#78 – Ann Druyan: Cosmos, Carl Sagan, Voyager, and the Beauty of Science

Donald Hoffman is a cognitive scientist at UC Irvine and author of The Case Against Reality. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Calm: https://calm.com/lex to get 40% off - LMNT: https://drinkLMNT.com/lex to get free sample pack - InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off - MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/lex to get 15% off - Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit EPISODE LINKS: Donald's Twitter: https://twitter.com/donalddhoffman Donald's Website: http://cogsci.uci.edu/~ddhoff/ Documents & Articles: 1. Could a Neuroscientist Understand a Microprocessor?: https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005268 2. Conscious Agent Networks: https://chrisfieldsresearch.com/CA-circuits-CSR-rev2.pdf 3. The Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen Argument in Quantum Theory: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/qt-epr/ Books: 1. The Case Against Reality: https://amzn.to/3MhW4Wt 2. Vision: https://amzn.to/3Q4ibTm PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (08:04) - Case against reality (19:33) - Spacetime (43:57) - Reductionism (1:04:23) - Evolutionary game theory (1:32:46) - Consciousness (2:28:06) - Visualizing reality (2:43:23) - Ephemerality of life (2:51:48) - Simulation theory (2:57:30) - Difficult ideas (3:12:32) - Love (3:16:07) - Advice for young people (3:18:26) - Meaning of life

12 Juni 20223h 23min

Robin Hanson is a professor at George Mason University and researcher at Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Lambda: https://lambdalabs.com/lex - Audible: https://audible.com/lex - BiOptimizers: http://www.magbreakthrough.com/lex to get 10% off - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free EPISODE LINKS: Robin's Twitter: https://twitter.com/robinhanson Robin's Website: https://mason.gmu.edu/~rhanson Grabby Aliens (paper): https://grabbyaliens.com/paper The Elephant in the Brain (book): https://amazon.com/dp/0197551955/ref=nosim?tag=turingmachi08-20 The Age of Em (book): https://amazon.com/dp/0198817827/ref=nosim?tag=turingmachi08-20 PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (06:49) - Grabby aliens (44:33) - War and competition (50:07) - Global government (1:02:58) - Humanity's future (1:13:00) - Hello aliens (1:40:03) - UFO sightings (2:04:40) - Conspiracy theories (2:12:58) - Elephant in the brain (2:26:29) - Medicine (2:38:58) - Institutions (3:05:52) - Physics (3:10:43) - Artificial intelligence (3:28:32) - Economics (3:31:53) - Political science (3:37:42) - Advice for young people (3:46:33) - Darkest moments (3:49:34) - Love and loss (3:58:57) - Immortality (4:02:53) - Simulation hypothesis (4:13:10) - Meaning of life

9 Juni 20224h 18min

Jonathan Haidt is a social psychologist at NYU and author of The Coddling of the American Mind, The Righteous Mind, and The Happiness Hypothesis. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Uncruise: https://uncruise.com/pages/lex - Notion: https://notion.com/startups to get up to $1000 off team plan - Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex and use code LEX to get 25% off premium - Magic Spoon: https://magicspoon.com/lex and use code LEX to get $5 off - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex and use code LEX to get special savings EPISODE LINKS: Jonathan's Twitter: https://twitter.com/JonHaidt Jonathan's Website: https://jonathanhaidt.com Documents & Articles: 1. Social Media and Political Dysfunction: A Collaborative Review: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vVAtMCQnz8WVxtSNQev_e1cGmY9rnY96ecYuAj6C548/edit 2. Teen Mental Health Testimony: https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Haidt%20Testimony.pdf 3. The Atlantic article: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2022/05/social-media-democracy-trust-babel/629369/ Books: 1. The Coddling of the American Mind (book): https://amzn.to/3MW4HqL 2. The Righteous Mind (book): https://amzn.to/3to0tkj 3. The Happiness Hypothesis (book): https://amzn.to/3Mb1xP2 PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (07:57) - Social media and mental health (21:45) - Mark Zuckerberg (31:23) - Children's use of social media (42:08) - Social media and democracy (58:14) - Elon Musk and Twitter (1:14:45) - Anonymity on social media (1:20:44) - Misinformation (1:27:38) - Social media benefits (1:30:22) - Political division on social media (1:36:54) - Future of social media (1:42:46) - Advice for young people

4 Juni 20221h 48min

Dan Reynolds is the lead singer of Imagine Dragons, one of the most popular bands in the world. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Brave: https://brave.com/lex - Mizzen+Main: https://mizzenandmain.com and use code LEX to get $35 off - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex and use code LEX to get 1 month of fish oil - Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit - Grammarly: https://grammarly.com/lex to get 20% off premium EPISODE LINKS: Dan's Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanReynolds Dan's Instagram: https://instagram.com/danreynolds Imagine Dragons Website: https://imaginedragonsmusic.com/ PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (08:29) - Programming (27:30) - Johnny Depp and Amber Heard (32:23) - Las Vegas (37:25) - Spirituality (40:38) - Ayahuasca (50:56) - Depression and fame (54:40) - Introvert (1:07:19) - Advice from Charlie Sheen (1:19:58) - Making music (1:32:33) - Lesson from Rick Rubin (1:38:34) - Believer (1:46:05) - Father son relationship (1:47:22) - Dan's first song (1:51:34) - Cat Stevens and Harry Chapin (1:56:17) - Advice for young people (2:04:49) - LGBTQ (2:09:11) - Religion (2:13:53) - Meaning of life (2:17:02) - Dan sings

