Rabbit Hole Research

A conversation with Prof. Mehran Sahami about probability, chances, belief, spam, education, and more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Mehran Sahami is Tencent Chair of the Computer Science Department and the James and Ellenor Chesebrough Professor in the School of Engineering. As a Professor (Teaching) in the Computer Science department, he is also a Bass Fellow in Undergraduate Education and previously served as the Associate Chair for Education in Computer Science. Prior to joining the Stanford faculty, he was a Senior Research Scientist at Google. His research interests include computer science education, artificial intelligence, and ethics. He served as co-chair of the ACM/IEEE-CS joint task force on Computer Science Curricula 2013, which created curricular guidelines for college programs in Computer Science at an international level. He has also served as chair of the ACM Education Board, an elected member of the ACM Council, and was appointed by California Governor Jerry Brown to the state's Computer Science Strategic Implementation Plan Advisory Panel.

Set Up:
- Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
- Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
- Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
- Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
- Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
- Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

A conversation with Shreyans Bhansali about technology, building software, human organization, education, navigating organizations, and more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Find him at: https://twitter.com/shreyans___, or https://shreyans.org

References:
- Maven (company): https://maven.com

Set Up:
- Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
- Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
- Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
- Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
- Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
- Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

A conversation with Michiel Borkent (@borkdude) on Open Source, Functional Programming, Clojure, the JVM, Lisp & more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Michiel Borkent is a Clojure developer, author and maintainer of clj-kondo, babashka and SCI. Check out his talks at Strange Loop or any Clojure Conferences.

References:
- The Joy of Clojure (book): https://amzn.to/47jlZIk
- Clojure for the Brave and True (book): https://amzn.to/3MA5NdH
- Data-Oriented Programming (book): https://amzn.to/3QwR84a

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
0:00 On Clojure, feat. Michiel Borkent (aka @borkdude) | Appendix 12
01:38 Journey into Open Source Development
16:50 Functional Programming vs Object-Oriented
25:33 A Hosted Language
31:04 A LISP dialect
38:17 Interactive Programming
43:43 Eternal Backwards Compatibility
50:42 The Clojure Community
53:02 Open Source
01:04:58 Future Projects

A conversation with Prof. Mykel Kochenderfer about the art and science of decision making, working with giant institutions, and optimism.
 
Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Mykel Kochenderfer is Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Computer Science at Stanford University. He is the director of the Stanford Intelligent Systems Laboratory (SISL), conducting research on advanced algorithms and analytical methods for the design of robust decision making systems. Of particular interest are systems for air traffic control, unmanned aircraft, and automated driving where decisions must be made in uncertain, dynamic environments while maintaining safety and efficiency. Research at SISL focuses on efficient computational methods for deriving optimal decision strategies from high-dimensional, probabilistic problem representations.

References:
  - Mykel Kochenderfer's Algorithms for Decision Making (textbook): https://amzn.to/40oDchp
  - Mykel Kochenderfer's Algorithms for Optimization (textook): https://amzn.to/46WWkW1
  - John von Neumann & Oskar Morgenstern's Theory of Games and Economic Behavior (book): https://amzn.to/3QpqSbQ

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
0:00 On Decision Making, feat. Mykel Kochenderfer | Traces, Appendix 11
03:33 Debugging in Mid-Air 
09:23 Decision Making
13:57 Utility
18:38 Parameter Learning
22:50 Structure Learning
28:22 Markov Decision Processes
32:26 Bellman's Equation
46:18 Simulating Irrationality
53:14 Leveraging Randomness
59:55 Life's A POMDP
01:09:39 Collaborating with NASA, the FAA, and Healthcare
01:18:12 Julia (The Programming Language)
01:27:26 Final Thoughts

A conversation with Rahul Pandey about Tech Internships, Big Tech, Getting Acqui-hired, Life as a Software Engineer, Content Creation, and more. Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Rahul Pandey is on a mission to help software engineers learn and succeed. He is the Co-founder & CEO of Taro, a platform for engineers to get expert advice from industry leaders and part of the Y Combinator Summer 2022 class. Previously, Rahul worked at Meta and Pinterest, and he developed curriculum and taught at Stanford, CodePath, and via his popular YouTube channel.

References:
  Taro (app): https://jointaro.com

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
0:00 On Software Engineering, feat. Rahul Pandey | Traces, Appendix 10
01:42 First Footsteps Into Tech
08:16 Navigating Big Tech
15:07 Culture
20:29 Getting Acqui-Hired
25:18 Startup to Mid-Size to Big Tech
31:07 Performance Reviews
39:22 Content
46:07 From Android Dev Content to Engineering Career Content
52:46 Taking the Leap
59:01 Taro
01:06:03 Finding Your Market
01:07:02 Endurance

A conversation with Sydney Trinidad about intellectual curiosity, creative pursuits, technical careers, software engineering, ML engineering, a vision for the future, and more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:  
Sydney graduated from Stanford with a BS in Symbolic Systems. She has previously worked as a software engineer and currently works as a machine learning engineer full time and part time at an AI consulting company. She lives with her husband Jason and their two dogs, Sweater and Pismo.


