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305 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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155 - Tony Padilla: Mathematical Platonism, Intergalactic Doppelgängers, and Gigantic Numbers
18 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 13 min
Tony Padilla is Professor of Physics in the School of Physics & Astronomy at the University of Nottingham, where he is the Associate Director of the new Nottingham Centre of Gravity. Tony works in cosmology, quantum gravity, and related areas. He is also a host of the YouTube channel Numberphile, and the author of Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them: A Cosmic Quest from Zero to Infinity (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2022). In this episode, Robinson and Tony discuss some of these fantastic numbers. They begin with the question of how numbers relate to physics and the world more generally before turning to Graham’s Number, Tree(3), and the question of whether or not we have doppelgängers elsewhere in the universe. Lees meer
Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them: https://a.co/d/jiLCOJe
Numberphile: https://www.youtube.com/@numberphile
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:13 Introduction
02:57 Tony’s Interest in Numbers
07:51 Are Numbers Parts of the Physical World?
20:12 Do We Have Doppelgängers Elsewhere in the Universe?
54:16 What is Graham’s Number?
01:03:22 Tree(3)
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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154 - Richard Wolff: Karl Marx and the Myths of Marxism
15 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 42 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 second appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #127, he and Robinson discussed some of the most profound criticisms of capitalism. In this installment, they focus on Marx himself, including Karl Marx’s background, his most important views, what he wrote and didn’t write, and some of the common—and potentially devastating—criticisms of Marxism. Lees meer
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
The Sickness is the System: https://a.co/d/jf5w5wy
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:22 Introduction
03:55 Who Was Karl Marx?
32:15 Karl Marx, Armchair Intellectual?
37:40 Answering Karl Marx’s Critics
50:38 Is Karl Marx Responsible for the Communist Genocides?
01:14:09 Marxism and The World Economy of Today
01:17:53 Is Socialism a Monolith? Does Marxism Evolve?
01:25:13 On Marxism and Mass Death
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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153 - Alan Stern: New Horizons and Mankind’s First Mission to Pluto
13 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 2 min
Alan Stern is a planetary scientist, space program executive, aerospace consultant, and author. He leads NASA’s 880 million dollar New Horizons mission, which explored Pluto and its moons before heading deeper into the Kuiper Belt that surrounds the solar system. In 2007 and 2008, Alan was also NASA’s chief of space and Earth science programs. In this episode, Robinson and Alan talk all about Pluto and how Earth got there through New Horizons. They begin by discussing whether or not Pluto should be classified as a planet, before turning to the logistics of flying to Pluto and then what the New Horizons probe discovered there. Alan’s book, Chasing New Horizons (Picador, 2018) details the story of the groundbreaking mission. Lees meer
Alan’s Website: https://alanstern.space
Chasing New Horizons: https://a.co/d/gwvun3e
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:56 Introduction
02:46 Why Planets?
08:23 Is Pluto a Planet?
22:19 New Horizons’ Journey to Pluto
30:14 NASA’s Flyby-Then-Probe Model
37:20 What Did NASA’s New Horizons Mission Learn About Pluto?
50:11 New Horizons After Pluto and Beyond
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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152 - Geraint F. Lewis: Is The Universe Fine-Tuned For Life?
11 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 53 min
Geraint F. Lewis is Professor of Astrophysics at the Sydney Institute for Astronomy in the University of Sydney’s School of Physics. While the focus of his research is on dark matter and energy, Geraint has written about and worked on many topics in cosmology and astrophysics more generally. In this episode, Robinson and Geraint discuss the question of fine-tuning: Our universe seems extremely well-suited for life, and with just the slightest variations in physics life as we know it would not exist. In what ways does the universe appear finely tuned, and how should we account for this? Lees meer
Geraint’s Website: https://www.geraintflewis.com
A Fortunate Universe: https://a.co/d/aLKIcG5
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:34 Introduction
2:59 The Bigger Questions
05:40 Was the Earth Designed for Humans?
10:33 Fine-Tuning and the Standard Model of Particle Physics
18:40 What Is the Anthropic Principle?
28:46 Is the Weak Nuclear Force Necessary For Life?
36:36 Are The Strong and Electromagnetic Forces Necessary for Life?
52:52 The Higgs Boson and Fine-Tuning
59:23 Is Gravity Necessary for Life?
01:03:10 Fine-Tuning and the Multiverse
01:14:03 Entropy and Fine-Tuning
01:37:54 Dark Energy, Dark Matter, 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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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151 - Michael Levin: Synthetic Life, Collective Intelligence, and Morphogenesis
8 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 33 min
Michael Levin is a Distinguished Professor in the Biology Department at Tufts University, where he holds the Vannevar Bush endowed Chair, and he is also associate faculty at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University. Michael and the Levin Lab work at the intersection of biology, artificial life, bioengineering, synthetic morphology, and cognitive science. In this episode, Michael and Robinson discuss what it means—if anything determinate—to be intelligent and to be alive before turning to the various fascinating ways collective intelligence arises at all levels of the spectrum, from microbes to synthetic chimaeras, which all adaptively solve complex problems using sophisticated cognition. Lees meer
The Levin Lab: https://drmichaellevin.org/
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:55 Introduction
03:38 Michael’s Research Program
05:48 What Is Intelligence?
23:26 Does It Mean Anything to be Alive?
34:50 What Is Morphogenesis?
53:20 Slime Molds, Exploding Planaria Brains, and Intercellular Communication
01:11:48 Why Is Synthetic Life Useful in the Lab?
01:27:48 Final Thoughts
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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150 - John Mather: The Big Bang and the Cosmic Microwave Background
6 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 47 min
John Mather is a Senior Astrophysicist in the Observational Cosmology Laboratory at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. He was the recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics for his role as Principle Investigator for the Far IR Absolute Spectrophotometer on COBE, which observed the cosmic microwave background and helped support the big bang theory of the origin of the universe. John has also worked on many other projects for NASA, including the James Webb Space Telescope. In this episode, Robinson and John discuss the big bang and the cosmic microwave background before detailing the COBE satellite, its extraordinary findings, and the work that led to winning the Nobel Prize. Lees meer
The Very First Light: https://a.co/d/6iaWMOK
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:35 Introduction
02:56 John’s Scientific Background
12:50 Where Did the Big Bang Theory Come From
22:28 The Electromagnetic Spectrum
27:48 John’s Thesis and the Road to COBE
42:57 Designing the Nobel-Winning COBE Satellite
01:05:38 Some Further Background
01:08:08 The Cosmic Microwave Background and the Nobel Prize
01:35:52 John’s More Recent Projects
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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149 - Jonathan Lear: Free Association and the Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis
4 oktober 2023 · 2 uur 2 min
Jonathan Lear is the John U. Nef Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Philosophy and at the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. He is also a practicing psychoanalyst. Jonathan’s work focuses on understanding the human psyche both through philosophy—with an emphasis on Aristotle and the ancients—and psychoanalysis. In this episode, Jonathan and Robinson discuss three pinnacles of psychoanalysis: free association, the unconscious, and transference. Jonathan’s most recent book is Wisdom Won From Illness: Essays in Philosophy and Psychoanalysis (Harvard, 2017). Lees meer
Jonathan’s Website: https://home.uchicago.edu/~jlear/
Wisdom Won From Illness: https://a.co/d/hxkokCz
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:50 Introduction
03:28 Philosophy and Psychoanalysis
12:29 What Is The Fundamental Rule of Psychoanalysis?
