Podcasts about our nature

Welcome back to our Podcast. and in this episode, we are going to explore the mysterious junction between human potential and the human predicament. Today, we're diving into an idea that may sting a little at first, but, if we look closely, it might also open a hidden door to hope. It involves the unfortunate observation that while human technology, what we do, has evolved at an astonishing pace, human consciousness, who we actually are, has lagged significantly behind. Our ability to split atoms, utilize instant global communications, and code digital realities has raced ahead at lightning speed, fueling our Modern Times. But our capacity for empathy, humility, compassion and having the capacity to be able to live a peaceful, and meaningful life looks much more like we're still stuck the Middle Ages. Which brings us to the content of this episode called “Spears and Switchblades: One Stubborn Species.” To help bring the basic idea into focus, we're going to compare two of the most iconic love tragedies ever put on the stage: William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and its mid-20th century musical reincarnation, West Side Story. Though separated by more than 350 years, these two narratives—one set in Renaissance Verona and the other in 1950s New York City—are mirrors reflecting the same fundamental human flaws. Jealousy. Tribalism. Miscommunication , Stubborness and Pride, among many others. All of which are run by an emotional impulsivity that can turn love into war, and beauty into ashes. So, the first question that we want to explore is: have we grown at all in the past 400 years? Or have we simply become more sophisticated in the weaponry that we have developed in order to kill each other more efficiently? Let's start with the core human dynamics that drive both plays, because even though they are separated by centuries, their basic human flaws remain exactly the same. In Romeo and Juliet, two teenagers fall in love across the boundary of a family feud. The Montagues and Capulets have nursed a blood vendetta for so long that no one even remembers how it started. And it doesn't matter anymore. They just plain hate each other. And its consequences are clear: violence in the streets, death, heartbreak, and ultimately, a double suicide. What are the dominant negative human traits here? Hatred passed down like an heirloom Honor culture run amok Impetuous emotion overpowering reason A lack of inner stillness or reflection, overcome by rage Fast forward 400 years to West Side Story, and we meet Tony and Maria, two lovers from opposing street gangs: the Jets, composed mostly of white working-class youths, and the Sharks, made up of Puerto Rican immigrants. Once again, love blossoms in hostile soil, and once again, the terrible price of primal tribal hatred is death. Different clothes, different slang, different soundtrack. Same madness. And this is the bottom line of the issue. Totally different external world, everything has changed, as well it should. After all, four hundred years have gone by and the situation facing the teenagers living in the streets of New York City would be absolutely unimaginable to the kids running around in the late 1500's.  Completely different on the outside – yet the inner madness remains exactly the same. And the ramifications of this imbalance are immense. Let's compare the outer worlds of these two stories: Romeo and Juliet takes place in late 16th-century Verona. It's a world without electricity, medicine as we know it, or organized police. Family ruled everything. Honor was a matter of life and death. Raw emotions emerged dramatically and physically. And the sword was both symbol and solution. West Side Story unfolds in 1950s Manhattan, post-WWII. Televisions had entered the living room. Jet engines had conquered the sky. The UN had been formed, civil rights movements were stirring. Science had given us vaccines, electricity, and refrigeration. And yet... disputes were still settled with violence. In this case, the weapon of choice was the switch blade. Anger and tribal pride still led to bloodshed. And the beauty of love still ended in the tragedy funerals. So, what changed? The world around us got faster, smarter and ever-more connected. But the world inside us? Pretty much the same old garbage pail. And one of the primary central drivers in both stories is basic tribalism—the instinct to form in-groups and out-groups. The name of the game is us-versus-them. In Romeo and Juliet, the tribes are defined by blood. In West Side Story, by race and ethnicity. In both, the borders are irrational and absolute. This human trait is ancient, seemingly almost hardwired into our survival code. We evolved in small tribes where loyalty equaled life, and strangers equaled threat. But now we live in megacities, online echo chambers where we're still addicted to tribalism. We divide ourselves by politics, religion, race, nationality, gender identity, and more—often with a sense of inner hostility that's far more emotional than rational. In both plays, the pride of belonging to an in-crowd becomes a major fuse. Tybalt's stone cold sense of us and them, along with an ego based identification with personal honor won't let him ignore Romeo's presence at the Capulet ball. Four hundred years later, Bernardo's defense-based sense of belonging to the Sharks won't let him see Tony as anything but another American self-entitled Jet. In both cases, primal tribal dignity demands a serious and significant attack against the perceived enemy. So, the basic recipe for tragedy that spans the centuries remains the same: paranoid pride, mixed with anger and fear, driven by impulse and untampered by any wisdom or understanding turns into a violent weapon of darkness and death. In a certain sense, what happened to us over the years isn't evolution at all. It's just plain repetition Unfortunately, of course this didn't end in the late 1950's. Far from it. While we've vastly upgraded our weaponry, we've also developed more subtle, yet powerful ways to threaten and hurt each other, like social media shaming for example,  where it becomes pretty easy to ruin someone's life just by pressing a few buttons. In the time between William Shakespeare and Leonard Bernstein, humans invented calculus, steam engines, telegraphs, airplanes, televisions, and atomic bombs. We mapped the human genome. We put men on the moon. But we still haven't figured out what we're really all about. Oh, we all know how to chase things, but are these things that we've been programmed to chase real, or they just illusions? Maybe we're just addicted to chasing, itself. In that regard, we've all heard about the tendency of dogs to chase cars. But there are two key aspects to that particular pursuit. One – the dog can never really catch the car. It is much too fast for it. And secondly – what happens if the dog actually does catch the car and we all know the answer to that – nothing. The dog can't do anything if and when it catches the car. It's the same way for us. We're just running after things on the outside, oblivious to who we really are and what we are really made of, not to mention what can actually make us truly happy and satisfied. And all of this goes on while we continue to improve our technology by leaps and bounds. Yet, we still don't know how to disagree without resorting to violence. We still haven't universally adopted the idea that every human being, regardless of their identity, has intrinsic value. We still raise children who feel unloved, unheard, or unsafe. We're still driven by fear disguised as pride. We still confuse dominance with dignity. And we still kill the thing we love because we don't know how to hold it. And the bottom line of it all is basically defending the inherent illusion of our ego selves, which is still at the basic foundation of our inner C-Suite. As such, we still confuse noise with strength. And we still take most the good things in our life for granted, which is truly tragic. Like Joni Mitchell sang in a seemingly earlier age, “Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got till it's gone.” As it all continues to spiral further, in so many ways, the message to us is crystal clear – It's time to wake up and grow up. Romeo and Juliet loved across a line they weren't supposed to cross. Tony and Maria did it too. Their love was a shining light in the midst of all this darkness. Even though everything seemed to be against them, they knew what they had. And we knew it too. And despite what we knew it was that they were facing, we all rooted for them, because something about the higher thing in life, the Better Angels of Our Nature, speaks to the deepest part of our intelligence, both in our hearts and in our minds. We have more tools than ever to connect across cultures, to educate, to innovate, to heal. And yet, we still face the same old demons. But here's the good news: we are capable of change. Unlike the characters in those plays, our story isn't written yet. We are not locked in a script. We can choose awareness. We can choose evolution. The keynote to both of these tragedies is that it is time to individually bring our inner light to our own inner darkness. The Wisdom of the Ages as well as modern brain science tell us that we do have the power to protect this light from the winds of hate, fear and pride, and that we can, and essentially must, cultivate the inner skills of patience, compassion, empathy, and yes - courage. NeuroHarmonics: Inner Technology for a New Humanity That's what the NeuroHarmonic Method is all about: cultivating the inner circuitry to match the brilliance of our outer inventions. It's not just about brainwaves or affirmations or even spirituality. It's about training the nervous system to return to equilibrium, to respond rather than react, to perceive the human being behind the mask, and ultimately to shift from emotional immaturity to presence. From the rage of vengeance to an intuitive sense grace. But this is a path toward real evolution that can only be travelled one person at a time. Because the world won't evolve until we do it individually. Not really. So here we are, somewhere between Shakespeare's Verona and the 21st century, still caught in the drama. But I hate to tell you that the Bard didn't invent this particular tale. The truth is, it stands atop a mountain of ancient stories echoing the same theme—love thwarted by fate, culture, or conflict. And this motif is not unique to the Renaissance or even to Western civilization. The same basic story can be found in the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, Babylon, ancient Egypt, Persia, and India. Indeed, it's one of the most enduring themes in human storytelling. And the deeper you dig, the further back you go, the more you realize: the tragedy of love versus society and the battle of light versus darkness is as old as storytelling itself. But maybe, just maybe, we're ready to write a different ending. One where love doesn't die. One where pride yields to peace. One where technology finally partners with wisdom. Let's imagine a future version of West Side Story, maybe 400 years from now. What would it take for that version not to be a tragedy? Maybe the gangs might still exist, but their interchange would consist of words instead of weapons. Maybe love would not be hidden in the shadows, but declared in daylight. Maybe reconciliation would be taught in schools, right alongside science and math. Maybe forgiveness would be considered a mark of strength, not weakness. Consciousness evolution would be about not just developing new tools, but new tendencies, moving us from: From reaction to reflection From judgment to curiosity From pride to presence From tribalism to universalism It means valuing not just intelligence, but wisdom. This all represents something to look forward to and welcome into our lives in the here and now, as much as we are able. And if we're not able to yet, at least we can make our intentions known to ourselves. Well, this will be the end of this episode. As always, keep your eyes, mind and heart open, and let's get together in the next one.

Harry sits down with Steven Pinker, who wears many intellectual hats, all well: linguist, psychologist, political philosopher, historian, and social critic, for starters. After some brief discussion of his childhood and background, they dive into Pinker's best-selling “The Better Angels of Our Nature,” (Bill Gates's favorite book at the time), “Enlightenment Now,” and Rationality” (Bill Gates's new favorite book). In those works, Pinker lay out an argument that by and large, in fits and starts, society is advancing incrementally in health, safety, knowledge, and other key benchmarks of Enlightenment values. The two also touch on Pinker's strong if idiosyncratic views about writing (he rejects much of modern pedantry about correct usage); his original Promethean work in linguistics; and his views about certain human cognitive biases. A wide-ranging and provocative discussion with one of the great public intellectuals of our time.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trauma is a universal experience, and our approach as health care providers to trauma should be universal as well. That's my main take-home point after learning from our three guests today when talking about trauma-informed care, an approach that highlights key principles including safety, trustworthiness, peer support, collaboration, empowerment, and cultural sensitivity. With that said, there is so much more that I learned from our guests for this trauma-informed care podcast. Our guests include Mariah Robertson, Kate Duchowny, and Ashwin Kotwal. Mariah discussed her JAGS paper on applying a trauma-informed approach to home visits. Kate and Ashwin talked about their research on the prevalence of lifetime trauma and its association with physical and psychosocial health among adults at the end of life. We also explored several questions with them, including how to define trauma, its prevalence in older adults, the impact of past traumatic experiences, the potential triggers of trauma screening, and the application of trauma-informed principles in clinical practice. If you want a deeper dive, check out the following resources: Our “Nature of Suffering” podcast with BJ Miller and Naomi Saks Dani Chammas' Annals paper on countertransference and why we shouldn't say “that the patient was difficult rather than that I felt frustrated.”  A great Curbsiders podcast episode on Trauma-informed care with Megan Gerber CAPC's Trauma-informed care toolkit Mariah's article on Home-Based Care for LGBTQ or another diverse gender identity Older Adults

At first glance, it looks as if the world is falling apart... but what if it's actually breaking down so that it can come together in a more unified, peaceful, and harmonious way than it ever has before? SourcesMentioned LinksDr. David Hawkin's 'Map of Consciousness' (funnel version)Dr. David Hawkin's 'Map of Consciousness' (table version)Dr. David Hawkin's 'Map of Consciousness' (continuum version)BooksAnam Ćara by John O'DonohueIn the World, BUT NOT OF IT by Dr. David HawkinsTranscending the Levels of Consciousness: The Stairway to Enlightenment by Dr. David HawkinsThe Seat of the Soul*= by Gary ZukavThe Map of Consciousness Explained: A Proven Energy Scale to Actualize Your Ultimate Potential by Dr. David Hawkins (free PDF version of the book is linked here—available through us.archive.org) ArticlesArticle: 19 Stages of Spiritual Awakening + Ascension (the most popular article on my site)Article: The Sun's Influence—Unraveling the Connection Between Solar Activity and Social RevolutionsArticle: The Schumann Effect Part 1—How the Earth Influences Your Brain WavesArticle: Consciousness and the Problem of the ShadowArticle: Has Global Violence Declined? A Look at the DataArticle: Has the Decline of Violence Reversed since The Better Angles of Our Nature was Written? by Steven PinkerDisclaimer: This podcast is intended for entertainment and informational purposes only and does not substitute individual psychological advice.*This is an affiliate link. Purchasing through affiliate links supports The Soul Horizon at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Vegans have a marketing problem: they're perceived to be annoying, self-righteous, judgmental, and inflexible. Author Matthew Halteman's book Hungry Beautiful Animals is designed to fix that perception and make veganism more appealing and less threatening. Visit his website about Hungry Beautiful Animals. Matthew Halteman and I discuss his book Hungry Beautiful Animals. Here's the timeline of our discussion in case you want to skip to a section. 00:00 Intro 04:30 Marketing Problem? 07:00 Practical Tips 10:00 Kindergarten Values 12:00 Abstract food 16:30 Aspirations 20:40 Fish Watch the Video Book review In his excellent book "The Better Angels of Our Nature," Steven Pinker observed that humanity has become less barbarous with each passing century. Consider the improvements to: - Women's rights - Gay rights - Racism - Slavery - Death penalty - Wars - Prisons Pinker was asked, "What will people in the 22nd century think of us? What are we doing that will seem barbarous and immoral to future humans?" Pinker said (I'm paraphrasing), "The way almost everyone financially supports the barbarous and inhumane treatment of animals by buying and eating animals." True. Today's vegans are like the anti-slavery people 200 years ago: annoying, and everyone wished they would just go away. How can vegans be more inviting? It seems like an all-or-nothing club.  This book says, "Relax. You're welcome to join the tribe." Hungry Beautiful Animals is a vibrant and engaging exploration of veganism.  The book stands out for its joyful and inclusive approach, aiming to transform the often polarizing topic of veganism into an inviting conversation.  Halteman's writing can be too verbose, but it is filled with humor and anecdotes that resonate regardless of one's dietary choices. ### Key Themes - Joy and Kindness: Halteman emphasizes that adopting a vegan lifestyle can be a source of joy rather than a burden. He encourages readers to view veganism as a journey filled with possibilities rather than a strict set of rules that can lead to feelings of shame or guilt.    - Personal Stories: The book is rich with anecdotes that illustrate the interconnectedness of all living beings. For instance, Halteman reflects on moments his dog (Gus), who inspired him to write this book. - Community Focus: Halteman invites readers from all backgrounds to join in a collective movement towards kindness and compassion for animals, promoting the idea that everyone is welcome in this exploration of veganism, even if you're not hardcore, full-time. - Practical Guidance: Beyond philosophical discussions, the book provides practical suggestions for leading a more animal-friendly life, including tips on creating pollinator-friendly habitats in one's yard. The book offers profound insights and the ability to provoke thought without condemnation.  It is an engaging read that challenges preconceived notions about veganism while fostering a sense of community and shared purpose. Overall, Hungry Beautiful Animals is a book about veganism and an invitation to live more compassionately and joyfully with all beings. VERDICT: 9 out of 10 stars!

