E115: The Science Behind LA Wildfires: Fire Expert Jon Keeley

Author Eric Weiner argues that happiness depends less on wealth or location than on relationships, meaning, trust, and realistic expectations—while tech and social media often push the other way.Guest bio:Eric Weiner is a bestselling author and former NPR foreign correspondent whose books include The Geography of Bliss, The Geography of Genius, The Socrates Express, and Ben and Me. He writes about place, meaning, creativity, and how to live well.Topics discussed:The “where” of happiness vs. the “what/who”Nordic stability in the World Happiness ReportMoldova as a control case for unhappinessRelationships as the core driver of well-beingSocial media, AI, and the erosion of meaning/trustMoney, inequality, and the Easterlin paradoxU-shaped curve and Gen Z’s flatteningTravel as transformation (place as permission)Gross National Happiness (Bhutan) vs. GDPExpectations as the enemy of happinessMain points:Relationships matter most: “other people” are the two-word secret.Money helps only to a modest threshold; then diminishing returns.Inequality alone doesn’t predict happiness; trust does.Tech/social media amplify envy and faux-connection, sapping meaning.AI optimizes “good enough,” not creative leaps; it can erode trust.Gen Z shows worrying dips in meaning/connection post-2015 + pandemic.Travel reframes perspective; you can’t outrun yourself.Focus on process over outcomes; detach effort from results.Top quotes:“If I had to sum up the secret to happiness in two words: other people.”“Expectations are the enemy of happiness—invest 100% in effort, 0% in results.”“AI is dangerously seductive because it’s good enough—but creative leaps don’t come from averages.”“Social media are envy-generating machines.”“Trust is the hidden variable of happy societies.”“Technology promises time, but unstructured time doesn’t make us happier—meaning does.”Data points mentioned: U-shaped happiness across life; Gen Z may be an exception (smartphone ubiquity + pandemic).U.S. trust reversal: ~1960s ≈ two-thirds said “most people can be trusted”; recent polls ≈ two-thirds say the opposite.Easterlin paradox: happiness rises with income only up to a point.Gen Z snapshots (Harvard/Baylor cited in convo): ~58% lack meaning; ~56% financial concern; ~45% “things falling apart”; ~34% lonely. 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

24 Sep 54min

A conversation with Stella Morabito on how the weaponization of loneliness—from Soviet propaganda to modern social media—threatens free speech, family, and community.👤 Guest BioStella Morabito – Writer and former CIA intelligence analyst specializing in Soviet propaganda and media during the 1980s. She is the author of The Weaponization of Loneliness: How Tyrants Stoke Our Fear of Isolation to Silence, Divide, and Conquer (2022) and a senior contributor at The Federalist.📌 Topics DiscussedMorabito’s CIA background analyzing Soviet propagandaThe concept of the “machinery of loneliness” and how tyrants exploit fear of isolationThe pandemic as a “dress rehearsal” for social control and social credit systemsEducation, political correctness, and social media as tools of conformityYuri Bezmenov’s four stages of ideological subversionThe role of “almost psychopaths” in totalitarian movementsAttacks on family, motherhood, and masculinity as destabilizing forcesGen Z’s shifting attitudes toward faith, family, and communityBuilding mediating institutions (family, faith, friendship) to resist centralization💡 Main PointsFear of isolation is a powerful tool used by tyrants throughout history, from the French Revolution to Mao’s Cultural Revolution.The pandemic revealed how easily fear could be weaponized to enforce conformity, resembling China’s social credit system.Education and media are central targets because they credential all other institutions and shape entire generations.Social media extends peer pressure 24/7, worsening youth mental health and magnifying political correctness.“Almost psychopaths” rationalize cruelty under pseudo-religions or ideologies and become enforcers of totalitarian conformity.Mediating institutions—family, faith, and community—are the strongest antidote to centralized control.Gen Z shows promise in resisting mainstream narratives and seeking meaning through faith and family, partly due to disillusionment from the pandemic.🗣️ Top 3 Quotes“The fear of isolation is hardwired into us… and it makes us not only miserable creatures, but easily manipulated.”“Free speech is a use-it-or-lose-it proposition. Once we stop speaking freely, we lose it.”“The ultimate goal of totalitarians is not money—it’s to control the mediating institutions of family, faith, and friendship.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

