Rik's Mind Podcast

Today we are once again joined by our friend Loren Fjord. If you haven't caught our last episode with Loren, Loren’s time as a youth wasn’t spent playing team sports, but rather filled my days (and nights) vaulting fences, climbing trees, running from neighborhood dogs, jumping off rooftops, and getting into that which would, on the surface, be considered “mischief.” Parkour provided Fjord with a legitimate framework to pursue and foster his natural human abilities to walk, run, jump, crawl, roll, climb, and balance outside of conventional sports. Movement helped Fjord build a sense of self-confidence and a unique and tangible relationship with my capabilities based on truth rather than frivolous and arbitrary metrics so commonly applied today. Loren works with hundreds of amazing humans from children as young as 6 to adults in their 70s, from all backgrounds and walks of life, testing varied approaches to reverse movement dysfunction and gain strength, flexibility and new skills to improve overall physical literacy. Fjord also holds a B.S. in Kinesiology and Nutrition from Oregon State University.

Loren owns and operates HumanWild. HumanWild is an education platform designed to help you achieve movement freedom. The cross discipline program is woven together to help anyone bring their body into balance for optimal strength, range and skill development. Loren is offering a free 30 min coaching consult and 25% off your first month to any listeners of the RMP if you mention our show when you contact and sign up for Loren’s training programs. You can learn more about Loren and HumanWild on his website humanwild.co.

Show Notes:

HumanWild | Official Website

humanwild.co | Instagram

Can exercise extend your life? | Harvard Medical School

Homo erectus - A Bigger, Smarter, Faster Hominin Lineage by Van Arsdale et al. | Nature

George St-Pierre - Training gymnastics to get better at MMA | SalutemOfficial

STORROR | Youtube

District B13 | IMDb

Daniel Ilabaca | Parkour Wiki

Conor McGregor & Ido Portal This is Movement | Youtube

Weck Method RMT Ropes Part 1 (Intro) | Youtube

Oh shit it’s another Fireside Chat!! Rik and Jon are loose and ready to riff. Rik spent the last week in New York City, Jon had a very interesting week, Rik is scared of Justin Trudeau, Jon says ‘Fuck NATO’ with his whole chest and Rik gets us all a tight discount on Russian oil futures. Buckle up kiddos.

We as a podcast also wanted to say something about all of the hate that people have been levying at average everyday Russians. Facebook has announced recently that they will ‘temporarily allow‘ any kind of hateful posts and content directed at Russia and Russian people. This is ABHORRENT. We are completely disgusted by this. Average Russians have nothing to do with the actions of their government, just the same as Americans have little to do with the actions of the American government. Hate on Vladimir Putin. Hate on the Russian and American oligarchs. Hate on NATO. Those are your enemies. Those are the people who are escalating this war. Fight for peace ON ALL FRONTS. Don’t trust the media and don’t trust what the American government and NATO are telling you. Don’t be a fucking moron.

Show Notes:

The City That Never Sleeps (nickname) | Wikipedia

New Mexico: state, United States | Encyclopædia Britannica

A Land So Strange: The Epic Journey of Cabeza de Vaca | Amazon

RT America ceases productions and lays off most of its staff | CNN

Yuan Jumps After Report on Saudis Weighing Its Use in Oil Deals | Bloomberg

Inflation Calculator, Find US Dollar's Value from 1913-2022 | US Inflation Calculator

Russia Asked China for Military and Economic Aid for Ukraine War, U.S. Officials Say | The New York Times

1420 | Youtube

Why the US scrapped Polish plans to give Ukraine fighter jets | Vox

F-35 Lightning II | Lockheed Martin

‘Turning point’: War in Ukraine tests shaky US-China relations | Al Jazeera News

Black Mirror ‘White Christmas” | IMDb

Today we are joined by nuclear fusion expert and science communicator Dr. Matt Moynihan. Matt has been in nuclear fusion since 2006.  Most of his work has been spent in science communication – finding ways to explain fusion power to the general public.  He has a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from the University of Buffalo, and a masters and PhD from the University of Rochester, Laboratory for Laser Energetics.  His PhD focused on finding ways to cheaply mass produce targets for the National Ignition Facility.  He was also a Senior Nuclear Engineer for the US Navy working on ensuring the safety of US nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers.  He has a consulting business helping investors understand fusion.  He is a member of the US Fusion Industry Association where he sits on various (Space, Communications and Government) committees.  He was the host of The Fusion Podcast and the organizer of The Nuclear Fusion Shark Tank.  He was a top writer on Quora for nuclear fusion, with over 500 answers and over 1 million views.  He is currently finishing a popular science book on Nuclear Fusion for Nature-Springier. Matt lives in Pittsburgh with his wife Alison and their new baby son. You can find more about Matt and his work on his website Fusionconsultant.net

Show Notes:

