Recreational Overthinking

Morality, information encoding, and free will are all part of the discussion this week, as the boys take on one of their most broad-reaching topics to date.If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us.New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

It seems obvious that faced with a decision, we should always prefer more optionality. The Paradox of Choice, which Ben brings to the episode this week, however, has other ideas. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

To ring in the New Year, Harrison shines the spotlight on a minor talking point from a previous episode that flew under the radar at the time. Tune in this week to discover the common thread between burnt dinners, flirting, and Santa Claus. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

We've all grown up with Mum telling us never to lie, but despite the fact that she always knows best, just how sound is this age-old advice? In this week's episode, Ben shares his thoughts on strategic honesty amidst a discussion that gets into the areas of midnight muggings, code words, and friends hiding in basements. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

"Who would you choose to swap lives with?" It's a question that we've likely all briefly pondered at some point before returning our thoughts to more consequential and tangible matters in our lives. However, although the intricacies of such a harmless question don't necessarily need to be scrutinised over, they certainly can be scrutinised over, and, in this week's episode, very much are scrutinised over. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

Harrison's recent gripe with a sub-optimal pepper shaker has led to some built-up frustration, which he chooses to take out on Ben's financial frugality mentality. As is always the case, however, Ben is not without a good defence. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

You've probably heard sayings like 'do what makes you happy' and 'live in a way your future self would be proud of.' But can these two ideas really coexist? In this week's episode, Harrison and Ben discuss whether we should be optimising for real time experiences or memories, getting into the all-important areas of tiramisu quantities, memory implantation, ice baths, and, as every Italian calls it, spag bol. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

We're doing Fermi estimates this week, and put Ben to the test with two tricky problems. In this play-along-at-home episode, see how you fare against him in terms of both accuracy and speed. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

Ben's in the mood to talk paradoxes this week, much to Harrison's delight, and in typical Recreational Overthinking style, he manages to tie it all together with a neat throughline. Sprinkle in some psychological fallacies, linguistic ambiguities, and babies in urns: what's not to love?If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning.Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

What's the common thread bewteen artifical intelligence, happiness, and Gjirokaster? This week, Harrison brings to light a counterintuitive phenomenon about making things better by, well, not making them better. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

Ben's been broadening his cultural horizons with some Eastern European backpacking. In particular, in the heart of Czechia, he recently stumbled upon a slightly dodgy restaurant pricing scheme, swindling him out of a few hard-earned euros. What could one reasonably expect him to do other than bring it to the podcast for a meticulous dissection? If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. Follow us, or get in touch, on Instagram at @recreationaloverthinking

If you're a big American Survivor fan, and are keen on hearing us go deep on tactic talk, challenge strategies, and voting dynamics, this probably isn't the episode for you. Instead, if you've come to hear two blokes chat about a blame-distribution-related problem that couldn't be more loosely tethered to American Survivor if we tried, then jump on in. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

In his sleep-deprived state, Harrison decides to bring a waking-up-related topic to the table. Join us this fortnight for a wandering discussion on anthropics, lost jumpers, Sleeping Beauty, and, of course, restless nights. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Can the actions of a single individual make a tangible difference in the world? In this episode, Harrison and Ben lock horns to tackle a long-standing disagreement related to voting ballots, tree planting, and potluck dinners. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Across our previous ten episodes, utilitarianism has been our go-to approach to solving ethical dilemmas, but is it really all it's chalked up to be? In this episode, we put utilitarianism in the spotlight in a head-to-head debate. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

One of our best mates has just gotten engaged, so, as all good mates should, we milked it for a podcast episode, discussing it through the lens of meta-knowledge, common knowledge, and Aumann's Agreement Theorem. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Ben puts Harrison through his paces with pressing questions about what he'd do in a hypothetical world sans logic and rationality. Will Harrison take on the role of Earth's saviour, or exploit the situation for his own gain? If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

How exactly can we establish the root causes of our behaviours? In this episode of Recreational Overthinking, Harrison and Ben discuss which of a swim brunch, Captain Cook arriving on Australia's shores, or the Big Bang is responsible for an early wake up. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

We kick off by putting Ben under the microscope regarding some controversial comments in a previous episode, which ultimately takes us down a path of morality, free will, and Steve Smith's batting prowess. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Across our first five episodes, we've used a lot of rationality...perhaps even a little too much. In this episode, we flip the script, diving into whether there exist situations where rational thinking actually leads to suboptimal outcomes. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Wisdom of crowds - is it really a thing? Or should truly rational agents take a more aggressive approach? In this episode, two men who've never left a hostel review in their lives discuss, for nearly an hour, what to consider when leaving hostel reviews. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Ben's got a long lost twin? Harrison's a better tennis player than Novak Djokovic? The Earth really is flat? Join Harrison and Ben as they roleplay some hypothetical scenarios to unpack how much evidence would (and should) be required to overturn strongly held beliefs. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Grandma's had a fall! But should a truly rational agent be happy or sad upon receiving the news? In this episode, Harrison and Ben apply utilitarianism to a seemingly distressing situation to uncover some surprising results. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

If two products are of noticeably different qualities on a relative scale, but not two independent, absolute scales, then can we really say that one is better than the other? Join Harrison and Ben as they wade through a tricky thought experiment that shows up surprisingly often in real world scenarios. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com

Who cops the blame (and financial repercussions) of a rental car crash? In the inaugural episode of Recreational Overthinking, Harrison and Ben tackle an uncomfortable ethical dilemma. If you're enjoying Recreational Overthinking, be sure to follow us. New episodes are released every second Tuesday morning. For enquiries, send us an email at: hjcusack@hotmail.com