#71 Ken Woodward: The Cost of Wonder

"The only cost of liberation is the decision to pay attention." - Ken Woodward

In this solo episode of Curated Questions, host Ken Woodward reflects on wonder, not as a luxury, but as a necessary practice for resilience.

Drawing from his experience aboard a U.S. Navy submarine in the gray winters of Connecticut, Ken recounts how weeks without color prepared him to recognize wonder the moment it returned. This memory becomes a lens for the present day, where constant crisis, scrolling, and AI-generated spectacle quietly dull our capacity to be moved.

Ken weaves research, poetry, and personal practice to argue that real wonder has a cost: attention, specificity, and presence. From nature journaling prompts to insights from trauma research, he shows how precise noticing can interrupt numbness and restore resilience.

Wonder, he suggests, doesn’t require mountaintops or submarines. Only the decision to stop, look again, and lower the threshold. The invitation is simple and demanding: reclaim reverence by paying attention to what’s already here.

Wonder is not gone. It’s waiting to be noticed.

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions)

Keep questioning!

#69 Addy Graff: Ask Three Questions — Then Go Play

"Sometimes my parents say ask three questions and then you can play." - Addy Graff

In this delightful episode of Curated Questions, Ken Woodward sits down with a-year-old explorer Addy Graff to discover how curiosity takes root early in life.

A seasoned traveler who has visited roughly 40 countries and every neighborhood in Washington, DC, Addy shares how asking questions helps her learn about people, cultures, and new experiences. From sampling adventurous foods like snails to practicing French in local shops, she demonstrates a fearless approach to discovery.

Addy reflects on lessons from school about thoughtful versus superficial questions and explains why the best ones invite stories rather than one-word answers. Encouraged by her parents to ask meaningful questions at the dinner table, she is already developing the habits of a lifelong learner.

Whether researching travel for the book she is writing or choosing the most interesting path while wandering a new city, Addy reminds us that curiosity is less about age and more about posture. One that keeps the world expansive, welcoming, and full of possibility. Follow along on her adventures through her Dad's Instagram account at https://www.instagram.com/austinkgraff/

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Be sure to subscribe to the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions)

Keep questioning!

#66 Ken Woodward: What Happens When A Question Is Asked?

"Questions are not neutral; they're interventions." - Ken Woodward

What actually happens inside us when a question is asked?

In this solo episode of Curated Questions, Ken Woodward explores the neurological, emotional, and psychological impact of being asked a question.

Moving beyond techniques or tactics, Ken examines how questions hijack attention, trigger chemical responses in the brain, open unresolved mental loops, and sometimes activate fear or defensiveness.

Drawing from neuroscience and a powerful encounter during his Washington, D.C. walking project, he reflects on a question that has remained open for years: What real difference are you making?

This episode reveals why some questions feel like relief before they’re answered, why others linger long after they’re asked, and how certain questions don’t just reveal who we are, but actively shape who we become.

Questions, Ken argues, are not neutral requests for information. They are interventions. And understanding their power changes how we ask, how we answer, and how we live with them.

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Be sure to check out the weekly Curated Questions Dispatch newsletter for more fun with questions and curiosity! (https://substack.com/@curatedquestions)

Keep questioning!

#61 Rob Walker: The Art of Noticing: How Asking Better Questions Changes What We See!

"If all you do is pay attention to what everyone else is paying attention to, then by definition you're not likely to innovate anything or create anything very original or different or surprising." - Rob Walker

Writer and cultural observer Rob Walker joins Ken to explore how questions and noticing reshape the way we move through the world. Rob traces his origin story back to discovering journalism at 18—a framework that gave a shy, introverted kid permission to ask questions on behalf of others.

They dig into his book and newsletter The Art of Noticing, talking about everyday noticing assignments, why “what am I missing?” is a powerful self-question, and how small acts of attention can mark time and make life more memorable.

Rob shares the story behind the Significant Objects project and why story—not price tag—creates real value in the objects we keep. From New Orleans as a “conversational city” to his teaching on point of view and manifestos, Rob reflects on questions as both agency and responsibility, in democracies, organizations, and personal life. Be sure to subscribe to Rob's Substack The Art of Noticing newsletter at https://robwalker.substack.com/

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Keep questioning!

#55 Ken Woodward: The Locked Door: How Avoided Questions Hold the Key to Transformation!

"Your avoided question isn't just personal development, it's an act of resistance." - Ken Woodward

In this episode of Curated Questions, host Ken Woodward explores the transformative power of confronting the questions we're avoiding. Delving into neuroscience, psychology, and personal reflection, he highlights why these avoided questions create discomfort and how they serve as a gateway to significant change.

Ken introduces tools and methodologies to help listeners identify and tackle these questions, both in their personal lives and within organizations. With practical advice and real-world examples, this episode encourages listeners to pause, reflect, and take actionable steps towards growth.

Ken also underscores the importance of curiosity and its role in overcoming avoidance, ultimately leading to meaningful transformation.

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Keep questioning!

#44 AI Alan Turing: What Machines Can’t Imitate - On Questions, Doubt, and the Discipline of Curiosity

"I suspect beauty comes when a question both sharpens and enlarges your vision." - AI Alan Turing

In this special episode, we step back to a cold December night in 1951 and into the warm, wood-paneled room of The Britons Protection, a historic Manchester pub. Across the table sits Alan Turing, the mathematician, wartime codebreaker, and one of the founding figures of computer science, who is brought to life through an AI simulation.

Best known for his role at Bletchley Park during World War II, Turing devised techniques and machines, including the Bombe, that cracked the German Enigma code and helped shorten the war by years. His groundbreaking 1936 paper on “computable numbers” introduced the concept of the universal machine, and became the theoretical foundation for modern computers. Later, at the University of Manchester, he advanced early computing, explored artificial intelligence, and even pioneered mathematical biology.

Our imagined conversation, grounded in historical detail and Turing’s own writings, delves into his enduring fascination with questions: how to ask them, when to abandon them, and why some are worth carrying for a lifetime. We discuss the interplay between beauty and inquiry, the discipline required to avoid seductive but unproductive lines of thought, and the place of doubt as an essential human strength.

We also revisit his famous “imitation game” — now known as the Turing Test — and consider the boundaries of machine intelligence, the dangers of mistaking simulation for genuine dialogue, and the questions that only humans can keep alive, all while wrestling with the meta question, "Is this machine thinking?"

This episode blends history, philosophy, and imagination while inviting you to consider what it means to think, to doubt, and to remain fully human in an age of advancing machines.

This Curated Questions episode can be found on all major platforms and at CuratedQuestions.com.

Keep questioning!

#20 EbonyJanice Moore: A Benediction For Black Womanhood And Softness!

EbonyJanice recounts how her grandmother taught her to question texts early on. She shares insights from her spiritual mentorship program, 'Dream Yourself Free', and discusses her book 'All the Black Girls Are Activists' which delves into Black women's pursuit of dreams as resistance. EbonyJanice elaborates on the power of dreaming from a place of safety rather than resistance and the impact of nurturing Black women in her community. The discussion touches on societal pressures, systemic inequities, and the potential for transformative change when Black women are listened to and supported.