250 - Norman Finkelstein: Trump, Israel, Gaza, and the Criminalization of Dissent

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Deborah Gordon is Professor of Biology at Stanford University. She is a myrmecologist—an entomologist who studies ants—focusing on how complex behavior emerges from ant colonies, which have no central control. In this episode, Deborah and Robinson discuss some of the distinctive features of ants, how pheromones help to determine their behavior, examples of fascinating ant species, collective ant behavior, and the life cycle of an ant colony. For more of Deborah’s work on collective behavior, check out her book The Ecology of Collective Behavior (Princeton, 2023). The Gordon Lab: https://web.stanford.edu/~dmgordon/ Ants at Work: https://a.co/d/7bpokYU The Ecology of Collective Behavior: https://a.co/d/1bBT1h7 OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 02:33 Ants and Embryology 05:29 General Features of Ants 13:14 Some Fascinating Ant Species 28:20 Pheromones and Ant Behavior 38:17 Ant Slavery 41:30 Collective Ant Behavior 47:04 A Colony’s Life Cycle 59:01 Revisiting Embryology Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.

16 Juni 20241h 1min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Jay Chandrasekhar is a director, writer, stand-up comic, and actor. Some of his works include directing Super Troopers, Beerfest, and Dukes of Hazzard. He has also directed episodes of Arrested Development, Community, and New Girl. Jay also wrote Mustache Shenanigans (2017) and co-hosts the podcast Mustache Tales. In this episode, Robinson and Jay discuss his growth as a writer, the importance of purpose in comedy and film, creative integrity in Hollywood, working on Supertroopers, and his time with Johnny Knoxville and the Jackass crew. Mustache Tales: https://www.mustachetales.com Mustache Shenanigans: https://a.co/d/8DZscAT Opening Scene of Super Troopers: https://youtu.be/-wdVF_zJS4s?si=goQsJLqLqvBbMyF0 OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 02:58 Jay’s Name Means…What? 5:22 Mustache Shenanigans 7:54 The Importance of Strong Beginnings in Comedy 20:41 The Importance of Purpose in Comedy and Film 24:39 Keeping Creative Integrity in Hollywood 32:20 On Writing a Novel 36:32 How to Have a Good Podcast 41:34 On Working with the Jackass Crew 59:20 Developing the Talent of a Storyteller 1:12:20 Breaking Down the Raiders of the Lost Ark Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.

10 Juni 20241h 14min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 David Albert is the Frederick E. Woodbridge Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University, director of the Philosophical Foundations of Physics program at Columbia, and a faculty member of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. Tim Maudlin is Professor of Philosophy at NYU and Founder and Director of the JBI. This is David’s seventh appearance on Robinson’s Podcast. He last appeared on episode 189 with Barry Loewer to talk about the Mentaculus, their joint project on the foundations of statistical mechanics. This is Tim’s sixth appearance on the show. He last appeared on episode 188 with Sheldon Goldstein to discuss Bohmian mechanics. Tim and David last joined Robinson together for episode 67, which gave an overview of the foundations of quantum mechanics. In this episode, Robinson, David, and Tim talk about the measurement problem, the role of philosophy in physics, various thought experiments, like Schrödinger’s cat and Wigner’s friend, and Niels Bohr’s effects both on quantum mechanics and the philosophy of science. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics, then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. A Guess at the Riddle: https://a.co/d/6qcsidl Tim’s Website: www.tim-maudlin.site The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 04:04 Einstein, Bell, and Pearl on the Measurement Problem 13:00 On “Measurement” in Quantum Mechanics 25:34 What IS the Measurement Problem? 34:42 John Bell on the Measurement Problem 40:32 An Example of the Measurement Problem 43:08 Von Neumann on the Measurement Problem 45:38 Niels Bohr and the Measurement Problem 57:54 Niels Bohr’s Drastic Revision of Physics 1:08:36 Quantum Measurement and the Philosophy of Physics 1:22:52 On Schrodinger’s Cat and Wigner’s Friend 1:38:34 On Consciousness and Quantum Mechanics 1:45:40 The Measurement Problem, Solved? 1:51:04 On the Role of Philosophy in Physics Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.

