Understand Life

In this episode, we talk about what a suntan is and what a sunburn is. We then go into all of the genetic differences that people have which cause their skin to react differently than others when it comes to UV radiation and the sun. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/50. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife

In this episode, we talk about credit and debit cards. We cover some history and especially what merchants, such as gas stations, are allowed to charge when it comes to having different prices based on how you pay. Near the end, we cover what this means for consumers and how they should act. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/49. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife

Sorry for not having a normal episode this month; it was deemed too controversial for the general public. If you would like to become our patron at Patreon, it is available there. Go to www.patreon.com/understandlife. Sorry again. We'll be back next month.

In this episode, we talk about what it takes to start a business. We start with some of the basic legal aspects but spend most of the episode talking about all of the expenses that businesses have and how to manage the biggest one well: payroll. We don't go super deep into what takes a business from good to great, but we do cover the basics. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/48. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we talk about why people do anything and then move on to why people have kids specifically. On why people do anything, we talk about the results pyramid from episode 15 and then discuss what beliefs people have that lead to their actions of trying to have kids. We also relate why different quadrant theory personality types do different things, both in general and in relationship to having kids. (Quadrant Theory personality types is discussed in episode 18.) Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/47. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we talk about the different meanings of the word "Average" and then what an "Average American" looks like for each of those types of averages for multiple different qualities, such as income, land ownership, age, college education, etc. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/46. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we finish talking about the causes of the Great Depression. We review the basics of what people believe the cause was (i.e. the stock market crash) and then move on to some more nuances. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/45. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we start talking about the causes of the Great Depression. We cover the basics of what people believe the cause was (i.e. the stock market crash) and then move on to some more nuances, such as whether another crash is coming today. Next week we will finish our discussion on this topic. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/44. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we talk about why diamond prices are what they are. We utilize some of the lessons about supply and demand from the previous episode combined with some history of the diamond market. We end with a look to the future of the diamond market. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/43. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we start talking about how prices are able to be set by different companies based on their power in the market. We mostly talk about the law of supply and demand by explaining the basic principle and graph. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/42. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we finish talking about how flowers started being thrown at people. We begin by going over last week's insights around why throwing things at people at all started. Then, we move on to flowers specifically, including the faunogrophy of the Victorian era. Enjoy the show! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/41. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we are talking about how performers of old would be treated. We start the episode with an overview of our previous episodes about how different cheeses are made. Then, we we move on to discussing that performers of old would want people to throw money at them, but if they were bad would get rotten food instead. This was a form of feedback to indicate if the performers were doing a good job. Next week we will finish discussing the question: covering when flowers started being thrown. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/40. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we are continuing our discussion on how different cheeses are made. We start with a re-cap of the last two episode where we went over all 7 steps in the cheese making process and then went in-depth into the first 3 steps, discussing some of the different options in those steps and the changes that has to the finished cheese. This week we will do the same thing for the final four steps in the process. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/39. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we are continuing our discussion on how different cheeses are made. We start with a re-cap of the last episode where we went over all 7 steps in the cheese making process. This time, we really dig into the first 3 steps, discussing some of the different options in those steps and the changes that has to the finished cheese. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/38. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we are talking about how cheese is made. We break it down into 7 main steps that most types of cheeses go through...in one way or another. From preparing the milk to aging the cheese. Join us next week as we continue the cheese topic and start to talk about the differences between different types of cheeses. Enjoy the show. Also, please note that we are trying a new format: combining the mini-podcast concept with shorter full podcasts. Let us know what you think! Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/37. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

In this episode, we are talking about the cost of car ownership. We consider four different options: buying a new car, leasing a new car, buying a used car with a low number of miles and buying a used car with a high number of miles. We go over the monetary costs of each of those and touch on the fact that there are ancillary benefits which can influence which choice is right for you. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/36. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: We talked about Expected Value: how you can calculate out whether you are making a good decision or not (or at least attempt to). We cover the basic concept and then some sticky points, like guestimating, likely values, and that sometimes you may be willing to pay for enjoyment. Next week: We will be discussing the cost of automobile ownership. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife

In this episode, we are talking about Expected Value and how that can help you to make wise decisions. Roughly calculating out an expected value can quickly show that something is or is not worth doing. We talk about using this information to guard against your intuition, though you still need to be careful in how you calculate because even the calculated EV could be subject in your inherent biases. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/35. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: We talked about the fact that Americans are less happy than people in other countries because we spend so much time comparing ourselves to people we don't know very well. We talked about social media, gratitude journals, and other strategies to be happier. Next week: We will be exploring "Expected Value" of decisions and how this can guide us to make wiser decisions. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

In this episode, we are talking about how the International Happiness Survey ranks Americans relatively low, especially considering our economic status. We talk about some things that Americans specifically do more often that make them less happy and then some things that you can do to make yourself more happy. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/34. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: We talked about the quote: "The nail that sticks up gets pounded down." This originated in communist Russia. We talked about communism, capitalism, and the differences in meanings of the same quote in different contexts. Next week: We will be exploring why Americans are less happy than people in many other parts of the world, even though they are often objectively better off. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