References:
-  The Essential Writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson (book): https://amzn.to/3saXRZx
-  Michael Sipser's Introduction to the Theory of Computation (textbook): https://amzn.to/3tUrgre
-  Douglas Hofstadter's Godel Escher Bach (book): https://amzn.to/3tQTe7u
-  Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (book): https://amzn.to/46KiQBy
-  Ludwig Wittgenstein's Major Works (book): https://amzn.to/46QSayX
-  John Stuart Mill's On Liberty, Utilitarianism and Other Essays (book): https://amzn.to/40aC4O0
-  Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet (book): https://amzn.to/3QfY5qk

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Chapters: 
00:00 On Curiosity, feat. Sydney Trinidad | Traces, Appendix 9
00:59 Picking A Major
08:57 Creative Pursuits
22:01 Aesthetics
27:24 Technical Pursuits
36:27 Philosophy
42:42 A Technical Career
59:48 A Vision
01:05:45 LLM Hobbies

A conversation with Nick Troccoli about programming, lessons from programming, going from learning to teaching, and more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
Nick Troccoli is a Lecturer in the Stanford Computer Science Department. He started as a full-time lecturer at Stanford in Fall 2018, after graduating from Stanford in June 2018 with Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Computer Science. He has taught CS106X, CS107, CS110 and CS111. In 2022, he was named to the Tau Beta Pi Teaching Honor Roll. During his undergraduate career, he specialized in Systems, and during his graduate career he specialized in Artificial Intelligence. He was heavily involved in teaching as both an undergraduate and graduate student; he was an undergraduate Section Leader in the CS 198 Section Leading Program, a graduate CA (Course Assistant) for CS 181, the Head TA for CS 106A and CS 106B, and the summer 2017 instructor for CS 106A. In 2017 he was awarded the Forsythe Teaching Award and the Centennial TA Award for excellence in teaching.

References:
- Eric Roberts' The Art and Science of Java (textbook): https://amzn.to/3Q1W7ti
- Eric Roberts' Programming Abstractions in Java (textbook): https://amzn.to/3Fv2DUH
- Eric Roberts' Programming Abstractions in C++ (textbook): https://amzn.to/3MdUurF

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
00:00 Nick Troccoli
02:01 What about Computer Science
05:06 Debugging
09:34 Pseudocode
11:55 Most Valuable Lessons
18:03 Teaching CS
20:47 Light Bulb Moments
27:40 Top-Down Programming
33:27 Industry and Academia
36:44 Adapting Classes to the Times 38:14
42:47 LLMs in CS Education
48:08 Programming Languages
53:16 Intro Classes vs Advanced Classes
57:10 Misconceptions

A conversation with author Paul Levy about Cognitive Malware, Wetiko, engaging our creativity, finding your voice, and undreaming the nightmare mind virus.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
  Paul Levy is the author of The Madness of George Bush: A Reflection of Our Collective Psychosis (2006), Dispelling Wetiko: Breaking the Curse of Evil (2013), Awakened by Darkness: When Evil Becomes Your Father (2015) and The Quantum Revelation: A Radical Synthesis of Science and Spirituality (2018). A Tibetan Buddhist practitioner for over 30 years, he has intimately studied with some of the greatest spiritual masters of Tibet and Burma. He was the coordinator of the Portland chapter of the PadmaSambhava Buddhist Center for over twenty years.

References:
- Undreaming Wetiko: Breaking the Spell of the Nightmare Mind Virus (book): https://amzn.to/3rNKa2F
- The Quantum Revelation: A Radical Synthesis of Science and Spirituality (book): https://amzn.to/3QmEx4R
- Man and His Symbols (audiobook): https://amzn.to/3rJDPVD

Set Up:
- Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
- Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
- Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
- Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
- Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
- Headphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
00:00 On Cognitive Malware, feat. Paul Levy | Traces, Appendix 7
01:11 Facing Evil
05:16 Evil in the World
09:35 Diagnosing the Mind Virus
12:48 What Happens if We Do Nothing
16:22 Wetiko's Will
24:45 Engaging Creativity
28:04 Symbolic Awareness
32:22 Finding your Voice
40:55 Sympathetic Resonance

A conversation with Charlene Wang about productivity, productivity frameworks, productivity tools, time allocation, goal setting, note-taking, and more.

Find me at [email protected]

About the Guest:
  Charlene Wang is a former product manager at Google, based in the Bay Area. She holds a BS in Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, and Economics from Brown University. As a productivity expert, Charlene has mentored cohorts in Tiago Forte’s Building A Second Brain course. She is the author of Model Breakers and runs a newsletter discussing work and life at https://livingos.substack.com. Charlene frequently shares her insights on current product and tech trends on X (@hsinleiwang).

References:
  - Tana (app): https://tana.inc
  - Notion (app): https://notion.so
  - Airtable (app): https://airtable.com
  -Evernote (app): https://evernote.com
   -Workflowy (app): https://workflowy.com
   -Roam Research (app): https://roamresearch.com
   -Tiago Forte's Building a Second Brain (book): https://amzn.to/3FgjYRj 
   - Rosebud (app): https://rosebud.app
  - Clay CRM (app): https://clay.earth
  - Coda (app): https://coda.io
  - Otter AI (app): https://otter.ai

Set Up:
  - Camera: https://amzn.to/3PZVscb (don't laugh)
  - Microphone: https://amzn.to/46f3pB5
  - Teleprompter Stand: https://amzn.to/3tgS98y
  - Telepromter App: https://amzn.to/46jdH31
  - Teleprompter Screen:  https://amzn.to/3PNfKFI (yup)
  - Heaphones: https://amzn.to/46gMSwo

Timestamps:
00:00 On Productivity, feat. Charlene Wang | Traces, Appendix 6
01:23 Productivity 
06:58 Priorities
10:41 Fixing Bottlenecks
13:49 Note Taking
24:23 Personal CRM
29:28 Self-Reflection
37:24 Decluttering the Mind
40:04 Time Allocation
45:53 Goals
49:27 Marker

A conversation with poet and educational entertainer Laurel Airica about language as software, electro-poetic energy, words hidden in words, misaligned life sentences, upgrading the English language, and more.

Find me at: [email protected]