Adam povyprávěl o svém VR projektu pro Oculus Quest s názvem Neofables. Tam využívá AI generované světy a celé to běží na technologii WebXR. Velice zajímavé povídání i třeba o byznys stránce takového počínání. * Neofables https://neofables.com/ * kniha Fight Right - https://www.amazon.com/Fight-Right-Successful-Conflict-Connection/dp/0593579658 * kniha The Better Angels of Our Nature - https://www.amazon.com/Better-Angels-Our-Nature-Violence/dp/0143122010 * kniha The signal and noice - https://www.amazon.com/Signal-Noise-Many-Predictions-Fail-but/dp/0143125087 * kniha Čísla nelžou - https://www.amazon.com/Numbers-Dont-Lie-Stories-Understand-ebook/dp/B08GJVP3GK

Steven Pinker is a Canadian-American cognitive psychologist, linguist, and influential author, and professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. Pinker's research spans psycholinguistics, visual cognition, and the science of human behaviour. He is a proponent of rationality, evidence-based thinking, and the application of evolutionary psychology to understand human nature. Pinker is frequently cited as one of the most influential thinkers of his time.Peter & Kasia engage with Steven for a profound discussion revolving around the themes of global peace and progress in modern times. The conversation references Pinker's books, 'The Better Angels of Our Nature' (2011) and 'Enlightenment Now' (2018), which argue that humanity currently lives in the most peaceful era in history. Further topics include the role of nuclear weapons in maintaining global peace, and the moral and ethical implications of technological advancements like AI.Learn more about Steven Pinker and read his books!Keep up to date with Peter!Website: www.petersinger.infoSubstack: https://boldreasoningwithpetersinger.substack.com/YouTube: www.youtube.com/@peter_singerKeep up to date with Kasia!https://www.facebook.com/katarzyna.delazariradek Executive Producer: Rachel Barrett Audio Producer: Stuart BucklandThanks to our volunteer researchers Hendrik Dahlmeier and Mihika ChechiIf you are enjoying this podcast, consider supporting us over at PATREON Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rebroadcast: this episode was originally released in November 2022.Is war in long-term decline? Steven Pinker's The Better Angels of Our Nature brought this previously obscure academic question to the centre of public debate, and pointed to rates of death in war to argue energetically that war is on the way out.But that idea divides war scholars and statisticians, and so Better Angels has prompted a spirited debate, with datasets and statistical analyses exchanged back and forth year after year. The lack of consensus has left a somewhat bewildered public (including host Rob Wiblin) unsure quite what to believe.Today's guest, professor in political science Bear Braumoeller, is one of the scholars who believes we lack convincing evidence that warlikeness is in long-term decline. He collected the analysis that led him to that conclusion in his 2019 book, Only the Dead: The Persistence of War in the Modern Age.Links to learn more, highlights, and full transcript.The question is of great practical importance. The US and PRC are entering a period of renewed great power competition, with Taiwan as a potential trigger for war, and Russia is once more invading and attempting to annex the territory of its neighbours.If war has been going out of fashion since the start of the Enlightenment, we might console ourselves that however nerve-wracking these present circumstances may feel, modern culture will throw up powerful barriers to another world war. But if we're as war-prone as we ever have been, one need only inspect the record of the 20th century to recoil in horror at what might await us in the 21st.Bear argues that the second reaction is the appropriate one. The world has gone up in flames many times through history, with roughly 0.5% of the population dying in the Napoleonic Wars, 1% in World War I, 3% in World War II, and perhaps 10% during the Mongol conquests. And with no reason to think similar catastrophes are any less likely today, complacency could lead us to sleepwalk into disaster.He gets to this conclusion primarily by analysing the datasets of the decades-old Correlates of War project, which aspires to track all interstate conflicts and battlefield deaths since 1815. In Only the Dead, he chops up and inspects this data dozens of different ways, to test if there are any shifts over time which seem larger than what could be explained by chance variation alone.In a nutshell, Bear simply finds no general trend in either direction from 1815 through today. It seems like, as philosopher George Santayana lamented in 1922, "only the dead have seen the end of war."In today's conversation, Bear and Rob discuss all of the above in more detail than even a usual 80,000 Hours podcast episode, as well as:Why haven't modern ideas about the immorality of violence led to the decline of war, when it's such a natural thing to expect?What would Bear's critics say in response to all this?What do the optimists get right?How does one do proper statistical tests for events that are clumped together, like war deaths?Why are deaths in war so concentrated in a handful of the most extreme events?Did the ideas of the Enlightenment promote nonviolence, on balance?Were early states more or less violent than groups of hunter-gatherers?If Bear is right, what can be done?How did the 'Concert of Europe' or 'Bismarckian system' maintain peace in the 19th century?Which wars are remarkable but largely unknown?Chapters:Cold open (00:00:00)Rob's intro (00:01:01)The interview begins (00:05:37)Only the Dead (00:08:33)The Enlightenment (00:18:50)Democratic peace theory (00:28:26)Is religion a key driver of war? (00:31:32)International orders (00:35:14)The Concert of Europe (00:44:21)The Bismarckian system (00:55:49)The current international order (01:00:22)The Better Angels of Our Nature (01:19:36)War datasets (01:34:09)Seeing patterns in data where none exist (01:47:38)Change-point analysis (01:51:39)Rates of violent death throughout history (01:56:39)War initiation (02:05:02)Escalation (02:20:03)Getting massively different results from the same data (02:30:45)How worried we should be (02:36:13)Most likely ways Only the Dead is wrong (02:38:31)Astonishing smaller wars (02:42:45)Rob's outro (02:47:13)Producer: Keiran HarrisAudio mastering: Ryan KesslerTranscriptions: Katy Moore

Are things really as bad as they seem? Has Gen Z given up hope for the world? And why was the father of positive psychology a lifelong pessimist? SOURCES:Albert Bandura, professor of psychology at Stanford University.David Brooks, author and opinion columnist. Andrew Grove, former C.E.O. and chairman of Intel Corporation.Kalev Leetaru, founder of the GDELT Project.Steven Maier, professor of behavioral neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder.Michelle Obama, attorney, author, and former first lady of the United States.Steven Pinker, professor of psychology at Harvard University.Amanda Ripley, journalist and author.Martin Seligman, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University.Edward Zigler, professor emeritus of psychology at Yale University. RESOURCES:"Chicken Littles Are Ruining America," by David Brooks (The Atlantic, 2024).Generations, by Jean Twenge (2023).Enlightenment Now, by Steven Pinker (2018)."The Short History of Global Living Conditions and Why It Matters That We Know It," by Max Roser (Our World in Data, 2016)."Learned Helplessness at Fifty: Insights from Neuroscience," by Steven F. Maier and Martin E. P. Seligman (Psychological Review, 2016)."Short- and Long-Term Consequences of Stressor Controllability in Adolescent Rats," by Kenneth H. Kubala, John P. Christianson, Steven F. Maier, et al. (Behavioural Brain Research, 2012).The Better Angels of Our Nature, by Steven Pinker (2011)."Forecasting Large-Scale Human Behavior Using Global News Media Tone in Time and Space," by Kalev Leetaru (First Monday, 2011)."Motivational Aspects of Changes in IQ Test Performance of Culturally Deprived Nursery School Children," by Edward Zigler and Earl C. Butterfield (Child Development, 1968)."Failure to Escape Traumatic Shock," by Martin E. P. Seligman and Steven F. Maier (Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1967).Upworthy. EXTRAS:"Why Is U.S. Media So Negative?" by Freakonomics Radio (2021).

How many lives will be saved with the help of AI over the next decade? Reid and Aria sat down with Bill Gates to discuss his main areas of focus: climate change, energy, global health, and education—and how AI will help transform each of them. Taking a bird's-eye view of society's challenges, it's easy to give in to pessimism. But as one of the most influential people in the world, Bill Gates has a unique perspective on how far humanity has come and what our potential—and timelines—for meaningful change really look like. He gets granular on everything from cows (5% of global emissions) to disease reduction and eradication (Guinea worm disease). At each turn, he has data at his fingertips to ground his beliefs. So, what current set of innovations is Bill most excited about? And what is realistically on the horizon for AI, climate change, energy, global health, and education? For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/  Topics: 03:18 - Hellos and intros 03:24 - Projects Bill is most excited about 05:46 - Bill's recent Netflix series 08:14 - Technology that will change what's possible 10:41 - Solutions for malnutrition 12:09 - Cow-based solutions for climate change and nutrition 17:06 - What Bill is working toward for climate change 19:19 - Viable alternative energy sources 23:80 - What will make solar work? 26:47 - Nuclear fission and fusion 29:30 - How AI will help mitigate climate change 32:38 - What to focus on in global health 37:24 - AI and drug discovery 39:52 - What else will AI unlock in public health? 42:28 - Personalized medicine: is it worth it? 44:02 - Conditions on the ground in the poorest countries 47:29 - AI in education 51:24 - Khanmigo and early GPT-4 54:59 - Non-tech levers for change in education 56:34 - What would Bill ask someone from 2100? 58:25 - AI in 3-5 years, and what comes next for work 01:03:05 - Rapid-fire Questions Select mentions:  The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Better_Angels_of_Our_Nature  What's Next? The Future with Bill Gates https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xxhYr4gbQE  Bill Gates Visits First Avenue School: Commends Innovative Use of Technology https://www.nps.k12.nj.us/schools/first-avenue-school/bill-gates-visits-first-avenue-school-commends-innovative-use-of-technology/  Possible is an award-winning podcast that sketches out the brightest version of the future—and what it will take to get there. Most of all, it asks: what if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way? Tune in for grounded and speculative takes on how technology—and, in particular, AI—is inspiring change and transforming the future. Hosted by Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger, each episode features an interview with an ambitious builder or deep thinker on a topic, from art to geopolitics and from healthcare to education. These conversations also showcase another kind of guest: AI. Whether it's Inflection's Pi, OpenAI's ChatGPT or other AI tools, each episode will use AI to enhance and advance our discussion about what humanity could possibly get right if we leverage technology—and our collective effort—effectively.

Welcome to our channel, where we explore the depths of our faith and dive into the transformative teachings of Christ. In this enlightening video, we delve into the empowering topic of "Our Nature in Christ Jesus" and uncover the profound implications it has for our identity and purpose. Join us as we embark on a journey of self-discovery, rooted in the teachings of the Scriptures. Through insightful commentary and personal reflections, we explore the essence of our nature as believers in Christ and the transformative power it holds in our lives. Throughout history, believers have sought to understand their identity and purpose in relation to Christ Jesus. In this video, we delve into scriptural passages that reveal the beautiful truth of who we are in Christ. We explore how, through faith, we are transformed into a new creation, filled with His love, grace, and purpose. Through thought-provoking analysis, we discuss the implications of our nature in Christ Jesus for our daily lives. We examine how understanding our identity as children of God can empower us to live with confidence, purpose, and a deep sense of belonging. We explore how this knowledge impacts our relationships, choices, and the way we engage with the world around us. Furthermore, we reflect on the abundant blessings and spiritual resources that are available to us as followers of Christ. We discuss how tapping into our nature in Christ Jesus equips us to overcome challenges, walk in righteousness, and fulfill the unique calling that God has placed upon our lives. Join us on this enlightening exploration of "Our Nature in Christ Jesus," as we seek to deepen our understanding of our identity and purpose in Him. Subscribe to our channel to receive regular spiritual insights and join a community dedicated to growing in faith and embracing the transformative power of our union with Christ. If you're interested in discovering the profound nature of our identity in Christ Jesus and the purpose it brings to our lives, this video is a must-watch. Join us on this journey of self-discovery and spiritual empowerment as we embrace the truth of who we are in Him. Connect with us Here; Subscribe to Youtube Here: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheGospelofJesusChristOnline Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheGospelOn/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/JesusChristGos1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jesuschristgospelonline/ Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/jesuschristgospelonline0377/ Blogger: http://jesuschristgospelon.blogspot.com/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/the-gospel-of-jesus-christ/support

In this episode, our host Gaby Azorsky speaks with Alyssa Benjamin. Alyssa is a creative strategist, brand and communications consultant. She is the creator and host of the podcast Our Nature, and currently works as a creative strategist at Google.  She had been manifesting being on other peoples podcasts while hers is currently on hiatus, as she is feeling like she has so much to share - and so she was writing in her journal writing about wanting to bring these opportunities in, right when I emailed her to invite her on, of course.  In our conversation today, we talk about where we were in our lives when we met years ago, her rock bottom, transitions, change taking time, relationships, manifestation, imposter syndrome, creativity, finding systems that work for you, and so much more.  I really value how real Alyssa is in our conversation today, and always, showing up as herself. If you are feeling stuck or stagnant in your life, wanting “the job” or “the partner”, I highly recommend listening to this episode.  *For 20% off your first month of The Flower Portal, use the code SPIRALOFFLOWERS through the end of August*  Connect ~ With our guest Alyssa | Website and IG @ournaturealways With Our Nature Podcast | Website  With our host Gaby Azorsky | Website and IG @gaby.azorsky With Spiral Deeper | Website and IG @spiral.deeper Sign up for Gaby's newsletter Partners ~ Thank you to our partners!  Moon Juice - Code ‘GABY.AZORSKY' Activist Manuka Honey - Code ‘GABY15' The Retreat Newspaper - Code ‘GABY100' for your first issue free Music by Gaby's incredible partner, Connor Hayes. Spiral Deeper Icon by Kami Marchand. If you would like to advertise on Spiral Deeper, please email gabyazorsky@gmail.com for packages and information.  Please rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen ~ it means so much. Thank you for your support!

