Are We Making AI Too Human?, with James Evans
Big Brains12 Juni 2025

Are We Making AI Too Human?, with James Evans

Prof. James Evans, a University of Chicago sociologist and data scientist, believes we’re training AI to think too much like humans—and it’s holding science back.

In this episode, Evans shares how our current models risk narrowing scientific exploration rather than expanding it, and explains why he’s pushing for AIs that think differently from us—what he calls “cognitive aliens.” Could these “alien minds” help us unlock hidden breakthroughs? And what would it take to build them?

Follow Big Brains:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/big-brains-podcast/

X: https://x.com/BigBrainsUC


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Avsnitt(217)

Special University of Chicago Convocation Podcast with Student Speaker Andrea Popova

Special University of Chicago Convocation Podcast with Student Speaker Andrea Popova

A special Convocation edition podcast from the UChicago Podcast Network, featuring an interview with student speaker Andrea Popova, followed by the complete speeches from Andrea and fellow graduates M...

12 Juni 201822min

Economist’s Journey to the Nobel with Richard Thaler

Economist’s Journey to the Nobel with Richard Thaler

Richard Thaler has been dubbed one of the "founding fathers" of behavioral economics, bridging the gap between psychology and economics, and in 2017 he received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences fo...

4 Juni 201844min

Future of Energy Innovation with Michael Polsky

Future of Energy Innovation with Michael Polsky

When UChicago alumnus Michael Polsky first ventured into the field of renewable energy in 2003 with his company Invenergy, he thought they had missed the boat. “When we got into renewables in earnest,...

21 Maj 201823min

The Expanding Universe with Wendy Freedman

The Expanding Universe with Wendy Freedman

Wendy Freedman spent part of her career measuring the age of the universe. Now she’s working on a project that may very well give scientists a chance to glimpse into its birth.   Freedman, the John & ...

14 Maj 201823min

Nature’s Design Secrets with Rama Ranganathan

Nature’s Design Secrets with Rama Ranganathan

From the smallest proteins of cells to entire ecosystems, nature might be the most sophisticated engineer on earth. Researchers like UChicago molecular biologist Rama Ranganathan are trying to uncover...

7 Maj 201825min

Mind of a Virtuoso Composer with Augusta Read Thomas

Mind of a Virtuoso Composer with Augusta Read Thomas

To say Augusta Read Thomas is prolific is an understatement. A past Grammy Award winner and finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Music, Thomas has been hailed as “a true virtuoso composer” by The New Yo...

30 Apr 201825min

Myths of U.S. Health Care with Katherine Baicker

Myths of U.S. Health Care with Katherine Baicker

Health care expansion. It's one of the most contentious issues in American politics. Katherine Baicker is Dean of the Harris School at the University of Chicago and one of the leading scholars on the ...

23 Apr 201826min

Discovering the Missing Link with Neil Shubin

Discovering the Missing Link with Neil Shubin

Evolutionary biologist Neil Shubin spent six years in the Arctic searching for a fossil that could be a missing link between sea and land animals. In 2004, Shubin discovered Tiktaalik roseae, a 375-mi...

16 Apr 201827min

Populärt inom Utbildning

rss-bara-en-till-om-missbruk-medberoende-2
historiepodden-se
det-skaver
nu-blir-det-historia
harrisons-dramatiska-historia
alska-oss
not-fanny-anymore
roda-vita-rosen
johannes-hansen-podcast
rss-foraldramotet-bring-lagercrantz
allt-du-velat-veta
sektledare
rss-viktmedicinpodden
sa-in-i-sjalen
rss-sjalsligt-avkladd
rss-om-vi-ska-vara-arliga
i-vantan-pa-katastrofen
rss-max-tant-med-max-villman
rss-basta-livet
rikatillsammans-om-privatekonomi-rikedom-i-livet