2 Juni 20242h 3min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Peter Singer is Ira W. DeCamp Professor Emeritus of Bioethics in the Department of Philosophy at Princeton University. He is among the most influential living philosophers, and among the most influential moral philosophers of the last century. Peter is best known for his work in applied ethics on animal welfare and global poverty. In this episode, Robinson and Peter discuss these topics after first introducing his more general views on moral philosophy, including those on utilitarianism and meta-ethics. Throughout their conversation they also touch on Peter’s new podcast, Lives Well Lived, co-hosted with Kasia de Lazari Radek, the Journal of Controversial Ideas, Peter’s Substack, Bold Reasoning with Peter Singer, and his latest and next books, which are respectively The Buddhist and the Ethicist (Shambhala, 2023) and Consider the Turkey (Princeton, 2024). Peter’s Website: https://www.petersinger.info Lives Well Lived Podcast: https://shows.acast.com/6628460c6b51e80012b834c2 The Life You Can Save Organization: https://www.thelifeyoucansave.org.au The Journal of Controversial Ideas: https://journalofcontroversialideas.org Peter’s Substack: https://boldreasoningwithpetersinger.substack.com The Buddhist and the Ethicist: https://a.co/d/38DOmbK Consider the Turkey: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691231686/consider-the-turkey  OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 04:14 Peter Singer’s Entry into Philosophy 08:54 What Is Utilitarianism? 10:58 On Consequentialism vs Deontology 13:12 On Trolley Problems and Moral Facts 16:40 On Moral Realism and Anti-Realism 20:51 On Hedonistic Utilitarianism 26:17 The Lives Well Lived Podcast 33:43 A Puzzle About Trolley Problems 38:48 On the Origin of Peter Singer’s Concern for Animals 49:38 Is It Ever Morally Permissible to Eat Meat? 55:32 Consider the Turkey 1:03:07 Famine, Affluence, and Morality 1:09:08 The Life You Can Save 1:10:50 The Buddhist and the Ethicist 1:18:08 The Journal of Controversial Ideas 1:25:50 Peter’s Substack Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.

26 Maj 20241h 28min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Victor Davis Hanson is a renowned classicist, military historian, and political commentator. He is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow in Residence in Classics and Military History at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. Among numerous other awards, Victor was presented the National Humanities Medal in 2007. In this episode, Robinson and Victor discuss his latest book, The End of Everything: How Wars Descend into Annihilation (Basic Book, 2024), which was released on May 7th. More particularly, they cover the historical connection between annihilation and genocide, how we should interpret the past through today’s moral standards, genocides in the present, and the likelihood of World War III. Victor appeared as a guest on episode #112, in which he and Robinson talked about what was at the time Victor’s latest book, The Dying Citizen. He was also a guest on episode #191, which covered Victor’s views on the current crisis in Israel and Palestine. Keep up with Victor on Twitter, through his website, and on his podcast, The Victor Davis Hanson Show.  Victor’s Website: https://victorhanson.com Victor’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/VDHanson The Victor Davis Hanson Show: https://art19.com/shows/the-victor-davis-hanson-show  The Dying Citizen: https://a.co/d/dPocUJg The End of Everything: https://a.co/d/46O0mMB OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 03:41 On Annihilation, Extinction, and Genocide 09:31 What Causes Genocide? 16:38 The Applicability of Military Strategy to Everyday Life 24:00 On Alexander the Great 36:26 Should We Judge the People of the Past by the Moral Standards of the Present? 44:29 Uyghurs, Jews, and Genocides of the Present 50:45 What Are the Biggest Existential Threats to America? 59:28 Is World War III on the Horizon? Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com