20:02 On Slavoj Žižek and Free Association
25:26 Following Freud
37:55 Transference and Changing One’s Mind
49:22 How the Analyst Listens
01:09:40 Analysis and Contradiction
01:25:44 Dreams and Free-Association
01:34:42 Transference
01:55:12 Who Is Psychoanalysis For?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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148 - Lee Smolin: Presentism, Foundations of Mathematics, and Realism in Quantum Mechanics
1 oktober 2023 · 1 uur 16 min
Lee Smolin is a founding and senior faculty member at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. He is best known for contributions to quantum gravity as a co-inventor of loop quantum gravity and deformed special relativity. Beyond his work in other areas of physics, Lee has written a number of best-selling books, the most recent of which is Einstein’s Unfinished Revolution: The Search for What Lies Beyond the Quantum (Penguin, 2019). In this episode, Robinson and Lee discuss one of the main tenets that has characterized his work over the past decades: Realism. They first talk about realism in quantum mechanics before moving on to Lee’s version of radical presentism, in which only what is occurring in the immediate present can be said to exist, before finishing the main body of their conversation with mathematics and its relation to both physics and cosmology. The episode ends with brief digressions on biology and living with Parkinson’s disease. 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. Lees meer
Einstein’s Unfinished Revolution: https://a.co/d/7GHcebp
The Singular Universe and the Unreality of Time: https://a.co/d/hZqLT59
Lee’s Website: https://leesmolin.com
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org/home
00:00 In This Episode…
00:47 Introduction
05:03 From Dropping Out of High School to Physics
10:42 Many-Worlds, Bohmian Mechanics, and Realism in Quantum Theory
29:18 Realism and the Copenhagen Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics
33:00 Uniting Quantum Mechanics and Cosmology
45:43 Working with Roberto Mangabeira Unger
55:10 The Singular Existence of the Universe
01:05:29 Lee’s Interest in Biology
Robinson’s Websit…
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147 - Yascha Mounk: Liberalism, Identity Politics, and the History of Equality
29 september 2023 · 1 uur 19 min
Yascha Mounk is a Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University. He is also a Contributing Editor at the Atlantic, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the host of The Good Fight podcast. Yascha has written five books, the most recent of which is The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time (Penguin, 2023). In this episode, Robinson and Yascha talk about this latest work. They begin by discussing the interrelationship between political theory, political science, and political philosophy before moving on to the role of equality in the politics on the left over the past hundred years. Then they turn to the rise of identity politics, its dangers, and how we can avoid what Yascha refers to as “the identity trap.” Lees meer
The Identity Trap: https://a.co/d/jh6IZIR
Yascha’s Website: https://www.yaschamounk.com
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:32 Introduction
04:48 Distinguishing Political Theory, Science, and Philosophy
12:02 Why Focus on the Left Rather than the Right?
27:33 The History of Equality on the Left
32:38The Origin of Identity Politics
44:19 Universalism and Cultural Marxism
50:48 How Did Identity Politics Spread So Fast?
58:16 Do Identity Politics Conflict with Psychology?
01:12:00 How Do We Escape Identity Politics?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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146 - Christopher E. Mason & Igor Tulchinsky: Smart Weapons, Genetics, and Predictive Algorithms
27 september 2023 · 57 min
Christopher E. Mason is Professor of Computational Genomics in Computational Biomedicine in the Institute for Computational Biomedicine and Professor of Neuroscience in the Brain and Mind Institute at Weill Cornell Medicine. Igor Tulchinsky is the founder, chairman, and CEO of WorldQuant, a global quantitative asset management firm. Together, they lead a joint project between Cornell Medicine and WorldQuant, the WorldQuant Initiative for Quantitative Prediction, which seeks to marry the expertise of financial prediction and analysis with genetic and medical research to improve and deploy new methods of preventive medicine. In this episode, Robinson, Chris, and Igor discuss their recent book, The Age of Prediction (MIT, 2023), and how our rapidly improving technology, data collection, and predictive algorithms are changing the world in innumerable ways, ranging from smart weapons in the military to solving crime and measuring job performance. Lees meer
Errata: In the introduction, Robinson says that this is episode 140, but due to a scheduling error the episode was released as episode 146.
The Age of Prediction: https://a.co/d/3VAg0KD
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:10 Introduction
03:33 WorldQuant and Cornell Medicine
10:39 The Age of Prediction
15:51 Financial Prediction
19:44 Autonomous Drones and AI
28:38 Insurance and Prediction
33:35 Job Performance and Hiring
40:30 Using Genetics to Predict and Solve Crime
52:38 Final Thoughts
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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145 - Deirdre McCloskey: What Is Classical Liberalism?
24 september 2023 · 1 uur 57 min
Deirdre McCloskey is Distinguished Professor Emerita of Economics and of History and Professor Emerita of English and of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is also Isaiah Berlin Chair in Liberal Thought at the Cato Institute. Over the span of her career, Deirdre has written on economic theory, history, rhetoric, feminism, ethics, law, and more. In this episode, she and Robinson discuss her political philosophy—classical liberalism. They begin by discussing her training before delving into liberalism’s roots in the eighteen and nineteenth centuries as a celebration of freedom of speech and innovation, as well as its doctrine of equality under the law. They then compare it to competing views, such as conservatism, and address common criticisms of classical liberalism, such as its alleged inability to respond to crises like global warming or that the free market will concentrate wealth in the hands of a few. Lees meer
Why Liberalism Works: https://a.co/d/hvUAtnk
Deirdre’s Website: https://www.deirdremccloskey.com
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:59 Introduction
04:09 Deirdre’s Background in Economics
17:36 What is Classical Liberalism?
33:28 The Beginning of Liberalism
51:50 The Great Enrichment
01:05:43 Free Speech
01:17:31 Conservatism and Libertarianism
01:28:36 Criticisms of Liberalism
01:43:00 Climate Change and the Free Market
01:49:57 Liberalism and Queers
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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144 - Carl Wieman: Winning the Nobel Prize, Bose-Einstein Condensates, & Science Education
22 september 2023 · 1 uur 59 min
Carl Wieman is Cheriton Family Professor, Professor of Physics, and Professor of Education Emeritus at Stanford University and winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physics for the production and observation of the first Bose-Einstein condensate. In addition to his extensive work in atomic and optical physics, Carl has pioneered the use of experimental techniques to evaluate the effectiveness of various teaching strategies for physics and other sciences. He also served as Associate Director for Science in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. This episode constitutes a deep dive in two directions. First, Robinson and Carl discuss the trajectory of his career and research and how it led to his work on Bose-Einstein condensates that won the Nobel Prize. Then they turn to science education, including what’s wrong with it and how it can be improved. Lees meer
Improving How Universities Teach Science: https://a.co/d/5HA980y
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:02 Introduction
03:41 Getting into Physics
10:03 What is Parity Violation in Physics
16:38 How Can A Laser Trap and Cool Atoms?
25:48 What is Spin?
35:59 What is a Bose-Einstein Condensate?
45:11 The Experiment
52:57 Applications of BECs
57:22 Getting Into Education Research
01:04:43 The Science Education Initiative
01:19:31 Implementing Education Initiatives
01:25:31 What Makes for Effective Teaching?
01:31:40 Equity in Education
01:36:15 Teacher Evaluation
01:43:09 Steps of Restructuring
01:42:40 Final Thoughts
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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143 - Andrew Knoll: The Origins of Life on Earth
20 september 2023 · 1 uur 54 min
Andrew Knoll is the Fisher Professor of Natural History in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Harvard University. Andy’s work straddles the line between the early evolution of life on Earth and our planet’s environmental history. He has written numerous books on these subjects, most recently A Brief History of Earth: Four Billion Years in Eight Chapters (Custom House). In this episode, Robinson and Andy discuss when and how life arose on earth—and, just as importantly, what and how we know about it. Then they turn to some related topics, such as the diversity of microbial life on Earth and how it shaped our environment. They finish off with the possibility of life on Mars, as Andy was part of NASA’s MER mission to Mars, which examined the soil and geology of Mars’s surface through two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. Lees meer
A Brief History of Earth: https://a.co/d/dLrMhVz
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:51 Introduction
03:23 On Walt Whitman and The Learn’d Astronomer
11:36 Big Numbers Concerning Life and the Age of the Universe
29:47 On The Earliest Life on Earth
46:29 How Did Life Begin?
