#8 - Lewis Bollard on how to end factory farming in our lifetimes
80,000 Hours Podcast27 Syys 2017

#8 - Lewis Bollard on how to end factory farming in our lifetimes

Every year tens of billions of animals are raised in terrible conditions in factory farms before being killed for human consumption. Over the last two years Lewis Bollard – Project Officer for Farm Animal Welfare at the Open Philanthropy Project – has conducted extensive research into the best ways to eliminate animal suffering in farms as soon as possible. This has resulted in $30 million in grants to farm animal advocacy.

Full transcript, coaching application form, overview of the conversation, and extra resources to learn more:

We covered almost every approach being taken, which ones work, and how individuals can best contribute through their careers.

We also had time to venture into a wide range of issues that are less often discussed, including:

* Why Lewis thinks insect farming would be worse than the status quo, and whether we should look for ‘humane’ insecticides;
* How young people can set themselves up to contribute to scientific research into meat alternatives;
* How genetic manipulation of chickens has caused them to suffer much more than their ancestors, but could also be used to make them better off;
* Why Lewis is skeptical of vegan advocacy;
* Why he doubts that much can be done to tackle factory farming through legal advocacy or electoral politics;
* Which species of farm animals is best to focus on first;
* Whether fish and crustaceans are conscious, and if so what can be done for them;
* Many other issues listed below in the Overview of the discussion.

Get free, one-on-one career advice

We’ve helped dozens of people compare between their options, get introductions, and jobs important for the the long-run future. If you want to work on any of the problems discussed in this episode, find out if our coaching can help you.

Overview of the discussion

**2m40s** What originally drew you to dedicate your career to helping animals and why did Open Philanthropy end up focusing on it?
**5m40s** Do you have any concrete way of assessing the severity of animal suffering?
**7m10s** Do you think the environmental gains are large compared to those that we might hope to get from animal welfare improvement?
**7m55s** What grants have you made at Open Phil? How did you go about deciding which groups to fund and which ones not to fund?
**9m50s** Why does Open Phil focus on chickens and fish? Is this the right call?
More...

Jaksot(321)

#228 – Eileen Yam on how we're completely out of touch with what the public thinks about AI

#228 – Eileen Yam on how we're completely out of touch with what the public thinks about AI

If you work in AI, you probably think it’s going to boost productivity, create wealth, advance science, and improve your life. If you’re a member of the American public, you probably strongly disagree...

20 Marras 20251h 43min

OpenAI: The nonprofit refuses to be killed (with Tyler Whitmer)

OpenAI: The nonprofit refuses to be killed (with Tyler Whitmer)

Last December, the OpenAI business put forward a plan to completely sideline its nonprofit board. But two state attorneys general have now blocked that effort and kept that board very much alive and k...

11 Marras 20251h 56min

#227 – Helen Toner on the geopolitics of AGI in China and the Middle East

#227 – Helen Toner on the geopolitics of AGI in China and the Middle East

With the US racing to develop AGI and superintelligence ahead of China, you might expect the two countries to be negotiating how they’ll deploy AI, including in the military, without coming to blows. ...

5 Marras 20252h 20min

#226 – Holden Karnofsky on unexploited opportunities to make AI safer — and all his AGI takes

#226 – Holden Karnofsky on unexploited opportunities to make AI safer — and all his AGI takes

For years, working on AI safety usually meant theorising about the ‘alignment problem’ or trying to convince other people to give a damn. If you could find any way to help, the work was frustrating an...

30 Loka 20254h 30min

#225 – Daniel Kokotajlo on what a hyperspeed robot economy might look like

#225 – Daniel Kokotajlo on what a hyperspeed robot economy might look like

When Daniel Kokotajlo talks to security experts at major AI labs, they tell him something chilling: “Of course we’re probably penetrated by the CCP already, and if they really wanted something, they c...

27 Loka 20252h 12min

#224 – There's a cheap and low-tech way to save humanity from any engineered disease | Andrew Snyder-Beattie

#224 – There's a cheap and low-tech way to save humanity from any engineered disease | Andrew Snyder-Beattie

Conventional wisdom is that safeguarding humanity from the worst biological risks — microbes optimised to kill as many as possible — is difficult bordering on impossible, making bioweapons humanity’s ...

2 Loka 20252h 31min

Inside the Biden admin’s AI policy approach | Jake Sullivan, Biden’s NSA | via The Cognitive Revolution

Inside the Biden admin’s AI policy approach | Jake Sullivan, Biden’s NSA | via The Cognitive Revolution

Jake Sullivan was the US National Security Advisor from 2021-2025. He joined our friends on The Cognitive Revolution podcast in August to discuss AI as a critical national security issue. We thought i...

26 Syys 20251h 5min

#223 – Neel Nanda on leading a Google DeepMind team at 26 – and advice if you want to work at an AI company (part 2)

#223 – Neel Nanda on leading a Google DeepMind team at 26 – and advice if you want to work at an AI company (part 2)

At 26, Neel Nanda leads an AI safety team at Google DeepMind, has published dozens of influential papers, and mentored 50 junior researchers — seven of whom now work at major AI companies. His secret?...

15 Syys 20251h 46min

Suosittua kategoriassa Koulutus

rss-murhan-anatomia
psykopodiaa-podcast
voi-hyvin-meditaatiot-2
rss-narsisti
rss-liian-kuuma-peruna
rss-vapaudu-voimaasi
dear-ladies
aamukahvilla
psykologia
leveli
kesken
ihminen-tavattavissa-tommy-hellsten-instituutti
rss-uskonto-on-tylsaa
rss-duodecim-lehti
rss-valo-minussa-2
rahapuhetta
adhd-podi
rss-tietoinen-yhteys-podcast-2
rss-hereilla
rss-xamk-podcast