In 1993 author Peter James caused a global outrage when he published his thriller Host on two floppy disks. The first “electronic novel,” which is about a scientist who downloads his brain into a computer and has his body frozen, was considered the beginning of the end of literature as we know it, not because of its plot, but because it was thought to be a sign that printed books would soon join clay tablets as relics of our technologically primitive past. Fortunately predictions about the book apocalypse have not yet manifested and when it comes to my endless pursuit... Read full article »

When the conference director of Happiness and Its Causes asked me to host a panel discussion between experts on deepening our mind-body connection so that we can lead healthier lives, I was delighted. It’s a topic I’m dedicated to raising awareness about and the lineup was terrific. There was Michael Mosely – the famed English doctor and BBC presenter known for self-experimenting in the name of science, Elissa Epel – an American psychiatry professor and stress expert, who co-authored the bestselling book The Telomere Effect about healthy ageing, Amit Bernstein – an Israeli mindfulness professor who is doing extraordinary work... Read full article »

Last week I found myself caught up in an airplane boarding queue as my fellow passengers hustled and bustled to get settled in seats. The plane was packed full of corporate commuters traveling between Sydney and Melbourne, Australia’s two busiest cities. There was a sense of chaos in the air.   As harried passengers pushed and shoved their bags into tight overhead lockers, the line lagged and a flight attendant made polite small talk with me. “Hello, busy day?” he asked, expecting me to reply with the common response, “Yes, crazy.” But I wasn’t feeling stressed or rushed. “No, not... Read full article »

You may be familiar with research showing that highly trained Tibetan monks are able to control their body temperature by using the power of their mind, even to the point they are able to dry wet blankets with their body heat. This was first recorded by Dr. Herbert Benson, one of the world’s leading scientists in mind body medicine who I interviewed for my film The Connection.  In the 1980s Dr. Benson showed that meditating monks could increase the temperature of their fingers and toes by as much as 8.3 °C and other researchers have since found similar results.  ... Read full article »

Dr. Craig Duncan was not supposed to have a heart attack. The 43-year-old leading sports scientist was as fit as the elite Australian athletes he trained. He ran every day. He was vegetarian. He had no sign of heart disease - not high blood pressure or high cholesterol. In fact he’d recently had an ECG to check his heart and got the all clear from doctors.   But Craig is lucky to be alive after suffering a Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection. There were only 150 cases of the rare condition recorded and the majority had been autopsies.   I interviewed... Read full article »

I had the great pleasure of spending last weekend with a group of people who had just been through an amazing transformative experience.   All week they had been eating amazingly healthy food, exercising, meditating and practicing mindful activities like Tai Chi and Yoga. They had no alcohol, caffeine or chocolate, which some of you might think sounds like torture, but these people all had the healthy-shiny-glowy look of well people.   They’d been through a program at The Golden Door health retreat and it culminated with a screening of my film The Connection, followed by a Q and A... Read full article »