In this episode, we are talking about a quote: "the nail that sticks up gets pounded down." This quote originated in the Soviet Union, so we get into the differences between capitalism and communism. Then, we talk about a couple ways to think about the quote and the differences in lessons it can provide. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/33. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: Solar powered paint. We talked about some early uses of solar power, the discovery of the photovoltaic effect, how solar panels work, and a potential future of solar powered paint Next week: We will be exploring the meaning of the phrase "The nail that sticks up gets pounded down." Enjoy the show! Support us at www.patreon.com/understandlife

In this episode, we are talking about solar power, different types of harnessing energy from the sun, and where we are at technologically. We specifically touch on the ability to "paint" a material in order to obtain a "solar power" effect. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at leonardnieman.com/podcast/32. Support us at Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: What we learned about taking care of our teeth Next week: Solar powered paint?!? We're going to talk all about solar power, including getting solar power from paint. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

We are taking a break for the holidays and re-broadcasting some of our most popular episodes. This is a re-broadcast of Episode #21: What am I good at? Clifton Strengths: Part 2. This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister. This is the conclusion of our podcast on Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder). There's a lot of meat in this show. We go over all 34 Clifton Strengths, at least a little bit. We dig into a couple of our own strengths. And, we talk about the separation of strengths into groups that are kinda like Quadrant Theory. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/21. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

We are taking a break for the holidays and re-broadcasting some of our most popular episodes. This is a re-broadcast of Episode #20: What am I good at? Clifton Strengths: Part 1. This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister and talking about Clifton Strengths. This is only Part 1 on strengths because we went into so much cool stuff this time that we didn't actually get to the 34 different strengths. Instead, we gave an overview of Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder) and talked about Leonard and Kelly's strengths. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/20. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

We are taking a break for the holidays and re-broadcasting some of our most popular episodes. This is a re-broadcast of Episode #12: Can a Baby be Born with Pink Hair? This week we dive into the genetics of hair color. We'll cover the basics of genetics, how our genes impact our melanin production, and how our melanin production impacts our hair color. We'll also answer the question and let you know why. Enjoy the show. See the show notes at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/12 Support us at Patreon.com/understandlife

We are taking a break for the holidays and re-broadcasting some of our most popular episodes. This is a re-broadcast of Episode #8: Can I have a piece of gum This week we talk about planning ahead. Planning ahead is a key component to making wise decisions, and making wise decisions is a key component to doing well in life. Therefore, planning ahead is extremely important in understanding life. We walk through why it's important to think ahead and use the idea of when it's a good time to have gum and when it isn't as an example of thinking ahead. Enjoy the show. Please visit the show notes page at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/8. Please support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife.

In this episode, we are talking about teeth. This is Part 2 of 2, so if you did not listen to part 1, we recommend you go back and listen to that first. In this episode, we cover what is out there in terms of scientific studies about good oral hygiene. Based on that info, we come to some kind of conclusion of what you should do to take care of your teeth. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/27. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: Why do we lose our teeth part 1. We went over the reasons why we have baby teeth and why adults lose their teeth. We also talk about what it means to be a good study. Next week: We're going to talk about the study results that are out there about what is good for your mouth and what is currently still just a hypothesis. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

In this episode, we are talking about teeth. We cover how baby teeth help us, when teeth come in, and start the discussion on what good oral hygiene looks like. This is part 1 of 2, so tune in next time to get the rest of it, where we talk about what is most important in taking care of your mouth. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/26. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: We talked about Roller Coasters and Theme Parks. We went over the best roller coasters in the world and the best theme parks that may contain those roller coasters. Next week: We're talking about teeth: why we lose them and how to either prevent that or not Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