An Insiders’ View of Commercial Nuclear Fusion by Dr. Matt Moynihan | New Light Fusion Consultants

What is ITER? | ITER

Nuclear-Powered Ships | World Nuclear

The Fusion Driven Rocket: Nuclear Propulsion through Direct Conversion of Fusion Energy | NASA

The Kardashev Scale – Type I, II, III, IV & V Civilization | Futurism

DOE Explains...Nuclear Fusion Reactions | US Department of Energy

Home | Commonwealth Fusion Systems

WHAT IS A TOKAMAK AND HOW DOES IT WORK? | TWI Global

ITER tokamak assembly put on hold by regulator | World Nuclear News

Type One Energy | Official Website

General Fusion | Official Website

TAE Technologies | Official Website

Company History | SuperOx

Tesla (T) - Magnetic Field Intensity Unit | Scientific Committee

Development and large volume production of extremely high current density YBa2Cu3O7 superconducting wires for fusion | Nature

Livermore Reports Burning Plasma for Fusion Energy | EE Times

Princeton Fusion Systems | Official Website

How long does it take to get to Mars? | Space

Hyman G. Rickover | Atomic Heritage Foundation

S.512 - Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act | Congress.gov

TAE Technologies Gets $280 Million Funding Boost, No IPO in Sight | Market Realist

Finch (2021) | IMDb

Unlocking SPARC: HTS Magnet for Commercial Fusion Applications | Commonwealth Fusion Systems Youtube

The Fusion Podcast | Official Website

Nuclear Fusion Shark Tank | Official Website

Today we’re joined once again by our favorite foreign policy galaxy brain Ben Carollo of the Young Turks Network (TYT). Ben puts all the details and threads of the current Russian invasion of Ukraine in the context of history. From World War I, American-Russian relations during World War II, the creation and expansion of NATO, all the way to beginning of Russia’s invasion last week. Once you hear Ben’s analysis, you’ll understand that this isn’t as cut and dry as the American media has made it out to be (shocker, we know).

For those who haven’t heard our last episode with Ben (you can listen here), Ben is a former Air Force Geospatial intelligence analyst, with a Masters in Biosecurity and Biodefense. Ben hosts a daily news show on Twitch, and is a host and contributor to The Young Turks Network. You can find more of Ben on her Twitter @BenjaminCarollo, Patreon, Ben’s Youtube, Rebel HQ Youtube, her Bleepblompben Twitch and Fridays at 4PM EST on the Young Turks Network Twitch.

Show Notes:

Beepblompben | Twtich

The Young Turks Network | Twitch

TYT | Official Website

Rebel HQ | Youtube

Benjamin Carollo | Ballotopedia

EXPAND NATO NOW by Henry Kissinger | The Washington Post Archives

YouTube blocks Russian news channels RT and Sputnik in Europe | The Verge

Russian-backed RT channel to lose Sky TV slot in UK within 24 hours | The Guardian

78 Days of Fear: Remembering NATO’s Bombing of Yugoslavia | Balkan Insight

List of Former Soviet Republics states with nuclear weapons | Wikipedia

3 EX-SOVIET STATES TO GIVE UP A-ARMS | The Washington Post Archives

The G.O.P. Is Making ‘Critical Race Theory’ the New ‘Shariah Law’ by Charles M. Blow | THe New York Times Opinion

Donetsk and Luhansk: What you should know about the ‘republics’ | Al Jazeera News

Never Forget That World War I Was Also Racist | Foreign Policy Magazine

Taiwan warns Chinese aircraft in its air defense zone | Reuters

Principles of China's Foreign Policy | Asia for Educators, Columbia University

Russia, China agree 30-year gas deal via new pipeline, to settle in euros | Reuters

Putin ‘ready’ for talks with Ukraine in Minsk: Kremlin | Al Jazeera

Ukrainian Mineral Mining Statistics | UkraineInvest

It’s another Fireside chat with the RMP boys. It’s another typical all over the place fireside. Follow us down the rabbit hole where we talk Joe Rogan, DK Metcalf, Jon calls Steven Crowder a Nazi (he’s right) and Rik shares his nutrition tips!

Show Notes:

Holiday Inn (1942) | IMDb

Jingle All the Way (1996) | IMDb

Joe Rogan Apologizes for ‘Shameful’ Past Use of Racial Slur | The New York Times

Joe Rogan’s Apology Video on Recent Controversy | Instagram

Steven Crowder | Wikipedia

Steven Crowder VS Amy Schumer Abstinence (Sex Before Marriage) | Youtube

Steven Crowder is one strike away from a permanent ban on YouTube after second suspension | Mashable

Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World By Jack Weatherford | Penguin Random House

Today we are joined by Bill Gillespie. Bill is a Strength & Conditioning Coach with over 40 years of collegiate sports and NFL experience. Bill is also a world-renowned and highly decorated weightlifter. He is a 133-time and current world record holder in the equipped bench press with an unbelievable lift of 1129.8 lbs (!). He just set his current record on Jan. 22, 2022, at the 365Strong New Year Power Bash in Charlotte, NC, at the age of 62. Bill is a 23-time world champion in the bench press.

