Simplify

What if the most flattering thing anyone ever said about women was also the most limiting?Feminist cultural historian Elinor Cleghorn—who kicked off Simplify's independent relaunch with Unwell Women—makes a triumphant return with her new book, A Woman's Work: Reclaiming the Radical History of Mothering. The premise she and Caitlin pull apart sounds harmless enough: that mothering is the natural province of every woman. Follow that idea back a few thousand years, though, and it turns out to be doing an awful lot of work for someone. Just not for mothers.The conversation moves from a tiny clay boat crewed by women sailors in a Cretan cave to the founders of Silicon Valley, by way of Aristotle's distinctly horticultural theory of conception. They get into a stretch of history when a pregnant woman's word was the only evidence that counted, a Parisian midwife to royalty who was centuries ahead of modern maternity care, and the surprisingly tender origins of a word we now use as an insult.There's also a thread about the Virgin Mary that might change how you hear the phrase "good mother"—and a clear-eyed take on what baby bonuses and motherhood medals actually reveal about the governments handing them out.And keep an ear out for Zeus's forehead. It explains more about the AI boom than you might think.ResourcesElinor's book: A Woman's Work: Reclaiming the Radical History of Mothering Elinor's earlier book: Unwell Women , and our first conversation with her about it.Ben's Rec: Caliban and the Witch by Silvia Federici Caitlin's Rec: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Honorable mention: Midwifing the Mother, the Substack by former Simplify guest Angela Natividad.Let us know what you thought of this episode! Find us on Instagram at @simplifypod. Subscribe to our newsletter on beehiiv here. Also, you can email us at [email protected] episode of Simplify was produced by Caitlin Schiller, Ben Schuman-Stoler, and Molly Hart, and engineered by João Lucas in Berlin, Germany, for Kollo Media.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recently, lots of thinkpieces have tried to explain why non-fiction book sales have declined. From Tim Ferris to publishing insiders, everyone's got a theory.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We live in an increasingly noisy world, yet most of us spend almost no time thinking about how sound shapes our thoughts, focus, and relationships. In this episode, world-renowned sound and listening expert Julian Treasure breaks down why most of us aren't actually listening - and what would happen if we did.What usually happens is that people do what they think is "deep listening" - they nod and say "mmhmm" a bunch. But is that really listening? True deep listening is actually conscious listening. Gifting your entire attention to someone in a moment.And the truth is, conscious listening is difficult! It requires energy and focus and time. But the upshot is massive: Truly feeling heard is such an amazing feeling. It leads to more connection and less suffering.In this episode, Julian talks to Ben about actionable frameworks for changing your "listening position." They also unpack the difference in experience with video vs. audio content - and why audio quality in your remote meetings can make a big difference.We spoke to Julian back in 2017 and that episode is definitely worth revisiting.Julian's TED talk: How to speak so people will listen.Check out Julian's app: Master Conscious Communication.ResourcesGuest's Recs: The DOSE Effect by TJ Power, Sounds Wild and Broken by David George Haskell, myNoise by Stéphane Pigeon Ben's Rec: A Philosophy of Walking by Frédéric Gros Caitlin's Rec: The Turnaround, Jesse Thorne's interview series with the world's great interviewers (Maximum Fun)Sound generator Mynoise.net: This is a link to Caitlin's fav. Please remember to turn the whispers down- otherwise it's way too Halloween for everyday use.---Let us know what you thought of this episode! Find us on Instagram at @simplifypod. Subscribe to our newsletter on beehiiv here. Also, you can email us at [email protected] episode of Simplify was produced by Caitlin Schiller, Ben Schuman-Stoler, and engineered by João Lucas in Berlin, Germany, for Kollo Media.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Do you want to live forever?Bryan Johnson - the gazillionaire tech entrepreneur who started the "don't die" movement - created headlines (and some schadenfreude giggles) when he announced he was diagnosed with autoimmune gastritis, which is incurable.The don't die website says: "We are at war with death and its causes. We are building towards an infinite horizon. We are fighting for the freedom to exist as long as one chooses. Why? Because we have things to do tomorrow. And tomorrow’s tomorrow. Until we no longer want tomorrow."But Ben brought this topic to Caitlin because it's kicked off a discussion about the risks of longevity and the legitimacy of longevity in general. Caitlin shares what she thinks of longevity *routines* and what's legit vs. what's baloney.There's one thing everyone can agree on though: we love our black plastic spatulas, even if the microplastics are killing all of us slowly. Dr. Ingrid Yang's article for Outside is here.This episode was edited by Molly Rose Hart.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you’ve ever listened to NPR’s Planet Money, you know the vibe: They take dense, eye-glazing economic theories and turn them into cinematic, human-driven stories. Whether following a t-shirt across the global supply chain, buying a barrel of crude oil, or creating a shell company, Planet Money has spent over 15 years proving that economics isn’t just for academics - it impacts our lives every single day.In this episode, Ben talks to Planet Money reporter and host Alex Mayyasi, author of the New York Times bestselling Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life.They talk about the counterintuitive lessons from classic Planet Money cases, like why ATMs actually increased bank teller jobs and what that teaches us about automation. Plus they talk about some of the structural issues with the economy today, how markets are underrated, and why restaurants are so important.Check out Alex's Substack and new show, Gastronomics.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.