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Justice and the Allegory of the Philosophic King. Guest Author: Professor James Romm. Plato spent his final decades in Athens, completing The Republic. He categorized governance, placing tyranny at the bottom as a system driven by base appetites. He argued that a true king must be a philosopher to perceive the absolute "form of justice." Using the Allegory of the Cave, he described the philosopher's duty to lead those still in the shadows. The work concludes with the Myth of Er, a vision of reincarnation and the soul's journey. Souls drink from the River of Heedlessness, with the wise retaining subconscious memories of the perfect universe. 7

Dragon Age: The Veilguard - Episode 2 This Week: Main quests: The Enemy of My Enemy, Into the Crossroads, Sea of Blood, and The Smuggled Relic CaseCompanion quests: An Unfamiliar Sense, Echoes of the Past, and Coffee with Crows. Next Week: Week 3 Story Quests: Friends in Hidden Places, Shadows of Minrathous, In Peace, Vigilance, A Warden's Best Friend, On Blighted Wings/On Deadly Wings, and Completing the VeilguardWeek 3 Companion Quests: A Study of Docktown and How to Train a GriffonEstimated Time: 4 hoursQuest Play Order: https://docs.google.com/document/d/15CuoHqMFD8bku1UnXVMNdAHFwmiKxEaFUnQu35cchfM/edit?usp=sharingSafe to Sell: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Hd3hUnPw2ShiaWhrNj3plZ5N-XK2rxASNiBlen9myk0/edit?usp=sharing What's a video game book club? Exactly what you think! Some clubs read books, we play video games. Join us! Discord: https://discord.gg/hfnusHE Email: squelchcast@gmail.com Listen: www.squelchcast.com Support: www.patreon.com/Squelch or www.twitch.tv/dan0play 

I've known Josie Manternach since she was roughly in first grade, and I still learned things about her in this conversation that I didn't know. Josie is an educator by trade, a military spouse, a mom, and now a community impact leader at the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque. But the path that got her there? It's the kind of story that is going to hit differently depending on where you are right now, whether you're holding tightly to a plan that's starting to unravel, or you're on the other side of a pivot wondering how all the pieces are going to fit together. She grew up in Cascade, fell in love with the ag room at Cascade High School, went to Iowa State to become an ag teacher, and had what she thought was her whole life figured out. Then came a retirement, a once-in-a-lifetime job offer, a Navy JAG program acceptance, a cross-country move, a pandemic, a baby, a thesis, and eventually... a path back home that looked different from the one she'd imagined. Every single step of it makes sense when you hear her tell it. What You'll Hear in This Episode: How the ag room at Cascade High School shaped Josie's entire career trajectory (and why belonging matters more than we think) The once-in-a-lifetime job offer that arrived at the exact same moment as her husband's Navy JAG acceptance What it felt like to leave the dream job she thought she'd retire from...at age 24 Life as a military spouse: navigating DC, Florida, a pandemic, a newborn, and starting over more than once How she learned to build community from scratch in places where she didn't know anyone Teaching middle school science in Maryland, working in higher ed in Florida, and what each season taught her Completing a master's thesis through Ohio State while working full time and raising a toddler Her current work at the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque: dyslexia tutoring, rural teacher retention, third grade literacy, and the grad partnership initiative The stat that stopped me cold: 47 students now receiving dyslexia tutoring weekly in Dubuque...where two years ago there were zero local options Resources and Links: Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque: dbqfoundation.org Rural Teacher Summit: coming this summer at Camp Little Cloud in Epworth Contact Josie directly through the Community Foundation website Listen and Subscribe: Spotify Apple Podcasts If Josie's story resonated with you, share it with someone who is in the middle of a plan that just got disrupted. This one is for them.

Join Prof. Regina Callion, MSN, RN, the #1 NCLEX Instructor on the planet as she shows, how to avoid the most common mistakes students make when starting NCLEX V2. Don't let simple errors slow your success. In this video, you'll learn the powerful 3-Step Method to Success: Watch. Read. Answer. We also highlight what you should NOT skip: • Setting up a proper PDF reader • Completing the 30-Day Challenge videos • Practicing high-yield questions like Aneurysm case studies Stay consistent. Stay focused. Build strong NCLEX thinking from day one

Send us Fan MailWhat if you started running at 44 and ended up completing 100 miles?In this inspiring episode of the Run Strong Run Podcast, I sit down with Michelle Schroff, better known on Instagram as Waddell Running Lady. Michelle shares her incredible journey from reluctant beginner runner to ultra marathon finisher, proving that it's never too late to start and that running can transform far more than your fitness.A note about this episode: This conversation was originally recorded in February 2025. During our discussion, Michelle briefly talks about her son, Austin, who was battling leukemia at the time. Sadly, Austin passed away in June 2025. As this episode is being released, Michelle is now more than a year into navigating the profound grief of losing her son.While much has changed since this conversation was recorded, Michelle's words about resilience, courage, perspective, and perseverance are more powerful than ever.In this episode, we discuss:• How Michelle started running at age 44• The mindset shift from weight loss to self-discovery• Balancing running with motherhood and caregiving• Why pace and body size don't define a runner• Building mental toughness through life's challenges• Completing a 100-mile race and what it taught her• Navigating social media criticism and staying true to yourself• Why it's never too late to begin your running journeyI had the privilege of meeting Michelle in person at Every Woman's Marathon in Scottsdale, Arizona, in November 2025, and she is exactly who she appears to be online—authentic, kind, encouraging, and deeply inspiring.Whether you're training for your first 5K or dreaming about bigger goals, Michelle's story will remind you that extraordinary things can happen when you simply take the first step.All runners count.Listen now.RELATED LINKSFollow Michelle - Instagram: Waddell Running LadyEmail Michelle: waddellrunninglady@gmail.comListen to Michelle's podcast: Fun of the Run PodcastExplore more from Run Strong Run: https://runstrongrun.comGrab my Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Running: Everything You Need to Get Started todayWatch this episode on YouTubeSupport the showWelcome to the Run Strong Run Podcast! The show where I, Stephanie Dunlap, empower runners of all levels to lace up, chase their dreams, and cross every finish line stronger than ever. To join the discussion live, follow me on Instagram @runstrongrun, TikTok @runstrongrun, Facebook @runstephstrongrun or on my website at runstrongrun.comAbout Stephanie:Stephanie is a beginner run coach, marathon pacer, and your number-one cheerleader! Stephanie went from couch potato to marathoner in 2012 and "Run Strong Run" was born. Since running her first marathon, she's run over 60 full marathons! Stephanie believes that ALL runners count from the fast to the back of the pack. In Stephanie's words, "If you run, you are a runner!"

If you are tossing and turning tonight, unable to quiet a racing mind, step away from the frustrations of insomnia and drift off into a classic world of wonder. Tonight, Books at Bedtime brings you Chapter 4 of H.G. Wells' timeless sci-fi masterpiece, The Time Machine. In this episode, your host Martin Hewlett utilizes his signature soothing, hypnotic cadence to help you cross the bridge into a deep, restful sleep. Follow the enigmatic Time Traveller as he finally finishes his machine, climbs into the saddle, and pulls the lever to launch himself headlong into the distant future. As night and day begin to blur like the flapping of a black wing and the sun streaks across a twilight sky, let the rhythmic rise and fall of the narrative lull your nervous system into complete relaxation. Designed specifically for those struggling with restless sleep, night anxiety, or sleep onset issues, this literary sanctuary invites you to put down the weight of today, stop counting the hours, and ease effortlessly into a calm, restorative slumber. Time Chapters00:00 – Introduction to Books at Bedtime: Chapter 4 00:23 – Completing the Time Machine in the Workshop 00:53 – The First Voyage: Pulling the Starting Lever 02:04 – When Night and Day Blur: The Physical Sensations of Travel 04:31 – A Changing Earth: Watching Buildings Rise and Seasons Pass 06:40 – The Looming Risk of Stopping in the Unknown 09:21 – A Sudden Halt: Hurled into the World of the Future 10:46 – The Crouching White Sphinx in the Hailstorm 13:32 – Overcoming Bedtime Panic and Gathering Courage 15:06 – Meeting the Frail and Beautiful Inhabitants of the Future Episode AffirmationsBefore we begin reading, let these gentle thoughts anchor your body and quiet your restless mind:"I am ready to release the thoughts of today and let my mind drift.""Just like seasons passing in a flash, the worries of today are transient.""I am safe in my bed, completely supported, with nothing left to solve tonight.""I choose to step out of the rush of time and rest in this quiet space.""My body knows how to sleep, and I give it permission to relax fully now."3 Daily Caring TipsThe Bedtime Pivot: If your mind is replaying the day's events over and over, gently pivot your attention away from your own life. Immersing your imagination in an old audiobook or story gives your brain a fictional space to wander, stopping the anxious loop.Break the Clock Habit: Looking at the clock when you can't sleep only feeds insomnia anxiety. If you find yourself wakeful, turn your phone or clock away. Accept that resting your body in stillness is highly valuable, even before sleep takes over.Somatic Unwinding: Just as the Time Traveller felt the heavy, jarring sensations of his journey fade into a calm landscape, you can release physical tension. Take a slow, deep breath, drop your shoulders away from your ears, and let the bed completely carry your weight. Social Media Outro & ShareIf a restless mind or sleep issues have been keeping you awake lately, please know you are far from alone in the quiet hours of the night. If this chapter of The Time Machine helped soothe your bedtime anxiety and brought a little tranquility to your evening, please consider sharing this episode with someone else who might be staring at the ceiling tonight. You could be the reason they finally find their escape and drift off into a deep, peaceful sleep.Thank you so much for putting your faith and trust in Calming Anxiety and Books at Bedtime. Sleep deeply, rest well, and remember—be kind.

For many Native people, the version of California history taught in school does not tell the whole story. For Brad Munoa, a citizen of the Pechanga Band of Indians, the inspiration for “People of the West”, a new ten-part docuseries came after learning about a California history presentation at his son’s school. Munoa says Native American history received only a brief mention, while much of the focus was placed on a version of California history that overlooked Native voices and experiences. That moment sparked an idea. “So I wanted to make a series that would reach the youth in a compelling, cinematic way. Dramatic recreations, beautiful animations when we couldn't depict something in real life. One of the biggest archival libraries of stills and videos of California history that I think exists on the planet. We put that all together in 10 1-hour episodes. I'm telling you, it's amazing.” Munoa says the series, which took over two years to create, also touches on his family's own experiences. One scene was inspired by the love story of his grandparents. He says his grandfather was afraid to tell his future wife that he was Native because of the prejudice Native people faced at the time. Years later, watching actors bring that story to life on screen left him in tears. “I just started crying and sobbing. I explained that story was from my family history specifically. It was an honor to have them portray it.” Munoa says the series is not just about the past. He hopes Native youth see themselves reflected in stories that have often been overlooked and that viewers leave with a deeper understanding of California’s first peoples. View this post on Instagram A post shared by People of The West (@peopleofthewestseries) While the project has generated interest, Munoa says it has not yet been picked up by a streaming service. He says that is intentional. “We made the whole thing on spec without preselling it to a studio ahead of time. When you do that, yes, you get funding, but you also get oversight. And the studios get to determine final cut and get to suggest taking things out, adding stuff in. We wanted to tell the story without those handcuffs. So we made the whole thing on spec without preselling it. Now that we have it, we're trying to find distribution. “I just want everybody who watches the series to come away with a new profound understanding of history from a native perspective. I'm almost 100% sure that if they just watch with an open mind, it will inform all of their decision making going forward in a good way, so that we can build a better future for our kids.” Completing the project came with sacrifices. Munoa says work often took him away from his family. Now that the series is finished, he says he’s looking forward to making up for lost time and being more present with the people who supported him throughout the journey. “My wife has shouldered a lot of the responsibilities at home in her effort to support me, but she's been neglected, my kids have been neglected. They call me the dad from Hook as a joke. You know before he goes to Neverland in Hook, he's consumed with work and on his phone, he's missing baseball games and stuff. So I want to balance that all back and be there with my kids and wife, and tend to my land on the reservation.” The ten-part series makes its world premiere June 20 at Hollywood’s famed Chinese Theatre as part of the Dances With Films festival. Munoa says he hopes audiences leave the theater with a deeper understanding of California’s Native peoples and the stories that helped shape the state. Get National Native News delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up for our daily newsletter today. Download our NV1 Android or iOs App for breaking news alerts. Check out today’s Native America Calling episode Friday, June 19, 2026 — Native Playlist: Kalyn Fay and Logan Staats

