#81 – Anca Dragan: Human-Robot Interaction and Reward Engineering

James Gosling is the founder and lead designer of the Java programming language. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - Public Goods: https://publicgoods.com/lex and use code LEX - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex - ExpressVPN: https://www.expressvpn.com/lexpod If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 4:45 - Irrational numbers 8:04 - Math and programming 10:36 - Coding style 14:41 - First computer 23:54 - Lisp 27:22 - Write an Emacs implementation in C 35:15 - Early days of the Internet 45:57 - Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos 56:13 - Work hard and smart 58:48 - Open source 1:10:25 - Java 1:28:31 - Java virtual machine 1:44:05 - Android 1:47:04 - Advice

24 Sep 20201h 51min

Ryan Hall is a jiu jitsu black belt, UFC fighter, and a philosopher of the martial arts. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - PowerDot, use code LEX: https://powerdot.com/lex - Babbel: https://babbel.com and use code LEX - Cash App: download app & use code "LexPodcast" If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 0:00 - Introduction 7:22 - Greatest warrior in history 11:48 - Genghis Khan 17:32 - Nature is metal 21:49 - Cancel culture 36:11 - Sci-fi books and movies 44:50 - Essence of jiu jitsu 51:17 - Jiu jitsu is a language 1:01:12 - How to get started in jiu jitsu 1:14:01 - The value of a good coach 1:25:42 - Lex training with Ryan 1:31:06 - Toxicity on the internet 1:34:41 - Joe Rogan 1:42:25 - Alex Jones 2:07:02 - Donald Trump 2:09:45 - The American ideal 2:17:33 - What does it take to be a jiu jitsu black belt 2:49:06 - Elon Musk 2:57:39 - Fighting BJ Penn 3:04:13 - Conor McGregor 3:12:08 - How to beat Khabib Nurmagomedov 3:16:00 - Top MMA fighters of all time 3:24:41 - Mike Tyson 3:41:13 - Fear of death

20 Sep 20200s

Stephen Wolfram is a computer scientist, mathematician, and theoretical physicist. This is our second conversation on the podcast. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex - Sun Basket, use code LEX: https://sunbasket.com/lex - MasterClass: https://masterclass.com/lex If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 07:14 - Key moments in history of physics 12:43 - Philosophy of science 14:37 - Science and computational reducibility 22:08 - Predicting the pandemic 38:58 - Sunburn moment with Wolfram Alpha 39:46 - Computational irreducibility 46:45 - Theory of everything 52:41 - General relativity 1:01:16 - Quantum mechanics 1:06:46 - Unifying the laws of physics 1:12:01 - Wolfram Physics Project 1:29:53 - Emergence of time 1:34:11 - Causal invariance 1:53:03 - Deriving physics from simple rules on hypergraphs 2:07:24 - Einstein equations 2:13:04 - Simulating the physics of the universe 2:17:28 - Hardware specs of the simulation 2:24:37 - Quantum mechanics in Wolfram physics model 2:42:46 - Double-slit experiment 2:45:13 - Quantum computers 2:53:21 - Getting started with Wolfram physics project 3:14:46 - The rules that created our universe 3:24:22 - Alien intelligences 3:32:29 - Meta-mathematics 3:37:58 - Why is math hard? 3:52:55 - Sabine Hossenfelder and how beauty leads physics astray 4:01:07 - Eric Weinstein and Geometric Unity 4:06:17 - Travel faster than speed of light 4:16:59 - Why does the universe exist at all

