Prodigy

A DNA test sends me down the rabbit hole of ancestry until I’m stuck with a dilemma that could change my life. 

I don’t remember my grandparents. When their stories were told it meant nothing to me. A DNA test inspires me to discover my ancestry for myself until a sudden event changes my trajectory and presents a life-altering dilemma. What would you do with a 30-year head start?

If you like this episode, check out more from the 22 other creators who are also part of this journey.

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Can prodigies be created with early specialization? Laszlo Polgar was an educational psychologist who believed they could. He experimented with his own children and the results were fascinating.

This is Part 1 of a re-release of the first 3 Prodigy episodes. They are meant to be listened to together as they cover the argument of nature vs nurture as related to performance.

Created, produced and hosted by Lowell Brillante

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Is elite performance just a matter of how much and how well you practice? I interview a man known as the expert on experts, Dr Anders Ericsson and discuss the controversy surrounding Deliberate Practice. Learn about how we learn in this episode of Prodigy.

This is Part 2 of a re-release of the first 3 Prodigy episodes. They are meant to be listened to together as they cover the argument of nature vs nurture as related to performance.

Created, produced and hosted by Lowell Brillante

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Every human being shares a 99.9% identical DNA code. It's that .1% that makes us unique. We could see the influence of genetics before we unlocked it, but now that we've learned how to measure those differences, the knowledge could be dangerous.

This is Part 3 of a re-release of the first 3 Prodigy episodes. They are meant to be listened to together as they cover the argument of nature vs nurture as related to performance.

Created, produced and hosted by Lowell Brillante

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In 2017 the New York Times released an article disclosing 3 videos taken by US Navy pilots of unidentified aerial phenomenon. Is intelligent life already here... or is there another explanation?

I spoke with a man who believes he was abducted by "the greys" in order to father a race of hybrids. This was confirmed by one of his indirect descendants, Bashar, a contact specialist from the planet Essassani who is being channeled by Daryl Anka. According to Bashar we are all a facet of the multi-dimensional crystal.

Physicist Daniel Whiteson explains quantum entanglement and how we could bend space to achieve faster than light travel. Toby Ball describes how alien abductions entered our folklore and Mick West provides context for the recent sightings.

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It's been another crazy year. So time for another holiday episode on gift giving. I'm joined by Dr. Mary Eberhardinger who adapted her award winning PhD dissertation into a book about the rhetoric and philosophy of gifts. This conversation is holiday casual so grab a drink and get ready for the airing of grievances.

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A Rhetoric and Philosophy of Gifts

(To get the discount, use code LEX30AUTH21 when ordering)

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(If you're wondering what festivus is, it's from seinfeld season 9, episode 10)

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Nobody wants to be hacked through their toaster. Or even worse, their toaster joining an army of toasters that attack critical infrastructure and send me 50 spam emails a day. The Internet of Things is the idea that any device connected to electricity will eventually be connected to the internet. It's super cool and super frightening at the same time. When researchers report these vulnerabilities to companies they're often ignored and sometimes even retaliated against. Will our defenses catch up to our technology or are we all just f****d? This episode includes expert insight from Jack Rhysider, Craig Young and Beau Woods.

Episodes I mention of Jack's show Darknet Diaries:

Episode 21 - Black Duck Eggs

Episode 45 XBox Underground

Episode 60 - dawgyg

Episode 99 - The Spy

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Time is democratic. We all have the same amount of hours in a week. Laura Vanderkam studied how the most successful people allocate their time and shares it with you! She also has 2 podcasts. The one I produce is called Before Breakfast and it's jam packed with useful information.

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This episode is fun and packed with tips for living with ADHD. I got influencer, streamer, and podcaster Catieosaurus on to explain what it's like to be a gifted, non-privileged white dude with ADHD and some tips for living with it. She shared actionable advice and even info about neurodiversity in the kink community so buckle up.

Oh and I mention my dog licking her paw a couple times. She doesn't have an allergy. She was licking various parts and I just said foot twice. She's my baby and I take better care of her than I do myself!

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Chiropractic was born out of holistic mysticism from the magnetic healer D.D. Palmer. Is there any value in it or is it complete bulls**t? I spoke with Dr Jeff Langmaid, a credible and evidence based chiropractor about how he approaches treatment.

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Is it better to spend your energy saving money or investing in making more? I spoke with Joel and Matt, the finance guys from the How to Money Podcast. They have some excellent advice on how to make your money work for you and live rich on less money.

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When Afrikka Hardy was strangled in 2014 it seemed completely random. But it wasn’t. It was part of a pattern.

Lori Townsend reminisces about her daughter Afrikka, and journalist Thomas Hargrove says Afrikka's death could've been prevented.

Subscribe to Algorithm now, so you don't miss an episode, and follow host Ben Kuebrich on twitter for more information about the case.

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I spoke with Ben Kuebrich, the producer and host of the new true crime show Algorithm. Algorithm follows the investigation into Afrikka Hardy's murder, exposing the warnings that police ignored, and uncovering more than anyone expected -- that a serial killer was strangling women in Gary, Indiana could've been stopped. And that Afrikka Hardy should be alive today. 

