281 | Samir Okasha on the Philosophy of Agency and Evolution
Just like with physics, in biology it is perfectly possible to do most respectable work without thinking much about philosophy, but there are unmistakably foundational questions where philosophy becom...
1 Juli 20241h 11min
280 | François Chollet on Deep Learning and the Meaning of Intelligence
Which is more intelligent, ChatGPT or a 3-year old? Of course this depends on what we mean by "intelligence." A modern LLM is certainly able to answer all sorts of questions that require knowledge far...
24 Juni 20241h 41min
279 | Ellen Langer on Mindfulness and the Body
For those of us who are not dualists, the mind arises from our physical bodies -- mostly the brain, but the rest of the body has a role to play. And yet it remains tempting to treat the mind as a thin...
17 Juni 20241h 11min
278 | Kieran Healy on the Technology of Ranking People
We claim to love all of our children, friends, and students equally. But perhaps deep down you assign a ranking to them, from favorite to not-so-favorite. Ranking and quantifying people is an irresist...
10 Juni 20241h 15min
AMA | June 2024
Welcome to the June 2024 Ask Me Anything episode of Mindscape! These monthly excursions are funded by Patreon supporters (who are also the ones asking the questions). We take questions asked by Patreo...
3 Juni 20243h 58min
277 | Cumrun Vafa on the Universe According to String Theory
String theory, the current leading candidate for a theory of quantum gravity as well as other particles and forces, doesn't connect directly to the world we see. It's possible that there is a large la...
27 Maj 20241h 22min
276 | Gavin Schmidt on Measuring, Predicting, and Protecting Our Climate
The Earth's climate keeps changing, largely due to the effects of human activity, and we haven't been doing enough to slow things down. Indeed, over the past year, global temperatures have been higher...
20 Maj 20241h 19min
275 | Solo: Quantum Fields, Particles, Forces, and Symmetries
Publication week! Say hello to Quanta and Fields, the second volume of the planned three-volume series The Biggest Ideas in the Universe. This volume covers quantum physics generally, but focuses espe...
13 Maj 20242h 12min