58:21 How Far Back Can We Trace Humans on the Tree of Life?
01:08:42 The Diversity of Microbial Life
01:19:43 The Branching of the Tree of Life
01:24:08 How Did Microbes Shape Our Atmosphere?
01:34:48 What Does Martian Soil Tell Us About The Life That Might Be Found There?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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142 - Tim Maudlin: Carnap, Kuhn, Bell’s Inequality, & The Philosophy of Science
17 september 2023 · 2 uur 1 min
Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Tim is renowned as one of the leading philosophers of physics, and he also works in the philosophy of science and metaphysics. This is Tim’s fourth appearance on the show. Tim was also a guest on episode 46 (laws of nature, space, and free will), episode 67 with David Albert (the foundations of quantum mechanics), and episode 115 with Craig Callender (the philosophy of time). In this episode, Robinson and Tim dig into some of the crucial developments in the philosophy of science that took place during the 20th century. Then they move on to John Bell and 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. Lees meer
Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:41 Introduction
04:56 What’s the Point of Philosophy of Science?
10:38 Carnap and Logical Positivism
26:30 Thomas Kuhn and the Structure of Scientific Revolutions
42:52 What is Scientific Realism?
01:02:44 Instrumentalism and Scientific Anti-Realism
01:06:08 Who Was John Bell?
01:20:15 Einstein, Quantum Mechanics, and Bell’s Inequality
01:45:34 The John Bell Institute
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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141 - Norman Naimark: The History of Genocide
15 september 2023 · 2 uur 14 min
Norman Naimark is Robert & Florence McDonnell Professor of East European History at Stanford University. He is also Senior Fellow of the Hoover Institution and the Institute of International Studies. He has worked on a wide array of topics related to the Cold War, genocide, communism, Hitler, Stalin, and more. In this episode, Robinson and Norman talk about the world history of genocide. After discussing just what constitutes genocide, they begin with the most distant reaches of prehistory—neanderthals and beyond—before moving up through biblical times, the Mongol conquest, the crusades, the colonial period, and more modern events. Lees meer
Genocide: A World History: https://a.co/d/7o4tG25
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:55 Introduction
05:13 Norman’s Background
16:24 What’s an Archival Historian?
21:12 What is Genocide
35:59 Prehistoric and Biblical Genocide
48:20 Genghis Khan and the Mongolian Genocide
01:08:05 Were the Crusades Genocidal?
01:24:07 The Spanish Colonial Genocide
01:39:02 Race, Economics, and the Settler Genocides
01:48:02 The Genocides of Modernity
01:55:07 The Armenian Genocide
02:04:49 Is There a Genocide in Ukraine?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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140 - John Burgess: Realism in the Philosophy of Mathematics
13 september 2023 · 1 uur 34 min
John Burgess is John N. Woodhull Professor of Philosophy at Princeton University, where he works in mathematical and philosophical logic and the philosophy of mathematics. In this episode, Robinson and John discuss realism in the philosophy of mathematics, and while the nature of this question is itself disputed, it can be roughly described as concerning the extent to which we should be committed to the mind-independent truth of mathematical theorems, or to the existence of the objects they apparently describe. Robinson and John begin by addressing the nuances of this question, and they then turn to various developments in mathematics that have been historically associated with realism—set theory, in particular—as well as specific philosophical positions associated with realism (such as Platonism) and anti-realism (such as conventionalism). John’s most recent book is Set Theory (Cambridge, 2022). Lees meer
Set Theory: https://a.co/d/cF305wf
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:22 Introduction
03:17 Mathematics or Philosophy?
08:06 What is Realism in the Philosophy of Mathematics?
14:11 Objectivity and Mathematics
24:34 What Is Set Theory?
47:29 Platonism and the Continuum Problem
01:15:42 Conventionalism
01:22:06 Finitism
01:31:17 A Cap on Infinity?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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139 - Lawrence Summers: Economic Policy, Free Speech, and The Pursuit of Truth
10 september 2023 · 59 min
Lawrence Summers is the President Emeritus and Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard University. He also served as the 71st Secretary of the Treasury in the Clinton Administration, as Director of the White House National Economic Council in the Obama Administration, and as the Chief Economist of the World Bank. In this episode, Robinson and Larry discuss two topics close to his heart and work. First, they talk about the relationship between economic research and economic policy, both at a broad, theoretical level and with respect to cases, such as the current problem of inflation and Larry’s own work on global investments in the education of women. Second, they explore free speech and the social function of the university, including its commitments to the pursuit of truth, the promotion of opportunity, and an increase in prosperity. Lees meer
Larry’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/LHSummers
Larry’s Website: https://larrysummers.com/
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:06 Introduction
05:19 Theory, Research, and Policy in Economics
18:15 Using Research to Debunk Theory
23:00 Investing in Women’s Education
27:33 Free Speech at Harvard
34:52 Harvard and the Purpose of the University
38:17 Why Larry Ran Harvard
41:50 The STEM Revolution
54:03 Anti-Semitism in the University
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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138 - Konstantin Batygin: Planet Nine, Oumuamua, and the Death of Pluto
8 september 2023 · 2 uur
Konstantin Batygin is Professor of Planetary Science in the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences at the California Institute of Technology, where he works on a wide variety of problems related to the formation and evolution of the solar system, the dynamical evolution of exoplanets, and physical processes that occur in planetary interiors and atmospheres. In this episode, Robinson and Konstantin discuss interstellar interlopers in our solar system, planet and satellite formation, the death of Pluto, Planet Nine, and the newest music from his band, The Seventh Season. Lees meer
Konstantin’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/kbatygin
Konstantin’s Website: https://www.konstantinbatygin.com/
The Seventh Season: https://theseventhseason.band/
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:37 Introduction
03:56 Konstantin’s Background
07:53 Was Oumuamua an Alien Spacecraft?
16:17 Planetesimals, Planet Formation, and the Size of the Solar System
25:15 Are there Extrasolar Objects in our Solar System?
35:06 How do Planets Form?
48:54 Is Our Solar System Falling Apart?
54:46 How Do Moons Form?
01:04:20 The Complexity of the Outer Solar System
01:07:12 The Death of Pluto
01:17:21 What and Where Is Planet Nine?
01:41:59 The Seventh Season
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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137 - Joyce Carol Oates: Craft in Fiction and Poetry
6 september 2023 · 1 uur 33 min
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. In this conversation, Robinson and Joyce talk about various dimensions of fiction and poetry. Their discussion largely centers on technique and form, and touches on the work of James Joyce, Stephen Crane, Vladimir Nabokov, and Edgar Allan Poe, in addition to Joyce’s own novels and short stories. Lees meer
Errata: In the section marked “Edgar Allan Poe and James Joyce”, Joyce says “Blazes Boylan” when she intends to refer to Buck Mulligan.