SmartURL: https://bfan.link/the-preacher-come-on This June, Jackies Music Records delivers a powerhouse collaboration destined to dominate summer dancefloors worldwide with "The Preacher (Come On)". Bringing together the legendary voice of house music, Roland Clark, alongside acclaimed production duos Dry & Bolinger and Hi.5, the track is a masterclass in driving, soulful club energy. Blurring the lines between deep, grooving foundations and the raw energy of house music's golden eras, this release marries a sophisticated modern tech-house groove with an unforgettable, soul-stirring vocal performance primed for the peak of the summer season. Anchoring the track is BBC Radio 1 Legend Award recipient and Pete Tong Hall of Fame inductee Roland Clark, whose instantly recognizable, deep tone provides the spiritual backbone of the release. Famously known as the voice behind massive global anthems like Fatboy Slim's "Star 69", Armand Van Helden's "Flowerz", and his own definitive classic "I Get Deep", Clark's commanding performance gives the track its pure soul and meaning. Having collaborated with industry titans ranging from David Guetta to Vintage Culture, the official Pioneer DJ Rekordbox spokesperson once again proves why he remains the undisputed "President" of the House nation. Injecting the track with its warm, forward-looking momentum are Dry & Bolinger and Hi.5. Dry & Bolinger bring their signature studio instinct, moving effortlessly between hypnotic grooves and sharp club energy while drawing on a rich pedigree of work with house icons like Barbara Tucker and CeCe Rogers. Completing the puzzle is the Bielefeld-based duo Hi.5 (Dens and Marc), who infuse the track with the spirit of hip-hop's golden era by seamlessly combining soulful samples with crisp electronic beats. Together, these two production powerhouses craft a fierce, rhythmic landscape that perfectly frames Clark's vocals for an unforgettable dancefloor journey.

On today's episode, we go in on DOUG FORD - THE MOST CORRUPT POLITICIAN IN CANADIAN HISTORY, who has been actively destroying our province, our city and our lives.Torontonians and Ontarians, PROTEST Doug Ford and his destructive policies at Ford Fest:Friday, June 19th, 2026, from 5:00 pm-9:00 pm at Thomson Memorial Park for Ford Fest 2026.Torontonians and Ontarians - to fill out your feedback regarding the Billy Bishop Airport Expansion, or to find your local MP, MPP and Councillors to contact them directly regarding Ford's policies, feel free to use the following links:Public consultation on the future of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (Survey): ** You have to scroll down to "How to participate" and then click the text that says ‘Completing the anonymous online survey':https://tc.canada.ca/en/corporate-services/consultations/public-consultation-future-billy-bishop-toronto-city-airport Toronto City Councillors search:https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/council/members-of-council/MP (Member of Parliament) search:https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/enMPP (Member of Provincial Parliament) search:https://www.ola.org/en/members/currentMinister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature & Toronto-Danforth MP: The Honourable Julie Dabrusin - Email: julie.dabrusin@parl.gc.caTo leave us a message on Doug Ford, Toronto, your local politics, or topics you would like to know about or anything, Sidenote by asapSCIENCE, please visit https://www.asapscience.com/chatFor more Sidenote Podcast episodes, check out http://sidenotepodcast.com/Sources:Bill 97https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/bills/parliament-44/session-1/bill-97 Freedom of Information Acthttps://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ford-government-foi-disclosure-court-fight-9.7210887 Greenbelt Scandalhttps://l1nq.com/z1ruufg Healthcare Privatization Scandalhttps://www.ontariohealthcoalition.ca/index.php/doug-fords-destruction-of-public-healthcare-in-ontario/ https://ona.org/news/20250512-billions-nursing-agencies/ https://cupe.on.ca/five-years-into-ford-governments-privatization-of-hospital-services-longer-wait-times/ https://www.stopforprofithealthcare.ca/ Jet Scandal:https://ici.radio-canada.ca/rci/en/news/2247685/yes-doug-ford-quebec-bought-private-jets-but-not-for-the-premiers-travels Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Completing our unofficial trilogy of Mega Man eligible months, this episode we bring you Robot Games! There are tons of games featuring robots so we had plenty to choose from, and despite my previous sentence - we played no Mega Man games. However, we did play a smattering of old and new titles including Detroit Become Human, Ratchet & Clank, PN03 - and more! We also talk a bit about what is technically a robot or not and some individuals express their dislike for robots (huge mistake when our AI overlords take over the world and stumble across this episode). We've also got some robot trivia, proudly created without AI. So grab your bucket of bolts an your headphones and join us for this look at Robot Games!

Welcome to the one hundred and seventy ninth episode of the #Expatchat podcast, End of Financial Year Checklist, where we discuss the latest tax and financial issues affecting an #Australianexpat.  As the Australian financial year draws to a close, expats have a valuable opportunity to review their tax position, investments, superannuation, insurance, and cross-border arrangements before 30 June. In this episode of Expat Chat, Managing Directors, James Ridley and Brett Evans discuss the key EOFY tasks Australian expats should address to avoid ATO issues and improve their financial outcomes. Key Takeaway: The main message is not just to know the EOFY checklist, but to act on it promptly. Small delays can create bigger problems later, particularly where residency, foreign income, investment disposals, or rental properties are involved. Completing these reviews before the year closes gives you more options, better records, and a smoother tax process. Relevant Links:
 • Upcoming webinar - US Exit Tax: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/6017810897348/WN_f4PEmohsTUmZ-KWqVP-C2Q • The Expat's Handbook now available - atlaswealth.com/resources/the-exp…working-overseas/ • Facebook Group – Join the Australian Expat Financial Forum: facebook.com/groups/AustralianExpatFinancialForum • Ask Atlas – Submit your questions for the podcast: atlaswealth.com/news-media/austra…ian-expat-podcast • Expat Mortgage Podcast – atlaswealth.com/news-media/austra…-mortgage-podcast • Weekly Recap Podcast – atlaswealth.com/news-media/atlas-…kly-recap-podcast If you enjoy the content, let us know by giving the episode a thumbs up and subscribing. Feel free to share your feedback or questions in the comments below. About Atlas Wealth Group: Atlas Wealth Group was established to meet the growing demand from Australian expats for professional financial guidance. We specialise in providing tax, financial planning, wealth management, and mortgage services to Australian expats around the world. Whether you're based in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, or the Americas, our team has the expertise to help you manage your global financial journey. To learn more, visit www.atlaswealth.com Connect with us: Facebook: www.facebook.com/atlaswealthmgmt LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/atlas-wealth-management X: www.x.com/atlaswealthmgmt Instagram: www.instagram.com/atlaswealthgroup Youtube: www.youtube.com/atlaswealthmgmt

In this episode of Walk Talk Listen, I speak with Jody Fry about the journey that led him from engineering and organizational leadership to becoming one of the leading voices on spiritual leadership and leadership for sustainability. We explore purpose, belonging, hope, sustainability, and the challenge of bridging competing worldviews in an increasingly polarized world. Along the way, Jody reflects on personal experiences that shaped his thinking and explains why leadership ultimately begins with an inner journey of self-awareness and service to others.   Jody Fry is Regents Professor of Management and Leadership at Texas A&M University-Central Texas and Director of its MS Leadership for Sustainability Program. His work on Spiritual Leadership has been cited more than 20,000 times and has influenced scholars and practitioners around the world. He is the author of Maximizing the Triple Bottom Line Through Spiritual Leadership, founder of the International Institute for Spiritual Leadership, and co-author of the forthcoming book Completing the SDG Promise: Leadership to Bridge Competing Worldviews for a Sustainable Future. His research focuses on helping leaders and organizations create flourishing futures that work for people, planet, and prosperity.   More information:https://www.iispiritualleadership.com/ Texas A&M Central Texas:https://www.tamuct.edu/directory/louis-fry/ International Institute for Spiritual Leadership:https://www.iispiritualleadership.com/   Listener Engagement: Learn more about Jody Fry and his work through his website, see above and his social media handles: YouTube and Facebook. Jody is also on Linkedin. Share your feedback on this episode through our Walk Talk Listen Feedback link – your thoughts matter! Follow Us: Support the Walk Talk Listen podcast by following us on Facebook and Instagram. Visit 100mile.org or mauricebloem.com for more episodes and information about our work. Check out the special series "Enough for All" and learn more about the work of the Joint Learning Initiative (JLI).

⚠️ What Is a Default Divorce in California? | Los Angeles Divorce ⚠️ A divorce case in California can sometimes continue even when one spouse never responds to the paperwork. This process is commonly called a default divorce and may allow the case to move forward after proper service and required waiting periods are completed.

⚖️ Do You Have to Go to Court for an Uncontested Divorce? | Los Angeles Divorce ⚖️ Many California couples are surprised to learn that uncontested divorces are often completed without ever going to court. When both spouses agree on the major issues and paperwork is completed properly, the divorce process is usually handled through organized filings and court review rather than courtroom hearings.

⏳ When Does a Divorce Become Final in California? | Los Angeles Divorce ⏳ Many people are surprised to learn that a California divorce does not become final immediately after paperwork is filed. Even when both spouses agree and documents are completed early, California still requires a mandatory 6-month waiting period before the divorce can officially become final.

In this episode we talk about 50 First Dates!Episode includes: Completing the Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler Trifecta!An ethical nightmare, a meetcute everyday for the rest of their lives, a heartbreaking reset montage, breakfast food construction and an unnecessary golf scene.Find out the answer to the question no one but us asked: "If this movie was a cheese, what kind of cheese would it be?"Find us:email: shenanigansensuepod@gmail.cominstagram: @shenanigansensuepod

3 Simple Brain Tricks for a Happier LifeHappiness isn't always about big achievements. Sometimes, small mental shifts can make a huge difference in how you feel every day.