Is it better to be rational or optimistic? Steven Pinker explains. There is no force in the Universe called progress. But there are plenty of natural forces that seem to only make it harder for us to make progress as a species, such as disease, the laws of entropy, and the dark sides of human nature. So, what pushes humanity forward in the face of all these obstacles? To the psychologist Steven Pinker, the answer is rationality: When people use their reasoning skills and other cognitive abilities to help improve the lives of others, the result is progress. From pseudoscience to religious extremism, irrational beliefs can cause real harm. That's why Pinker argues that society would be better off if more people learned to be more rational. Chapters for Easier Navigation:- 0:00 The bad news: reality 0:39 The good news: rationality 1:26 How rational are we? 3:04 Even Americans, though? (Rationality inequality) 4:45 The pinnacle of human rationality 5:45 How can you teach critical thinking? How? ----------------------------------------------------- About Steven Pinker: Steven Pinker is an experimental psychologist who conducts research in visual cognition, psycholinguistics, and social relations. He grew up in Montreal and earned his BA from McGill and his PhD from Harvard. Currently Johnstone Professor of Psychology at Harvard, he has also taught at Stanford and MIT. He has won numerous prizes for his research, his teaching, and his nine books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, and Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Go Deeper with Big Think:- ►Become a Big Think Member Get exclusive access to full interviews, early access to new releases, Big Think merch and more ►Get Big Think+ for Business Guide, inspire and accelerate leaders at all levels of your company with the biggest minds in business ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: My Current Claims and Cruxes on LLM Forecasting & Epistemics, published by Ozzie Gooen on June 27, 2024 on The Effective Altruism Forum. I think that recent improvements in LLMs have brought us to the point where LLM epistemic systems are starting to be useful. After spending some time thinking about it, I've realized that such systems, broadly, seem very promising to me as an effective altruist intervention area. However, I think that our community has yet to do a solid job outlining what this area could look like or figuring out key uncertainties. This document presents a rough brainstorm on these topics. While I could dedicate months to refining these ideas, I've chosen to share these preliminary notes now to spark discussion. If you find the style too terse, feel free to use an LLM to rewrite it in a format you prefer. I believe my vision for this area is more ambitious and far-reaching (i.e. not narrow to a certain kind of forecasting) than what I've observed in other discussions. I'm particularly excited about AI-heavy epistemic improvements, which I believe have greater potential than traditional forecasting innovations. I'm trying to figure out what to make of this regarding our future plans at QURI, and I recommend that other organizations in the space consider similar updates. Key Definitions: Epistemic process: A set of procedures to do analysis work, often about topics with a lot of uncertainty. This could be "have one journalist do everything themselves", to a complex (but repeatable) ecosystem of multiple humans and software systems. LLM-based Epistemic Process (LEP): A system that relies on LLMs to carry out most or all of an epistemic process. This might start at ~10% LLM-labor, but can gradually ramp up. I imagine that such a process is likely to feature some kinds of estimates or forecasts. Scaffolding: Software used around an LLM system, often to make it valuable for specific use-cases. In the case of an LEP, a lot of scaffolding might be needed. 1. High-Level Benefits & Uses Claim 1: If humans could forecast much better, these humans should make few foreseeable mistakes. This covers many mistakes, particularly ones we might be worried about now. Someone deciding about talking to a chatbot that can be predicted to be net-negative (perhaps it would create an unhealthy relationship) could see this forecast and simply decide not to start the chat. Say that a person's epistemic state could follow one of four trajectories, depending on some set of reading materials. For example, one set is conspiratorial, one is religious, etc. Good forecasting could help forecast this and inform the person ahead of time. Note that this can be radical and perhaps dangerous. For example, a religious family knowing how to keep their children religious with a great deal of certainty. Say that one of two political candidates is predictably terrible. This could be made clear to voters who trust said prediction. If an AI actor is doing something likely to be monopolistic or dangerous, this would be made more obvious to itself and those around it. Note: There will also be unforeseeable mistakes, but any actions that we could do that are foreseeably-high-value for them, could be predicted. For example, general-purpose risk mitigation measures. Claim 2: Highly intelligent / epistemically capable organizations are likely to be better at coordination. This might well mean fewer wars and conflict, along with corresponding military spending. If highly capable actors were in a prisoner's dilemma, the results could be ugly. But very often, there's a lot of potential and value in not getting into one in the first place. Evidence: From The Better Angels of Our Nature, there's significant evidence that humanity has become significantly less violent over time. One potential exception is t...

Welcome to Episode 139 Sponsored by CultTVMan, Sean's Custom Model Tools and Return To Kit FormHostsStuartGeoffFrankDedicated to James from JMC, get better soon.Thanks to our latest Patreon and Buy Me a Coffee Supporters:Check out our What We Like page for lists of what we like. ***************************************LATEST NEWSFrank went to AMPS and got concussed. ***************************************MAILBAGWe want to hear from you! Let us know if you have any comments or suggestions scalemodelpodcast@gmail.com.***************************************LATEST HOBBY ANNOUNCEMENTSTrumpeter June announcementsTamiya Upcoming releasesJagdpanzer 38(t) Hetzer Prague May 1945 in 1/35th scale from Snowman ModelMiniArt's 35th scale M3 Stuart "Early Production" with a full interiorSd.Kfz. 234/2 "Puma" full interior kit from MiniArt 1/35th scaleA new 16th scale Sherman from I love KitAustralian Army M113A1 LRV 1/35Special Hobby is working on a Baltimore Bomber in 1/48FlyHawk 1/350 USS Cowpens CG-63 coming in July1/350 PLAN Type054B Frigate from Magic Factory.Hurricane Mk.IIb trop from Arma in 1/48Hasegawa - 1/72 Queadluun-Rau Max use (Movie Version)What's new at Scalemates.com ***************************************SPONSOR AD #1Cult TV Man***************************************WHAT'S ON THE BENCHStuart - Work continues on the CF-15 what if. Hasegawa does the engine nozzles as five separate parts each. I have lost one to the floor monster so I will be looking for either 3d print or after-market replacements.Geoff - continuing on getting the Martin Mars and the NASA shuttle carrier aircraft and shuttle in 1/144 ready for paint. Ordered decals for the 747 from Drawdecal and the shuttle from Lake County Spaceport.Terry - Some progress on my open projects, I'll get the landing gear on the P-47 and do some minor weathering before dullcoating, then I'll probably mostly use pastels for further weathering. I just want the Regult off my bench. I need to get the decals on that.Frank - Mirror Models Komsomolets T-20 Tractor - started this last week and the interior tub was painted tonight - engine, etc. I made some cloth-looking seat pads as per reference images. Also painted a 1/72 ICM BM-24-12 kit, I picked up 4 at AMPS, got a new Grad but got 3 from the mid-90s. It looks okay…the rocket bed is rough and i'd recommend scratch if you want it to sing[foogallery id="3690"]***************************************WHAT WE ARE READINGStuart - Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results by Shane ParrishSlow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout by Cal NewportGeoff - “The Better Angels of Our Nature” by Steven Pinker. Good, factual survey of history establishes that despite what some people seem to think, violence in the West is at a historic low point.Also “Spies in the Sky” by Taylor Downing - a history of aerial intelligence in WW2.Terry - Finished Madeleine Murray's Song of Achilles. It's brilliant. She really brings the Greek characters to life, all these legendary names. I started to wonder how she would finish the story, since the narrator Patroclus must die before Achilles. The end will bring you to tears. What next? The 18th volume of That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime, so that's a background read. I have some nonfiction to choose from.Frank - Reading Book 2 of the Theodore Roosevelt bio by Edmund Morris - Theodore Rex and picked up Israel - A History by Martin Gilbert***************************************SPONSOR AD #2Seans Custom Model Tools***************************************THINGS WE'VE SEENBuild Guide Pt II: URAL-4320.JPL reestablishes contact with Voyager! The RTGs will die in a few years, but the sturdy probe is again sending data.There's a FB group called Historical Space Models, I have a number of friends in there - have a look. (I can't figure out how to grab a link via the iPad)***************************************THE LAST WORDSMP Ep. 139 is also sponsored by Return To Kit Form (R2KF). Check out their web store!For more modelling podcast goodness, check out other modelling podcasts at modelpodcasts.comPlease leave us a positive review if you enjoy what we're doing!Check us out: FaceBook, YouTube, and our very own websiteWe also have merchandise now. Check it out on Redbubble 

The Gettysburg National Battlefield "Friend to Friend" Memorial was dedicated in 1993 by the GL of Pennsylvania. It commemorates the famous encounter between General L.A. Armistead (CSA) and Captain Henry Bingham (USA) during Pickett's Charge on the last day of the battle. Bro. David de Hosson takes us inside his visit and the story of how, even during the darkest hours, the Light of Masonry prevails and the ties of Brotherhood still unite us.Show Notes:Visit the Gettysburg National Battlefield "Friend to Friend" Memorial onlineOrder your copy of MWB Michael Halleran's "Better Angels of Our Nature" on AmazonFollow the Craftsmen Online Podcast on SpotifySubscribe to the Craftsmen Online Podcast on Apple PodcastsVisit the Craftsmen Online website to learn more about our Reading Room, New York Masonic History section, and submit your Blog articleGet our latest announcements and important updates in your inbox with the Craftsmen Online Newsletter Email the host, WB Michael Arce! Yes, we will read your email and may even reach out to be a guest on a future episode. Support the Craftsmen Online Podcast. Whether it's a one time donation or you become a Patreon Subscriber, we appreciate your support!Sponsor links:- Learn more about "Thursday Night at the Rite" and the Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction- Don't forget to use the promo code CRAFTSMEN to receive free shipping with your first order from Bricks Masons!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/craftsmen-online-podcast--4822031/support.

Part 1 of the Live Show recorded in Yellow Springs, OH, March 17th, 2024 at the Coolest Vintage Shop in the World!!! Lots of live Elyness here, the edit elves came out to do the live work!!! Starts out with Andy Stephen and Buthaina!!!Then and incredible exploration of Plants and Cannabis genetics with Boogie of Our Nature's Opus ournaturesopus.comAlso we have Lyndsey of One Earth Collaborative talking about tending the earth and the community!oneearthcollaborative.org/Marielle & the Flower comes to share a song and the elf gets talking with this faere about plants and life! Violets!!! (54:04)check out here YOUTUBE its amazing!!!Support the showLinks to Stefin101 and Doctor Bionic Check us out on instagram @wakethefarmup @maintaining_ground_podcast@kastle_369Ask how you could be involved in the show, Subscribe and Support the Show

01:00 The Swiftboater Coming for Biden With co-pilot Susie Wiles, Chris LaCivita has brought discipline to the Trump campaign. Is that enough to win? https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-campaign-chris-lacivita-swift-boat-veteran.html 15:00 Moby Dick: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2701/2701-h/2701-h.htm 24:00 How to Read Moby Dick by Herman Melville (10 Tips), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVd7ITFGrJU 25:00 Hardcore Literature patreon, https://www.patreon.com/hardcoreliterature/ 28:40 How to Read Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy (10 Tips), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If1Su5qh96Q 35:00 If Books Could Kill: The Better Angels of Our Nature, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-better-angels-of-our-nature/id1651876897?i=1000646375925 53:00 How To Metabolize Emotional Pain (So We Don't Take It Out On Others), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maBxrmsMljM 57:40 JF Gariepy on Taylor Lorenz

Are our higher education institutions still nurturing true intellectual diversity? Our guest today is Steven Pinker, a cognitive scientist at Harvard, and today, we'll be exploring the growing concerns within higher ed that institutions are turning into echo chambers, stifling dissent and censoring certain perspectives. In this thought-provoking episode, we'll be discovering the challenges to academic freedom in the era of cancel culture. We'll explore how questioning a consensus can now come at a cost, impacting the pursuit of truth within academic institutions. We'll also uncover the story of the Council for Academic Freedom at Harvard, which was formed to combat these challenges. Join us as we delve into policies protecting free speech, and the vital role of civil discourse in the academic community. Together, we'll navigate the complex landscape of universities, grappling with the delicate balance between common knowledge and the suppression of dissenting opinions. Follow Steven on:X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/sapinker Follow Heterodox Academy on:Twitter: https://bit.ly/3Fax5DyFacebook: https://bit.ly/3PMYxfwLinkedIn: https://bit.ly/48IYeuJInstagram: https://bit.ly/46HKfUgSubstack: https://bit.ly/48IhjNF 

