(Some of) The Central Questions of Our Time | Frankly 87

(Some of) The Central Questions of Our Time | Frankly 87

The period of relative peace and stability we've known - enabled by the energy surplus of the Carbon Pulse and the ecological stability of the Holocene - is slipping away. AI is turbocharging the Superorganism, governance structures are fraying, and ecological shocks are intensifying. As the Great Simplification approaches faster than expected, are we asking the right questions?

In this Frankly, Nate invites us to reflect on some of the most urgent questions of our time - and what they might mean for both our collective and individual trajectories ahead. Can open societies endure on the downslope of the Carbon Pulse? Is a future without large-scale war still possible? As the pace of change accelerates, the challenge isn't just understanding what's coming, but deciding how to respond.

What would you not regret doing if you knew major disruptions were imminent? Can you redirect frustration into meaningful action? And in a world that increasingly pulls us apart, can you help build a 'coalition of sanity'?

(Recorded February 25th, 2025)

Show Notes and More

Watch this video episode on YouTube

Want to learn the broad overview of The Great Simplification in 30 minutes? Watch our Animated Movie.

---

Support The Institute for the Study of Energy and Our Future



Join our Substack newsletter



Join our Discord channel and connect with other listeners

Avsnitt(374)

Technology and Wealth: The Straw, the Siphon, and the Sieve | Frankly 119

Technology and Wealth: The Straw, the Siphon, and the Sieve | Frankly 119

In this week's Frankly, Nate explores the relationship between technology and wealth when viewed through a global biophysical lens. He uses the visualization of a straw, siphon, and sieve to describe ...

16 Jan 28min

Why the West Can't Defend Itself: How Material Scarcity Is Reshaping Global Power with Craig Tindale

Why the West Can't Defend Itself: How Material Scarcity Is Reshaping Global Power with Craig Tindale

For decades, the West has outsourced its own material production to other countries, in favor of lower costs and short-term returns over more expensive, long-duration investments like mining and manuf...

14 Jan 1h 41min

The Things We Take for Granted | Frankly 118

The Things We Take for Granted | Frankly 118

In this week's Frankly, Nate shares reflections on what we take for granted in life at multiple scales: from personal health to meaningful work to relative ecological stability. The things that keep o...

9 Jan 22min

How We've 'Drugified' Our Entire Existence: Dopamine & Addiction In the Digital Age with Anna Lembke

How We've 'Drugified' Our Entire Existence: Dopamine & Addiction In the Digital Age with Anna Lembke

Dopamine: the most famous neurotransmitter that regulates pleasure, motivation, and (perhaps most importantly) addiction. When examining  why our society is hooked on consuming more and more of everyt...

7 Jan 1h 36min

Behavioral Thermodynamics Part 1: Beyond the 4th Law?

Behavioral Thermodynamics Part 1: Beyond the 4th Law?

In this week's Frankly, Nate takes thermodynamics out of the physics classroom, utilizing its principles to explain the invisible forces behind growth, competition, and complexity in our world. Compet...

19 Dec 202530min

End of Year Reflections: Four Years of The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens

End of Year Reflections: Four Years of The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens

In this week's episode, Nate reflects on four years(!) of the podcast by answering listener-submitted questions, which cover a broad range of topics related to The Great Simplification. He invites sub...

17 Dec 202527min

Sunk Cost and the Superorganism | Frankly 116

Sunk Cost and the Superorganism | Frankly 116

In this week's episode, Nate unpacks the pervasive behavioral pull of sunk cost as a force shaping our material reality, identities, and collective expectations about the future. Past investments – in...

12 Dec 202523min

Fighting for a Livable Future: Exploring Frontier Climate Interventions with Kelly Erhart

Fighting for a Livable Future: Exploring Frontier Climate Interventions with Kelly Erhart

While current conversations about global heating tend to center around a few well-established pieces of science, we don't often hear about the scientists and leaders working at the frontier of what is...

10 Dec 20251h 6min

Populärt inom Vetenskap

svd-nyhetsartiklar
dumma-manniskor
p3-dystopia
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
allt-du-velat-veta
doden-hjarnan-kemisten
rss-ufo-bortom-rimligt-tvivel-2
rss-vetenskapsradion-2
rss-vetenskapsradion
det-morka-psyket
sexet
bildningspodden
medicinvetarna
paranormalt-med-caroline-giertz
rss-spraket
rss-experimentet
har-vi-akt-till-mars-an
dumforklarat
rss-odla
rss-tidsmaskinen