Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

TED

We all want to know if we’re normal—do I have enough friends? Should it take me this long to get over my ex? Should I move or stay where I am? Endlessly curious data journalist Mona Chalabi NEEDS to know, and she’s ready to dive into the numbers to get some answers. But studies and spreadsheets don’t tell the whole story, so she’s consulting experts, strangers, and even her mum to fill in the gaps. The answers might surprise you, and make you ask: does normal even exist?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi is produced in partnership with Transmitter Media.

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Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Is my dentist scamming me?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

10/25/21 • 23 min

When a dentist tells us something is wrong with our teeth, we tend to follow their advice. But when Mona visits two different dentists, they give her two wildly different diagnoses (with wildly different price tags). So how do we know who's telling the tooth? Mona digs up the dental data to look for answers, and finds that in reality, the study of dentistry is riddled with holes.

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3 Listeners

When will I get over my breakup?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

10/18/21 • 20 min

Search “How long does it take to get over a break up?” and you’ll find answers ranging from three weeks to three-and-a-half years. Despite heartbreak being one of the most universal human experiences, we know very little about what—and how LONG—it takes to get over someone. On the mend from a breakup herself, Mona set out to find a number while enlisting help from a psychology professor, her relationship counselor, and yes—her Mum. We’ll find that much like relationships themselves, the answer here is a little ... complicated.

You can find the full text transcript along with studies cited in this episode at go.ted.com/AIN1. Special thanks to guests Eli Finkel and Hod Tamir for lending their expertise to this episode.

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How many friends do I need?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

10/18/21 • 22 min

Time with friends just isn’t the same with a screen in between you. That’s a struggle many have faced recently, with half of Americans saying they’ve lost touch with at least one friend during the pandemic. It can be sad, but is falling out of touch with friends normal? How many relationships should we maintain, and what are the different kinds of friendships we need anyways? Evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar has been studying social relationships for 50 years, and he has answers. Mona maps out her own relationships against the averages, and invites us to do the same.

You can find the full text transcript along with studies cited in this episode at go.ted.com/AIN2. Special thanks to guest Robin Dunbar for lending his expertise.

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2 Listeners

Should I move home?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/01/21 • 21 min

Did you consider moving over the last two years? If you did, you’re not alone. People all over the world for so many different reasons considered moving: to be closer to family, to live somewhere more affordable, to kick back in a warmer climate. When Mona wrestles with this question, she pulls out a spreadsheet and weighs her options: Want to maintain current friendships? Stay in New York. Want to be close to family? Go back to London. Money? New York. Self deprecation and sarcasm? London. As she wrestles with her decision, something weird happens. A bird THWACKS against her window, falling dead. Could this be a sign to fly back home, or a coincidence? Mona looks into the data to see the chances and then discovers something that will eventually tip the scales.

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Together for 20 years — but living apart?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/01/23 • 22 min

The binary category of single/married doesn't allow for much nuance. What if, say, you’re in a long term committed relationship like a marriage — but you live apart? In the last episode of this mini series, Saleem talks to a couple who’s been living apart together ("LAT") for years about what motivates them to be in a LAT relationship, and how the arrangement works for them.

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Which box do I check?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/15/21 • 23 min

We’re constantly checking boxes on forms, whether it’s for eye color or sexual orientation. Those categories can be empowering or, they can make you feel invisible, like when Mona painted a portrait of 100 New Yorkers based on the New York Census data, and realized she couldn’t see herself. There was no “Arabic” box to check in the census—the closest being “white” or “other.” So what happens when someone spends their whole life checking that box for “other”? Mona talks with nonbinary British Iraqi drag queen Amrou Al-Kadhi about embracing the contradictions of having multiple, wonderful, identities, that SOME people see as conflicting.

You can find the full text transcript along with studies cited in this episode at go.ted.com/AIN6

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The Spermageddon is coming

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/08/21 • 29 min

"You should start thinking about kids at your age! Your biological clock is ticking!” When we talk about fertility, there's one section of the population that's consistently subjected to fear mongering: the people with the ovaries. But is that worry backed up by data? Should we be stressed out about sperm too? Scientist Joe Osmundson divulges his own fears and findings on the journey to save his sperm, and Mona breaks down the scientific, cultural, and psychological elements that have shaped the way we think and talk about fertility.

You can find the full text transcript along with studies cited in this episode at go.ted.com/AIN5.

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Is it really that bad to marry my cousin?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/29/21 • 25 min

Charles Darwin. Edgar Allen Poe. Albert Einstein. What do all of these men have in common? Yes, they’ve made major contributions to science and literature. Buuuut they also all married their first cousins. Mona looks at the genetic consequences of cousin marriage, and what taboos really tell us about the social norms and power.

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Should you break the law?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

11/22/21 • 19 min

The obvious answer: no. Though you haven’t exactly committed to a life of crime if you jaywalk on an empty street. But if we bend the law on jaywalking, why not drunk driving? Well, there was a time when people thought drunk driving didn't really matter either. So what changed? How do we decide to follow a law or not? What even IS a law? Mona meets with social psychology of law professor, Kenworthy Bilz to understand how laws can (and can’t) shape our behaviors.

You can find the full text transcript along with studies cited in this episode at go.ted.com/AIN7

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Coming soon: Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi

10/06/21 • 2 min

Launching October 18 from the TED Audio Collective. We all want to know if we’re normal—do I have enough friends? Should it take me this long to get over my ex? Should I move or stay where I am? Endlessly curious data journalist Mona Chalabi NEEDS to know, and she’s ready to dive into the numbers to get some answers. But studies and spreadsheets don’t tell the whole story, so she’s consulting experts, strangers, and even her mum to fill in the gaps. The answers might surprise you, and make you ask: does normal even exist? To hear new episodes on Mondays, follow Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi wherever you get your podcasts.

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FAQ

How many episodes does Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi have?

Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi currently has 24 episodes available.

What topics does Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi cover?

The podcast is about Society & Culture, Personal Journals and Podcasts.

What is the most popular episode on Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi?

The episode title 'Is my dentist scamming me?' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi?

The average episode length on Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi is 22 minutes.

How often are episodes of Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi released?

Episodes of Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi are typically released every 7 days, 1 hour.

When was the first episode of Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi?

The first episode of Am I Normal? with Mona Chalabi was released on Oct 6, 2021.

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Comments

Lou Ferreira

@louferre

Oct 17

Really interesting! Talks about a bunch of different things -- perfectionism, dentists, break ups, etc. -- but there's lots of research done, and somehow they've managed to fit it into really short episodes!