Curious Apes

Today I’m joined by Professor of Biology at Tufts University, Michael Levin. On the surface, Michael studies information processing inside biology, technology, and a combination of both, often with the goal of addressing health issues such as aging and cancer. But on a deeper level, Michael is a researcher whose name I hear whispered with a sort of reverence amongst the truly nerdy. And this seems to be because Michael is driving extremely cutting-edge work that either answers or completely upends some of the long-standing questions and assumptions that we’ve had about biology. One example is his creation of what are known as xenobots–living robots made from frog cells. Or perhaps most notably, his work with flat-worms that shows how information can be passed between generations of organisms without using DNA, leading to seemingly impossible feats such as growing a lineage of organisms with two heads. Much of this work can be found in numerous conversations Michael has had elsewhere, such as on TED or Lex Fridman’s podcast. So in this episode I try to dig much deeper into the underlying theory driving all of Michael’s work–focusing more heavily on how information and intelligence occur in reality. This leads to some truly remarkable revelations, including ideas that Michael has seemingly not talked about elsewhere–such as the idea of platonic forms and their influence on biological intelligence. Find out more about Michael and his work at https://drmichaellevin.org/**Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

On this episode we're joined by British neurologist Adam Zeman. Adam is most known for his pioneering work that led to the development and on-going refinement of the condition known as aphantasia–the inability to visualize inside our minds eye. In this conversation with Adam, we explore what we know about this condition. How common is it? What evidence in the brain tells us this is a real phenomenon? And what are the implications? How does it change our relationship to stress, emotion, memory, and even PTSD? Does it change how we dream or experience psychedelic drugs, and can one have no visual imagination and still be an artist? We explore these questions and more. Enjoy!**Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

On this episode, I’m joined by Nick Enfield, a linguistic anthropologist at the University of Sydney. We discuss Nick’s journey into the field of linguistic anthropology, the significance of multilingualism, how language affects our cognition, and how language serves as a tool for social coordination. We particularly focus on an idea that’s at the heart of Nick’s 2022 publication, Language vs. Reality: Why Language Is Good for Lawyers and Bad for Scientists. This discussion highlights Nick’s belief that language primarily evolved as a way for us to socially coordinate, and not as a way to find truth. Following this trail of this topic takes on a journey into the realm of linguistic relativity, also known as the sapir-whorf hypothesis, where we explore the degree to which language shapes our perception and reasoning. The discussion also delves into the constraints language imposes on social behavior, the role of nudge theory in communication, and finally the implications of AI and language models on human interaction. **Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

Today I’m joined by professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota, Colin DeYoung. Amongst his varied interests, Colin is perhaps most well known for his pioneering work in the field of personality neuroscience, having developed what is known as the Cybernetic Big Five Theory of personality.  For those who may not be familiar, the Big 5 personality construct is typically considered the most valid of personality measures. Often remembered using the acronym, OCEAN, it has the following 5 traits: O for Openness, which reflects cognitive flexibility, imagination, and intellectual engagement; C for Conscientiousness, which reflects a kind of orderliness or self-discipline; E for Extraversion, which represents sensitivity to reward and positive emotions; A for Agreeableness, which represents our tendencies towards empathy and cooperation; and N for  neuroticism (sensitivity to threat and negative emotions). In this conversation, we delve much more deeply into these personality concepts, exploring how stable our personalities are over time, what can cause them to change, their relationship with mental illness, what role cybernetics plays in increasing our understanding, and finally how our personality relates to the world we occupy.  To learn more about Colin and his work, check out his lab at the University of Minnesota: https://cla.umn.edu/about/directory/profile/cdeyoung ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

For this episode, I’m joined by Princeton professor of psychology and neuroscience, Michael Graziano. The particular goal of this conversation was an exploration of Michael’s theory of consciousness, known as the Attention Schema Theory. This is Michael’s attempt to do away with what he sees as more magical explanations of consciousness by grounding consciousness in the information that our brain uses to detail our awareness and attention. As you might imagine, this takes us on a wide ranging exploration of topics, including qualia, how consciousness evolved, the ability for consciousness to impart top down control over our behavior, and more. We further highlight the important role social cognition plays in Michael’s theory, revealing how our need to model the attention of others helped us evolve a way to model our own attention. We conclude by exploring how his scientific efforts on consciousness relate to AI, including how we might be able to impart consciousness into AI, why it’s crucial to better understand consciousness in the age of AI, the challenges of measuring consciousness, and the societal impacts of machine consciousness. Find out more about Michael and his work at grazianolab.princeton.edu, where you can find his research, books, and more. ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

