Robinson's Podcast

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Michael Graziano is Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Princeton University, where he and his lab research the brain basis of consciousness. This is Michael’s second appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #169, they discussed Michael’s Attention Schema Theory of consciousness, in which consciousness is a way in which the brain models attention to better organize and monitor itself. In this conversation, Robinson and Michael reexamine the Attention Schema Theory with an eye toward the problem of studying the consciousness not only of humans, but of other animals, and with particular regard to the moral questions surrounding animals’ roles in our lives. Michael’s most recent book is Rethinking Consciousness (W. W. Norton, 2019).

Rethinking Consciousness: https://a.co/d/8euR1EL

Graziano Lab: https://grazianolab.princeton.edu

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

04:28 Michael’s Interest in Consciousness

07:22 What Is Consciousness?

16:03 Is there a Magical Essence to Consciousness?

28:43 How Did Consciousness Evolve?

35:29 Testing Michael’s Model of Consciousness

44:55 What’s It Like to Be a Human?

48:25 Is Human Suffering an Illusion?

54:07 The Neuroscience of Pain and Suffering

01:00:39 Is There Value to Human Life?

01:10:42 Was Helen Keller Conscious?

01:21:15 The Global Workspace Theory of Consciousness

01:30:20 Do Animals Value Their Own Lives?

01:41:23 Are Shrimp Conscious?

01:52:23 Should Science Inform Morality?

01:54:03 Can Chickens Suffer?

01:57:12 Are Salmon Conscious?

02:09:40 Are Octopuses Conscious?

02:22:43 Are Poultry Conscious?

02:29:43 Are Barnyard Animals Conscious?

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. This is Richard’s fourth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. In episode #127, he and Robinson discussed some of the most profound criticisms of capitalism; in #154, they focused on the myths surrounding Marxism and Marx himself; and in #190 they covered the Israel-Palestine conflict from a Marxist perspective. In this wide-ranging episode, Richard and Robinson talk about the end of the American empire. More particularly they discuss the wars in Russia, Ukraine, Israel, and Palestine, the rivalry between China and the United States, the global interplay between capitalism and socialism, the distinction between socialism and communism, the conflict between the BRICS and G7 nations, and more. Richard’s latest book is Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024).

Understanding Capitalism (Book): https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism

Class Theory and History (Book): https://a.co/d/ht4trZN

Understanding the 2024 Elections (Article): https://asiatimes.com/2024/08/capitalism-mass-anger-and-2024-elections/

Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com

Economic Update: https://www.democracyatwork.info/economicupdate

OUTLINE

03:10 On the Trauma of His Family Background

10:50 Academia’s War on Marxism 

22:45 Economics as the Secret Undercurrent of History

28:01 Will Ukraine Defeat Russia?

31:52 Is China the Empire of the New World?

39:04 The Best American Strategy Against China

45:24 How Trump Won and Lost America

56:22 Is Israel a Colonialist State?

01:03:23 On the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Israel

01:10:49 Israel as America’s Economic Baby

01:18:08 Global Capitalism as the Enemy of the Islamic World

01:23:00 Why You Should Distrust Wartime Propaganda

01:33:03 Zelensky and the Ukrainian Chess Match

01:42:53 The Economic Conspiracy Behind the American Pick-Up Truck

01:49:31 Israel, Ukraine, and the New Cold War

01:54:20 The Many Taboos of Socialism and Communism

01:58:54 The War Between Socialism and Capitalism

02:07:51 Is Socialism More Efficient than Capitalism?

02:16:58 World War I and the Rise of Socialism

02:22:58 The Failed American Attempt to Destroy Russian Communism

02:27:26 Why Did Russia Choose Communism over Socialism?

02:38:06 Communism, Socialism, and the War for the Workplace

02:43:00 Is China Secretly Capitalist?

02:53:18 America’s Choice Between Equality or Subservience to China

02:58:45 Europe’s Hidden Economic Apocalypse

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia, and a faculty member of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. This is David’s eighth appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. He last appeared on episode 210 with Tim Maudlin, which was a more advanced episode on Niels Bohr and the foundations of quantum mechanics. In this episode, David gives a pedagogical and introductory overview of the measurement problem, which is the issue at the core of many discussions about the foundations of quantum mechanics. David’s most recent book is A Guess at the Riddle (2023). If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life.