In this episode, we get back to more fun topics (than our personality type series). We are talking about roller coasters: which coasters are the best and why. Then, we talk about which parks are the best for roller coasters and why. Great information to keep in mind when planning your family vacation for next year. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/25. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: We ended the Personality Types Series that we had spent the whole summer doing. As such, we talked about why we had talked about personality types so much in the first place. We also talked about the Big Five a.k.a. the Five Factor Model that Psychologists use. Next week: No more series' for a while. This one will be about the best Theme Parks in the world, especially the best theme parks for roller coaster. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This is the last episode in our personality type series. It's been a great summer, but it's time for some other work (mostly a little more fun and less heavy). This week, we mostly discuss why we did a whole series on personality types: to learn more about yourself and to learn more about others. Also, we cover the Big Five, a.k.a. the Five Factor Model (FFM) that real Psychologists generally use, rather than the pop-psychology that most of the rest of the personality type series has been about. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/24. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: Part 2 of the Enneagram (pronounced ANY-uh-gram) Personality Type. We talk about our types, how all the types are connected within the circle, plus the 3 centers and the 3 instincts. Next week: The last of the personality type series. It includes why we had a long personality type series and goes into the "big five" a.k.a. the five factors version which psychologists generally use. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister. This is the second of two episodes on the Enneagram Personality Type. The Enneagram is possibly the most complicated personality type out there. Last time, we went over what the 9 types are and a little bit about each of them. This week, we talk a lot about what our types are, what we learned about those, and also some additional details on the Enneagram, such as the centers and instincts. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/23. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: Part 1 of the Enneagram (pronounces ANY-uh-gram) Personality Type. We touch on some basics of the Enneagram, including the 9 grandmas. Then, we go through all of the personality types from a pretty high level. Next week: We'll be finishing the Enneagram Types. This means we touch on the three instincts, why Alyssa is the best version of Malachi, and more. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister. This is the first of two episodes on the Enneagram Personality Type. The Enneagram is possibly the most complicated personality type out there. This week we go over what the 9 types are and a little bit about each of them. Next week, we'll go into more details on the intricacies of the Enneagram and which types we are. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/22. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: The details of Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder). We at least touch on all 34 strengths. We go into details on a few of them. And, we separate all of the strengths into four different categories. These categories are similar to the four quadrants in quadrant theory, and we talk about how that's true. Next week: We'll be going over Enneagrams (pronounced ANY-uh-grams). The kids mentioned that they remembered that Alyssa was the best version of Malachi. Tune in next week to see how that's sorta true. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister. This is the conclusion of our podcast on Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder). There's a lot of meat in this show. We go over all 34 Clifton Strengths, at least a little bit. We dig into a couple of our own strengths. And, we talk about the separation of strengths into groups that are kinda like Quadrant Theory. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/21. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

Alyssa Hosts this is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: The basics of Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder) and the philosophy behind it. Next week: We'll go over every one of the 34 Clifton Strengths, separate them into 4 quadrants, and talk about the kid's strengths. It may end up being a little long. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

**NOTE** There was an issue with the audio sometime between release and now. I re-uploaded the audio and that seems to have fixed it. Sorry for the inconvenience. This week, Alyssa, Malachi, and Leonard Nieman are joined by Kelly Nieman-Anderson, Leonard's sister. We are continuing on our series about personality types and talking about Clifton Strengths. This is only Part 1 on strengths because we went into so much cool stuff this time that we didn't actually get to the 34 different strengths. Instead, we gave an overview of Clifton Strengths (a.k.a. Strengths Finder) and talked about Leonard and Kelly's strengths. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/20. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: Top Brain, Bottom Brain is a theory about 4 cognitive modes which line up with using only the top, only the bottom, both, or neither parts of your brain. Using each part of your brain takes energy, so there is an ideal amount to be in each of the cognitive modes. Most people are not in each mode the ideal amount of time, rather they rely too much on primarily one of the modes and secondarily another more than they should. Next week: Clifton Strengths (i.e. Strengths Finder) identifies 34 different strengths that people have in four different categories. Tune in to find out the basics of the different strengths and categories. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week, it's just Alyssa and Leonard: no Malachi. We are continuing on our series about personality types and talking about some neuroscience research from earlier this decade about how our brains work and are divided into a top and bottom section. We relate the scientist's work on cognitive modes to personality types and then compare it to our last personality type podcast: quadrant theory. Enjoy the show. Show notes are located at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/19. Support us at www.Patreon.com/UnderstandLife.

I had high hopes of getting a podcast out this week, but that did not happen. Sorry. On another note, the release date of the podcast is moving to Fridays (instead of Wednesdays). Could be anytime on Friday, so keep your eyes pealed. Thank you for your patience.

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: The Quadrant Theory of Personality Types: Four types (i.e. 1, 2, 3, and 4) are a combination of a bunch of personality systems which all have 4 types and generally all have types that focus on fun, love and belonging, getting things done, and being perfect. Next week: Forget right brain and left brain, let's be thinking about top brain and bottom brain. What the latest FMRI research shows about how our brains work and what that means for personality types. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week we talk more about personality types. First, we recap Meyer's Briggs (MBTI). Then, we spend most of the episode discussing what I call "Quadrant Theory" of personalities: essentially breaking personalities down into four high level traits: fun, love, accomplishment, and perfection. We discuss a few specific quadrant theories and how we utilize this at our hosue to discuss how people are different. Enjoy the Show! See the show notes at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/18. Support us at www.Patreon.com/Understandlife

This is a short episode which goes over the highlights of last week and touches on what we are going to talk about next week. Last week: The three possible definitions of the starts of seasons, specifically summer. Next week: Continuing our series on Personality Types (on hiatus for one week), we're talking about "quadrant theory", which is where there are 4 different personality types, everyone has all of them but to a differing degree. Enjoy the show! Support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife

This week we talk about how we mark the seasons. There's actually three different answers to when the first day of summer is: depending on how you define summer. Listen to the episode to understand all three definitions and decide on which one you like the best. Thanks for listening and enjoy the show. The show notes page is at www.leonardnieman.com/podcast/17. Please support us at www.Patreon.com/understandlife.