Today I’m joined by writer, poet, farmer, and religious scholar, Brendan Graham Dempsey. In this episode, we go over the ideas covered in Brendan’s newest publication, A Universal Learning Process, which is part of his largest series entitled The Evolution of Meaning. This conversation is ultimately an exploration of the field known as complexity science and what it can tell us about how we navigate our lives and build our cultures--especially as it relates to meaning. This takes on a journey through topics such as the meaning crisis, entropy, information theory, evolution, self-awareness, spirituality, the is-ought gap, and much more. Find more of Brendan's work at ⁠brendangrahamdempsey.com⁠ or buy his latest book on ⁠Amazon⁠ ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠⁠⁠

Today I’m joined by Dartmouth social neuroscientist, Mark Thornton. I was drawn to Mark due to my interest in work he did with Princeton's Diana Tamir around what is known as the MAPP–the Multilayer Atlas of Person Prediction. As the name suggests, this MAPP attempts to combine the many social theories that have been developed over scientific history and condense them into a set of related coordinate systems. These coordinate systems track social information such as actions, mental states, personality traits, situations, and relationships. And by combining the coordinate map we make for each of these domains, we can enhance our ability to predict the social world we occupy. See the research on the MAPP at: http://markallenthornton.com/cv/TamirThornton_TiCS_2018.pdf Or find more of Mark's work at his Scrap Lab ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠

Today we're joined by social psychologist, Sheldon Solomon. Currently based out of Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, Sheldon has spent roughly 40 years as one of the world’s leading researchers of death. Alongside his colleagues Jeff Greenberg and Tom Pyszczynski, Sheldon established the Terror Management Theory, a rigorous body of scientific literature inspired by the late Ernest Becker’s Pulitzer-prize winning book, The Denial of Death. As a bit of an overview, Sheldon, like Becker, believes that humanity’s unique awareness of their own mortality is a primary motivator for human behavior. And that the meaning-making we partake in during our lives–from creating gods or art, to fighting wars and arguing on twitter-is heavily driven by a desire to fend off our death anxiety. You can find Sheldon's book at: https://www.amazon.com/Worm-Core-Role-Death-Life/dp/1400067472 ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠

Today I’m joined by psychologist, physicist, and neuroscientist, Frank Krueger. Based out of George Mason University, where he runs the Social Cognition and Interaction: Functional Imaging lab, Frank’s work primarily focuses on the dynamics of trust, cooperation, altruism. In this episode, we explore these subjects from their evolutionary roots to their modern manifestations. We look at how Frank studies these subjects, some of his latest findings, and even speculate about the future we foresee as we increasingly outsource our truth to artificial intelligence. Find out more about Frank and his work at scifi-lab.com ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch video episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠

In this episode I’m joined by neuroscientist Bobby Azarian, who authored the 2022 book, The Romance of Reality: How the Universe Organizes Itself to Create Life, Consciousness, and Cosmic Complexity. I interviewed Bobby two years ago when the book was released, where he explained to me how the second law of thermodynamics creates complexity as a way to increase entropy, and how life itself is a part of that process (see link below). In this episode, you’ll find a discussion that builds on that previous conversation, exploring how this process of complexification imbues the universe with meaning and increasing self-awareness, how Bobby believes this creates an almost spiritual duty for humans to become stewards of the process, how to navigate this process in better or worse ways as our species innovates into the future, and more. Read Bobby's work at roadtoomega.substack.com or follow him at x.com/bobbyazarian Previous Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOd5dCHKZbQ ** Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Watch this episode on ⁠⁠⁠Youtube.com/@CuriousApes⁠⁠⁠ Join me on our brand new Discord Server for weekly conversation: ⁠⁠https://discord.gg/Ek6pKcY8vz⁠⁠