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Smart Girl Dumb Questions

Smart Girl Dumb Questions

Nayeema Raza 53 Episodes Jul 21, 2026

Smart Girl Dumb Questions is a podcast hosted by Nayeema Raza, who asks simple questions to big thinkers like Neil deGrasse Tyson and Diplo, as well as everyday people like two 11-year-olds. The show aims to make sense of life through curiosity and conversation. Listeners are invited to submit their own dumb questions to the host.

Episodes

Birth Rates Are Low. Can A “Fertility President” Fix That?
Birth Rates Are Low. Can A “Fertility President” Fix That? Jul 21, 2026 3727 And does it even need to be fixed? In this episode Nayeema tries to understand whether demographic collapse is a crisis or a con job. She sits down with Malcolm and Simone Collins, a New Right pronatalist couple with ties to the Heritage Foundation and Elon Musk and policy drafts being submitted for White House consideration. They have 5 kids, 30 embryos on ice and aspirations to keep going til Si
Is Everything a Cult?
Is Everything a Cult? Jul 14, 2026 3339 Nayeema and cult expert Amanda Montell unpack why cults are everywhere now, why we’re obsessed with them and what all of that has to do with modern loneliness and capitalism. Montell — the bestselling author of Cultish and host of the podcast Sounds Like A Cult breaks down the innocuous language that will suck you in and how to help someone you love get OUT.   Oh, and naturally they try
What Does Love Hurt? with Dr. Justin Garcia
What Does Love Hurt? with Dr. Justin Garcia Jul 7, 2026 3781 Nayeema sits down with evolutionary biologist Dr. Justin Garcia, Director of the world-famous Kinsey Institute, to unpack the science of love, sex and attraction. Why are there more single peoplethan ever? Are we still having sex? Why do breakups … feel like withdrawal? And what do pandas, penguins and pigs have to teach us about modern relationships? Also on the agenda: is kissing is “normal,” s
When Do We Move to Mars? (or the Moon)
When Do We Move to Mars? (or the Moon) Jun 30, 2026 3508 Nayeema sits down with space architect Ariel Ekblaw to ask: will my kids commute to the Moon? Why are we privatizing everything in outer space? And did SpaceX just turn space travel into … FedEx? Ariel is a Yale and MIT-trained founder and CEO of Aurelia Institute focused on space technologies including autonomously self-assembling space stations and future space habitats. And if all of this so
Can the NBA Fix the USA? with Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert
Can the NBA Fix the USA? with Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Jun 23, 2026 4191 It’s NBA Draft Day and Nayeema’s sitting down with Cleveland Cavaliers owner, Rocket Companies founder and Detroit mega-booster Dan Gilbert to ask: How do you make up with LeBron James? Can a billion bucks buy happiness? Is the NBA socialist? And what can it teach the USA about fairness? Dan opens up about the infamous LeBron letter, what it’s really like sitting at a table with 30 billionaire NBA
Who’s Scarier: Gangsters, Billionaires or Investigative Journalists?
Who’s Scarier: Gangsters, Billionaires or Investigative Journalists? Jun 16, 2026 4350 Nobody understands GRIFT quite like New Yorker Journalist Patrick Radden Keefe. Nayeema sits down with the legendary New Yorker staff writer and bestselling author of Empire of Pain, Say Nothing, Rogues, and his latest book London Falling to ask: why are we so obsessed with people behaving badly? Is grift just … ambition? And when does “fake it till you make it” become “fake it until everything co
Rent vs Buy? Homes, IVF, MBAs and Other $$$ Choices
Rent vs Buy? Homes, IVF, MBAs and Other $$$ Choices Jun 9, 2026 2960 Rent or buy? Student debt or skip the degree? Nayeema asks  @MoneyRehab host Nicole Lapin the money questions we all have. They discuss if home ownership is still part of the American Dream, what money mistakes NOT to make, and why it feels SO vulnerable to talk about your personal finances. Turns out “shame is not a good money management system.”  Also on the agenda: IVF, MBAs and what is wort
Is the American Dream Still a Thing? with Harvard Economist Raj Chetty
Is the American Dream Still a Thing? with Harvard Economist Raj Chetty Jun 2, 2026 3771 Nayeema speaks to Professor Raj Chetty, who has the IRS (and Facebook) data proving that your zip code and close friends list may dictate your riches. They talk about the American dream, whether it's in reach, why the data and vibes conflict and why the Harvard University professor behind Opportunity Insights believes progress is STILL possible. This is the second episode of our SGDQ Smart Money
Is Who You Marry the Most Important Financial Decision? with Divorce Attorney Jim Sexton
Is Who You Marry the Most Important Financial Decision? with Divorce Attorney Jim Sexton May 19, 2026 4845 Which money mistakes destroy a relationship? And which good money habits make a marriage work? No one sees into people’s finances like a divorce lawyer does. So Nayeema brings BACK killer NYC divorce attorney James Sexton, Esq. to ask: is marriage really the most important financial decision you’ll ever make? Does leverage kill love? And with an affordability crisis, does being middle class keep y
Aliens Encounters and UFO Files?! with Neil deGrasse Tyson
Aliens Encounters and UFO Files?! with Neil deGrasse Tyson May 12, 2026 4810 Neil deGrasse Tyson and Nayeema are BACK with an all new episode taped live at New York’s Comedy Cellar. They discuss if aliens exist, how we’d know and what we should do when we see them? What’s the alien go back? And how do we balance skepticism with possibility in science and in life. Has any testimony, fact or experience ever challenged Neil’s alien skepticism?Nayeema also asks Neil to respond
Is There A War on Men?
Is There A War on Men? May 5, 2026 4371 Nayeema sits down with Richard Reeves, THE expert on men and boys to ask: is there a men’s crisis? Has talking about it made men’s lives better …or worse? What’s a dude problem vs an everyone problem? Are we just gendering the impacts of modern capitalism? And what’s next: DEI for dudes?  Also on the agenda: looksmaxxing, incels, tradwives (data vs vibes), the retreat of video games, the potent
Iran ... Um, How Does This End?
Iran ... Um, How Does This End? Apr 28, 2026 4737 Robert Malley was a Lead Negotiator of the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal, so what does he think will happen next? And what does three decades at the forefront of Middle East peace (or war, in this case), teach him from Camp David (2000) to Israel and Gaza today? Nayeema and Rob walk through Donald Trump’s “Art of the Deal” to figure out whether one may be had here. They also discuss: are negotiators mor

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