I speak with @stephen_wolfram on the podcast. A 4.5-hour conversation!
In the thread below, I share 32 specific moments I found especially insightful.
Enjoy!
Spotify:
Apple Podcasts:
Website:
(1/34) spoti.fi/3QLfzg1 apple.co/3QLUxxQ bit.ly/44l5Gsy
@stephen_wolfram on how technology often precedes science, and what that might (or might not) imply for the future of the computational paradigm.
(1/5)
Topics we discuss include:
- @nealstephenson's hieroglyph theory of sci-fi
- how long until VR is virtually indistinguishable from reality
- the biggest lessons Palmer learned working with @ID_AA_Carmack
- whether the US government is reverse-engineering UFOs
- 'uplift'
(2/5)
Apr 15, 2023 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
Had the pleasure of interviewing Daniel Kahneman in New York. An absolute mensch.
(1/6)
We discussed:
- The biggest thing Michael Lewis missed in The Undoing Project
- Are pairs the fundamental creative unit?
- Should we be short @PTetlock's ideas as innovation or complexity increases?
- To what extent biases & heuristics are products of culture not biology
(2/6)
Nov 21, 2022 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
Peter Thiel presents a new explanation for the Great Stagnation: in the mid-twentieth century, drably dystopian narratives about science and technology began seeping into the culture.
People don't want to feel as if they're building the machines that will destroy the world. 1/3
Dystopian narratives have been facilitated by the dual-use nature of so many modern technologies.
For example, Thiel sees the turning point on nuclear power as 1975, when India got the bomb after the US transferred it nuclear technology. 2/3
Apr 8, 2020 • 48 tweets • 20 min read
Below is a thread on why lockdowns need not be "economic suicide" as Steve Waterson described them in a recent article (theaustralian.com.au/inquirer/natio…).
I'm no expert, merely synthesizing what I've learned. If errors exist, they are mine and I would love for you to point them out. 1/
I'm going to focus on Australia. Australia is not under a national lockdown. Rather, we have a collection of state-based lockdowns (pictured below; source: The Australian), which emerged in a piecemeal fashion through mid-to-late March 2020, with Federal backing. 2/
Mar 23, 2020 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
Below is a quick thread on why a short, sharp, sheer shutdown of 4-5 weeks will be effective and desirable, based on my conversations with @yaneerbaryam and others over the past weeks.
First, why are ~4 weeks enough to do the trick? 1/n
The incubation period for COVID-19 lasts up to 14 days. With all citizens in lockdown, you need 14 days to identify and isolate the people who were infected just before lockdown began.
In a lockdown, the only other people they can infect are their cohabitants (eg family). 2/n
