Information design consultant Alli Torban believes visuals can help anyone understand anything. Data visualization has undergone a seismic transformation in recent years. What role does curiosity play in how we collect, present and absorb information? 

A morsel: "As a general rule of thumb, if I have a strong emotional response to a chart, I’m going to spend more time being skeptical of it."

Theme music by Sean Balick. “Charcoal Lines" by Sketchbook via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #164: DataViz: Curiosity, Context & Insight, with Alli Torban

Ask Andres Marquez-Lara what it takes to lead in the 21st century, and his answer will come swift and sure: facilitation.

And facilitation? That’s nothing more — and nothing less— than putting curiosity to work in powerful ways personally, professionally, individually and collectively.

Andres is founder and CEO of UFacilitate, a global platform for matching facilitators with folks who need them, industry sector agnostic. As they put it, UFacilitate helps leaders deal with the “messy, human stuff” that gets in the way of teams achieving their greatest potential.  

"Facilitating is like playing 3-D chess. You have to be aware of what you’re feeling – your own things – you have to be aware of what’s happening with people, what’s happening in the room, the agenda. So you’re mindful of time, of the energy of all these things that are happening, and then you have to make a choice. Facilitation is all about choices." ~ Andres Marquez-Lara

Andres Marquez-Lara: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andresmarquezlara/ 

Theme and other music by Sean Balick

CHOOSE TO  BE CURIOUS

Ep. #211: Facilitation, Leadership & Curiosity, with Andres Marquez-Lara

Anne-Laure Le Cunff is a Choose to Be Curious trifecta: researcher, theoretician -- and practitioner. A neuroscientist and deep thinker about the personal and social implications of our curiosity, she conducts tiny experiments to focus closely on how we use our time and energy to best effect.

Anne-Laure is the founder of Ness Labs, a collective platform for curious people, where “ambitious knowledge workers come together to achieve their goals without sacrificing their mental health.”

Ness Labs offers content, coaching, courses and--perhaps most importantly--a community for learning in public together.

I am excited to see how her vibrant and collective study-and-practice culture shapes how we think about curiosity in the years ahead.

More about Anne-Laure Le Cunff: https://anne-laure.net

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Discovery Harbor” by Cloud Harbor, via Blue Dot Sessions.

CHOOSE TO BE CURIOUS

Ep. #241: Curiosity, Tiny Experiments & Liminal Space, with Anne-Laure Le Cunff

The big questions of astrophysicist Mario Livio's new book Is Earth Exceptional? The Quest for Cosmic Life are as close as we get to an ultimate curiosity -- questions about the origin of life, the universe, and where and how those two intersect.

Dr. Livio worked with the Hubble Space Telescope and is a bestselling author of seven books. Together with Jack Szostak, a biochemist and Nobel laureate, he's written a kind of cosmic “what-dunnit” that shifts between the many and various disciplines that may someday provide the answers they seek about life's origins.

Learn more about Mario Livio: https://www.mario-livio.com

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Great Great Lengths" by The Balloonist, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. 248: Is Earth Exceptional? with Mario Livio

For the 250th episode of this brave little enterprise, I invited psychologist and curiosity researcher Todd Kashdan to join me to rethink some of the old curiosity standards.

The research has evolved and we're going with it.

What better way to keep the curiosity alive than by questioning what we think we know?

More about Todd Kashdan: https://toddkashdan.com

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Shift of Currents” by Aeronaut, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #250: Rethinking Curiosity, with Todd Kashdan, PhD

Periodically I set myself a curiosity scavenger hunt theme with a fixed duration – 77 days of feet, a long hot summer of art, a month of biophilia, a week in the kitchen – and then I just keep my eyes open and my camera handy.

It's a joy. The thrill of the hunt; the challenge and delight in finding something new in the very familiar; the excuse to get outdoors, whatever the weather; the visual puns; the surprisingly sentimental moments -- all culled from the everyday world around me.

It is very much in the spirit of what journalist and author Rob Walker would call “The Art of Noticing.”

Find Rob Walker on Substack: https://robwalker.substack.com 

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Inessential” by Bayou Birds, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #254: The Art of Noticing, with Rob Walker

Leland Ko came on my radar when he was one of four gifted young cellists selected by Yo-Yo Ma to participate in a program called Music-Art-Life in 2023. 

It was, for me, a chance to luxuriate in curiosity. I wondered: Did their knowledge, skill, and feel for the music mean their curiosity about it was qualitatively different than my own? If so, how?

Find Leland Ko online: https://www.lelandko.com 

Recording of Leland Ko performing Sonata for Solo Cello, Op. 8 — III. Allegro molto vivace used with permission.

Photo of Leland Ko by Tam Lan Truong used with permission.

