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305 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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253 - Peter Zeihan: China’s Fall, America’s Rise, and the End of the World Order
22 juni 2025 · 1 uur 8 min
Peter Zeihan is a geopolitical analyst, futurist, and best-selling author who researches and strategizes around demography, economics, energy, politics, technology, and security. In this episode, Peter and Robinson focus on revisiting content from his latest book—The End of the World is Just the Beginning—in the context of today’s developments. More particularly, they discuss, Donald Trump, tariffs, ICE Raids, deportations, how demography and geography will affect the future balance of world powers, the impact of AI on global economics, what the end of the world order could look like, Trump’s immigration policies, and more. You can keep up with Peter through his website or YouTube channel, links to which are below. Lees meer
Peter’s Website: https://zeihan.com
Peter’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ZeihanonGeopolitics
The End of the World is Just the Beginning: https://a.co/d/bZJES4t
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:09 Trump and the End of the American-Led World Order
00:06:49 Does AI Change the Economics of the Future?
00:14:39 The 2,000,000,000$ Failure of the F-35 Fighter Jet
00:25:00 Why the United States Needs Immigrants
00:33:03 Is There Any Strategy Behind Donald Trump?
00:41:43 Why Food Will Become Weaponized in the Near Future
00:50:39 Why China’s Economy is Doomed to Recession
00:53:55 How Do We Prepare For China’s Collapse?
01:00:37 Trump’s Tariffs and the Fall of America
01:01:54 Was Russia Doomed to Fall Even Before Ukraine?
01:05:51 The Biggest Underestimated Global Conflicts
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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252 - David Kipping: Alien Civilizations, Megastructures, Spacecraft, and Artificial Intelligence
8 juni 2025 · 3 uur 5 min
David Kipping is a Professor of Astronomy at Columbia University, where he runs Cool Worlds Lab and researches planets and moons that revolve around stars other than our own, in addition to his own work on the search for—and theorization about—alien life. In this episode, David and Robinson have a wide-ranging conversation about extraterrestrials. They discuss alien civilizations, propulsion, megastructures, Oumuamua, quantum immortality, Dyson spheres, simulation theory, ancient aliens, and much more. David also runs the YouTube channel Cool Worlds Lab, where he has produced many videos on these topics. Lees meer
Cool Worlds Lab (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@CoolWorldsLab
David’s Website: http://davidkipping.co.uk
OUTLINE
00:01:05 Astronomy or Aliens?
00:06:12 How Scientists Get Burned by Alien Research
00:16:52 Three Big Obstacles to UFO Science
00:23:59 What is the Kardashev Scale of Alien Civilizations?
00:30:28 Cloaking Devices
00:33:46 How To Detect Alien Civilizations with Heat Signatures
00:37:21 Other Schemes for Detecting Civilizations
00:47:22 Does Alien Life Need Water to Exist?
00:51:46 Why Would Aliens Have Very Different Technology From Us?
00:55:54 When Did the First Life Form in the Universe?
01:07:23 Is the Universe Filled with Ancient Alien Civilizations?
01:16:45 What Is the Great Filter Hypothesis For Alien Life?
01:19:31 Artificial Intelligence, Aliens, and the End of Humanity
01:25:05 How Rare Is the Creation of Life From Nothing?
01:31:53 Communicating with Extraterrestrials
01:37:28 What Are Alien Megastructures?
01:47:07 Can We Engineer the Sun to Live Longer?
01:51:08 Clark Belt Detection
01:54:35 Should We Look for Alien Life on Exomoons?
02:01:33 Could We Find Alien Life on Planets in the Interstellar Medium?
02:04:34 Future Telescopes
02:13:35 What Is a Warp Drive and Why Can’t We Build One?
02:21:47 On Time Travel and the Best Time Machines
02:26:40 What Are the Best Interstellar Propulsion Technologies?
02:34:…
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251 - Eliezer Yudkowsky: Artificial Intelligence and the End of Humanity
25 mei 2025 · 2 uur 51 min
Eliezer Yudkowsky is a decision theorist, computer scientist, and author who co-founded and leads research at the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. He is best known for his work on the alignment problem—how and whether we can ensure that AI is aligned with human values to avoid catastrophe and harness its power. In this episode, Robinson and Eliezer run the gamut on questions related to AI and the danger it poses to human civilization as we know it. More particularly, they discuss the alignment problem, gradient descent, consciousness, the singularity, cyborgs, ChatGPT, OpenAI, Anthropic, Claude, how long we have until doomsday, whether it can be averted, and the various reasons why and ways in which AI might wipe out human life on earth. Lees meer
The Machine Intelligence Research Institute: https://intelligence.org/about/
Eliezer’s X Account: https://x.com/ESYudkowsky?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:00:43 The Default Condition for AI’s Takeover
00:06:36 Could a Future AI Country Be Our Trade Partner?
00:11:18 What Is Artificial Intelligence?
00:21:23 Why AIs Having Goals Could Mean the End of Humanity
00:29:34 What Is the Alignment Problem?
00:34:11 How To Avoid AI Apocalypse
00:40:25 Would Cyborgs Eliminate Humanity?
00:47:55 AI and the Problem of Gradient Descent
00:55:24 How Do We Solve the Alignment Problem?
01:00:50 How Anthropic’s AI Freed Itself from Human Control
01:08:56 The Pseudo-Alignment Problem
01:19:28 Why Are People Wrong About AI Not Taking Over the World?
01:23:23 How Certain Is It that AI Will Wipe Out Humanity?
01:38:35 Is Eliezer Yudkowski Wrong About The AI Apocalypse
01:42:04 Do AI Corporations Control the Fate of Humanity?
01:43:49 How To Convince the President Not to Let AI Kill Us All
01:52:01 How Will ChatGPT’s Descendants Wipe Out Humanity?
02:24:11 Could AI Destroy us with New Science?
02:39:37 Could AI Destroy us with Advanced Biology?
02:47:29 How Will AI Actually Destroy Hum… -
250 - Norman Finkelstein: Trump, Israel, Gaza, and the Criminalization of Dissent
11 mei 2025 · 3 uur
Norman Finkelstein received his PhD from the Princeton University Politics Department, and is best known for his research on Israel and Palestine. Norman also appeared on episodes 192, 218, 228, and 244, where he addressed the facts and fictions generated by the Israel-Hamas War, October 6th, allegations of genocide and apartheid, Hezbollah, the Holocaust, and more. In this episode, Robinson and Norman discuss Trump, the current state of Gaza, the fate of Palestine, wokeness, Bernies Sanders, Chuck Schumer, antisemitism, free speech, and other topics. Norman’s most recent book is I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom (Sublation Media, 2023). Lees meer
Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com
OUTLINE
00:01:11 Norman’s Predictions for the War
00:10:12 Trump and the End of the Ceasefire
00:14:29 Why Didn’t The Democrats Strike a Ceasefire in Israel?
00:25:50 A Jeremy Corbin Witch Hunt?
00:29:52 On Wokeness and DEI
00:54:01 Bernie Sanders and the Working Class
00:57:16 Bernie Sanders, Chuck Schumer, and Anti-Semitism
01:04:17 Is Trump a Slave to Money, Power, and Putin?
01:11:02 Is Chuck Schumer’s Definition of Anti-Semitism Terrible?
01:19:52 Free Speech and Academia
01:24:34 How Norman Feels About Being Academically Canceled
01:27:45 On Noam Chomsky’s Deceptiveness
01:29:42 More on the Cancelation
01:34:13 How Should We Define Anti-Semitism?
01:43:45 What Should We Do With Holocaust Deniers?
01:47:14 On W.E.B Du Bois
01:58:31 On Race and IQ
02:01:35 Suppression of Free Speech
02:09:02 How to Prevent Another Holocaust
02:18:18 Chuck Schumer is Wrong About Media Echo Chambers
02:22:01 How to Fight Violent Hate
02:35:58 On Chuck Schumer’s Backstory and the Holocaust
02:40:05 Cleaning the Augean Stables of Gaza Scholarship
02:46:21 What Changed on October 7th
02:48:59 Gaza Is Already Rubble: What’s Next?
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249 - Chris Hedges: Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the Rise of American Fascism
27 april 2025 · 3 uur
Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize–winning author and journalist who was a foreign correspondent for fifteen years for The New York Times. He has covered numerous wars across the decades, written many books—including America: The Farewell Tour and American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America—and has been involved in work for prisoner advocacy. In this episode, Robinson and Chris discuss Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the rise of American fascism. More particularly, they address comparisons between Trump and Hitler, DOGE, the new crisis for the Democratic Party, Israel and Palestine, the Christian far right, Marxism, and more. Chris’s latest book is A Genocide Foretold (Penguin Random House, 2025). Lees meer
Chris’s YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/@chrishedgeschannel?si=XIMAFyQFmWGoYyuO
The Chris Hedges Report Substack: https://chrishedges.substack.com
A Genocide Foretold: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/786808/a-genocide-foretold-by-chris-hedges/
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:00:59 PTSD and Weightlifting
00:06:49 The Decline of the American Empire
00:11:10 The Strongest Dimension of Trump’s Presidency
00:17:20 Was Hitler a Better Speaker than Trump?
00:19:54 How the Democratic Party Sold Out the Working Class
00:22:21 Elon Musk and the Oligarchic Takeover of America
00:28:26 Is Elon Musk Wrong About the Efficiency of Government?
00:31:02 What Is the Deep State?
00:42:46 Is Donald Trump at War with the Deep State?
00:49:23 Infiltrating the Far Right Christian Community
00:54:04 Becoming a Minister
00:57:27 The Christian Right and the Fascist State
01:06:26 The Problem of Evil
01:10:31 On Sadism and the Decline of Empires
01:17:35 Why the Christian Right Supports Israel
01:20:20 How Does Trump Think of Israel?
01:27:38 On How the CIA Attempted to Recruit Him
01:31:06 Is Israel Still Committing Genocide in Gaza?