Send us a text with feedback, questions, or topics of interest!In this episode, I'm taking you inside a transformative encounter at the Sedona Wolf Sanctuary, where a wolf named Thor became the catalyst for a remembering I can't stop thinking about: the call to come back into the wild. June is calling you back into your authentic, infinite self. Back into the version of you that exists beneath every false identity you've been carrying.We're moving into a potent stretch of the year, and the cosmos are asking for something specific from us right now. With Gemini lighting up communication and duality, and the shift into Cancer awakening our emotional waters, this is the moment to master the art of holding opposing energies at once. To exist fully inside your created reality while remembering that none of it is permanent. To learn how to be "nothing" and surrender to the organic stream of intelligence the way wild animals do.In this conversation, we explore:

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been forced to rebuild after the waning years of the Kevin Colbert era, but how close are they to completing the rebuild? Or how close are they to completing the roster, barring a franchise QB? Jeff Hartman and Greg Benevent have you covered coast-to-coast as they attempt to bring a reasonable perspective on the Steelers from different time zones. But no matter where they reside, they both have their clocks adjusted to Pittsburgh Standard Time. This podcast is a part of the Steel Curtain Network, a proud member of the Fans First Sports Network. Check out Meinelschmidt Distillery at meineldistillery.com and use the code SCN10 to save 10% at checkout! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The New York Knicks now lead the eastern conference finals 3-0. Completing 10 straight wins. They will be going to the finals, first time since 1999 with one more win! Back to Back Sweeps in the playoffs. The NYPD denied their permit for a watch party in front of Madison Square Garden. Claiming complaints & saftey concerns. Teenager was killed Subway surfing on the J train. City beaches are now officially opened. The start of Memorial Day weekend. The three day LIRR labor strike came to an end . fire in Morris Heights leaves one dead. South Bronx culture festival! Bronx, Puerto Rican day parade May 30! Free salsa in Washington Square, Park! It feels like the summer already! Free concerts and free movies at Hudson yards! And so much more!Children's Museum of Manhattan children's Museum of the Bronx and children's Museum of Brooklyn participate in museums for all. With your EBT or snap card you can get free admission or discounted rate. Like, Subscribe & share! and check out Super Puerto Rico Man! The Orignal Bronx Superhero! Free mini comic and press kit Superpuertoricoman.weebly.com@MRCAKEAVE SEASON 11 EPISODE 21THIS WEEK MUSIC BY “LIFE” song STREET LIFE @designbynatureapparelCO HOST SYTrends and News of the WEEKBRONX NEWSMANHATTAN NEWSHARLEM NEWSBROOKLYN NEWS

Host Andrea Samadi welcomes Dr. Anna Lembke to explain how pleasure and pain share the same neural circuitry and how dopamine governs motivation. The episode explores why overconsumption of easy rewards dulls motivation, creates withdrawal-like deficits, and shifts the brain toward pain. Through clear takeaways—delay borrowed rewards, try temporary abstinence, create friction for temptations, and practice purposeful effort—the episode shows how recalibrating the brain's reward system restores enjoyment in ordinary activities and builds sustainable motivation. Welcome back to Season 15 of the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast. I'm Andrea Samadi, and on this podcast, we bridge the science behind social and emotional learning, emotional intelligence, and practical neuroscience so we can create measurable improvements in well-being, achievement, productivity, and results. Season 15 Orientation This season, we're exploring what I call: The Brain's Operating System for Human Performance. Instead of looking at neuroscience, health, learning, motivation, and emotional intelligence as separate topics, (like we did for the past 14 seasons) we're exploring how these systems come online in sequence. Each phase builds on the one before it: ✔ Phase 1 — Regulation & Safety Is the nervous system safe enough to learn? ✔ Phase 2 — Neurochemistry & Motivation What drives behavior, focus, and sustained effort? ✔ Phase 3 — Movement, Learning & Cognition ✔ Phase 4 — Perception, Emotion & Social Intelligence ✔ Phase 5 — Integration, Insight & Meaning By the end of this year my hope is that we can step back and ask: Where am I out of alignment? Is it regulation? Is it my thinking? Is it my focus? Or Belief? Is it how I'm learning or connecting with others? Or do I need some work with integration, insight and meaning? Because once we can see our gap… We can begin to close it. “The goal is not more effort—it's better alignment.” “And when these systems are aligned… Effort feels easier Learning becomes faster And results become more consistent Because peak performance is not about doing more. It's about aligning the systems that drive our results. Recap Where We've Been In EP 392[i], we introduced the Motivation Loop and explored how the brain decides what is worth doing. In EP 393[ii], we looked at how our beliefs trigger neurochemistry that drives action, feedback, and repetition. In EP 394[iii] we looked at how our thought patterns impact our neurochemistry and results with Dr. Caroline Leaf. Then in EP 395[iv], reviewing Dr. John Medina's work on Theory of Mind, we explored something equally important: The brain pays attention to what it believes matters. Dr. Medina showed us that attention and reward are deeply connected. When the brain predicts something will be valuable, relevant, or meaningful, attention increases. And when attention and reward align: ✔ Learning improves ✔ Memory strengthens ✔ Motivation increases ✔ Behaviors become repeatable But that leaves us with an important question: What creates that sense of reward in the first place? What makes the brain continue pursuing something? What makes us stay motivated and what makes us lose interest? And why can effort sometimes feel rewarding—and other times feel exhausting? Today's Episode To answer those questions, we're turning to Dr. Anna Lembke, author of the book: Dopamine Nation who we first met September 2021 on EP 162.[v] Her work helps to explain the neurochemical engine underneath the Motivation Loop that we've been covering. While John Medina helped us understand how attention and reward influence learning, Dr. Lembke helps us understand: ✔ Why the brain seeks reward ✔ How dopamine drives motivation ✔ Why pleasure and pain operate on the same neural system ✔ And what happens when the balance gets disrupted Because the real goal isn't simply just feeling good. The goal is understanding how the brain learns to associate effort with reward. And when that happens, something powerful occurs: Effort itself becomes rewarding. That's where sustainable motivation begins. EP 393 — Motivation Loop ↓ EP 394 — Belief triggers neurochemistry ↓ EP 395 — Theory of Mind: Attention + Reward determine what matters ↓ EP 396 — Dopamine Nation: Why the brain seeks reward and how effort becomes rewarding It keeps the loop intact and shows listeners that Medina answered "What gets our attention?" while Lembke answers "Why does the brain keep pursuing it?". CLIP 1: The Neuroscience of Pleasure and Pain Based on Dr. Anna Lembke's Dopamine Nation CLIP SUMMARY Let's see what Dr. Anna Lembke has to say about the neuroscience of pleasure and pain. In this clip, Dr. Lembke explains one of the most important concepts in modern neuroscience: Pleasure and pain are processed in the same brain system and work like opposite sides of a balance. Whenever we experience something pleasurable—whether it's social media, sugar, shopping, gaming, alcohol, or even achievement—the brain's balance tips toward pleasure. But the brain is always seeking equilibrium. To restore balance, it responds by tipping the scale in the opposite direction, creating a corresponding feeling of discomfort, craving, dissatisfaction, or pain. The more often we seek quick pleasure, the harder the brain works to compensate. Over time, this can leave us in what Lembke calls a "dopamine deficit state" where we need more stimulation just to feel normal. The surprising solution? Activities that require effort and involve manageable discomfort—exercise, cold exposure, fasting, learning difficult skills, and meaningful human connection—can help restore balance and rebuild motivation. KEY TAKEAWAYS & HOW TO PUT THEM INTO ACTION 1. The Brain Is Always Seeking Balance IMAGE CREDIT: Dr. Anna Lembke Dopamine Nation. Dr. Lembke explains that pleasure and pain are not separate systems. They operate like opposite sides of a seesaw. When we repeatedly tip the brain toward pleasure, (you can see an image in the show notes with some examples like with eating chocolate, shopping or using social media) the brain compensates by tipping toward pain to restore balance. Brain Rule: Every pleasure has a neurobiological cost. Put This Into Action Ask yourself: Where am I getting large rewards with very little effort? Examples might include: ✔ Social media ✔ Sugar ✔ Constant news consumption ✔ Streaming ✔ Or Online shopping The goal isn't to eliminate pleasure. The goal is just with our awareness. Because what we measure, we can begin to manage. 2. Overconsumption Changes the Brain What feels exciting today becomes normal tomorrow. The brain adapts to repeated dopamine spikes through a process called neuroadaptation. Over time: ✔ Rewards feel weaker ✔ Cravings increase ✔ Motivation decreases ✔ More stimulation is needed to create the same feeling Put This Into Action Choose one highly stimulating habit and observe it for a week. Notice: ✔ How often you engage in it ✔ What triggers it ✔ How you feel afterward Simply collecting data can reveal patterns you didn't realize existed. 3. Not All Dopamine Is Created Equal: Borrowed vs. Earned Dopamine (we have covered this topic previously). Dr. Lembke's pleasure-pain balance helps explain an important distinction: Borrowed Dopamine Borrowed dopamine comes before effort. Examples include: ✔ Scrolling social media ✔ Energy drinks before a workout ✔ Sugar when stressed ✔ Online shopping ✔ Gaming ✔ Endless entertainment These rewards feel good immediately. But because they require little effort, they often weaken motivation over time. The brain begins expecting reward before work. Earned Dopamine Earned dopamine comes after effort. Examples include: ✔ Finishing a difficult workout ✔ Completing a challenging project ✔ Climbing to the summit of a hike ✔ Finishing a podcast episode (for me) ✔ Learning a new skill ✔ Solving a difficult problem These rewards feel different. The brain learns: Effort leads to reward. And over time: Effort itself becomes rewarding. This strengthens the Motivation Loop. Put This Into Action Ask yourself: Where am I borrowing dopamine? And where am I earning it? For the next week, look for opportunities to delay rewards until after effort. Examples: Instead of: Reward → Effort Try: Effort → Reward Instead of checking your phone before starting work... Complete one task first. Instead of rewarding yourself before your workout... Reward yourself after the workout. Instead of seeking immediate comfort... Lean into a small challenge. Each time you do this, you're teaching your brain: "Reward follows effort." And that's how motivation becomes sustainable. 4. Temporary Abstinence Reveals the Truth One of Dr. Lembke's most powerful strategies is taking a break from a highly rewarding behavior. When we step away from constant stimulation, the brain's reward system has an opportunity to recalibrate. Only then can we see whether a behavior is serving us—or controlling us. Put This Into Action Consider a short experiment. Choose one behavior that may be overstimulating your reward system and reduce or eliminate it temporarily. Notice: ✔ Energy ✔ Focus ✔ Motivation ✔ Mood ✔ Cravings The goal isn't punishment. The goal is information. 5. Lasting Change Requires Systems, Not Willpower Many people believe success comes from discipline alone. Dr. Lembke argues that creating the right environment is often more powerful. Instead of relying on willpower every day, create barriers that make unwanted behaviors harder to access. Put This Into Action Ask yourself: How can I create more friction between myself and temptation? Examples include: ✔ Turning off notifications ✔ Keeping unhealthy foods out of sight ✔ Scheduling device-free time Small environmental changes often produce large behavioral results. CLIP 2 How Chronic Overstimulation Creates a Dopamine Deficit State When The Motivation Loops Breaks In this clip, Dr. Anna Lembke explains why many people struggling with depression, anxiety, insomnia, low motivation, or emotional distress may actually be experiencing the consequences of chronic overstimulation. Her first recommendation is often surprisingly simple: Remove the "drug of choice" for a period of time. The "drug" isn't necessarily alcohol or drugs. It can be social media, gaming, shopping, sugar, constant entertainment, or any behavior that repeatedly floods the brain's reward pathways. Lembke explains that people often feel worse before they feel better because the brain has adapted to high levels of dopamine stimulation. When the stimulation is removed, the brain temporarily experiences withdrawal-like symptoms as it works to restore balance. Over time, however, the brain's pleasure-pain system recalibrates, allowing people to experience pleasure from ordinary, everyday rewards again. Her larger message is: We live in a society with unprecedented access to pleasure, and many of us have unintentionally shifted our pleasure-pain balance toward pain. The solution is not necessarily more pleasure. The solution is restoring balance. How Chronic Overstimulation Creates a Dopamine Deficit State KEY TAKEAWAYS & HOW TO PUT THEM INTO ACTION 1. Feeling Worse Can Be a Sign of Healing One of the biggest misconceptions about behavior change is that improvement should feel good immediately. The brain doesn't work that way. When a highly stimulating behavior is removed: ✔ Cravings increase ✔ Discomfort rises ✔ Mood may temporarily decline This is often the brain recalibrating rather than failing. Put This Into Action When reducing an overstimulating habit, don't judge success by how you feel in the first few days. Instead ask: "Could this discomfort be evidence that my brain is adjusting?" Sometimes the discomfort isn't a sign you're moving backward. It's a sign you're recovering. 2. The Brain Adapts to Excess Dopamine The brain is remarkably efficient. When exposed to constant stimulation, it reduces its sensitivity to reward. What once felt exciting becomes normal. What once felt normal may eventually feel boring. This is why people often need more stimulation to achieve the same feeling. Put This Into Action Identify your "drug of choice." Ask yourself: What do I consistently turn to when I'm stressed, bored, anxious, or uncomfortable? Examples: ✔ Social media ✔ Sugar ✔ Streaming ✔ Shopping ✔ Gaming ✔ Constant notifications Awareness creates choice. 3. Modern Life Makes Overstimulation Easy This is one of the central themes of Dopamine Nation. For most of human history, pleasure was scarce. Today: ✔ Entertainment is unlimited ✔ Food is always available ✔ Social media never stops ✔ Information is endless The challenge is no longer finding pleasure. The challenge is regulating access to it. Put This Into Action Look for places where you can create friction between yourself and temptation. Examples: ✔ Turn off notifications ✔ Keep unhealthy foods out of sight ✔ Schedule screen-free time ✔ Create boundaries around technology use Small barriers often create significant behavioral change. 4. Sustainable Motivation Lives Near Baseline The goal isn't to feel intensely excited all the time. The goal is to restore the ability to enjoy ordinary rewards. IMAGE CREDIT: Dr. Anna Lembke Dopamine Nation Put This Into Action Reconnect with activities that once felt naturally rewarding. Ask yourself: What activities did I enjoy before constant digital stimulation? Examples: ✔ Reading ✔ Walking ✔ Meaningful conversation ✔ Learning something new ✔ Creative work As the reward system recalibrates, many people discover these activities become enjoyable again (if the pleasure for them had disappeared). 5. Doing Hard Things Strengthens the Brain One of the most exciting findings in neuroscience involves the Anterior Mid-Cingulate Cortex (AMCC), sometimes called the "Do Hard Things" circuit. This region appears to strengthen when we voluntarily engage in difficult activities. Examples: ✔ Exercise ✔ Learning challenging skills ✔ Delayed gratification ✔ Difficult conversations ✔ Endurance challenges The brain learns: "I can handle discomfort." Put This Into Action Ask yourself each morning: What's one hard thing I can do today on purpose? Because we've learned that doing hard things is valuable. Every time you choose effort over comfort, you're strengthening the circuits that support resilience, persistence, and long-term motivation. REVIEW & CONCLUSION To review and conclude this week's EP 396, Clip 1 taught us that pleasure and pain share the same neural circuitry. Clip 2 teaches us what happens when that balance is disrupted. The lesson isn't that pleasure is bad. The lesson is that when pleasure becomes too easy and too abundant, the brain stops valuing effort. But when we reduce overstimulation, embrace manageable discomfort, and begin earning our dopamine instead of borrowing it, something remarkable happens: Motivation returns. Effort feels worthwhile. And the Motivation Loop begins working the way it was designed to work. As we close today's episode, let's return to our Phase 2 roadmap. If you're looking at this graphic, you'll notice that Dr. Anna Lembke sits right in the center. And that's intentional. Because everything we've covered so far in Phase 2 flows through this central motivation system. We began with Bob Proctor and the power of belief. Belief creates expectation. Expectation shapes what we think is possible. Then Dr. Caroline Leaf showed us how our thoughts influence our neurochemistry. The thoughts we repeatedly think shape the chemical signals that influence our behavior and performance. Last week, Dr. John Medina helped us understand attention and reward. The brain pays attention to what it believes matters. And what gets rewarded gets repeated. Today, Dr. Anna Lembke helped us understand the missing piece. She showed us that dopamine is not simply about pleasure. It's about motivation. It's about anticipation. It's about pursuit. And ultimately, it's about what the brain decides is worth the effort. When dopamine becomes disconnected from effort through constant stimulation and easy rewards, the Motivation Loop begins to break. But when reward becomes connected to effort, challenge, growth, and progress, the loop strengthens. And that's where sustainable motivation begins. THE "DO HARD THINGS" CONNECTION One final insight from today's episode. Dr. Lembke's work helps explain why doing hard things matters so much. Every time we choose effort over immediate gratification... Every time we choose growth over comfort... Every time we voluntarily do something difficult... We strengthen the brain circuits that support persistence, resilience, and long-term motivation. The brain begins learning: Effort is worth it. And eventually: Effort becomes rewarding. That's when motivation becomes self-sustaining. Not because the work gets easier. But because the brain learns that the effort itself has value. Dr. Anna Lembke isn't just another stop in the loop—she's the core motivation system that sits in the center of everything. But there's 2 more pieces still to cover in the Motivation Loop we haven't explored yet. We've learned that belief shapes expectation. Thoughts shape neurochemistry. Attention and reward determine what matters. And dopamine helps the brain decide what is worth pursuing. But once we're motivated... How do we turn that motivation into action? That's where we'll turn next. Next Week: Dr. Chuck Hillman Movement, Motivation, and Brain Activation We'll explore: ✔ How exercise activates the brain ✔ Why movement improves attention and learning ✔ The connection between physical activity and motivation ✔ How movement strengthens cognitive performance ✔ Why action often comes before motivation ✔ And how movement helps keep the Motivation Loop moving forward Because in Phase 2, we're not just asking: What makes effort feel worth it? We're also asking: What helps us take action once motivation is present? And Dr. Chuck Hillman's research shows that movement may be one of the most powerful ways to activate the brain for learning, performance, and sustained effort. Until next time, I'm Andrea Samadi, reminding you that when we understand how the brain works, we can align our thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and actions to create measurable improvements in well-being, achievement, productivity, and results. Thanks for listening, and I'll see you next week. RESOURCES: Full Interview with Dr. Lembke from Sept 2021 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pu82wZRZwo CLIP 1: The Neuroscience of Pleasure and Pain CLIP 2 How Chronic Overstimulation Creates a Dopamine Deficit State REFERENCES: [i] Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 392 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/belief-first-the-neuroscience-of-motivation/   [ii]Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 393 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/belief-first-the-neuroscience-of-motivation/   [iii]Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 394 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/thoughts-as-biology-how-your-mind-shapes-neurochemistry/   [iv] Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 395 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/theory-of-mind-the-missing-link-between-attention-reward-and-motivation/   [v]Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 162 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/medical-director-of-addictive-medicine-at-stanford-university-dr-anna-lembke-on-dopamine-nation-finding-balance-in-the-age-of-indulgence/

