Mere Mortals Conversations

Alexander Watanabe is an artist, coder, architect and creator of the 'Unsigned Algorithms' on the Cardano blockchain.

In Conversation #76, Alexander and I discuss: why he had the time to read lots of books during his useless undergraduate, how he went about creating the code for his NFT's on-chain, his views on art and using new mediums for expression, why the universe isn't 'fair', how a lot of philosophy is all talk but examples of some practical philosophical books that are out there.

Hope you're having a fantastic day wherever you are in the world, Kyrin out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro & useless degree
(2:27) - Yukio Mishima
(9:20) - Other Japanese authors and heritage
(13:46) - Taking a compliment
(17:09) - Becoming a writer
(23:49) - What are Unsigned Algorithms?
(30:33) - Optimisation Problem: colour vs form
(32:59) - Creating limitations
(36:06) - Compositions of unsigs
(39:59) - Rarity is arbitrary
(42:17) - Art is about the story
(49:15) - Value of allocating capital
(52:50) - Power law & uneven distribution
(58:02) - Mind and body connection
(1:10:00) - Not V2: What is art?
(1:18:51) - Philosophy: useless sometimes, good other times
(1:26:21) - Daoism, Stoicism, Absurdism
(1:40:07) - Learn more
 

Connect With Alexander:
Website: https://www.unsigs.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/BzrutRYktW
Twitter: https://twitter.com/monad_alexander

Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

Juan has been teaching his family about Ethereum and I've been changing the way I look at the difference between Bitcoin and everything else.

In Episode #313 of 'Meanderings' Juan and I discuss: how a Piccolo latte should be made, how The Coffee Club screwed over Juan (again lol), reading Saifedean Ammous's book on BTC and how it is the only real cryptocurrency, why I'm a slight nuisance at almost all times and why for all the crypto talk not everything needs to be decentralised.

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Angry Juan intro
(0:27) - DBZ coffee calamity
(2:08) - Screw you Coffee Club
(5:14) - Onboarding loved ones into Web 3
(11:05) - The Bitcoin Standard
(12:56) - Latino crypto meetup
(16:41) - NFT scams/safety/security
(19:24) - Only one cryptocurrency (BTC) and the Howey Test
(24:15) - What does world class mean?
(29:39) - Duolingo Plus or Super
(32:41) - NFT art with Alexander
(34:12) - Kyrin the mildly annoying mosquito
(41:09) - Getting what you want
(42:34) - ShapeShift DAO
(45:04) - Not everything needs to be decentralised
(50:05) - We wouldn't mind a crypto asset or two


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

How do we physically and mentally prepare ourselves for periods of productivity?

In Episode #312 of 'Musings' Juan and I discuss: whether it is possible to be jacked and going all the time, why routine can take away effort in hyping oneself up, how we trigger ourselves into focused concentration, why Juan likes the Ultradian rhythm technique, a detour into the exciting new Podcasting 2.0 developments, how stimulants like coffee can be used and whether it is more important for us to have the ability to turn on or off.

Yuge thanks to Petar the Perennial, Dave Jones the Podsage and Brando Sellers from the SLIEK Podcast. Legends!

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - We're live On YT
(0:55) - Damn You Reasons And Persons
(1:23) - Why Juan Chose This Topic
(3:29) - Is There A Problem With Always Being Switched On?
(8:15) - Routine = No Need To Switch On
(11:14) - Consciously Switching On
(15:17) - Mini Prep To Trigger Concentration
(19:56) - Ultraradian Rhythm
(25:04) - Extended Boostagram Lounge
(49:05) - Live Chat Comments
(49:44) - Stimulants
(54:54) - Productivity During The Day
(1:00:10) - What's More Important: Switching On Or Switching Off?
(1:06:52) - Finishing Up


Intro Music by 'Signs Of New Growth':
https://podcastindex.social/@SignsOfNewGrowth


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

You hear that ....... it sounds like it's goal time.