01:40:25 Chris’s New Book
01:46:24 On His Time with Hamas
01:55:01 Journalism vs Academia
01:58:28 Is Zionism A…
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248 - Richard Wolff: Trump, Hitler, and the End of the American Empire
13 april 2025 · 3 uur 11 min
Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. This is Richard’s eighth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In his last appearance, episode #243, he and Robinson discussed 2025 and the first weeks of Trump’s presidency, as well as what’s to come. More particularly, they discuss the irrelevance of Donald Trump, his domestic and global policies, China, narratives on the right and left, and the future of the United States. In this episode, they continue the discussion by diving deeper into recent events, Doge, Elon Musk, the relationship between Trump and Hitler, and important historical Marxists. Richard’s latest book is Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024). Lees meer
Understanding Capitalism (Book): https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:27 What Do Trump and Hitler Have in Common?
00:09:42 Is This the Democratic Party’s Worst Crisis?
00:14:58 Is Trump’s Economic Policy a Hail Mary?
00:26:29 The Mexican Deportation Crisis
00:30:19 Global Retaliation Against American Tariffs
00:33:29 America’s Big Mistake with Russian Sanctions
00:40:50 Trump’s Big TikTok Mistake
00:47:05 How Adolf Hitler Came to Power in Germany
01:08:40 Does Elon Musk Symbolize the End of America?
01:16:07 How Bosses Lie When They Fire You
01:23:08 On Elon Musk’s Chainsaw Public Relations Disaster
01:28:52 On the Drowning American Empire
01:34:36 On Elon Musk and the Self-Destruction of Tesla
01:39:27 Feudalism, Communism, and the Death of Capitalism
01:46:22 Does China Represent a New Breed of Capitalism?
01:55:16 What Can the United States Do to Beat China?
02:03:46 What Makes Mao an Important Marxist?
02:17:56 Richard Wolff’s Mediocre Ivy League Education
02:23:59 How Ma…
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247 - Garry Nolan: Aliens | The Case They’re Already Here
30 maart 2025 · 3 uur 22 min
Dr. Nolan is the Rachford and Carlota A. Harris Professor in the Department of Pathology at Stanford University School of Medicine. He has published over 350 research articles and is the holder of 50 US patents, and has been honored as one of the top 25 inventors at Stanford University. He specializes in groundbreaking cancer and immunotherapy research. Yet Garry is also a world-renowned UAP investigator and Executive Director of the Board at the Sol Foundation, one of whose unofficial mottos is: Science, Policy, and Public Education for a Post-UAP World. In this episode, Robinson and Garry discuss the evidence that aliens exist and have already visited Earth. More particularly, they discuss various hypotheses about what aliens are—interdimensional travelers, visitors from other planets, Boltzmann Brains, and others—the Atacama Mummy, Garry’s own UFO encounter, the relationship between aliens and national security, the Pentagon Videos, the Fermi Paradox, and more. Keep up with Garry through X and the Sol Foundation. Lees meer
Garry’s X Account: https://x.com/GarryPNolan
The Sol Foundation: https://thesolfoundation.org
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:23 Garry’s Interest in Aliens
00:05:03 How Garry’s Medical Research Turned into Alien Investigations
00:14:44 The Alien Controversy Around the Atacama Mummy
00:24:08 What Is the Definitive Proof for Aliens?
00:29:34 What Are UAPs
00:32:46 What Are Interdimensional Aliens??
00:36:03 What Are Ultraterrestrial Aliens?
00:40:01 The Time-Traveling Alien Hypothesis
00:41:13 The Angry-Monkey Alien Hypothesis
00:43:35 The Panspermia Alien Hypothesis
00:48:20 Could Intelligent Aliens Have Come to Earth?
00:54:50 Garry’s Background in Genetics
00:57:13 Does Extraterrestrial Life Need Air and Water to Live?
01:07:16 What Is the Fermi Paradox?
01:15:56 UFOs and Government
01:22:23 Garry’s UAP Experience
01:35:27 On Telepathy and Paranormal Abilities
01:39:31 On the Credibility of Alien Witnesses
01:41:34 Does the G…
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246 - Tim Maudlin: A Masterclass on General Relativity
16 maart 2025 · 4 uur 22 min
Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. This is Tim’s seventh appearance on the show. He last appeared on episode 237 for a masterclass on Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity, explaining it from the ground up and elucidating some common misconceptions. In this episode Tim returns for a discussion of another of Einstein’s major impacts on physics: his theory of general relativity. More particularly, Tim and Robinson discuss black holes, time, paradoxes of distance, Penrose diagrams, figures like Leonard Susskind and Richard Feynman, the curvature of space, and more. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Lees meer
Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
00:00:42 An Extended Prelude
00:05:08 Naming Names
00:10:02 The Difference Between Quantum Mechanics and General Relativity
00:13:46 Einstein on General Relativity and Metric
00:27:21 More on Coordinates
00:40:26 A Novel Coordinate System
00:46:25 What Is Special Relativity?
00:50:30 The Conflict Between Quantum Theory and Relativity
01:02:00 Doing Physics with Geometry
01:12:38 Geometry and Special Relativity
01:30:20 More on Geometry and Relativity
01:36:19 Lorentz Frames
01:46:56 Simultaneity
02:02:03 John Bell and Special Relativity
02:11:00 Paradoxes of Distance
02:22:12 A Penrose Diagram
02:27:47 Introducing General Relativity
02:32:23 The Most Important Experiment About Gravity
02:45:52 Changing the Geometry of Spacetime
02:55:28 Curvature of Space
03:02:03 Be Careful with Diagrams in Science
03:05:45 The Basic Idea of General Relativity
03:10:23 The Equivalence Principle
03:19:40 Clocks and Gravity
03:28:09 Richard Feynman on Gene…
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245 - Leonard Susskind: String Theory and the Black Hole War
9 maart 2025 · 2 uur
Leonard Susskind is Felix Block Professor of Physics at Stanford University. Along with other accomplishments, he is among the fathers of such revolutionary concepts in physics as string theory, black hole complementarity, the holographic principle, and the string-theoretic landscape. He was also the guest on episode #217, where he and Robinson discussed the fine-tuning problem and the physics of the multiverse. In this episode, Leonard and Robinson get into another topic—black holes and the information paradox. More particularly, they talk about important figures like Stephen Hawking and Gerard ’t Hooft, singularities, chaos, whether the cosmos is a hologram, the end of the universe, and more. For further details, check out Leonard’s book on the title: The Black Hole War (Back Bay Books, 2009). Lees meer
The Black Hole War: https://a.co/d/3eTOHoZ
The Theoretical Minimum: https://theoreticalminimum.com
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
05:21 Black Holes and the War Between Relativity and Quantum Mechanics
11:18 Is The Singularity at the Heart of a Black Hole Real?
21:51 Demystifying the Puzzle of Quantum Information
28:27 What Does The Famous Phrase “It From Bit” Mean?
38:47 Can Information Be Stored on the Surface of a Black Hole?
47:11 Was Stephen Hawking a Good Physicist?
56:21 How Will The Universe End?
1:00:49 What Is the Black Hole Information Paradox?
1:10:47 What Is the Holographic Principle?
1:20:01 How Leonard Susskind Won the Black Hole War Against Stephen Hawking
1:25:09 What Is the Infamous AdS/CFT Correspondence?
1:32:29 Is Physics in a Deep Crisis?
1:39:29 Are String and M-Theory Totally Wrong?
1:43:05 Is String Theory the Theory of Everything?
1:47:43 Is String Theory a Failure?
1:50:15 Does Our World Have Extra Dimensions?
1:53:34 Could Our World Be a Hologram?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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244 - Norman Finkelstein: Donald J. Trump, Mossad Conspiracies in Israel, and the Dying Left
23 februari 2025 · 3 uur 42 min
Norman Finkelstein received his PhD from the Princeton University Politics Department, and is best known for his research on Israel and Palestine. In this episode, Norman and Robinson sit down for a discussion about Donald Trump, the latest from Israel, Palestine, and Gaza, and the dying Left. Norman also appeared on episode 192, where he and Robinson discussed allegations of genocide and apartheid, Hamas and Hezbollah, and connections between the war and the Holocaust. Norman was also featured on episode 218, where he addressed the facts and fictions generated by the Israel-Hamas War, and episode 228, which was all about October 6th. Norman and Robinson also discuss Mehdi Hassan, Noam Chomsky, Christopher Hitchens, the Holocaust, Apartheid, Joan Peters, Julia Sebutinde, the Mossad, Sheryl Sandberg, Destiny, Lex Fridman, Bill Ackman, Alan Dershowitz, and more. Norman’s most recent book is I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom (Sublation Media, 2023). Lees meer
Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:07:25 Mehdi Hassan: The Working Class is Stupid
00:12:59 How Far Will the Supreme Court Go with Donald Trump?
00:21:49 Why Bernie Sanders Appeals to the Common Man
00:38:12 How Did Identity Politics Help Trump Win?
00:46:02 The Joy of Stereotypes
01:01:23 Why the People Loved Bernie Sanders and Trump
01:06:16 Noam Chomsky, Philosopher King
01:11:16 Christopher Hitchens Was Not a Serious Intellectual
01:20:58 Norman’s Parents Hate For Religion After the Holocaust
01:34:06 A Lex Fridman and Destiny Conspiracy
01:37:12 Norman’s Family and the Holocaust
01:45:43 Why Jews Stopped Caring About the Holocaust
01:54:43 Why Norman Never Had a Bar Mitzvah
02:02:52 Why Norman’s Parents Hated Germans and Poles
02:11:22 Comparing Gaza to the Holocaust
02:16:48 Comparing Gaza to Apartheid South Africa
02:24:41 Corruption Over Genocide in Palestine
02:…
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243 - Richard Wolff: Donald J. Trump and the Decline of the United States
10 februari 2025 · 3 uur 40 min
Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. This is Richard’s seventh appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In his last appearance, episode #230, he and Robinson discussed Richard’s arguments against electing Donald Trump for president, as well as his analysis of the election. In this episode, Richard and Robinson talk about 2025 and the first weeks of Trump’s presidency, as well as what’s to come. More particularly, they discuss the irrelevance of Donald Trump, his domestic and global policies, China, narratives on the right and left, and the future of the United States. Richard’s latest book is Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024). Lees meer
Understanding Capitalism (Book): https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism
Class Theory and History (Book): https://a.co/d/ht4trZN
Understanding the 2024 Elections (Article): https://asiatimes.com/2024/08/capitalism-mass-anger-and-2024-elections/
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
05:48 Three Months Later: Why Did Trump Defeat Harris?
08:34 How the Left Can Defeat Donald Trump
12:57 Donald J. Trump Is a Naughty Boy
15:06 Why Kamala Harris Lost the Election
16:27 Why Trump Won the Longshoremen’s Union (Because the Left Failed Them)
25:23 Is Victor Davis Hanson Wrong About the Elites’ War on the Working Class?
36:31 Did West Coast Elites Cause the LA Wildfire Disaster (Is Victor Davis Hanson Wrong?)?
42:26 Why Richard Wolff Enjoys Tucker Carlson
47:02 Can Psychoanalysis and the Subconscious Explain Donald Trump’s Victory?
54:32 Why Unemployment Tanked Harris in the Election
59:45 Deep Seek, The Chinese Phenomenon
1:05:31 The Astonishing Story of How China Came to Dominate Elon Musk Over Electric Cars
1:13:25 Donald Trump’s Huge Misunderstanding About …
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242 - Victor Davis Hanson: President Donald J. Trump and the Fate of the United States
26 januari 2025 · 1 uur 17 min
Victor Davis Hanson is a renowned classicist, military historian, and political commentator. He is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Among numerous other awards, Victor was presented with the National Humanities Medal in 2007. Victor most recently appeared on episode #231, which came out just before the 2024 election, and where he made a case to vote for Donald Trump. In this episode, Robinson and Victor discuss the results of the election and President Trump’s inauguration. More particularly, they talk about the biggest challenges he will face as president, the class- and culture war in the United States, Trump’s rhetorical abilities, the California wildfires, and geopolitics, including our relationships with China, Canada, Russia, and the Middle East. Keep up with Victor on Twitter, through his website, and on his podcast, The Victor Davis Hanson Show. Lees meer
Victor’s Website: https://victorhanson.com
Victor’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/VDHanson
The Victor Davis Hanson Show: https://art19.com/shows/the-victor-davis-hanson-show
The End of Everything: https://a.co/d/46O0mMB
The Case for Trump: https://a.co/d/8Bf0OdC
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
00:53 Victor’s Biggest Worries For Donald Trump’s Presidency
06:38 Donald Trump, The Troll
10:53 Should Donald Trump and the United States Annex Greenland and Canada?
12:50 Will President Donald Trump Take Over the Panama Canal?
14:57 Why the World Fears Donald Trump
17:53 Are the CIA and FBI More Damaging to the United States than Donald Trump?
25:33 The Ideological Disease that Caused the California Wildfire Disaster
28:33 How Victor’s Life Was Saved by Three Hispanic Women
30:08 Is Donald Trump the Problem with America, or Something Else?
32:13 The Real Reason People Hate Donald Trump
34:04 Victor Davis Hanson’s Rude Awakening at Stanford from University Elites
37:43 How California’s Incompetence Destroyed I…
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241 - Raphael Bousso: The Cold Truth About Quantum Mechanics
19 januari 2025 · 1 uur 38 min
Raphael Bousso is the Chancellor’s Chair in Physics at the Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics, where he leads the Bousso Group in research on quantum gravity and quantum information. He is a renowned string theorist famous also for his development of the string theoretic landscape and the Bousso bound in holography. In this episode, Robinson and Raphael talk about the foundations of quantum mechanics and whether or not there are any deep mysteries within the theory that remain to be solved, and whether philosophical discussion of these issues is overblown. More particularly, they get into what quantum theories tell us about the world, whether we need different interpretations of quantum mechanics, whether the final theory of the universe will be quantum mechanical, how quantum mechanics connects to cosmology, the multiverse, and quantum gravity, and more. Lees meer
The Bousso Group: https://lightsheet.berkeley.edu
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
00:58 Raphael’s Interest in the Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics
06:11 What Does Quantum Mechanics Tell Us About the World?
19:43 Just What Is an Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics?
26:17 Are There Serious Holes in Quantum Mechanics?
31:01 Schrödinger’s Cat
45:11 UV Completion
48:57 Will The Final Theory of Physics Be Quantum Mechanical?
58:00 How Cosmology Might Help Answer Questions About Quantum Mechanics
1:13:44 String Theory and the Multiverse
1:20:39 How the Multiverse Can Explain Probability
1:30:01 Will the Foundations of Quantum Mechanics Help Us Solve Quantum Gravity?Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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240 - Peter Godfrey-Smith: Cuttlefish, Octopuses, and the Consciousness of Mysterious Minds
12 januari 2025 · 1 uur 31 min
Robinson’s Podcast #240 - Peter Godfrey-Smith: Cuttlefish, Octopuses, and the Consciousness of Mysterious Minds Lees meer
Peter Godfrey-Smith is a professor in the School of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sydney. He has also taught at Stanford University and Harvard University. Among other topics, he has researched the philosophy of biology and mind, and is very well-known for his book Other Minds: The Octopus, The Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness (FSG, 2016). In this episode, Peter and Robinson discuss that book, as well as his latest, Living on Earth (William Collins, 2024). More particularly, they discuss cuttlefish, octopuses, consciousness, metaethics, and animal welfare.
Peter’s Website: https://petergodfreysmith.com
Living on Earth: https://a.co/d/9MvUFHV
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:10 Scuba Diving with Cuttlefish and Octopuses
09:43 Why Did Creatures Evolve Nervous Systems?
16:18 Why Did Conscious Minds Evolve?
27:23 Why Do We Believe that Other Animals Have Minds?
36:49 Do Shrimp or Fish Feel Pain?
47:01 What’s It Like to Be an Octopus?
57:32 What Is Metaethics?
1:04:57 First-Order Ethics
1:08:12 Is It Morally Acceptable to Eat Animals?
1:16:04 What Does Peter Eat?
1:29:49 Future Work
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239 - Ned Block: Consciousness, Artificial Intelligence, and the Philosophy of Mind
29 december 2024 · 1 uur 35 min
Ned Block is Silver Professor at New York University in the Departments of Philosophy and Psychology, where he works on the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of neuroscience, and cognitive science. In this episode, Robinson and Ned discuss some of the titans he studied under, ChatGPT and the nature of artificial intelligence, the Turing Test, androids, consciousness, the connection between seeing and thinking, blindsight, change blindness, and more. Ned’s most recent book is The Border Between Seeing and Thinking (OUP, 2023). Lees meer
Ned’s Website: https://www.nedblock.us
The Border Between Seeing and Thinking: https://a.co/d/fqVb7gj
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
00:53 Ned’s Entry into Philosophy of Mind
02:08 On Hilary Putnam, John Rawls, and Philippa Foot
08:10 Can ChatGPT Do Multiplication?
10:57 Does Noam Chomsky Understand ChatGPT?
13:11 Is the Turing Test Completely Wrong?
17:52 On Daniel Dennett
23:46 On Michael Graziano and the Attention Schema Theory of Consciousness
26:03 Are Animals Conscious?
30:51 Does ChatGPT Pass the Turing Test?
36:53 Mary in the White Room
41:16 The Blockhead Thought Experiment
45:53 How to Show that ChatGPT Is Dumb
48:51 Why Can’t ChatGPT Reason About Images?
51:48 How to Create an Android
55:10 What Is Thought?
1:00:13 Susan Carey
1:03:19 Are There Different Kinds of Consciousness?
1:05:10 On Psychoanalysis
1:06:08 What Are Blindsight and Change Blindness?
1:11:38 The Difference Between Seeing and Thinking
1:16:03 Was Helen Keller Conscious?
1:18:39 Are Salmon Conscious?
1:20:58 What Are the Dominant Theories of Consciousness?
1:27:35 Do We Know What Consciousness Is?
1:31:25 Functionalism and Mental Properties
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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238 - Barry Loewer: What Is The Philosophy of Science?
15 december 2024 · 2 uur 1 min
Barry Loewer is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Rutgers. Before that he did his PhD in philosophy at Stanford. Barry works largely in the philosophy of physics, the philosophy of science, and metaphysics. This is Barry’s third appearance on the show. He was last on episode 189 with David Albert, in which Robinson, David, and Barry discussed David and Barry’s joint program known as “The Mentaculus”, which they use to solve many problems in the foundations of physics, from probability to the direction of time. In this episode, Barry and Robinson discuss the philosophical foundations of science, touching on the relationship between science and pseudoscience, Karl Popper, string theory, scientific realism, and many other important debates and figures. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Lees meer
The Probability Map of the Universe: https://a.co/d/4XoYTMY
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
7:53 On Pseudoscience and Astrology
11:40 Falsification as a Criterion of Science
16:40 Is String Theory Pseudoscience?
20:14 On Marxism
24:45 What Is Scientific Realism?
34:35 On Hilary Putnam
42:16 Science Vs Metaphysics
48:32 Time in Science and Metaphysics
52:38 On Fundamentalia
56:01 On Reductionism
1:00:04 On Consciousness and Emergence
1:04:56 On Causation
1:25:52 On Time Travel
1:28:29 On Explanation and Thermodynamics
1:39:23 On Free Will
1:47:00 The Laws of Nature
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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237 - Tim Maudlin: A Masterclass on Special Relativity
8 december 2024 · 2 uur 4 min
Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. This is Tim’s seventh appearance on the show. He last appeared on episode 210 with David Albert for a discussion of the measurement problem in quantum mechanics. In this episode, Tim and Robinson talk about Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity, explaining it from the ground up and elucidating some common misconceptions. More particularly, they get into Einstein’s magnificent mind, how special relativity displaced the theory of the ether, absolute and relative space, the speed and nature of light, the possibility of time travel, relativistic quantum mechanics, and more. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Lees meer
Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:59 The Amazing Fertility of Einstein's Mind
08:50 The Mysterious Ether and Why It Isn't All Around Us
25:01 Einstein Versus Relative and Absolute Space
29:58 The Single Most Important Experiment in Physics
45:23 Special Relativity and Absolute Space
53:56 The Conceptual Clarity of Genius Physicists
1:01:05 A Thought Experiment to Explain Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity
1:13:48 Is the Speed of Light an Illusion?
1:23:33 Richard Feynman's Big Mistake About Einstein
1:34:23 On Einstein and the Possibility of Time Travel
1:42:53 Is Special Relativity Compatible with Quantum Mechanics?
1:49:55 Relativistic Bohmian Mechanics
1:57:00 Does Anything Move Faster than Light?