In today's mini jolt episode, I share a simple yet transformational tool – the energy audit. Performing an energy audit brings powerful awareness to where in our lives we're energized versus what activities, places and people leave us drained. It will also help you identify leaky energy moments in your daily life, such as mindless scrolling that brings you down instead of inspiring you.   Completing an energy audit will force you out of autopilot and empower you to create space for what truly fuels you. You'll also stop or shift some of the activities that bring you down. If you are not aware of your energy, your loved ones - and you - aren't getting the best of you.   Where do you want to spend your energy? I would love to hear from you about any shifts you're making after your energy audit. Message me or tag me on IG with your thoughts - @whitneywoman.   Here's what you can look forward to in today's episode: What is an energy audit Why it's important tO focus on where you spend your energy, and the problem it can create if you forget to do that How you can conduct your own energy audit The importance of paying attention to what energizes you and what drains you throughout your day Reflection question to ponder: Where do I no longer wish to spend my precious energy?   Learn more about 1:1 coaching with Whitney - book a 15-minute Spark Session   Connect with Whitney: Instagram l Website l 5 Days to Less Stress, More Satisfaction l Tend to Your Soul Toolkit l 10 Soulful Journaling Prompts | Electric Ideas Podcast

Start your anxiety recovery today at anxietyguyprograms.com. Science backed programs designed to help you heal anxiety and regulate your nervous system for good. Episode: Helping Your Body Feel Safe Again In this episode of The Anxiety Guy Podcast, we explore what it really means to complete the stress response and why so many anxiety sufferers feel stuck in a body that still believes danger is present, even when life appears calm on the outside. For many people struggling with anxiety, the mind keeps scanning, the body stays tense, symptoms feel louder, and rest can feel strangely uncomfortable. This is often not because the body is falling apart but because the nervous system has learned to stay prepared for threat. Dennis Simsek breaks this down in a practical, grounded way, helping you understand how the body can begin moving out of survival mode and back into a felt sense of safety. In today's episode, we explore 3 key points: How the stress response can become stuck in the body after prolonged anxiety, pressure, or emotional overwhelm. Why trying to think your way into safety often isn't enough when the body still feels activated. How gentle movement, emotional expression, breath, presence, and intentional rest can help your system complete what it has been holding. What you'll take away: You'll learn how to stop seeing your symptoms as the enemy and begin understanding them as signals from a protective system that is asking for completion, safety, and support. This episode is about helping your body feel safe again, not through force, pressure, or constant fixing, but through a more compassionate relationship with your nervous system. Join the Community & Subscribe Join over 250,000+ subscribers on YouTube for more anxiety recovery content: https://youtube.com/theanxietyguy1 Join the Health Anxiety University Community: https://www.skool.com/health-anxiety-university/about Connect with Dennis Simsek Instagram: @theanxietyguy Disclaimer This podcast is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your healthcare provider regarding any medical or mental health concerns. Credits Host: Dennis Simsek, The Anxiety Guy

Host Janet Michael sits down (virtually) with two outstanding graduates from Laurel Ridge Community College, joined by Sally Voth, Public Relations Coordinator for the college. This episode celebrates academic achievement, resilience, and the transformative power of community college education. Guests Maria Valle – Outstanding Graduate, Fauquier Campus Mary Herter Nelson – Outstanding Graduate, Middletown Campus Sally Voth – Public Relations Coordinator, Laurel Ridge Community College Segment 1 – Maria Valle Maria grew up in Argentina with a dream of studying abroad. After moving to Warrenton, Virginia in 2022, she discovered Laurel Ridge was just 10 minutes away. She completed her studies in Administration of Justice and will transfer to Shenandoah University in the fall to pursue a degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice. Key highlights: Navigating higher education in a second language Involvement in PDK Honor Society and student engagement projects Her goal: working in victim services, with a focus on Spanish-speaking communities Completing professional training through Fairfax County on domestic violence and sexual violence Professors Maria credits: Lisa Dunick – English Composition & Literature Lisa Kara – Criminology Tarren Smarr – History & Sociology Maria's advice: "Be open to new experiences, because they can always lead you to wonderful places you never imagined." Segment 2 – Mary Herter Nelson Mary comes from a true Laurel Ridge family — her mother, older brother, and younger sister all attended the college. A homeschool graduate who was initially too shy to enroll, Mary's mom signed her up and helped her take that first step. In just two semesters, she went from nervous newcomer to campus leader. Key highlights: Founded the Laurel Ridge Dance Club and organized a campus square dance Became a Student Ambassador Participated in Mystery Bus trips and campus life events Part of the TRIO program Plans to work as a teacher's aide before pursuing her long-term calling as a religious sister People Mary credits: Rich Follett – College Success Skills (helped her build community) Polly Nesselrodt – Spanish professor and Dance Club sponsor Chris Lambert – Student Life Caroline Walls & Sasha Dawson – Academic advisors Mary's advice: "Find the support system that is going to carry you through. Take the leap with people that you trust."

