Podcast Notes Playlist: Latest Episodes

• The study of economics is a way of carrying forward big ideas about the world 
• The best economists have real depth and breadth in their work 
• Risk aversion is context-dependent 
• The emergence of AI agents will show that Hayek was right about how decentralized systems evolve 
• When a nation allows for free trade, a shockingly high percentage of the productivity gains come from the worst firms being bankrupted by the free trade 
• “My worry is that energy becomes too cheap and people, at very low cost, can destroy things rather easily.” – Tyler Cowen
• In the coming world of AI, effective people will segregate their tasks in a way that reflects their comparative advantage; this will lead to a bifurcation of personal productivity

It was a great pleasure speaking with Tyler Cowen for the 3rd time.

We discussed GOAT: Who is the Greatest Economist of all Time and Why Does it Matter?, especially in the context of how the insights of Hayek, Keynes, Smith, and other great economists help us make sense of AI, growth, animal spirits, prediction markets, alignment, central planning, and much more.

The topics covered in this episode are too many to summarize. Hope you enjoy!

Watch on YouTube. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast platform. Read the full transcript here. Follow me on Twitter for updates on future episodes.

Timestamps

(0:00:00) - John Maynard Keynes

(00:17:16) - Controversy

(00:29:43) - Fredrick von Hayek

(00:47:41) - John Stuart Mill

(00:52:41) - Adam Smith

(00:58:31) - Coase, Schelling, & George

(01:08:07) - Anarchy

(01:13:16) - Cheap WMDs

(01:23:18) - Technocracy & political philosophy

(01:34:16) - AI & Scaling

• Your survival may depend more on your personality than upon danger, the enemy, the weather, the terrain, or the nature of the emergency 
• Survival depends a great deal on your knowing and facing the situation, but you are part of the situation 
• Taking action reduces fear; there is nothing that makes fear worse than hesitation 
• Survival requires the ability to detach from the situation
• “You can only improve your weaknesses if you’re humble enough to admit them.” – Jocko Willink 
• Both pessimism and unrealistic optimism are equally dangerous to survival 
• Seek out things that make you uncomfortable so that you become more comfortable with being uncomfortable 

Psychological Aspects of Survival, 1954 Air Force Manual.

Read Write Own (readwriteown.com) is a new book by Chris Dixon, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and founder of the largest crypto fund in the world. It's an important work that is simultaneously the best crypto tutorial for newcomers and an accessible reference for experts. Balaji and Chris are long-time friends and worked together at a16z for years. Here they discuss Read Write Own and the state of crypto in 2024.

VIDEO

YouTube: https://youtu.be/_nIQztk5KWY

• Check Out the Doctor’s Farmacy Episode Page & Show Notes

Luke Cook is an actor, comedian, content creator, health science enthusiast, and former podcaster. 

15 Daily Steps to Lose Weight and Prevent Disease PDF: https://bit.ly/46XTn8f - Get my FREE eBook now!

Become a Genius Life Premium Member! Learn more: http://thegeniuslife.com

This episode is proudly sponsored by:

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Disclaimer: This podcast is for general informational purposes only. The content on this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice.

• Can’t get enough Naval Ravikant? Check out our guide packed with Naval’s greatest advice

The universality of computation and explanation 0:00

The growth of knowledge begins with problems 4:56

Problems are clashes between ideas 9:57

Evolution is not the survival of the fittest 14:50

Bad philosophy in quantum theory 26:46

Free will is intimately connected with knowledge-creation 33:41

Wealth is not a number, it is a set of transformations 49:03

The principle of optimism 53:27

Constructor Theory 57:21

How to make a better world 1:10:05

—

Transcript http://nav.al/deutsch-files-ii

One of the more important abilities to cultivate for the year ahead is comfort learning complicated (and therefore valuable) new things. In this episode, Cal tackles the myths surrounding mastery and presents a new mental model for internalizing non-trivial information. As he elaborates, there is both good news and bad news when it comes to this topic: you can learn almost anything, but you can’t learn everything.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode:  youtube.com/calnewportmedia

Deep Dive: Learning Hard Things [2:50]

- When it comes to taking notes, what really matters? [29:49]
- Can I fit all of my hobbies into my week? [36:02]
- Can YouTube teach me to be a better student? [39:40]
- How do I figure out what to learn next? [46:09]
- How do I learn something fast when I already have a busy schedule? [48:23]
- CALL: How does “So Good They Can’t Ignore You” relate to “Slow Productivity”? [55:11]

CASE STUDY: Slow Productivity affinity group [1:03:46]

The 5 books Cal read in December 2023 [1:13:28]

Thanks to our Sponsors:

drinklmnt.com/deep
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This show is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/deepquestions

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, Kieron Rees for slow productivity music, and Mark Miles for mastering.