The After On Podcast

Epizódok

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  62: "DEEP VZN" Revisited | Kevin Esvelt 11.03.2026 1ó 53p

  I'm reposting my 2022 interview with Kevin Esvelt on the deranged USAID program "DEEP VZN," in conjunction with my latest appearance on Sam Harris's podcast, in which we discuss this terrifying topic
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  61: An "Observatory" for a Shy Super AI ? 04.08.2024 1ó 21p

  Might we unwittingly start sharing our world with a super AI? A monologue and (mostly) playful thought experiment.
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  60: Deep Fakes | Sam Harris and Zohaib Ahmed 05.06.2023 1ó 52p

  Will the glittering dawn of the genai era be accompanied by a dark tsunami of pixel-perfect deep fakes? I discuss this prospect with Sam Harris, as well as the CEO of synthetic audio pioneer Resemble.ai.  
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  59: Generative AI | What's New & What's Next 08.03.2023 32p

  My thoughts on what's happening in the mad world of generative AI, announcing my new home online at robreid.substack.com, and more.
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  58: Recipes for Future Plagues | Kevin Esvelt 28.02.2022 1ó 55p

  USAID's new "DEEP VZN" program aims to discover new pandemic-grade viruses, then broadcast their genomes to the world, according to MIT evolutionary engineer Kevin Esvelt. He estimates that 30,000 people in dozens of countries could then easily assemble them.
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  57: Octopus Intelligence (and more!) | Roger Hanlon 08.10.2021 1ó 59p

  A wide-ranging discussion of cognition in octopuses & cuttlefish, plus many, many other topics with globally renowned sensory ecologist Roger Hanlon.
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  56: A Massive Future for an Old Vaccine? | Megan Murray 19.06.2021 1ó 13p

  Harvard epidemiologist Megan Murray tells us all about the anti-tuberculosis vaccine "BCG," and the astonishing protection it may provide against Covid -- as well as looming future pandemics.
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  55: Detecting Disease Outbreaks from Internet Traffic | Seth Stephens-Davidowitz 23.04.2021 1ó 42p

  This is closely tied to a 4-hour collaboration between Sam Harris and me, which Sam is posting to his podcast's feed. I strongly recommend that episode too! But it's not "required" for you to get everything out of this fascinating conversation with Seth.
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  54: Announcing a New Season 02.02.2021 2p

  This "episode" is just a quick new announcement of a new season of the podcast (finally)! And also of something very cool that I'm working on with fellow podcaster Sam Harris.
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  53: The Case Against Reality | Don Hoffman (classic + updated) 30.07.2019 1ó 41p

  Quantitative Psychologist Don Hoffman has a head-spinning take on the true nature of reality vs. what our senses report to us. This is a revisitation of our original interview, expanded with lots of new material recorded last week.  
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  52: Many Quantum Worlds | Sean Carroll 15.07.2019 1ó 37p

  Quantum mechanics – and its eerie "Many Worlds" interpretation – are explored in terms that both poets & physicists can appreciate.
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  51: On Consciousness | Annaka Harris 25.06.2019 1ó 20p

  The baffling and fascinating mysteries connected to the phenomenon of consciousness are explored in this conversation with the deeply thoughtful science writer, Annaka Harris.
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  50: About that TED Talk | Kevin Rose 18.06.2019 1ó 21p

  This morning, TED posted a talk I just gave at their annual conference (on 11 days notice!). Kevin Rose interviewed me about my talk for his podcast. I'm posting his interview here as well.
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  49: Canceling PTSD with MDMA (part 2) | Rick Doblin 28.05.2019 1ó

  The drug known as Molly, Ecstasy and MDMA may soon get regulatory approved for therapeutic use, thanks to a 34-year campaign waged by Rick Doblin. Rick and I discuss all of this, plus his own unique story.
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  48: Canceling PTSD with MDMA (part 1) | Rick Doblin 21.05.2019 1ó 6p

  The drug known as Molly, Ecstasy and MDMA may soon get regulatory approved for therapeutic use, thanks to a 34-year campaign waged by Rick Doblin. Rick and I discuss all of this, plus his own unique story.
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  47. AI Boom, or Doom? | Stuart Russell 30.04.2019 1ó 30p

  Stuart Russell's textbook is used to teach AI in over 1,400 universities and 120 countries. If AI scares him, it should scare you too.
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  46: Defeating Food Allergies | Kari Nadeau 09.04.2019 1ó 47p

  The food allergy epidemic is mysterious, volatile, and growing fast. Kari Nadeau and her Stanford team are trying to halt it.
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  45: End Games (part 2) | Naval Ravikant 21.03.2019 1ó 6p

  A rampage killer with a knife can kill a few. With a gun, dozens. With a jetliner, way more. What might future tech enable? In Part Two of our conversation, Naval and I discuss "The Ender."And how to preclude this monstrosity.
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  44: End Games (part 1) | Naval Ravikant 19.03.2019 1ó 13p

  Naval & I discuss a horrifying risk. We questioned whether to post this. Might it give someone ideas? Well, the bad guys already HAVE ideas. And cataclysms are only averted if we face them. There's still time.
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  43: Synthetic Neurobiology | Ed Boyden 01.03.2019 1ó 22p

  Not yet 40, Ed Boyden has already concocted a panoply of tools, which are revolutionizing neuroscience research. He tells us all about optogenetics, expansion microscopy, and more.