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1:41 How US-China rivalry is shaking up the region 12:44 Why Washington wants to control the Middle East oil spigot 25:01 The odds of an imminent confrontation with Iran 30:49 Is America breaking international law in Syria? 42:55 What would a Middle East without US intervention look like? 48:25 Why Israel lacks a written constitution 55:27 Heading to Overtime Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Joshua Landis (University of Oklahoma, SyriaComment.com). Recorded August 08, 2023. Comments on BhTV: http://bloggingheads.tv/videos/66533 Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods 

Is the Middle East Falling Apart? (Robert Wright & Joshua Landis)

Conversations with a series of people who have nothing in common except that program host Robert Wright is curious about what they’re thinking. 

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1:23 Bob’s sage status rises 4:18 GPT-4o: harbinger of the Metaverse? 13:53 Does sentience matter for AI companionship? 25:48 The promise and perils of social AI 33:46 How LLMs flip the script on computing 39:05 Heading to Overtime—and a special announcement! Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded May 20, 2024. Overtime titles: 43:10 AI and porn (through an evo-psych lens) 55:08 Is sex passé? 1:03:21 Google’s new AI-boosted search; Bob’s and Paul’s SEO prowess 1:10:30 Are the OpenAI resignations really a bad sign for AI safety? 1:14:31 Bob and Paul compare their p(doom)s 1:26:34 Sci-fi TV to see (and skip)

GPT-4o, AI Companions, and the Metaverse (Robert Wright & Paul Bloom)

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4:08 How the Overton window is shifting after October 7 9:59 Israel’s 9/11, Israel’s overreaction, and liberal Zionism 15:22 The power of the Israel lobby Discussed in Overtime:How “pro-Israel” actions may undermine Israel.“From the river to the sea…” and other controversies.US and Israeli media coverage of the Gaza war.Free speech warriors turn speech code enforcers. Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Tamler Sommers (Very Bad Wizards, University of Houston, Why Honor Matters). Recorded May 14, 2024.  Nonzero Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods Very Bad Wizards: https://verybadwizards.com/

Overton Windows Ep. 4: Israel-Palestine After October 7

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0:24 Why this pod’s a little odd 2:50 Ilya Sutskever and Jan Leike quit OpenAI—part of a larger pattern? 10:20 Bob: AI doomers need Hollywood 16:26 Does an AI arms race spell doom for alignment? 20:40 Why the “Pause AI” movement matters 24:54 AI doomerism and Don’t Look Up: compare and contrast 27:23 How Liron (fore)sees AI doom 33:18 Are Sam Altman’s concerns about AI safety sincere? 39:46 Paperclip maximizing, evolution, and the AI will to power question 51:34 Are there real-world examples of AI going rogue? 1:07:12 Should we really align AI to human values? 1:15:27 Heading to Overtime  Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Liron Shapira (Pause AI, Relationship Hero). Recorded May 06, 2024. Additional segment recorded May 15, 2024.  Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

In Defense of AI Doomerism (Robert Wright & Liron Shapira)

2:20 How Jews fit—or don’t—into universities’ DEI regimes 10:55 What do controversial pro-Palestine chants really mean? 18:24 When does criticism of Israel become antisemitic? 26:41 The Israel lobby’s influence on Congress and academia 34:13 Do pro-Israel donors unwittingly inflame antisemitism? 41:22 Evidence of increasing antisemitism 49:49 Was Ilhan Omar’s “all about the Benjamins” tweet antisemitic? 57:07 Bob criticizes Bari Weiss, Bill Ackman, and an Eli tweet 1:07:12 Balancing concerns about free speech and antisemitism 1:14:14 Are Israelis too fatalistic about antisemitism for their own good? Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Eli Lake (The New York Sun, Clements Center, The Re-Education, The Free Press). Recorded May 13, 2024. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods 

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Has Antisemitism Surged? (Robert Wright & Eli Lake)

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Robert Wright and Andrew Day discuss items from the Earthling. Read this edition of the Earthling: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/protest-tips-from-boomers Recorded May 10, 2024. https://twitter.com/NonzeroNewshttps://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

Is the Middle East Falling Apart? (Robert Wright & Joshua Landis)

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