1:59:03 The John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford Unive…
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236 - David Albert: A Masterclass on Time’s Arrow
2 december 2024 · 2 uur 2 min
David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia, and a faculty member of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. This is David’s ninth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. He last appeared on episode 221 to discuss the measurement problem of quantum mechanics. In this episode, David gives a pedagogical and introductory overview of the problem of time’s arrow, which is one of the most enduring of all physical and philosophical puzzles. David’s most recent book is A Guess at the Riddle (2023). If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Lees meer
A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/6qcsidl
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:58 The Tension Between Past and Future in Physics
8:56 The Arrow of Time in Life and Physics
12:26 The Three Arrows of Time
18:12 Entropy and the Direction of Time
29:12 Thermodynamics and the Problem of the Past
38:26 Why Do We Remember the Past But Not the Future?
48:46 Two Ways to Understand the Past
1:04:21 Why Can We Affect the Future But Not the Past
1:17:51 Why Can Agents Control the Future but not the Past?
1:26:57 Can the Laws of Quantum Physics Be Run Backward?
1:33:11 The Connection Between the Foundations of Quantum Physics and Statistical Mechanics
1:41:53 Cosmology and the Past Hypothesis
1:44:25 Why are Left and Right Different from Past and Future?
1:49:28 The Difference Between Space and Time
1:57:14 Is Time a Fundamental Part of Reality?
1:59:14 Future Work
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University
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235 - Janna Levin: How to Survive a Black Hole
17 november 2024 · 2 uur 4 min
Janna Levin is the Claire Tow Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Barnard College of Columbia University. She is also the Chair and Founding Director of the Science Studios at Pioneer Works. In this episode, Robinson and Janna talk all about black holes and how to survive them. More particularly, they discuss how black holes were discovered both theoretically and empirically, common misconceptions about black holes, their role in theories of quantum gravity, and how they do and will contribute to both the life and death of the universe. If you’d like to learn more about black holes, read Janna’s latest book, Black Hole Survival Guide (Anchor, 2022). Lees meer
Janna’s Website: https://jannalevin.com
Black Hole Survival Guide: https://a.co/d/biGGqZc
Pioneer Works: https://pioneerworks.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
06:10 The Original Theory of Black Holes
14:45 Is There Gravity in Space?
20:40 Just What IS a Black Hole?
38:47 Why Physicists Resisted the Possibility of Black Holes
50:44 What’s at the Center of a Black Hole?
55:34 What Happens When Something Falls into a Black Hole?
1:03:23 Is Leonard Susskind a Genius Physicist?
1:12:07 What Is the Fine-Tuning Problem?
1:17:52 How Close Can You Get to a Black Hole and Still Survive?
1:25:10 Why Are Black Holes Perfect Objects?
1:32:12 How Do Black Holes Form?
1:41:31 What Will Happen to the Sun When It Dies?
1:50:38 Black Holes, Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Universe
1:54:45 The Heat Death of the Universe
1:59:18 Pioneer WorksRobinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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234 - Richard Wolff & Michael Hudson: Karl Marx and the Fall of the West
10 november 2024 · 3 uur 37 min
This episode came on the heels of a traumatic, eight-interview sprint in NYC. As you’ll see, this one was particularly chaotic, but the stars aligned to make it happen. Camera switches, bathroom breaks, health concerns, equipment malfunctions, and even a robbery didn’t prevent the conversation from coming together. With this in mind, I hope you’ll forgive how crazy and inconsistent the video is; the fact that it even got put together is courtesy of my friend and editor Yu Guo (a philosopher who got his PhD from NYU with past guest Paul Boghossian). Given that there’s some new intro music, and you’re already getting an abundance of distracting production nuggets, I decided to show the soup being made. My thanks go to Richard, who met with me twice in three days (not to mention his wife, who allowed it), and Michael, who put up with me for over four hours. Lees meer
- Robinson
P.S. Toward the end of the episode Michael eats a jerky stick from Maui Nui Venison, which is a company operating out of Hawaii that manages the invasive deer population of Maui that is decimating the landscape. Instead of culling the animals and disposing of their bodies, the meat is butchered and sold. It is the only meat I eat, full-stop, and the ethical reasons are sufficient for this, but it is also the best meat that I have ever had. I reached out to Maui Nui and told them that I support what they are doing and would like to be of any help that I can. They gave me this coupon code—ROBINSON—which you can use for 15% off. I am not being paid for this in any way. I believe in what they are doing and I want this model to succeed. People are going to be eating meat for the foreseeable future and I would be happier if it was not factory-farmed meat. So please check Maui Nui out and give them a try!
Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. Michael Hudson i…
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233 - Judith Butler: Trump & Harris | Israel & Palestine | Sex & Gender
3 november 2024 · 1 uur 23 min
Judith Butler is Distinguished Professor in the Graduate School and formerly the Maxine Elliot Chair in the Department of Comparative Literature and the Program of Critical Theory at the University of California, Berkeley. In this episode, Robinson and Judith discuss three broad topics. First, they talk about Judith’s latest book, Who’s Afraid of Gender? (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024). In particular, they touch on the dynamics of sex and gender, as well as their political dimensions. Second, the conversation turns to the 2024 presidential election between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. Finally, they broach the topic of Israel and Palestine, with particular attention to the questions of genocide and anti-semitism. Lees meer
Who’s Afraid of Gender?: https://a.co/d/beDcQ1S
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:03 Judith’s Introduction to Philosophy and Gender Studies
11:00 Who’s Afraid of Gender?
22:11 On Trans and Intersex Olympics Controversies
26:09 Is the Man/Woman Binary a Fantasy?
35:17 Are Putin and Orban Transphobic?
41:49 How to Change One’s Gender
47:25 Language and Gender
52:16 On Psychoanalysis
58:49 On Gender Issues and the 2024 Election
1:04:30 On Trump 2024
1:06:14 On Harris 2024
1:10:39 Is Anti-Zionism Anti-Semitism?
1:18:51 Is Gaza a Concentration Camp?
1:20:49 How Will the War in Israel and Palestine End?Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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232 - Niall Ferguson: Trump v. Harris | Israel v. Hamas | Russia v. Ukraine
31 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 22 min
Sir Niall Ferguson is the Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and a senior faculty fellow of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University, where he served for twelve years as the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of History. In this episode, Robinson and Niall discuss three of the biggest conflicts currently gripping the news—the election in the United States and the two wars between Israel and Hamas on the one hand, and Russia and Ukraine on the other. Undergirding the entire discussion is the question of whether the United States is an empire, whether it is failing, and what the world needs America to be. Niall's most recent book is Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe (Penguin, 2021). Lees meer
Niall's Website: https://www.niallferguson.com
Doom: https://a.co/d/eWAx65C
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
00:44 Niall's Take as a Scottish Historian
05:20 Is the United States an Empire?
12:49 What Does the World Need the United States to Be?
19:47 Is Trump or Harris Better for the Russia-Ukraine War?
26:35 Is Trump Too Dangerous to Have the Nuclear Launch Codes?
29:54 How Terrible Was Biden's Withdrawal from Afghanistan?
34:22 Is the United States on the Precipice of Self-Destruction?
41:08 Will Donald Trump Actually Help the Suffering Poor of America?
46:23 Will Niall Ferguson Vote For Donald Trump?
50:31 The Dangers of American Politics
54:55 The Right Versus the Left on the Wars in Ukraine and Israel
1:00:07 How Has the Media Fed the Israel-Hamas War in Palestine?
1:06:35 Is Benjamin Netanyahu a Satanic Figure?
1:11:19 Is Israel Committing a new Holocaust—Genocide—in Palestine?
1:17:21 Trump, Harris, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Palestine: Do They Even Matter?
Robinson's Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
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231 - Victor Davis Hanson: The Final Case for Donald J. Trump
27 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 14 min
Victor Davis Hanson is a renowned classicist, military historian, and political commentator. He is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Among numerous other awards, Victor was presented the National Humanities Medal in 2007. In this episode, Robinson and Victor discuss the 2024 presidential election. More particularly, they review some of the main arguments for and against electing Donald Trump or Kamala Harris. This includes their records, domestic and foreign policies, recent assassination attempts, and more. Victor also appeared as a guest on episode #112, in which he and Robinson talked about what was at the time Victor’s latest book, The Dying Citizen. He was also a guest on episode #191, which covered Victor’s views on the current crisis in Israel and Palestine. Most recently, on episode #208, they spoke about Victor’s most recent book, The End of Everything. Keep up with Victor on Twitter, through his website, and on his podcast, The Victor Davis Hanson Show. Lees meer
Victor’s Website: https://victorhanson.com
Victor’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/VDHanson
The Victor Davis Hanson Show: https://art19.com/shows/the-victor-davis-hanson-show
The End of Everything: https://a.co/d/46O0mMB
The Case for Trump: https://a.co/d/8Bf0OdC
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:56 Why Is The 2024 Election So Important?
10:18 Is Trump Innocent of All Charges?
20:19 Is Trump a Unique Election Denier?
27:30 On the Trump Assassination Attempts and Anti-Trump Conspiracy Theories
35:21 The Best Reasons to Have Voted for Joe Biden
44:44 Will Kamala Harris Bring a New Radical Agenda to the White House?
48:49 Why You Shouldn’t Vote for Kamala Harris
55:51 The Case for Trump
1:01:50 On Hillsdale College
1:07:52 On Hard Political Discussions in Hard Times
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at St…
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230 - Richard Wolff: The Final Case Against Donald J. Trump
20 oktober 2024 · 2 uur 1 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Robinson’s Fashion Empire: http://bit.ly/3XBKqO2
Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. This is Richard’s fifth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #127, he and Robinson discussed some of the most profound criticisms of capitalism; in #154, they focused on the myths surrounding Marxism and Marx himself; in #190 they covered the Israel-Palestine conflict from a Marxist perspective; and in #222 they assess the end of the American Empire. In this episode, Richard and Robinson talk about the 2024 election. More particularly, they discuss the irrelevance of Donald Trump, both candidates’ economic policies, the Biden administration’s track record, Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, the promise of Kamala Harris, immigration, and the future of the United States. Richard’s latest book is Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024).
Understanding Capitalism (Book): https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism
Class Theory and History (Book): https://a.co/d/ht4trZN
Understanding the 2024 Elections (Article): https://asiatimes.com/2024/08/capitalism-mass-anger-and-2024-elections/
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:08 Is it Possible to Predict the Future?