The formula for rational thinking explained by Harvard professor Steven Pinker. In his explanation of Bayes' theorem, cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker highlights how this type of reasoning can help us determine the degree of belief we assign to a claim based on available evidence. Bayes' theorem takes into account the prior probability of a claim, the likelihood of the evidence given the claim is true, and the commonness of the evidence regardless of the claim's truth. While Bayes' theorem can be useful for making statistical predictions, Pinker cautions that it may not always be appropriate in situations where fairness and other moral considerations are important. Therefore, it's crucial to consider when Bayes' theorem is applicable and when it's not. Chapters:- 0:00 What is Bayesian thinking? 1:01 The formula 2:41 When Bayes' theorem obscures the solution 4:25 Bayes' theorem in a nutshell --------------------------------------------------------- About Steven Pinker: Steven Pinker is an experimental psychologist who conducts research in visual cognition, psycholinguistics, and social relations. He grew up in Montreal and earned his BA from McGill and his PhD from Harvard. Currently Johnstone Professor of Psychology at Harvard, he has also taught at Stanford and MIT. He has won numerous prizes for his research, his teaching, and his nine books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, and Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress. ------------------------------------------------------------- About Big Think | Smarter Faster™ ► Big Think The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century. ► Big Think+ Make your business smarter, faster: https://bigthink.com/plus/ Get Smarter, Faster With Interviews From The Worlds Biggest Thinkers. Follow This Podcast And Turn On The Notifications Rate Us With 5 Stars Share This Episode --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bigthink/message Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harvard professor Steven Pinker explains that everyone suffers from this rationality error. Cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker argues that while the Enlightenment ideals of using knowledge to enhance human well-being are not inherently natural to us, they are vital for societal progress. But one obstacle standing in front of greater progress centers on game theory, particularly situations involving the tragedy of the commons. The tragedy of the commons describes a predicament in which individuals independently pursue their own interests, leading to the overexploitation and eventual depletion of a shared resource, ultimately harming everyone's well-being. According to Pinker, one example of a tragedy of the commons lies within what we choose to believe in public. An individual might be incentivized to believe in something because it will make them look good to people in their circle. But if enough people behave in this way, the likely consequence is that fewer people will be incentivized to earnestly search for truth. Still, Pinker maintains a hopeful outlook. He cites advancements in science and morality as evidence of progress, and he argues that humanistic values hold an inherent advantage, as they appeal to universal human desires and shared experiences. Chapters:- 0:00 Knowledge: It's unnatural 1:17 Game theory's ‘tragedy of the commons' 1:59 The rationality commons 2:55 Is there hope for civilization? About Steven Pinker: Steven Pinker is an experimental psychologist who conducts research in visual cognition, psycholinguistics, and social relations. He grew up in Montreal and earned his BA from McGill and his PhD from Harvard. Currently Johnstone Professor of Psychology at Harvard, he has also taught at Stanford and MIT. He has won numerous prizes for his research, his teaching, and his nine books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, and Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress. About Big Think | Smarter Faster™ ► Big Think The leading source of expert-driven, educational content. With thousands of videos, featuring experts ranging from Bill Clinton to Bill Nye, Big Think helps you get smarter, faster by exploring the big ideas and core skills that define knowledge in the 21st century. ► Big Think+ Make your business smarter, faster: https://bigthink.com/plus/ Get Smarter, Faster With Interviews From The Worlds Biggest Thinkers. Follow This Podcast And Turn On The Notifications Rate Us With 5 Stars Share This Episode --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bigthink/message Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of the 18Forty Podcast, we talk to Harvard Divinity School visiting scholar Rabbi David Wolpe, MIT PhD student Talia Khan, and Harvard professor Steven Pinker about the new reality for Jews in higher education.Since Simchas Torah, the hostile discourse regarding Israel has become something that no Jewish student can ignore. Jewish families have been asking: Is it even worth it to send our sons and daughters to these colleges? In this episode we discuss:Is it better for Jews to change the system from within, or without?What has changed about the Jewish experience at American colleges since Oct. 7?What is the way forward regarding free speech and Jewish rights on campus?Tune in to hear a conversation about how we might work toward a reimagined and refocused higher education.Interview with David Wolpe begins at 4:27.Interview with Talia Khan begins at 29:30.Interview with Steven Pinker begins at 1:05:12.Named The Most Influential Rabbi in America by Newsweek and one of the 50 Most Influential Jews in the World by The Jerusalem Post, David Wolpe is a visiting scholar at Harvard Divinity School and the Max Webb Rabbi Emeritus of Sinai Temple, a Conservative shul in Los Angeles. Rabbi Wolpe previously taught at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York, the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, Hunter College, and UCLA. He is the author of eight books, including the national bestseller Making Loss Matter: Creating Meaning in Difficult Times. His new book is titled David, the Divided Heart.Talia Khan is an MIT graduate student in mechanical engineering, the president of the MIT Israel Alliance, and a Fulbright Brazil alumna.Steven Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. He conducts research on language, cognition, and social relations, writes for publications such as the New York Times, Time and The Atlantic, and is the author of twelve books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Stuff of Thought, The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, Enlightenment Now, and Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters.References:“On the Hatred of Jews” by David J. WolpeIsrael: An Echo of Eternity by Abraham Joshua Heschel O Jerusalem! by Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre “When Calls for Jewish Genocide Can Cost a University Its Government Funding” by Michael A. Helfand“A five-point plan to save Harvard from itself” by Steven PinkerThe Coddling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan HaidtThe Canceling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Rikki Schlott The Constitution of Knowledge by Jonathan Rauch

En el más reciente episodio de "La Revolución de la Riqueza", nos complace tener como invitado a Humberto Herrera, un destacado especialista en branding personal y, sobre todo, una persona llena de experiencias que le han llevado a comprender la importancia del amor propio. Durante nuestra conversación, Humberto compartió sus comienzos laborales, desde su tiempo como pizzero en Pizza Hut hasta su aterrizaje en una innovadora startup tecnológica en Estados Unidos. Sin embargo, su trayectoria también incluyó el emprendimiento en México, donde experimentó el desafío de un negocio que lamentablemente quebró. A través de estas vivencias, Humberto reconoció el error de enfocar su vida únicamente en la búsqueda de prestigio y riqueza material. Fue a partir de estas dificultades que Humberto se enfrentó a un vacío interior, un déficit de amor propio y autoestima que ningún lujo material podía llenar. Descubrió que la clave para transformar su vida fue iniciar un proceso de terapia, un punto de inflexión que lo llevó a centrarse en aspectos trascendentales y a dejar de lado lo superficial. Nuestro invitado nos brindó valiosas lecciones, destacando la importancia del amor propio y la fuerza necesaria para mantener una actitud positiva. Compartió su visión sobre el libro "The Better Angels of Our Nature", resaltando cómo esta obra refleja la tesis de que vivimos en el mejor momento de la historia de la humanidad. Humberto no solo comparte sus experiencias, sino que también ofrece prácticos consejos para fortalecer el amor propio, mantener una actitud positiva en la vida diaria y lograr un crecimiento personal constante y fructífero. Este episodio no solo es una fuente de inspiración, sino también una guía para aquellos que buscan un cambio significativo en sus vidas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chapter 1 What's the The Better Angels of Our Nature"The Better Angels of Our Nature" is a book written by Steven Pinker, a cognitive scientist and psychologist. The book explores the decline of violence throughout human history and presents a compelling argument for the idea that we are living in the most peaceful era of our species. Pinker supports his claims by analyzing various historical trends, statistical data, psychological research, and case studies to demonstrate that violence has steadily decreased over time. The book challenges common misconceptions about the prevalence of violence today and offers insights into the factors contributing to this decline. Pinker attributes this decline to the rise of institutions, the influence of Enlightenment values, and various social, cultural, and technological changes. Overall, "The Better Angels of Our Nature" provides a comprehensive examination of the decline in violence, highlighting the potential for a more peaceful future.Chapter 2 Is the The Better Angels of Our Nature recommended for reading?That is subjective and dependent on personal tastes and interests. However, "The Better Angels of Our Nature" by Steven Pinker has received widespread acclaim and positive reviews since its publication in 2011. The book presents a detailed analysis of violence throughout human history and argues that, contrary to popular belief, violence has actually decreased over time. It is often praised for its thorough research, compelling arguments, and thought-provoking ideas. It has been hailed as an important contribution to understanding human behavior and society. Ultimately, whether it is a good book or not depends on your personal interests and whether you find the subject matter engaging.Chapter 3 the The Better Angels of Our Nature SummaryThe Better Angels of Our Nature is a book written by psychologist Steven Pinker, published in 2011. The book explores the decline of violence and human conflict throughout history, providing a counterintuitive perspective that suggests humanity is becoming less violent over time.Pinker presents an abundance of statistical evidence to support his argument, drawing from a wide range of historical periods, cultures, and data sources. He analyzes various forms of violence, including wars, genocide, homicide rates, and state-sanctioned violence, and makes comparisons across different time periods and regions of the world.The main thesis of the book is that violence and human conflict have decreased dramatically throughout history, leading to a more peaceful world today. Pinker attributes this decline to a number of factors, including the rise of nation-states and their monopoly on violence, the spread of democracy, and the spread of education and knowledge.The book also explores several psychological and social factors that contribute to the reduction in violence. Pinker argues that violence is not an innate part of human nature, but rather a maladaptive behavior that can be mitigated through various social, cultural, and political mechanisms.Throughout the book, Pinker challenges popular misconceptions about violence and demonstrates how the world has become less violent over time. He argues that the perception of increased violence is largely a result of sensationalism in the media, which amplifies and focuses on violent events rather than considering the broader historical context.Pinker concludes his book by calling for a greater understanding of the factors that have contributed to the decline in violence, in order to continue building a more peaceful future. He suggests that recognizing...

Epistemic Status: I've researched this broad topic for a couple of years. I've read about 30+ books and 100+ articles on the topic so far (I'm not really keeping count). I've also read many other works in the related areas of normative moral philosophy, moral psychology, moral epistemology, moral methodology, and metaethics, since it's basically my area of specialization within philosophy. This project will be my PhD thesis. However, I still have 3 years of the PhD to go, so a substantial amount of my opinions on the matter are subject to changes. Disclaimer: I have received some funding as a Forethought Foundation Fellow in support of my PhD research. But all the opinions expressed here are my own. Index. Part I - Bibliography Review Part II - Preliminary Takes and Opinions (I'm writing it, coming very soon!) More parts to be published later on. Introduction. Hi everyone, this [...] ---Outline:(00:51) Index.(01:05) Introduction.(03:55) Guiding Questions.(08:33) Who has a good Personal Fit for becoming a Moral Progress researcher?(15:05) Bibliography Review.(15:32) TL;DR / Recommended Reading Order.(17:05) Amazing books (5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Read them and take notes)(17:15) Allen Buchanan and Rachel Powell - The Evolution of Moral Progress: A Biocultural Theory (2018) - Genre: Moral Philosophy - No Audiobook(19:32) Steven Pinker - The Better Angels of Our Nature. The Decline of Violence in History and Its Causes (2011) - Genre: Historical Trends - Audiobook Available(21:11) Hanno Sauer - Moral Teleology: A Theory of Progress (2023) - Genre: Moral Philosophy - No Audiobook(22:07) Oded Galor - The Journey of Humanity (2020) - Genre: Historical Trends - Audiobook Available(23:02) Joseph Henrichs - The Secret of Our Success (2016) - Genre: Cultural Evolution, Pre-History - Audiobook Available(23:59) Joseph Henrich - The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous (2020) - Genre: Cultural Evolution, Historical Trends since the 1300s - Audiobook Available(26:51) Great books (4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Read them)(26:59) Victor Kumar and Richmond Campbell - A Better Ape: The Evolution of the Moral Mind and How it Made Us Human (2022) - Genre: Moral Psychology, Moral Philosophy - Audiobook Available(27:40) Philip Kitcher - Moral Progress (2021) - Genre: Moral Philosophy, Social Movements - No Audiobook(30:22) Hans Rosling - Factfulness: Ten Reasons Were Wrong About the World and Why Things Are Better Than You Think (2018) - Genre: Post-Industrial Historical Trends. - Audiobook Available(31:10) Michael Tomasello - Becoming Human: A Theory of Ontogeny (2018)- Genre: Cognitive Human Development - No Audiobook(32:03) Jose Antonio Marina - Biography of Inhumanity (2021) - Genre: Moral Values, Cultural Evolution - Audiobook in Spanish only(32:32) Kim Sterelnys - The Evolved Apprentice: How Evolution Made Humans Unique (2009) - Genre: Human Pre-History - Audiobook Available(33:25) Jonathan Haidt - The Righteous Mind (2011) - Genre: Political Psychology - Audiobook Available(34:52) Okay books (3/5 ⭐⭐⭐ - Skim them)(34:59) Peter Singer - The Expanding Circle: Ethics and Sociobiology (1979 [2011]) - Genre: Moral Philosophy - No Audiobook(36:19) Frans de Waal - Primates and Philosophers: How Morality Evolved (2006) - Genre: Ape Proto-Morality - No Audiobook(37:00) Robert Wright - Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny (2000) - Genre: Cultural Evolution - Audiobook Available(37:51) Joshua Greene - Moral Tribes. Emotion, Reason, and the gap between Us and Them (2013) - Genre: Moral Psychology - Audiobook Available(38:48) Derek Parfit - On What Matters (2011) (just the section on the Triple Theory) - Genre: Moral Philosophy - No Audiobook(39:28) Steven Pinker - Enlightenment Now. The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress (2018) - Genre: Social Values / Enlightenment Values - Audiobook Available(40:15) Benedict Anderson - Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origins and Spread of Nationalism (1983) - Genre: Modernity - No Audiobook(41:26) William MacAskill - Moral Uncertainty (2020) - Genre: Moral Philosophy - No Audiobook(42:01) Daniel Dennett - Darwins Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life (1995) - Genre: Evolution - Audiobook Available(42:52) Ingmar Persson and Julian Savulescu - Unfit for the Future: The Need for Moral Enhancement (2012) - Genre: Transhumanism, Human Nature - No Audiobook(43:25) Isaiah Berlin - The Roots of Romanticism (1965) - Genre: Romantic Values, Nationalism - No Audiobook(44:06) Mediocre books (2/5 ⭐⭐ - Skip to the relevant sections)(44:13) Kwame Anthony Appiah - The Honor Code: How Moral Revolutions Happen (2010) - Genre: Moral Philosophy, Social Movements - Audiobook Available(46:13) Steven Pinker - The Blank Slate (2000) - Genre: General Psychology - Audiobook Available(47:10) Cecilia Heyes - Cognitive Gadgets: The Cultural Evolution of Thinking (2018) - Genre: Cultural Evolution, Psychology - Audiobook Available(48:11) Cass Sunstein - How Change Happens (2019) - Genre: Social Change, Policy - Audiobook Available(48:44) Angus Deaton - The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality (2013) - Genre: Trends in Global Poverty, Health - Audiobook Available(49:09) Johan Norberg - Progress: Ten Reasons to Look Forward to the Future (2016) - Genre: Post-Industrial Historical Trends - Audiobook Available(49:39) David Livingstone Smith - On Inhumanity: Dehumanization and How to Resist It (2020) - Genre: - Audiobook Available(50:18) Bad books (1/5 ⭐ - Skip)(50:23) Michael Shermer - The Moral Arc: How Science Makes Us Better People (2015) - Genre: Enlightenment Values - Audiobook Available(50:51) Michele Moody-Adams - Genre: Social Movements, Moral Philosophy - Making Space for Justice (2023) - Audiobook Available(51:21) Thomas Piketty - A Brief History of Equality (2021) - Genre: Historical Trends - Audiobook Available(51:44) Article collection.(52:08) Worthwhile articles (Read them).(52:55) Alright ones (Skim them).(01:03:29) Bad ones (Skip them).(01:03:55) Havent read them yet or dont remember enough to classify them.(01:05:31) Books I havent read yet, and my reasoning for why I want to read them.(01:05:37) Important books or articles I havent read yet.(01:07:13) Books or articles I havent read yet. I might read them but I consider less directly relevant or less pressing.(01:09:56) Minor readings I might do when I have free time (e.g. over the summer just to corroborate if Im missing anything important in my own work):(01:10:58) Potentially interesting extensions but probably beyond the scope of my work.(01:13:13) EA work on Moral Progress and related topics.(01:13:29) Moral Circle Expansion.(01:15:12) Economic Growth and Moral Progress.(01:15:31) Progress Studies.(01:16:22) Social and Intellectual Movements.(01:16:58) Historical Processes.(01:17:16) Cultural Evolution and Value Drift.(01:18:37) Longtermist Institutional Reform.(01:19:17) Conclusion.(01:19:46) Acknowledgements.(01:20:05) Contact Information.--- First published: December 10th, 2023 Source: https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/YC3Mvw2xNtpKxR5sK/phd-on-moral-progress-bibliography-review --- Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.

