The Jack Lawrence Podcast

You only have feelings. This is the paradigm argued for by Nick Shackleton Jones. Nick is the author of the book How People Learn, which offers an entirely new model for learning and cognition which he thinks can massively improve performance, learning, and education.  Nick is many things - he is an author, a speaker, a philosopher, a psychology lecturer, and has worked in both the academic and corporate worlds, including time at the BBC, Deloitte, PA consulting and others in positions centred around learning and innovation. He's a rare individual. I had so much fun talking to him. We talk about his ideas, philosophy, neuroscience, how best to learn, consciousness and AI, among many other things . There's a lovely mix of practical and intellectual stuff here, so I think there's something for everyone - please enjoy.  You can also find a video version of this podcast here: https://youtu.be/UdD6sbBeer4TIMESTAMPS:00:00 Intro01:22 You don't have thoughts, you only have feelings04:36 The philosophical foundations06:10 But what about maths?10:16 What does "think rationally" really mean?15:06 What is philosophy driven by?17:49 Mandatory Stoicism dig20:19 Nietzsche's point21:44 Memory Champions23:25 The Affective Context Model26:59 Definitions of Memory and Learning30:43 School doesn't help learning37:33 Education reform43:17 Why does everyone have to get along?46:59 What's the difference using Nick's approach?54:32 Making yourself care about what you need to learn about57:37 We talk about World of Warcraft for a bit01:03:42 Video games and Learning Design01:06:37 Won't we just end up with Minecraft experts?01:15:34 Advice for teachers01:18:00 Should we rethink what intelligence is?01:23:38 The problem of language01:28:46 The AI question01:33:29 What will technology be doing with us 10,000 years from now?01:34:57 Does AI inevitably make us dumber?01:40:39 How does Nick avoid nihilism??01:44:29 Pessimistic Meta-Induction01:47:22 A joke about behaviourism 01:49:32 Does reality exist independently of our feelings?01:54:58 What is Nick unsure of?01:58:59 Why can't we create LLM's that have feelings?02:03:34 Geniuses are affectation geniuses02:05:49 Nietzsche's comedic life02:12:08 What evidence could disprove Shackleton's paradigm?02:18:09 Combating bad ideas online02:25:28 Bad role models02:30:15 The temptation of digital relationships for young men02:32:09 The losing case for Reality02:44:11 Where to find more of Nick's stuffFor more of Nick:https://www.tiktok.com/@shackletonjoneshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/shackletonjones/ His book is called "How People Learn: A New Model of Learning and Cognition to Improve Performance and Education" and can be found on Amazon and other booksellersFor more of me:https://linktr.ee/Jacklawrencehttps://substack.com/@jacklawrohttps://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ https://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawro

In today's episode I interview Femi Oluwole! Femi is a British political activist and one of the most prominent voices in the anti-Brexit movement. He co-founded the group Our Future Our Choice (OFOC), which aimed to mobilize young people against Brexit, advocating for a second referendum on the UK's membership in the European Union. He's also a unique individual in that he straddles both traditional and social media in spreading awareness about Brexit, as well as conducting debates. I really enjoyed this interview and hope you will too! 00:00:00 Intro00:01:29 Podcast begins with me mumbling00:01:39 How would Femi describe what he does?00:01:59 Femi's journey to political activism00:04:40 Femi's experience of the Brexit vote result00:07:24 Our Future Our Choice00:09:17 How has Brexit damaged the UK?00:12:27 How to avoid echo chambers00:16:29 Do the Tories believe their own rhetoric?00:21:09 What informs Femi's values?00:23:09 What defines 'Good' to Femi?00:27:47 What forms of online activism are most effective?00:30:49 How can the left combat outrage content?00:36:29 What politicians do Femi like?00:38:49 Alternative Voting Referendum00:39:53 How do comment sections differ on different platforms?00:47:16 How does Femi deal with online racism and vitriol?00:49:04 Removing anger as TV prep00:50:34 Is sunlight the best disinfectant?00:52:33 How does one develop cool-headedness in debates?00:55:31 What other changes would Femi like to see in UK politics?00:58:37 What ways would Femi like people to engage with politics?01:02:24 Is Just Stop Oil ineffective activism?01:05:18 What is a message that Femi would like everyone to know?01:07:29 What do those disenchanted with politics need to reengage?01:12:09 How can one educate themselves in Politics?01:15:37 A really good Reality TV idea01:16:34 For some reason I start talking about edibles01:20:29 How can people support Femi?01:21:59 Closing thoughts on Buffy the Vampire SlayerFor all of Femi's stuff: https://www.instagram.com/femi_sorry/?hl=enhttps://www.youtube.com/@Femi_Sorryhttps://www.patreon.com/femi_Sorryhttps://www.tiktok.com/@femi_sorry?lang=enhttps://twitter.com/Femi_SorryFor my stuff:https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ for IGhttps://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawrofor TikTokhttps://www.Jacklawrence.net for my website

