Robinson's Podcast

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. Michael was also a guest on episode 180, where he and Robinson discussed neoliberalism, industrial capitalism, and the rentier economy. In this episode we continue the discussion, focusing on his book Killing the Host (ISLET, 2015). More particularly, they discuss the rhythm of debt and economic crashes, the role of history in the study of economics, the history of debt cancellation, Marxism, economic parasites, and how to heal ailing economies. Michael’s most recent book is The Collapse of Antiquity (ISLET, 2023).

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

The Collapse of Antiquity: https://a.co/d/0TMt9Sh

Killing the Host: https://a.co/d/fG2wD19

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

02:29 The Rhythm of Debt and Economic Crashes

8:27 The Role of History in Economic Thought

17:09 The Fascinating History of Debt Cancellation

25:52 Aristotle, Plato, and The Cancellation of Debt

31:49 Ancient Greece and the Cancellation of Debt

41:10 The Problems with Today’s Neoliberal Economics

45:29 On Karl Marx and Marxism

47:21 The Lord’s Prayer, Christianity, and Debt Cancellation

56:34 FIRE and Economic Parasites

1:07:13 How Does Wall Street Parasitize the Government?

1:09:57 Are We Hosts for Economic Parasites?

1:19:32 What’s Wrong With Austerity Measures for Economic Crashes?

1:21:39 Preventing Economic Parasites from Sucking the Country Dry

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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

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

Philip Goff is a professor of philosophy at Durham University in the United Kingdom, where he researches consciousness and the philosophy of mind. He is the best known proponent of a view about consciousness known as panpsychism, which takes mentality to be fundamental in the world rather than something that either emerges out of complex structures or exists parallel to physical objects (as an immaterial property of things like souls). In this episode, Robinson and Philip discuss the major camps in the debate over consciousness, including physicalism, dualism, and panpsychism, touching on both their strengths and weaknesses. They then turn to a few questions raised in Philip’s most recent book, Why? The Purpose of the Universe (Oxford, 2023), in which he seeks to find a middle ground between atheism and deism.

Why? The Purpose of the Universe: https://a.co/d/2cqj5Us

Philip’s Website: https://philipgoffphilosophy.com

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

04:41 Philip’s Interest in Consciousness

8:11 What Is Consciousness?

14:36 Is Consciousness a Spectrum?

19:42 On Dualism About Consciousness

31:37 On Physicalism and the Mind

46:56 What Is Panpsychism?

53:27 The Best Arguments for Panpsychism

57:11 Panpsychism and the Combination Problem

1:02:20 On Panpsychism and Parapsychology

1:07:06 On Panpsychism and Free Will

1:13:04 On 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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

Adam Gazzaley is David Dolby Distinguished Professor of Neurology, Physiology, and Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. He obtained his M.D. and Ph.D. in Neuroscience at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Adam works on developing new approaches to both assess and optimize human cognition, with particular attention to underutilized but high-potential tools like video games. In this episode, Robinson and Adam discuss the cognition crisis—why our brains seem to be under such duress in the modern age—and the structural features of the brain, as well as its plasticity, and how these things can be modified and optimized to deal with the current environment. Check out Adam’s book, The Distracted Mind (MIT, 2016).

Adam’s Website: https://gazzaley.com

The Distracted Mind: https://a.co/d/aZm8Reg

OUTLINE

00:00 In This Episode...

00:39 Introduction

03:09 Science and Medicine

07:29 What Is Brain Plasticity

11:17 What Is the Cognition Crisis?

31:48 Can Neuroscience Make Us Smarter?

43:17 Can Neuroscience Develop Technological Medicine?

54:45 On Medicinal Video Games

01:04:01 Why Doctors Might Prescribe Video Games For ADHD

01:23:49 Sleep Improvement

01:27:24 The Future of Medicinal Video Game Research

01:43:07 How We Can All Improve Cognitive Function

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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

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

Daniel Dennett is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Tufts University, where he was co-director of the Center for Cognitive Studies and the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy. He is one of the most recognized philosophers today, and has made major contributions to the philosophy of mind and biology, among other areas, and is known as one of the Four Horsemen of Atheism. Dan’s latest book is I’ve Been Thinking (W. W. Norton, 2023), though much of what he and Robinson discuss comes from his earlier book, From Bacteria to Bach and Back (W. W. Norton, 2017). More particularly, they talk about the origin of life and reasons, the evolution of music, Robert Sapolsky and free will, famous thought experiments in the philosophy of mind, the origin of consciousness, and the relationship between mind and language.

I’ve Been Thinking: https://a.co/d/ahMEC0G

From Bacteria to Bach and Back: https://a.co/d/htcrcn7

OUTLINE

00:00 In This Episode...

00:54 Introduction

3:51 Where Am I?

11:00 The Origin of Life as the Origin of Reasons

16:42 On Music and Philosophy

23:13 Is Music Evolved?

26:52 What are Replicators and How Do they Figure in Natural Selection?

33:32 On Robert Sapolsky and Free Will

47:50 On Free Will and the Justice System

59:55 On Sean Carroll, Free Will, and Intuition Pumps

1:09:49 On the Chinese Room

1:13:14 On Mary in the White Room

1:18:18 Why Would Aliens Be Excited to Discover Clam Rakes?

1:21:58 What Is Homuncular Functionalism?

1:30:11 How Do Brains Make Minds?

1:38:59 Are There Pathological Memes?

1:47:19 Where Does Consciousness Come From?

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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

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

Brian Keating is the Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Physics at the Center for Astrophysics & Space Sciences at UC San Diego, host of the Into the Impossible Podcast, an expert on the cosmic microwave background, and the author of a number of books. Robinson and Brian discuss the expansion and inflation of the universe, the relationship between theory and experiment in cosmology, gravitational waves, Brian’s brainchild the BICEP experiment, and a lot more. Brian’s most recent book is Into the Impossible (2021), which is a distillation of many of his conversations with Nobel Laureates and other brilliant thinkers.

Brian’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/DrBrianKeating?sub_confirmation=1

Into the Impossible Podcast: https://link.chtbl.com/into-the-impossible

Brian’s Mailing List: briankeating.com/list

OUTLINE

00:00 In This Episode...

01:02 Introduction

03:30 Brian the Builder

10:59 The Theory of Cosmological Expansion?

27:08 The Origins of Inflation

34:15 On Theory and Experiment in Astrophysics

44:27 On Gravitational Waves and Inflation

1:01:40 BICEP Tech Specs

1:14:54 What Did BICEP Find?

1:29:26 The Simons Array

1:32:50 On Eric Weinstein’s Theory of Everything

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, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.