{"podcast":{"title":"How to Be a Better Human","slug":"how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259","podcast_index_feed_id":1370259,"rss_url":"https://feeds.feedburner.com/HowToBeABetterHuman","website_url":"https://play.prx.org/listen?uf=https%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2FHowToBeABetterHuman","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/67572b3b2dd88df13220eb3b/show-cover.jpg","author":"TED","episode_count":256,"summary":"How To Be A Better Human isn’t your average self improvement podcast. Each week join Chris Duffy in conversation with guests and past speakers as they uncover sharp insights and give clear takeaways on how YOU can be a better human. From your work to your home and your head to your heart, How To Be a Better Human looks in unexpected places for new ways to improve and show up for one another. Inspired by the popular series of the same name on TED’s Ideas blog, How to Be a Better Human will help you become a better person from the comfort of your own headphones. Follow Chris on Instagram and TikTok at @chrisiduffy. Buy his book Humor Me at https://t.ted.com/ZGuYfcL Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259"},"episode":{"title":"How to understand your own consciousness (w/ Michael Pollan)","slug":"how-to-understand-your-own-consciousness-w-michael-pollan","published_at":"2026-03-23T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259/how-to-understand-your-own-consciousness-w-michael-pollan","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259","url":"https://audiocollective.ted.com","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/67572b3b2dd88df13220eb3b/e/69bd9126868a3c5b95ba075c/media.mp3","summary":"What is consciousness? Humans and animals have it, but do plants have sentience? These are the questions journalist Michael Pollan studies. Michael is the author of ten books on the relationship between food, consciousness, and psychedelics. Michael joins Chris to discuss why humans ruminate, how people should get comfortable with boredom, and whether we can really trust our own memories? Featured guest Follow Michael Pollan on Instagram and at michaelpollan.com/ Connect with the team Follow Chris on Instagram and at chrisduffycomedy.com Buy Chris’ book, Humor Me   Watch How to Be a Better Human videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollective Follow TED on X , Instagram , Facebook , LinkedIn , and TikTok For the full text transcript, visit go.ted.com/BHTranscripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"What is consciousness? Humans and animals have it, but do plants have sentience? These are the questions journalist Michael Pollan studies. Michael is the…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2332,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259/episodes/how-to-understand-your-own-consciousness-w-michael-pollan/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/how-to-be-a-better-human-1370259/how-to-understand-your-own-consciousness-w-michael-pollan.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}