About this site

MindBodyEvolution is a podcast by Dr. Josh Stout looking at the coevolution of culture and physiology. Our origins on the Serengeti, how our diet and exercise needs are shaped by evolutionary history, and we connect our deep history and the strange world we have built for ourselves.

What does this have to do with why it's so difficult to lose weight?

Mind Body Evolution is a podcast by Dr. Josh Stout.

Mind Body Evolution is a podcast looking at the coevolution of culture and physiology. The podcast investigates our origins on the Serengeti and looks at how our diet and exercise needs have been shaped by our evolutionary history. How are the needs of our uniquely large brains reflected by our craving for sugar and fat? Why did we evolve the desire to be lazy while evolving bodies that need exercise? I also look at our mental evolution through a discussion of art, imagination, and language. Why does the dawn of the human imagination mark the beginning of our species, and perhaps not coincidentally, the extinction of the archaic humans? How do the social interactions of the great apes determine the social interactions of today? The podcast draws connections between our deep history and the strange world we have built for ourselves. It shows how farming led to slavery and how our natural history pre-adapted us to develop eating disorders. Throughout the show, evolution is used as a reference point to explain how and why we got to where we are.

Dr. Stout also showcases his stone jewelry, carvings and sculpture in the 'my art' section of this site.

Dr. Josh Stout is a senior lecturer in biology at Fairleigh Dickinson University with a diverse educational background. He holds a Ph.D. from Rutgers University, where he conducted research on the relationship between pollution and metabolism. Additionally, Dr. Stout earned a master's degree from The New School for Social Research, where he focused on the philosophy of aesthetics. Dr. Stout’s research interests include testing the dopamine model and its role in crustacean behavior. This research has shown that dopamine, usually seen as a stimulant, is inhibitory in crustaceans, and that these results have potential implications for a wide array of human behaviors from drug addiction to ADHD. This research bridges biology and neuroscience, shedding light on the neurochemical basis of behavior. Dr. Stout teaches several graduate classes that focus on the links between our evolutionary past, and how it has influenced our present dietary and exercise needs. These lectures focus on how differences in lifestyle between ancient and modern cultures have affected our health through the coevolution of technology and physiology. In addition to his academic studies, for thirty-five years, Dr. Stout has studied Indonesian physical and spiritual practices that include a variety of meditation techniques outside of the usual strict material approach to physical health.

FDU does not endorse or support this site, nor the statements made by Dr. Stout on this site.

Joseph Stout | Fairleigh Dickinson University

Personal. Global. Transformational.