20 Maj 20241h 4min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Sean Carroll is Homewood Professor of Natural Philosophy at Johns Hopkins University and fractal faculty at the Santa Fe Institute. He is also the host of Sean Carroll’s Mindscape, a podcast about science, society, philosophy, culture, arts, and ideas. This is Sean’s fourth appearance on the show. He appeared with David Albert of Columbia University on episode 106, which covers the Many-Worlds theory of quantum mechanics, Boltzmann Brains, and the fine-tuned universe. He was also on episode 118 with Slavoj Žižek on quantum physics, the multiverse, time travel, and a whole lot more, and then episode 200 with Daniel Dennett and Steven Pinker on AI, parapsychology, and consciousness. This episode is coming out in advance of Sean’s next book, Quanta and Fields: The Biggest Ideas in the Universe (Penguin, 2024), which will be released on May 14, 2024. Sean and Robinson discuss many of the topics and themes of Quanta and Fields, including the books’ namesake subjects, as well as more decides, like scientific realism, free will, the simulation hypothesis, and the end of physics. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Sean’s Website: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com Sean’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/seanmcarroll Quanta and Fields (The Biggest Ideas in the Universe): https://a.co/d/gfMDLQo The John Bell Institute: https://www.johnbellinstitute.org OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 5:00 The Biggest Ideas in the Universe 9:38 Do Physicists Understand Physics? 15:51 What Is the Role of Philosophers in Physics? 18:24 The Measurement Problem and Quantum Field Theory 20:24 Scientific Realism and the Standard Model of Particle Physics 25:11 What Is the Wave Function? 34:46 What Is Quantum Field Theory? 37:45 What Is the Fundamental Layer of Reality? 41:01 What Is the Standard Model of Particle Physics? 45:42 What Are the Fundamental Objects in the Standard Model of Particle Physics? 47:39 How Do We Test the Standard Model of Particle Physics? 49:38 What Are the Weaknesses of the Standard Model of Particle Physics? 54:41 Will We Ever Find a Theory of Everything? 56:19 Is String Theory the Final Theory of Physics? 58:14 String theory and the Fine-Tuning Problem 01:00:18 Is Quantum Gravity the End of Progress in Physics? 01:06:12 What is Philosophical Naturalism? 01:08:05 On Naturalized Epistemology 01:10:24 On the Philosophy of Mathematics 01:19:08 On Naturalizing Morality 01:22:33 The Myths of Quantum Entanglement 01:29:53 Is There Only One Electron? 01:34:09 Are Atoms Mostly Empty Space? 01:36:51 Are We Living in a Simulation? 01:39:58 Is Infinity a Problem for Quantum Mechanics?  01:41:59 The Mysteries of Quantum Mechanics Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, and everyone in-between.

12 Maj 20241h 44min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Slavoj Žižek is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London and a senior researcher at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Philosophy. He was also the guest for episodes 109—on psychoanalysis, wokeness, racism, and a hundred other topics—and 118, where he appeared with Sean Carroll to discuss quantum physics, the multiverse, and time travel. Lee Smolin is a founding and senior faculty member at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and the author of a number of bestselling books, including The Trouble with Physics (Mariner, 2006). He was the guest for episode 148, in which he and Robinson discussed presentism, the foundations of mathematics, and the philosophy of quantum mechanics. In this episode, Robinson, Slavoj, and Lee discuss time, space, superposition, and other concepts at the core of physics, as well as postmodernism, the big bang, problems with democracy, and much more. Lee is also an Honorary Fellow of the John Bell Institute for the Foundations of Physics. If you’re interested in the foundations of physics—which you absolutely should be—then please check out the JBI, which is devoted to providing a home for research and education in this important area. Any donations are immensely helpful at this early stage in the institute’s life. Lee’s Website: ⁠http://leesmolin.com⁠ The Trouble with Physics: https://a.co/d/eJZPWaE OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 06:26 Breaking the Copenhagen Interpretation 11:55 On Sabine Hossenfelder  21:11 On Monads, Atoms, and Democritus 30:18 Is the World a Game of Physics? 38:46 On the Big Bang 45:26 On European Immigration and Populism 53:09 A Few Jokes Robinson’s Website: ⁠http://robinsonerhardt.com⁠ Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

5 Maj 202459min

Patreon: https://bit.ly/3v8OhY7 Nick Bostrom is a Swedish philosopher who was most recently Professor at Oxford University, where he served as the founding Director of the Future of Humanity Institute. He is best known for his book Superintelligence (Oxford, 2014), which covers the dangers of artificial intelligence. In this episode, Robinson and Nick discuss his more recent book, Deep Utopia: Life and Meaning in a Solved World (Ideapress, 2024). More particularly, they discuss the alignment problem with artificial intelligence, the problem of utopia, how artificial intelligence—if it doesn’t make our world horrible—could make it wonderful, the future of technology, and how humans might adjust to a life without work. Nick’s Website: https://nickbostrom.com Deep Utopia: https://a.co/d/b8eHuhQ OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 02:50 From AI Dystopia to AI Utopia  9:15 On Superintelligence and the Alignment Problem 17:48 The Problem of Utopia 21:14 What Are the Different Types of Utopia? 28:04 AI and the Purpose of Mathematics 38:59 What Technologies Can We Expect in an AI Utopia? 43:59 Philosophical Problems with Immortality 55:14 Are There Advanced Alien Civilizations Out There? 59:54 Why Don’t We Live in Utopia? Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University. Join him in conversations with philosophers, scientists, weightlifters, artists, and everyone in-between.

28 Apr 20241h 6min