30 Maj 20222h 18min

Stephen Kotkin is a historian specializing in Stalin and Soviet history. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Lambda: https://lambdalabs.com/lex - Scale: https://scale.com/lex - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex and use code LEX to get 1 month of fish oil - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free - ROKA: https://roka.com/ and use code LEX to get 20% off your first order EPISODE LINKS: Stephen's Website: https://history.princeton.edu/people/stephen-kotkin Stalin: 1878-1928 (Vol 1): https://amzn.to/3NvokpC Stalin: 1929-1941 (Vol 2): https://amzn.to/3wIYqsT PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (10:17) - Putin and Stalin (21:07) - Putin vs the West (43:59) - Response to Oliver Stone (55:05) - Russian invasion of Ukraine (1:34:33) - Putin's plan for the war (1:42:32) - Henry Kissinger (1:48:26) - Nuclear war (1:59:00) - Parallels to World War II (2:21:45) - China (2:29:54) - World War III (2:37:23) - Navalny (2:41:40) - Meaning of life

25 Maj 20222h 49min

Sarma Melngailis is a chef and restauranteur who was the subject of the Netflix documentary Bad Vegan: Fame, Fraud, Fugitives. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Mailgun: https://lexfridman.com/mailgun - BiOptimizers: http://www.magbreakthrough.com/lex to get 10% off - Notion: https://notion.com/startups to get up to $1000 off team plan - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex to get 10% off - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex and use code LEX to get special savings EPISODE LINKS: Sarma's Twitter: https://twitter.com/sarma Sarma's Instagram: https://instagram.com/sarmamelngailis Sarma's Website: https://sarmaraw.com Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (book): https://amzn.to/3G9pMvs Party of One (book): https://amzn.to/3NtcH2n Beautiful Ruins (book): https://amzn.to/38Cfgkc Darkness Visible (book): https://amzn.to/3tdxoYL Projections (book): https://amzn.to/38DrRDJ Confessions of a Sociopath (book): https://amzn.to/3sM39Ys On Love (book): https://amzn.to/3sS3Orj Dear Reader (book): https://amzn.to/39JPE4M PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (07:44) - Childhood (12:46) - Films (23:17) - Gifts (32:20) - Favorite food creations (38:31) - Leon: The Pitbull (50:39) - Bad Vegan (1:02:41) - Abusive relationship (1:07:24) - Remorse for employees (1:13:19) - Sociopathy (1:23:44) - How Sarma met Anthony Strangis (1:45:43) - Retrospection (1:58:24) - Johnny Depp and Amber Heard (2:06:17) - Is Anthony Strangis a sociopath? (2:10:24) - What Bad Vegan got wrong (2:27:40) - Darkest personal discovery (2:38:22) - Road trip from hell (2:45:36) - Wild stories (2:54:33) - Prison (3:04:13) - Ghislaine Maxwell (3:19:44) - Running restaurants (3:33:26) - Last meal (3:37:50) - Relationships (3:47:02) - Advice for young people (3:52:16) - Regrets (3:56:01) - Mortality (4:12:04) - Love

23 Maj 20224h 21min

Bobby Lee is a comedian and co-host of TigerBelly and Bad Friends podcasts. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Brave: https://brave.com/lex - GiveWell: https://www.givewell.org/ and use code LEX - Linode: https://linode.com/lex to get $100 free credit - Onnit: https://lexfridman.com/onnit to get up to 10% off - Indeed: https://indeed.com/lex to get $75 credit EPISODE LINKS: Bobby's Twitter: https://twitter.com/bobbyleelive Bobby's Instagram: https://instagram.com/bobbyleelive TigerBelly Podcast: https://youtube.com/c/TigerBelly TigerBelly Merch: https://thetigerbelly.com Bad Friends Podcast: https://youtube.com/c/BadFriends Bad Friends Merch: http://badfriendsmerch.com PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (07:20) - Wedding (13:20) - Video games (18:58) - Grappling (24:03) - Sex robots (27:01) - Khalyla (33:46) - Parenting (44:26) - Darkest moment (52:43) - Fame (1:02:57) - Carlos Mencia (1:09:47) - TigerBelly (1:23:24) - George and Gilbert (1:30:35) - Power (1:43:38) - Meaning of life

20 Maj 20221h 45min

Oliver Stone is a filmmaker with 3 Oscar wins and 11 Oscar nominations. His films include Platoon, Wall Street, Born on the Fourth of July, Scarface, JFK, Nixon, Alexander, W, Snowden, and documentaries where he has interviewed Fidel Castro, Hugo Chavez, and Vladimir Putin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - Novo: https://novo.co/lex - Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex and use code LEX to get 25% off premium - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex and use code LEX - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free - NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/lex to get free product tour EPISODE LINKS: Oliver's Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheOliverStone Chasing the Light (book): https://amzn.to/3ywb3J2 A Bright Future (book): https://amzn.to/3yvuGAX PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) - Introduction (09:35) - Nuclear power (22:33) - Russia and US relations (27:48) - JFK and the Cold War (33:05) - Interviewing Putin (56:44) - Invasion of Ukraine (1:06:01) - Why Putin invaded Ukraine (1:20:25) - Propaganda (1:27:43) - Interviewing Putin in 2022 (1:34:59) - Nuclear war (1:41:09) - Advice on interviewing (1:44:50) - Interviewing Hitler (1:48:11) - Putin interview language barrier (1:49:22) - Love (1:51:17) - Advice to young people (1:54:23) - Mortality (1:55:25) - Regrets (1:57:22) - Meaning of life

17 Maj 20221h 59min