This is a brief historical overview of humanity's development from our earliest ancestors, through early tools, the birth of civilization and the fall of The Bronze Age. This is where our story truly began.

For our 100th Episode, we would like to reconfirm our commitment to Epistemic Humility. We don't have all the facts, but we try to provide you with the best information available. At the end of the day, however, you need to check your sources (even this one), and make up your own mind based on the reality on the ground. It is easy to judge. It is harder, and more courageous to actively seek out criticism and friction. As always, if you see an incorrect claim in any of our work, let us know! We are eager to correct any errors. We want to be kept in the real world, so we can pass that on to the listener. Being comfortably wrong is far less preferable than being uncomfortably on the course to correction. We hope you feel the same!

The word "Cybernetics" conjures images of the cyborgs of movie legend, but what is the reality? In the real world, we are already surrounded by cybernetic technology. You just don't see a "Terminator" when you look at your thermostat or your car. Let's take a deep look at what Cybernetics actually means, what the technology does, and where it is heading in the future. The reality is perhaps more blandly terrifying than the movies could imagine.

This may be our April Fools day episode, but this is the true story of UFOs and our obsession with alien life. If you love UFO lore, but hate believing fake hype, this is the episode for you. We finish with a look at how likely it is that they've already been here, or when they are likely to arrive.

Donald Trump didn't get the constitution by himself. He needed years of support, and a long line of predecessors, bent on weakening our nation's founding document for their own ends.

We complete our look at the reasons for US infrastructure decay by looking at the policies that benefit from it, and from charging taxpayers more in the name of savings.

HALLUCINATION CHECK: This episode starts a little awkwardly, but then recovers to give some good information. This is not exactly a "Hallucination", but it is hosting/format decision that deserves mention. Rather than breaking up individual anecdotes and subjects cleanly by episode, this deep dive series revisits case studies repeatedly, from different, but slightly overlapping angles. The theory was that the repetition would help the concepts "land" for listeners, especially those that may not be listening linearly, or listen over weeks at a time. Now that it is up, we like the content, but have mixed feelings as to how it plays for binge listeners. If you love it or hate it, let us know on Reddit.

We continue our diagnostic on "Hard" infrastructure, this time focusing on the people that make it all work, and the people that are effected. Then we pivot to "Soft" infrastructure: Healthcare, education, and other human services.

HALLUCINATION CHECK: This is not exactly a "Hallucination", but it is hosting/format decision that deserves mention. Rather than breaking up individual anecdotes and subjects cleanly by episode, this deep dive series revisits case studies repeatedly, from different, but slightly overlapping angles. The theory was that the repetition would help the concepts "land" for listeners, especially those that may not be listening linearly, or listen over weeks at a time. Now that it is up, we like the content, but have mixed feelings as to how it plays for binge listeners. If you love it or hate it, let us know on Reddit.

Everyone talks about how the American Infrastructure is crumbling, but what exactly do they mean by Infrastructure, and why is it breaking down? In this 3 episode series we examine what Infrastructure really is, why it is broken, and who is responsible. Our first installment covers "Hard" Infrastructure (the actual physical mechanisms that we depend on in day to day life). If you want to know why the U.S. is lagging behind the modern world in transportation, water quality, and so many other aspects of daily life, one need only look to our backwards politics, and the overwhelming incentive to transfer today's costs to future generations.

HALLUCINATION CHECK: This is not exactly a "Hallucination", but it is hosting/format decision that deserves mention. Rather than breaking up individual anecdotes and subjects cleanly by episode, this deep dive series revisits case studies repeatedly, from different, but slightly overlapping angles. The theory was that the repetition would help the concepts "land" for listeners, especially those that may not be listening linearly, or listen over weeks at a time. Now that it is up, we like the content, but have mixed feelings as to how it plays for binge listeners. If you love it or hate it, let us know on Reddit.

Does personal privacy really exist? Does that word even mean what it used to? We will examine the concept of privacy, its evolution over the years, and the unprecedented threats it is currently up against.

We take a journey through the history of optics, tracing a legacy over thousands of years to enable the technology of the future. This episode, and the fields discussed, are critical for so many other Curricula we have covered. Let's discuss the quiet discipline that holds so much of our fundamental technology, both common and frontier. This subject will be back for a full course treatment soon!