NonTrivial

David Deutsch, in his book, The Beginning of Infinity, argues that “good” explanations are how knowledge grows, and thus good explanations are what lead to progress. Deutsch believes that the Enlightenment was only possible because of Western society’s quest for good explanations. As such, Deutsch believes quite optimistically that humanity’s ability to “cure all evils” has infinite reach, as long as we keep searching for good explanations. Deutsch disregards philosophies that are “explanationless” and instead believes elegant explanations of our world are the ultimate guide to truth. Deutsch argues that substantial creativity has only existed since the Enlightenment, since creation must depend on a culture of critique using “good” explanations. 

I will argue that explanations are indeed needed, but not in the way Deutsch thinks. Rather than “good” explanations leading to progress, it is “bad” explanations that move us forward, and in fact, almost all explanations are bad. I argue that ultimately it does not matter if an explanation is correct, as long as we believe they are, since this is what motivates us to keep trying. More to the point, it is not an explanation’s proximity to truth that solves problems, but rather movement and naivete that make problems tractable. I will argue that explanations are not truly testable for most natural phenomena, and as such, are not aligned to the culture of critique as Deutsch suggests. I will argue that the notion of unlimited knowledge growth is problematic, running counter to what we know about the convergence and cyclical nature of ideas. I will contend that philosophies that reject explanation should be preferred, and that ultimately, knowledge is not required for progress.

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In this episode I talk about the role that magic, superstition, irrationality has played in human progress, specifically the so-called Enlightenment. I will use the life of Paracelsus, the Swiss physician, alchemist and lay theologian of the German Renaissance, as an exemplar of one who paved the way for progress, yet believed wholeheartedly in things that today we would not associate with intellectual advancement.

I want to show how much of science and engineering came not from some departure from myth and magic as the usual narrative goes, but because of beliefs in things that today seem counter to enlightened thinking.

I will argue that there are strong evolutionary mechanisms behind superstition and irrational thinking, and that to continue making progress humanity will need to return to magic. 

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The way we normally think of technology is as an extension of what humans do in the absence of technology. Technology extends our eyes, ears and muscles, and also our memories and even our thinking. But in this episode I argue that technology and humanity are actually one in the same; that technology is not an extension of humanity but rather an integral, and inevitable, part of human evolution. I'll be touching on a number of fundamental patterns and concepts, including external stressors, emergence, complexity thresholds, feedback loops and negentropy (negative entropy). I'll end with some deep questions about the fate of humanity, and ultimately, what it means to be human. 

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In this episode I talk about systems that reach out into their environment for new resources, but are unable to backfill their growth with sustainability. This is a common pattern throughout many fields of science, but is perhaps less recognized in other areas, such as business. I will show how the infamous WeWork fiasco of 2019 was a manifestation of this pattern in the world of business and VC investments. I will discuss the book The Cult of We by Elliot Brown and Maureen Farrell to highlight these patterns.

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Now that we’ve discussed many of the core patterns at the intersection of science, complexity and philosophy, I want to showcase how these patterns play out across countless areas in life. To do this, I’ll be taking NonTrivial on a slightly different path where I plan on discussing a new book each week. It won’t be a review of the book as much as showcasing how deep and familiar patterns are occurring throughout its narrative.

This is obviously not what the authors of these books are trying to convey but the patterns are there nonetheless, because of their universality. It is these patterns that hold the key to whatever set of ultimate truths govern our world. And it is these patterns that have immense utility in one’s life and brings us a deeper understanding to how the world works.

The best way to understand something is not to look at it directly, but to notice the parts of it that remain unchanged while everything else around it moves.

And so we’ll be taking a tour of books of great variety, to notice what remains unchanged despite inconstant narratives.

The books I choose will be mostly nonfiction, but I’ll throw a few fiction titles in as well. Of course if there’s a book you’d like me to cover, mention those on Twitter, and I’ll discuss which fundamental patterns it contains.

I’m looking forward to a brand new season of NonTrivial. As always, thanks for listening, and stay tuned.

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In this episode I talk about the current paradigm of science, and challenge it, by arguing that much of today's science is not growing knowledge over time, contrary to what most people assume. That while science keeps saying more, it only does so by explaining less.

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In this episode I talk about snowballs, more specifically, the runaway process that happens when we take an action we think is confined to that instance but ends up becoming something so much bigger. We're all familiar with this process, but I want to peel back its nature and expose its underlying mechanisms in order to truly understand how it works. In doing this, I believe we can better appreciate just how prevalent snowballing is in our lives and how we can use such knowledge to make better decisions. I'll be using the much-debated topic of "freedom of speech" as my example, and putting forward what I think is the best solution to this problem.

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In this episode I discuss how the only way to become good at anything is to start at the end, acting as though we already know how to do the thing. By placing ourselves directly into real-world environments related to the challenge, we are forced to rise to the occasion and inevitably learn the skill, achieve the objective, accomplish the goal. We are creatures of adaptation, and as such, the only way to truly become what we want to be is by adapting.

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In this episode I discuss how the best preparation is no preparation. I will argue that despite its paradoxical nature there is deep truth to this idea, founded on how information accumulates over time. I will argue that the ongoing effort to solve problems in the moment leads to superior competence relative to that which we get from planning. I'll discuss how preparation creates brittle dependencies to things prearranged, and how entering moments authentically produces far greater skill and confidence than that which is possible through preparation.

Support the show

Members: Join for full access to additional talks, practical exercises, member Q&As, and more at dekyon.io.

Support the show

Members: Join for full access to additional talks, practical exercises, member Q&As, and more at dekyon.io.