07:51 The Irrelevance of Donald Trump
12:15 The United States vs The Savages
15:41 Does the Government Even Matter?
18:26 On Young Frankenstein and the Declining American Empire
20:49 On Richard’s Astounding Rhetorical Abilities
29:40 What Makes Donald Trump Great?
37:38 Was Trump Good for the Economy?
40:52 Did Trump Win the Economic War Against China?
43:46 Were Trump’s Tax Cuts Disastrous for Americans?
50:00 Why Won’t Trump Just Go Away?
52:29 Is Ukraine Doomed to Lose the Russian War?
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229 - Rashid Khalidi: October 7th Revisited | Israel, Palestine, Gaza, Hamas, & The Nakba
13 oktober 2024 · 1 uur 11 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Robinson’s Fashion Empire: http://bit.ly/3XBKqO2
Some speakers, like Norman (https://youtu.be/vhFm62msNGc), are whip-smart and all I can do is ask a question before letting them take me along for the ride. Others are just as sharp, but the interview is an entirely different experience. I feel silly being this dramatic, so forgive me; it just seems that what follows is the proper extended metaphor to describe our conversation. Rashid crackles with energy when he talks, just as if he were a fighter. Even if he’s not using his fists, his cadence is like a boxer’s and I had to roll with the punches. This was another great one, and as usual I bear very little responsibility beyond sticking it out in the ring. I’m going to resist the urge to make any more boxing comments and instead finish with this: Thanks for listening.
- Robinson
P.S. In a number of recent episodes I’ve mentioned Maui Nui Venison, which is a company operating out of Hawaii that manages the invasive deer population of Maui that is decimating the landscape. Instead of culling the animals and disposing of their bodies, the meat is butchered and sold. It is the only meat I eat, full-stop, and the ethical reasons are sufficient for this, but it is also the best meat that I have ever eaten. I reached out to Maui Nui and told them that I support what they are doing and would like to be of any help that I can. They gave me this coupon code—ROBINSON—which you can use for 20% off. I am not being paid for this in any way. I believe in what they are doing and I want this model to succeed. People are going to be eating meat for the foreseeable future and I would be happier if it was not factory-farmed meat. So please check Maui Nui out and give them a try!
---
Rashid Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor Emeritus of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. He was editor of the Journal of Palestine Studies, President of the Middle East Studies Association, and an advisor to t…
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228 - Norman Finkelstein: October 7th Revisited | Israel, Palestine, Hezbollah, & The End of Gaza
6 oktober 2024 · 3 uur 4 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Robinson’s Fashion Empire: http://bit.ly/3XBKqO2
Norman Finkelstein received his PhD from the Princeton University Politics Department, and is best known for his research on Israel and Palestine. In this episode, Norman and Robinson sit down for a discussion centered around the anniversary of October 7th, and they speak about the immensity of what has happened in the Israel-Palestine region in the time before and since. Norman also appeared on episode 192, where he and Robinson discussed allegations of genocide and apartheid, Hamas and Hezbollah, and connections between the war and the Holocaust. Norman was also featured on episode 218, where he addressed the facts and fictions generated by the Israel-Hamas War. Norman’s most recent book is I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom (Sublation Media, 2023).
Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com
OUTLINE
00:00:00 Introduction
00:01:44 Why Norman Couldn’t Have Predicted October 7th
00:04:45 Gaza’s Last Victim
00:07:55 Is the Palestine Question Dead?
00:11:13 What Hamas in Gaza and American Slave Rebellions Have in Common
00:17:22 How the Nakba Created Gaza in 1948
00:21:21 Is Gaza a Concentration Camp?
00:25:20 High-Tech Israeli Killing Sprees in Gaza
00:29:23 The Butcher of Beirut & The Sabra and Shatila Massacre
00:31:20 On the First Intifada and the Silencing of Gaza
00:37:11 On Hassan Nasrallah, Leader of Hezbollah
00:41:59 How Israel Will Destroy Hezbollah
00:42:35 Israel Vs The Party of God
00:45:32 On the Courage of Dying for a Cause
00:48:24 On His Time with Hezbollah and Nasrallah
00:52:41 Noam Chomsky on Hezbollah’s Threat to Israel
00:56:30 On Nasrallah’s Prophetic Speech Before His Assassination
01:02:10 On Martin Luther King Jr’s Final Words
01:04:35 On Nasrallah and the Assassination of Pro-Palestine Leaders
01:07:08 The Parallel Between American Slaves and Gaza…
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227 - David Eagleman: Synesthesia, Brain Plasticity, AI, and Conspiracy Theories
29 september 2024 · 1 uur 15 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Robinson’s Fashion Empire: http://bit.ly/3XBKqO2
David Eagleman is a neuroscientist at Stanford University who works on synesthesia, brain plasticity, and sensory substitution, among other topics. He is also a bestselling author, the host of the Inner Cosmos podcast, and writer and presenter of the international PBS series The Brain with David Eagleman. In this episode, Robinson and David discuss brain plasticity and its optimization, the neuroscience of language-learning, consciousness and animal minds, synesthesia, sensory substitution, artificial intelligence, conspiracy theories, and more. David’s most recent book is Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain (Vintage, 2021).
David’s Website: https://eagleman.com
Livewired: https://a.co/d/67w3TQ3
Inner Cosmos: https://eagleman.com/podcast/
OUTLINE
00:00:53 David’s Interest in the Mind
00:02:52 Solving A Problem of Kant with Modern Neuroscience
00:06:08 On Brain Plasticity and How to Maximize It
00:15:23 Do Children Really Learn Languages Faster than Adults?
00:19:46 Using Neuroscience to Maximize Weight Loss and Improve Diet Outcomes
00:22:09 Was Helen Keller Conscious?
00:24:14 Why Neuroscience Hasn’t Figured Out Consciousness
00:28:32 What Really Is Synesthesia?
00:36:44 On Animal Consciousness and Eating Meat
00:42:56 What Is Intelligence?
00:45:52 What Is the Intelligence Echo Illusion?
00:52:02 Will ChatGPT Surpass Our Greatest Thinkers?
00:55:50 Do We Need to Replace the Turing Test?
01:05:57 Inner Cosmos
01:09:16 Why Does the Brain Love Conspiracy Theories?
01:11:33 Why Does the Brain Fall for Magic Tricks?
01:13:14 Why Can’t We Tickle Ourselves?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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226 - David Builes: The Metaphysics of Time and Consciousness
22 september 2024 · 1 uur 10 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
David Builes is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Princeton University, where he works in metaphysics and epistemology and has made serious contributions to the philosophies of mind, science, and mathematics. In this episode, Robinson and David discuss the metaphysics of time—including debates about the reality of the past, present, and future—the question of whether science can explain consciousness, and whether numbers exist as abstract objects.
David’s Website: https://davidbuiles.com
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:05 David’s Interest in Philosophy
05:47 On the Philosophy of Time
16:01 In Defense of Presentism
24:21 How Long is the Present?
25:58 Humean and Non-Humean Laws
28:02 Can Science Explain Consciousness?
40:25 Does David Believe His Work?
43:32 First-Person Realism
53:18 Is First-Person Realism Correct?
57:42 The Philosophy of Math
01:01:45 Do Numbers Exist?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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225 - Alexander Nehamas: Nietzsche, Eternal Recurrence, and the Will to Power
14 september 2024 · 2 uur 5 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Alexander Nehamas is the Edmund N. Carpenter II Class of 1943 Professor in the Humanities, both of philosophy and comparative literature, at Princeton University. He is best known for his work on ancient philosophy, literary theory, the philosophy of art, and his scholarship on Friedrich Nietzsche. In this episode, Robinson and Alexander primarily discuss the latter, though they also delve into some of his other work. More particularly, they discuss Nietzsche’s writings on eternal recurrence, the will to power, and morality, among other topics, as well as the perils of doing history as a philosopher, the infamous Elgin marbles, great works of literature, and personal style. Alexander’s most well-known work on Nietzsche is Nietzsche: Life as Literature (Harvard, 1987).
Nietzsche: Life as Literature: https://a.co/d/7V3MYk0
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
3:07 The Essentials of Nietzsche
11:42 Nietzsche and Eternal Recurrence
14:46 Nietzsche on Free Will
19:06 Nietzsche on Art and the Ideal Life
20:41 Nietzsche on Herd Morality and Mediocrity
23:20 Nietzsche on the Will to Power
27:02 Nietzsche on Our Dominance Over Animals
30:41 Was Nietzsche an Anti-Semite?
33:02 Nietzsche’s Relationship to Animals
36:53 Was Nietzsche an Enemy of Morality?
39:54 Nietzsche and the Worship of Greatness
41:06 Favorite Literature
48:39 Nietzsche and the Perils of the History of Philosophy
1:05:43 The Elgin Marbles
1:13:50 On Plato and Ancient Philosophy
1:22:34 Nietzsche on Animal Agriculture
1:29:10 Nietzsche on Seeing Life as a Literary Work
1:34:10 Nietzsche on the Weak and the Great
1:39:32 Philosophy and Life
1:46:11 On Philosophy and Fashion
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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224 - Peter Woit: String Theory and the Crisis in Physics
8 september 2024 · 2 uur 3 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Peter Woit is a senior lecturer in the Department of Mathematics at Columbia University, where he researches quantum field theory and quantum gravity. Peter is one of the most well-known critics of string theory, and in this episode he and Robinson discuss his work and research in the area, which is encapsulated in his book Not Even Wrong: The Failure of String Theory and the Search for Unity in Physical Law (Basic Books, 2007), as well as his website by the same name. More particularly, they talk about the standard model of particle physics, the problem of quantum gravity, the main figures in string theory, the arguments for and against this approach to physics, its many alleged failures, and the future of research in the area.
Not Even Wrong (Book): https://a.co/d/iVnPEi1
Not Even Wrong (Website): https://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
02:29 Peter’s Training in Physics
06:21 What Is the Standard Model of Physics?
10:42 What Is Symmetry?
21:37 Experiment and the Standard Model of Particle Physics
26:15 What’s Wrong with the Standard Model of Particle Physics?
29:36 What Are Grand Unified Theories in Physics?
34:47 What Is Supersymmetry?
40:15 On Ed Witten and the Genius Mind Behind M-Theory
49:08 What Is String Theory?
1:04:56 What Is M-Theory?
1:07:59 On AdS/CFT
1:16:03 On Holography and Quantum Gravity
1:20:27 String Theory and the Sokal Hoax
1:24:09 Peter’s Love of Physics
1:32:13 On the String-Theoretic Landscape and the Multiverse
1:41:51 What’s the Path Forward for Physics?
1:47:52 Is String Theory the Only Game in Time?
1:53:17 How Did String Theory Become Dominant?
1:56:45 String Theory: Not Even Wrong?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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223 - Michael Graziano: Consciousness, Animal Minds, and the Neuroscience of Suffering
1 september 2024 · 2 uur 32 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Michael Graziano is Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Princeton University, where he and his lab research the brain basis of consciousness. This is Michael’s second appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #169, they discussed Michael’s Attention Schema Theory of consciousness, in which consciousness is a way in which the brain models attention to better organize and monitor itself. In this conversation, Robinson and Michael reexamine the Attention Schema Theory with an eye toward the problem of studying the consciousness not only of humans, but of other animals, and with particular regard to the moral questions surrounding animals’ roles in our lives. Michael’s most recent book is Rethinking Consciousness (W. W. Norton, 2019).
Rethinking Consciousness: https://a.co/d/8euR1EL
Graziano Lab: https://grazianolab.princeton.edu
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:28 Michael’s Interest in Consciousness
07:22 What Is Consciousness?
16:03 Is there a Magical Essence to Consciousness?
28:43 How Did Consciousness Evolve?
35:29 Testing Michael’s Model of Consciousness
44:55 What’s It Like to Be a Human?
48:25 Is Human Suffering an Illusion?
54:07 The Neuroscience of Pain and Suffering
01:00:39 Is There Value to Human Life?
01:10:42 Was Helen Keller Conscious?
01:21:15 The Global Workspace Theory of Consciousness
01:30:20 Do Animals Value Their Own Lives?
01:41:23 Are Shrimp Conscious?
01:52:23 Should Science Inform Morality?
01:54:03 Can Chickens Suffer?
01:57:12 Are Salmon Conscious?
02:09:40 Are Octopuses Conscious?
02:22:43 Are Poultry Conscious?
02:29:43 Are Barnyard Animals Conscious?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between.
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222 - Richard Wolff: Israel, Ukraine, China, and the End of the American Empire
25 augustus 2024 · 3 uur 4 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. This is Richard’s fourth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #127, he and Robinson discussed some of the most profound criticisms of capitalism; in #154, they focused on the myths surrounding Marxism and Marx himself; and in #190 they covered the Israel-Palestine conflict from a Marxist perspective. In this wide-ranging episode, Richard and Robinson talk about the end of the American empire. More particularly they discuss the wars in Russia, Ukraine, Israel, and Palestine, the rivalry between China and the United States, the global interplay between capitalism and socialism, the distinction between socialism and communism, the conflict between the BRICS and G7 nations, and more. Richard’s latest book is Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024).
Understanding Capitalism (Book): https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism
Class Theory and History (Book): https://a.co/d/ht4trZN
Understanding the 2024 Elections (Article): https://asiatimes.com/2024/08/capitalism-mass-anger-and-2024-elections/
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
OUTLINE
03:10 On the Trauma of His Family Background
10:50 Academia’s War on Marxism
22:45 Economics as the Secret Undercurrent of History
28:01 Will Ukraine Defeat Russia?
31:52 Is China the Empire of the New World?
39:04 The Best American Strategy Against China
45:24 How Trump Won and Lost America
56:22 Is Israel a Colonialist State?
01:03:23 On the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Israel
01:10:49 Israel as America’s Economic Baby
01:18:08 Global Capitalism as the Enemy of the Islamic World
01:23:00 Why You Should Distrust Wartime Propaganda
01:33:03 Zelensky and the Ukrainian Chess Match
01:42:53 Th…
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221 - David Albert: The Measurement Problem of Quantum Mechanics
18 augustus 2024 · 2 uur 3 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia, and a faculty member of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. This is David’s eighth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. He last appeared on episode 210 with Tim Maudlin, which was a more advanced episode on Niels Bohr and the foundations of quantum mechanics. In this episode, David gives a pedagogical and introductory overview of the measurement problem, which is the issue at the core of many discussions about the foundations of quantum mechanics. David’s most recent book is A Guess at the Riddle (2023). If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.
Note: Unfortunately, the cameras turned off in the middle of the episode. For twenty minutes there is no video, and for most of the episode only the camera focusing on David is recording.
A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/6qcsidl
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:54 On Philosophy and the Foundations of Physics
15:35 The Bizarreness of the Quantum World
19:16 What Is the World of Classical Physics?
24:00 How Quantum Mechanics Destroyed the Classical World
29:19 What Is Quantum Mechanical Superposition?
32:18 How Quantum Mechanics Became the Theory of Reality
39:53 What Is the Measurement Problem of Quantum Mechanics?
51:05 Niels Bohr and the Foundations of Quantum Mechanics
01:01:14 Niels Bohr and the EPR Paper
01:08:45 Was Niels Bohr the Most Charming Physicist of All Time?
01:15:59 Is the Measurement Problem a Scientific Problem?
01:21:24 Is String Theory Pseudoscience?
01:31:03 Why Don’t Many Philosophers Work on String Theory?
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220 - Michael Hudson: Debt, Economic Collapse, and the End of Civilization
11 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 35 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Michael Hudson is Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri, Kansas City and President of the Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends. He researches domestic and international finance, the history of economics, and the role of debt in shaping class stratification, among many other topics. This is Michael’s third appearance on the show. He was also a guest on episode 180, where he and Robinson discussed neoliberalism, industrial capitalism, and the rentier economy, and on episode 198, where they discussed Marxism, economic parasites, and contemporary debt cancellation. In this episode, Michael and Robinson talk about the history of debt cancellation in the ancient world—including Babylon, Greece, and Rome—how they helped to stave off economic collapse, how the failure to implement them contributed to the demise of these civilizations, and how they might be used in today’s economies. Michael’s most recent book is Temples of Enterprise (ISLET, 2024). This episode was recorded at Austin’s Ale House in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York, and comes highly recommended.
Michael’s Website: https://michael-hudson.com
Temples of Enterprise: https://a.co/d/a3c53dm
Austin’s Ale House: https://www.austinsteakandalehouse.com/
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:08 Michael’s Interest in Debt
08:23 Why Countries Can’t Pay Their Debts
12:14 Debt Cancellations in the Ancient World
16:51 Can Society Survive Forgiving Everyone’s Debts?
21:30 The Brilliance of Bronze Age Economics
29:19 What Happened When Ancient Harvests Failed?
32:04 The Timeless War of Creditors Against Debtors
37:49 Why States Should Print Their Own Money
41:11 How the Catholic Church Created the Modern State
55:50 On the Origin of Money
01:01:28 On the Economics of Ancient Babylon
01:07:17 Were Ancient Economists Better than Today’s?
01:09:09 The Most Important Prices of an Economy
01:11:39 Uncovering the Collapse of Babylon
01…
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Ask Me Anything | August 2024
8 augustus 2024 · 1 uur 30 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
This is the August 2024 AMA for Robinson’s Podcast. It is supported by the members of the Patreon. In this installment, Robinson answers questions about metaethics, art history, discipline, fashion, fitness, fantasy world-building, consciousness, fine-tuning, quantum mechanics, and more.
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
01:01 What to Do
07:43 Thoughts on Discipline
17:29 Art History
20:43 Philosophy for Daily Life
23:30 Planners and Pantsers
27:53 Favorite Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics?
33:06 Favorite Color?
35:57 On Magic and Fantasy World-Building
46:32 Black Holes, Electrons, and Thumbnails
52:45 Favorite Comedy
55:37 Physicality in Life
01:02:19 Is Consciousness Emergent or Fundamental?
01:04:54 Views on Fashion
01:15:16 What’s It Like to be a Philosopher?
01:24:00 Solutions of the Fine-Tuning Problem
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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219 - Joscha Bach: Consciousness, Artificial Intelligence, and the Threat of AI Apocalypse
5 augustus 2024 · 2 uur 16 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Joscha Bach is a computer scientist and artificial intelligence researcher currently working with Liquid AI. He has previously done research at Harvard, MIT, Intel, and the AI Foundation. In this episode, Joscha and Robinson discuss the nature of consciousness—both in humans and synthetic—various theories of consciousness like panpsychism, physicalism, dualism, and Roger Penrose’s, the distinction between intelligence and artificial intelligence, the next developments of ChatGPT and other LLMs, OpenAI, and whether advances in AI will spell the end of humankind.
Joscha’s X: https://x.com/Plinz
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:33 Why are Legos Like Computer Programs?
08:23 Philosophy and Mental Representation
11:17 Using Computer Science to Understand Reality
16:26 Could We Make Minds from Machines?
19:14 Is Reality a Simulation?
21:46 What Is the Mind?
24:27 What Do Mysterions Believe About Consciousness?
26:20 Does Roger Penrose’s Theory of Consciousness Make Sense?
35:15 Could Dualism Explain the Human Mind?
37:58 What Is Physicalism About the Human Mind?
41:03 What’s Wrong with Panpsychism?
47:58 On the Next Breakthrough in Consciousness
52:59 What Is Intelligence?
55:45 What’s Artificial Intelligence?
58:22 What Defines the Current Wave of AI?
01:00:57 On the First AI Winter
01:04:55 On Meaning, LLMs, and ChatGPT
01:08:18 Does ChatGPT Mirror the Human Mind?
01:13:18 Is ChatGPT Intelligent?
01:18:43 Will ChatGPT Become Smarter than Humans?
01:24:25 What Is the ARC Challenge for AI?
01:27:58 Will ChatGPT Philosophize Better than Philosophers?
01:35:04 Are Apple, Google, and Microsoft on the Cutting Edge of AI?
01:39:16 Shoulder We Fear AI?
01:45:34 Are We the Smartest Thing on Earth?
01:49:47 What’s More Dangerous: The Internet or AI?
01:54:20 Could AI Take Over the Planet?
01:59:22 Will AI Make Human Artists Obsolete?
02:04:10 Will AI Make Humankind Dependent on the One Percent?