Bill attended college at Liberty University, where he was a four-time All-American and two-time small college national champion in the shot put. He held the school record for 24 years with an outdoor mark of 55’ 8-1/2".

Gillespie started off his brilliant career as an assistant strength and conditioning coach from 1983-1991 at Liberty University. After leaving Liberty in 1991, Bill became a member of the strength and conditioning staff at t he University of Washington, where he coached for 11 years. He started off as an assistant coach in 1991 and was named Pac-10 Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year. In 1999, he was promoted to the Director of Strength and Conditioning. During his time there, Washington made nine bowl appearances and three consecutive trips to the Rose Bowl.

In 2003, Bill joined the strength and conditioning staff for the Seattle Seahawks in the National Football League where he stayed until 2005 before making his return to Liberty as the Director of Strength and Conditioning. Bill is a native of Tacoma, Washington. He and his wife Anita, have two children, Cameron and Rachel. You can find more about Bill on his Instagram.

Show Notes:

Bill Gillespie | Instagram

Bill Gillespie Equipped World Record Bench Press 1,129 lbs 2/22/22 | Maximum Iron

Bill Gillespie, Master Strength & Conditioning Coach, Class of 2002 | Collegiate Strength & Conditioning Coaches Association

Bill Gillespie Competition Records | Open Powerlifting

Powerlifter Bill Gillespie Sets All-Time World Record Equipped Bench Press Of 512.5 Kilograms (1,129.9 Pounds) | BarBend

Westside Barbell | Official Website

Louie Simmons | Wikipedia

Louie Simmons Competition Records | Open Powerlifting

Westside vs the World (2019) | IMDb

Mike Bridges Competition Records | Open Powerlifting

Mike Bridges (1982) WORLD RECORD (181 lbs / 82.5 kg) POWERLIFTING TOTAL 954.5 KG | Youtube

Sorinex Exercise Equipment Official Website

Thorne | Official Website

KNOX Unflavored Gelatin | Amazon

Restless Legs Syndrome Fact Sheet | National Institute on Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Should you try the keto diet? | Harvard Health Publishing

Carb Backloading: Eating Carbs to Get Lean and Strong | Men’s Journal

Today we are joined by Dr. Sara Seager. Dr. Seager is the Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science, Professor of Physics, and Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her past research is credited with laying the foundation for the field of exoplanet atmospheres, while her current research focuses on exoplanet atmospheres and the future search for signs of life by way of atmospheric biosignature gases. Professor Seager is involved with a number of space-based exoplanet searches including as the Deputy Science Director for the MIT-led NASA mission TESS, as the PI for the on-orbit JPL/MIT CubeSat ASTERIA, and as a lead for Starshade Rendezvous Mission (a space-based mission concept under technology development for direct imaging discovery and characterization of Earth analogs).

Before joining MIT in 2007, Professor Seager spent four years on the senior research staff at the Carnegie Institution of Washington preceded by three years at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. Her PhD is from Harvard University, and her BSc from the University of Toronto. Among other accolades, Professor Seager is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a 2013 MacArthur Fellow. You can learn more about Dr. Seager and her work on her Twitter and her official website.

Show Notes:

Physics | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Smallest Lights in the Universe: A Memoir | Penguin Random House

Venus | NASA Solar System Exploration

Could acid-neutralizing life-forms make habitable pockets in Venus’ clouds? | MIT News

List of missions to Venus | Wikipedia

Venus phosphine find: Unexplained gas hints at potential for alien life | Cnet

Analysis of the characteristics of phosphine production by anaerobic digestion based on microbial community dynamics, metabolic pathways, and isolation of the phosphate-reducing strain by Fan, Niu, Zhang, Et al. | Science Direct

Phosphine | Encyclopedia Britannica

Life on Venus claim faces strongest challenge yet | Nature

Phosphine gas in the cloud decks of Venus by Greaves, J.S., Richards, A.M.S., Bains, W. et al. | Nature Astronomy

Re-analysis of the 267 GHz ALMA observations of Venus by Snellen, Guzman-Ramirez, Et al. | Astronomy and Astrophysics

James Webb Space Telescope | NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

After Million-Mile Journey, James Webb Telescope Reaches Destination | The New York Times

‘Oumuamua | NASA

Gamma-ray Bursts | NASA Imagine The Universe!