Joyce’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoyceCarolOates
Joyce’s Substack: https://joycecaroloates.substack.com
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:55 Introduction
05:39 On Stephen Crane and The Bitter Heart
31:22 Literature as a Distillation of Life
42:53 Repetition and other Techniques
53:07 Edgar Allan Poe and James Joyce
01:08:14 Stephen Crane’s Many Red Devils
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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136 - Andrew Strominger: String Theory, Black Holes, and Extra Dimensions
3 september 2023 · 2 uur 17 min
Andrew Strominger is Gwill E. York Professor of Physics and Director of the Center for the Fundamental Laws of Nature at Harvard University, where he works on some of the deepest questions in physics, including black holes and the unification of quantum field theory and general relativity in the form of string theory. In this episode, Robinson and Andy discuss the basics of string theory, including its unifying role in physics, its application to outstanding and once-intractable problems of black holes, and the conceptual difficulties of thinking about higher-dimensional spaces. Lees meer
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:32 Introduction
05:03 Andy’s Entry into String Theory
20:49 The Irreconcilable Clash between General Relativity and Quantum Field Theory
47:02 String Theory, Fine-Tuning, and the Anthropic Principle
59:20 The Basics of String Theory
01:12:50 String Theory and the Reductionist Program of Physics
01:27:25 When Will We Observe the Strings of String Theory?
01:43:45 How Many Dimensions are There in String Theory?
02:12:50 Aesthetics in String Theory
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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135 - Thomas Hertog: Stephen Hawking, Cosmology, and the Origin of Time
1 september 2023 · 1 uur 24 min
Thomas Hertog is Professor and Head of Theoretical Physics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at KU Leuven in Belgium. He was a doctoral student and close collaborator of Stephen Hawking. In this episode, Robinson and Thomas discuss his recent book, On the Origin of Time: Stephen Hawking’s Final Theory. More particularly they discuss his collaboration with Stephen Hawking Hawking’s work on black holes, and the three stages of his cosmological research, which culminated in his final theory, which Thomas worked on with him, called Top-Down Cosmology. Lees meer
On the Origin of Time: https://a.co/d/ihrMoCZ
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:53 Introduction
04:19 Thomas’s Entry into Physics
05:49 What Was It Like to Work with Stephen Hawking?
09:46 Stephen Hawking and the Death of Philosophy
16:42 What is Cosmological Inflation
23:28 The Big Bang, Fine-Tuning, and the Anthropic Principle
41:15 On Penrose, Hawking, Black Holes, and the Big Bang
01:01:27 Stephen Hawking’s Final Theory of Top-Down Cosmology
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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134 - Christopher Capozzola: Uncle Sam, the Draft, and Vigilantes in World War I
30 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 29 min
Christopher Capozzola is Professor of History and MacVicar Faculty Fellow at MIT, where he works on the history of citizenship, war, and the military in modern American history. In this episode, Robinson and Chris discuss his first book, Uncle Sam Wants You: World War I and the Making of the Modern American Citizen (Oxford, 2008). More particularly, they talk about the background of the famous Uncle Sam “I Want You!” image and its status as a piece of propaganda, how it functioned in the United States during World War I, the domestic reception and consequences of the draft, and how patriotism resulted in violent vigilante justice. Chris’s latest book is Bound by War: How the United States and the Philippines Built America’s First Pacific Century. Lees meer
Uncle Sam Wants You: https://a.co/d/gBodfCL
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:04 Introduction
03:50 History as Narrative
08:01 Teaching History at MIT
12:21 Chris’s Interest in American History
14:42 The Origin and Purpose of Uncle Sam
32:48 Political Obligation and the Draft in World War I
45:06 History and Unwritten Facts
50:07 Draft Dodgers, Conscientious Objectors, and Vigilantes in WWI
01:04:35 Historians, Philosophers, and Political Obligation
01:16:50 How World War I Was Caused by Bad Leaders
01:23:01 Free Speech During and After the War
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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133 - Ian Hutchinson: Plasma Physics & The Compatibility of Science and Religion
27 augustus 2023 · 2 uur 13 min
Ian Hutchinson is Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering in he Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering and the Plasma Science and Fusion Center at MIT. He works in both plasma physics and nuclear physics and also writes on the philosophy of science and the compatibility of Christianity and science. In this episode, Ian and Robinson begin by discussing his work in plasma and nuclear physics, touching on space exploration, nuclear fusion, and the containment of superheated plasma. Then they turn to Ian’s religious beliefs and his understanding of how science and christianity are not only compatible, but complementary. Ian’s latest book is Can a Scientist Believe in Miracles?: An MIT Professor Answers Questions on God and Science. Lees meer
Ian’s Website: https://www-internal.psfc.mit.edu/~hutch/
Can a Scientist Believe in Miracles?: https://a.co/d/2Vi2wKk
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:03 Introduction
06:15 Is There a Crisis in Plasma Physics?
19:19 What Is the Fourth Phase of Matter?
33:24 Plasma, Astrophysics, and Space Exploration
45:49 What Are Nuclear Fission and Fusion?
55:25 How Does Nuclear Fusion Work?
01:02:34 How Viable is Nuclear Fusion as a Clean Power Source?
01:19:03 Why MIT Nuclear Physicist Ian Hutchinson Believes in God
01:34:08 How Can Science be Compatible with Christian Miracles?
01:43:22 How an MIT Physicist Reads the Book of Genesis
01:49:11 The Perils of Scientism
01:58:59 Do Science and Religion Complement Each Other?
02:04:02 How Religion Informs Ian’s Work as a Plasma Physicist
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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132 - Jonathan Shedler: Freud, Psychoanalysis, and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
25 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 25 min
Jonathan Shedler is Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco and a faculty member at the San Francisco Center for Psychoanalysis. He is a psychologist and psychotherapist. In this episode, Robinson and Jonathan discuss the clinical side of psychoanalytic theory. They begin by describing just how different contemporary practice is from its beginnings with Freud a hundred years ago, before detailing how psychodynamic therapy compares to other forms of treatment for mental illness. Lees meer
Jonathan’s Website: https://jonathanshedler.com/
Jonathan’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonathanshedler
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:36 Introduction
04:11 Disambiguating Psychoanalysis
16:22 What Is The Distinction Between Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy?
32:01 Free-Association and Transference in Psychotherapy
49:05 Dream Interpretation in Psychotherapy
59:37 The Five Psychodynamic Theories
01:07:36 Is Psychodynamic Therapy Effective?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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131 - Tal Ben-Shahar: What Is Happiness?
23 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 6 min
Tal Ben-Shahar did his undergraduate and graduate work at Harvard, where he later lectured on positive psychology and taught the most popular course in the university’s history. He is now a speaker and writer who focuses on happiness. In this episode, Robinson and Tal discuss the field of Happiness Studies, which Tal has been developing for half a decade. They discuss the origin of happiness studies with Aristotle before moving on to how various academic disciplines like philosophy, neuroscience, psychology, and anthropology can teach us about happiness in different ways. They finish with some practical insight on how to improve one’s quality of life. Lees meer
Tal’s Website: https://talbenshahar.com/
Tal’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/TalBenShahar
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:50 Introduction
02:43 Tal and Happiness Studies
10:26 Aristotle and the Beginning of Happiness Studies
14:02 What is Happiness?
28:58 Different Approaches to Happiness
37:00 What Can Anthropology Teach Us About Happiness?
46:29 Capitalism, Communism, and Happiness
53:04 Advice for Being Happy
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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130 - Donald Hoffman: The Illusion of Reality
20 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 58 min
Donald Hoffman is Professor in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine, where he also has joint appointments in the Department of Philosophy, the Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, and the School of Computer Science. Don has worked on a number of problems in his career, including human facial attractiveness, the mind-body problem, the evolution of perception, and even vehicle lighting. In this episode, Robinson and Don discuss his latest book, The Case Against Reality, which argues that human perception did not evolve to see the world as it really is, but in fact what we perceive is a world of icons that, in analogy to a computer desktop, bears no resemblance to what is going on in the objective space beyond our senses. Lees meer
The Case Against Reality: https://a.co/d/9kxeOI8
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:19 Introduction
04:03 Why Don Thinks We Don’t Perceive Reality
07:55 Do We Interact with Reality Like an iPhone?
