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    Philosophy

    Very Bad Wizards

    Very Bad Wizards is a podcast featuring a philosopher (Tamler Sommers) and a psychologist (David Pizarro), who share a love for ethics, pop culture, and cognitive science, and who have a marked inability to distinguish sacred from profane. Each podcast includes discussions of moral philosophy, recent work on moral psychology and neuroscience, and the overlap between the two.

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    Latest Episodes:
    Episode 255: Beloved Child of the House (Susanna Clarke's "Piranesi") Feb 28, 2023
    Show notes

    David and Tamler get lost in the world of Susanna Clarke's "Piranesi," a hauntingly beautiful and thrilling novel with echoes of Borges, Plato, C.S. Lewis, and even Parfit. The first part of our conversation is spoiler-free so you can listen to that section if you haven't read it yet. (But seriously read this book! We both read it in a few days.)

    Plus, watch out ladies - Sydney the Bing chatbot is coming to steal your man.

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Why a Conversation With Bing's Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled - The New York Times
    • Kevin Roose's Conversation With Bing's Chatbot: Full Transcript - The New York Times
    • From Bing to Sydney – Stratechery by Ben Thompson
    • Piranesi by Susanna Clarke [amazon.com affiliate link]
    • Piranesi (novel) - Wikipedia
    • The meditative empathy of Susanna Clarke's Piranesi - Vox — Carla Baricz's reading of Piranesi through the Romantics, at Ploughshares
    • Piranesi's Disenchanted World
    • Susanna Clarke's Fantasy World of Interiors | The New Yorker
    Episode 254: Nobody's Parfit Feb 14, 2023
    Show notes

    Tamler's earlier self committed to doing an episode on Parfit, and David holds his current self to that promise, which shows how unconvinced David was by Parfit's skepticism about personal identity. Or something like that. We argue about the value of Parfit's sci-fi thought experiments and the implications of believing there's no clear sense of "me." Plus, we talk about a recent article on aphantasia – the inability to conjure images in your mind – and the question that pops into everyone's head when they hear about this condition.

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Aphantasia - Wikipedia
    • Can't See Pictures in Your Mind? You're Not Alone. - The New York Times
    • The Vividness Of Visual Imagery Questionnaire (the "aphantasia Test")
    • Break Music | Backslide by peez
    • How To Be Good | The New Yorker (Profile on Derek Parfit by Larissa MacFarquar)
    • Parfit, D. (1971) Personal Identity, The Philosophical Review, 80, 3-27.
    Episode 253: Tarkovsky's Starchild Jan 31, 2023
    Show notes

    It's the episode that Tamler has been waiting for – a long deep dive into Andrei Tarkovsky's mysterious masterpiece "Stalker." A writer and professor are led by their guide (Stalker) into a cordoned off "zone" that may have been visited by a meteorite (or aliens) a couple of decades earlier. Their destination – a room in the zone that according to legend grants people their deepest desire, the one that has made them suffer the most. We gush over Tarkovsky's filmmaking, his use of sound and music, and the richness of the questions this movie raises about meaning, art, delusion, desire, science, and faith.

    Plus, does having a small penis make you want to buy a sports car? Pre-crisis social psychology is back!

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW
    • : GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $100 (until funds last). Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Richardson, D. C., Devlin, J., Hogan, J. S., & Thompson, C. (2023). Small Penises and Fast Cars: Evidence for a Psychological Link.
    • Stalker (1979 film) - Wikipedia
    Episode 252: Yes We Sene-can Jan 10, 2023
    Show notes

    David and Tamler dive into Seneca's "On the Happy Life" and stoicism, the topic selected by our beloved patreon supporters. Why is stoicism so popular today? What does Seneca actually think about Epicureanism? Can Seneca's philosophy be reconciled with his life as a wealthy Roman aristocrat? Are stoics too cold and detached or is that an unfair caricature? And why can't David and Tamler fully embrace this undeniably wise approach to life?

    Plus the return of… GUILTY CONFESSIONS and some favorite things from 2022.

    Sponsored By:

    • : GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $100 (until funds last). Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards
    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Why Stoicism is one of the best mind-hacks ever devised | Aeon Essays
    • Seneca--On the Happy Life
    Episode 251: First Order, Then Chaos Dec 20, 2022
    Show notes

    David and Tamler wind their way through another Borges story - "The Immortal"- about a Roman soldier who seeks the secret of immortality and, much to his horror, finds it. Plus some thoughts on the utterly shameless ChatGPT.

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW
    • : GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $100 (until funds last). Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • The banality of ChatGPT - by Erik Hoel
    • The Immortal (short story) - Wikipedia
    • Immortal by Jorge Luis Borges – მატიანე
    Episode 250: Metaphors All the Way Down Dec 06, 2022
    Show notes

    We often think of metaphors as poetic flourishes, a nice way to punctuate your ideas and make them more relatable. But what if metaphors aren’t simply tools of language but part of thought itself? David and Tamler “dive into†George Lakoff’s theory of metaphors and “explore†the implications of his view that metaphors shape and constrain the ways we conceptualize our experience of the world. Plus if we’re really living in cancel culture, we might as well do some cancelling. Say goodbye to "Singing in the Rain," Latinx, and punny academic titles among other things.

