How Nature Helps Body and Soul

This is Scientific American’s Science Talk, posted on June 27, 2020. I’m Steve Mirsky. On this episode:

WILLIAMS CLIP

That’s Florence Wiliams. She’s a journalist and the author of the 2017 book The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier and More Creative. America’s professor and author emeritus of nature, Edward O. Wilson, said about the book, “The Nature Fix is a beautifully written, thoroughly enjoyable exposition of a major principle of human life now supported by evidence in biology, psychology, and medicine.”

We’ll also listen to a segment sponsored by the Kavli Prize, with a new laureate in neuroscience, David Julius, who was honored for his research into the molecular basis of the perception of pain—and how it might lead to new ways to control pain.

But first, Florence Williams. I called her at home in Washington, D.C.

WILLIAMS 1

More with Florence Williams coming up. But first, let’s go now from nature to the nature of pain and its treatment, with a segment sponsored by the Kavli Prize.

KAVLI JULIUS SEGMENT

Now more with Florence Williams, author of the Nature Fix.

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That’s it for this episode, get your science news at our website, www.scientificamerican.com. Where all of our coronavirus coverage is out from behind the paywall, available free.

And follow us on Twitter, where you’ll get a tweet whenever a new item hits the website. Our twitter name is @sciam. For Scientific American’s Science Talk, I’m Steve Mirsky, thanks for clicking on us.