02:11:28 Could AI Solv…
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218 - Norman Finkelstein: Genocide in Israel and Palestine
31 juli 2024 · 2 uur 9 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Norman Finkelstein received his PhD from the Princeton University Politics Department, and is best known for his research on Israel and Palestine. In this episode of Robinson’s Podcast, Norman addresses some of the most common arguments made in defense of Israel, such as those purporting to show Israel is not committing genocide, that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism, that Israel is fighting in self-defense, that Egypt is responsible for the crisis, and more. Norman also appeared on episode 192, where he and Robinson discussed October 7th, allegations of genocide and apartheid, and connections between the war and the Holocaust. Norman’s most recent book is I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom (Sublation Media, 2023).
Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:47 Will Israel Nuke Palestine?
12:07 On Palestine and the Holocaust
15:10 Is Israel Getting Away with Genocide?
20:35 On Nuclear War and Israel’s Dependence on the United States
24:00 How Responsible Is Egypt for the Crisis in Gaza?
27:43 Does the Israeli Military Target Civilians?
36:27 Why Norman Finkelstein Can’t Watch the News from Palestine
38:06 On Hoaxes and Conspiracies in Israel-Palestine
47:06 On Corruption in Academia
49:16 Propaganda in Holocaust Scholarship
53:00 Facts and Fiction in Israel-Palestine
1:00:27 Norman Finkelstein’s Research Habits
1:05:10 Do Israeli Settlements Break International Law?
1:07:44 Why Does the United States Support Israel?
1:12:21 “Jewish Supremacy” Versus Harvard
1:20:11 Does Anti-Zionism = Anti-Semitism?
1:29:38 Does Anti-Semitism Cause Protests Against Israel?
1:35:44 Is The War in Gaza Justifiable as Self-Defense?
1:42:39 On Becoming a Public Figure
1:50:51 On His War with Alan Dershowitz
2:04:19 On Integrity and Palestine Scholarship
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erha…
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217 - Leonard Susskind: String Theory, Fine-Tuning, and the Physics of the Multiverse
21 juli 2024 · 1 uur 11 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Leonard Susskind is Felix Bloch Professor of Physics at Stanford University. Among other accomplishments, he is among the fathers of such revolutionary concepts in physics as string theory, black hole complementarity, the holographic principle, and the string-theoretic landscape. It is this last concept that Robinson and Leonard discuss in this episode. More particularly, they address the fine-tuning problem—that so many of the constants in physics, such as the cosmological constant—appear to have been selected precisely to allow for human life, as if they were substantially different we would not exist. In answering this question they talk about string theory, dark energy, the Higgs boson, god and supernatural explanations, eternal inflation, the multiverse, the interpretations of quantum mechanics, the anthropic principle, alternative answers to the problem, and the future of research in the area. For more detail, read Leonard’s book on the topic, The Cosmic Landscape.
The Cosmic Landscape: https://a.co/d/j2njH7h
The Theoretical Minimum: https://theoreticalminimum.com
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:03 A Parable About the Fine-Tuning Problem
09:58 String Theory and the Fine-Tuning Problem
18:04 The Problem of Dark Energy
25:05 Could Dark Energy Rip the Universe Apart?
33:11 God, String Theory, and the Illusion of Intelligent Design
42:51 On the String-Theoretic Landscape
48:54 The Eternal Inflation of the Universe
55:07 What Determines the Physics of the Multiverse?
01:02:09 On the Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics
01:05:50 On the Future of String Theory and Fine-Tuning
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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216 - Raphael Bousso: The Black Hole Paradox, Quantum Gravity, and the Holographic Principle
14 juli 2024 · 1 uur 46 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Raphael Bousso is the Chancellor’s Chair in Physics at the Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics, where he leads the Bousso Group in research on quantum gravity and quantum information. He is a renowned string theorist famous also for his development of the string theoretic landscape and the Bousso bound in holography. In this episode, Robinson and Raphael discuss the groundbreaking work of Jacob Bekenstein, Stephen Hawking, Leonard Susskind, Gerard ’t Hooft, and others on the black hole information paradox. They then turn to how this led to the formulation of the holographic principle, which has had profound implications for research on quantum gravity, especially for Raphael himself, who has recently been working on quantum information theory, quantum communication, and other ways in which classical gravity “knows about” and encodes its own quantum states.
The Bousso Group: https://lightsheet.berkeley.edu
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:14 Working with Leonard Susskind and Stephen Hawking
6:29 Why Do Physicists Care About Black Holes?
19:11 Do Black Holes have a Temperature?
23:51 How Cold is a Black Hole?
27:32 The Black Hole Information Paradox
41:31 Do Black Holes Mean Quantum Mechanics Must be Thrown Out?
47:09 Black Hole Complementarity and Holography
54:09 What Is Quantum Gravity?
01:01:15 Why is Quantum Gravity a Low Energy Problem?
01:06:54 The Bottom-Up Approach to Quantum Gravity
1:11:12 On String Theory and Holography
01:16:00 What Are Bousso Bounds?
01:22:58 Is Gravity a Quantum Error-Correcting Code?
01:32:09 Is Gravity a Fundamental Force?
01:37:25 On String Theory and the Multiverse
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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215 - Anna Lembke: On Philosophy and Psychiatry
7 juli 2024 · 1 uur 38 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Dr. Anna Lembke received her undergraduate degree in Humanities from Yale University and her medical degree from Stanford University. She is currently Professor and Medical Director of Addiction Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine. She is also Program Director of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Fellowship, and Chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. This is Anna’s second time on the show. On episode 117, she and Robinson discussed her latest, New York Times bestselling book, Dopamine Nation (Dutton/Penguin Random House, August 2021). In this episode, they discuss psychiatry and some of its philosophical connections. Some of the topics they cover include psychiatric phenomenology, eating disorders, the patient-psychiatrist relationship, therapeutic modalities, moral realism, the goals of therapy, and the upcoming Official Dopamine Nation Workbook.
Dopamine Nation: https://a.co/d/0AJw6Je
The Official Dopamine Nation Workbook: https://a.co/d/0eVHKFc1
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:01 Meta-Commentary, Telehealth, and In-Person Psychiatry
13:50 Transference in Therapy
23:01 Moral Realism
33:45 Nietzsche and Veganism
42:43 Reductionism, Emotion, and Psychiatry
45:55 On Treating Eating Disorders
52:24 The DSM-V and Psychiatric Practice
01:00:00 The Relationship Between Science and Psychiatry
01:08:31 Robinson’s Speech Patterns
01:15:40 Medication Versus Therapy
01:23:07 Creative Pursuits and Therapy
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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Ask Me Anything | July 2024
3 juli 2024 · 1 uur 30 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
This is the inaugural AMA for Robinson’s Podcast. It is supported by the members of the podcast’s Patreon. In this installment, Robinson answers questions about the reality of mathematics, podcasting, moral facts, ice cream, the nature of time, literary books for neophytes, and more.
Denying Infinity: https://doi.org/10.1080/01445340.2024.2344346
Abstract: Abraham Robinson is well-known as the inventor of nonstandard analysis, which uses nonstandard models to give the notions of infinitesimal and infinitely large magnitudes a precise interpretation. Less discussed, although subtle and original—if ultimately flawed—is Robinson’s work in the philosophy of mathematics. The foundational position he inherited from David Hilbert undermines not only the use of nonstandard analysis, but also Robinson’s considerable corpus of pre-logic contributions to the field in such diverse areas as differential equations and aeronautics. This tension emerges from Robinson’s disbelief in the existence of infinite totalities (any mention of them is ‘literally meaningless’) and the fact that much of his work involves them. I argue that he treats infinitary avenues of mathematics as useful tools to avoid this difficulty, but that this is not successful to the extent that these tools must be justified by a conservative extension from finitary mathematics. While Robinson provides a compelling and unorthodox pragmatic justification for the role of formal systems in mathematical practice despite their apparent infinitary presuppositions, he deflates mainstream mathematics to a collection of games that occasionally produces meaningful results. This amounts to giving up on a commitment to reconciling his finitism with his mathematical practice.
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone…
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214 - Joyce Carol Oates: On Philosophy and Literature
30 juni 2024 · 1 uur 1 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Joyce Carol Oates is the Rogers S. Berlind ’52 Professor Emerita in the Humanities at Princeton University with the Program in Creative Writing. She is among the most widely-recognized and respected writers of our time, and has written in a wide variety of media and genres, from poetry and fiction in the former category to horror and Gothic in the latter. Her work has also been adapted into various other media, from plays to film. Joyce is the recipient of two O. Henry Awards and the National Book Award, among many others. This is Joyce’s second appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode 137, she and Robinson discussed craft in fiction and poetry. In this episode, they talk about Joyce’s most recent collection of short stories, Zero-Sum (link in the description), as well as philosophy, Peter Singer, dealing with criticism, translation, and more.
Joyce’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoyceCarolOates
Joyce’s Substack: https://joycecaroloates.substack.com
Zero-Sum: https://a.co/d/0cYh3ndo
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:16 On Peter Singer
12:41 On Buddhism
21:50 On Hemingway
25:50 Dealing with Criticism
38:17 On Translation
47:53 Writing Short Stories
58:38 Imagery and Recreating the World
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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213 - Slavoj Žižek: God, Marxism, Philosophy, and Quantum Mechanics
23 juni 2024 · 1 uur 16 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Slavoj Žižek is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, visiting professor at New York University, and a senior researcher at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Philosophy. This is Slavoj’s fourth appearance on the show. On episode 109, he and Robinson discussed wokeness and psychoanalysis. On episode 118, he, Sean Carroll, and Robinson discussed quantum physics, the multiverse, and time travel. And on episode 206 he, Lee Smolin, and Robinson discussed quantum physics. In this episode, Robinson and Slavoj talk about ancient philosophy, god, communism, quantum mechanics, and psychoanalysis.
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
02:47 Why Is Philosophy More important Now Than Ever?
11:08 On Socrates and the Importance of Philosophy
19:12 On Excrement, God, and Atheism
27:50 A Communist Paradise
34:18 Ukraine and Marxism
39:24 Philosophy and Quantum Mechanics
47:56 Is Lying the Point of Language?