    Oh and it’s our 250th episode! It’s been quite a journey. Have we come a long way or are we just spinning our wheels? And for a fun detour, check out our bonus podcast series “The Ambulators†on the great TV series Deadwood.

    Sponsored By:

    • : GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $100 (until funds last). Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards
    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • DJ Khaled on "Hot Ones" [YouTube.com]
    • The Contemporary Theory of Metaphor by George Lakoff
    • George Lakoff - Wikipedia
    • Conceptual metaphor - Wikipedia
    Episode 249: Phlegm and Carelessness (Hume's "The Sceptic") Nov 22, 2022
    Show notes

    David and Tamler gild and stain David Hume’s essay “The Sceptic†with their sentiments. If nothing is inherently valuable or despicable, desirable or hateful, then what do philosophers have to offer when it comes to happiness? If reason is powerless, does it all come down to our emotions and “humoursâ€? Or does the study of philosophy and liberal arts naturally lead to a fulfilling and virtuous life? Plus we look at a new non-traditional social psych paper on how we always imagine that things could be better, and tip our caps to the queen of handling Twitter pile-ons (and former VBW guest) â€" Candy Mom.

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW
    • I Am BIO podcast: Powerful stories of biotechnology breakthroughs, the people they help, and the global problems they solve. Hosted by BIO President & CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath.
    • Super Speciosa: Try kratom now and get 20% off. Go to GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and get 20% off with promo code VBW. That’s GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and use promo code VBW for 20% off. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • "The Sceptic" (Hume Texts Online)
    • Things could be better by Adam Mastroianni & Ethan Ludwin-Peery
    Episode 248: Checkmate, Grasshopper Nov 01, 2022
    Show notes

    In this podcast we examine a recent argument for the view that chess is not, in fact, a game. We discuss the Grasshopper's claim that all games must have a prelusory goal, as well as Skepticus' objection to the giant Grasshopper concerning chess. We then turn to a broader analysis of the Suitsian account of games. Does the existence of illusory checkmates offer Grasshopper an avenue for replying to Skepticus? Should we bite the bullet and agree that chess is not a game? What is a lusory attitude? Is Tamler losing his mind? Why is David so giddy?

    Plus – how should Arthur C. Clarke's novel "2001: A Space Odyssey" affect our understanding of Kubrick's movie? And a little more on Kanye.

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Illusory checkmates: why chess is not a game | SpringerLink
    Episode 247: Open the Pod, Dave (with Sam Harris) Oct 18, 2022
    Show notes

    We welcome Sam Harris back to the show for a deep dive into Stanley Kubrick's confounding 1968 masterpiece "2001: A Space Odyssey." How long is the Dawn of Man? What does the second monolith do exactly? Why are the humans so banal and expressionless? What are HAL'S motivations? Has he planned his mutiny from the start, or does the Council's deception make him manlfunction? Or something else? Who is the Council anyway? Was HAL meant to go through the stargate? What is the final leap forward in consciousness? The hotel room, the starchild, all the rectangles, rectangles everywhere, the music – what does it all mean????

    Plus Sam has some thoughts about our Rorty episode and David tries to rile Tamler up about Kanye's antisemitism.

    note: there's a bit of an abrupt transition between our brief opening and Sam telling a story about Rorty in around the 9 minute mark... couldn't be helped.

    Special Guest: Sam Harris.

    Sponsored By:

    • I Am BIO podcast: Powerful stories of biotechnology breakthroughs, the people they help, and the global problems they solve. Hosted by BIO President & CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath.
    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • Ye's "death con 3" tweet
    • Waking Up App
    • 2001: A Space Odyssey (film) - Wikipedia
    • How Kubrick made 2001: A Space Odyssey - Part 1: The Dawn of Man - YouTube — Video essay by YouTuber CinemaTyler
    Episode 246: Existential Poker-Face (David Foster Wallace's "E Unibus Pluram") Oct 04, 2022
    Show notes

    We dive into David Foster Wallace's sprawling 1993 essay "E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction." How do TV and new forms of media keep their hold on us when we know at some level that they're reinforcing our loneliness and passivity? That's easy, Wallace says, post-modern cool. Flatter me, let me think we're all in the joke together, give me "an ironic permission-slip to do what I do best whenever I feel confused and guilty: assume, inside, a sort of fetal position, a pose of passive reception to comfort, escape, reassurance." But in the years since this essay, the TV landscape has completely transformed. Has it transcended its function as a surrogate companion for lonely people, or has it just found new ways to keep us isolated and passive?

    Plus, we talk about the recent new SPSP guidelines and Jon Haidt's recent essay on why he's resigning from the organization. (Sorry, Jon!)

    Sponsored By:

    • BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW

    Support Very Bad Wizards

    Links:

    • The Two Fiduciary Duties of Professors - Heterodox Academy | Heterodox Academy
    • SPSP DEI submission guidelines
    • E Unibus Pluram: Television and U.S. Fiction by David Foster Wallace
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