Protocols such as hand washing and ceremonial rituals have existed for centuries, but 'protocol science' as a standalone field is only just emerging. Venkatesh Rao draws a comparison with the historical development of economics to explain why...
✈️🛄 Tim Beiko argues that the TSA's shortcomings can teach us valuable lessons about protocol design... Full episode: https://www.infiniteloopspodcast.com/venkatesh-rao-tim-beiko-the-summer-of-protocols/
How sticky are protocols? "When you design protocols, if they're successful, you might not be able to change them, so you want to be extremely mindful of designing them in the right way and thinking about the second order consequences of doing so." -- Tim Beiko (who runs the core…
Why should we care about protocols? "Protocols are like a first-class citizen for thinking about the world." -- Venkatesh Rao
Introducing: The Life of David Rhoiney A sneak peek behind the scenes of a major new Infinite Media film & book project chronicling the extraordinary journey of Dr. David Rhoiney (@surgifi). ___ David Rhoiney was born at the bottom. As an impoverished African American child, he survived seemingly unbearable hardships,…
Tim Beiko, who runs the core protocol meetings for Ethereum, teams up with writer and consultant Venkatesh Rao to discuss their “Summer of Protocols” research program. This initiative brought together 33 researchers with a wide range of expertise to investigate protocols across several domains. Join us for an in-depth exploration…
"A rule that I live by is that there are very few, if any, arguments in life where someone is not a little bit right and a little bit wrong. It's very rare to be in a discussion with someone that's totally wrong and someone else is totally right." --…
Video essayist Will Schoder's latest project was a trilogy of long-form deep dives into the science, secrets and sources of happiness. But what is true happiness? And how can we find it? Will explains...
"Whatever keeps your brain in thrall doesn't necessarily do anything for your heart." -- Will Schoder
"Stories in general are one of our most powerful tools to fight entropy. We dive into the chaos and come out with a more ordered existence..." -- Will Schoder
Will Schoder is a video essayist who explores a diverse range of topics including psychology, meaning, re-enchantment, metamodernism, mortality, and satire. Initially known for his short-form videos, his latest series is a trilogy of fascinating long-form deep dives into the nature, foundations, and secrets of happiness. Will joins the show…
How can we tackle the fentanyl crisis? Investigative journalist Ben Westhoff argues that the US government should invest in medication-assisted treatment. "We have these great drugs... But most people don't have access to them."
Investigative journalist Ben Westhoff on how to understand poverty: “the wealthy people and the poor people just live apart and never the twain shall meet...if you're really putting yourself in these situations, really seeing how the other half lives, then you can understand what's really needed there.”
"hip-hop has been... part of the problem." Here's investigative journalist Ben Westhoff on hip-hop's role in the fentanyl crisis...
Our guest, Ben Westhoff, explains how, in recent years, there has been an explosion of extremely dangerous, synthetic alternatives to plant-based drugs.
Ben Westhoff is a best-selling investigative journalist focusing on culture, drugs, and poverty. Ben’s book Fentanyl, Inc.: How Rogue Chemists Created the Deadliest Wave of the Opioid Epidemic was the culmination of a four-year investigation into the worst drug crisis in American history, an investigation that included Ben making an…
"one of the core cravings of the human soul is... infinite connection." ~ Roon
"I think the world works better when everyone has a feeling of abundance." -- Roon
"We need technological progress. It's a necessity. It's the only thing that makes our civilization prosper in the long run, or even in the short run. It's the only thing that leads to stable growth and without it... all bets are off." -- Roon
Our guest, Roon, argues that, at the end of the day, "it's a wordcel world."
AI researcher, memelord extraordinaire, and techno-optimist Roon joins the show to discuss coming up with the shape rotator vs. wordcel meme, what an AGI world could become, and why Tenet is Christopher Nolan’s best movie. Important Links: - Roon’s Twitter - https://x.com/tszzl?s=20 - Roon’s Substack - https://roonscape.ai/ - AGI Futures…
"Nostalgia is a seductive liar." -- George Ball Here's Katherine Dee on the danger of falling into a "nostalgia trap..."
"If you want to tell people the truth, you’d better make them laugh or they’ll kill you.” - George Bernard Shaw Our guest, Katherine Dee, argues that, in the Attention Economy, entertainment reigns supreme...
“There's this disbelief that things can become organically popular online. People misunderstand the way power can help." "I think there's just a lot of misunderstanding of how... social capital works, how power works, how trends explode, how things grow." - Katherine Dee