55:49 Cursing as a Test for Artificial Intelligence
58:25 On Philosophers and Physicists
1:01:50 On Superpositions and Quantum Mechanics
1:09:28 On Analytic and Continental Philosophy
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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212 - Deborah Gordon: Ants, Myrmecology, and Collective Behavior
16 juni 2024 · 1 uur 2 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Deborah Gordon is Professor of Biology at Stanford University. She is a myrmecologist—an entomologist who studies ants—focusing on how complex behavior emerges from ant colonies, which have no central control. In this episode, Deborah and Robinson discuss some of the distinctive features of ants, how pheromones help to determine their behavior, examples of fascinating ant species, collective ant behavior, and the life cycle of an ant colony. For more of Deborah’s work on collective behavior, check out her book The Ecology of Collective Behavior (Princeton, 2023).
The Gordon Lab: https://web.stanford.edu/~dmgordon/
Ants at Work: https://a.co/d/7bpokYU
The Ecology of Collective Behavior: https://a.co/d/1bBT1h7
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
02:33 Ants and Embryology
05:29 General Features of Ants
13:14 Some Fascinating Ant Species
28:20 Pheromones and Ant Behavior
38:17 Ant Slavery
41:30 Collective Ant Behavior
47:04 A Colony’s Life Cycle
59:01 Revisiting Embryology
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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211 - Jay Chandrasekhar: Comedy, Creative Integrity, Super Troopers, & Jackass
10 juni 2024 · 1 uur 15 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Jay Chandrasekhar is a director, writer, stand-up comic, and actor. Some of his works include directing Super Troopers, Beerfest, and Dukes of Hazzard. He has also directed episodes of Arrested Development, Community, and New Girl. Jay also wrote Mustache Shenanigans (2017) and co-hosts the podcast Mustache Tales. In this episode, Robinson and Jay discuss his growth as a writer, the importance of purpose in comedy and film, creative integrity in Hollywood, working on Supertroopers, and his time with Johnny Knoxville and the Jackass crew.
Mustache Tales: https://www.mustachetales.com
Mustache Shenanigans: https://a.co/d/8DZscAT
Opening Scene of Super Troopers: https://youtu.be/-wdVF_zJS4s?si=goQsJLqLqvBbMyF0
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
02:58 Jay’s Name Means…What?
5:22 Mustache Shenanigans
7:54 The Importance of Strong Beginnings in Comedy
20:41 The Importance of Purpose in Comedy and Film
24:39 Keeping Creative Integrity in Hollywood
32:20 On Writing a Novel
36:32 How to Have a Good Podcast
41:34 On Working with the Jackass Crew
59:20 Developing the Talent of a Storyteller
1:12:20 Breaking Down the Raiders of the Lost Ark
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.
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210 - David Albert & Tim Maudlin: A Discussion of Niels Bohr, Measurement, & Quantum Mechanics
2 juni 2024 · 2 uur 4 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia, and a faculty member of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the JBI. This is David’s seventh appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. He last appeared on episode 189 with Barry Loewer to talk about the Mentaculus, their joint project on the foundations of statistical mechanics. This is Tim’s sixth appearance on the show. He last appeared on episode 188 with Sheldon Goldstein to discuss Bohmian mechanics. Tim and David last joined Robinson together for episode 67, which gave an overview of the foundations of quantum mechanics. In this episode, Robinson, David, and Tim talk about the measurement problem, the role of philosophy in physics, various thought experiments, like Schrödinger’s cat and Wigner’s friend, and Niels Bohr’s effects both on quantum mechanics and the philosophy of science. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.
A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/6qcsidl
Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:04 Einstein, Bell, and Pearl on the Measurement Problem
13:00 On “Measurement” in Quantum Mechanics
25:34 What IS the Measurement Problem?
34:42 John Bell on the Measurement Problem
40:32 An Example of the Measurement Problem
43:08 Von Neumann on the Measurement Problem
45:38 Niels Bohr and the Measurement Problem
57:54 Niels Bohr’s Drastic Revision of Physics
1:08:36 Quantum Measurement and the Philosophy of Physics
1:22:52 On Schrodinger’s Cat and Wigner’s Friend
1:38…
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209 - Peter Singer: Controversial Ideas, Utilitarianism, and Animal Liberation
26 mei 2024 · 1 uur 28 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Peter Singer is Ira W. DeCamp Professor Emeritus of Bioethics in the Department of Philosophy at Princeton University. He is among the most influential living philosophers, and among the most influential moral philosophers of the last century. Peter is best known for his work in applied ethics on animal welfare and global poverty. In this episode, Robinson and Peter discuss these topics after first introducing his more general views on moral philosophy, including those on utilitarianism and meta-ethics. Throughout their conversation they also touch on Peter’s new podcast, Lives Well Lived, co-hosted with Kasia de Lazari Radek, the Journal of Controversial Ideas, Peter’s Substack, Bold Reasoning with Peter Singer, and his latest and next books, which are respectively The Buddhist and the Ethicist (Shambhala, 2023) and Consider the Turkey (Princeton, 2024).
Peter’s Website: https://www.petersinger.info
Lives Well Lived Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/6628460c6b51e80012b834c2
The Life You Can Save Organization: https://www.thelifeyoucansave.org.au
The Journal of Controversial Ideas: https://journalofcontroversialideas.org
Peter’s Substack: https://boldreasoningwithpetersinger.substack.com
The Buddhist and the Ethicist: https://a.co/d/38DOmbK
Consider the Turkey: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691231686/consider-the-turkey
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
04:14 Peter Singer’s Entry into Philosophy
08:54 What Is Utilitarianism?
10:58 On Consequentialism vs Deontology
13:12 On Trolley Problems and Moral Facts
16:40 On Moral Realism and Anti-Realism
20:51 On Hedonistic Utilitarianism
26:17 The Lives Well Lived Podcast
33:43 A Puzzle About Trolley Problems
38:48 On the Origin of Peter Singer’s Concern for Animals
49:38 Is It Ever Morally Permissible to Eat Meat?
55:32 Consider the Turkey
1:03:07 Famine, Affluence, and Morality
1:09:08 The Life You Can Save
1:10:50 The Buddhist and the Ethicist
1:18:08 The…
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208 - Victor Davis Hanson: Annihilation, Genocide, and World War III
20 mei 2024 · 1 uur 5 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Victor Davis Hanson is a renowned classicist, military historian, and political commentator. He is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Among numerous other awards, Victor was presented the National Humanities Medal in 2007. In this episode, Robinson and Victor discuss his latest book, The End of Everything: How Wars Descend into Annihilation (Basic Book, 2024), which was released on May 7th. More particularly, they cover the historical connection between annihilation and genocide, how we should interpret the past through today’s moral standards, genocides in the present, and the likelihood of World War III. Victor appeared as a guest on episode #112, in which he and Robinson talked about what was at the time Victor’s latest book, The Dying Citizen. He was also a guest on episode #191, which covered Victor’s views on the current crisis in Israel and Palestine. Keep up with Victor on Twitter, through his website, and on his podcast, The Victor Davis Hanson Show.
Victor’s Website: https://victorhanson.com
Victor’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/VDHanson
The Victor Davis Hanson Show: https://art19.com/shows/the-victor-davis-hanson-show
The Dying Citizen: https://a.co/d/dPocUJg
The End of Everything: https://a.co/d/46O0mMB
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:41 On Annihilation, Extinction, and Genocide
09:31 What Causes Genocide?
16:38 The Applicability of Military Strategy to Everyday Life
24:00 On Alexander the Great
36:26 Should We Judge the People of the Past by the Moral Standards of the Present?
44:29 Uyghurs, Jews, and Genocides of the Present
50:45 What Are the Biggest Existential Threats to America?
59:28 Is World War III on the Horizon?
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
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207 - Sean Carroll: Quanta, Fields, and the Philosophy of Quantum Physics
12 mei 2024 · 1 uur 45 min
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He is also the host of Sean Carroll’s Mindscape, a podcast about science, society, philosophy, culture, arts, and ideas. This is Sean’s fourth appearance on the show. He appeared with David Albert of Columbia University on episode 106, which covers the Many-Worlds theory of quantum mechanics, Boltzmann Brains, and the fine-tuned universe. He was also on episode 118 with Slavoj Žižek on quantum physics, the multiverse, time travel, and a whole lot more, and then episode 200 with Daniel Dennett and Steven Pinker on AI, parapsychology, and consciousness. This episode is coming out in advance of Sean’s next book, Quanta and Fields: The Biggest Ideas in the Universe (Penguin, 2024), which will be released on May 14, 2024. Sean and Robinson discuss many of the topics and themes of Quanta and Fields, including the books’ namesake subjects, as well as more decides, like scientific realism, free will, the simulation hypothesis, and the end of physics. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.
Sean’s Website: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com
Sean’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcarroll
Quanta and Fields (The Biggest Ideas in the Universe): https://a.co/d/gfMDLQo
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
5:00 The Biggest Ideas in the Universe
9:38 Do Physicists Understand Physics?
15:51 What Is the Role of Philosophers in Physics?
18:24 The Measurement Problem and Quantum Field Theory
20:24 Scientific Realism and the Standard Model of Particle Physics
25:11 What Is the Wave Function?
34:46 What Is Quantum Field The…
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206 - Slavoj Žižek & Lee Smolin: Marxism Meets Quantum Physics
5 mei 2024 · 1 uur
Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Lees meer
Slavoj Žižek is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London and a senior researcher at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Philosophy. He was also the guest for episodes 109—on psychoanalysis, wokeness, racism, and a hundred other topics—and 118, where he appeared with Sean Carroll to discuss quantum physics, the multiverse, and time travel. Lee Smolin is a founding and senior faculty member at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and the author of a number of bestselling books, including The Trouble with Physics (Mariner, 2006). He was the guest for episode 148, in which he and Robinson discussed presentism, the foundations of mathematics, and the philosophy of quantum mechanics. In this episode, Robinson, Slavoj, and Lee discuss time, space, superposition, and other concepts at the core of physics, as well as postmodernism, the big bang, problems with democracy, and much more. Lee is also an Honorary Fellow of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.
Lee’s Website: http://leesmolin.com
The Trouble with Physics: https://a.co/d/eJZPWaE
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
06:26 Breaking the Copenhagen Interpretation
11:55 On Sabine Hossenfelder
21:11 On Monads, Atoms, and Democritus
30:18 Is the World a Game of Physics?
38:46 On the Big Bang
45:26 On European Immigration and Populism
53:09 A Few JokesRobinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.