This is hidden brain.
I'm Shankar Vedanta.
All of us are time travelers.
We go back in history to turning points in our lives and imagine how things could have turned out differently.
What would have happened if we had chosen different paths, swiped right instead of left, moved abroad, or quit smoking?
This week on hidden brain, well tell you a story that shows when our minds reach for these alternate realities.
I'm responsible because I didn't listen to him and what he was saying.
And we'll also look at other scenarios where we're less likely to ask, what if it turns out that the psychological forces that lead us to dream of alternate lives have profound effects on us and the planet?
Laura Ogden has spent years imagining how things could have turned out differently.
At the very start is a pair of skis.
She and her friends would go out to the mountains in Washington state, going.
As fast as we can, going as steep as we can, starting to jump off rocks and challenge ourselves with our fear.
I think that became something I was drawn to and I guess, addicted to as time went on.
When she got to college, the whole.
Ski culture opened up to me.
So it snowballed, no pun intended.
From there.
She moved from skiing resorts to wild slopes where it was just her, some friends, and the elements.
They'd hauled themselves to the top of mountains with skis on their backs.
No ski lifts, no ski patrol, no cozy lodge with hot chocolate.