Godesulloh is a philosopher, teacher, podcaster, musician and lover of bubble tea. In this interview we discuss African Philosophy, Kierkegaard, Stoicism vs Broicism, Effective Altruism and much moreTimestamps:01:15 Who is Godesulloh and why is he in my flat02:38 Challenges making educational philosophy content on Tiktok05:00 How would Godesulloh explain African Philosophy09:40 Where African Philosophy sits in Academia16:14 The African Logic Conversation20:44 Why does Godesulloh like Kierkegaard so much24:25 Reviewing some Kierkegaard quotes27:35 Living to avoid regret35:01 Does everything work out for the best?39:15 Living in harmony with Nature is bad43:10 Longtermism and its faults47:09 Effective Altruism50:25 Godesulloh on Longtermism59:09 Effective Altruism issue1:03:45 Mr Beast Philanthropy1:06:33 Capitalism pros and cons1:09:45 Do we want a FAIR or GOOD society?1:13:38 Philosophy as self help1:15:35 Stoicism vs Broicism1:24:15 Where to find out more about GodesullohGodesulloh has all of his links through here: https://msha.ke/godesullohHis youtube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/@vibesestvidaAnd my socials are:https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ for IGhttps://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawrofor TikTokhttps://www.Jacklawrence.net for my website

Hello! WE'RE BACK In this episode the wonderful Godesulloh J. Bawa (philosopher, podcaster, teacher, musician and all round cool guy) and I sit down and try and answer the top questions of all time from the subreddit https://www.reddit.com/r/askphilosophy/ We get side-tracked a bit talking about relationships and end it with a discussion on the morality of killing baby Hitler - good times! Timestamps:02:15 Why is it so hard to think beyond Capitalism?06:32 Why are there so many cringe Stoicism videos?08:52 Why does suffering sometimes foster growth, and sometimes embitter or traumatize people?15:55 Relationships on tiktok31:36 Why isn't the field of philosophy more interested in communicating its ideas to the public?36:48 How can you be confident in your beliefs if there is an infinite amount you don't know that might affect your beliefs?44:03 How do you overcome philosophy paralyzing your ability to say anything?48:52 Would you kill baby Hitler?Godesulloh has all of his links through here: https://msha.ke/godesullohHis youtube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/@vibesestvidaAnd my socials are:https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ for IGhttps://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawrofor TikTokhttps://www.Jacklawrence.net for my website

"I always wanted to have this big impact, and to work on something that's changing the world"My guest today is Adam Boro. Adam is a magnificent filmmaker, who currently has over half a million followers on TikTok. You may have seen some of his mega viral videos, which include taking a girl to the north pole for a first date, randomly travelling to a desert oasis or his adventures in Machu Picchu. Prior to his recent infamy, Adam studied aerospace engineering, interned at NASA, and was even involved with YES Theory. Adam is a fascinating character, who for me seems to embody a kind of carpe diem philosophy - hell bent on living life to the fullest, and improving the lives of others in the process. But he wasn't always this way, and in this interview he is remarkably open about his struggles with anxiety, the challenges of being an online creator, and the various road bumps he's encountered on the journey to getting to where he is today. And all of this is done knowing full well that he's in the very early stages of his creative life. We get into all of this and more in this wonderful conversation. If you're someone who is curious about getting started in filmmaking, creating videos online, or can even relate to the feeling of not quite  having found your crowd yet, I think you'll take something away from this conversation. Adam is awesome, I think he's someone to keep an eye on in the years to come.Follow Adam on Instagram/TikTok: @adamboroFollow me on Instagram/TikTok: @jack.lawroPatreon: patreon.com/jacklawrence