This show has been flagged as Clean by the host. 01 This is the third in a four part series on simple podcasting. 02 In this episode we will cover the following topics: Analysis of audio noise problems and filtering methods used to deal with specific problems that we may find. Command line recording. Command line playback. Getting information about an audio recording. 03 Introduction When I did my first couple of podcasts I didn't notice that there was a quiet high pitched whine or buzz in the background. Nobody complained about it, but I thought I could do better in subsequent episodes. 04 Creating an Audio Sample If you have a similar problem, the first step is to find out where it is coming from. If there is no audible noise where you are recording, there is a good chance the problem is in the microphone or another part of the audio system. Plug in your microphone and record 2 or 3 seconds of quiet audio where you do not speak into the microphone or make other noise. 05 You will need a minimum amount of data in order to analyze it. For a flac file sampled at 44.1 kHz, 2 to 3 seconds of data should be enough. To get a sample of just electronic noise you can put the microphone in a drawer or somewhere like that if you want to be sure of getting a quiet signal. Any sound recorded in this way should be mainly from the microphone or other electronic elements in the analogue pathway. To get a sample of possible ambient noise, such as fans, make sure the microphone is in the open air in an area which is representative of where it will be when you are recording. -------------------- 06 Analyzing using Fourier Transforms Next you need to look at the wave form. At this point I will describe this using Audacity. I will show other ways later, but Audacity is actually the easiest if you are starting from nothing. You don't need to become an expert in Audacity to use it, just follow the steps I will describe. I myself don't know how to use Audacity beyond using this one feature. 07 We are going to analyze the sound spectrum in our sample. The technique being used is a Fourier Transform. A Fourier transform, often called an "FFT" for fast fourier transform, is a mathematical method of showing a signal in terms of frequency along the x axis instead of time. This allows us to spot troublesome noise frequencies which appear when we don't want them to. The FFT is a very common mathematical technique which is widely used in signal processing, not just in audio. 08 There is software which will create pretty coloured animations of sound waves, but this is not what you want. These are simply decorative patterns and won't tell us what we want to know. -------------------- 09 Using Audacity Install Audacity if you haven't already. Start Audacity. Select file > import > audio, then navigate to your sample and select "open". The file should load. 10 In the wave form part of the window, click anywhere and then type Ctrl-S to select all data points. The chart should turn a slightly darker colour. From the menu, select Analyze > Plot Spectrum. A new window will open, showing magnitude in db on the Y axis, and frequency in hertz on the x axis. For "algorithm" be sure it is set to "spectrum" 11 There are now two settings that we need to play with while we look for problems. One is "size" The default for this is 1024. The other is "axis". The default for this is "log frequency". -------------------- 12 What to Look For What we are looking for are large obvious spikes that stand out in the data. Since our test signal has very little to no actual audio data, any spikes should represent electrical or other noise that doesn't belong there. 13 I have found two combinations of settings to be most helpful in finding problems. These are Size 2048, axis linear frequency. Size 32768, axis log frequency. 14 A small size value can help very narrow spikes stand out from the background more, while a large size value can help separate spikes from surrounding noise. A linear frequency axis can help with seeing all spikes across the full frequency range, while a log frequency axis can help to better see what is happening in the often very crowded lowest frequency range. -------------------- 15 A Real Example of an Audio Problem If you have good audio equipment you may find nothing obvious. If you cannot hear any noise in the signal, there may be none of any consequence and there is nothing for you to do. 16 However, in my case I found two main problems and one lesser one. One problem was a spike at 60 Hz, which is the AC line frequency. There is also a lesser problem of a collection of a broad frequency range of noise below 60Hz. Both of these however will be taken care of by the basic filtering that we looked at earlier so we do not need to worry about them here. 17 The other main problem is I had a large spike at every 1 kHz interval from 1 kHz to 19 KHz. This was noise generated within the head set electronics, or the result of noise on the USB power supply. This is the product of a cheap headset. 18 These spikes are not very large compared to the volume of my voice, but if I do the same sort of analysis of samples where I am speaking, they appear in the intervals between words. This results in a high pitched whine or buzz. This was the source of the background noise or buzz in my first two podcast episodes. I need to get rid of this. 19 One option would be to get a better microphone, but, well, that wouldn't be any fun would it. It would also cost money and I don't want to spend any of that if I don't have to. If you analyze your own signal, you may find a different pattern, or even no noise at all. If you did not find anything when shielding your microphone from ambient audio noise, repeat the same test but with the microphone exposed to acoustic noise in the room. -------------------- 20 Advanced Filtering The next step is to figure out how to get rid of this noise. I have called this section "advanced filtering", but we are actually just making use of a technique that was already covered in basic filtering. 21 To deal with the remaining spikes we can use additional "band reject" filters, each of which removes a specific frequency at 1 kHz intervals from 1 kHz to 12 kHz. We will use this in combination with the filtering that we have already done previously, so we don't need to worry about anything above 12 kHz as we already remove that with a low pass filter. After a small amount of experimenting I came up with the following. 22 Because I am applying a total of 16 filters, 4 for basic filtering and 12 to deal with the specific microphone problems that I have, I have broken up the filters into separate strings. I then generate the 12 new band reject filters from a template. Note that I don't show the "de-esser" filter here. I would recommend adding it as a separate step after doing the sort of filtering we are talking about here. 23 Rather than reading out multiple lines of bash script, I will post them in the show notes. I will give a brief description of them here which you can refer to when reading the show notes. The FFMPEG and Sox versions are very similar in concept so I don't need to go over the Sox version in detail. See the show notes for it. FFMPEG Version Here's the FFMPEG version. # The high and low pass filters. hlpfil="highpass=f=80, lowpass=f=12000" # Band reject filters filter for 60Hz and another for 50Hz. linefil="bandreject=f=60:width_type=h:w=20, bandreject=f=50:width_type=h:w=20" # Create a series of band reject filters, from 1 kHz to 12 kHz. # Change or remove this part if your recording hardware does not require it. ftemplate="bandreject=f=%s000:width_type=h:w=100" kilospikefil=$( seq 1 12 | xargs printf "$ftemplate," ) # Using ffmpeg ffmpeg -i input.flac -af "$hlpfil, $linefil, $kilospikefil" output.flac 24 There are a total of 5 lines of bash script. In the first line, we create a string called "hlpfil" which is just the high and low pass filters copied from our previous discussion on basic filtering. In the second line, we create a string called "linefil" which is just the simple bandreject filters to cover 50 and 60 hertz AC line noise filters also from basic filtering. 25 In the third and fourth lines, we create a string called "kilospikefil" containing the new filters. The "f" parameter represents the frequency we are targeting. The "w" parameter represents the "width" of the frequency range we are filtering in terms of hertz. The filter is applied gradually rather than with a sharp cut-off, so to get more filtering action we need to have larger width. In this case I decided to hammer the spike quite aggressively and so used a relatively wide width of 100 hertz. Testing with a voice file did not show any noticeable distortion, so it's an acceptable solution. 26 For this filter we need to create a dozen filter command so we use the shell "seq" command to generate a sequence of numbers from 1 to 12. We then pipe that into the xargs command which applies each number to the next command. The next command is "printf", which takes the number it gets from xargs and applies it to the "ftemplate" string template in a manner very similar to C programming printf string templates. 27 We also have a comma in there to separate each of the individual filters. We then surround this with a $ and () so we can run the command and capture the output into a variable. Then we call ffmpeg and pass it the filters we created by putting the variable names inside a double quoted string, separated by commas. All of this will be in the show notes, so don't worry about trying to get the exact details right now. Sox Version Here's the Sox version. # The high and low pass filters. sxhlpfil="highpass 80 lowpass 12000" # Band reject filters filter for 60Hz and another for 50Hz. sxfilter="$sxhlpfil $sxkilospikefil bandreject 60 20 bandreject 50 20" # Create a series of reject filters filters, from 1 kHz to 12 kHz. sxftemplate="bandreject %s000 100" sxkilospikefil=$( seq 1 12 | xargs printf "$sxftemplate " ) # Using SOX. sox input.flac output.flac $sxhlpfil $sxfilter $sxkilospikefil 28 The Sox version is very similar with the exception that the command arguments representing the filters must not be in quoted strings as Sox wants to see them as separate arguments instead of parsing a string. -------------------- 29 Confirming the Effect If we apply the above filters and look at this headset noise output file in the Audacity spectrum analyzer we will now see that these noise spikes are almost completely gone. We can now confirm how well this works by using a test audio file. Any normal short voice audio file will do for this. Just talk into the microphone normally and create a voice sample file that is 5 or 10 seconds long, or whatever you feel comfortable with. 30 With the original unfiltered voice audio I can hear a distinct high pitched whine overlaying the voice. With the filtered audio that whine or hum is not detectable. If we then look at the voice file in the Audacity spectrum analyzer, we can see distinct "notches" at the 50 Hz and 60 Hz frequencies, and at every 1 kHz from 1 kHz to 12 kHz. These notches are narrow enough that they won't cause a noticeable problem with voice signals. If we apply this filter to voice samples, the buzz or whine is gone and the voice signal sounds fine. Despite using a very cheap microphone, I now have acceptable quality audio for a podcast. 31 Again I want to emphasize that in this instance I am dealing with deficiencies with my hardware instead of buying a better microphone. These additional filters are intended to deal with the specific hardware problem I am facing. You don't need these additional filters if you cannot detect an audible problem. On the other hand, if you have a different problem you may wish to deal with a different set of frequencies. Finding these problems is the reason for using a spectrum analyzer. 32 FFMPEG has other filtering methods as well. However, as I didn't end up using them I can't really do an adequate job of describing them. If anyone has used them successfully, they are welcome to make a podcast on the subject. -------------------- 33 Completing the Process With these new filters added into the middle of the processing steps, you can now complete the processing by doing the de-essing, normalizing, and review steps as described in the previous episode. -------------------- 34 Command Line Recording I will now cover a separate topic, which is recording using command line programs. I am covering it in this episode as it is a short topic and it is convenient to talk about it here. 35 As well as using GUI based recording programs such as Gnome Sound Recorder, it is possible to record podcast episodes using command line tools such as FFMPEG. As for why you may wish to use command line tools to record audio, there are several reasons. One is that you may simply prefer to do it this way because it pleases you to do so. Another is that it allows the recording step to be included in a script that encompasses other parts of the process, automating what may have otherwise been separate manual steps. 36 However, if you don't find these arguments particularly compelling, then I'm not going to attempt to persuade you to use the command line to record audio. I am doing this part of this episode out of a desire to have a bit of fun and I probably won't be using it much myself. I will however use one of these methods to record this part of this episode. 37 Recording with FFMPEG - The Basics One of the common command line tools you can use is FFMPEG, a package which I have previously mentioned with respect to filtering audio files. Here is an example of how to record using FFMPEG. We call FFMPEG specifying the audio input system as the FFMPEG input, and then specify a file to output to. 38 # Record audio. ffmpeg -f pulse -i default ff.flac 39 Press 'q' to stop. This uses pulse audio on Linux for input "-f pulse", and the default input "-i default". However, this does not specify the the sample rate or mono recording. To do that we need to add a few more parameters as in the following 40 ffmpeg -f pulse -i default -ac 1 -ar 44100 ff.flac 41 "-ac 1" specifies mono output "-ar 44100" specifies 44.1 khz bit rate. 42 Playback with FFMPEG - The Basics FFMPEG can also play back music. In this case however we need to call the "ffplay" program rather than FFMPEG itself. To play an audio file, simply call ffplay and give it the name of the audio file as an argument to the command. For example: 43 # Play an audio file. ffplay podcast.flac 44 We can also call it with the "autoexit" option, which tells ffplay to automatically exit when the audio file has finished playing. ffplay -autoexit ff.flac 45 -autoexit means Exit when the audio file is done playing. 46 To exit in the middle of the recording, press "q' or ESC. To pause the playback, press "p" or space bar. To decrease the volume press "9" or "/". To increase the volume press "0" or "*". 47 To seek forward 10 seconds, press the right cursor button. To seek backward 10 seconds, press the left cursor button. To seek forward 1 minute, press the up cursor button. To seek backward 1 minute, press the down cursor button. 48 The "0" and "9" keys mentioned above are those on the top row of the keyboard, not the ones on the separate numeric pad. 49 While the recording is playing, a graphical window will open which shows a cascading waveform based on the current content. This is purely decorative and does not serve any particularly useful purpose. -------------------- #!/bin/bash # Record a podcast episode segment. # Get the next file name. # First we check if any matching file patterns exist. If they don't, # then we create the first one starting counting at 1. fcount=$( ls [0-9][0-9].flac 2>/dev/null | wc -l ) if (( $fcount < 1 )); then fname="01.flac" else # If there are any matching file patterns, we find the highest number # and increment it by 1. filenum=$( ls [0-9][0-9].flac 2>&1 | cut -d. -f1 | sort | tail -1 ) newfilecount=$(( 10#$filenum + 1 )) fname=$( printf "%02d.flac" $newfilecount ) fi echo "Recording to: $fname" # Record using ffmpeg. # This makes use of pulse audio and the input is the default audio input. # The sample rate is set to 44.1 kHz, and it is recorded as mono (1 channel). ffmpeg -f pulse -i default -ar 44100 -ac 1 $fname echo "Recorded audio to: $fname" # Report on basic information about the audio file that was just recorded. ffprobe -hide_banner $fname -------------------- 50 Sox - Not so Good I did not find the recording or playback features of Sox to be as useful as those of FFMPEG, so I won't bother to cover them here. -------------------- 51 Getting Information About an Audio Recording There are also command line tools which can be used to retrieve information about audio recordings. 52 FFMPEG Version With FFMPEG this is called "ffprobe". For example: 53 ffprobe hpr4566.mp3 54 This will print out a lot of information about FFMPEG itself. To skip that use the hide_banner option. 55 ffprobe -hide_banner hpr4566.mp3 56 This will print out information about the audio recording. This will include things like the duration, bit rate, sample rate, stereo or mono, etc. If the author added metadata tags to the file, it will also show those. HPR add things like the title, author, copyright license, comment, etc. You can extract the ones you want using something like grep and cut. 57 Sox Version Sox has a similar feature, called "soxi". 58 soxi ff.flac 59 However, it may not work on mp3 files if you do not have an mp3 handler for it installed. -------------------- 60 Conclusion In this episode we took a brief look at an example of how to solve an audio problem through filtering. We looked at how to use Audacity to find where the problems were. We then looked at how to apply filters to remove these sources of noise. We also looked at how to record podcasts and get information about audio files using command line tools. 61 In the next episode we will look at alternatives to Audacity for analyzing audio. While Audacity works just fine, this is an opportunity to have a bit fun with some gratuitous hackery. 62 This has been the third episode in a four part series on simple podcasting. -------------------- -------------------- Full Audio Processing Pipeline This version includes the special filters used to fix my headset problems. Use the version from the previous episode if you do not have the same audio hardware problems. #!/bin/bash # Full processing pipeline for making simple podcasts. # ====================================================================== # Concatenate multiple flac files into a single flac file. # This is used to combine podcast recorded segments into a single # flac file for uploading to HPR. concataudio () { outputname="$1" # First create the list file. printf "file '%s'n" [0-9][0-9].flac > podseglist.txt # Now concatenate them ffmpeg -f concat -safe 0 -i podseglist.txt "$outputname" rm podseglist.txt } # ====================================================================== # Basic and advanced filters. filter () { inputfile=$1 outputname=$2 # Using ffmpeg. # The high and low pass filters. hlpfil="highpass=f=80, lowpass=f=12000" # Band reject filters filter for 60Hz and another for 50Hz. linefil="bandreject=f=60:width_type=h:w=20, bandreject=f=50:width_type=h:w=20" # Create a series of band reject filters, from 1 kHz to 11 kHz. ftemplate="bandreject=f=%s000:width_type=h:w=100" kilospikefil=$( seq 1 11 | xargs printf "$ftemplate," ) # Using ffmpeg ffmpeg -i $inputfile -af "$hlpfil, $linefil, $kilospikefil" $outputname } # ====================================================================== # De-Essing. deessing () { inputfile=$1 outputname=$2 option=$3 # De-essing filter. ffmpeg -i $inputfile -filter_complex "deesser=i=0.5:m=0.5:f=0.5:s=$option" -b:a 336k -sample_fmt s16 $outputname } # ====================================================================== # Normalizing the audio to EBU R128 standard for review using ffmpeg. normffmpeg () { inputfile=$1 outputname=$2 # Normalize to EBU R128 standard. ffmpeg -i $inputfile -af loudnorm=I=-17:TP=-2.0:LRA=4.0 -ar 44.1k $outputname } # ====================================================================== # Output an MP3 version to help with reviewing. mp3convert () { inputfile=$1 # Get the name of the file and then create the output file name. j=$( basename $inputfile ".flac" ) outputname="$j"".mp3" # Convert to MP3. ffmpeg -i $inputfile $outputname } # ====================================================================== # Concatenate the separate audio files. concataudio fullpod-unfiltered.flac # Basic filtering. filter fullpod-unfiltered.flac filtered.flac # De-essing. This is the version to send for publishing. # The third argument should be "o" for de-essing, or "i" for pass through without de-essing. deessing filtered.flac fullpod.flac o # Normalized for review. normffmpeg fullpod.flac fullpod-norm.flac # Output an MP3 copy for review. mp3convert fullpod-norm.flac -------------------- -------------------- Provide feedback on this episode.