Note: Unfortunately, the cameras turned off in the middle of the episode. For twenty minutes there is no video, and for most of the episode only the camera focusing on David is recording.

A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/6qcsidl

The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

04:54 On Philosophy and the Foundations of Physics

15:35 The Bizarreness of the Quantum World

19:16 What Is the World of Classical Physics?

24:00 How Quantum Mechanics Destroyed the Classical World

29:19 What Is Quantum Mechanical Superposition?

32:18 How Quantum Mechanics Became the Theory of Reality

39:53 What Is the Measurement Problem of Quantum Mechanics?

51:05 Niels Bohr and the Foundations of Quantum Mechanics

01:01:14 Niels Bohr and the EPR Paper

01:08:45 Was Niels Bohr the Most Charming Physicist of All Time?

01:15:59 Is the Measurement Problem a Scientific Problem?

01:21:24 Is String Theory Pseudoscience?

01:31:03 Why Don’t Many Philosophers Work on String Theory?

01:34:08 The Wave Function and the Measurement Problem

01:37:57 Quantum Measurement and Wave Function Collapse

01:41:34 Hidden Variable Theories of Quantum Mechanics

01:44:54 Quantum Mechanics and the Multiverse

01:48:47 Solving the Measurement Problem with Experiment

01:56:41 Quantum Mechanics and the Scientific Project

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Michael Hudson is Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri, Kansas City and President of the Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends. He researches domestic and international finance, the history of economics, and the role of debt in shaping class stratification, among many other topics. This is Michael’s third appearance on the show. He was also a guest on episode 180, where he and Robinson discussed neoliberalism, industrial capitalism, and the rentier economy, and on episode 198, where they discussed Marxism, economic parasites, and contemporary debt cancellation. In this episode, Michael and Robinson talk about the history of debt cancellation in the ancient world—including Babylon, Greece, and Rome—how they helped to stave off economic collapse, how the failure to implement them contributed to the demise of these civilizations, and how they might be used in today’s economies. Michael’s most recent book is Temples of Enterprise (ISLET, 2024). This episode was recorded at Austin’s Ale House in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York, and comes highly recommended.

Michael’s Website: https://michael-hudson.com

Temples of Enterprise: https://a.co/d/a3c53dm

Austin’s Ale House: https://www.austinsteakandalehouse.com/

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

03:08 Michael’s Interest in Debt

08:23 Why Countries Can’t Pay Their Debts

12:14 Debt Cancellations in the Ancient World

16:51 Can Society Survive Forgiving Everyone’s Debts?

21:30 The Brilliance of Bronze Age Economics

29:19 What Happened When Ancient Harvests Failed?

32:04 The Timeless War of Creditors Against Debtors

37:49 Why States Should Print Their Own Money

41:11 How the Catholic Church Created the Modern State

55:50 On the Origin of Money

01:01:28 On the Economics of Ancient Babylon

01:07:17 Were Ancient Economists Better than Today’s?

01:09:09 The Most Important Prices of an Economy

01:11:39 Uncovering the Collapse of Babylon

01:22:30 Debt and the End of Civilization

01:24:58 Are Ancient Economics the Key to the Future?

01:30:33 Should the Government Forgive Student Loan Debt?

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, historians, economists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

This is the August 2024 AMA for Robinson’s Podcast. It is supported by the members of the Patreon. In this installment, Robinson answers questions about metaethics, art history, discipline, fashion, fitness, fantasy world-building, consciousness, fine-tuning, quantum mechanics, and more.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

01:01 What to Do

07:43 Thoughts on Discipline

17:29 Art History

20:43 Philosophy for Daily Life

23:30 Planners and Pantsers

27:53 Favorite Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics?

33:06 Favorite Color?

35:57 On Magic and Fantasy World-Building

46:32 Black Holes, Electrons, and Thumbnails

52:45 Favorite Comedy

55:37 Physicality in Life

01:02:19 Is Consciousness Emergent or Fundamental?

01:04:54 Views on Fashion

01:15:16 What’s It Like to be a Philosopher?