"Time is the dimension by which consciousness experiences change"My guest today is Ben Johnston Handy, You probably know Ben as the prolific TikTok creator @Benjhandy, who has over 1.1 million followers. He makes videos on futurism, science, and most recently, what to do in a dangerous/embarrassing situation. But Ben has done and does many other things, including writing, screenwriting, theatre, all of which we get into in this conversation. I've been a huge fan of Ben's videos for a while so it was super great to speak with him. We talk about a wide array of subjects in this podcast, including Movies, Writing, Theatre, DnD, AI, and the nature of time.  Ben is a humble, funny, spectacular explainer of ideas and I think you'll walk away with a lot from this conversation just as I did.  Ben's tiktok: @benjhandyMy tiktok/insta: @jack.lawroPatreon: patreon.com/jacklawrence

"I was always motivated by the idea of - what if there was a way to break the system? If you know the system you can break the system. And if you can break the system, then you can do cool stuff"Today's guest is Kilian Lohmann - he's an Oxford Physicist, who has recently submitted his PhD Researching Solar Cells. He's also an improvised comedian, and, I'm lucky enough to say, he's a very dear friend of mine.Kilian studied Natural Sciences, specialising in Physics at Cambridge University for his undergrad which is where we met, as I was doing exactly the same course, at the same college. After completing his undergrad and masters, Kilian went to Oxford to do his PhD, where I also went at the same time to do my masters, and we lived together for a year. Kilian is one of the most brilliant, kind and unique people I know. So often intellect is associated with harsh metaphors - razor sharp, cutting, piercing, but Kilian is an example of where we need different metaphors. He's warm, humble and quietly confident, while at the same time possessing great insight both within science and life generally. I've learned a great deal from him. To my delight, this episode shows both those sides of Kilian really well. We talk about his research on solar cells, but then move on more broadly to his strong sense of morality, discussions of god and science, improv comedy and how it helps with the scientific process, and his advice to anyone aspiring to get into Physics.During this episode, as an fyi, there's a couple of bits where Kilian's girlfriend Chelsea chimes in - this episode was recorded in their house, and it just so happens that she is also a physicist who also works on solar cells. I chose to leave those bits in as they show how a bit more about how Kilian thinks and it made me laugh.More on Kilian's research: https://www.physics.ox.ac.uk/our-people/lohmannInsta: @jack.lawroTikTok: @jack.lawropatreon.com/jacklawrence 

"The fact that Science can call itself out when there are gaps in its knowledge - and it can update and make revisions overtime - people see that as being inconsistent, but it's actually more about being  being more and more confident over time as we update our understanding. People think that Science contradicts itself, but that's the best part."My guest today is Alice O'Keefe. Alice is a PhD student at the University of Wollongong in Australia, where she is studying the usage of Nanoparticles for treating brain tumours - which turns out to be just as cool as it sounds. Alice also makes videos on TikTok about physics, most recently around the interpretations of Quantum Mechanics. The conversation you're about to hear was incredibly fun to record. When Alice and I first spoke on a call before the podcast, she said to me that she suspected that she and I were basically the same person, which was remarkably prophetic given how similar some of our ideas turned out to be. We start off talking a bit about her research, and then shift into talking about science and philosophy more broadly. We ask questions such as:What qualities make for a good scientist and teacher? What are the interpretations of Quantum Mechanics and why are they needed? And we even touch on ideas in Buddhism and Daoism and how they relate to science. You can find more from Alice O'Keefe on her socials below:Instagram: @aliceo.keefeTiktok: @labratbagMy socials:Instagram/Tiktok: @jack.lawrojacklawrence.netPatreon.com/jacklawrence