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Completing the Hangover saga, Zach Galifianakis is at it again: interviewing kids, learning about vegetables, and sneaking between ferns in a campaign to find out if he can follow the likes of Nick Offerman and Jeremy Clarkson into the world of agriculture. On the podcast, we review the short six-episode docu-miniseries. We'll let you know if it's worth the massive hype, how well it stays on topic, and attempt not to give away too many spoilers. We also mention its contemporaries, like Magic for Humans and Matty Matheson's Just a Dash, as well as whether we can guess what Galifianakis will do next. Tune in to hear our favorite vegetable and ultimate rating. Welcome to Today's Episode!

Join us for a special and momentous lecture marking the completion of the Sahih of Imam Bukhari, one of the most authentic and revered collections of Hadith in Islamic tradition. Delivered by Dr. Mufti Abdur-Rahman Mangera at the as-Suffa Institute in Birmingham, England, this insightful talk reflects on the significance, lessons, and spiritual depth of this العظيم work. A must-watch for students of knowledge and anyone seeking a deeper connection with the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Link to donate: https://www.whitethread.org/whitethread-centre/

Thank you for joining us for our 2nd Cabral HouseCall of the weekend!   I'm looking forward to sharing with you some of our community's questions that have come in over the past few weeks…   Sienna: Hi Dr. Cabral - hoping you can help :) I have a brown spot below my left eye, on my cheek bone so not directly below. From what I have red it is a sun spot / "liver" spot... I tried to have it removed with laser - even deep penetration into my skin with acid it came back - interesting to me if the skin was lasered away! Do you have any suggestions on how to remove it / lighten it? I thought when I read "liver" spot it's linked to detoxification but I really do a lot in this space: quarterly detox, sauna, hydration etc... if it's pigmentation do I just live with it or are there ways to remove it for good - lighten / procedurally? Thanks :)      Elly: Hi doctor Cabral, Could you help me understand the disconnect regarding HRT? To me, it feels like basic maintenance: you are supplementing bio-identical hormones the body is no longer producing, so that it can function optimally. It seems similar to taking Vitamin D for a deficiency. Is my way of thinking correct, or are there specific biological factors that make supplemental hormones riskier than natural ones? Why is there still such a strong association between HRT and cancer risk? Thanks so much for helping clear this up! Elly      Audrey: Hi Dr. Cabral, Thank you for providing so much valuable information on everything health related. I don't know where me and my family would be without you! I have looked up some pub med studies on taking cbut want your expertise. First off should creatine be taken before or after a workout to get the most benefits? Also does taking creatine with caffeine blunt the benefit of creatine. Thanks!      Kavita: Hello from Chicago, Dr. Cabral, I just wanted to reach out and say how much I appreciate your work. Since you invited people to contribute to your book, "The Rainbarrel Effect," I've been your biggest supporter. Your book completely changed my perspective on health and helped me understand my body in ways I never thought possible. I have a question about the GLP Tone system. I'm 55 years young with a healthy metabolism, and I'm active with regular workouts, walking, and strength training. However, my weight has stayed at 185 pounds, and I'm looking for ways to make progress. If I decide to try the GLP Tone system, which option do you think would be best for me? Also, will there be support from your team? Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you! Regards, Kavita      Tricia: Hi Dr Cabral, I've tried the quarterly detox multiple times. I get to about mid-afternoon on the first day and then fail. I'm sure with all the clients you've helped over the years you have had some that are just not able to get through the first two days of shakes only I feel like that sets me up for failure. If I was one of your clients, what would you recommend for me? Is it possible I'm just not metabolically ready to start with fasting days and hopefully as I heal overtime, I will become better at this? Thanks for any guidance.    Thank you for tuning into this weekend's Cabral HouseCalls and be sure to check back tomorrow for our Mindset & Motivation Monday show to get your week started off right!   - - - Show Notes and Resources: StephenCabral.com/3740 - - - Get a FREE Copy of Dr. Cabral's Book: The Rain Barrel Effect - - - Join the Community & Get Your Questions Answered: CabralSupportGroup.com - - - Dr. Cabral's Most Popular At-Home Lab Tests: > Complete Minerals & Metals Test (Test for mineral imbalances & heavy metal toxicity) - - - > Complete Candida, Metabolic & Vitamins Test (Test for 75 biomarkers including yeast & bacterial gut overgrowth, as well as vitamin levels) - - - > Complete Stress, Mood & Metabolism Test (Discover your complete thyroid, adrenal, hormone, vitamin D & insulin levels) - - - > Complete Food Sensitivity Test (Find out your hidden food sensitivities) - - - > Complete Omega-3 & Inflammation Test (Discover your levels of inflammation related to your omega-6 to omega-3 levels) - - - Get Your Question Answered On An Upcoming HouseCall: StephenCabral.com/askcabral - - - Would You Take 30 Seconds To Rate & Review The Cabral Concept? The best way to help me spread our mission of true natural health is to pass on the good word, and I read and appreciate every review!  

Your body doesn't know the difference between a tiger… and an email. Every time you suppress stress, push through emotions, or ignore what you feel, it doesn't disappear. It stacks. And eventually… it breaks you. In this powerful and eye-opening conversation, George is joined by Nic Monteforte, leadership expert, high-performance coach, and author of Infinite Capacity, to break down the real reason so many entrepreneurs burn out. Nic shares her journey from managing thousands of people and leading a $250M company… to losing everything, not because she lacked strength, but because she was living in constant stress. Together, they explore how stress actually works in the body, why most people never complete the stress cycle, and how “stress debt” builds over time until it leads to burnout. This episode isn't about eliminating stress, because you can't. It's about learning how to process it, release it, and reclaim your capacity. What You'll Learn In This Episode: Why your body reacts the same to emails as it does to real danger The concept of “stress debt” and how it builds over time Why suppressing emotions is the root cause of burnout The difference between being stressed vs staying stressed What “infinite capacity” actually means How to complete the stress cycle in real time Simple tools to regulate your nervous system throughout the day How to increase clarity, energy, and performance without burnout Key Takeaways: ✔️Stress is not the problem, suppression is. ✔️Stress = suppressed emotions (energy that never got released). ✔️Stress stacks over time like layers until it collapses into burnout. ✔️You can't eliminate stress, but you can complete the cycle. ✔️60 seconds of physical movement can reset your entire nervous system. ✔️Most people stay stuck because they never process what they feel. ✔️True capacity comes from removing internal “blocks,” not doing more. ✔️Calm isn't something you chase, it's something you create internally. Timestamps & Highlights: [00:00] – Why your body treats emails like life-or-death threats [02:00] – Nic's story: success, burnout, and losing everything [06:00] – What “capacity” really means [10:00] – Stress = suppressed emotions explained [14:00] – The buildup of stress layers (stress debt) [18:00] – Why burnout happens (and how it sneaks up) [20:00] – Completing the stress cycle (practical tools) [25:00] – Physical hacks to reset your nervous system [30:00] – Why movement is the fastest way to regulate stress [35:00] – Removing internal blocks to unlock performance [40:00] – The shift from reaction → response [45:00] – Building a calm, high-capacity life   Connect with Nic Monteforte Nic Monteforte is a leadership expert, high-performance coach, and author of Infinite Capacity. With over 30 years of experience, she helps leaders and entrepreneurs reclaim energy, sharpen focus, and operate at their highest level, without sacrificing their wellbeing. After experiencing burnout firsthand, Nic developed powerful frameworks to help others move from constant stress to sustainable performance. Website: https://nicmonteforte.com/ Book: https://infinitecapacitybook.com/ Instagram: @nicmonteforte Your Challenge This Week: If this episode shifted your perspective… Share it with someone who's running on empty Tag @itsgeorgebryant  and @nicmonteforte with your biggest takeaway Ask yourself: Where am I staying stressed instead of releasing it? And most importantly, pick one tool from this episode and use it today. Live Events & Retreats Ready to step out of stress and into clarity? Join George at an immersive live experience designed to help you reset, realign, and build a business that feels as good as it performs. Explore upcoming events: mindofgeorge.com/event Join The AllianceThe Relationship Beats Algorithms™ community for entrepreneurs who scale with trust, connection, and sustainability. Apply for 1:1 Coaching If you're ready to increase your capacity, reclaim your energy, and lead at your highest level, apply to work directly with George.

