Just two bros that are having a good time. Which two? No spoilers. Notes “Making a Crypto Utopia in Puerto Rico” Johann Hari went on Joe Rogan’s podcast to plug his new book, Lost Connections. Zach listened to that podcast. I listened to Zach tell me about it. Dare you get in on this action? Ah … Continue reading "Episode 117: Policy vs. Advice"

Hi. We’re back. A bit more on that: We got busy. Not in the way Humpty did. No, just in the regular way. The way mundanities pile up, into a pile, and then you have to dig yourself out of that pile and put the pile somewhere. Oh, there’s another pile over there. I’ll just … Continue reading "Episode 116: Space Wushu"

Eric Schwitzgebel is here to make you doubt and ponder all kinds of stuff. Check it. Eric Schwitzgebel is a professor of philosophy, a blogger, and a science fiction writer. His output is crazy expansive—and from what I’ve read so far, crazy good. And this conversation is good! So listen up! Notes “The Unreliability of … Continue reading "Episode 115: Eric Schwitzgebel on Introspection, AI, and Consciousness"

One of our faves, John Danaher, returns to the program. What do we talk about? Oh, nothing all that exciting: just SEX ROBOTS! Seriously, John‘s the best. Listen to the chat, read the book (Robot Sex), follow the links, live happy life. Peace. Notes Two years ago, the Malaysian government abruptly canceled the second annual … Continue reading "Episode 114: John Danaher on Having Sex with Robots"

Will the future judge us harshly? Well, will it? Tell us, future listeners. Notes Hey, we came in at #43 on the 2017 World Press Freedom Index! U, S, A! U, S, A! Perhaps I spoke hastily when reporting those figures for vegetarianism/veganism. This 2010 study found that, worldwide, “there are one and half billion vegetarians. Only 75 … Continue reading "Episode 113: Future Monsters"

We’re besieged on all sides by useless information. In retaliation, here is our rambling defense of deliberate ignorance and simplicity. If you’re a news junkie, ask yourself this question on occasion: what can I do with this information? However, never apply that question to the Singularity Bros Podcast, the only podcast that cures all unknown diseases. Notes … Continue reading "Episode 112: The News Tightens"

Let’s study the future with Michael Garfield. Come on, let us! Michael Garfield is the host of the Future Fossils podcast, as well as a writer, fine artist, and musician. And he’s our buddy now, yay! Travel with us to the edges of the Broosphere, won’t you? Notes Want some superhero satire? Michael recommends Alan Moore’s Top 10 and … Continue reading "Episode 111: Michael Garfield on Paleontological Futurism"

Andrew G. Ferguson stars in this delightfully chilling conversation about the future of big data and law enforcement. Also starring Scott, Tom, Zach, and featuring Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as “Beyoncé.” Andrew G. Ferguson is a professor of law at the University of the District of Columbia, an expert on such matters as predictive policing and the Fourth … Continue reading "Episode 110: Andrew G. Ferguson on Big Data and Predictive Policing"

Moral illusions and whether we ought to fall for them. Additionally: Captain Planet. Mark Out: To temporarily forget that wrestling is fake because something cool happened. I think I’ve been guilty of marking out for ethical consumerism, ethical eating, recycling, and who knows what else. What do you mark out for? Notes For some background on the … Continue reading "Episode 109: Moral Mark Out"

More weather-based wonder in the works. Welcome. We back wit dat conceptual freshness. Will we ever run out of hot newness? Don’t count on it. Hurricane Happy Hour “Scientists have spiders producing enhanced web that can hold a human” “Denmark’s Corporate Sector Just Sold Off Its Last Oil Company” “Take Elon Musk Seriously on the … Continue reading "Episode 108: Hurricane Happy Hour"

A drastically different episode from last week’s! How do we do it? Even we don’t know. Thunder Phase™ “AI uses bitcoin trail to find and help sex-trafficking victims” Want to know more about Lenore Skenazy and Free Range Kids? We recommend checking out her appearances—1 and 2—on Robot Overlordz. “Electric car emissions slashed by two thirds … Continue reading "Episode 107: Thunder Claps"

It’s the return of Lightning Round™. Get indoors and cozy for this one. Lightning Round™ “CGI and AI are going to turbocharge ‘fake news’ and make it far harder to tell what’s real” “New, reusable [nanotube] filter cleans heavy metals from water” “How farming giant seaweed can feed fish and fix the climate” “Climate change no … Continue reading "Episode 106: Lightning Crashes"

Should we engineer the extinction of mankind on utilitarian grounds? Another normal conversation. An essay prompts us to consider whether suffering is part and parcel of consciousness, and whether this means existing is worse than not. Plus, Bill and Ted references! Notes The essay that kicks this one off: “Benevolent Artificial Anti-Natalism (BAAN)” by Thomas Metzinger Looks … Continue reading "Episode 105: Space Abacus"

