{"podcast":{"title":"Magical Overthinkers","slug":"magical-overthinkers-6905217","podcast_index_feed_id":6905217,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/magicaloverthinkers","website_url":"https://www.studio71.com/us/podcasts/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/a8c318be-0be3-11ef-8ca9-8fab4c3b811d/image/387a90774e223abddb2e351ed17367d7.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"Amanda Montell & Studio71","episode_count":58,"summary":"Are you an overthinker? Prone to thought spirals? Do you wonder why, despite living in the \"Information Age,\" life only seems to be making less sense? From extreme celebrity worshippers to people with master’s degrees basing their real-life choices on Mercury’s whereabouts, there seems to be a lot of delulu out there these days. More than ever, in fact. Enter: This relatable, thought-provoking podcast for curious overthinkers. Every other week, tune in as host Amanda Montell, author of the New York Times bestselling book The Age of Magical Overthinking and host of the Sounds Like A Cult podcast, interviews a brilliant expert guest about a buzzy, confounding, anxiety-provoking topic. Think: narcissism, nostalgia, polyamory, social media comparison, \"millennial cringe.\" Complete with heart-on-their-sleeve personal stories, thought-provoking conversations, and actionable takeaways for how chronically online listeners can get out of their own heads, this podcast is here to make some sense of the senseless. To help quiet the cacophony in our brains for a while. Or even hear a melody in it. For advertising opportunities please email PodcastPartnerships@Studio71us.com We wanna make the p…","last_synced_at":"2026-07-08T16:18:53.523174+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/magical-overthinkers-6905217"},"episode":{"title":"Overthinking About Doing Your Own Research","slug":"overthinking-about-doing-your-own-research","published_at":"2026-04-01T07:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/magical-overthinkers-6905217/overthinking-about-doing-your-own-research","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/magical-overthinkers-6905217","url":"https://pdst.fm/e/mgln.ai/e/135/verifi.podscribe.com/rss/p/swap.fm/track/i7NUCPwi3tJP053nG6mP/traffic.megaphone.fm/STU2366330146.mp3?updated=1774292666","audio_url":"https://pdst.fm/e/mgln.ai/e/135/verifi.podscribe.com/rss/p/swap.fm/track/i7NUCPwi3tJP053nG6mP/traffic.megaphone.fm/STU2366330146.mp3?updated=1774292666","summary":"“Do your own research.” It sounds empowering… so why does it so often lead us straight into confusion, conspiracy, or complete information overload? This week, Amanda is joined by pharmacist and science communicator Dr. Harini Bhat (@tilscience) to overthink what it really means to “do your own research” in the age of the internet. They unpack how a phrase rooted in curiosity became a cultural catchphrase for skepticism, distrust, and DIY fact finding. Why do we feel so confident after reading a few threads or watching a couple of videos? How do algorithms, bias, and the illusion of understanding shape what we think we “know”? And where’s the line between healthy questioning and going down the rabbit hole? A brain bending spiral about knowledge, misinformation, and why thinking critically might be harder (and more necessary) than ever. Further Viewing: Today I Learned Science by Dr. Harini Bhat - Join the \"Magical Overthinkers Club\" by following the pod on Instagram @magicaloverthinkers. - To access early, ad free episodes and more, subscribe to the Magical Overthinkers Substack. - Pick up Amanda's book The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality, or listen to the audiobook. Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at⁠ https://SHOPIFY.COM/⁠⁠magic⁠⁠al⁠ Shop plans at ⁠https://MINTMOBILE.com/magical Come see Sounds Like A Cult LIVE at The Bell House in New York on April 21st! Tickets at amandamontell.com/events Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices","meta_description":"“Do your own research.” It sounds empowering… so why does it so often lead us straight into confusion, conspiracy, or complete information overload? This…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3037,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/magical-overthinkers-6905217/episodes/overthinking-about-doing-your-own-research/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/magical-overthinkers-6905217/overthinking-about-doing-your-own-research.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}