Do you set yourself monthly goals and if so, how many do you set? Juan and I on the first week of every month go over our progress from the previous month and where we are heading for the next. Emphasis as always is on the shortcomings; what we didn't achieve in the previous monthly goals and how we will fix that for the month that comes. We hope you get some value from this series, showcasing our own methodology. What do you do differently and why?

As always, we hope you enjoy, Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Whooaaaaoooooo
(1:37) - Juan's June Recap
(2:54) - Kyrin's June Recap
(6:42) - Leaderboard Update
(11:28) - Juan's July Goals
(19:22) - Kyrin's July Goals
(26:39) - Fitness Challenge
(29:45) - V4V


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

There are some subtle differences that Fountain is doing compared to other podcast apps using the advertising model, but explaining them takes a lot of nuance.

In Episode #311 of 'Meanderings' Juan and I discuss: James Cridland's reaction to our supporter leaderboard, the Petar version of 'Kilroy was here', fee and split talks going on in Podcasting 2.0, the real culprits behind the Nigerian Prince scams, why I like being a fence sitter, some announcements on some mini changes upcoming.

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Meandering explanation
(0:33) - James Cridland likes our leaderboard
(3:35) - Petar the Slav is everywhere
(8:54) - Splits and middlemen
(11:51) - Data and advertising
(17:14) - Nigerian prince scammers weren't princes or Nigerians
(19:19) - Not being able to explain deeply held beliefs
(22:43) - Fence sitting: Good or bad?
(30:05) - Less crypto, more handstands
(33:39) - Juan's Mere Mortals Web 3 venture
(35:48) - V4V onboarding


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

What would happen if I didn't tell you that hypotheticals might not, not be useful? Brain explosion ....

In Episode #310 of 'Musings' Juan and I discuss: Juan's inability to put his phone on silent, why I've been struggling with the book 'Reasons And Persons' by Derek Parfit, how we tend to use hypotheticals in real life, why I believe it is more about the intent of their use rather than how close they conform to reality and why a fact based approach might be the best way to answer them.

A big thanks to Petar The Perennial Booster and Dave Jones The Podsage for supporting the show!

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - What is a Musings?
(0:43) - Juan's phone shitshow
(2:13) - Why I chose this topic
(3:43) - Definition
(6:40) - Reasons And Persons by Derek Parfit
(8:56) - Using hypotheticals in day to day life
(13:09) - Book example and unrealistic hypotheticals
(19:33) - Yes list for uses
(25:12) - No list for uses
(33:44) - Boostagram Lounge
(40:25) - Answering hypotheticals
(49:05) - Not making a choice is a choice
(50:02) - What happens if you don't boost?


Intro Music by 'Signs Of New Growth':
https://podcastindex.social/@SignsOfNewGrowth


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

We are bringing back our creation of Effective Philosophy© to solve a recent lie that I told.

In Episode #309 of 'Meanderings' Juan and I discuss: Brendan highlighting our recent shift away from philosophy, Juan's recent book review, why I lied about the details of car switching within my family, why lies that effect reality are the ones that really need fixing, Juan's recent thoughts on adopting a longer term outlook, the paradox of life always changing and why hypotheticals aren't always helpful.

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Mickey Mouse and Swaggy Sealion
(0:38) - We've been lacking philosophy
(3:00) - The Little Book of Alpaca Philosophy
(5:12) - Badass Alpacas and Donkeys
(6:55) - Lying to avoid 'Trust Fund Baby' associations
(11:40) - I'll do anything for cake
(14:35) - Trying to distort reality via lies
(21:49) - Bitcoin Alpacas
(23:37) - Long term thinking
(29:51) - Time scale dichotomy applied to meeting a girl
(36:56) - Effective philosophy
(39:52) - Reasons And Persons
(46:55) - Mix V4V and Effective P


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

A lot of this discussion was based on an episode of 'The Art of Manliness' with Jon Tyson.

In Episode #308 of 'Musings' Juan and I discuss: whether tribal and extreme rituals are necessary to enter manhood, why forcing your child to do these things could backfire, moments in our lives that distinguished us, whether it actually is necessary to have a rite of passage and qualities that distinguish a man.

