The Escaped Sapiens Podcast Shane Farnsworth

Carl Bender is an applied mathematician and mathematical physicist holding positions at Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Heidelberg, Imperial College, London. He was also one of my own favorite lecturers. He taught me about perturbation theory and asymptotic series which are powerful mathematical tools for solving difficult problems in physics. I invited Carl on to the podcast to discuss complex numbers, and their application in physics. At a conceptual level Carl talks about the link between mathematics and reality, the history of complex numbers and what they are good for, his research into weird new quantum systems known as PT-symmetric quantum systems, his interactions with Richard Feynman, and the role that beauty plays in Mathematical discovery.
►Watch on YouTube:https://youtu.be/UbHaAziq6jY
►You can find out more about Carl Here:https://web.physics.wustl.edu/cmb/
These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and those of my guests.
 

What role should Nuclear Power play in energy production? This episode of the podcast explores the case for Nuclear Energy. I speak with Rachel Slaybaugh, who was an Associate Professor of Nuclear Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Division Director at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. She also served as a Program Director at the Department of Energy’s ARPA‑E, where she created the nuclear fission program. She is currently a partner at DCVC. We discuss three of the main problems that people have with nuclear power: (i) The risk of plant meltdowns, (ii) the storage of nuclear waste, and (iii) the expense of setting up new nuclear plants. We also cover the environmental benefits of nuclear as a low carbon energy source, as well as some of the exciting new advanced reactor designs that are coming online right now.►Watch on YouTube:https://youtu.be/BIMj1-GAE4E
►You can find out more about Rachel Here:https://www.dcvc.com/team/rachel-slaybaugh/
►Follow rachel on twitter:@RachelSlaybaugh
These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and those of my guests.
 

On this episode of the podcast I speak with UCL Honorary Professor of Economics and ISRS Distinguished Research Fellow Steve keen. Steve famously predicted the 2008 market crash. He is also known for his criticism of modern economic theory, which he views as being inconsistent, unscientific, and empirically unsupported. He is currently working on a new science of economics built upon incontrovertible facts. We discuss the history of economic theory, the problems with neoclassical economics, and the way that our economic theory causes environmental destruction. 
►Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Ma_TiVNa9wE
►Find out more about Steve's work: profstevekeen.substack.com/www.profstevekeen.com
►Support Steve on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen or Substack https://
►Follow Steve on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen 
These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and those of my guests.

On this episode of the Podcast I speak with economist and public policy analyst Jeffrey Sachs. Jeffrey is Director of the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and President of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. He served as Special Advisor to the UN Secretary General for almost two decades, and is co-founder and chief strategist of the Millennium Promise Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending extreme poverty and hunger. In this conversation we cover the question: "Is Capitalism Responsible For the Environmental Destruction We are Seeing Today?"These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and those of my guests.
►Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/kNv94Ggf9YI
 
►Find out more about Jeffery's work: https://www.jeffsachs.org/
https://sdgs.un.org/panelists/mr-jeffrey-d-sachs-29781
https://www.sipa.columbia.edu/communities-connections/faculty/jeffrey-sachs
https://csd.columbia.edu/sachs
 
►Watch more of Jeffery on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JeffreySachsOfficial2023
 
 

In this episode of the podcast I speak with David Shapiro about some of the threats associated with AI development. We discuss the impact that generative AI will have on truth, trust in evidence, and divisive narratives. Who will pay for AI, and how will that determine the path of its development? Will artificial relationships and generated adult content lead to new forms of sexual addiction and social isolation? What impact will AI have on cyber security, and what will weaponized AI look like? How will AI eventually escape our control?  We close with a brief discussion of UBI, and why humans matter.
►Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/pCtbdYQm16s
►Visit David's Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@DavidShapiroAutomator
►Join David's Discord: https://discord.com/invite/32kNMc2Pqt
►Support David's work on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/daveshap 
These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and those of my guests.
 

What is narcissism, and why do so many successful people seem to be narcissists? In this conversation I speak with Professor Mitja Back from the university of Muenster, who is one of the worlds leading experts on the topic of Narcissism. We discuss narcissism as a personality trait, how narcissistic traits develop (nature vs nurture), relationship breakdown, narcissism on social media, and the link between narcissism and success.
►Watch On YouTube:
https://youtu.be/JXDs3TbIiEk
 
►For more information about Mitja's work see:
https://www.uni-muenster.de/PsyIFP/AEBack/members/mitja-back.html
https://www.mitjaback.de/buecher/
https://www.instagram.com/dr.mitjaback/
https://www.youtube.com/@MitjaBack
 
These conversations are supported by the Andrea von Braun Foundation (http://www.avbstiftung.de/), as an exploration of the rich, exciting, connected, scientifically literate, and (most importantly) sustainable future of humanity. The views expressed in these episodes are my own and/or those of my guests.