10 Sep 40min

Neuroscientist explains why school crushes creativity—and how to fix it—teaching “primal intelligence” and special-operations tactics you can use at work, at home, and in the classroom to think and innovate better.Guest Bio: Dr. Angus Fletcher is a neuroscientist and professor of Story Science at The Ohio State University. He studies how intuition, imagination, emotion, and common sense work in the brain and advises U.S. Special Operations, Fortune 50 firms, and schools on creativity and resilience. His new book is Primal Intelligence: You Are Smarter Than You Know.Topics Discussed:Creativity decline starting ~3rd grade; standardized testing & sit-still schoolingData vs. volatile reality; limits of AI/logic vs. human neural toolsSpecial Operations creativity pipeline; training vs. selection“Why”-free inquiry (who/what/when/where/how) to deepen relationships & learningUnlearning dependency on external answers; experiential learningPersonal story as plan/plot; fear, anxiety, and outsourcing your storyJobs, Shakespeare, and intensifying uniqueness; innovation beyond “grind” and “hack”“Eat your enemy”: learning asymmetrically from competitorsMedication, signals, and growth; tuning anxiety as a sensorMyths like left-brain/right-brain; labels vs. open-ended growthMain Points:Schooling often conditions “there’s a right answer and the teacher has it,” which suppresses creativity and initiative.Data predicts yesterday; real life is volatile. Human neurons support non-computational tools—intuition, imagination, common sense—vital for innovation.Creativity can be trained: Special Ops methods and experiential learning reliably build it.Skip “why” in discovery conversations to avoid premature judgments; stay curious with who/what/when/where/how.Reclaim your personal story; fear pushes people to borrow others’ plans, which erodes meaning.Innovation strategy: identify exceptions and intensify them (Jobs), and “eat your enemy” by absorbing rivals’ unique strengths.Emotions are signals; meds can be triage, but durable growth comes from engaging hard experiences.Left/right-brain personality labels are misleading; biological growth thrives on branching diversity.Top Quotes: “School trains kids to solve math problems, not life problems.”“Skip the ‘why’—the moment you jump to why, you stop learning.”“Your story is your plan. Fear makes you outsource it.”“Anxiety is a calibrated sensor, not a flaw.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

3 Sep 59min

Homeowner-advocate Shelly Marshall explains why many HOAs function like private governments—often stripping owners’ rights—and how to protect yourself (or avoid them entirely).Guest bioShelly Marshall is a homeowner advocate and author of HOA Warrior. After battling abusive HOA boards in her own community, she’s spent 15+ years researching HOA law, advising homeowners, and pushing for reforms nationwide. She can be reached at info@hoawarrior.com and hoawarrior.com. She can be reached at info@hoawarrior.com and hoawarrior.com.Topics discussedHow Shelly became an HOA advocate after a hostile board takeoverBoards changing rules without homeowner votes; covenant enforcement gapsLiens, fines, special assessments, and foreclosure riskWhy management companies and industry trade groups (e.g., CAI) shape incentivesLegal exposure: joint liability, collateralization, and lack of transparencyHorror stories: lawns, hoses, swing sets, condemned structures, and jail timeBuying vs. renting; LLCs for limited protection; why “one election away from disaster”What due diligence (doesn’t) solve; legislative reform efforts and limitsPractical survival tips if you’re already in an HOAMain points / takeawaysBuying into an HOA is entering a business partnership with neighbors; your property can be leveraged, and you share liabilities.Boards often wield broad power, sometimes changing or selectively enforcing rules with limited transparency.Fines, fees, and special assessments can exceed mortgages and trigger foreclosures—even for minor “violations.”Industry actors (management companies, banks, attorneys) have financial incentives that can work against homeowners.Litigation is costly and asymmetric; few attorneys take homeowner cases.If you must buy, an LLC (cash purchase) offers better protection; otherwise, renting avoids systemic risks.If you’re already in an HOA: pay first, appeal later; avoid being labeled a “troublemaker”; document everything.Legislative fixes help only marginally; structural incentives remain misaligned.Top quotes“You don’t buy a home in an HOA—you buy into a business with all your neighbors.”“They can change the rules after you’ve moved in, often without your vote.”“One election away from disaster—every single time.”“Your house can become collateral for loans you didn’t know existed.”“Pay the fine first, fight later—escalation is how homeowners lose homes.”“My advice? Don’t buy into an HOA. If you must live there, rent.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