01:24:00 Solutions of the Fine-Tuning Problem

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Joscha Bach is a computer scientist and artificial intelligence researcher currently working with Liquid AI. He has previously done research at Harvard, MIT, Intel, and the AI Foundation. In this episode, Joscha and Robinson discuss the nature of consciousness—both in humans and synthetic—various theories of consciousness like panpsychism, physicalism, dualism, and Roger Penrose’s, the distinction between intelligence and artificial intelligence, the next developments of ChatGPT and other LLMs, OpenAI, and whether advances in AI will spell the end of humankind.

Joscha’s X: https://x.com/Plinz

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

03:33 Why are Legos Like Computer Programs?

08:23 Philosophy and Mental Representation

11:17 Using Computer Science to Understand Reality

16:26 Could We Make Minds from Machines?

19:14 Is Reality a Simulation?

21:46 What Is the Mind?

24:27 What Do Mysterions Believe About Consciousness?

26:20 Does Roger Penrose’s Theory of Consciousness Make Sense?

35:15 Could Dualism Explain the Human Mind?

37:58 What Is Physicalism About the Human Mind?

41:03 What’s Wrong with Panpsychism?

47:58 On the Next Breakthrough in Consciousness

52:59 What Is Intelligence? 

55:45 What’s Artificial Intelligence?

58:22 What Defines the Current Wave of AI?

01:00:57 On the First AI Winter

01:04:55 On Meaning, LLMs, and ChatGPT

01:08:18 Does ChatGPT Mirror the Human Mind?

01:13:18 Is ChatGPT Intelligent?

01:18:43 Will ChatGPT Become Smarter than Humans? 

01:24:25 What Is the ARC Challenge for AI?

01:27:58 Will ChatGPT Philosophize Better than Philosophers?

01:35:04 Are Apple, Google, and Microsoft on the Cutting Edge of AI?

01:39:16 Shoulder We Fear AI?

01:45:34 Are We the Smartest Thing on Earth?

01:49:47 What’s More Dangerous: The Internet or AI?

01:54:20 Could AI Take Over the Planet? 

01:59:22 Will AI Make Human Artists Obsolete?

02:04:10 Will AI Make Humankind Dependent on the One Percent?

02:11:28 Could AI Solve Climate Change?

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-betwee

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Norman Finkelstein received his PhD from the Princeton University Politics Department, and is best known for his research on Israel and Palestine. In this episode of Robinson’s Podcast, Norman addresses some of the most common arguments made in defense of Israel, such as those purporting to show Israel is not committing genocide, that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism, that Israel is fighting in self-defense, that Egypt is responsible for the crisis, and more. Norman also appeared on episode 192, where he and Robinson discussed October 7th, allegations of genocide and apartheid, and connections between the war and the Holocaust. Norman’s most recent book is I’ll Burn That Bridge When I Get to It! Heretical Thoughts on Identity Politics, Cancel Culture, and Academic Freedom (Sublation Media, 2023).

Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

03:47 Will Israel Nuke Palestine?

12:07 On Palestine and the Holocaust

15:10 Is Israel Getting Away with Genocide?

20:35 On Nuclear War and Israel’s Dependence on the United States

24:00 How Responsible Is Egypt for the Crisis in Gaza?

27:43 Does the Israeli Military Target Civilians?

36:27 Why Norman Finkelstein Can’t Watch the News from Palestine

38:06 On Hoaxes and Conspiracies in Israel-Palestine

47:06 On Corruption in Academia

49:16 Propaganda in Holocaust Scholarship

53:00 Facts and Fiction in Israel-Palestine

1:00:27 Norman Finkelstein’s Research Habits

1:05:10 Do Israeli Settlements Break International Law?

1:07:44 Why Does the United States Support Israel?

1:12:21 “Jewish Supremacy” Versus Harvard

1:20:11 Does Anti-Zionism = Anti-Semitism? 

1:29:38 Does Anti-Semitism Cause Protests Against Israel?

1:35:44 Is The War in Gaza Justifiable as Self-Defense?

