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The science of expanding your mind
As humans, we’re shaped by our genetics, as well as our life experiences. They influence how we see the world — and how we engage with the people around us. That unique lens is called a Perception Box™, and each of us lives inside our own.
We can’t escape it. But we can expand it by questioning assumptions and challenging our perceptions.
So where do we begin? At Big Think, we’ve partnered with Unlikely Collaborators to ask better questions. Perception Box™ is a content series grounded in science that explores what becomes possible when we let go of our limiting beliefs and open our minds to a new reality.
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Unlikely Collaborators explores the limits of perspective, inviting us to rethink what we believe and how we connect with others.
Your brain built a reality bubble. Literature, science, and philosophy can pop it.
Our brains give us a usable version of the world, not a complete one. A neuroscience and a physicist show why that gap matters for bias, free will, and the responsibility we carry into whatever happens next.
Notable scientists apply their own area of expertise to explore the neuroscience behind Perception Box™.
6mins
One neuroscientist’s deep dive into perception and reality
Everything you experience is filtered through your brain, and everyone’s brain is different. Neuroscientist Christof Koch explains how understanding this can deepen your connection to the world around you.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
Trauma makes your world feel small — here’s how to open it up again
Psychiatrist Dr. Bessel van der Kolk discusses key methods for rewiring the brain, kickstarting the healing process, and opening your mind to new perspectives.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
A neuroscientist’s guide to building a more positive reality
We’re all assigned a label at some point in our lives. You might be the smart one, the creative one or the lazy one. But is that designation really an […]
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
How to step out of your inner monologue and understand the world better
Expanding your worldview starts with understanding your brain. Stanford neuroscientist David Eagleman explains.
Unlikely Collaborators
Celebrities untangle the knotted threads of their stories, offering a rare glimpse into what made them who they are today.
7mins
What it means to live urgently, according to death doula Alua Arthur
The New York Times bestselling author and founder of Going With Grace shares how close confrontations with death inspired her to change her life.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
How Olympian Gracie Gold finally stopped striving for perfection
She’s a fierce competitor on the ice. But the figure skater’s toughest battle has been accepting her shortcomings and learning to love herself.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
How one moment of shamelessness saved Andrew Zimmern’s life
After decades of drug and alcohol abuse, the chef and television personality labeled himself as an ‘irredeemable human being.’ Everything changed when he found the courage to ask for help.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
How record-breaking swimmer Diana Nyad found strength and healing in the water
From anger to awe: How one woman overcame “debilitating trauma” to conquer a near-impossible 53-hour swim at 64.
Each guest answers a series of questions that have been carefully crafted to help them get real with themselves.
8mins
Dhar Mann on failure, fatherhood, and the spreadsheet that changed his life
How the 40-year-old entrepreneur and media mogul learned from his struggles, and why he believes accountability is the real secret to happiness.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Atsuko Okatsuka: Comedy, Chaos, and Finding a Place to Belong
She was searching for perfection – until she discovered what she truly needed by letting go of what didn’t fit.
Unlikely Collaborators
5mins
The art of perception and self-reflection
How the successful marketer used ancient philosophy to overcome modern obstacles and change his mindset.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Navigating autism and loneliness with Kaelynn Partlow
Kaelynn Partlow shares her story about life with autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, and how finding the right diagnosis helped her embrace her neurodivergent identity.
Unlikely Collaborators
Notable scientists and experts explore the neuroscience and psychology behind Perception Box™ in this compilation series.
3mins
The chemical reason love makes you irrational
Falling in love can feel like finding “the one.” But to your brain, romance may look less like affection and more like craving, stress, and reward.
Unlikely Collaborators
3mins
Think you’ve been grieving for too long? You’re wrong.
Older cultures made room for mourning. Today, we often rush it, and it comes with a cost. Three experts explain.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
3 experts explain everything you need to know about loneliness
When we see loneliness as a kind of failure, it becomes damaging. When we see it as information, it becomes actionable. A psychologist, a social health scientist, and a psychiatrist explain.
Unlikely Collaborators
4mins
Why humans need stories, according to neuroscience
What if the voice in your head is less of a witness and more of an interpreter? Two neuroscientists discuss the brain’s drive to explain, narrate, and make everything add up.
Unlikely Collaborators
5mins
How the successful marketer used ancient philosophy to overcome modern obstacles and change his mindset.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
We’re all assigned a label at some point in our lives. You might be the smart one, the creative one or the lazy one. But is that designation really an […]
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Kaelynn Partlow shares her story about life with autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, and how finding the right diagnosis helped her embrace her neurodivergent identity.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
Through woodworking, John Furniss, known as The Blind Woodsman, discovered a new purpose and a way to share his vision with the world.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Expanding your worldview starts with understanding your brain. Stanford neuroscientist David Eagleman explains.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Challenging the loneliness stigma can change your life. Here’s how to start.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
90’s kids know him from All That, Kenan & Kel, and Good Burger. This is Kel Mitchell, who sat down with us to share how he persevered through some of the hardest moments of his life.
Unlikely Collaborators
9mins
Dr. Aditi Nerurkar on toxic resilience and the importance of gratitude and breathing.
Unlikely Collaborators
4mins
Carrie Berk reveals how she transformed her struggle with anxiety and internet fame by changing her perception and finding her true voice as a writer.
Unlikely Collaborators
9mins
At age 37, neuroanatomist Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor suffered a stroke that would take her eight years to fully recover from. This is how it changed her understanding of the brain.
Unlikely Collaborators
9mins
The Grammy-nominated artist reflects on a life of heartbreak and a future full of hope.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
Nike athlete and famed Peloton instructor Tunde Oyeneyin shares how she turned her pain into purpose.
Unlikely Collaborators
5mins
James Fadiman PhD, who has 60 years of experience in the field, believes they are.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
The Osbournes was MTV’s biggest show – and it almost cost Jack Osbourne his life. Here’s how his family’s reality TV fame stole his childhood, and how he’s been able to heal since.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
You know Steve-O. Now meet Steve Glover, as the professional stuntman talks to us about pain, insecurity, and never finding contentment.
Unlikely Collaborators
7mins
The creative force behind The Vampire Diaries explains how she learned to deal with her insecurities.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
“I was incarcerated well before I was in prison and I was free before the gates of prison opened up and let me out.”
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
Former SNL star Jay Pharoah answers our most challenging questions about life, self-esteem, and changing his mind.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
Biology plays an important role in emotional reactions, but neuroscientist Kristen A. Lindquist posits that our culture is just as influential.
Unlikely Collaborators
6mins
Over 250 million records sold and more than 70 platinum hits later, Jason Derulo sits down with us to talk about goals, insecurities, and why he still doesn’t feel like he’s “made it.”
Unlikely Collaborators