Robert Wright's Nonzero

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

0:28 Kevin’s place in cyberspace history 6:54 Are we grappling with the pace of tech progress rationally? 20:49 Why Kevin identifies as a techno-optimist 23:12 Is it too early to regulate AI? 30:21 The noosphere, the technium, and species of mind 38:11 Do AI doomers think too highly of thinking? 42:13 Evolution and the question of cosmic purpose 48:42 Should we see AIs as “artificial aliens”?

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Kevin Kelly (Wired, The Inevitable, What Technology Wants). Recorded April 29, 2024.

Overtime titles:

Kevin's spiritual transformation.Will AI be like a god to humans? Vice-versa?How expecting near-term death changed Kevin’s life.A bettor way of making AI predictions.

1:13 AI's human-like, but inhuman, language skills 7:22 Bob argues that LLMs don’t vindicate the ‘blank slate’ view of the mind 18:56 Do humans and AIs acquire language in totally different ways? 31:11 Will AIs ever quit hallucinating? 40:47 The importance (or not) of “embodied cognition” 47:50 What is it like to be an AI? 53:48 Why Steve is skeptical of AI doom scenarios

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Steven Pinker (Harvard University, Enlightenment Now, The Language Instinct). Recorded May 21, 2024.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

1:57 Kelley’s new podcast, Trip the Beltway Fantastic 5:59 Pat Buchanan and conservative opposition to the Iraq war 10:14 Would Trump 2.0 promote foreign policy restraint? 19:12 Possible Trump appointees pushing for conflict with China 25:57 The time Tucker Carlson helped prevent war with Iran 41:13 Would Trump greenlight ethnic cleansing in Gaza? 49:32 Would Trump end the Russia-Ukraine war? 54:14 Heading to Overtime

Overtime video below paywall:

A Pentagon program that corrupts officers. Kelley’s upbringing in Connecticut and early career as a reporter. How clickbait culture has degraded journalism.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

Robert Wright and Andrew Day discuss items from the Earthling.

Recorded May 31, 2024.

https://twitter.com/NonzeroNewshttps://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

00:43 The Nonzero-American Prestige apocalypse aversion project 2:02 Are Bob, Derek, and Danny surprised the Gaza war is still going on? 5:06 Biden’s simple political calculus on Gaza 13:42 Would Trump greenlight the ethnic cleansing of Gaza? 25:45 Israel’s plan (or lack thereof) for post-war Gaza 32:23 Heading to Overtime

Overtime topics: 

An inside view of The New Republic at its peak. Ideological engineering at The Atlantic. Russian sanctions and an antisemitic chill fall over Danny. Does “fascism” mean anything?

(Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

1:23 Bob’s sage status rises 4:18 GPT-4o: harbinger of the Metaverse? 13:53 Does sentience matter for AI companionship? 25:48 The promise and perils of social AI 33:46 How LLMs flip the script on computing 39:05 Heading to Overtime—and a special announcement!

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded May 20, 2024.

Overtime titles:

43:10 AI and porn (through an evo-psych lens) 55:08 Is sex passé? 1:03:21 Google’s new AI-boosted search; Bob’s and Paul’s SEO prowess 1:10:30 Are the OpenAI resignations really a bad sign for AI safety? 1:14:31 Bob and Paul compare their p(doom)s 1:26:34 Sci-fi TV to see (and skip)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

4:08 How the Overton window is shifting after October 7 9:59 Israel’s 9/11, Israel’s overreaction, and liberal Zionism 15:22 The power of the Israel lobby

Discussed in Overtime:How “pro-Israel” actions may undermine Israel.“From the river to the sea…” and other controversies.US and Israeli media coverage of the Gaza war.Free speech warriors turn speech code enforcers.

Robert Wright (Bloggingheads.tv, The Evolution of God, Nonzero, Why Buddhism Is True) and Tamler Sommers (Very Bad Wizards, University of Houston, Why Honor Matters). Recorded May 14, 2024.

Nonzero Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods Very Bad Wizards: https://verybadwizards.com/

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

0:24 Why this pod’s a little odd 2:50 Ilya Sutskever and Jan Leike quit OpenAI—part of a larger pattern? 10:20 Bob: AI doomers need Hollywood 16:26 Does an AI arms race spell doom for alignment? 20:40 Why the “Pause AI” movement matters 24:54 AI doomerism and Don’t Look Up: compare and contrast 27:23 How Liron (fore)sees AI doom 33:18 Are Sam Altman’s concerns about AI safety sincere? 39:46 Paperclip maximizing, evolution, and the AI will to power question 51:34 Are there real-world examples of AI going rogue? 1:07:12 Should we really align AI to human values? 1:15:27 Heading to Overtime

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Liron Shapira (Pause AI, Relationship Hero). Recorded May 06, 2024. Additional segment recorded May 15, 2024.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

2:20 How Jews fit—or don’t—into universities’ DEI regimes 10:55 What do controversial pro-Palestine chants really mean? 18:24 When does criticism of Israel become antisemitic? 26:41 The Israel lobby’s influence on Congress and academia 34:13 Do pro-Israel donors unwittingly inflame antisemitism? 41:22 Evidence of increasing antisemitism 49:49 Was Ilhan Omar’s “all about the Benjamins” tweet antisemitic? 57:07 Bob criticizes Bari Weiss, Bill Ackman, and an Eli tweet 1:07:12 Balancing concerns about free speech and antisemitism 1:14:14 Are Israelis too fatalistic about antisemitism for their own good?

Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Eli Lake (The New York Sun, Clements Center, The Re-Education, The Free Press). Recorded May 13, 2024.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org

Robert Wright and Andrew Day discuss items from the Earthling.

Read this edition of the Earthling: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/protest-tips-from-boomers

Recorded May 10, 2024.

https://twitter.com/NonzeroNewshttps://twitter.com/NonzeroPods