This Thanksgiving Brian Brushwood joins to discuss the many ways an average American's life is more comfortable, affluent, and magical than the vast majority of human history--including that of pharaohs and kings.   BOOKS: This episode relies heavily on "The Rational Optimist" by Matt Ridley, "Ten Global Trends Every Smart Person Should Know" by Ron Bailey, and "The Better Angels of Our Nature" by Stephen Pinker, and "Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think" by Peter H. Diamandis. All great books that present convincing stats on the positive trajectory of the world. They're all linked to at www.mightyheaton.com/featured   RELATED INTERVIEWS: Matt Ridley on Rational Optimism Ron Bailey on Positive Trends

Are the ideals of the Enlightenment – reason, science and humanism – and the progress they can deliver being undermined by a cynical desire to burn it all down? Pre-eminent psychologist Steven Pinker explains why problems are inevitable and not a reason to destroy the institutions of modernity, with all the resulting chaos and carnage. The use of knowledge to enhance human flourishing will never bring about utopia, but it has given greater life, freedom, equality, safety, peace, and enrichment to billions, and promises still more if we rededicate ourselves to that ideal.  Steven Pinker is an experimental psychologist who conducts research in visual cognition, psycholinguistics, and social relations. Currently Johnstone Professor of Psychology at Harvard, he has also taught at Stanford and MIT. He has won numerous prizes for his research, his teaching, and his nine books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Better Angels of Our Nature, and The Sense of Style.

Welcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio. This is: Violence Before Agriculture, published by John G. Halstead on October 2, 2023 on The Effective Altruism Forum. This is a summary of a report on trends in violence since the dawn of humanity: from the hunter-gatherer period to the present day. The full report is available at this Substack and as a preprint on SSRN. Phil did 95% of the work on the report. Expert reviewers provided the following comments on our report. "Thomson and Halstead have provided an admirably thorough and fair assessment of this difficult and emotionally fraught empirical question. I don't agree with all of their conclusions, but this will surely be the standard reference for this issue for years to come." Steven Pinker, Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University "This work uses an impressively comprehensive survey of ethnographic and archeological data on military mortality in historically and archeologically known small-scale societies in an effort to pin down the scale of the killing in the pre-agricultural world. This will be a useful addition to the literature. It is an admirably cautious assessment of the war mortality data, which are exceptionally fragile; and the conclusions it draws about killing rates prior to the Holocene are probably as good as we are likely to get for the time being." Paul Roscoe, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Maine Epistemic status We think our estimates here move understanding of prehistoric violence forward by rigorously focussing on the pre-agricultural period and attempting to be as comprehensive as possible with the available evidence. However, data in the relevant fields of ethnography and archeology is unusually shaky, so we would not be surprised if it turned out that some of the underlying data turns out to be wrong. We are especially unsure about our method for estimating actual violent mortality rates from the measured, observable rates in the raw archeology data. One of us (Phil) has a masters in anthropology. Neither of us have any expertise in archeology. Guide for the reader If you are interested in this study simply as a reference for likely rates/patterns of violence in the pre-agricultural world, all our main results and conclusions are presented in the Summary. The rest of the study explores the evidence in more depth and explains how we put our results together. We first cover the ethnographic evidence, then the archeological evidence. The study ends with a more speculative discussion of our findings and their possible implications. Acknowledgments We would like to thank the following expert reviewers for their extensive and insightful comments and suggestions, which have helped to make this report substantially better. Steven Pinker, Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University Robert Kelly, Professor of Archeology at the University of Wyoming Paul Roscoe, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Maine We would also like to thank Prof. Hisashi Nakao, Prof. Douglas Fry, Prof. Nelson Graburn, and Holden Karnofsky for commenting, responding to queries and sharing materials. Around 11,000 years ago plants and animals began to be domesticated, a process which would completely transform the lifeways of our species. Human societies all over the world came to depend almost entirely on farming. Before this transformative period of history, everyone was a hunter-gatherer. For about 96% of the approximately 300,000 years since Homo sapiens evolved, we relied on wild plants and animals for food. Our question is: what do we know about how violent these pre-agricultural people were? In 2011 Steven Pinker published The Better Angels of Our Nature. According to Pinker, prehistoric small-scale societies were generally extremely violent by comparison with modern stat...

To complete a trilogy on the anthropology of war, here is episode 8 from the archives. Enjoy! SUPPORT THE SHOW Please consider becoming a supporter of On Humans. Even small monthly donations can make a huge impact on the long-term sustainability of the program. Visit: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/OnHumans ⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get in touch: ilari@onhumans.org _______ Thomas Hobbes famously wrote that life in the state of nature was “nasty, brutish, and short”. Recently, various scholars have claimed that Hobbes was basically right: our ancestors lived in a state of constant raiding and chronic warfare. Indeed, some have suggested that as many as 15% of ancestral humans died due to war. And the claims are made with the utmost confidence. But there is something disturbing about this confidence. The earliest archaeological records of war are only c. 14,000 years old. And many anthropologists working with modern-day hunter-gatherers claim that they tend to be remarkably peaceful.  The literature around this question is dense and difficult to penetrate. This episode aims to make it a notch more accessible.  Douglas P. Fry is an anthropologist and a leading scholar on the topic. He has written extensively about the origins of war in books such as War, Peace and Human Nature. His papers on the matter have been published in top journals such as Science. And his conclusions might be surprising to many. In this discussion, Ilari and Professor Fry talk about: The archaeological evidence for the origins of war. Why do some hunter-gatherers wage war? Why does Fry think that most of them do not? And why is the data in ⁠Better Angels of Our Nature⁠ so misleading - even fabricated? How common is lethal violence in mammals more generally?  How violent was the human Pleistocene (over 11,700 years ago)? Does it matter? Ethnic groups mentioned Pacific Northwest hunter-gatherers (hunter-gatherer groups well-known for having complex “civilisation”, including social hierarchies, warfare and slavery) Calusa (a complex hunter-gatherer group in Florida) Tiwi (Australian hunter-gathers who are atypical for having clans and a high level of lethal violence) Andaman Islanders (in the Bay of Bengal) Iñupiaq (the warring Inuit group, which was not named in the discussion) Names and technical terms Herbert Manscher Jane Goodall (primatologist who recorded so-called Gombe wars in chimpanzees) Steven Pinker  Samuel Bowles  Leslie Sponsel  Christopher Boehm C. Darwent, J. Darwent  References Misreported “war deaths” in Better Angles of Out Nature (⁠Fry & Söderberg 2019⁠) and lethal violence in hunter-gatherers (⁠Fry & Söderberg 2013⁠) Lethal violence in mammals (⁠Gomez et al. 2016⁠) and in archaeological skeletons (⁠Haas & Piscitelli)⁠  Cooperation in a spatial prisoner's dilemma (⁠Aktipis 2004)⁠ Peace systems (⁠video⁠ & ⁠the Nature article⁠)

Since 2021, Tenijah has hosted and produced Bring Birds Back, a podcast about conservation, formal/ citizen science, and of course—birds, told through the lenses of intersectionality and environmental justice.What's inspiring to me about Tenijah (among many things) is that she didn't grow up with a familiarity and love of being outdoors. In fact, she described her relationship as mostly centered around an avoidance. But, over time, she's begun to rewrite her nature-relationship and has uncovered so much richness in the process.In this conversation, Tenijah and I discuss everything from her personal journey of embracing discomfort and following her curiosity, to what it's been like for her as a Black woman to reclaim parts of herself and her community. We also talk stepping into your personal power, and we obviously talk about birds! Tenijah shares the number one misconception about birding, tips and techniques for bird observation, why humans are so obsessed with birds, and some weird bird behavior that I loved knowing.Resources:Homecoming ApplicationBring Bird's Back PodcastBring Bird's Back: The Zero Sum of it All with Corina NewsomeBring Bird's Back: The Feminist Bird ClubBring Bird's Back: Bird Love Language For the full show notes, please visit www.ournaturepodcast.com/tenijah-hamilton----->> HOMECOMING, my once-a-year retreat and course is back !!

Camille Dan is the mother of Aaron, her eldest son who has transitioned, his two brothers, and his one sister. Besides being a loving and devoted mom, Camille has professional experience as a Critical Care Registered Nurse, a Medical Technical Consultant for Feature Films and Television, and she is currently a Private Investment Manager. She is also a former skeptic whose spiritual journey after losing her eldest son Aaron was completely unexpected. Since September 2019, with Aaron as her guiding light, Camille has written two enlightening books, the bestseller titled Aaron's Energy: An Unexpected Journey Through Grief and the Afterlife with My Brilliant Son and her latest book titled Gathering at the Doorway: An Anthology of Signs, Visits, and Messages from the Afterlife. In addition, she has contributed a chapter to the anthology, “The Beauty of a Grieving Mother: Mothers Share Their Stories of Finding Hope after the Loss of a Child”. She has appeared on YouTube shows. She has been on a number of podcasts. And she has had her chapter titled ‘Eternity is in Our Nature' published in an edition of “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Grieving, Loss and Healing.” IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT THINGS LIKE:Camille's relationship with Aaron and the mystery of how he transitioned.When Aaron began communicating with Camille, she literally heard his voice.Aaron told Camille that he would come back to her and that she would recognize him.How Camille discovered a trans-image of Aaron that gave her proof of his survival. SOME QUESTIONS IRENE ASKS CAMILLE:What is a trans-image of a deceased loved one and how is a trans-image achieved?Does every person have the same experience when they cross over?What has Aaron said to you about our 3D world transitioning through a spiritual awakening?

••• Diligent Inquiry . ••• Bible Study Verses: Matthew 13: 53-57, Luke 1:37, Proverbs 9:6, Proverbs 8:4-7, Proverbs 8:17-18, 8:4-5, Matthew 7:7-8, Psalm 37:4, Proverbs 29:25, Genesis 3:10, Ecclesiastes 10:15, Proverbs 24:30, Deuteronomy 29:29, Mark 9:23, John 7:37, Jeremiah 6:16, Jude 3, Luke 11:8 . ••• " Our Nature consists in motion; complete rest is death", Blaise Pascal, 1623-1662, Author of spiritual essays, Les Pensees, a genius by any measure, he turned his attention to God after society rejected his creation of the first calculating machine. † ••• “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”, Hebrews 11:6, NKJV . ••• What does going beyond the limits mean? ••• Why do expectations prevent going beyond the limits? ••• What are the 4-natures of going beyond the limits? ••• What are 4-reasons why so many Believers are not living the abundant life promised in the scriptures? ••• What are 5-reasons why we have to diligently inquire from the Lord? ••• What are 7-reasons why so many people don't seek? ••• What are 5-life actions to living your Life Beyond Limits? ••• What are at least 3-blessings of inquiry? ••• What are the 4-characteristics of those who Can Live life Beyond the Limits? ••• Are you going to trust The Living Invisible Almighty Creator God and have your small group pray that you will diligently inquiry of The Lord, Christ Jesus, so that you can live your life beyond the limits imposed upon you by a lost and fallen world system through the power of Holy Spirit? ••• Pastor Godwin Otuno expounds on this and much more on the exciting journey of Fresh Encounters Radio Podcast originally aired on June 3, 2023 on WNQM, Nashville Quality Ministries and WWCR World Wide Christian Radio broadcasted to all 7-continents on this big beautiful blue marble, earth, floating through space. Please be prayerful before studying The Word of God so that you will receive the most inspiration possible .••• This Discipleship Teaching Podcast is brought to you by Christian Leadership International and all the beloved of God who believe in it's mission through prayer and support. Thank you . ••• SHARING LINK: https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/230603diligentInquiry .••• Exceeding Thanks to Universe Creator Christ Jesus AND photo by Tolga Aslantürk Photography, İzmir, Turkey, https://www.youtube.com/@tolgaaslanturkfilms/about, https://www.instagram.com/tolgaaslanturk/ , www.tolgaaslanturk.com . ••• † https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/blaise-pascal-quotes . ••• Study Guides at - https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/episodes . ••• Broadcaster's Website - https://www.lifelonganointing.com/ . ••• RESOURCE - https://www.soundcloud.com/thewaytogod/ . ••• RESOURCE - https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/kjv/john.1%20 . ••• FERP230603 Episode #279 GOT 230603Ep279 . ••• Living Beyond the Limits: Diligent Inquiry . Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

