Conversations with Coleman

Latest Episodes:

Multiverse of Madness with David Deutsch May 09, 2023

Show notes

My guest today is David Deutsch. David is a renowned physicist and philosopher, best known for his work on quantum computation and his contributions to the field of quantum mechanics. He's a fellow of the Royal Society and a visiting professor of physics at the University of Oxford. David has written two books called "The Fabric of Reality" and "The Beginning of Infinity"

In this episode, we talk about the purpose of science. We discuss the concept of an explanation and its crucial role in the scientific process. We examine the famous double-slit experiment. We discuss rival interpretations of quantum mechanics and what they imply about the nature of reality. We also talk about progress in physics and advances in artificial intelligence.

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Debating Race and Incarceration with Vincent Lloyd May 05, 2023

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My guest today is Vincent Lloyd. Vincent is a professor at Villanova University where he directed the Black Studies Program, leads workshops on anti-racism and transformative justice, and has published books on anti-black racism, including "Black Dignity: The Struggle against Domination". Now, Vincent is one of those rare guests with whom I have profound disagreements on the topic of race, but who's actually willing to have the conversation, which I'm very grateful for.

Vincent came to my attention because of a stunning essay he wrote about his experience teaching a summer course on racism at the Telluride Association. He'll tell the full story in the podcast, but essentially his class was destroyed from within by a single hyper-woke person. It's a crazy story and I think it shocked him, and forced him to reckon with the anti-dialogue pro intimidation component of the campus far left. In any event, Vincent and I begin by talking about this strange experience of having his class imploded, and then we move on to debate our substantive disagreements about racism, police violence, race versus class, whether prisons are necessary, and much more.

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Science and Spirituality with Robert Wright Apr 28, 2023

Show notes

My guest today is Robert Wright. Robert is an author and journalist whose work has spanned a variety of topics from evolutionary psychology and game theory to the nature of consciousness and the role of mindfulness meditation in society. He's the author of many best-selling books, including "The Moral Animal", ''Nonzero'', and ''Why Buddhism is True''.

In today's conversation, we explore the intersection of science, spirituality, and ethics, as well as how Robert's work can help us navigate the increasingly complex landscape of modern society. We also discuss the power of mindfulness and meditation, fostering personal growth and promoting a more compassionate and connected world.

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The Genius Behind Titania McGrath with Andrew Doyle Apr 21, 2023

Show notes

My guest today is Andrew Doyle. Andrew is a British comedian, writer, and political commentator. He's best known for creating and writing the satirical character Titania McGrath, a fictional social justice warrior who parodies extreme progressive activism.

Doyle is also a frequent contributor to The Spectator, Spiked, and many other publications, where he writes on topics related to free speech, political correctness, and social justice. He's also written several books including "Woke: A Guide to Social Justice" which he wrote in character as Titania and "Free Speech And Why It Matters" which he wrote as himself. In addition to his work as a writer, Doyle has also performed a stand-up comedy and appeared on various TV and radio programs in the UK.

This was a really fun and wide-ranging conversation about a bunch of different topics, and I hope you all enjoy it as much as I did.

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Dating, Gender, & Virtue Signaling with Sarah Haider & Meghan Daum Apr 14, 2023

Show notes

My guests today are Sarah Hader and Meghan Daum, who co-host the podcast called "A Special Place in Hell". Sarah, Meghan, and I talk about the difficulty of dating in New York City when you have heterodox politics.

I talk about how the death of my mother influenced my attitude toward science and alternative medicine. We talk about social contagion and gender dysphoria. We talk about Sarah Hader's origin story as an ex-Muslim. We talk about Meghan's origin story as a hater of phoniness. We talk about Robin Hansen's great book, "The Elephant in the Brain", and the evolutionary logic of virtue signaling. We talk about split-brain patients, the bad incentives facing public intellectuals, lab leaks, and much more.

I really recommend you all check out their podcast called A Special Place in Hell. If you like what I'm doing here, then you're probably going to like what they're doing over there.

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DEBATE: Is The Democratic Party Too Far Left? Apr 07, 2023

Show notes

On the 21st of March, I participated in an Intelligence Squared debate against Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza and Congressman Jamaal Bowman. The motion of the debate was: "Has the Democratic Party gone too far left?" So the Political scientist Ruy Teixeira and I argued in the affirmative while Alicia and Jamal argued the negative.

Now this debate was frustrating for me at times and I think you'll hear exactly when those times are. However, overall I'm really glad that I did it and I hope you enjoy it.

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Racism, UFOs, and Cultural Appropriation with Neil deGrasse Tyson Apr 01, 2023

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My guest today needs no introduction, but I'll give him one anyway. Neil deGrasse Tyson is an astrophysicist, author, and science communicator. Neil is the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Centre for Earth and Space in New York City. He's also hosted and co-hosted numerous science-related TV and radio programs, including Nova Science Now, and Cosmos: A SpaceTime Odyssey. Neil has written several books, including "The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet", "Astrophysics for People In A Hurry", and his new book "Starry Messenger: Cosmic Perspectives on Civilization".

This is Neil's second time on the podcast, and this time we discuss many issues, including declining public trust in science. We also talk about UFOs or UAPs as they're now called. We discuss the history of scientific racism. We talk about the art of communicating science to the general public. We discuss the issue of cultural appropriation. We also talk about the generational gap between Neil and myself and how that may lead us to interpret our experiences differently as black men in predominantly white intellectual spaces, and we go on to talk about much more.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

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The Strange Death of Journalism with Batya Ungar-Sargon Mar 25, 2023

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My guest today is Batya Ungar-Sargon. Batya is a deputy opinion news editor at Newsweek and a columnist at Compact magazine. Before that, she was the opinion editor of The Forward.

In this episode, we talk about tribalism and individualism. We talk about how journalism and media became woke. We talk about the shift from journalism being a working-class profession to a profession for elites and the consequences of that shift. We also talk about gender ideology and at the end, Batya turns the tables on me and asks me several interesting and probing questions about myself and about my audience.

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Mind-Reading Tech is Here with Nita Farahany Mar 17, 2023

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My guest today is Nita Farahany. Nita is a professor of Law and Philosophy at Duke Law School. She is the founding director of the Duke Science and Society. She is the faculty chair of the Duke MA in Bioethics and Science Policy and Principal Investigator at slap lab. In 2010, she was appointed by President Obama to the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues where she served until 2017. She's an appointed Member of the National Advisory Council for the National Institute for Neurological Disease and Stroke and she is a past president of the International Neuroethics Society. This is only a small slice of her bio.

The topic of this conversation is mind reading, and I don't mean trying to guess what's in somebody's head. I mean actual technology that scans your brain and reliably conveys what you are thinking or feeling. Now, this seemed like science fiction to me, but Nita convinced me in this conversation that this technology is already here, and there are a host of ethical questions relating to privacy and other things.

Nita and I talk about how EEG scans can give us information about our minds. We talk about the relationship between EEG scans and classical questions in the philosophy of mind, such as consciousness, as well as free will. We talk about the uses of mind-reading technology in criminal investigations, which has already happened. We talk about the current uses of mind-reading tech in Chinese factories. And yes, that is already happening too. We talk about tattoos that can pick up your brain activity. And once again, that already exists. We talk about the combination of artificial intelligence and mind-reading tech and what that promises for the future. We talk about whether excellent liars would be able to pass mind-reading technology. We also talk about how mind-reading tech has even been used to tell whether couples are in love. I really hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.

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Alcoholism, Self-Sabotage, and Wokeness with Africa Brooke Mar 10, 2023

Show notes

My guest today is Africa Brooke. Africa is a London-based consultant, writer, and life coach. She is the host of the "Beyond the Self" podcast.

In this episode, we talk about her background growing up in Zimbabwe and her experience as an immigrant to the UK. We talk about her journey from alcoholism to sobriety. We talk about her essay, "Why I'm leaving the cult of wokeness?" We also talk about the notion of self-sabotage. Africa is essentially a life coach for high-profile clients and at some point, this conversation basically turns into a life coaching session for me. We talk about my own habits with alcohol, as well as the ways in which I might engage in self-sabotage. Africa seems to be very good at her job, and I hope you find something of value in this conversation.

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