Decoding the Gurus9 Helmi 2021

Nassim N. Taleb: Everything these idiots, frauds, and assholes don't understand

Nassim Taleb, what a mensch. He's got the confidence of a bull in a china shop that has just bought a lycra muscle-shirt and knows it looks great on him.

Our guru this week has surveyed the fields of statistics, economics, psychology, actually all of the social sciences, and finds them populated by a gaggle of pale, thin wristed, pocket-protector wearing wimps. Although, he's equally scathing towards COVID-sceptical libertarians, and Matt and Chris (in a totally unbiased manner) find him pretty funny and accurate there.

More seriously, Taleb is a smart guy and quite fun to read and listen to. But he's also an infinite singularity of arrogance and hyperbole. Matt and Chris can't help but notice how convenient this pose is, when confronted with difficult-to-handle rebuttals.

Taleb is a fun mixed bag of solid and dubious claims. But it's worth thinking about the degree to which those solid ideas were already well... solid. Many seem to have been known for decades even by all the 'morons, frauds and assholes' that Taleb hates.

To what degree does Taleb's reputation rest on hyperbole and intuitive-sounding hot-takes? Will he ever un-block the co-hosts on twitter? Should Matt, a statistician and psychologist, re-train in a field where he can actually contribute something useful to the world?

All of these questions, and more, will remain unanswered in this fresh new DTG episode!

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Right to Reply: A Dialogos about Sensemaking with Alexander Beiner

We are joined by Alexander Beiner, current founder of Kainos and former co-founder of Rebel Wisdom, to grapple with that eternally slippery concept: sensemaking. Naturally, this leads us through inter...

3 Marras 20251h 12min

Supplementary Material 39: Bad Guys, Panpsychists, and Sensemakers

Chris and Matt walk into a bar with an atheist sensemaker, an Ayurvedic Guru, and a Christian Apologist, and predictable frivolities ensue. Featuring not one but two good-natured, robust exchanges of ...

1 Marras 202537min

Required Readings: The Genius Myth by Helen Lewis

In another exciting Required Reading episode, Chris and Matt offer their penetrating, high IQ thoughts on the latest book by journalist and podcast quizmaster, Helen Lewis. Titled 'The Genius Myth: Th...

29 Loka 202516min

Discussing Nazis and Gurus with Al Murray

We welcome Al Murray, the comedian who might just be your new favourite historian, to Decoding the Gurus. In a crossover you probably didn’t expect, we discuss World War II, Wehraboos, gurus, and the ...

28 Loka 20251h 7min

Keith Raniere: The Serpent and the Cognitive Fog

Kicking off cult season, Chris and Matt take a dip into the manipulative world of NXIVM founder and self-proclaimed 200-IQ “Vanguard,” Keith Raniere, as he talks with his then-disciple and ex-Hollywoo...

26 Loka 20253h 8min

Lab Leak Fever with Philipp Markolin

Join Matt and Chris as they dive into the controversy-ridden world of the lab leak theory, accompanied by biochemist-turned-author Philipp Markolin. Philipp details his journey into the abyss of lab l...

18 Loka 20251h 13min

Supplementary Material 38: Toxic Mould Symbiosis, Mild Phrenology, and the Best People in the World

We end the futile struggle, embrace the toxins, and become one with our mould brethren.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (2 hours, 38 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/De...

14 Loka 202549min

A Sense-Making Odyssey, Part 2: Jordan Peterson, John Vervaeke & Jordan Hall

Matt and Chris once again take up their oars and plunge deeper into the recursive whirlpools of contemporary sensemaking. Picking up where Part 1 left off, having grappled with conscience, touchstones...

25 Syys 20252h 36min