13:28 Vitalism and the Mystery of Consciousness
26:55 An Anecdote About Chomsky
30:00 Consciousness and Cutting the Brain in Half
41:20 Can Science Explain Consciousness?
49:15 How Beauty Disguises Reality
01:02:02 What is Veridical Perception?
01:10:13 The Battle Between Truth, Fitness, and Reality
01:31:16 Exploring the FBT Theorem
01:41:56 What is the Interface Theory of Perception?
01:47:10 Illusory Blue Jeans to Make Your Butt Look Good
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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129 - Jeremi Suri: The Impossibility of the American Presidency
18 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 58 min
Jeremi Suri holds the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, where he is Professor of History in the Department of History and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. Jeremi’s selection of topics in his work is sprawling, but he writes largely on modern and contemporary politics and foreign policy. In this episode, Robinson and Jeremi discuss the American presidency and how it has shifted over the past two hundred and fifty years to become an impossible position with impossible demands and expectations. Their conversation focuses on five presidents—George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy—though they also touch on Barrack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. Lees meer
Jeremi’s Website: https://www.jeremisuri.net
The Impossible Presidency: https://a.co/d/1mOgm7Q
Civil War by Other Means: https://a.co/d/19i6Jq1
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode
01:02 Introduction
05:17 What Are the Historian’s Skills?
15:54 Jeremi’s Background
18:58 Did Washington and Trump Have the Same Job?
25:23 How to Measure the Success of a President?
35:11 What Made Washington Great?
55:40 Was Andrew Jackson Actually a Great President?
01:07:29 How Abraham Lincoln Doomed the Presidency
01:17:20 Theodore Roosevelt and Military Imperialism
01:26:38 Was Franklin Roosevelt the Last Great President?
01:37:38 Why Did JFK Fail as President?
01:42:19 What is Obama’s Legacy?
01:48:08 Was Donald Trump the End of the Presidency?
01:55:06 Jeremi’s Advice for a Future President
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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128 - Clara Sousa-Silva: Exoplanets, Astrobiology, and the Search For Alien Life
16 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 27 min
Clara Sousa-Silva is a professor of physics at Bard College, where she is a quantum astrochemist and molecular astrophysicist. The focus of Clara’s work is on investigating the interaction of particular molecules with light so that they can be detected on exoplanets, where, in addition to giving us atmospheric information, these chemicals may indicate the existence of life. In this episode, Robinson and Clara discuss her research on a specific molecule—phosphine—which may play a key role in identifying planets that are home to aliens, including some that may be very close to earth. Lees meer
Clara’s Website: https://clarasousasilva.com
Clara’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrPhosphine
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:15 Introduction
03:46 Clara’s Interest in Astrophysics
14:08 What Is Phosphine?
27:15 A Stinky Gas and the Search for Aliens
38:37 Have We Encountered Aliens?
45:33 Aliens and Phosphine
50:46 The Daily Work of a Quantum Astrophysicist and Astrobiologist
01:00:36 Are There Aliens on Venus?
01:19:26 Finding Life Outside the Solar System
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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127 - Richard Wolff: What’s Wrong with Capitalism?
13 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 32 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. In this episode, Robinson and Richard discuss his criticisms of capitalism. They begin with why mainstream economists dismiss Marx and then move on to the basics of economics, the problems of our capitalist system, and the myriad social issues we face today. Lees meer
Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com
Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate
The Sickness is the System: https://a.co/d/jf5w5wy
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:26 Introduction
02:41 Why Do Economists Ignore Marx?
15:34 What is Economics?
22:50 Capitalism and What’s Wrong With It
56:12 What Are the Main Problems of Capitalism?
01:03:14 Psychoanalysis and Marxism
01:08:25 The Microproblems of Capitalism
01:18:57 The Social Consequences of Capitalism
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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126 - Michael Strevens: Scientific Explanation & Methodology and The Knowledge Machine
11 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 21 min
Michael Strevens is Professor of Philosophy at New York University, where he works across the philosophy of science and the philosophical applications of cognitive science. In this episode, Robinson and Michael talk about his recent book, The Knowledge Machine, which explores how irrationality shaped the Scientific Revolution. Along the way, they discuss the great debate over the nature of the scientific method—including appearances from Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn—how explanations function in science, and what roles religion, aesthetics, and other factors distinct from concrete evidence should play in scientific thought. Lees meer
Michael’s Website: http://www.strevens.org
The Knowledge Machine: https://a.co/d/0hmHDCm
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:51 Introduction
03:42 The Knowledge Machine
14:23 What is the Scientific Method?
21:28 Kuhn and the Scientific Method
30:41 Sociology and the Scientific Method
32:40 Reasoning, Evidence, and Prejudice
47:30 The Iron Rule of Explanation
57:09 The Irrationality of Scientific Thought
01:03:57 Newton, Bacon, and the Scientific Revolution
01:12:13 An Attack on Science?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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125 - Bas van Fraassen: Realism, Thomas Kuhn, and the Semantic Approach in Philosophy of Science
9 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 26 min
Bas van Fraassen is the McCosh Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at Princeton University and a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at San Francisco State University. In addition to being one of the most recognized philosophers of science working today—he received the Philosophy of Science Association’s inaugural Hempel Award—he has also worked in epistemology and logic. In this episode, Bas and Robinson discuss a major shift in the philosophy of science in the second half of the twentieth century from the view of the logical positivists, who had a formal, mathematical approach, to philosophers who adopted the semantic approach, which more closely aligned with how working scientists viewed and experienced the field. Some other issues touched on include scientific realism, Thomas Kuhn and The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and interpretations of quantum mechanics. Lees meer
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:51 Introduction
03:47 An Interest in the Philosophy of Science
06:44 Logical Positivism
19:56 What is Scientific Realism?
30:56 Kuhn and The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
39:13 The Semantic Approach
54:49 The Quantum Mechanics Interpretation Wars
01:08:12 Mathematical Models
01:12:31 Epistemology
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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124 - Jay McClelland: Deep Learning, Neural Networks, and Artificial Intelligence
6 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 48 min
Jay McClelland is Lucie Stern Professor in the Department of Psychology at Stanford University, where he is also Director of the Center for Mind, Brain, Computation and Technology. Along with other towering figures like Geoffrey Hinton, Jay is considered one of the fathers of artificial intelligence. In this episode, Robinson and Jay discuss some of his main interests in and contributions to the field, including his work on parallel distributed processing with David Rumelhart, the relationship between neural networks and the brain, and just what developments are necessary for artificial intelligence to replicate the thinking of the greatest human scientists and engineers. Lees meer
Parallel Distributed Processing: https://a.co/d/aELzYx2
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:30 Introduction
02:55 Jay’s Beginnings in Psychology
07:46 What Is Parallel Distributed Processing?
24:21 Cognitive Phenomena and Neural Networks
37:27 Fodor and Pylyshyn on Neural Networks
52:10 Affective Reasoning
55:52 Advancing AI to Compete with Scientists
01:10:02 What Distinguishes AI From Our Greatest Thinkers?