In this highly requested solo episode I present an introduction to the Philosophy of Science.I've explored some of these ideas in some tiktok videos, and have mentioned them in other episodes tangentially, giving brief explanations. In this episode, I offer a short crash-course into some of those key ideas. We will ask ourselves what Science fundamentally is? What separates it from other kinds of knowledge? How do we justify scientific knowledge - that is, how does science fundamentally work, what makes it so successful? I'll be primarily looking at the work of two philosophers who give two radically different, but both quite persuasive, accounts of science - Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn.If you'd like to read further on this, some books mentioned:The Knowledge Machine - Michael StrevensWhat Is This Thing Called Science? - Alan ChalmersThe Logic of Scientific Discovery - Karl PopperThe Structure of Scientific Revolutions - Thomas KuhnAlso note - I'll likely be switching to a fortnightly schedule for the forseeable future, just to make sure I can keep the quality of these episodes high while keeping up with everything else. It'll also allow me to edit together clips for YouTube and more tightly edit interviews.My socials:@jack.lawro for both Instagram and TikTokpatreon.com/jacklawrence 

"Find something you like doing, and go for it" - Dr Charlotte WaterfallDr Charlotte Waterfall is an astrophysicist specialising in Heliophysics and Space Weather. She is currently working as a postdoctoral researcher following the completion of her PhD work on flaring young stars. She is better known as Space_Waterfall on TikTok where she makes educational content around her career, the latest activity from the Sun, and wider Astrophysics topics.In this conversation we do a deep dive into all the topics Dr Waterfall makes TikToks about. We start off with all things heliophysics including solar flares, magnetic storms, and their associated risks for our planet. Our conversation then shifts into talking about Dr Waterfall's academic path in physics, the culture of academia and women in STEM. This was a super fun episode that everyone can get something out of, particularly those between GCSE all the way up to first year undergrad who are curios about a career in physics. Without further ado, here is Dr Waterfall. 

"Don't answer the poll yet, it's time for another moral dilemma..."My guest today is Ethan Milne, better known as TallPsychology on TikTok.Ethan is a doctoral student at the Ivey business school at western university, where he researchers the role of aggression in consumer behavior.Ethan has had his research published in top medical journals, holds two patents, and makes TikTok's generally focused around psychology, behavioural science, and ethical dilemmas.In this episode we discuss, among other things, combating misinformation on Tiktok, how brands are using social media in new ways, the pitfalls of empathy as a tool for moral decisions, why perhaps creators should block people more often, and of course, we consider some ethical dilemmas. Ethan's a great, fascinating guy, I learned a lot in this conversation, I hope you will as well. We also discuss Hank Green and Ratatouille. 

"I think there are two types of people that do science. People that like the process and people that just want to know more, and I am very much one of the people that just wants to know more. " - Dr Helena BatesDr Helena Bates is a Planetary Scientist, currently working as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Natural History Museum. She has a PhD in physics on the formation and evolution of asteroids through the analysis of carbonaceous chondrite meteorites,  facilitated by the university of Oxford and the Natural History Museum. She studied Geophysics at Imperial, and up until recently was actually the curator of the meteorite collection at the museum itself.This conversation was amazing. Dr Bates is a fountain of knowledge. In this conversation we cover: What planetary science is and the current mysteries that are at the forefront of the field. We talk about how to identify a meteorite - that is, how to tell if a rock you've found landed from outer space. We talk about flat earthers, alien life, how science is portrayed in the media and what science is fundamentally about. We also discuss the lack of women in some STEM fields, particularly physics, and the challenges of being an academic generally.  You can find Dr Helena Bates @Hellybates on Twitter.My socials:@jack.lawro for IG@jack.lawro for TikTokJacklawrence.net If you'd like to support this podcast, please share it with a friend, give us a rating on your particular app of choice, or you can find my patreon at patreon.com/jacklawrence 

In this intro episode I talk about what shaped my thinking from a young age, focusing primarily on David Deutsch's book The Fabric of Reality. I also give an overview of my background, my intentions for the podcast, and some anecdotes from how I ended up here recording this. Books mentioned:The Fabric of Reality by David DeutschA New History of Western Philosophy by Anthony KennyBook list:http://jacklawrence.net/booksSocials:@jack.lawro on IG@jack.lawro on TikTokJacklawrence.net