1:42:39 On Becoming a Public Figure

1:50:51 On His War with Alan Dershowitz

2:04:19 On Integrity and Palestine Scholarship

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Leonard Susskind is Felix Bloch Professor of Physics at Stanford University. Among other accomplishments, he is among the fathers of such revolutionary concepts in physics as string theory, black hole complementarity, the holographic principle, and the string-theoretic landscape. It is this last concept that Robinson and Leonard discuss in this episode. More particularly, they address the fine-tuning problem—that so many of the constants in physics, such as the cosmological constant—appear to have been selected precisely to allow for human life, as if they were substantially different we would not exist. In answering this question they talk about string theory, dark energy, the Higgs boson, god and supernatural explanations, eternal inflation, the multiverse, the interpretations of quantum mechanics, the anthropic principle, alternative answers to the problem, and the future of research in the area. For more detail, read Leonard’s book on the topic, The Cosmic Landscape.

The Cosmic Landscape: https://a.co/d/j2njH7h

The Theoretical Minimum: https://theoreticalminimum.com

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

04:03 A Parable About the Fine-Tuning Problem

09:58 String Theory and the Fine-Tuning Problem

18:04 The Problem of Dark Energy

25:05 Could Dark Energy Rip the Universe Apart?

33:11 God, String Theory, and the Illusion of Intelligent Design

42:51 On the String-Theoretic Landscape

48:54 The Eternal Inflation of the Universe

55:07 What Determines the Physics of the Multiverse?

01:02:09 On the Interpretations of Quantum Mechanics

01:05:50 On the Future of String Theory and Fine-Tuning

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Raphael Bousso is the Chancellor’s Chair in Physics at the Berkeley Center for Theoretical Physics, where he leads the Bousso Group in research on quantum gravity and quantum information. He is a renowned string theorist famous also for his development of the string theoretic landscape and the Bousso bound in holography. In this episode, Robinson and Raphael discuss the groundbreaking work of Jacob Bekenstein, Stephen Hawking, Leonard Susskind, Gerard ’t Hooft, and others on the black hole information paradox. They then turn to how this led to the formulation of the holographic principle, which has had profound implications for research on quantum gravity, especially for Raphael himself, who has recently been working on quantum information theory, quantum communication, and other ways in which classical gravity “knows about” and encodes its own quantum states. 

The Bousso Group: https://lightsheet.berkeley.edu

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

04:14 Working with Leonard Susskind and Stephen Hawking

6:29 Why Do Physicists Care About Black Holes?

19:11 Do Black Holes have a Temperature?

23:51 How Cold is a Black Hole?

27:32 The Black Hole Information Paradox

41:31 Do Black Holes Mean Quantum Mechanics Must be Thrown Out?

47:09 Black Hole Complementarity and Holography

54:09 What Is Quantum Gravity?

01:01:15 Why is Quantum Gravity a Low Energy Problem?

01:06:54 The Bottom-Up Approach to Quantum Gravity

1:11:12 On String Theory and Holography

01:16:00 What Are Bousso Bounds?

01:22:58 Is Gravity a Quantum Error-Correcting Code?

01:32:09 Is Gravity a Fundamental Force? 

01:37:25 On String Theory and the Multiverse

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between. 

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7

Dr. Anna Lembke received her undergraduate degree in Humanities from Yale University and her medical degree from Stanford University. She is currently Professor and Medical Director of Addiction Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine. She is also Program Director of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Fellowship, and Chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. This is Anna’s second time on the show. On episode 117, she and Robinson discussed her latest, New York Times bestselling book, Dopamine Nation (Dutton/Penguin Random House, August 2021). In this episode, they discuss psychiatry and some of its philosophical connections. Some of the topics they cover include psychiatric phenomenology, eating disorders, the patient-psychiatrist relationship, therapeutic modalities, moral realism, the goals of therapy, and the upcoming Official Dopamine Nation Workbook.

Dopamine Nation: https://a.co/d/0AJw6Je

The Official Dopamine Nation Workbook: https://a.co/d/0eVHKFc1

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

03:01 Meta-Commentary, Telehealth, and In-Person Psychiatry

13:50 Transference in Therapy

23:01 Moral Realism

33:45 Nietzsche and Veganism

42:43 Reductionism, Emotion, and Psychiatry

45:55 On Treating Eating Disorders

52:24 The DSM-V and Psychiatric Practice

01:00:00 The Relationship Between Science and Psychiatry

01:08:31 Robinson’s Speech Patterns

01:15:40 Medication Versus Therapy

01:23:07 Creative Pursuits and Therapy 

Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.