這幾天，不論是社會，還是自己身邊，都發生了不少事情，讓我想到了言論自由的問題。「甚麼是言論自由？」這個問題好像很簡單，但其實又不盡然。至少，社會上有很多不同的版本，但每個都好像差了點甚麼，總有人覺得不滿意。「言論自由，是用來保障那些令人反感的言論。」這定義是有點「偷換概念」；它不直接說甚麼是言論自由，只是說言論自由的其中一個意義。甚至乎，這個定義也意味著，言論自由必然是有一定的代價。「沒有自由是絕對的，所以言論自由也不是絕對的。」這個講法，相信大家都聽過，耳熟能詳。你想反駁嗎？又好像找不到它的重點，對吧？今日，我嘗試像數學解題一樣，拆解甚麼是言論自由。言論自由，從字面上，就是「言論」和「自由」。甚麼是言論，不用吹毛求疵，總之但凡不同形式的表達，語言文字當然是主流，聲音圖片舞蹈等等，都是廣義上的言論。真正的關鍵詞是「自由」；自由是否簡單的解作「做乜都得」？我知道有些人是這樣去理解自由，然後就想到了那些毫無自我約束的人，自把自為，做乜都得。然後，就會有人說：「不就是講過了，自由不是絕對的；所以自由必須要有所約束。」假如不是絕對，相對的界線應該在那裡？要約束，由誰去約束？怎樣約束？這幾個問題。其實都反映了一個更根本的現象，就是似乎在我們的意識當中，除了自由以外，還有其他的追求。究竟我們的追求是甚麼？每個人所追求的目標都不一樣。循這條思路繼續下去，最終的結論就是：「無錯，自由雖然不是絕對的，但只要不影響到別人，每個人都應該有自由去選擇自己所相信的事吧」以上，大概就是自啟蒙時代以來，對自由的辯證。不少人都滿足於以上的講法；我亦曾經如是。但也有些人不認同，卻說不出一個所以然。我發現，認為「自由不是絕對」的人，其實心底裡都覺得，自由以外還有一些恆久而普世的價值，例如平等、友愛、公義；他們心目中，這些價值或許比自由更崇高；最低限度，也應該與自由平衡對等。對數學有點認識的朋友，都應該看得出，自由其實只是人世間眾多不同價值觀，不同追求的「集合」（Set）；也可以說，自由只是一個變數，不但因人而異，甚至乎會隨時代，環境轉變。如果這樣講，自由的確不是「絕對」。但以上的推理，起點是將自由解作「做乜都得」。有位哲學家 Robert Nozick 就提醒，自由除了「做乜都得」之外，還有也「說不的自由」；換句話說，就是「唔聽」「唔講」「唔做」的自由。「做乜都得」，Nozick 稱為「正面自由」（Positive Freedom）；至於「唔聽」「唔講」「唔做」等，他叫做「負面自由」（Negative Freedom）。將自由分為「正負」兩極，意義在於，兩種自由其實是有本質上的區別。「負面自由」在大多數情況下，是不影響別人的。當然，推到極致，始終還是有「人有沒有見死不救的自由」等的爭議。「見死不救，是不道德，但人的確有這種不道德的自由呀。」假如這樣回答，就有人反駁：「既然自由可以是不道德，自由又是否神聖不可侵犯的價值？」雖然開始的時候，我說是用數學解題的思維去拆解言論自由是甚麼，但本質上這是哲學問題。所以，接下來我想請各位想像一下，在沒有「負面自由」的世界生活是怎樣？你沒有自由去拒絕別人向你發出的命令，連保持沉默的自由也沒有。這樣的世界，你真的是連基本的自由都沒有。為了讓大家更清晰地去分別甚麼是「負面自由」，從這裡開始，我們叫這些最基本自由做「人權」。在日常語境中，很多事情都被冠以「人權」；我希望大家從今起，學會從「負面自由」，「說不的自由」去思考甚麼才是真正的人權。另一邊廂，究竟甚麼是「正面自由」？想說甚麼便說甚麼，就是否正面的言論自由？之前，在網上流傳一條短片，Rapper MC 仁說，可以選擇自己想聽甚麼就聽甚麼，那才是真正的言論自由。驟耳聽來，好像有點道理。你想說，不代表別人想聽；人家也有選擇聽甚麼的自由，對不對？以上所講的「正面自由」，其實不論是言論自由，抑或是其他範疇，都會涉及到別人的自由，換句話說又回到自由是否「絕對」的這個問題上。別人沒有義務去成全你的個人追求， 這是常識吧？你要其他人與你同行，可以動之以情，可以說之以利，就是不可以強迫，也不應偷呃拐騙。別人不願聽，你迫人家去聽，說不過去。說到底，如果發揮「正面自由」，反映一個人的品德。當我們說一個人有沒有品德，究竟是甚麼意思？強迫別人。又或者是張著眼睛說瞎話，凡此種種，就是沒有品德。回到以上提到的問題：「有自由沒有品德，那自由還算不算是神聖不可侵犯的價值？」我的答案是：「人權仍然是不可侵犯的；但神聖的是，在人權的基礎之上，做對得住自己和別人的事，更進一步，甚至能成為別人認為值得仿效、學習的行為。」我們都是平凡人，要神聖是很難，但做到「有品，有德」，就已經不錯了。順帶一提，我聽說過一個解釋，「品」這個字的意思，就是「眾人的評價」。眾人的評價是甚麼？那就是社會普遍價值觀，大眾共識。Adam Smith 在《道德情操論》裡面，提到一個叫「公正的旁觀者」（Impartial Spectator）的概念，意思就是指我們每個人心目中，其實都某程度上感受到別人的感受，從而得知社會大眾，對自己的所作所為，會有怎樣的評價，也就是「品」這個字的意思。那麼「德」這個字，又是甚麼意思？我聽過有人將「德」這個字拆成三份，左邊的部分是「行」，右上的是「腦袋」也就是思考，而右下是「心」代表了感受。當行為思想感受，都是正面而善良，就稱為「德」。兩者加起來：當你不論從社會群眾的評價，以及個人角度的行為思想感受，都合情合理，那就是品德。可能有人會覺得，有沒有必要將事情拆到那麼細緻？反正大多數人都是率性而為吧。但社會能夠進步，正是因為有人追求精益求精。早兩年寫了一篇導讀，介紹 Steven Pinker 寫的 The Better Angels of Our Nature ，當中講到現代人的道德標準進步，暴力減少，原來是因為社會普遍識字率的提升，讓更多人可以從文字和各種文化產物，代入別人的處境，令人更具同理心；同理心令人與人之間的關係變得更良善（Benevolent），這也是 Adam Smith 在《道德情操論》裡面的其中一個主旨。有人擔心，在互聯網世界，尤其是被演算法主導的社交媒體，會否令人的言行變的更乖張偏激，嘩眾取寵。但我相信，社會上從來都有些人，就是語不驚人誓不休。過去的世界，他們找不到聽眾觀眾，但經過社交媒體，這些本來在社會不同角落的人終於連結起來，音量也經過迴音谷效應放大。言論自由，是否等於「鬥大聲」？剛才不是提到 MC 仁說，言論自由重點不是人人口沒遮攔，而是在於我們有沒有自由去聽到自己想聽的聲音？他的這句話能夠引起不少人共鳴，我想是因為在互聯網上，有太多嘈音，令人感到不安和疲倦。以我的個人經驗，找上門，鬥大聲的人，亦根本沒有意圖去說服別人；他們或許想借機讓自己感覺良好，又或者想滋擾別人，令別人感到氣餒，要別人收聲。要別人收聲，動機是侵犯別人的基本權利。幸好，我們只要簡單幾個按鍵，就可以回復耳根清靜。但是當政府官員先口誅筆伐，再「拉人封鋪」，那就是另一回事。尤其是專制政權，更加會無所不用其極控制言論。這點早兩天在另一邊文章分享過，不贅。但今天想補充一點：很多時社會言論自由萎縮，不單是因為人民怕了政府，同時還有剛才所提到的「人民內部矛盾」；兩股力量，相輔相成。當越來越多人習慣「沉默」，結果可能連丁點「沉默的自由」，基本人權也最終失守。另外，我的觀察是，在言論自由被限制的國度，人們理性辯論的能力和水平，都普遍較低；這也是為甚麼小粉紅網上大軍出征的時候，往往只有幾句粗鄙的謾罵，然後便沒有然後。所以，讓更多人學會如何去理性討論事情，求同存異，解決紛爭，也是維繫一個自由社會必須的。當「正面自由」得不到正常發揮，就會有更多人相信了「自由不是絕對」的謬誤。當主流社會接受了「自由不是絕對」，就有人想到要在這裡劃一條紅線，那裡設一道界限。言論的空間收窄，自由的消亡，並不是一朝一夕的事，亦不是單憑統治者的主觀意志就可以做得到。當社會風氣在不經不覺間改變，人們漸漸不敢據理力爭，最後到發現自己想表達意見的時候，已經沒有聽眾，也沒有公共空間。走到那一步，就已經太遲。後記再一次跟大家說聲多謝；謝謝你耐心閱讀。有位讀者希望我可以讀出每篇文章。其實之前我也有講過，寫得好的文章應該是可以朗朗上口，至少作者自己讀一次，對編輯行文用語有很大的幫助；尤其是我沒有其他人幫忙編輯。所以，這個步驟本來是不可以忽略的。多一重的步驟，時間耗費也更多，我亦必須作出取捨；所以可能在其他的平台，例如 YouTube Live ，就只有重複一些內容。希望你看完這篇，覺得我的觀點有用，又或者覺得我提出的觀點與別不同，考慮付費訂閱支持。我也明白，有些朋友暫時不想以付費訂閱的方法支持。希望你能夠向你的朋友推薦這個地方。常言道，免費的最貴，你的推薦和肯定，是很難得的價值。請你將推薦分享，視為一種普及教育，讓更多人接觸得到我的觀點， This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit leesimon.substack.com/subscribe

This month, we are diving into the important and currently hot topic of artificial intelligence. Do we think rising platforms like ChatGPT are going to be running the world anytime soon? Does technology not only have the ability to be intelligent, but also rational? In this episode we get the pleasure of discussing these issues with Steven Pinker, an experimental cognitive psychologist and a popular writer on language, mind, and human nature. Listen to the conversation and find out what happens when an expert on the human mind sits down to discuss intelligence in machines with two data scientists! Our Guest: Dr. Steven Pinker is the Johnstone Family Professor in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. He conducts research on language, cognition, and social relations; writes for publications such as the New York Times, The Guardian, Time, and The Atlantic; and is the author of twelve books, including The Language Instinct, How the Mind Works, The Blank Slate, The Stuff of Thought, The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Sense of Style, Enlightenment Now, and Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters.

This week, my partner David and I are chatting about….drumroll, relationships! Specifically romantic relationships. This episode is very different from the type of content I usually have on this podcast, but when I started this show in 2019, my intention was to uncover how each of us could live in harmony with the natural world and thus be able to care for ourselves, our communities and ultimately, the earth. The dynamics that surface in romantic relationships are often a mirror, and therefore, a catalyst for our personal growth and evolving consciousness. So in the spirit of believing that we can transform the world by first transforming ourselves, I thought it would be interesting to explore this topic.Resources:Tickets for Project Utopia at The Line Hotel in LADavid's episode about healing for Our NatureDavid's somatic healing episodeTara Brach podcastChances With WolvesSubscribe to the Our Nature newsletter!Show Notes:David reveals the patterns that shaped his past romantic relationshipsAlyssa shares some of her [many] romantic relationship patterns that caused her to fear commitmentHow chronic illness and relationships can co-create and perpetuate a cycle of stress and challengeDavid's period of celibacy - his intentions for this period of time and what he learned as resultAlyssa's biggest heartbreak that became a breakthroughThe surprising relationship that transformed and healed Alyssa's experience of romantic partnershipsThe story of how David and I met, and how a loaf of bread brought us togetherWhat we were able to recognize in each other when we met that helped us turn towards one anotherIn praise of the slow burn and how to recognize it for yourselfWhy it's ok to feel unsure at the beginning of a relationshipHow I manifested David ;)For additional resources, quotes and information about this episode, head to www.ournaturepodcast.com/episodes

Jaran and Reagan are back to talk about Steven Pinker's "The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined" and Alan Kreider's "The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire." You might hear us being unsure what to do with the arguments in these books. We'd love to hear your thoughts. The Better Angels of Our Nature: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13543093-the-better-angels-of-our-nature  Do Humankind's Best Days Lie Ahead?: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29340854-do-humankind-s-best-days-lie-ahead The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26266696-the-patient-ferment-of-the-early-church Follow Jaran on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/74450648-jaran-miller. Follow Reagan on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/93683928-reagan-schrock. The music is from Blue Dot Sessions

Meet Steven Pinker whose denial of limits increases the likelihood of his worst fear: the end of the Enlightenment. Please share this episode with your friends and start a conversation.For an entertaining deep dive into the theme of season five (Phalse Prophets), read the definitive peer-reviewed taxonomic analysis from our very own Jason Bradford, PhD. Sources/Links/Notes:David Marchese, "Steven Pinker Thinks Your Sense of Imminent Doom Is Wrong" in The New York Times Magazine (2021).The Work that Reconnects NetworkGood Grief NetworkThree relevant past episodes of Crazy Town are episode 39 on the myth of progress, episode 35 on self-domestication, and episode 34 on terror management theory."Steven Pinker: The Mind Reader" in The Guardian (1999).Robert Wright, "The 2004 Time 100" in Time Magazine (2004).Nick Gillespie, "Steven Pinker Loves the Enlightenment" in Reason Magazine (2018).David A. Bell, "Waiting for Steven Pinker's enlightenment" in The Nation (2018).Emile Torres, "Steven Pinker's fake enlightenment" in Salon (2019).Robert Epstein, "Book Review: The Better Angels of Our Nature" in Scientific American (2011).Tyler Cowen, "Steven Pinker on Language, Reason, and the Future of Violence," Mercatus Center (2016).Mike Freiheit and Lyta Gold, "Comic: Steven Pinker--Certified Grief Counselor" in Current Affairs 2018). George Monbiot, "Contrary to Reason" in The Guardian (2018).Alex Blasdel, "Pinker's progress: the celebrity scientist at the centre of the culture wars" in The Guardian (2021).Support the show

Episode 39 - Tool Time! Show Notes We shape tools, then tools shape us. Adobe drops Pantone 2:35 "First we build the tools, then the tools build us." 6:43 Jacques Attali, "Noise" 11:57 Dave Trott 20:22 Stuart Semple Black 2.0 23:12 Variable Ratio Positive Reinforcement 25:40 Henri Cartier-Bresson 28:32 The Blue Marble 35:23 New Yorker Cartoon 38:11 Steven Pinker - "The Better Angels of Our Nature" 43:41 GEIKO Gecko 50:54 NJM Insurance 51:48 Send your ideas to hello@brandbox.show Apply to SVA Masters in Branding Program Please subscribe and review BrandBox on Apple Podcasts and consider hitting the Donate button on BrandBox.show! Don't forget to submit your questions, comments, and ideas for future episodes of BrandBox to hello@brandbox.show Thanks for your support!