01:14:15 AI and Mathematical Cognition
01:18:47 Macrostructure and Microstructure
01:43:32 Final Thoughts
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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123 - Paul Boghossian: The Sokal Hoax, The A Priori, and Moral Facts
4 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 19 min
Paul Boghossian is Silver Professor of Philosophy at New York University, where he is also Chair of the Philosophy Department. Paul has worked in a wide variety of areas within philosophy, including epistemology and the philosophy of language, mind, and logic respectively. Robinson and Paul discuss the sociological relationship between physics and philosophy, the Sokal Hoax, philosophy in public life, the role of the a priori and a posteriori distinction in metaphysics, logic, and epistemology, and the nature of moral facts. For more detail on the latter, check out Paul’s book with Timothy Williamson, Debating The A Priori (Oxford, 2020). Lees meer
Debating The A Priori: https://a.co/d/diNADPx
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:32 Introduction
04:33 Physics and Philosophy
17:12 The Sokal Hoax
26:52 Distinguishing the A Priori and A Posteriori
31:59 Does The A Priori/A Posteriori Distinction Hold Water?
48:07 Clarifying the Distinction
53:51 Debating the A Priori with Timothy Williamson
01:03:11 Are There Moral Facts?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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122 - David Pizarro: Moral Psychology, Praise & Blame, Disgust & Politics
2 augustus 2023 · 1 uur 49 min
David Pizarro is Professor of Psychology at Cornell University. While he teaches and publicly discusses a wide variety of material in the discipline, his primary research interest is in moral judgment. In this episode, Robinson and David discuss some of the conceptual underpinnings of moral psychology before turning to the research on praise, blame, social cognition, and the relationship between disgust and political affiliation. David is also the co-host of two podcasts, Very Bad Wizards with Tamler Sommers and Psych with Paul Bloom. Lees meer
David’s Website: http://peezer.net
David’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/peez
Very Bad Wizards: https://verybadwizards.fireside.fm
Psych: https://psych.fireside.fm
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:39 Introduction
02:52 David’s Interest in Moral Psychology
06:42 Morality, Judgment, and Intuition in Psychology
30:40 Did Psychology Advance Too Fast
33:44 The Psychology of Praise and Blame
56:26 Why Do We Blame Objects and Robots?
01:10:09 Ostracism, Loneliness, and the Human Condition
01:14:27 The Psychology of Disgust
01:32:26 Disgust and Moral Judgement
01:40:10 Disgust Sensitivity and Political Affiliation
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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121 - Julian Barbour: Thermodynamics, Boltzmann Brains, and a New Theory of Time
30 juli 2023 · 1 uur 57 min
Julian Barbour is a physicist working in the foundations of physics and quantum gravity, with a special interest in time and the history of science. In this episode, Julian and Robinson discuss thermodynamics and the arrows of time, including a new theory of time developed by Julian and his collaborators, which is laid out in his book, The Janus Point: A New Theory of Time. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the John Bell Institute (Julian is an Honorary Fellow at the JBI), which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. At this early stage any donations are immensely helpful. Lees meer
Julian’s Website: http://platonia.com/index.html
The Janus Point: https://a.co/d/4NVOGqq
A History of Thermodynamics: http://platonia.com/A_History_of_Thermodynamics.pdf
Quantum without Quantum: https://arxiv.org/abs/2305.13335
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:56 Introduction
04:42 Julian’s Interest in Time
07:27 Time’s Arrows
23:34 The Problem of Time-Reversal Symmetry
25:54 A Potted Overview of Entropy and Thermodynamics
38:21 Entropy and Time’s Arrow
52:32 The Janus Point and a New Theory of Time
01:07:00 Intuition and The Janus Point
01:21:21 Entropy and Entaxy
01:26:00 Cosmic Inflation and Its Problems
01:44:05 Quantum Mechanics without the Wave Function
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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120 - Simon Blackburn: Vanity, Narcissism, Lust, and Pride
28 juli 2023 · 1 uur 3 min
Simon Blackburn was Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge and Edna J. Koury Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This is Simon’s second appearance on the show. In episode 68, Simon and Robinson discussed metaethics and moral realism. In this episode, they talk about his latest books, Lust and Mirror, Mirror, with special attention to toxic vanity, the tale of Narcissus, and pride. Lees meer
Lust: https://a.co/d/9dcOem9
Mirror, Mirror: https://a.co/d/9uy81GY
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:38 Introduction
03:08 Love and Simon’s Philosophy
10:04 L’Oreal and Toxic Vanity
31:09 The Tale of Narcissus
42:41 Lust and Self-Love
46:45 Psychology and Narcissism
52:43 Pride
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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119 - Mark Solms: Neuropsychoanalysis and the Source of Consciousness
26 juli 2023 · 1 uur 32 min
Mark Solms is professor of Neuropsychology at the Neuroscience Institute at the University of Cape Town. He is also a psychoanalyst, and while Mark’s early research focused on the brain mechanisms of sleep and dreaming, he is currently working on the neural correlates of consciousness and affect. In this episode, Robinson and Mark talk about his new book The Hidden Spring: A Journey to the Source of Consciousness. More particularly, they discuss the hard problem of consciousness and how recent advances in neuroscience have pointed toward a solution. Lees meer
The Hidden Spring: https://a.co/d/jcvbmLw
Mark’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mark_Solms
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:47 Introduction
03:09 What is Neuropsychoanalysis?
11:54 Was Freud a Neuroscientist?
26:17 What is the Hard Problem of Consciousness?
36:24 What is the Relationship between Dreaming and Consciousness?
54:44 Patients without a Cortex
01:03:01 Does Consciousness Have a Purpose?
01:14:53 Daniel Dennett and Karl Friston
01:24:49 Solving the Hard Problem of Consciousness
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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118 - Slavoj Žižek & Sean Carroll: Quantum Physics, the Multiverse, and Time Travel
23 juli 2023 · 1 uur 49 min
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. He was also the guest for Robinson’s Podcast #109 on psychoanalysis, wokeness, racism, and a hundred other topics. Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He is also host of Sean Carroll’s Mindscape, a terrific show (that influenced the birth of Robinson’s Podcast) about science, society, philosophy, culture, arts, and ideas. Sean was one of the guests—along with David Albert of Columbia—on Robinson’s Podcast #106, which covers the Many-Worlds theory of quantum mechanics, entropy and Boltzmann Brains, and the fine-tuned universe. In this episode, Robinson, Sean, and Slavoj (though mostly Sean and Slavoj) talk about quantum mechanics, the indeterminacy of small-scale reality, cosmology and the big bang, major figures like Niels Bohr, Einstein, and Stephen Hawking, and the world of sci-fi, including movies like Everything Everywhere All at Once, Indian Jones, and the Avengers. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the John Bell Institute (Sean is an Honorary Fellow at the JBI), which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. At this early stage any donations are immensely helpful. Lees meer
Robinson's Podcast #109 | Slavoj Žižek: Wokeness, Psychoanalysis, and Quantum Mechanics: https://youtu.be/IxmZ4AVac7U
Robinson’s Podcast #106 | David Albert & Sean Carroll: Quantum Theory, Boltzmann Brains, & The Fine-Tuned Universe: https://youtu.be/U6ZtmGIhIhU
Sean’s Website: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com
Sean’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcarroll
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe: https://a.co/d/dPKZ40X
The John Bell Institute: https://www.…
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117 - Anna Lembke: Dopamine, Drug Addiction, and Recovery
21 juli 2023 · 1 uur 28 min
Dr. Anna Lembke received her undergraduate degree in Humanities from Yale University and 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. In this episode, Robinson and Anna discuss her latest, New York Times bestselling book Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence (Dutton/Penguin Random House, August 2021). More particularly, they talk about just what happens in the brain when someone develops an addiction, what current social and cultural conditions have led to increased rates of addiction, and how all of these factors—and addiction itself—ought to be combatted. Anna is also the author of Drug Dealer, MD: How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked, and Why It’s So Hard to Stop (Johns Hopkins, 2016), which sounded the alarm on—and covers—various dimensions of the opioid crisis. Lees meer
Dopamine Nation: https://a.co/d/0AJw6Je
Drug Dealer, MD: https://a.co/d/2soL324
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:56 Introduction
04:10 Addiction and Narrative
11:18 The Role of Dopamine in Addiction
20:29 Risk Factors for Addiction
27:31 Anna’s Addiction to Romance Novels
40:39 Pain, Pleasure, and Addiction
59:11 How to Tackle Addictions?
