Two Psychologists Four Beers

Latest Episodes:

Episode 5: I Love How You Hurt Me (with Paul Bloom) Jul 18, 2018

Show notes

Yoel and Mickey welcome Yale psychologist Paul Bloom to the show, their very first guest. In a far ranging conversation, Yoel, Mickey, and Paul discuss the potential benefits of pain. Why do we sometimes choose to suffer? Are there any benefits (to self or society) to being a painful or disagreeable person? Why do we enjoy and seek out aversive fiction, be that in books, TV, or film? Why do so many of the goals that we set and pursue involve pain and suffering?

Bonus: Yoel, Mickey, and Paul each completed a validated measure of agreeableness. Can you guess who came out on “top”?

Special Guest: Paul Bloom.

Links:

Episode 4: The Replication Crisis Gets Personal Jul 04, 2018

Show notes

In their most emotional episode yet, Yoel and Mickey discuss the replication crisis in psychology. What is meant by the replication crisis and how did it get started? Why does it appear like the field is split into two, with some young academics actively trying to reform psychology and more senior scholars suggesting the problems have been mostly overstated? How have academics dealt with the possibility that their own work might not be robust and replicable? Finally, how did one of the most notorious academic fraudsters get caught?

Bonus: Did Mickey spike Toxoplasma gondii (crazy cat lady parasite) in Yoel’s beer?

Links:

Episode 3: WTF is the IDW? Jun 20, 2018

Show notes

Yoel and Mickey take a deep dive into the so-called Intellectual Dark Web (IDW). What is the IDW and who are the prominent members of this group? Why do members of the IDW seem so cranky? Are members of the IDW actually being silenced, and given their massive popularity, who is silencing them? Is the IDW a positive and new development in our culture? Should the members of the IDW be concerned about some of their fans and followers?

Bonus: Why did Yoel decide to have us drink the champagne of beers?

Links:

Meet the Renegades of the Intellectual Dark Web — An alliance of heretics is making an end run around the mainstream conversation. Should we be listening?
After Evergreen - The Stranger — One Year Later, Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying Look Back
The Sam Harris-Ezra Klein debate - Vox — Ezra and Sam Harris debate race, IQ, identity politics, and much more.
Sam Harris and the Myth of Perfectly Rational Thought | WIRED — The famous proponent of New Atheism is on a crusade against tribalism but seems oblivious to his own version of it.
Can Things Be Both Popular And Silenced? | Slate Star Codex — CAN THINGS BE BOTH POPULAR AND SILENCED?
Pretty Loud For Being So Silenced | Current Affairs — Critics of the left aren’t oppressed and they don’t believe in “rational debate.”
Intellectual Dark Web: Bari Weiss’s Analysis Is a Little Off | National Review — First, let me say that the phrase “Intellectual Dark Web” strikes me as a marketing label — and not necessarily a good one.
Quillette Magazine
Most in U.S. Oppose Colleges Considering Race in Admissions — Seven in 10 Americans say merit should be only basis for college admissions 65% disagree with Supreme Court decision allowing race to be a factor By 50% to 44%, blacks favor merit, not race
Miller High Life | The Champagne of Beers
Fireball Cinnamon Whisky

Episode 2: You're Not Wrong Walter, You're Just an A$$hole Jun 05, 2018

Show notes

In this episode, Yoel and Mickey tackle problems of tone and incivility in online discussions of the scientific literature. What constitutes bullying and is the term abused to derail legitimate criticism? What is an ad hominem attack and when is it a fallacy? Finally, who's our favorite member of the Black Goat podcast?

Links:

When the Revolution Came for Amy Cuddy - The New York Times
Here’s How Cornell Scientist Brian Wansink Turned Shoddy Data Into Viral Studies About How We Eat
Some Points On Bullying, Attacks and Criticism
Simone Schnall's replication response
Issues with data and analyses: Errors, underlying themes, and potential solutions | PNAS — Scientists are often protected by academic freedom, and in the United States, individuals are afforded First Amendment rights for free speech. However, freedoms are not immune to legal or social recourse, as in the case where a biotech chief executive officer was convicted of wire fraud for a misleading press release about a product (88). Individuals engaging in ad hominem attacks in scientific discourse should be subject to censure.
No, we can't censure people for ad hominem attacks in scientific discourse. |
Stop accusing me of ad hominem fallacies you stupid idiots | The Logic of Science
PsychMAP
PsychMAD
Sanjay's blog
Simine's blog
The Black Goat – A podcast about doing science
Wheat — Side Launch Brewing Company
Great Lakes Brewery - Octopus Wants to Fight IPA

Episode 1: In Search of the Campus Free Speech Crisis May 19, 2018

Show notes

In their first episode, Yoel and Mickey tackle the alleged free speech crisis on campus. Is there reason to worry or are reports of left-wing intolerance overblown? We take a closer look and talk about what we do and don't feel comfortable saying on campus.

Also: who are we and why are we doing this?

Links: