The Disruptors

Deborah Gordon is a Professor of Biology at Stanford University studying the evolution of collective behavior using ant colonies as a model. Her research focuses on how ant colonies regulate their behavior in response to environmental changes, and how collective behavior is related to ecology. This work is highly relevant given the nature of swarms/emergent behavior and possibly holds valuable insights into other species or humanity relating to current changes in climate.

She is also a partner in the “Ants in Space” project designed to learn more about how ants search and coordinate, information that may be useful in designing robot search algorithms and possibly colonizing extraterrestrial bodies like Mars, the Moon or other planetary objects.

Deborah's the author of Ants at Work and has given two well-received talks at TED in 2003 and 2014 on the ingenious intelligence of ants and swarms which each received 1M+ views to date

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Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube

You can listen right here on iTunes

In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* The emergent intelligence of ants and what humanity can learn from it

* Why intelligence isn't always clean and is usually simple

* How ant colonies help AI researchers program robots

* What we can learn from ants about expansion into space

* Why ants' utilitarian society is so effective yet also inefficient

* The system of task allocation that allows all ants to contribute

* How to solve complex problems with simple incentives

* Deborah's thoughts on blockchain and decentralization

* How researchers use ants to think about neuroscience and the brain

* We're headed towards a utilitarian system and why it may not work

* Why we're probably going about building AGI all wrong

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Lolly Daskal (@lollydaskal) is one of the most sought-after executive leadership coaches in the world with extensive cross-cultural expertise spans 14 countries, six languages and hundreds of companies. Of her many awards and accolades, Lolly was designated a Top-50 Leadership and Management Expert by Inc.com, 100 Great Leadership Speakers for Your Next by Inc. magazine and Huffington Post's The Most Inspiring Woman in the World. Lolly's writing has appeared in HBR, Inc.com, Fast Company (Ask The Expert), Huffington Post, Psychology Today, and others. She is the author of the Wall Street Journal Bestseller: The Leadership Gap: What Gets Between You and Your Greatness and previous bestseller Thoughts Spoken From the Heart. [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590593" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* How some leaders achieve exponentially more results

* The dichotomy of productivity and creativity, and how to game it

* Why self-development and actualization are the keys to productivity and happiness

* How and why Lolly reads a book a day, without skimming

* Why education is broken and how to fix it

* The reason Lolly thinks automation won't negatively impact jobs

* How organizations and leaders can prepare for the world of tomorrow

* The exciting potential of AI and why Lolly's clients are worried

* How social media separates us and cause negative comparisons

* Why we're both scared about the state of politics and politicians

* What we need to consider to create a sustainable society

* Why there is no right answer and who trumps how

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Superhuman Brain Nootropics

Daniel Schmachtenberger (prev on podcast) and the folks at

David Orban (@davidorban) is an entrepreneur, author, keynote speaker and the Founder and Managing Partner of Network Society Ventures, a seed stage global investment firm focused on innovative startups at the intersection of exponential technologies and decentralized networks. An early adopter of blockchain and an active Bitcoin investor since 2010, he was the first to own Ether during the Ethereum launch in 2014. He also led the adoption of Bitcoin and blockchain in start-ups and is an advisor and investor in numerous blockchain companies and funds, such as Blockchain Capital, Bancor, Swarm Fund, and others. David was the keynote speaker at the first Ethereal Summit in May 2017 in New York and is the Founder and a Trustee of Network Society Research, a London-based global think tank present in over 40 countries focused on decentralized exponential technologies disrupting governments and corporations. He is a mentor for the Thiel Fellowship, a Scientific Advisory Board Member for the Lifeboat Foundation on the Faculty of and an advisor to the Singularity University, an investor in the Singularity University Labs Accelerator Fund (now SU Ventures), President of SingularityU Italy Summit and an advisor to Humanity+. David is a sought-after speaker, he has given over 100 keynote addresses and speeches around the world for organizations including Abbvie, Cisco, Oracle, Roche, Ernst & Young, Accenture, Gilead, TEDx Academy, Alphabet and others and blogs at davidorban.com [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590598" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* The future of blockchains and cryptocurrency

* Why David invested in Bitcoin when it was under $10

* Which industries blockchain has the biggest potential to disrupt

* The reason government and governance will be radically changed in the coming years

* How regulations affect the blockchain industry and are primarily protectionist

* Why David thinks on a 1000 year time horizon and might just live to see it happen

* How David thinks about isolationism and the future of nation-states

* The future of micro-payments and money

* How robots will interact with economy and colonize galaxy

* The model for a sustainable Mars colony and what needs to happen

* Why David is bullish on clean meat and hydroponics for the future of food

* How to forecast the future and predict timing

* What you need to know about China and cryptocurrency

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Byron Reese (@byronreese) is the CEO and publisher of Gigaom, an industry-leading technology research company. Byron's also an award-winning author, speaker and futurist with a strong conviction that technology will help bring about a new golden age of humanity. Byron holds a number of technology patents and hosts two podcasts about artificial intelligence. He gives talks around the world about how technology is changing work, education, and culture to combined audiences well in excess of 100,000. His newest book, The Fourth Age: Smart Robots, Conscious Computers, and the Future of Humanity tackles the issues of artificial intelligence, robots, automation, and the future of work. Byron is also the author of Infinite Progress: How the Internet and Technology Will End Ignorance, Disease, Poverty, Hunger, and War. Bloomberg Businessweek credits Byron with having “quietly pioneered a new breed of media company.” The Financial Times of London reported that he “is typical of the new wave of internet entrepreneurs out to turn the economics of the media industry on its head.” Byron and his work have been featured in hundreds of news outlets, including New York Times, Washington Post, Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today, Reader’s Digest, NPR, and the LA Times Magazine. “The biggest problems of tomorrow will not be a lack of jobs but a shortage of humans to take advantage of all of the opportunities technology will offer.” – byronreese.com [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590597" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* Why the world is fundamentally improving and Byron is an optimistic realist

* How AI will transform the labor market and economy, leading to better jobs

* The reason optimism and pessimism are incredibly important to humanity's survival, and evolution

* Why forecasting artificial general intelligence is just silly

* Will AI become conscious

* Why we're entering a fourth era of humanity

* The reason Byron is a little worried about the prospect of bioterrorism

* How 25 years in the internet industry has evolved Byron's view of the future

* Why the news drives fear and separation among us

* What to say to naysayers about technological progress

* Why social media will ultimately be a net positive to society

--

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Dr. Brynn Winegard (@drbrynnwinegard) is a neuroscience, psychology and marketing expert, award-winning professor, speaker, and expert. She speaks frequently on the topics of persuasion, productivity, the neuroscience of leadership, motivation and preventing age-related cognitive decline. Coupled with over a decade in corporate marketing working for Pfizer Inc., Nestle Inc., and Johnson & Johnson Inc., she brings an interesting real-world perspective to high-performance brain science. Brynn is on the faculty at Schulich School of Business, DeGroote School of Business, and University of Guelph but is now more focused on helping others through speaking about ‘Building Better Business Brains’ to clients ranging from the Alberta Canadian government, the largest Canadian telecoms, Coca-Cola, Crayola, Deloitte and dozens more. [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590595" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* The science of brain aging and expertise

* Why your brain loses neurons but gain skills

* The advances in sensor technology driving neuroscience

* What Brynn has learned about differences and brain shape and function

* The actual percentage your conscious brain use

* What myths most folks have about the brain

* How nutrition and epigenetics affect brain performance and health

* The science behind the five closest friends phenomenon

* The reason meditation and mindfulness are so valuable

* Why it is so hard to change a habit or break an addiction

* The 6 types of brain aging and what to know

* Why you are what you think

Do You Meditate?

Muse is a neurofeedback (ie EEG based brain-sensing) device that helps meditators/anyone learn to control their mind and quiet the thoughts. The science is great, neurofeedback helps meditators achieve zen-level results in less time. I’m a big fan of meditation (as you know) and Muse is hooking listeners up with 15% OFF when they use our link. Enjoy and happy chilling!

 

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Donate

Eric O'Neill (@eoneill) is an accomplished speaker, security expert and author that presents keynotes about espionage and national security, cybersecurity, fraud, corporate diligence and defense, hacking, pursuing one's dreams and surviving Hollywood. Eric has worked as an FBI counterterrorism and counterintelligence operative, a national security attorney, as a corporate security consultant and founded The Georgetown Group, a premier investigative and security services firm. In February 2001 Eric helped capture the most notorious spy in United States history, Robert Phillip Hanssen. In the three months preceding Hanssen’s arrest, Eric was selected to work with the spy, charged with gaining Hanssen’s trust and slowly drawing the traitor out of deep cover. They caught the traitor, thanks to Eric's James Bond-esque skill which we'll of course discuss.

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Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube

You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* How espionage has evolved since the Cold War

* Why cyber warfare is the spying of today

* How Eric and his team were able to catch the most notorious spy in US history

* The reason terrorism has such an outsized effect on public policy and society

* How to prevent the US from becoming a surveillance state

* The effects of Edward Snowden

* Why IoT means security will become even more vital

* What's really going on between the US and China

* Why Hollywood isn't exactly ghost hunting spies

* The truth about Huawei

Make a Tax-Deductible Donation to Support The Disruptors

The Disruptors is supported by the generosity of its readers and listeners. If you find our work valuable, please consider supporting us on Patreon, via Paypal or with DonorBox powered by Stripe.

Dr. David Perlmutter (@davidperlmutter) is a Board-Certified Neurologist, four-time New York Times bestselling author and serves on the Board of Directors at the American College of Nutrition.

David serves as a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and has published in numerous peer-reviewed scientific journals including Archives of Neurology, Neurosurgery and The Journal of Applied Nutrition. He is also a frequent symposium lecturer at institutions like the World Bank and IMF, Columbia University, Scripps Institute, New York University, and Harvard University and serves as an Associate Professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

David books have been published in 34 languages and include the #1 New York Times bestseller Grain Brain, The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs and Sugar which sold over 1 million copies. Other New York Times bestsellers include Brain Maker, The Grain Brain Cookbook and The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan.

He is also the editor of the upcoming collection The Microbiome and the Brain that will be authored by top experts in the field and will be published in late 2019 by CRC Press and has been frequently interviewed on programs such as 20/20, Larry King Live, CNN, Fox News, The Today Show, Oprah, Dr. Oz and The CBS Early Show. Dr. Perlmutter is also the recipient of numerous awards, including: the Linus Pauling Award for his innovative approaches to neurological disorders; the National Nutritional Foods Association Clinician of the Year Award and the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the American College of Nutrition.

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Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube

You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* How what you eat affects how you feel and perform

* Why air pollution lowers your IQ

* What is wrong with our global food supply and why it may be a ticking time bomb

* How climate change is affecting our culture and where it will get worse

* Strategies to save yourself and future from degenerative diseases

* Why David is worried about GMOs and the future of farming

* The brain-bacteria connection and how your gut gets the last word

* What David says about clean meat and lab-grown food

* Why we need to own up to our pollution problem before destroying the planet

* How genetic diversity drives resiliency and abundance

* Why antibiotics may actually be killing you in the long term

* The reason Alzheimer's drugs actually speed mental decline 

Peter Brannen (@peterbrannen1) is an award-winning science journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Wired, Aeon, The Boston Globe, Slate and The Guardian among other publications. His book, The Ends of the World, about the five major mass extinctions in Earth's history. Peter is a 2018 Scripps Fellow at the University of Colorado Boulder, was a 2015 journalist-in-residence at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center at Duke University, and a 2011 Ocean Science Journalism Fellow at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, MA. Peter got his start as a reporter for the Vineyard Gazette in Edgartown, MA. Peter is particularly interested in ocean science, deep time, astrobiology and the carbon cycle.

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Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube

You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* Why climate change isn't new but is accelerating

* The history of mass extinctions on Earth

* When 90% of species on the planet died off and what caused it

* The problem with the public perception of climate change

* How species evolve and climate shifts cause adaptations

* What life was like during the Ice Ages

* Why we may be headed towards a mass extinction

* Would humanity survive another Ice Age

* Why whales are so darn big

* The reason we need to all act now

* Why global warming is a likely Fermi Paradox solution

* The truth about evolution and its origins

* Why the dinosaurs were the dominant lifeform for 135M years

* What happens to the Earth without humans

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The Disruptors is supported by the generosity of its readers and listeners. If you find our work valuable, please consider supporting us on Patreon, via Paypal or with DonorBox powered by Stripe.

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Prosanta Chakrabarty (@preaux_fish) is a systematist and an ichthyologist studying the evolution and biogeography of both freshwater and marine fishes. His work includes studies of Neotropical (Central and South America, Caribbean) and Indo-West Pacific (Indian and Western Pacific Ocean) fishes. Prosanta is an Associate Professor and Curator of Fishes at the Museum of Natural Science and Department of Biological Science at Louisiana State University and is also a Research Associate at the American Museum of Natural History in New York and Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. He has gone on research trips to Japan, Australia, Taiwan, Madagascar, Panama, Kuwait, and many other countries and discovered over a dozen new species including new anglerfishes and cavefishes in the process. His latest books include A Guide to Academia: Getting into and surviving grad school, postdocs and a research job and Making a Big Splash with Louisiana Fishes. He is also a former Program Director at the National Science Foundation and was named a TED Fellow in 2016, and a TED Senior Fellow in 2018. [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590601" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube   You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* How the attitude towards science and scientific research has changed in DC since Trump

* What happens when science discover completely new species

* Why Prosanta is optimistic about the direction the world is headed

* What happens if and when we revive the Neanderthals

* How a fisherman found humanity's closing living fish relative thought extinction 65 million years ago

* Why biology is shifting away from the organismal view and towards biotech

* The reason Prosanta is pretty terrified about CRISPR

* How soon until we start to see newly engineered species of human

* The problems with containing CRISPR and gene editing

* Ways to redesign education for a more well-rounded individual

* What we can learn from fundamental scientific research why it needs more money

* When should we consider genetically editing humans and why it's probably inevitable

* Why evolution might be more complex than we think

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Gerd Leonhard (@gleonhard) is a futurist, keynote speaker, and author and listed by Wired Magazine as one of the top 100 most influential people in Europe (2015). Gerd’s work focuses on the future of humanity, technology, and digital transformation; including big disruptors like artificial intelligence, robotics, the future of content and media and much more. Gerd addresses topics such as what it means to be human in a world of machines and algorithms, the coming redefinition of human-machine relationships, the future of work and jobs and much more. He is a much sought-after speaker, having presented at more than 1700 events in 60+ countries since 2004. His clients include Google, Sony, UBS, Mastercard, Unilever, Lloyds Bank, WWF, Nokia, The Guardian, Siemens, BBC, France Telecom, Orange, Deutsche Telekom, MTN, The Financial Times, , The EU Commission, VISA, and many others. Gerd is a member of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA, London), an advisory board member of the Indian and Canadian research institutes and the author of Technology vs. Humanity: The Coming Clash Between Man and Machine. [spreaker type=player resource="episode_id=18590603" width="100%" height="200px" theme="light" playlist="false" playlist-continuous="false" autoplay="false" live-autoplay="false" chapters-image="true" episode-image-position="right" hide-logo="false" hide-likes="false" hide-comments="false" hide-sharing="false" hide-download="true"] Subscribe on Apple Podcast | Google Podcast | Android | Overcast | Spotify | Youtube You can listen right here on iTunes In our wide-ranging conversation, we cover many things, including:

* The evolution of AI and the dangers of AGI

* Why Europe has to lead the way on privacy, data and consumer rights

* Why Gerd believes we need a moratorium on the future of artificial general intelligence

* The problem with capitalism and creating a better future

* How tech giants may end up owning our future

* Why Facebook and Zuckerberg didn't really do anything wrong, at least according to the rules

* How Gerd thinks about mega shifts and the future of humanity

* Why we may all be living a lot longer thanks to biotech

* The reason technology isn't the answer or means to an end

* Why the future is more unknowable than ever

* The reason Gerd isn't that excited about space travel

* What you need to know robotics and future of work

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Uplevel Your Meditation and Mind