01:15:09 Is The Hype For Medical Psychedelics Overblown?
01:21:51 Honesty, Shame, and Recovery from Addiction
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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116 - Massimo Pigliucci: Pseudoscience, Conspiracy Theories, and the Public Intellectual
19 juli 2023 · 1 uur 7 min
Massimo Pigliucci is K.D. Irani Professor of Philosophy at the City University of New York, where he specializes in both ancient philosophy and the philosophy of science. In addition to a doctorate in philosophy, Massimo has a PhD in evolutionary biology. In this episode, Robinson and Massimo discuss the vast landscape between science on the one hand and pseudoscience on the other, covering how they should be distinguished, examples galore, and the role of the public intellectual in science education. Check out Massimo’s excellent book, which ranges across these topics and more, Nonsense on Stilts: How to Tell Science from Bunk. Lees meer
Nonsense on Stilts: https://a.co/d/agrSGF4
Massimo’s Website: https://massimopigliucci.org
Massimo’s Substack: https://figsinwinter.substack.com/
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:22 Introduction
04:17 Massimo’s Interest in Pseudoscience
10:29 What Is Pseudoscience?
24:36 Pseudoscience and The Search For Aliens
39:43 Conspiracy Theories and Expert Selection
46:00 Should Scientists Debate Pseudoscientists and Conspiracy Theorists?
49:20 Aristotle and the Elements of Scientific Communication
59:41 The Decline of the Public Intellectual and the Rise of the Think Tank
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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115 - Craig Callender & Tim Maudlin: Time Travel, Time’s Arrow, and The Block Universe
16 juli 2023 · 2 uur 5 min
Craig Callender is Professor of Philosophy and Co-Director of the Institute for Practical Ethics at UC San Diego. Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Craig and Tim are leading philosophers of science and physics. Craig also appeared on episode 73, in which he and Robinson discussed pseudoscience and conspiracy theories. Tim was a guest on episode 46, which covered laws of nature, space, and free will, and episode 67 with David Albert, which was all about the foundations of quantum mechanics. In this episode, Craig, Tim, and Robinson delve into the philosophy of time, touching on the reality of the past, present, and future, the direction of time, its relationship to relativity and quantum mechanics, and time travel. Craig and Tim have both written on time. Check out Craig’s book What Makes Time Special? (Oxford University Press, 2017) and Tim’s book Philosophy of Physics, Volume 1: Space and Time (Princeton, 2012). If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the John Bell Institute, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. At this early stage any donations are immensely helpful. Lees meer
Craig’s Website: https://www.craigcallender.com
Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site
The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:12 Introduction
04:43 The A- and B-Series of Time
21:20 Presentism, Possibilism, and Eternalism
42:03 Foliations in Time
57:39 Foliations of Time in Quantum Theory
01:03:30 Superluminal Signaling
01:11:56 The Direction of Time
01:35:24 Philosophy and Time Travel
02:03:07 The John Bell Institute
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, weightl…
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114 - Eric Helms: Nutrition, Bodybuilding, & Supplementation for Strength and Aesthetics
14 juli 2023 · 1 uur 58 min
Eric Helms is an AUT Research Fellow at the Sports Performance Research Institute New Zealand (Auckland University of Technology) in the Strength & Conditioning and Sports Physiology and Nutrition research groups. He is also the Director and Chief Science Officer of 3DMJ, an organization devoted to strength training and education centered around the same, a competitive bodybuilder, co-host of the Iron Culture podcast—which comes highly, highly recommended by Robinson—and a founding editor and reviewer for Monthly Applications in Strength Sport. Eric is also the author of two terrific books on strength training and nutrition respectively, The Muscle and Strength Pyramid: Training and The Muscle and Strength Pyramid: Nutrition. In this episode, Robinson and Eric discuss one of his areas of expertise, nutrition, covering both broad topics like various approaches to structuring one’s diet and more specific questions like how much protein you should be consuming and what supplements you should be taking. Lees meer
Eric’s Instagram: @helms3dmj
Iron Culture: https://ironculture.libsyn.com
MASS: https://massresearchreview.com
3DMJ: https://3dmusclejourney.com
OUTLINE
00:00 Introduction
03:36 Eric’s Academic Background
11:14 Should You Get Your Diet Advice From Bodybuilders?
18:28 The Benefits of Intuitive Eating
52:25 How to Determine Maintenance Calories
59:50 How Much Protein Should You Be Eating?
01:16:38 MASS
01:20:08 Creatine
01:30:43 Should You Take BCAAs?
01:38:33 The Role of Meta-analyses in Sports Science
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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113 - David Spiegel: Hypnosis and Mental Illness
11 juli 2023 · 1 uur 33 min
David Spiegel is Willson Professor of Medicine and Associate Chair of Psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine. He did his undergraduate work at Yale and received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. David is highly regarded as one of the most creative psychiatrists in the field, and has worked on a wide array of topics within the discipline. In this episode, Robinson and David discuss his pioneering work in hypnotherapy, as David is the world’s leading hypnotherapist and hypnotherapy researcher. More particularly, they discuss the origins of hypnotherapy, its relationship to hypnosis in popular culture, how therapeutic interventions fare compare to pharmaceutical interventions for mental illness, how hypnosis treats mental disorders, and how self-hypnosis can be a useful tool in everyone’s mental health arsenal. David is also the Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Reveri, which is a groundbreaking self-hypnosis application for your smartphone that can guide you through a wide variety of modules to help improve sleep, anxiety, eating habits and many other facets of life. Lees meer
Reveri: https://www.reveri.com
Trance & Treatment: Clinical Uses of Hypnosis: https://a.co/d/0lLXoU2
OUTLINE:
00:00 Introduction
4:24 David’s Start in Hypnotherapy
10:28 Hypnotherapy’s Rising Popularity
16:46 Therapy Versus Medication?
23:50 PTSD, MDMA, and Hypnosis
30:37 What Is Hypnotherapy?
36:05 Hypnosis and Comedic Gags
39:24 Are You Hypnotizable
59:31 Is Hypnotherapy Supported by Research?
01:04:41 Can Hypnosis Treat Eating Disorders?
01:09:20 Hypnosis, Restructuring, Psychopathy, and Understanding the Self
01:15:32 Reveri and Self-Hypnosis
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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112 - Victor Davis Hanson: Revisionist History and the Dying Citizen
9 juli 2023 · 1 uur 1 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 his latest book, The Dying Citizen. More particularly, they talk about the Ancient Greek origin of a flourishing egalitarian society centered around the notion of citizenship, the way this history has been subverted and recast, the perils of judging the past through the lens of the present, how citizenship is threatened in the United States today, and the nature of human progress. 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 Dying Citizen: https://a.co/d/dPocUJg
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:18 Introduction
04:10 The Dying Classics
10:28 Ancient Greece and the Perils of Revisionist History
20:55 Don’t Judge the Past Against the Present
24:32 The Difference between Citizens and Residents
40:04 The Importance of Citizenship
47:37 On Our Obsession with Inequality
51:23 Is Humankind Making Progress?