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How many people are living their life undiagnosed? This episode is about ADHD but the message is about disorders. The barriers that exist to get a proper diagnosis and treatment are criminal, and it's time we address them. I spoke with Dr Jeremy Sharp, a psychologist, consultant and speaker about ADHD and the process of getting diagnosed. You'll also hear from Lesly Quiambao. She got diagnosed after my last episode and explains what the process was like.

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A psychosomatic disorder or illness refers to one that is caused by stress and emotions. Can stress actually cause severe, chronic pain? I spoke with Dr David Hanscom, a former orthopedic surgeon who quit his practice after 32 years to teach people why back surgery is usually not the answer. You'll also hear from a special guest... my dad.

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Lucid dreaming is a state of consciousness where a person is aware they're dreaming. This gives them a level of control over it. With practice you can increase this ability and explore your greatest fantasies. I spoke with E.S. Fein. An author and lucid dreaming expert who teaches us all about lucid dreaming and how to do it.

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We've all encountered at least one narcissist in our lives. They make up 2% of the population. They're typically extroverted and charming. It's not until you've been used and thrown away that you realize their priority is sex, status and stuff. It's all about appearances.

But there's actually multiple types of narcissists. Professor W. Keith Campbell is a psychologist on the forefront of psychopathology research. He explains what our current understanding of narcissistic personality disorder is.

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With an onslaught of ransomware attacks disrupting our supply chains, cybersecurity is more important than ever before. The best way to strengthen your defenses is to hire hackers to discover your weaknesses. I spoke with veteran pen tester and owner of Black Hills Information Security, John Strand about the industry, how to get into it and more.

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The days of robbing banks at gunpoint are gone. It's much more profitable to hijack networks. To better protect themselves companies hire people to test their security, but no firewall is going to stop a social engineer. Especially not one like Chris Hadnagy.

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One of the most fascinating and unknown fields of science is human psychology. In this season of Prodigy we'll cover interesting topics like human hacking, lucid dreaming, penetration testing, narcissism and a lot more.

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There's a lot of misinformation going around about a "brand new" vaccine, but mRNA vaccines have been worked on since the 1970's. Luckily they were perfected just in time for the biggest crisis in modern history. Learn about how mRNA vaccines work and what one dedicated pediatrician has gone through in order to administer it to her community.

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Speedrunners are gamers that want to beat a game as fast as possible, but it isn’t just about speed. It’s about love. It’s about obsession... over all the ins and outs of a game, down to the very programming.

Alex Cardinale

@alexc_journals

Weldon Green

https://twitter.com/mindgamesweldon?lang=en

Eric Zimmerman

http://www.ericzimmerman.com/

DannyB

https://www.twitch.tv/dannyb

https://www.youtube.com/c/dannyb21892

https://twitter.com/dannyb21892

Chaos Drifter

https://www.twitch.tv/chaosdrifter

BeefChief

https://www.twitch.tv/beefchief33

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Conversation with Alex Rivers, a professional busker and late bloomer trying to make a name for himself as a violinist. I also spoke with Noel Brown, an executive producer, podcast host and musician whose father forced him to learn violin at an early age.

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Joshua Bell debuted with the Philadelphia Orchestra at 14. Since then he's received a ton of awards and played with nearly every major orchestra in the world. His performance radiates emotion and rings with precision as the notes from his legendary Gibson Ex-Huberman Stradivarius spin through the halls.

Joshua gives us an inside look at his upbringing, the story behind his violin, the washington post experiment, how he practices, his favorite composers and more.

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I was diagnosed with ADHD at 35 years old. I describe my experience, the testing and the disorder. I also speak with a student with ADHD and Dr Gail Saltz about medication.

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Synesthesia is a connection between senses. It could be the key to understanding brilliance. Most people are born with it, but in a few rare cases people have acquired it after a traumatic brain injury. We'll also cover the neurodiversity of autism with Dr Simon Baron-Cohen.

For resources and show notes visit the website.

https://www.prodigypodcast.com/

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John von Neumann made major contributions to multiple fields including computers, physics, mathematics, economics and statistics. He helped design the atomic bomb, created game theory, provided the architecture for the modern computer, pioneered the concept of mutually assured destruction and developed the foundation for quantum physics.

Daniel Whiteson, particle physicist and host of the show Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe, joins us to describe the significance of von Neumann's work.

For more about his life, Stuff you Missed in History Class did an excellent episode on him.

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Ted Kaczynski had a higher IQ than Einstein and used the postal service to deliver handmade bombs to targets over the course of a 17 year long domestic terrorism campaign. It became the longest and most expensive manhunt in FBI history. 

The question is not what he did, but why...

This episode was written by Gabe Luzier

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Learn about the queen’s gambit opening strategy, the indian defense and Paul Morphy. Also the psychology of gift giving with Dr. Jeff Galak, a marketing professor at Carnegie Mellon who studies consumer behavior and runs the youtube channel Data Demystified.

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