“We dreamed of flying cars and moon colonies. Instead, we got influencers and two-factor authentication.”

What if progress didn’t stall, but reversed? This episode explores de-evolution, the idea that societies can regress intellectually, morally, or culturally even as technology advances. De-evolution isn’t about going backward in time; it’s about losing the drive to move forward at all.

The modern belief in inevitable progress is surprisingly recent. History and science fiction suggest something less comforting: progress is cyclical, fragile, and reversible, especially when technology outpaces wisdom.