Ep. #255: Cellists' Puzzles & Curiosity, with Leland Ko

Psychologist Kimberley Wilson says we habitually consume a diet that is depriving our brains of nutrients -- and that has all sorts of consequences for our health and well-being.

She focuses on "psychology, mental health, food, and everything in between" and I wanted to know how curiosity might fit into that mix.

Find Kimberley Wilson: https://www.kimberleywilson.co

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Mind Body Mind" by Bodytonic, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #267: Feed Your Brain, with Kimberley Wilson

Deanne Fitzpatrick is a virtuous rug hooker. Her art looks like the love child of wool and Vincent Van Gogh.

She looks for--and sees--fresh and beautiful things in the world around her, and she supports others in doing the same. 

Deanne encourages the rest of us to lean into creating--beauty, community, and time for ourselves. And she has thoughts about how curiosity can help.

Find Deanne Fitzpatrick at: http://www.hookingrugs.com 

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Discovery Harbor” by CloudHarbor via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #268: Creating Beauty, with Deanne Fitzpatrick

Deep canvassing is built on listening, building rapport, staying in conversation -- sharing stories. 

I don't know when I first became aware of deep canvassing as an organizing tool, but I was immediately taken with it as a curiosity enterprise.

Sulma Arias, executive director of People's Action and People's Action Institute, joins me to explore just what it is about this model that proves so transformative for everyone involved.

Learn about People's Action Deep Canvass Institute: https://deepcanvass.org 

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Turning on the Lights" by Speakeasy, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #271: The Transformative Power of Curiosity & Deep Canvassing, with Sulma Arias

According to the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that operates Wikipedia and its sister sites, people spent an estimated 2.9 billion hours reading English Wikipedia in 2024.

I wondered: What does it take to be a trustworthy repository for all that curiosity?

Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight has been a Wikipedia editor since 2007, and an administrator since 2009. With 100,000+ edits to her credit, she has created more than 4,000 new articles, with concentrations in geography, architecture, and women’s biographies. In 2015, she co-founded a volunteer project intended to address the current gender bias in Wikipedia content and in 2021 she was elected to the Board of Trustees of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Who better to talk with?

Wikimedia Foundation: https://wikimediafoundation.org

Theme music by Sean Balick; "Great Is the Contessa" by Contessa, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #269: Wikipedia & Where We Entrust Our Curiosity, with Rosie Stephenson-Goodknight

A family trip to the Pacific Northwest and the Salish Sea inspired my own curiosity about orca whales -- and that led, inevitably, to my curiosity about the orcas' own curiosity.

Lucky for me, I found my way to Sara Shimazu & Jeff Friedman, orca fans, whale watch captains, and co-hosts of After the Breach Podcast.

Theme music by Sean Balick; "Discovery Harbor" by Cloud Harbor, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. 270: Orcas: A Whale of a Curiosity, with Sara Shimazu & Jeff Friedman

I see clear curiosity overtones in the ways we think about wisdom -- the meta-cognition processes of wisdom -- including intellectual humility, openness to others’ ideas and insights, even the search for constructive conflict resolution.

So I wondered: is anyone thinking about wisdom through a curiosity lens?

Igor Grossmann, Ph.D. leads the Wisdom and Culture Lab at the University of Waterloo, in Ontario. He’s passionate about how people make sense of the world -- and how cultural forces shape behavior and societal change. 

We talk about those meta-cognitive characteristics of wisdom, how our idea of "curiosity" influences how it might contribute to wisdom, situational adaptations, how wisdom is expressed across cultures -- and embracing intellectual humility when our assumptions about those presumed cultural differences prove to be all wrong.

Igor Grossmann: https://igorgrossmann.com 

Theme music by Sean Balick; "The Envelope" by Aeronaut, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #272: Curiosity & Wisdom, with Igor Grossmann

XuanJun Gong is interested in media selection, computational modeling, communication networks, and information diffusion. He’s looked at how we choose media to manage our moods, how the sequence of our choices matters, and what draws us to that next book.

All of this is one version or another of the old curiosity conundrum: explore or exploit?

Do we seek novelty or leverage what we already know? Why? Does it get us what we want? 

How do we even know….?

XuanJun Gong: https://www.xuanjungong.com 

Theme music by Sean Balick; "Zig Zag Heart" by Nursery, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #275: Pick A Book, Any Book: Curiosity & Media Choices, with XuanJun Gong

I believe journalist, photographer and all-around producer Andy Isaacson has found ways to lean into his own curiosity, creating vehicles for the rest us to come along for the ride – in one case, literally.

For him a good day sparks his curiosity -- a thought that came to him for the first time in this conversation. (Hurrah for asking about what makes for a good days!)