30 Aug 59min

A spirited debate between Chadwick Turner and Emmanuel Maggiori on whether AI is a transformative technology or overhyped disruption, exploring its impact on jobs, society, and the economy.👥 Guest BiosDr. Emmanuel Maggiori – London-based software engineer, writer, and speaker. Author of Smart Until It’s Dumb, Siliconned, and The AI Pocketbook. Has spent a decade building machine learning systems for large-scale applications.Chadwick Turner – Seattle-based creative technologist and strategist, founder of Burnpiles, a consultancy helping organizations innovate with AI, immersive media, and digital strategy. Formerly led business development at Amazon and Meta.🗂️ Topics DiscussedHype vs. reality of AI as transformative vs. disruptive technologyHistorical parallels with VR, no-code, and industrial revolutionsAI’s limitations: hallucinations, lack of extrapolation, long-tail problemJob disruption: automation, creative agencies, translators, paralegals, truckersEconomic theory of production, labor, and technology’s role in growthEducation: cognitive decline, plagiarism, and assessment challengesAI plateaus: “peak AI” without methodological breakthroughsBusiness realities: building sustainable products vs. hype-driven failures💡 Main PointsChadwick’s Position – AI is likely the most disruptive technology in history, with potential 10/10 impact if breakthroughs arrive. Even at today’s plateau, it will reshape industries, automate repetitive work, and disrupt the economy.Emmanuel’s Position – AI is overhyped and limited by methodological flaws (hallucinations, lack of reasoning). Impact is real but moderate (4/10), closer to previous overhyped tech cycles. Most jobs won’t be fully automated away.Overlap – Both agree that:Repetitive, low-stakes jobs are most at risk.Businesses often misunderstand AI’s limits.Future resilience requires critical thinking, adaptability, and business strategy, not just technical skills.🔑 Top 3 QuotesChadwick: “This is the first time we’re actually going into the keep of society—the human mind, repetitive processes, thinking capabilities. We’ve never had a technology like that at this scale.”Emmanuel: “AI learns by repetition—it’s good at interpolating, not extrapolating. Without a new methodology, hallucinations and long-tail failures won’t be solved.”Chadwick: “Content isn’t king. Great content is king. Same with software—plenty of tools exist, but only compelling, well-executed ideas will win.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

27 Aug 1h 33min

Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Gary Rivlin discusses his book AI Valley, exploring Silicon Valley’s AI hype cycle, the dominance of tech giants, and the venture capital forces shaping the industry.Guest BioGary Rivlin is a Pulitzer Prize–winning investigative reporter and author of eleven books, including AI Valley: Microsoft, Google, and the Trillion-Dollar Race to Cash In on Artificial Intelligence. He has covered Silicon Valley since the mid-1990s and has written extensively on technology, venture capital, inequality, and politics.Topics DiscussedParallels between the dot-com boom and the AI hype cycleThe explosion of venture capital funding for AI startupsHow media coverage of tech has shifted from hero worship to skepticismWhy only the biggest companies (Microsoft, Google, Meta) can afford large AI modelsThe outsized role of VCs like Marc Andreessen and Reid HoffmanSurveillance capitalism vs. scientific breakthroughs as AI use casesWinners and losers in the AI race, and who benefits financiallyThe risks of hype, inequality, and AI’s impact on jobs and educationMain PointsAI is following the same hype trajectory as the internet in the 1990s, with massive VC money, inflated valuations, and inevitable failures.The cost of AI models (data, chips, talent) locks out small startups, concentrating power in mega-corporations.VCs hype AI doom/utopia narratives to justify billion-dollar bets, while everyday adoption remains slow.AI could bring real benefits in science, medicine, and tutoring, but also risks reinforcing surveillance, bias, and inequality.The likely “winners” are the big tech companies selling both AI products and the “shovels” (cloud/data infrastructure).Top 3 Quotes“Some great things can come from all this money—but a lot of it is going to go up in smoke.”“AI isn’t laser-eyed robots taking over. What we should worry about is surveillance, bias, and the jobs it’s already erasing.”“It’s scary that a small group of technologists, CEOs, and VCs in Silicon Valley are driving AI for the whole world.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