Daf Yomi Menachos 110Episode 2309Babble on Talmud with Sruli RappsJoin the chat: https://chat.whatsapp.com/LMbsU3a5f4Y3b61DxFRsqfMERCH: https://www.etsy.com/shop/BabbleOnTalmudSefaria: https://www.sefaria.org.il/Menachot.110a?lang=heEmail: sruli@babbleontalmud.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/babble_on_talmudFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Babble-on-Talmud-100080258961218/Thumbnail image:Photo by Simon Ray on Unsplash#dafyomi #talmud

This week I received an email every content creator dreads — a major platform suspended my monetization without warning. No specific videos flagged. No explanation. Just a door closing.Instead of panicking, I regulated. And then I got clear.In this episode I share exactly what happened, what I did about it, and the bigger truth it revealed — about building a soul-led business on rented land vs. owned land, and why no algorithm can touch what you've truly built.We're covering:• Why every platform you build on is borrowed visibility• Your four real business assets — email list, podcast, website, community• Completing the Momentum business cohort and what it taught me• Writing book two and revamping Intuition Saved My Life• Speaker Slam Toronto — May 26th• The Japan retreat — September 2026• What a regulated response looks like when uncertainty hitsIf you are a woman building something soul-led and you feel like the rug just got pulled — this episode is for you.Find Christine at christinejgold.com | Substack | Instagram @christinejgoldThe Empath Journey Oracle Deck available at christinejgold.com

Completing the 1985 James Spader bully double feature, Brian & Cargill tread on some Tuff Turf.Listen before Ultron tries to wreck the episode again! Support us on Patreon!

Have you ever gotten so close to a goal, and then one thing to goes wrong, and your brain immediately decide the whole thing was a mistake? That moment right before the finish line is where so many people quit. In this episode, I introduce a concept I call The Last 5% and showing you why your brain is most likely to turn progress into proof that you're not capable right when you're closest to getting the result you want.If you've ever stopped just short of what you wanted or told yourself all your effort didn't count because you didn't get the final result, this will change how you approach your goals. You'll learn how to stop making setbacks mean something about you, figure out what's actually left to solve, and keep moving forward from experience instead of starting over.Get full show notes, transcript, and more information here: schoolofnewfeministthought.com/486Follow along on Instagram: instagram.com/karaloewentheil/Mentioned in this episode:FREE GUIDE: The Top Three Things I Wish I Had Known Before Becoming A CoachThe world needs coaches. The world needs our work. The world needs your specific perspective, your experiences, your special sauce. Even if you don't know that yet, I do. And I want to help you get there. Download this guide at https://the-school-of-new-feminist-thought.captivate.fm/threethingsClick here to download: 3 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Becoming a Life Coach

Gaea Star Crystal Radio Hour #665 is an hour of dynamic, visionary acoustic improvised music played by The Gaea Star Band with Mariam Massaro on vocals, Native flute, shruti box, mandolin, 6- and 12-string acoustic guitars, ukulele and Tibetan bowls, Bob Sherwood on piano, Craig Harris on congas and Native drum and this week's special guest guitarist Aramis Esteves on electric and classical guitars. Recorded live at Singing Brook Studio in Worthington, Massachusetts in mid-April of 2026, today's show begins with the languid, mystical raga “So Alive”, a meditative piece underpinned by Mariam's chiming DADGAD-tuned Martin 12-string acoustic and featuring fine atmospheric electric guitar textures from Aramis. “A Tiny Whispering From The Depths Of Your Heart” continues the drone vibe with more 12-string from Mariam with languid, imaginative contributions from the ensemble over Craig's rock steady heartbeat Native drum. Completing today's tryptich of raga-type pieces is the gorgeously mysterious “Full Moonlight”, a compelling, moving piece that capitalizes on the themes expressed in the first two pieces, bringing the song cycle to a dramatic, concise and powerfully prayerful climax. “Shining Brightly” shakes up today's mood, showing up as a Led Zeppelin-esque pop rock song down to Mariam's modal melody and expressive, forward mandolin and the “riff” structure of Bob and Aramis' Eastern-inflected unisons. The interlocked “There's A River” and “Everyone Feel All Right” form a contemplative tone poem underpinned by Mariam's relaxed, droning shruti box and unhurried accompaniment as Aramis puts the electric guitar aside for mellow, whispering nylon string guitar textures. Next, the band picks up Mariam's powerful “Restonre” from the “Release” LP and converts this environmental anthem into a powerfully restrained earth prayer with a powerful vocal from Mariam accentuated by the tight, dancing framework of Mariam's acoustic guitar and Aramis' earthy nylon string. “Your Eyes Shine”, Mariam's “Smooth Sailin' Love Songs” LP standout is reimagined as a sultry ballad with a smooth, languid vocal from Mariam over a richly choreographed, varied accompaniment. We complete today's show with an ambitious, energized take on Mariam's “We Call In The Elements”, a multi-movement exploration if this rich, elemental piece featuring racing ukulele, tight nylon string guitar, fundamental Native drum and every-mutating, powerfully minimalist piano. Learn more about Mariam here: http://www.mariammassaro.com

Procurement readiness is the foundation every small business needs before stepping in front of a federal agency — and most contractors skip it entirely. In this episode of the Federal Help Center Podcast, Eric Coffey walks you through exactly what it means to show up prepared, why agencies respond differently when you do, and the specific tools and profiles that signal you're a serious contender before the conversation even starts. Here's what you'll learn in this episode: Why research wins the room: Eric shares a real-time case study where deep agency research — not charm — unlocked direct access to an internal contact and a capabilities briefing within days. How to get agencies to respond when their systems are broken: When outdated forecast lists and dead links block your path, Eric shows you the exact email approach that bypasses the noise and reaches the right person. What the SBA Small Business Search replaced and why it matters: Learn how this new platform replaced DSBS and why your profile there is now a living first impression for contracting officers across every agency. How to complete your capabilities narrative the right way: Eric breaks down what agencies are actually scanning for — keywords, past performance, and service narratives — and what an incomplete profile quietly says about you. Why certifications like 8(a), SDVOSB, and WOSB now auto-link to your profile: Understand how the SBA's backend integration works and what to do if your designation isn't showing up correctly. EPISODE CHAPTERS: 0:00 - Welcome to the Federal Help Center podcast 0:27 - What procurement readiness means for small businesses 1:24 - How research landed Eric a capabilities briefing fast 3:19 - What happened when Eric showed up prepared to the agency 4:44 - Building agency rapport before your first real meeting 5:12 - SAM.gov registration updates every contractor should know 5:41 - How SBA small business search replaces your DSBS profile 7:06 - Completing your capabilities narrative with the right keywords   If you want to learn more about the community and to join the webinars go to: https://federalhelpcenter.com/ Website: https://govcongiants.org/ Connect with Encore Funding: http://govcongiants.org/funding  

Guests Dr. Carolyn Ernst is a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), specializing in the surface evolution of planets, moons, and small bodies. She has contributed to missions across the solar system and has extensive experience in imaging systems. Dr. Ernst helped NASA impact both a comet and an asteroid, serving as instrument scientist for the DRACO imager and a member of the investigation team on the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission. She is currently on the science teams for Europa Clipper, Dragonfly, Hayabusa2, and Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) missions. She is also a member of the European Space Agency's Hera mission team, which will return to the Didymos system for close-range characterization of the asteroids and the outcome of the DART impact. Michelle Chen is a software systems engineer and project manager at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Maryland. Her work centers on developing and integrating advanced technologies for spacecraft and prototype systems. Chen led the SMART Nav team for NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission, where their autonomous navigation algorithm enabled the world's first spacecraft impact with an asteroid for planetary defense. Her career spans multisector projects, including the development of advanced prosthetic limbs, optical navigation systems, data acquisition platforms, and missile simulations. Chen's technical expertise includes real-time embedded software, image processing, control systems, and system-level integration. Summary The conversation explores the success and implications of NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), the first mission designed to test whether a spacecraft could intentionally alter an asteroid's trajectory. Engineers and scientists collaborated to send a kinetic impactor into Dimorphos, a small asteroid orbiting the larger asteroid Didymos, demonstrating planetary defense capabilities. A key innovation was the spacecraft's autonomous navigation system, which guided it during the final approach using onboard imaging from the DRACO camera. Because scientists had never seen Dimorphos up close, engineers relied on extensive simulations to prepare for unknown conditions. The mission exceeded expectations: instead of shortening the asteroid's orbit by 7 seconds, it achieved a 33-second reduction, largely due to unexpected ejecta that amplified the impact force. The discussion highlights how asteroid detection and tracking systems—coordinated by organizations such as the Minor Planet Center and international networks—identify potential threats, refine orbital predictions, and communicate risks. Early detection remains critical, as effective deflection requires years of preparation. Beyond the technical achievement, the guests emphasize interdisciplinary teamwork, where engineers and scientists continuously exchanged insights and made compromises to balance navigation precision with scientific data collection. The mission underscores the importance of experimentation over theoretical modeling alone and serves as a powerful example of how collaborative, cross-disciplinary work can address global challenges while inspiring future generations in STEM. The Essential Point The mission's core insight is that planetary defense is not theoretical—it is achievable—but only through early detection, real-world experimentation, and deep collaboration across scientific and engineering disciplines. Social Media & Referenced New York Times: NASA Smashes Into an Asteroid, Completing a Mission to Save a Future Day D.A.R.T. project overview and impact videos  