Dogon People | Wikipedia

Ancient Aliens (TV Series 2009–) | IMDb

Life on Venus? This rocket company is already planning a mission to have a closer look | the_byte

Today we are joined by Daniele Bolelli. Daniele is an Italian writer, university professor, martial artist, and podcaster based in Southern California. He is the author of several books on philosophy, and martial arts, including On the Warrior's Path. Known for his writing since the 1990s in Italy and the early 2000s in the United States, Bolelli rose to greater public prominence in the 2010s, beginning with his appearances on popular podcasts such as The Joe Rogan Experience. He went on to create his own podcasts, and has hosted The Drunken Taoist since 2012 and History on Fire since 2015.

Bolelli holds M.As in American Indian Studies and history from UCLA and California State University, Long Beach, and did postdoctoral research in history at Cardiff University. As a professor, he has taught a wide variety of courses in the arts, humanities, and social sciences on topics including Native American history and culture, Taoist philosophy, and Ancient Rome. Currently, he teaches at California State University at Long Beach and Santa Monica College. You can find more about Daniele on Official Website, Twitter and Instagram.

Show Notes:

Daniele Bolelli | Official Website

History on Fire Podcast | Official Website

The Drunken Taoist Podcast | Official Website

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844—1900) | Internet Encyclopedia of Phiolosophy

Civilized to Death, The Price of Progress by Christopher Ryan | Simon & Schuster

Sex at Dawn: The Prehistoric Origins of Modern Sexuality by Christopher Ryan | Goodreads

‘The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable’ by Nassim Nicholas Taleb | The New York Times

A Long Walk to Freedom: 1918-1962: Early Years, 1918-1962 v. 1 by Nelson Mandela | Goodreads

Hardcore History Podcast | Dan Carlin Official Website

Preaching conservation: Theodore Roosevelt and the rhetoric of civil religion by Leroy Dorsey | Texas A&M University Libraries

What Has Posterity Ever Done for Us? | Quote Investigator

Today we are joined by Justin Hurworth. Justin is a research data analyst at The Layton Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Center at Oregon Health Science University. He specializes in pathological sectioning, post mortem 7T imaging, and image data synthesis and analysis. At the Layton Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Center, Justin performs immunohisto-chemistry analysis and immunofluorescence analysis. Justin graduated from Pacific University with a Bachelors in Mathematics, with an emphasis in Biomathematics and a Minor in Biology. You can find more about the Layton Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Center on their official website.

Show Notes:

The Layton Aging and Alzheimer's Disease Center | Oregon Health Science University

Alzheimer's disease research milestones | Alzheimer's Association

What You Need to Know About Aducanumab | Duke Health

Bioinformatics | National Human Genome Research Institute

Today we are joined by Dr. Todd Duncan, PhD. Dr. Duncan is a cosmologist whose teaching and writing help to connect everyday human experience to a big picture, cosmic perspective. He currently teaches physics at Pacific University and directs the Science Integration Institute. Dr. Duncan combines a research background in physics with experience teaching science concepts to a wide range of audiences, from elementary school to graduate courses and programs for the general public. He’s the author of "Glimpses of Wonder," and coauthor of "Your Cosmic Context: An Introduction to Modern Cosmology."

Todd received his undergraduate degree in physics from the University of Illinois, an M. Phil. from Cambridge University as a Churchill Scholar, and a doctorate in astrophysics from the University of Chicago where he was an NSF Fellow. He joined the faculty of the Center for Science Education at Portland State University in 1997 to pursue his interest in interdisciplinary "big questions" research and its application to science education. In 1998 he founded the Science Integration Institute as a forum for people looking to explore what it means to be human in the universe as understood by modern science. You can find more about Dr. Duncan from his book “Glimpses of Wonder” on Amazon, LinkedIn and at Pacific University.

Show Notes:

Physics | Pacific University

Cosmos (TV Mini Series 1980) | IMDb

Philosophy of Cosmolog by Christopher Smeenk and George Ellis | The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2017 Edition)

Gaia Hypothesis | Harvard University

The Difference Between Human and Cetacean Brains | Underwater 360°

Are Whales Smarter Than We Are? | Scientific American

Green Flashes: Sun, Moon, Venus, Mercury | NASA

NEO Basics | NASA JPL Center for Near Earth Object Studies

This Interstellar Asteroid Is Accelerating | Science Connected Magazine

What Is Behind The U.S. Navy’s ‘UFO’ Fusion Energy Patent? | Forbes

High Frequency Gravitational Waves - Induced Propulsion by Salvatore Cezar Pais | SAE Mobilus

The Higgs Boson | CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research

Dark Energy, Dark Matter | NASA

What Is the Weak Force? | Live Science

Moscovium | The Royal Society of Chemistry

Evidence suggests UFO whistleblower Bob Lazar was telling the truth all along | Toronto Star

The Dogon, the Nommos and Sirius B | The Museum of Unnatural History

The astronomical knowledge of the Dogon tribe of Mali dating back to 3200 BC | Face2Face Africa