15 Sep 20204h 24min

Manolis Kellis is a professor at MIT and head of the MIT Computational Biology Group. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - Public Goods: https://publicgoods.com/lex and use code LEX - Magic Spoon: https://magicspoon.com/lex link & using code LEX at checkout - ExpressVPN: https://www.expressvpn.com/lexpod Lex Fridman Podcast survey mentioned in the intro: https://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/5833660/Lex-Fridman-Podcast-Survey If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 06:20 - Epigenome 10:28 - Evolution 15:26 - Neanderthals 27:15 - Origin of life on Earth 43:44 - Life is a fight against physics 49:56 - Life as a set of transformations 51:35 - Time scales 1:00:31 - Transformations of ideas in human civilization 1:05:19 - Life is more than a rat race 1:13:18 - Life sucks sometimes and that's okay 1:30:16 - Getting older 1:36:21 - The best of MIT 1:49:01 - Poem 1: The Snow 2:01:52 - Love 2:06:16 - Poem 2: The Tide Waters

12 Sep 20202h 11min

David Fravor is a navy pilot of 18 years and a primary witness in one of the most credible UFO sightings in history, video of which has been released by the Pentagon and reported on by the NY Times. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex - ExpressVPN: https://www.expressvpn.com/lexpod - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 07:13 - Top Gun 12:06 - Navy pilot career 24:14 - AI is the third brain of a jet fighter 40:37 - Sully 47:34 - Landing a jet fighter on a carrier 53:18 - What's it like to fly a jet fighter? 1:05:22 - Greatest plane ever made 1:11:04 - The Tic Tac UFO story 1:49:16 - Intelligent extraterrestrial life 1:53:30 - Why aren't UFOs investigated more seriously 1:59:52 - Tic Tac UFO details 2:07:55 - What do you think the Tic Tac was? 2:16:23 - SpaceX 2:30:01 - Response to Mick West Debunking 2:48:24 - Was the Tic Tac a secret military test? 3:00:07 - Is the government in possession of alien spacecraft? 3:25:28 - Interesting UFO sightings in history 3:39:55 - Advice for Young People 3:47:47 - Meaning of life

8 Sep 20203h 56min

My attempt to find the words to honor my grandmother, an amazing woman who is responsible for much of who I am, who taught me how to be a man, taught me about strength, about wisdom, about compassion, about love. If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - In memory of my grandmother 02:00 - Lesson 1: Mental Toughness 04:31 - Lesson 2: Strength 07:25 - Lesson 3: Wisdom 08:46 - Lesson 4: Believe in Yourself 12:13 - Lesson 5: Love 15:37 - Poem

7 Sep 202018min

Eugenia Kuyda co-founder of Replika, an AI companion. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - Dollar Shave Club: https://dollarshaveclub.com/lex - DoorDash: download app & use code LEX - Cash App: download app & use code "LexPodcast" Episode links: Eugenia's Twitter: https://twitter.com/ekuyda Replika's Twitter: https://twitter.com/myreplika Replika's Website: https://replika.ai If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 06:18 - Loneliness 13:54 - Can AI alleviate loneliness? 18:13 - Love 20:49 - Russia in the 1990's 31:47 - Chernobyl 41:35 - Communism 49:21 - Losing a friend 57:55 - Mortality 1:10:41 - Replika origin story 1:59:37 - Bringing people back to life with AI 2:05:37 - Relationship with Replika 2:18:27 - Can you form a connection with text alone? 2:27:45 - Does an AI companion need a body? 2:30:20 - Her 2:37:24 - GPT-3 for conversation 2:43:48 - We should be nice to AI 2:46:52 - Book recommendations 2:53:45 - Russian language 2:58:41 - Meaning of life

5 Sep 20203h 1min

My thoughts on 8 possible long-term futures of Neuralink after attending the August 2020 progress update. This is a solo episode #2 of the podcast. Hopefully it's interesting to some folks. The aim is for these episodes to be focused on a particular topic, at times challenging, at times personal, at times exciting to me on a technical and philosophical level like the episode today. If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 04:42 - 1. Alleviating Suffering 07:25 - 2. Consciousness and Intelligence 11:39 - 3. Augmented Body, Mind, and Reality 13:42 - 4. Gaming & Virtual Reality 16:25 - 5. Merging Tech & Biology 19:40 - 6. Telepathy 22:58 - 7. Memories & Immortality 28:04 - 8. Merging with AI

1 Sep 202033min