01，我見有位性格悲觀嘅朋友話：「唔好對人咁好；正所謂升米恩，斗米仇。」意思就係你一旦對某啲人好，佢哋就覺得「老奉」；覺得一切都理所當然，你只要對佢哋稍為無咁好，就立刻恩將仇報。02，我亦見到有人將呢種泯滅人性嘅行為，講到係某個文化嘅現象。不過，既然英文入面都有 bite the hand that feeds you 呢個講法，即係話不論乜嘢文化，講乜嘢語言，都一樣有人渣。可以分別只係，人渣佔整體人口比例有幾咁高。03，「人渣」做得出呢我哋一般人難以想像嘅邪惡行為，首先係因為佢哋眼中可以唔當其他人係人。所以，矛盾嘅地方在於：當任何人開始有呢念頭，認為有啲人唔配被視為人類嘅時候，記得要提醒自己，係啲乜嘢令人變成「人渣」。04，唔叫呢啲人做「人渣」，或者可以改個講法叫：「反社會人格。」但大家千祈唔好誤會，我並唔係話佢哋有病，所以叫大家同情佢哋，又或者接納佢哋。今日我想反而想從解釋被大家知，點解我哋要慶幸自己生於呢個時代。幾百年前，我哋身邊會有更多人渣，而且不論係乜嘢社會階層，都更多人死於非命。過去嘅人命賤過今日嘅人命；「人人生而平等」呢六個字，得來不易。05，先講吓「反社會人格」。單單嘅憤世嫉俗，滿腔怒火，並非「反社會人格」；我認為，所謂反社會人格，其實係好極端地缺乏自制能力，而且完全缺乏同理心。呢種人係唔會理會其他人有感受，而佢哋嘅每個決定，亦只會受眼前嘅衝動所主宰。有人形容呢種人為禽獸，但正如我剛才所講，當我哋開始覺得有啲人可以唔當佢哋係人咁去看待，其實就係魔鬼響不知不覺之間，將我哋變成我哋最睇唔起，最恐懼，最厭惡嘅人。06，所以，做人真係好難。難就難在明知情緒係我哋嘅一部份，但要學識唔好畀情緒駕馭。「唔通對人渣都要同佢講人權？」我知一定有人咁樣問，而我嘅答案係：「我哋有三件事可以做。一，保護自己。二，唔好令自己變成佢哋。三，盡量令呢個社會少啲人渣。」07，以上嘅一同二，相信大家都會明白。但請容許我補充一點，就係我觀察有反社會人格傾向嘅人，往往都有好獨特嘅吸引力。其實呢一點亦唔難明，因為敢作敢為嘅外表，有時真係會令人覺得好有魅力。但英雄同惡魔嘅最大分別，就係英雄唔想其他人犧牲，而惡魔永遠都係用其他人嘅性命同利益做籌碼。08，「假如我哋相信人間有捨身為人嘅天使，就唔可以排除有視人命如草芥嘅惡魔。」但好消息係，統計學上天使同惡魔都係光譜兩邊嘅極少數，絕大多數人都係中間嘅平凡人。而作為一個平凡人，我哋只需要做兩件事，就係保護自己，同埋唔好令自己變成惡魔。09，反社會人格罪犯雖然係變態，但佢哋唔係非理智；佢哋無人性，但一樣會嘗試掩飾罪行。所以，越係少機會畀佢哋搵食，其實佢哋嘅數目亦越少。更正確啲咁講，偷呃拐騙同謀財害命，佢哋會選擇的回報高而代價低嘅罪行。但係當某啲人試過一次犯法而無後果，佢哋就以為自己可以次次都咁好彩。話說呢次轟動全港嘅凶殺案，疑犯全部都有前科。10，亦有研究發現，反社會人格嘅人，犯罪嘅高峰期係 24 - 44 歲。大家要留意，研究只不過話畀我哋知，更老同更嫩嘅罪犯相對少，但唔代表唔會犯罪。更大可能係，有反社會人格嘅老嘢，竟然仍然可以消遙法外犯案，往往代表個制度好有問題；例如係知法犯法嘅警員。11，反社會人格有無得醫？反社會人格，既有先天嘅因素，亦有後天嘅環境因素。先天嘅因素，例如缺乏自制能力，呢一點可以透過藥物控制；但你覺得有反社會人格嘅人，會唔會咁有紀律咁自覺去準時食藥呢？至於後天因素，正如剛才所講，盡量減少佢哋可以犯案嘅機會，增加犯案嘅成本，雖然唔可以完全杜絕不幸事件，但可以少一宗，就少一宗。12，話說回頭，廿一世紀嘅變態反社會行為，可能係幾百年前嘅社會，係相對上普遍嘅情況。以前嘅人，的確可以唔當其他人係人；例如十九世紀之前，世界好多地方都有奴隸制度，有各種酷刑。13，對於呢個題目有興趣嘅朋友，我第一本諗到嘅書就係 Steven Pinker 嘅 The Better Angels of Our Nature 。早兩年我寫呢本書嘅時候，可能講遠咗少少，但結論仍然係：人嘅善，不外乎三個因素：同理心、自我約束能力同講道理嘅能力。The Better Angels of Our Nature - by Simon Lee | 利世民 (substack.com)14，另外我有個觀察就係，絕大多數人見到變態凶手一家，都會覺得佢地喪心病狂。掉返轉頭去諗，即係話，我哋絕大多數人其實都做唔出呢啲行為。唔希望大家唔好以為我係一味咁正能量，但我只係想同各位講，社會上絕大多數人都係有基本嘅同理心，有基本嘅自制能力，同埋可以有講道理嘅基本能力。如果我哋想個社會變得更好，就向呢幾個方向著手，令大家更有同理心，更有自制能力，更會講道理。15，除咗光譜中間嘅大多數正常人，光譜兩端一邊係好得人驚嘅惡魔，另一邊係可望而不可及嘅英雄。要記住，社會上只有少數人能夠捨身為人。所以，唔好祈望其他人係英雄；明白大多數人都係貪生怕死，亦都有各種人性上嘅缺陷。所以對社會嘅理性嘅預期，係每個人都要盡量保護自己，亦盡量避免自己成為心目中嘅魔鬼。如是者，已經係一個好美滿幸福嘅世界。16，同理心雖然話係人性，但亦可以間接透過文藝創作去潛移默化。有個講法指，文學、戲劇、攝影、電影、甚至遊戲等，都透過令人加強人嘅想像力而產生更強嘅同理心。甚至有人話，VR 最終嘅理想，係畀我哋第一身咁感受到其他人嘅處境，增強人嘅同理心。但亦有人擔心，打機打得太多會令人對暴力感到麻木。其實呢個題目嘅爭議，一直都有，亦唔會有最終嘅結論。17，至於自制能力，行為科學對呢方面結論係某程度上係可以學習同訓練。我甚至認為，教育嘅重點，應該係著重個人自制能力，多於係知識嘅傳授。18，世界永遠都唔會係完美，將來亦肯定會有不幸嘅事情發生。但我哋仍然可以對未來樂觀，亦唔需要放棄對人嘅信念。歷史同統計數字都話畀我哋知，人類文明嘅發展，係越來越少仇殺；社會主流意見，亦越來越唔接受暴力。我哋每日見到新聞好似好多凶案，好多慘案，係因為呢啲事情實在太過有違社會道德倫理，所以先至咁大篇幅報導。19，「唔係喎，好似美國啲槍擊案，嚴重咗喎⋯⋯」真係，2020 年之後呢兩年的確係，但如果睇統計數字，由 1980 年起，美國主要死於槍械嘅人，原因係自殺。甚至有理由相信，只要有朝一日安樂死合法化，連用槍械自殺嘅個案都會減少。畢竟，人就算失去求生意志，都一樣唔想死得痛苦。20，所以，最後都係強調多一次，唔需要對人性失去信心；但對自己有適當嘅保護係必須嘅。我哋每個人只要做好自己，避免變成魔鬼，這個世界就已經會好好多。 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit leesimon.substack.com/subscribe

Eliot and Eric host Robert W. Kagan, the Stephen and Barbara Friedman Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of Of Paradise and Power, The Return of History, The World America Made, and The Jungle Grows Back to discuss his new book The Ghost at the Feast: America and the Collapse of World Order, 1900-1941. They discuss the irresponsibility of American policy making after World War I, whether or not a more robust U.S. commitment to European security could have produced the kind of security order that the U.S. helped create after 1945, the ambivalence of American thinking about the necessity of global order and a reluctance to play a leading role in securing it, and the role of moral and ideological impulses in U.S. policy making. They also assess Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt as statesmen and the state of the study of diplomatic history in the academy today. Dangerous Nation by Robert Kagan (https://www.amazon.com/Dangerous-Nation-Americas-Earliest-Twentieth/dp/0375724915) Ghost at the Feast by Robert Kagan (https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Feast-Collapse-1900-1941-Dangerous/dp/0307262944/) “The America trap: Why our enemies often underestimate us,” by Robert Kagan (Excerpt from Ghost at the Feast) in Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/19/robert-kagan-america-trap-world-war-hitler-japan/) The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker (https://www.amazon.com/Better-Angels-Our-Nature-Violence/dp/0143122010) “The End of History?” by Francis Fukuyama (https://www.jstor.org/stable/24027184) The Change in the European Balance of Power by Williamson Murray (https://www.amazon.com/Change-European-Balance-Power-1938-1939/dp/0691101612) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Eliot and Eric host Robert W. Kagan, the Stephen and Barbara Friedman Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of Of Paradise and Power, The Return of History, The World America Made, and The Jungle Grows Back to discuss his new book The Ghost at the Feast: America and the Collapse of World Order, 1900-1941. They discuss the irresponsibility of American policy making after World War I, whether or not a more robust U.S. commitment to European security could have produced the kind of security order that the U.S. helped create after 1945, the ambivalence of American thinking about the necessity of global order and a reluctance to play a leading role in securing it, and the role of moral and ideological impulses in U.S. policy making. They also assess Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt as statesmen and the state of the study of diplomatic history in the academy today. Dangerous Nation by Robert Kagan (https://www.amazon.com/Dangerous-Nation-Americas-Earliest-Twentieth/dp/0375724915) Ghost at the Feast by Robert Kagan (https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Feast-Collapse-1900-1941-Dangerous/dp/0307262944/) “The America trap: Why our enemies often underestimate us,” by Robert Kagan (Excerpt from Ghost at the Feast) in Washington Post (https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/19/robert-kagan-america-trap-world-war-hitler-japan/) The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker (https://www.amazon.com/Better-Angels-Our-Nature-Violence/dp/0143122010) “The End of History?” by Francis Fukuyama (https://www.jstor.org/stable/24027184) The Change in the European Balance of Power by Williamson Murray (https://www.amazon.com/Change-European-Balance-Power-1938-1939/dp/0691101612) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we visit Hanapepe, Hawaii, to learn about Talk Story Bookstore, the western most bookstore in the United States. The doors opened in 2004, when owern Ed Justus was offered a month's free rent to start a business. Books We Talk About: The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker, How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff, and The Automatic Millionnaire by David Bach.All Business. No Boundaries.Welcome to All Business. No Boundaries, a collection of supply chain stories by DHL...Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify The Brave MarketerBrands are navigating the new Web3 and marketing in the metaverseListen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Linking morality and science can conjure up disturbing histories around social Darwinism, eugenics, and genetically engineered humans. But scientists today are making discoveries that moral agents shouldn't ignore: how to overcome aggression and tribalism, and how to sustain cooperation in a modern pluralist world. Guests: Diane Paul, professor emerita of the University of Massachusetts, Boston and research associate at the Harvard University Museum of Comparative Zoology. Ben Allen, associate professor of mathematics at Emmanuel College. Steven Pinker, professor of cognitive psychology at Harvard University and bestselling author of The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Language Instinct, The Blank Slate, and many others. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Linking morality and science can conjure up disturbing histories around social Darwinism, eugenics, and genetically engineered humans. But scientists today are making discoveries that moral agents shouldn't ignore: how to overcome aggression and tribalism, and how to sustain cooperation in a modern pluralist world. Guests: Diane Paul, professor emerita of the University of Massachusetts, Boston and research associate at the Harvard University Museum of Comparative Zoology. Ben Allen, associate professor of mathematics at Emmanuel College. Steven Pinker, professor of cognitive psychology at Harvard University and bestselling author of The Better Angels of Our Nature, The Language Instinct, The Blank Slate, and many others. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

This Thanksgiving Brian Brushwood joins to discuss the many ways an average American's life is more comfortable, affluent, and magical than the vast majority of human history--including that of pharaohs and kings.  BOOKS: This episode relies heavily on "The Rational Optimist" by Matt Ridley, "Ten Global Trends Every Smart Person Should Know" by Ron Bailey, and "The Better Angels of Our Nature" by Stephen Pinker, and "Abundance: The Future is Better Than You Think" by Peter H. Diamandis. All great books that present convincing stats on the positive trajectory of the world. They're all linked to at www.mightyheaton.com/featured RELATED INTERVIEWS:  Matt Ridley on Rational Optimism  Ron Bailey on Positive Trends 