We talk about why it's so important to meet people where they are; the intersections of respect, fairness, empathy and rigorous investigation; resourcefulness; and why stories are a form of currency.

Andy Isaacson: https://www.andyisaacson.net

Theme music by Sean Balick;“Union Hall Melody" by Union Hall via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #273: Meeting People Where They Are, with Andy Isaacson

I have the good fortune of living in a place that values public art -- art that anyone can see at any time of night or day-- and that, with its very presence, invites just a little curiosity in a way that you might imagine would appeal to me.

So I was delighted when Tomora Wright Swann, Public Art Projects Manager of Arlington County (Va.) reached out -- and propelled me to connect with contributing artist Aurora Robson.

When I visit other cities, one of the things I look for is iconic walking tours – the cisterns of Istanbul, the passages couverts of Paris, the murals of Philadelphia, New Orleans’ Garden District. What a pleasure to talk with two people behind Arlington County's own art walking tours!

Aurora Robson: https://www.aurorarobson.com

Check out Arlington public art: https://www.arlingtonva.us/Government/Programs/Public-Art/About/Self-Guided-Public-Art-Tours 

Theme music by Sean Balick. Hickory Interlude, Lemon and Melon, Sunday Lights, Town Market and Tuck and Point by Onesuch Village via Blue Dot Sessions.



Ep. #274: Public Art Is a Curiosity Practice

Menka Sanghvi and I feel our ways around noticing as the first step to caring, taking responsibility for where and how we direct our attention, attention activism and artistry, not accepting default settings, the essence of parenting, and why looking at the sky first thing in the morning is such a good idea.

Menka is a mindfulness and digital habits expert based in London. Her writing, speaking and many projects explore the relationship between attention, technology and society. She is the founder of Just Looking --- a community project that champions more curiosity and wonder in the everyday --- and co-author of the newly released book Your Best Digital Life: Use Your Mind to Tame Your Tech.

Menka Sanghvi: https://menkasanghvi.com 

Theme music by Sean Balick; ”Mind Body Mind”, by Bodytonic , via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #276: Just Looking, with Menka Sanghvi

The World Peace Game is the brainchild of educator John Hunter. He describes it as “learning to live and work comfortably in the unknown.”

It's hard to imagine a more curiosity-centric undertaking. 

A three-dimensional, hands-on political simulation, the World Peace Game explores the interconnectedness of the global community through economic, social, and environmental crises and the imminent threat of war. The goal is to extricate all the countries from those dangerous circumstances and achieve global prosperity, with the least amount of military intervention.

And it’s played by 4th graders.

World Peace Game: https://worldpeacegame.org

Theme music by Sean Balick; “UpUpUp and Over" by The Balloonist, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #277 Curiosity & the World Peace Game, with John Hunter

Today we dive into a tantalizing “kinesthetic framework for curiosity” a way of understanding how we move between ideas and bits of information.

Researcher Dale Zhou thinks of our curiosity as our search process in specific conditions. His research shows we’ve each got our own style — and that architecture can be mapped using knowledge networks.

Dale Zhou: https://www.dalezhou.com

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Step In Step Out” by Crab Shack, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #279: Kinesthetic Curiosity: Our Styles of Moving Among Information & Ideas, with Dale Zhou

Educator Patty Gómez used a question formulation technique to cultivate a collaborative culture of curiosity at work. 

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Entrance Shaft 11” by The Depot, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #278: Question Formulation & Cultivating a Collaborative Culture of Curiosity, with Patty Gómez

I think of choosing to be curious as acting on the idea that there is opportunity in the unknown -- a very optimistic enterprise.

Kevin Kelly, a man of many passions and pursuits, is a self-described radical optimist.

So, what's to be found at the intersection of curiosity and choosing to be optimistic?

We explore how radical (and not utopian) this approach is; our moral obligation to create opportunity; embracing an abundance mindset; "lighthouse" parenting; being curious about the things we're not interested in; just how persuasive curiosity can be; and why we're all so very dependent on one another -- in a good way!

Kevin Kelly: https://kk.org 

Theme music by Sean Balick; ”One Little Triumph" by Piano Mover, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Kevin Kelly photo by Chris Michel, used with permission.

Ep. #280: Curiosity & Choosing to Be Optimistic, with Kevin Kelly

How might choosing to be curious help us keep the conversation open, hold onto history that's being erased, and find moments for celebration, even still?

Monique "Moe" Bryant was my teacher and guide when I took a course called Challenging Racism back in 2015-2016. I had her on the show twice then, once before and once after I'd taken the eye-opening, humble-making, nonetheless-empowering program.

Given where conversations about diversity, equity and inclusion are now, I thought it was time to have her back.

