission. For this bonus episode, producer Matthew Cloutier reached out to get an update.

This bonus episode was previously shared only with our TED Radio Hour+ supporters. To get access to all of our bonus content, listen to the show sponsor-free and support our work at NPR, sign up for TED Radio Hour+ at plus.npr.org/ted

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In the interest of New Year's resolutions, we're bringing you this bonus episode from our friends at the Ten Percent Happier podcast. Host Dan Harris speaks with meditation expert Jon Kabat-Zinn about starting a practice and being more mindful in our everyday lives.

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Original broadcast date: April 29, 2022. From workplaces to schools to national governments, leaders everywhere are being called on to solve complex problems with humility and bravery. This hour, we consider what it takes to be a leader. Guests include executive coach Patrice Gordon, organizational psychologist Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, former First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon, and educator Shabana Basij-Rasikh.

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Artificial intelligence is powerful, but what about natural intelligence? This hour, TED speakers explore the intrinsic genius in animal language, insect behavior, plant anatomy and our immune system. Guests include neuroscientist Greg Gage, computational neuroscientist Frances Chance, social psychoneuroimmunologist Keely Muscatell and environmental researcher Karen Bakker.

We want to dedicate this episode to Bakker who passed away in August 2023, only a few months after giving her TED Talk. Her research and legacy continue to inspire.

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We know walking is good for our bodies, our communities, and our planet. But our car-centric cities and screen-filled lives keep us sitting. Can we change? This hour, ideas to get us moving. Guests include author Vybarr Cregan-Reid, computer historian Laine Nooney, exercise physiologist Keith Diaz, urban planner Jeff Speck, activists John Francis and Vanessa Garrison.

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Writer Anne Lamott has garnered a cult following with her shockingly honest prose on love, death, faith, writing and more. This hour, her wisdom from a career that has spanned 20 books and 40 years.

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Original broadcast date: December 9, 2022. We think our faces are our own. But technology can use them to identify, influence and mimic us. This week, TED speakers explore the promise and peril of turning the human face into a digital tool. Guests include super recognizer Yenny Seo, Bloomberg columnist Parmy Olson, visual researcher Mike Seymour and investigative journalist Alison Killing.

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Forgetting a name, a poorly executed hug, the 7th grade — awkwardness is part of our lives whether we like it or not. But what if we put the embarrassment aside and embraced our awkward selves? Guests include social scientist Ty Tashiro, cartoonist Liana Finck, journalist Melissa Dahl and sex and relationship counselor Erin Chen.

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Original broadcast date: Friday, December 3, 2021. Admitting we're wrong is painful — even seen as a sign of weakness. But what if we take a more flexible approach? This hour: how rethinking ideas can be good for our brains and our relationships. Guests include former GOP congressman Bob Inglis, organizational psychologist Adam Grant, and civil rights activist Loretta J. Ross.

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AI, EVs, and satellites are tackling the climate crisis. But they have environmental downsides. This hour, TED speakers explain how to use these tools without making global warming worse. Guests include AI researchers Sasha Luccioni and Sims Witherspoon, climate researcher Elsa Dominish and astrodynamicist Moriba Jah.

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Words are never just words. They carry context and controversy; they can signal identity or sow discord. This week, TED speakers explore the history and politics of our ever-evolving language. Guests include linguists Anne Curzan and John McWhorter, social psychologist Dannagal Young and writer Mark Forsyth.

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Our special series, Body Electric, is back! This time, host Manoush Zomorodi does a deep dive into our headphone habits... because many of us wear them for hours at a time, and all that listening is taking a toll on our hearing.

Manoush speaks with exposure scientist Rick Neitzel, who has partnered with Apple on a first-of-its-kind study to find how our daily listening patterns are affecting our hearing. Neitzel offers advice on safe listening habits that can help protect our ears in the long term.

Later, Manoush takes us into the future of "consumer hearables" and how tech companies want us to never — ever— take our earbuds out.

Interested in joining the Apple Hearing Study? Sign up here.

Binge the whole Body Electric series here. Sign up for the Body Electric Challenge and our newsletter here.

Talk to us on Instagram @ManoushZ, or record a voice memo and email it to us at BodyElectric@npr.org.

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Thirty years into the opioid crisis, we still struggle to find other options for pain relief. This hour, TED speakers explain new understandings of how the brain interprets pain and new ideas to cope. Guests include equestrian Kat Naud, physician and researcher Amy Baxter and opioid reform advocate Cammie Wolf Rice.

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Do you have "screen apnea"? Our special series Body Electric continues with former Microsoft executive Linda Stone who coined the term. Around 2007, Linda noticed she had an unhealthy habit while answering emails: she held her breath. On this episode, she tells host Manoush Zomorodi how she tested her friends and colleagues for "screen apnea" and what she's done since.

Then, Manoush talks to the bestselling author of Breath, science writer James Nestor, who explains how shallow breathing impacts our physical and mental health. He takes us through a simple exercise to 'reset' our breath and relieve screen time stress.

Binge the whole Body Electric series here.

Sign up for the Body Electric Challenge and our newsletter here.

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Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z seem to be more divided than ever. But why are tensions running high now? This hour, TED speakers explore new reasons for this generation gap—and how to bridge it. Guests include professor and author Scott Galloway, social entrepreneur Louise Mabulo, advocate Derenda Schubert and writer Anne Helen Petersen.