More screed in your feed: we tackle the notorious Google memo. This episode’s topic is the prequel to Need for Screed II: Screedo Shot Last. If you don’t know what’s up with this memo yet, you will soon. Notes Before we get into the screed weeds, we recap a bit, and reflect on the previous … Continue reading "Episode 104: Screedgate"

Famous former black hat, Hector Monsegur, gives us the lowdown on how secure we really are (or aren’t). A troubling conversation with a very cool dude. Hector Xavier Monsegur is a security researcher and Director of Assessment Services at Rhino Security Labs. He was also once a notorious hacker and hacktivist. We don’t get much into … Continue reading "Episode 103: Hector Monsegur on Staying Safe Online and IRL"

Please welcome GiveDirectly’s Joe Huston to the program. You won’t regret it. Joe Huston is the CFO of GiveDirectly (Twitter), this podcast’s favorite charity (or mine, at least). You’ll notice that, despite the rambling questions and non-questions I pitched his way, Joe is expert at clearly explaining the details of cash transfers, basic income, and GiveDirectly’s various … Continue reading "Episode 102: Joe Huston on Cash Transfers and Basic Income"

Evolutionary psychologist Diana Fleischman talks about what we find disgusting and why. Also, cannibalism and how great it is. Zach and I had a great time speaking with psychologist and lecturer Diana Fleischman. Originally we planned to discuss transhuman and nonhuman ethics, but, as you’ll hear, we cover quite a bit more territory than that. … Continue reading "Episode 101: Diana Fleischman on Disgusting Stuff"

Our very first guest—and one of our favorites—James Hughes returns to keep it 100. James Hughes, Executive Director of the IEET, and the first guest we ever had, is back. He’s the best. Prepare for a transhumanist delight. Notes What’s that you say? Nicotine is a cognitive enhancer? Our buddy Jesse Lawler has the scoop … Continue reading "Episode 100: James Hughes and the Transhumanist Zeitgeist"

Amazon is taking over; so what? Plus: thoughts on power drills. Look, drills are technology. So they are fair game for this podcast. Also, according to some jerks, nearly everything is technology. So everything is fair game. Thanks, jerks. Take that, other jerks. Notes When we refer to “the minimalists,” we mean the guys from … Continue reading "Episode 099: You Know the Drill"

Helicopter parenting, VR prison pods, and more. Oh my. This one’s all over the place. Thanks again for the interesting feedback, superheroic listeners. Notes Here’s what you really came here for: military commercials from our collective memory. Army of one. Marine vs. lava monster. Bobby’s World (don’t question it). So, a lot of the things … Continue reading "Episode 098: Helicoptration"

One day he’s in Uzbekistan, the next he’s on our podcast. There’s no predicting the inimitable Kevin Kelly. Kevin Kelly. Where to start? Whole Earth Review. Wired. A slew of dope books, including The Inevitable (now available in paperback). He’s a man of deep interests, and a deeply interesting man. I dare you—I f*****g dare you—to not … Continue reading "Episode 097: Kevin Kelly on Virtual Worlds and Raising the Global Teenager"

No, it’s not our new line of energy drinks (yet). We talk extreme interests, hobbies, pursuits and the like. Oh, the like. Warning: jiu jitsu is discussed at length. As is fasting. I encourage you to deal. Notes SURPRISE: I’m a big fan of Jason Fung, founder of the Intensive Dietary Management Program. I looked back … Continue reading "Episode 096: Extreme"

Is eternal bliss desirable? Possible? Intelligible? We discuss, you decide. The singularity gets a bad rap, I think. It’s often mocked as the rapture of the nerds, and part of that is deserved. There are, admittedly, some singularity-enthusiasts whose picture of the future looks a bit too much like classical heaven to us. But whatever … Continue reading "Episode 095: No Pain? Insane!"

Sebastian Brosche has black belts in jiu jitsu, judo, and futurism. Respect. Confession: I’m a huge fan of Sebastian and Yoga for BJJ. I knew I wanted to pick his brain, and the podcast is my catchall pretense for doing that, picking the brains of those I admire. Still, I wasn’t sure how I was going to spin … Continue reading "Episode 094: Sebastian Brosche on Yoga, BJJ, and Finding Meaning in a World Run by Robots"

Is the next great era one of whole brain emulations? Robin Hanson makes the case. The inimitable Robin Hanson regales us with a startling picture of the future—one in which human emulations, or ems, are the dominant form of mind. Hmm. I suppose he’s only inimitable for now. Once brain scanning is mature, he’ll be v imitable. And yeah, … Continue reading "Episode 093: Robin Hanson on the Age of Emulation"