23 Aug 1h 28min

Marketing lecturer & former Fortune 100 exec Melise Panetta discusses how AI is reshaping entry-level jobs, Gen Z’s career prospects, and the future of skills and education.GUEST BIO: Melise Panetta, a lecturer in marketing at Wilfrid Laurier University’s Lazaridis School of Business and Economics and former Fortune 100 executive with over 20 years of global leadership experience, is the founder of Brand U and an expert in consumer behavior, corporate strategy, and preparing the next generation of business leaders.Topics discussed (no timestamps)Descript vs. Final Cut Pro for podcast editing workflowsAI’s disruption of entry-level jobs and internshipsWhich skills are automatable vs. “AI-resistant” (emotional intelligence, critical thinking, ethics)Gen Z’s fears and strategies around entering the workforceWEF jobs report: 92M jobs lost, 170M created, net 78M gainGrowth fields: energy, cybersecurity, engineering, creative strategyCareer planning for Gen Z: choosing majors, skillsets, ROI of degreesOversupply in tech degrees vs. shortage in healthcare/educationOutsourcing vs. AI replacement and global job reshufflingBroader impacts on inequality, branding oneself, and mid-level career developmentMain pointsAI will shrink but not erase entry-level roles; competition will increase.The most at-risk skills are routine, programmable, and repetitive tasks; more resistant skills involve human judgment and collaboration.The real shift is a “reshuffling” of work, with job creation in energy, cybersecurity, and creative strategy.Students must weigh ROI when choosing majors, using labor market trends to guide decisions.Outsourcing and oversupply (especially in tech) may matter more than AI replacement.Gen Z should focus on adaptability, branding, and skill-building to stay competitive.Top 3 quotes“Roles that require skills that are highly automatic, programmable—those are the ones at higher risk. The opposite are what we call AI-resistant skills: emotional intelligence, complex critical thinking, interpersonal collaboration.”“It’s not that jobs are going away—it’s a major reshuffling. Entry-level roles are retracting, while fields like energy production, cybersecurity, and creative design expand.”“Don’t make an $80,000 investment without a very clear idea of what your ROI is going to be coming out of it.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

20 Aug 1h 5min

A deep dive with Dr. Jeffrey Funk on AI hype, startup bubbles, Gen Z’s job struggles, and the broken higher education system.Guest BioDr. Jeffrey Funk is a retired technology economist and former university professor in Japan and Singapore. He specializes in innovation, startup bubbles, and the economic effects of emerging technologies, and is the author of Unicorns, Hype, and Bubbles: A Guide to Spotting, Avoiding, and Exploiting Bubbles in Tech.Topics DiscussedThe hype and financial unsustainability of OpenAI, Anthropic, and cloud providersMicrosoft and Anthropic’s pricing strategies and looming AI bubble collapseGen Z job market struggles, declining college enrollment, and university failuresAI “boosters vs. doomers” vs. skeptics on the “edge of the coin”AI hype, fraud, and legal risks of “AI washing”Why AI fails at coding, medicine, and self-driving carsZero interest rate policy (ZIRP) and its role in fueling startup and AI bubblesThe dead internet theory, bots, and the collapse of online authenticityHigher education’s decline, misplaced incentives, and need for reformMain PointsAI hype is financially unsustainable—companies like OpenAI and Anthropic are pricing their products below cost, subsidizing massive cloud bills.College graduates, especially Gen Z, are struggling in the job market due to declining education quality, reliance on ChatGPT, and employer skepticism.The AI “booster vs. doomer” debate misses the point; most real-world applications are limited, overhyped, and decades away from true impact.Many supposed “AI breakthroughs” (self-driving cars, AI doctors, coding copilots) hide human intervention or show slower results than advertised.Universities focus on publishing papers rather than solving problems, producing entitled graduates unprepared for real-world work.The internet itself is degrading, with bots, fake engagement, and algorithm manipulation creating a hollow online experience.The future belongs to those who solve problems, not those who hype technology.Top 3 Quotes“Altman wants to talk about how everybody uses it—well, everybody uses it because he’s pricing it below cost.”“AI isn’t replacing coders; it’s making them 19% slower because debugging AI’s mistakes takes longer than fixing your own.”“Don’t just talk about problems—solve them. If you focus on solving problems, you will succeed, because most people aren’t.” 🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us. Thanks for listening!

16 Aug 1h 11min