Dr. Staley has taught computer science at UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly SLO, and Principia College. He has also built software, managed development projects, and co-founded several small software companies. We explored the age-old question of how to measure right and wrong, especially in the context of advancing technology, AI, and robotics. We also discussed the philosophical implications of AI and consciousness and more!

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I had the pleasure of conversing with Kirsten Hall Herlin, an Assistant Professor at UATX, a distinguished scholar of literature, and the managing editor of the Genealogies of Modernity Journal. We discussed the intricacies of writing and the role of literature in shaping our lives and understanding the world.

Kirsten and I explored the impact of AI and Critical Social Justice on the humanities. Could AI ever win a Pulitzer Prize? Does human consciousness play a crucial role in the writing process? Are the nuances of personal experience, emotional understanding, and subjective thought beyond AI’s reach? Or can those be faked? We also considered how societal division has affected the humanities and whether great literature can help unite us.

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I had a conversation with Joesph Henrich, a distinguished anthropologist and evolutionary biologist at Harvard. Renowned for his interdisciplinary research on cultural evolution and the origins of WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic) societies, Joseph is a deep dude.

We had a wide-ranging discussion on topics such as cultural learning, social contagion, and the WEIRD phenomenon. We explored the interplay between truth and religion, the economic and political impacts of kinship structures, and cognitive development in non-schooled environments. Additionally, we talked about David Deutsch’s work on falsifiability and its role in building systems of knowledge, divination, witchcraft, rationality, and the question of who might be considered the "weirdest" people in the world.

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Yasmine Mohammed and Peter Boghossian discuss women's oppression under Islam and Western Feminism's silence on the issue.

Follow Yasmine:

• Free Hearts Free Minds
• Yasmine Mohammad Podcast
• Yasmine's book, "Unveiled: How the West Empowers Radical Muslims"
• Clarity Coalition
• Yasmine on Instagram, Facebook, and X

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While in Denver with the University of Austin for the Life of Mind Tour, I had a deep conversation about philosophy with Alex Priou. Alex is a professor, philosopher, author, and contributor to The New Thinkery podcast. We talked about the fragility of civilization, what constitutes a good life, and what happens when one's beliefs have been hijacked by ideology.

• Alex on X

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Greg Lukianoff (FIRE organization) is doing crucial work in promoting free speech and defending the rights of individuals who have faced repercussions for their speech. We discussed schools on FIRE's Free Speech List and the associated violators as well as the teacher’s unions’ ideological capture. The conversation took an unexpected turn when we began talking about people we know in the public space—Greg then used the phrase "name-dropping”.

More from Greg:

• Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
• Greg on X

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Alan Davison is one of the leading international scholars in the field of cultural history of the long nineteenth century, focusing on the intersection of music and visual culture, portraits of musicians and the reception and representation of the famous Hungarian composer-pianist Franz Liszt.

In this episode, Alan and Peter discuss Critical Theory, the ideological capture of universities, and why bad ideas flourish in academic settings.

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Jeremy Carl is a senior fellow at the Claremont Institute and has had a varied career, primarily in the public policy arena. His work at Claremont examines nationalism, immigration, technology, and a variety of other subjects. Prior to joining Claremont, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior under President Trump.

In this episode, Peter and Jeremy discuss Jeremy's new book, The Unprotected Class: How Anti-White Racism Is Tearing America Apart. They discuss this topic as well as Critical Race Theory, Social Justice, and more.

Jeremy on X: https://x.com/realJeremyCarl
Jeremy's website: https://www.jeremycarl.com/

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