Challenging Racism: https://www.challengingracism.org 

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Turning to You” by Landsman Duets, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #281: Curiosity in Challenging Racism & Celebrating Juneteenth, with Monique Bryant

In the first of what I hope is a periodic series, Rabbi Nancy Flam joined me to explore curiosity in the Jewish tradition. It's a lovely discussion of everything from Moses' response to the burning bush and the Jewish value sakranut, to creative betrayal and the importance of not getting kicked out for our questions.

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Patched In" by Studio J, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #284: Curiosity in the Jewish Tradition, with Rabbi Nancy Flam

Here it is: the story of how this whole curiosity enterprise came to be and some of the many insights I’ve picked up along the way -- with a little timely bias for all things peace and conflict-transformation related.

For those of you who are new, this is how it all began! For those who have been around a while, here's the origin story, plus some of the challenges and glory of which you've been such an important part. I'm hoping there's something here for everyone.

Theme music by Sean Balick; other music by One Such Village, via via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #282: Choose to Be Curious: Lessons Learned

With science under attack, researcher Anthony Zador joins me to make the case for its value, especially of curiosity-driven basic science.

We explore the charms of curiosity as a research motivator, what distinguishes curiosity-driven research from all the rest, federal investment in science -- and recent disruptions thereto and the gutting of American research, the "curse of knowledge", showcasing practical applications, debate in the lab, and what's to love about Gila monster venom and Yellowstone's thermal pools.

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Waterbourne” by Algea Fields, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #283: In Praise of (Curiosity-Driven) Research, with Anthony Zador

This week’s conversation is about curiosity in translation and interpretation. Not just the literal, “how do you say this thing in that language?”– but how do we use our curiosity to communicate our ideas effectively, to investigate what’s really being said when we're quite literally not speaking one another's language.

Luckily, there are people like Silvia Villacampa who have a few things to teach the rest of us...

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Discovery Harbor” by Cloud Harbor,, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #285: Curiosity in Translation & Interpretation, with Silvia Villacampa

What happens to intellectual freedom when libraries come under attack? What happens to curiosity?

Librarian and director of the Department of Libraries in Arlington, VA, Diane Kresh joins me to explore the long and storied history of bad-ass librarians, book bans and book sanctuaries, the "curiosity paradox" of such bans, what makes libraries a center for community, and how curiosity is like an insatiable puppy.

"The library can be a great refuge, if you will, for people who are questioning." ~ Diane Kresh

Theme music by Sean Balick; "4 Point Path" by The Bulwark, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #286: Curiosity, Book Bans & Bad-Ass Librarians, with Diane Kresh

"It's just an intense curiosity - that desire to know your roots."

This is a story about not having a choice in one's curiosity. About the burning need some of us have to learn even the most basic things about our origins and ourselves. One woman's search for her father, two women's discovery of family; a story told in four voices.

"You can't help but want to know."

Episode #46: Sondra's Story - "You Can't Help But Want to Know"

"Infidelity is the antithesis of curiosity" says Tracy Schorn, whose blog "Chump Lady" has amassed 20M page views. We explore curiosity as a power tool in facing relationship betrayal. There's a reason she's an internet and publishing sensation....

Ep. #58: Infidelity, with "Chump Lady" Tracy Schorn

Dean of the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania, John L. Jackson, Jr. is an ethnographer by training -- and by nature.  A "conspicuous listener", he challenges us to nurture the cultures we desire, curiosity among them.  Lovely, thoughtful and thought-provoking. 

This is the second in a monthly series of interviews with the contributing authors to the forthcoming anthology Curiosity Studies: A New Ecology of Knowledge. Stay tuned for the whole series!

Theme and other music by Sean Balick. Join us next time when Karen Coltrane and I explore the centrality of curiosity in support of diversity and inclusion.

Ep. #85: Ethnography & Cultures of Curiosity with John L. Jackson, Jr.

Alison Horstmeyer, Ph.D. is a talent development facilitator, executive coach, and humanistic researcher with particular interest in workplace curiosity. Her research on curiosity in a VUCA world [volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous] drew me to her -- and her real-world workplace experience on how this all plays out kept me with her. I think it will do the same for you.

Spoiler alert: it's a hopeful view -- and our curious brains are built for these VUCA times!

Theme music by Sean Balick. “Front Runner" by Union Hall, via Blue Dot Sessions.

Ep. #135: Curiosity in the Workplace, with Alison Horstmeyer

Choose to be Curious is a show all about curiosity. We talk about research and theory, but mostly it's conversations about how curiosity shows up in work and life.  

Now syndicated and available via Pacifica RadioNetwork.

Choose to be Curious

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