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From the farm, to the lab, to our tables, what we eat and how it's grown is changing. Agriculture contributes to global warming—and is being transformed by it. Today, a bite into the future of food. Guests include chef and policy advisor Sam Kass, farmers Jim Whitaker and Jessica Whitaker Allen, biotechnologist Isha Datar and artist Sam Van Aken.

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Thanks to advances in AI, chatbots can act as personalized therapists, companions, and romantic partners. The apps offering these services have been downloaded millions of times. If these relationships relieve stress and make us feel better, does it matter that they're not "real"?

On this episode from our special series Body Electric, host Manoush Zomorodi talks to MIT sociologist and psychologist Sherry Turkle about her new research into what she calls "artificial intimacy," and its impact on our mental and physical health.

Binge the whole Body Electric series here.

Sign up for the Body Electric Challenge and our newsletter here.

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Early adopters are flocking to AI bots for therapy, friendship, even love. How will these relationships impact us? MIT sociologist Sherry Turkle delves into her new research on "artificial intimacy." Later in the episode, host Manoush Zomorodi speaks with Somnium Space founder Artur Sychov.

Note: A few weeks ago, we talked to Sherry Turkle in a Body Electric episode called "If a bot relationship FEELS real, should we care that it's not?" Today's episode is an even deeper dive into that conversation with Sherry. We hope you enjoy it!

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Everything is not what it seems. We can easily disguise ourselves in both the digital and physical world. This hour, TED speakers explore the ways we go incognito... from espionage to virtual reality. Guests include former CIA Chief of Disguise Jonna Mendez, artist Holly Herndon, anthropologist Mary L. Gray and digital fashion designer Gala Marija Vrbanic. Original broadcast date: August 26, 2022.

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We've got a special episode for you today from our friends at Short Wave. We all think about the Big Bang as the moment when our universe—everything in existence—began right? Turns out, it's not quite that simple. Today when scientists talk about the Big Bang, they mean a period of time, closer to an era rather than a specific moment.

Short Wave host Regina Barber talks with two cosmologists about the cosmic microwave background, its implications for the universe's origins and the discovery that started it all.

This episode is part of Short Wave's Space Camp series; you can find more here: https://www.npr.org/series/g-s1-3299/short-wave-space-camp

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It's never too late to make things right—even when cracks form within our relationships with our families, our environment...or the inevitable. This hour, TED speakers offer healing solutions. Guests include clinical psychologist Becky Kennedy, death doula Alua Arthur and indigenous community leader and conservationist Valérie Courtois. Original broadcast date: October 6, 2023

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Sometimes, the only way to make an impact is to be loud. This hour, three female performers talk about the rewards — and consequences — that come from speaking out and making people feel uncomfortable. Guests include comedian Lilly Singh, Pussy Riot co-founder Nadya Tolokonnikova and actor, playwright and director Sarah Jones.

Original Broadcast Date: October 20, 2023.

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We all work in teams, from families, to companies, and everything in between. So what's the secret to doing it better? This hour, TED speakers share surprising strategies for successful teamwork. Guests include activist Hajer Sharief, social psychologist Amy Edmondson and private equity investor Pete Stavros.

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Week in, week out, we work. But what can we do to not lose ourselves in the 9-to-5 grind? This hour, we question how long we work, why we valorize work, and what good leadership looks like. Guests include executive coach Anne Morriss, economist Juliet Schor, social psychologist Azim Shariff and political scientist Margaret Levi.

Original broadcast date: September 22, 2023

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Artificial intelligence is powerful, but what about natural intelligence? This hour, TED speakers explore the intrinsic genius in animal language, insect behavior, plant anatomy and our immune system.

Guests include neuroscientist Greg Gage, computational neuroscientist Frances Chance, social psychoneuroimmunologist Keely Muscatell and environmental researcher Karen Bakker.

Original broadcast date: March 8, 2024

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UCLA scholars contributed to Getty project, which makes 16th-century Indigenous Mexican knowledge and culture available online.

The five-year project aims to deepen the university’s impact — on campus, in the broader community and around the globe.

In a report released today, more than 20 researchers provide strategies that center equity and justice in LADWP’s transition.

The series, which highlights the city’s past through current library collections, kicks off with an episode on Los Angeles labor history.

Finalists in the UCLA Health Equity Challenge proposed innovative measures to help those often underserved.

Wong was recognized for his work bringing people together “to stand up for social justice, fair wages, and humane working conditions.”

On March 7, Dana Cuff will discuss architecture’s ability to design more equitable futures at UCLA’s Faculty Research Lecture.

Bruin Founders will advance goal 1 of UCLA’s Strategic Plan: to deepen the university’s engagement with Los Angeles.

Practices to protect public health, including high-risk groups, are featured in an expansive program.

They aim to provide agricultural therapy and create a space for veterans to find a sense of community and safety.

The program is co-led by the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA, the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering and Pasadena City College.

Students in the Tribal Legal Development Clinic work on behalf of Indian Country to advance tribal sovereignty and secure Indigenous rights.

Co-producer Veena Hampapur discusses the project presented by Re:Work, the center’s women-led podcast.

The unfortunate result on the field couldn’t quash the newfound camaraderie between Bruins and Indiana Hoosiers fans.

With another top ranking from U.S. News & World Report, the campus continues to redefine what it means to be a great public institution.

The newly constructed six-story, 62-unit apartment building in West Los Angeles adds 142 beds to UCLA’s inventory. Move-in begins Oct. 1.