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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111 - Avi Loeb: Alien Life, Extraterrestrial Spacecraft, and Oumuamua
7 juli 2023 · 1 uur 50 min
Avi Loeb is Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science in the Department of Astronomy at Harvard University, and former chair of the department. Before joining Harvard he spent fifteen years working in theoretical astrophysics at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. He is also the Director of the Institute for Theory and Computation, the Founding Director of the Black Hole Initiative at Harvard, and Head of the Galileo Project. In this episode, Avi and Robinson discuss his controversial and compelling research on—and theories about—Oumuamua, a comet that passed through the solar system in 2017, and which Avi believes was a spacecraft of extra-terrestrial origin. They also talk about the likelihood of life outside earth, Avi’s current investigations into the same, and his upcoming book Interstellar: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life and Our Future in the Stars, which will be released on August 29, 2023. Lees meer
Interstellar: https://a.co/d/8Or10aM
Avi on Medium: https://avi-loeb.medium.com
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode
01:38 Introduction
04:56 Avi’s Interest in Extra-Terrestrial Life
25:04 Avi’s Background in Astrophysics
33:14 The Fermi Paradox
45:09 Was Oumuamua an Alien Spacecraft?
01:31:27 Interstellar
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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110 - Daniel Kahneman: Biases and Flaws in Human Judgment
4 juli 2023 · 1 uur 7 min
Daniel Kahneman is Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Public Policy at Princeton University. He won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 2002 for joint work with Amos Tversky in which they revealed the biases and heuristics with which humans operate, thereby deviating from the rationality presumed by economic theory at the time. Among this and many other awards, Danny was also given the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Barrack Obama. While Danny is likely best known outside of psychology for his book Thinking Fast and Slow, he and Robinson discuss his latest a book, co-authored with Olivier Simony and Cass Sunstein, called Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgment, which concerns the astonishingly prevalent and damaging variability inherent in human judgment. Lees meer
Noise: https://a.co/d/hbKBQKD
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:55 Introduction
06:16 Danny’s Childhood
11:23 The Difference Between Noise and Bias
16:21 Some Themes from Noise
18:57 Noise in the Judicial System
32:36 Noise in the Medical System
37:59 The Difficulty of Spotting Noise
39:58 Psychology and the Descriptive, Prescriptive, and Normative
43:14 Decision Hygiene for Reducing Bias and Noise in Judgment
54:32 Limiting Intuitions to Improve Decision-Making
01:00:38 Understanding Regression to the Mean
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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109 - Slavoj Žižek: Wokeness, Psychoanalysis, and Quantum Mechanics
2 juli 2023 · 1 uur 36 min
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. He and Robinson discuss a great many things, including the role of psychoanalysis in the cultural criticism of wokeness, the relationship between truth, science, and philosophy, and what quantum theory might tell us about the nature of reality. Lees meer
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:31 Introduction
04:07 Wokeness and Psychoanalysis
15:00 Free Speech and Curb Your Enthusiasm
23:32 Trans Ideology and Racism
34:23 Violence, Gender, and the Unconscious
41:06 Fate, Freedom, and Falling in Love
48:53 Free Association and Gender Identity
53:08 Truth, Science, and Quantum Theory
57:22 Nazis, the Jew, and Psychoanalysis
01:04:26 Unholy Alliances
01:07:20 Analytic and Continental Philosophy
01:17:27 World War III and Ontological Openness
01:23:25 Life is a Quantum Theory Video Game
01:27:27 Hegel and Quantum Theory
01:31:01 A Dirty Joke about Quantum Theory
01:34:14 Nazi Testicle Torture
(Photo by Matt Carr/Licensed from Getty Images)
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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108 - Chiara Mingarelli: Supermassive Black Holes & the Gravitational Wave Background
29 juni 2023 · 1 uur 32 min
Chiara Mingarelli is a gravitational-wave astrophysicist and a professor in the Department of Physics at Yale University. She studies supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies and their mergers using data about gravitational waves that are detected by pulsar timing array experiments. In this episode, Robinson and Chiara discuss PTAs, gravitational waves, black holes, how and why they merge, and the fresh release of NANOgrav’s fifteen-year data set, which gives the first ever evidence of a gravitational wave background in the universe, an unprecedented discovery that marks the dawn of a new era of astrophysical research. Lees meer
Chiara’s Website: https://www.chiaramingarelli.com/
Chiara’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Dr_CMingarelli
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode...
00:30 Introduction
02:58 Chiara’s Interest in Black Holes
10:25 What Are Gravitational Waves
15:47 Detecting Gravitational Waves
31:39 How to Visualize Black Holes
40:55 Black Holes and Gravitational Waves
48:51 Two Different Backgrounds
53:46 Collecting and Interpreting Data
56:36 Why Do Black Holes Anchor Galaxies?
58:34 Why Do Black Holes Form Binaries?
01:04:25 Lingering Questions
01:11:33 Cosmic Strings
01:17:35 NANOgrav’s Data Release and the Gravitational Wave Background
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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107 - Kevin Dorst: Bayesian Reasoning, Irrationality, and Political Polarization
27 juni 2023 · 1 uur 46 min
Kevin Dorst is a professor in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at MIT. He works at the intersection between philosophy and social science, focusing on rationality. In this episode Kevin and Robinson discuss just this: They begin with classical theories of rationality and where they fall short before discussing instances where the empirical literature shows that humans do not reason rationally at all, touching on the gambler’s fallacy, sunk-cost reasoning, and the hindsight bias. They then move on to discuss the phenomenon of political polarization, which draws both on our capacity for rationality and irrationality. Make sure to check out Kevin’s Substack, Stranger Apologies. Lees meer
Stranger Apologies: https://kevindorst.substack.com
Kevin’s Website: https://www.kevindorst.com
Kevin’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/kevin_dorst
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
01:02 Introduction
04:14 Rationality and Philosophy
15:14 Bayesian Reasoning
45:10 The Hindsight Bias
56:53 What is Bias?
01:04:03 The Gambler’s Fallacy
01:15:00 Sunk-Cost Reasoning
01:19:07 Political Polarization
01:40:12 Talking Through Disagreement
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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.
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106 - David Albert & Sean Carroll: Quantum Theory, Boltzmann Brains, & The Fine-Tuned Universe
25 juni 2023 · 2 uur 10 min
David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University and Director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia. David is a prior guest of the Robinson’s Podcast multiverse, having appeared on episodes #23 (with Justin Clarke-Doane), #30, and #67 (with Tim Maudlin). Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He is also host of Sean Carroll’s Mindscape, a terrific show (that influenced the birth of Robinson’s Podcast ) about science, society, philosophy, culture, arts, and ideas. Sean also had a great conversation with David on Mindscape, linked below. Both David and Sean are rare breeds—philosophers who are physicists, and physicists who are philosophers—and in this episode Robinson, David, and Sean speak about some of the philosophical concerns at the foundations of physics. They first discuss the Many-Worlds theory of quantum mechanics before turning to the apparent fine-tuning of our universe for life and the possibility of Boltzmann Brains, or complex observers in the universe that arise spontaneously due to quantum fluctuations or the random motion of matter. Lees meer
Preorder David’s A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/4MUEJZN
Sean’s Website: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com
Sean’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcarroll
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe: https://a.co/d/dPKZ40X
David Albert on Sean Carroll’s Mindscape: https://youtu.be/AglOFx6eySE
OUTLINE
00:00 In This Episode…
00:59 Introduction
08:11 Superposition and The Many-Worlds Theory of Quantum Mechanics
22:34 Decoherence
27:20 Probability
41:32 Some Thought Experiments Concerning Probability
01:08:35 Parsimony
01:12:03 The Fine-Tuned Universe and Quantum Theory
01:14:52 Entropy
01:45:37 Intelligent Design
01:47:22 Boltzmann Brains Galore
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the found…