Is war in long-term decline? Steven Pinker's The Better Angels of Our Nature brought this previously obscure academic question to the centre of public debate, and pointed to rates of death in war to argue energetically that war is on the way out. But that idea divides war scholars and statisticians, and so Better Angels has prompted a spirited debate, with datasets and statistical analyses exchanged back and forth year after year. The lack of consensus has left a somewhat bewildered public (including host Rob Wiblin) unsure quite what to believe. Today's guest, professor in political science Bear Braumoeller, is one of the scholars who believes we lack convincing evidence that warlikeness is in long-term decline. He collected the analysis that led him to that conclusion in his 2019 book, Only the Dead: The Persistence of War in the Modern Age. Links to learn more, summary and full transcript. The question is of great practical importance. The US and PRC are entering a period of renewed great power competition, with Taiwan as a potential trigger for war, and Russia is once more invading and attempting to annex the territory of its neighbours. If war has been going out of fashion since the start of the Enlightenment, we might console ourselves that however nerve-wracking these present circumstances may feel, modern culture will throw up powerful barriers to another world war. But if we're as war-prone as we ever have been, one need only inspect the record of the 20th century to recoil in horror at what might await us in the 21st. Bear argues that the second reaction is the appropriate one. The world has gone up in flames many times through history, with roughly 0.5% of the population dying in the Napoleonic Wars, 1% in World War I, 3% in World War II, and perhaps 10% during the Mongol conquests. And with no reason to think similar catastrophes are any less likely today, complacency could lead us to sleepwalk into disaster. He gets to this conclusion primarily by analysing the datasets of the decades-old Correlates of War project, which aspires to track all interstate conflicts and battlefield deaths since 1815. In Only the Dead, he chops up and inspects this data dozens of different ways, to test if there are any shifts over time which seem larger than what could be explained by chance variation alone. In a nutshell, Bear simply finds no general trend in either direction from 1815 through today. It seems like, as philosopher George Santayana lamented in 1922, "only the dead have seen the end of war". In today's conversation, Bear and Rob discuss all of the above in more detail than even a usual 80,000 Hours podcast episode, as well as: • Why haven't modern ideas about the immorality of violence led to the decline of war, when it's such a natural thing to expect? • What would Bear's critics say in response to all this? • What do the optimists get right? • How does one do proper statistical tests for events that are clumped together, like war deaths? • Why are deaths in war so concentrated in a handful of the most extreme events? • Did the ideas of the Enlightenment promote nonviolence, on balance? • Were early states more or less violent than groups of hunter-gatherers? • If Bear is right, what can be done? • How did the 'Concert of Europe' or 'Bismarckian system' maintain peace in the 19th century? • Which wars are remarkable but largely unknown? Get this episode by subscribing to our podcast on the world's most pressing problems and how to solve them: type 80,000 Hours into your podcasting app. Producer: Keiran Harris Audio mastering: Ryan Kessler Transcriptions: Katy Moore

Open your bibles to the Hebrew Bible, class, today we're talking about mythology. Stephen wonders if there is a sliver of truth to the old stories and wants to know what could do with that. Emily informs us on the types of myths that are told and how they help scaffold our understandings of the world and humanity. Josh says the only thing that keeps him remotely Christian is the mythical nature of it.Mentioned in the Episode: Miracles by C.S. Lewis The Enuma Elish The Better Angels of Our Nature by Stephen Pinker Support us: Join our Patreon community and buy us a drink at patreon.com/ravelpod for as little as $3/mo! Order coffee and other merch at highline.network/shop! Take a minute to drop us a 5-star rating and a 1-2 sentence review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!  Follow on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok at @ravelpod! Follow the hosts on social:  Josh Twitter: @joshlieuallen Stephen Twitter: @stephenghenning Emily Instagram: @RevRettinghouse Credits: Theme Song: In Full Color by Louie Zong on Spotify and Bandcamp Artwork: Yarn and Ravel by Dixie Lee Henning @dixieleedraws Editing/Sound Design by Stephen Henning Social Media by Josh Lieuallen Certified Organic benediction by Reverend Emily Rettinghouse, MDiv Ravel is a proud founding member of the Highline Media Network, a collective of artist owned podcasts by normal people in normal places. Learn more at highline.network.

This week marks the 400th episode of this podcast. For this celebratory episode, I have a conversation with my friend and fellow podcast host Alyssa Benjamin. She's a brand strategist who has worked with values-based brands from Eileen Fisher to Buffy on meaningful experiences and compelling content. Her podcast, Our Nature, explores the methods, systems and practices that bring us into greater alignment with the natural world.Alyssa and I tell the story of how we met in New York, collaborated on a project, and both ended up here on the west coast. We recorded this conversation in person and it covered finding what she calls “inner stability”, tolerating emotions, our relationship to nature, career pivots, creative process, naming projects, celebrating milestones, leaving New York, storytelling, unique aesthetics, connection, dating, romantic relationships, and more. Show Notes:- Find Alyssa on the Web | Instagram- Listen to Alyssa's podcast, Our Nature, on Apple Podcasts | Spotify- The Podcast Kit is 50% off through the end of July with code summer- Sign up for the waitlist for the re-imagined Creative Underdogs/In Process (coming soon)!- Subscribe to our newsletter to get show notes + essays, etc. sent to your inbox- Follow @letitouttt on Instagram. I'm @katiedalebout Sponsor:I've been sleeping on an organic mattress from My Green Mattress for the past few weeks, and I love it. Check out their selection of affordable and certified organic mattresses on www.mygreenmattress.com. Use code LETITOUT in the check-out to receive $125 off a twin or larger and $20 off the Emily Organic crib!

A lifetime spent reading, writing and reflecting teaches you a lot. Nilanjana Roy joins Amit Varma in episode 284 of The Seen and the Unseen to talk about books, feminism, family, memory and the state of the world.  Also check out:1. Nilanjana Roy on Twitter, Instagram, Amazon, Financial Times, Business Standard and her own website. 2. The Girl Who Ate Books: Adventures in Reading -- Nilanjana Roy. 3. The Wildings -- Nilanjana Roy. 4. The Hundred Names of Darkness -- Nilanjana Roy. 5. Episodes of The Seen and the Unseen that discuss reading and writing with Sara Rai, Amitava Kumar, VK Karthika, Sugata Srinivasaraju, Mrinal Pande, Sonia Faleiro, Vivek Tejuja, Samanth Subramanian, Annie Zaidi and Prem Panicker. 6.  Episodes of The Seen and the Unseen on the creator ecosystem with Roshan Abbas, Varun Duggirala, Neelesh Misra, Snehal Pradhan, Chuck Gopal, Nishant Jain, Deepak Shenoy and Abhijit Bhaduri. 7. A Meditation on Form -- Amit Varma. 8. Why Are My Episodes so Long? -- Amit Varma. 9. The Prem Panicker Files -- Episode 217 of The Seen and the Unseen. 10. Jonathan Haidt on Amazon. 11. Where Have All the Leaders Gone? -- Amit Varma. 12. The Ranga-Billa Case. 13. Sarojini Naidu on Amazon. 14. The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi. 15. The Mahatma and the Poet — The letters between Gandhi and Tagore, compiled by Sabyasachi Bhattacharya. 16. Amitava Kumar Finds the Breath of Life -- Episode 265 of The Seen and the Unseen. 17. Margaret Mascarenhas on Amazon. 18. The Web We Have to Save -- Hossein Derakhshan. 19. The Country Without a Post Office -- Agha Shahid Ali. 20. Wanting — Luke Burgis. 21. René Girard on Amazon and Wikipedia. 22. The Silence of Scheherazade -- Defne Suman. 23. Silver -- Walter de la Mare. 24. Lessons from an Ankhon Dekhi Prime Minister — Amit Varma. 25. George Saunders and Barack Obama on Amazon. 26. A life in 5,000 books -- Nilanjana Roy. 27. Surender Mohan Pathak, Ibne Safi and Gabriel Garcia Marquez on Amazon.  28. The Power Broker — Robert Caro. 29. The Death and Life of Great American Cities — Jane Jacobs. 30. JRR Tolkien, Ursula Le Guin and Terry Pratchett on Amazon. 31. Forget reading Thomas Piketty. Try a bit of Terry Pratchett -- Robert Shrimsley. 32. Fifty Shades of Grey -- EL James. 33. Ankur Warikoo, Aanchal Malhotra, Manu Pillai and Ira Mukhoty on Amazon. 34. Mahashweta Devi and Naiyer Masud on Amazon. 35. The former homes of Hurree Babu and Putu the Cat. 36. The Life and Times of Abhinandan Sekhri -- Episode 254 of The Seen and the Unseen. 37. Om Namah Volume -- Amit Varma. 38. Salman's Sea of Stories -- Salman Rushdie's Substack newsletter. 39. What Is It Like to Be a Bat? — Thomas Nagel. 40. The Hidden Life of Trees -- Peter Wohlleben. 41. An Immense World -- Ed Yong. 42. The Twitter thread by Sergej Sumlenny that Nilanjana mentioned. 43. The Inheritance of Loss -- Kiran Desai. 44. The Grapes of Wrath -- John Steinbeck. 45. Pather Panchali --  Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay. 46. Gora -- Rabindranath Tagore. 47. William Shakespeare, Kalidasa, Geoffrey Chaucer and Krishna Sobti on Amazon. 48. The Cult of Authenticity -- Vikram Chandra. 49. Meenakshi Mukherjee: The Death of a Critic -- Nilanjana Roy. 50. Field Notes from a Waterborne Land: Bengal Beyond the Bhadralok -- Parimal Bhattacharya. 51. Patriots, Poets and Prisoners: Selections from Ramananda Chatterjee's The Modern Review, 1907-1947 -- Edited by Anikendra Sen, Devangshu Datta and Nilanjana Rao. 52. The City Inside -- Samit Basu. 53. Understanding India Through Its Languages -- Episode 232 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Peggy Mohan). 54. Wanderers, Kings, Merchants: The Story of India through Its Languages — Peggy Mohan. 55. The Life and Times of Mrinal Pande -- Episode 263 of The Seen and the Unseen. 56. Manjula Padmanathan on Amazon. 57. The Life and Letters of Raja Rammohun Roy. 58. If No One Ever Marries Me -- Lawrence Alma-Tadema. 59. If No One Ever Marries Me -- Natalie Merchant. 60. Kavitha Rao and Our Lady Doctors -- Episode 235 of The Seen and the Unseen. 61. Lady Doctors: The Untold Stories of India's First Women in Medicine — Kavitha Rao. 62. The Memoirs of Dr Haimabati Sen — Haimabati Sen (translated by Tapan Raychoudhuri). 63. Women at Work — Episode 132 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Namita Bhandare). 64. The Loneliness of the Indian Woman -- Episode 259 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shrayana Bhattacharya). 65. Films, Feminism, Paromita — Episode 155 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Paromita Vohra). 66. The Kavita Krishnan Files — Episode 228 of The Seen and the Unseen. 67. Manjima Bhattacharjya: The Making of a Feminist -- Episode 280 of The Seen and the Unseen. 68. I, Lalla: The Poems of Lal Dĕd -- Translated by Ranjit Hoskote. 69. Lal Ded's poem on wrestling with a tiger. 70. Anarchy is a likelier future for the west than tyranny -- Janan Ganesh. 71. The Better Angels of Our Nature -- Steven Pinker. 72. The Ferment of Our Founders -- Episode 272 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shruti Kapila). 73. Rukmini Sees India's Multitudes — Episode 261 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Rukmini S). 74. A Life in Indian Politics -- Episode 149 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Jayaprakash Narayan). 75. The Gita Press and Hindu Nationalism — Episode 139 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Akshaya Mukul). 76. Gita Press and the Making of Hindu India — Akshaya Mukul. 77. Manohar Malgonkar, Mulk Raj Anand and Kamala Das on Amazon. 78. Kanthapura -- Raja Rao. 79. India's Greatest Civil Servant -- Episode 167 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Narayani Basu, on VP Menon). 80. Private Truths, Public Lies — Timur Kuran. 81. Alice Munro on Amazon. 82. The Bear Came Over the Mountain -- Amit Varma's favourite Alice Munro story. 83. The Median Voter Theorem. 84. The Ice Cream Vendors. 85. Mohammad Zubair's Twitter thread on the Dharam Sansad. 86. The Will to Change -- Bell Hooks. 87. Paul Holdengraber, Maria Popova, Rana Safvi and Rabih Alameddine on Twitter. 88. The hounding of author Kate Clanchy has been a witch-hunt without mercy -- Sonia Sodha. 89. Democrats have stopped listening to America's voters -- Edward Luce. 90. From Cairo to Delhi With Max Rodenbeck -- Episode 281 of The Seen and the Unseen. 91. The Indianness of Indian Food — Episode 95 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vikram Doctor). 92. GN Devy. 93. The Art of Translation -- Episode 168 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Arunava Sinha). 94. Alipura -- Gyan Chaturvedi (translated by Salil Yusufji). 95. Tomb of Sand -- Geetanjali Shree (translated by Daisy Rockwell). 96. Writer, Rebel, Soldier, Lover: The Many Lives of Agyeya -- Akshaya Mukul. 97. Ashapurna Devi, Agyeya, Saadat Hasan Manto, Ismat Chugtai, Qurratulain Hyder, Amrita Pritam and Girish Karnad on Amazon. 98. The Adventures of Dennis -- Viktor Dragunsky. 99. Toni Morrison on Amazon. 100. Haroun and the Sea of Stories -- Salman Rushdie. 101. The Penguin Book Of Indian Poets -- Edited by Jeet Thayil. 102. These My Words: The Penguin Book of Indian Poetry -- Edited by Eunice de Souza and Melanie Silgardo. 103. The Autobiography of a Goddess -- Andal (translated by Priya Sarrukai Chabria and Ravi Shankar). 104. Ghachar Ghochar — Vivek Shanbhag (translated by Srinath Perur). 105. Amit Varma talks about Ghachar Ghochar in episode 13 of The Book Club on Storytel. 106. River of Fire -- Qurratulain Hyder. 107. The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas -- Ursula K Le Guin. 108. The Left Hand of Darkness -- Ursula K Le Guin. 109. Mother of 1084 -- Mahashweta Devi. 110. Jejuri -- Arun Kolatkar. 111. The Collected Essays of AK Ramanujan -- Edited by Vinay Dharwadker. 112. The Collected Poems of AK Ramanujan. 113. Folktales From India -- Edited by AK Ramanujan. 114. The Interior Landscape: Classical Tamil Love Poems -- Edited and translated by AK Ramanujan. 115. The Essential Kabir -- Translated by Arvind Krishna Mehrotra. This episode is sponsored by CTQ Compounds. Check out The Daily Reader and FutureStack. Use the code UNSEEN for Rs 2500 off. Check out Amit's online course, The Art of Clear Writing. And subscribe to The India Uncut Newsletter. It's free! The illustration for this episode is by Nishant Jain aka Sneaky Artist. Check out his work on Twitter, Instagram and Substack.