Hidden Forces

The Decline of Active Management, the Rise of Market Nihilism, & the Fall of the Roman Republic | Mike Green

This is the second part of our episode with Mike Green on the rise of passive investment strategies and their impact on market structure. Originally available only to our Patreon subscribers, this recording is both a continuation of our conversation ...

Homo Sovieticus and the Wily Man: Truth, Ambition, & Compromise in Putin’s Russia | Joshua Yaffa

In Episode 121, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Joshua Yaffa, a Moscow correspondent for The New Yorker about what life is like in Putin’s Russia. Yaffa's latest book on this subject is a fascinating inquiry into the Soviet and post-Soviet personality ...

Sean Carroll | Why Almost No One Understands Quantum Mechanics and Other Problems in Physics & Philosophy

In Episode 119, Demetri Kofinas speaks with theoretical physicist Sean Carroll about some of the core concepts in quantum mechanics such as entanglement and nonlocality, as well as some of the different interpretations like Many Worlds, Spontaneous Collapse, and the ...

David Epstein | Range: Why Generalists Triumph in Today’s Specialized World

In Episode 117, Demetri Kofinas speaks with author David Epstein about what the world’s most successful people have in common. He discovers that in most fields—especially those that are complex and unpredictable—generalists, not specialists, are the ones primed for success. ...

Cutting Edge Therapy: Cancer Cured After Eleven Years of Battling CLL | Brian Koffman

In Episode 115, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Dr. Brian Koffman, who after battling cancer for more than eleven years underwent an experimental immunotherapy that has now left him without a single trace of malignancy in his entire body. In their ...

John Mearsheimer | The Failure of American Hegemony: Why Nationalism Trumps Liberalism Every Time

In Episode 113, Demetri Kofinas speaks with John Mearsheimer, about the failures of American foreign policy, which he ascribes to a fundamental misunderstanding about the relationship between nationalism and liberalism. Dr. Mearsheimer argues in favor of a more humble US ...

Nuclear Crisis: How America Lost Post-Soviet Russia | Stephen Cohen

In Episode 111, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Stephen Cohen, one of the world’s foremost Russia experts about why he believes the United States bears much of the responsibility for its fractured relationship with Putin’s Russia and the real prospects of ...

Rana Foroohar | How Big Tech and Finance Betrayed Us and What We Can Do About It

In Episode 109, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Financial Times Global Business Columnist, Rana Faroohar about her latest book dealing with the worlds of Big Tech and finance. We are living in a dramatic period of societal change driven by a ...

Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation | Andrew Marantz

In Episode 107, Demetri Kofinas speaks with New Yorker staff writer Andrew Marantz, about his new book “Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation. In the book, Andrew reveals how the boundaries between technology, media, and ...

US Pullout and Turkish Assault on Kurdish Region of Rojava in Northern Syria | Jake Hanrahan

In Episode 105, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Jake Hanrahan about the crisis unfolding in the border region between Syria and Turkey following the US withdrawal of forces from northern Syria. This withdrawal precipitated the subsequent assault by Turkish Armed Forces ...

Rule Makers and Rule Breakers: How Tight and Loose Cultures Wire Our World | Michele Gelfand

In Episode 103, Demetri Kofinas speaks with cultural psychologist Michele Gelfand, who argues that the world’s cultures can be classified into two categories by virtue of their norms. She offers a lucid explanation of how and why cultures become tight ...

The Age of Cryptocurrency and the Remaking of the Modern World | Michael Casey

In Episode 101, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Michael Casey, an acclaimed writer, and researcher in the fields of economics, finance, and digital-currency technology. The two discuss the rise of cryptocurrency, and how surveillance capitalism and a loss of faith in ...

Sources of Financial Instability: Challenges for Monetary and Fiscal Policy | Claudio Borio

In Episode 99, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Claudio Borio about outstanding sources of financial instability and some of the challenges facing Central Banks as the economy and markets begin to show signs of weakness heading towards the end of 2019. ...

Hong Kong Revolution: Geopolitical & Financial Implications for China and the World | David Webb

In Episode 98, Demetri Kofinas speaks with famed Hong Kong investor David Webb, an outspoken critic of China’s authoritarian grip over the coastal territory. The first part of their conversation concerns Hong Kong’s political and economic future as an independent ...

Matt Taibbi | Democratic Contenders, Election 2020, and the Goldman 1MDB Scandal

In this week’s episode of Hidden Forces, I make available the overtime to my episode with journalist Matt Taibbi that aired on February 18th, 2019. In this overtime, Matt Taibbi shares his experience on the campaign trail with Donald Trump ...

Ben Hunt | The Narrative Machine: Investing in a World of Tall Tales, Big Games, and Giant Cons

In Episode 95, Demetri Kofinas speaks with investor and author of Epsilon Theory, Ben Hunt, about the power of narrative and how it is used to shape and control our behavior as investors. This episode also includes a series of ...

This is a service announcement for regular listeners of Hidden Forces. I have released a nearly 2-hour long recording of my conversation with Leemon Baird and Mance Harmon of Hedera Hashgraph to my Hidden Forces Patreon subscribers that will be ...

Joshua Wong on the Struggle for Hong Kong and the Future of 'Greater China'

In this timely Interview, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Hong Kong activist and politician Joshua Wong, who is often referred to by media outlets and the international press as the “leader of the Hong Kong protests.” Joshua shares information about the ...

David Rosenberg | Betting Against the ‘Powell Put’ and the Return of the 'Risk-Off' Trade

In Episode 91, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Chief Economist and Strategist at Gluskin Sheff, David Rosenberg, about the latest Fed rate decision and his outlook for the global economy. In the overtime to this week’s episode, David provides listeners with ...

Jamie Metzl | Genetic Engineering, Biohacking, and the Future of the Human Species

In Episode 89, Demetri Kofinas speaks with technology futurist and geopolitical expert Jamie Metzl about innovations happening at the cutting edge of genomic science, synthetic biology, and big data. The two also discuss US-China relations, North Korea’s nuclear program, post-Soviet ...

David Weinberger | Complex Systems, Inexplicable Models, and the Future of Prediction

In Episode 87, Demetri Kofinas speaks with philosopher David Weinberger about the science of prediction, its evolution, and its implications for a future where machines may provide better predictions than those generated by traditional models, but which may not be ...

The End of "The Everything Bubble” | Kevin Smith and Otavio Costa

In this Special Episode of Hidden Forces, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Kevin Smith and Otavio Costa of Crescat Capital about their case for an imminent bear market, a stagflationary economy, and the prospects for gold, stocks, and more.

Johann Hari | Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression and Anxiety

In Episode 84, Demetri Kofinas speaks with celebrated author Johann Hari about his book “Lost Connections” and the silent epidemic of depression and anxiety that is pervading our society and burdening the lives of so many people.

Nicholas Christakis on the Evolutionary Origins of Ethics, Morality, and a Good Society

In Episode 82, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Dr. Nicholas Christakis about the evolutionary origins of ethics, morality, and a good society. This is an episode full of fascinating stories that weave together insights from the fields of evolutionary psychology, moral ...

Tesla Financial and Legal Woes as SEC Seeks to Hold Elon Musk in Contempt | Ed McCabe

In this special episode, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Ed McCabe about the latest woes plaguing Tesla after the SEC recently alleged in a federal filing that its CEO Elon Musk, violated a settlement with the agency when he tweeted in ...