The Local Maximum with Max Sklar

Returning after a Hiatus* Today is just going to be a hangout with me and Aaron if you’re into that.. And later, we’ll return to more specific topics* Give a little personal history & history of the showFull Move to NYCTeaching* Less timeHopscotch Labs* Working on that* Beebot - coming SOON!!* Internship ProgramHope for The Local MaximumReading Habits and Strategies (for the busy)* Is it still worth reading books in the AI era?* What do I do if I get stuck on a book?* How do I know I’m stuck?* Can you read 2 books at once?* How do I deal with these enormous tomes in my bookshelf* What about textbooks?* Local Maximum examples* AJ Jacobs - easy to read! I didn’t think I’d be interested in the topic* Jeffrey Tucker - fun to read!* Sweet spot: 100-200 pages with SHORT CHAPTERS* Books with 50-page chapters - WHY* Topics: Current affairs vs History, philosophy, self-help, fiction?* Examples* Revisiting The Singularity is Nearer (Ep. 323 - The Technological Singularity Part I & Ep. 324 - The Technological Singularity Part II)* Tracking toolshttps://app.thestorygraph.com/* (pause feature and journal feature)* Take notes during or after; don’t wait!Upcoming Topics for The Local Maximum* Pull up the sheet* Will we have a schedule? I plan on doing this differently This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Author, entrepreneur, and AI professor Graham Morehead joins the Local Maximum to talk about Artificial Thought and human potential working with AI in his book, “The Shape of Thought”https://grahammorehead.com/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

The Local Maximum returns from a hiatus with today’s interview of James Barnes, founder of Autobiographer, and AI-based app developed at Betaworks that helps you tell your own story. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Today’s guest is Eric Daimler, co-founder and CEO of Conexus (conexus.com). Max talks to Eric about the enormous shift in focus in the industry since his last appearance in 2022, and gets his perspective on the promise and pitfalls of the latest generation of AI. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Max and Aaron go deeper into the ideas of the singularity and the law of accelerating returns as articulated in Ray Kurzweil’s Singularity is nearer. They talk about Nanotechnology, Longevity Escape Velocity, and Computronium. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Max and Aaron discuss Ray Kurzweil’s new book, The Singularity is Nearer, and talk about the prospect for a technological singularity by 2045 and AGI by the end of this decade. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

On Freund, co-founder and CEO of Wilco, talks to Max to explore the future of software development in a post-AI world. Learn about the evolving roles of developers, the significance of real-world problem-solving, and the continuous journey of upskilling and reskilling. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Max talks to Codium.ai Founder Itamar Friedman about the rise of LLMs, the evolution of AI as practiced, and the philosophical ideas that will help us get the most out of it.https://codium.ai/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Max and Aaron discuss Max's new initiatives in startups and academia, his concerns about the current direction of Foursquare, and the structure and evolution of computer science courses. Max talks about his role next semester as the data structures course instructor at NYU, and all that might entail. They shared their personal experiences in being students at Yale and MIT. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com

Max talks to Tiffany Grossman, a blogger, marketing specialist, and co-host of the 'Spill the T' podcast. Tiffany shares her journey into the podcasting world. We delve into the importance of networking, the challenges of starting a podcast, and choosing topics that resonate personally while providing value to listeners.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit localmaximum.substack.com