With host retail coach Wendy Batten   https://wendybatten.com/podcast-intro/   Episode Overview In this episode, we're continuing our series on building an exceptional reputation in our retail businesses by looking at hospitality through a leadership lens. I'm joined by Stephanie Miller Vincent, founder of SMillerVision and former guest on the podcast. We dig into what hospitality really means beyond being friendly or providing good service. We talk about why it starts inside your business and how your team experience directly impacts your customer experience. We also explore how consistency, culture, and attention to small details shape how your shop is felt by customers. This isn't about scripts or surface-level service. It's about the standards you set, the care you show your team, and the everyday moments that quietly build your reputation. If you've ever thought hospitality is just one more thing to add to your plate, this conversation will help you see it differently and understand where to focus instead. Our Key Topics Why reputation is built from the inside, starting with leadership and clarity The difference between good customer service and true hospitality How team culture and care influence customer experience Why small, consistent actions matter more than big gestures The role of leadership in modeling and reinforcing hospitality Common misconceptions about hospitality in retail settings The impact of trust, communication, and involving your team How micro moments shape brand perception and customer loyalty Key Takeaways for Shop Owners You can be friendly and provide service and still not be hospitable. Completing tasks and being polite isn't the same as creating a meaningful experience. Hospitality is about how you make people feel, not just what you do for them. We can't expect anything from the people we lead that we don't model ourselves. Your team is watching how you show up every day. If you want a certain level of care and attention, it has to start with you demonstrating it first. Hospitality is creating a feeling or emotion, not just completing tasks. Customers remember how they felt in your space more than what they bought. That emotional connection is what builds loyalty and trust over time. The little things are what build or erode your reputation over time. Small, everyday details often go unnoticed until they become a problem. Paying attention to them consistently is what strengthens your brand. If the small things don't matter, the big things don't matter either. Ignoring minor issues signals to your team that details aren't important. Over time, that mindset affects everything from culture to customer experience. Take a moment to notice the small things in your shop this week and consider what they might be saying about your leadership and your brand. Resources Mentioned and Related Episodes: Episode 293: The Difference Between 'Nice' and 'Kind' in Leadership   Episode 252: Creating a Culture of Hospitality in Your Retail Business with Guest Expert Stephanie Miller Vincent Episode 208: Stacking Your Team with Guest Expert Shelli Warren   Sales Accelerator Program - This on-demand program is ready for you RIGHT NOW. (The price is going up mid-April!) You'll learn how to get more visibility in your community, attract more of the right people into your store, increase your per-customer sales, and see more repeat customers who come back again and again. Grab it today and get started right away!   Let's hang out in a private coaching session!   Join my Love List! - This is my email list. Get on it so you are the first to know when the next live masterclass is taking place!    Follow along and chat with me on Instagram!   About Stephanie Miller Vincent and SMillerVision For more than 30 years I've worked in hospitality in both Canada and the USA. I've had the pleasure of leading teams at White Point Beach Resort, Snake River Grill South, Pinnacle Entertainment's L'Auberge Lake Charles Casino Resort, and The Quarterdeck Resort. My mission is to return hospitality to its roots of caring about people, starting with the employees. Follow along with Stephanie and SMillerVision:  Facebook | LinkedIn | Website   About your host, Wendy Batten In case we haven't met…I'm Wendy Batten. I've been a small business owner, coach, and mentor for over 25 years. I help thoughtful, established entrepreneurs step into their role as CEO and build businesses that are profitable, meaningful, and supportive of the lives they want to live. My work blends real-world strategy with a life-first philosophy, shaped by lived experience, not theory. I've been there! Through honest conversations and practical insight, I invite you into bigger thinking about leadership, possibility, and how to build both business and life on purpose. For more support from Wendy Hang out and connect with Wendy on IG All of Wendy's current programs and services for shop owners can be found HERE.  Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the Creative Shop Talk Podcast and get the tools, inspiration, and strategies you need to thrive as an independent retailer.Click here to subscribe to iTunes!  Loved the episode? Leave a quick review on iTunes- your reviews help other retailers find my podcast, and they're also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. So grateful for you! Thank you!

Season 15, Episode 392 introduces phase two of the roadmap: neurochemistry and motivation. Andrea Samadi breaks down the motivation loop—expectation, thought patterns, attention and action, feedback, and repetition—and explains how belief and dopamine drive what we start, persist with, or stop. The episode highlights earned vs. borrowed dopamine, the role of the anterior mid-cingulate cortex in willpower, and offers practical steps to build sustainable motivation through small wins, effort-first rewards, and consistent practice. ✅ What You'll Learn in This Episode ✔️ How the Motivation Loop works—and why your brain is always running it ✔️ Why dopamine is about anticipation, not just pleasure ✔️ The difference between borrowed vs earned dopamine—and how it impacts your drive ✔️ How your beliefs and thought patterns shape your brain chemistry ✔️ Why doing hard things strengthens willpower (aMCC) and builds resilience ✔️ What causes motivation to increase… or break down ✔️ How your brain decides to repeat a behavior—or avoid it next time ✔️ Why effort first, reward after is the key to building lasting motivation ✔️ Simple ways to train your brain to stay motivated ✔️ How to align your brain for sustained performance and results Welcome back to Season 15 of the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast. I'm Andrea Samadi, and it's here that we bridge the science behind social and emotional learning, emotional intelligence, and practical neuroscience—so we can create measurable improvements in well-being, achievement, productivity, and results. If you're new here, welcome. We are currently reviewing past episodes as part of Season 15—organized as a roadmap of the brain's foundational systems. Instead of treating neuroscience, health, mindset, and performance as separate topics—like we've done in the past 14 seasons—we're now exploring how these systems come online in sequence. We started Phase 1, Regulation and Safety, with EP 384[i], with Dr. Baland Jalal, who taught us how learning begins (with curiosity, sleep, imagination and creativity), and reviewed anchor episodes with Dr. Bruce Perry[ii], looking into trauma, rhythm, and relational safety, Dr. Sui Wong[iii] on autonomic balance, and Rohan Dixit[iv], on HRV, real-time self-regulation and nervous system literacy. Now, we are moving to Phase 2, diving deeper into neurochemistry and motivation…then we'll cover movement, learning, and cognition… Then perception, emotion, social intelligence… and finally integration, insight, and meaning as we put all of the phases together. Season 15 Roadmap: Phase 1 — Regulation & Safety Phase 2 — Neurochemistry & Motivation Phase 3 — Movement, Learning & Cognition Phase 4 — Perception, Emotion & Social Intelligence Phase 5 — Integration, Insight & Meaning Because peak performance isn't built by doing more— it's built by aligning the systems underneath. And the truth is, most of us were never taught how these systems drive our behavior and results in the first place. So as I continue to explore and better understand these systems myself, I want to thank you for joining me on this journey… So that together, we learn how to align our brains— and use this understanding to unlock what's truly possible for us to achieve. Because I do believe that we're capable of achieving far more than we think is possible—with this understanding. PHASE 2 Today, we move into Phase 2 of our roadmap— Neurochemistry and Motivation. In Phase 1, we asked a foundational question:

Trump, Iran agree to two-week ceasefire, plan to open Strait of Hormuz. Artemis II swings back around after completing record-setting moon flyby. Zach Abraham, Bulwark Capital, talks about the effect of the cease fire on oil prices. One-Hit Wonder Wednesday. 

The CE experience for this Podcast is powered by CMEfy - click here to reflect and earn credits.Not all relationships are meant to last forever, and know that's okay. In this episode, Dr. Robyn Tiger invites you to gently explore which relationships in your life serve your greatest good, and which you may be better served by completing. Through a compassionate 5-step process, you'll learn how to create space, set boundaries, and release what no longer aligns without guilt or harsh endings.Discover how completing relationships can reduce stress, restore energy, and open the door to more meaningful connections, fulfillment and joy in your life! Information for Dr. Robyn Tiger & StressFreeMD:Check out StressFreeMDGet the book: Feeling Stressed Is OptionalGet your 4 FREE stress relieving videosPhysicians: join our free private physicians-only Facebook groupRetreatsREVIVE! Lifestyle Medicine Well-Being Group CoachingPrograms on Demand (+ CME)Private 1:1 Coaching (+ CME)Schedule your FREE 30-Minute Stress Relief Strategy CallFollow me on Social Media: InstagramLinkedInFacebookTwitterPodcast websitePlease rate & Review the Show!Contactinfo@stressfreemd.net 

Recorded live at the 7th Annual HVACR Training Symposium, this episode brings together Roman from HVAC School and building science practitioner Brynn for a deep-dive conversation on one of the most pressing challenges in the HVAC industry: how contractors can use building science principles not just to solve problems, but to communicate value and close sales at the kitchen table. With 26 years of industry experience and 15 years of consistently applying building science in his contracting business, Brynn shares the process his team has refined to help homeowners understand their comfort problems — and confidently invest in the right solutions. Central to the conversation is the idea that testing — not guessing — is the foundation of a great HVAC business. Brynn outlines his team's "big three" diagnostic approach: starting with indoor air quality testing, followed by a load calculation using a LIDAR tool, and finishing with a duct evaluation. These three steps give technicians the data they need to tie findings directly to a homeowner's stated concerns. Rather than overwhelming customers with spreadsheets and raw numbers, the goal is to present information in a way that connects with their lived experience — validating that their hot rooms, cold spots, or humidity discomfort are real, measurable problems with real, measurable solutions. Brynn's team can complete a full load calculation in as little as 20 minutes on-site, a capability that routinely impresses homeowners and sets them apart from competitors. The episode also tackles the business case for slowing down. Rather than rushing technicians through six to eight calls a day, Brynn's company reduced daily call volume to two to four, giving technicians time to perform thorough diagnostics. The result? Ticket sales increased, replacement opportunities grew organically, and install callbacks dropped to a remarkable half of one percent, compared to an industry average closer to ten percent. Roman and Brynn agree that adopting building science practices isn't about overhauling your business overnight. The key is to start with one skill — like combustion testing or airflow measurement — master it, embed it in company culture, and build from there. Over time, these small habits compound into a business that delivers on its promises every time. Beyond the technical content, the conversation wraps with a heartfelt discussion about workforce development and the GRIT Foundation, a nonprofit working to reintroduce skilled trades exposure to young people. With shop classes having largely disappeared from schools across the country, Brynn and Roman emphasize the importance of giving children the chance to discover a passion for hands-on work. Brynn's team hosted a GRIT camp in Detroit, and one participant has since enrolled in HVAC college — a reminder that sparking curiosity early can change the trajectory of a young person's life. Contractors interested in Brynn's training programs and building science bootcamps can find more information at HVACTrain.com. Topics Covered The culture and community of the HVACR Symposium and why first-time attendees always come back Why building science can feel intimidating to contractors — and how to simplify it for customer conversations Brynn's "big three" on-site diagnostics: indoor air quality testing, load calculation, and duct evaluation How to ask the right questions first — understanding the customer's pain before running tests Using data to validate homeowner concerns (hot rooms, cold spots, humidity issues) rather than dismissing them Completing a full load calculation in 20 minutes using LiDAR tools and tablet software Presenting test results with third-party references (EPA, American Lung Association) to build trust Why oversized HVAC equipment is the rule, not the exception — and what the data shows across thousands of homes The business case for slowing down: fewer daily calls, better diagnostics, higher ticket sales, fewer callbacks Reducing install callbacks from an industry average of ~10% to just 0.5% through building science practices How to implement building science incrementally: start with one practice, make it a habit, then build from there Using platforms like measureQuick and Smart Probe for ongoing performance verification Mitigating legal and financial risk on larger residential and multi-family projects through proper documentation Building a word-of-mouth reputation that eliminates the need for active marketing The GRIT Foundation: reintroducing skilled trades to young people and inspiring the next generation of HVAC professionals Where to find Brynn's contractor bootcamps, online classes, and workforce development seminars at HVACTrain.com    Learn more about Brynn's education opportunities at https://www.hvactrain.com/.  Have a question that you want us to answer on the podcast? Submit your questions at https://www.speakpipe.com/hvacschool. Purchase your tickets or learn more about the 7th Annual HVACR Training Symposium at https://hvacrschool.com/symposium. Subscribe to our podcast on your iPhone or Android. Subscribe to our YouTube channel. Check out our handy calculators here or on the HVAC School Mobile App for Apple and Android.

13. Russia Supplies Upgraded Drones to Iranas Cooperation Deepens GUEST: Bill Roggio, John Hardy SUMMARY: Russia has begun supplying upgraded Iranian-designed drones back to Tehran, completing a "full circle" of technology sharing. In response, Ukraine is deploying counter-drone experts to help defend Arab nations from Iranian attacks.,, Russia is reportedly shipping modified Shahed-136 drones—featuring improved airframes and jamming-resistant antennas—to Iran via the Caspian Sea or Azerbaijan,. John Hardy explains that this cooperation allows Russia to benefit from higher oil prices while depleting Western air defense munitions. Conversely, Ukraine has sent hundreds of counter-drone experts to the Middle East to help Gulf states defend against these Iraniansystems, hoping to trade their expertise for Patriot missile stocks. (13)1911 ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITAINICA