Rationally Speaking Podcast

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Intellectual honesty, cryptocurrency, & more (Vitalik Buterin) Mar 04, 2021

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Julia and guest Vitalik Buterin (creator of the open-source blockchain platform Ethereum) explore a wide range of topics, including: Vitalik's intellectually honest approach to leadership, why prediction markets appear to be biased in favor of Trump, whether it was rational to invest in Bitcoin ten years ago, Vitalik's defense of life extension research against its critics, and more.

Understanding moral disagreements (Jonathan Haidt) Feb 18, 2021

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Julia and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt (The Righteous Mind) discuss his moral foundations theory and argue about whether liberals should "expand their moral horizons" by learning to think like conservatives. Julia solicits Jon's help in understanding her disagreement with philosopher Michael Sandel, in episode 247, over the morality of consensual cannibalism.

The case for one billion Americans, & more (Matt Yglesias) Feb 03, 2021

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Matt Yglesias talks about One Billion Americans, his book arguing that it's in the United States' national interest to dramatically boost its population, by expanding immigration and having more babies.

Matt and Julia also discuss arguments for and against the "YIMBY" movement, which pushes for building more housing; what they've both learned from reflecting on their misguided support for the Iraq War in 2003; and why (and how) Matt is trying to be more of a rationalist.

What's wrong with tech companies banning people? (Julian Sanchez) Jan 20, 2021

Show notes

Companies like Twitter and Facebook are increasingly willing to ban users -- and even if you agree with their decisions, is it worrying that a few companies have so much power? Julia discusses with Julian Sanchez, expert on tech and civil liberties.

The case for racial colorblindness (Coleman Hughes) Jan 05, 2021

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Coleman Hughes explains why he favors a "colorblind" ideal and why the "race-conscious" camp disagrees with him. Coleman and Julia also discuss whether reparations are just, and what counts as racism.

Are Democrats being irrational? (David Shor) Dec 22, 2020

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Data scientist David Shor discusses some of the bad choices made by Democratic political campaigns. What's the cause of the errors? Is it irrationality, coordination problems, or something else?

The moral limits of markets / The problem with meritocracy (Michael Sandel) Dec 08, 2020

Show notes

Harvard philosopher Michael Sandel argues with Julia about human dignity, consensual cannibalism, and the case in his new book, The Tyranny of Merit, that meritocracy is to blame for recent populist backlashes in the U.S.

Deaths of despair / Effective altruism (Angus Deaton) Nov 24, 2020

Show notes

Economist and Nobel Laureate Angus Deaton discusses the rise in "deaths of despair" in the U.S. – deaths from drugs, alcohol or suicide. What's causing it, and how do we know? Also, Julia and Angus debate whether effective altruism can help the poor.

Are Boomers to blame for Millennials' struggles? Nov 09, 2020

Show notes

Rationally Speaking returns from hiatus with a look at a clash between two generations: Millennials, and their parents' generation, the Baby Boomers.

Faced with stagnant wages and rising costs of education, rent, and health care, Millennials have a tougher path to economic security than Boomers did. And a growing number of millennial writers argue that their situation is the result of misguided and irresponsible policy choices made by the Boomers themselves.

Are they right? Are Boomers to blame for Millennials' current economic struggles? To answer this question, Julia gets three different perspectives:

Jill Filipovic, author of OK Boomer, Let's Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind,

Joseph C. Sternberg, author of The Theft of a Decade: How the Baby Boomers Stole Millennials' Economic Future, and

Patrick Fisher, author of Demographic Gaps in American Political Behavior.

Rationally Speaking #244 - Stephanie Lepp and Buster Benson on "Seeing other perspectives, with compassion" Nov 30, 2019

Show notes

This episode features a pair of interviews on a similar topic: First, Stephanie Lepp (host of the Reckonings podcast) discusses what she's learned from interviewing people who had a serious change of heart, or "reckoning," including a former Neo-nazi and a former sex offender. What causes a reckoning? Second, Buster Benson (author of Why Are We Yelling? The art of productive disagreement) shares his tips for coming away from a disagreement feeling more alive -- for example, don't just focus on the literal arguments the other person is making; drill deeper. Buster and Julia debate whether there's a downside to approaching disagreements emotionally, rather than intellectually.

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