A huge thanks to the many boosters from this week, which was our most ever! Petar the Slav, Jake Hider (The SLIEK Podcast), Dave Jones, BooBury (Behind The Sch3m3s), Floydianslips & Signs Of New Growth. 

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Art Of Manliness Episode With Jon Tyson
(2:45) - Quick roundup of V4V podcast news
(5:06) - Article and Podcast summary
(9:30) - Our (lack of) personal experiences of reaching manhood
(13:34) - Does forcing the transition make things better?
(18:23) - Testing boundaries and rules
(24:56) - The importance of age to manhood
(27:46) - Live comments
(29:11) - Huge Boostagram Lounge!!!
(38:28) - The Mere Mortalites Leaderboard
(41:57) - Our ideas of what makes a 'man'
(48:44) - Creating special moments
(52:18) - Podcast observations
(56:08) - Life without having a rite of passage
(58:16) - Societies impact of becoming a man
(1:00:56) - Value for Value


Art Of Manliness Episode:
https://podverse.fm/episode/gyp9qFBKf

Intro Music by 'Signs Of New Growth':
https://podcastindex.social/@SignsOfNewGrowth


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

Spencer Pearson (also known as Sir Spencer) is the host of multiple podcast (Bowl After Bowl, AbleKraft), developer of a decentralised music app (DeMu) and at the forefront of running with scissors in Podcasting 2.0.

In Conversation #75, Spencer and I discuss: what attracted him to Podcasting 2.0, why the music industry is screwing over musicians, how the combination of Bitcoin/RSS/V4V can make this better, the plans he has for his decentralised music app, his unique blend of being a whizz kid yet feeling like an idiot and his mindset to try things out and get shit done.

I really hope you enjoy this conversation with Spencer, Kyrin out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro to Sir Spencer
(0:42) - How would life be different without a break from podcasting?
(4:11) - Finding Podcasting 2.0
(8:04) - The pitch for Decentralised Music
(11:08) - Names: Music 2.0 vs DeMu
(16:11) - What's wrong with the music industry?
(24:36) - V4V helps artists and listeners
(28:49) - Value is subjective
(33:16) - Creating a music app
(39:27) - It's early days, everything is still hard
(47:19) - Complexities of app building
(50:28) - Musicians already earning Bitcoin
(55:20) - We're done with killer apps
(1:03:46) - Lazy stoner yet gun go-getter
(1:07:51) - Don't convince, do & showcase
(1:14:57) - Importance of the long term outlook
(1:18:35) - Self hosting and jury rigging RSS
(1:26:44) - Command line should be taught in school
(1:34:09) - Coding brain vs artist brain
(1:37:54) - Moods & goals
(1:43:00) - Self critique and hypotheticals
(1:52:40) - Where to find Spencer


Connect with Spencer:
Website: https://bowlafterbowl.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Bowl_After_Bowl
Mastodon: https://noagendasocial.com/@SirSpencer


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/

If there was an ultimate game show all with different versions of yourself (horny, happy, assertive, angry, confident, etc.,) which of them would win?

In Episode #307 of 'Meanderings' Juan and I discuss: whether you would prefer your upper body or lower body to be cold, revisiting the gameshow I explain in Ep #203, how different permanent mental states would effect our lives, why goal setting is probably our defining characteristic, the optimal amount of mistakes to make while learning a language and my recent enlightenment of being boring.

As always, we hope you enjoy. Mere Mortals out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Juan's back (with poor lighting)
(0:54) - Jumpers vs Long Pants
(4:20) - Competing against your replicas
(7:25) - Which mental state is the most successful?
(11:08) - Michio Kaku & the teletransporter
(13:07) - What mind state leads to the worst life?
(16:52) - How about the most interesting life?
(18:54) - Annual goals chitchat
(22:37) - Monthly goals & skill stacking
(26:34) - Making mistakes while language learning
(32:54) - Mean Parisians
(33:58) - Even though I ballet I'm boring
(38:58) - Hand me down car woes
(40:14) - Fountain is doing giveaways


Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/