The Jack Lawrence Podcast

In this episodeI interview Avisha Nessaiver aka Distilled Science following our back and forth over tiktok/Instagram on gen AI video. I start out by interviewing him in general, then about an hour in we get into the AI stuff. Timestamps below: 01:55 – The Science of Touch and Oxytocin 05:15 – Understanding Pain and Pleasure in Touch 08:09 – From Academia to Science Communication 11:08 – Innovations in Medical Technology 14:18 – Navigating the Challenges of Startups 17:12 – Misinformation and the COVID-19 Pandemic 20:04 – The Rise of TikTok as a Science Platform 22:59 – Debunking Misinformation in Science 26:07 – Reading and Understanding Scientific Literature 33:17 – The Importance of Context in Fitness Research 37:05 – Understanding Bone Density and Its Challenges 39:50 – Innovative Nutritional Experiments and Their Outcomes 49:36 – Optimizing Workouts and Sleep for Better Health ------- 58:10 – AI DEBATE STARTS HERE  1:01:41 – The Power of AI in Creative Storytelling 1:03:40 – Humour and Its Mechanics 1:07:12 – The Role of AI in Education 1:09:25 – Cognitive Tools and Learning 1:12:23 – The Importance of Statistical Literacy 1:16:13 – Navigating Misinformation in Politics 1:20:39 – The Challenge of Engaging with Opposing Views 1:25:55 – The Battle Against Misinformation 1:26:44 – The Future of Information Consumption More of Distilled Science: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@distilledscience? https://www.instagram.com/distilledscience/ https://www.youtube.com/ ⁨@DistilledScience⁩ [https://studio.youtube.com/channel/UCW4lTjpYD8TdxlxEITb7ddw]  More of me: https://linktr.ee/Jacklawrence

This essay starts with a simple question: how do we know what is true? In answering this I examine the collapse of trust in society alongside the rise of ideology as a substitute for rationalism. I argue that rationalism only works if we have the time and resources to enable it, and that these criteria are no longer being met. I posit that much as the Enlightenment killed God, we are watching it happen again. Rationalism is dying - the framework of truth we had is now breaking under the weight of volume, complexity, mistrust and ideology. What happens when rationalism fails? What happens when we kill God a second time? If you'd like to read this piece, you can do so here: https://open.substack.com/pub/jacklawro/p/killing-god-a-second-time?r=k9z53&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web  For more of me: https://linktr.ee/Jacklawrence https://substack.com/@jacklawro https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/  https://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawro

You only have feelings. This is the paradigm argued for by Nick Shackleton Jones. Nick is the author of the book How People Learn, which offers an entirely new model for learning and cognition which he thinks can massively improve performance, learning, and education.   Nick is many things - he is an author, a speaker, a philosopher, a psychology lecturer, and has worked in both the academic and corporate worlds, including time at the BBC, Deloitte, PA consulting and others in positions centred around learning and innovation. He's a rare individual. I had so much fun talking to him. We talk about his ideas, philosophy, neuroscience, how best to learn, consciousness and AI, among many other things . There's a lovely mix of practical and intellectual stuff here, so I think there's something for everyone - please enjoy.   You can also find a video version of this podcast here: https://youtu.be/UdD6sbBeer4 TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 Intro 01:22 You don't have thoughts, you only have feelings 04:36 The philosophical foundations 06:10 But what about maths? 10:16 What does "think rationally" really mean? 15:06 What is philosophy driven by? 17:49 Mandatory Stoicism dig 20:19 Nietzsche's point 21:44 Memory Champions 23:25 The Affective Context Model 26:59 Definitions of Memory and Learning 30:43 School doesn't help learning 37:33 Education reform 43:17 Why does everyone have to get along? 46:59 What's the difference using Nick's approach? 54:32 Making yourself care about what you need to learn about 57:37 We talk about World of Warcraft for a bit 01:03:42 Video games and Learning Design 01:06:37 Won't we just end up with Minecraft experts? 01:15:34 Advice for teachers 01:18:00 Should we rethink what intelligence is? 01:23:38 The problem of language 01:28:46 The AI question 01:33:29 What will technology be doing with us 10,000 years from now? 01:34:57 Does AI inevitably make us dumber? 01:40:39 How does Nick avoid nihilism?? 01:44:29 Pessimistic Meta-Induction 01:47:22 A joke about behaviourism  01:49:32 Does reality exist independently of our feelings? 01:54:58 What is Nick unsure of? 01:58:59 Why can't we create LLM's that have feelings? 02:03:34 Geniuses are affectation geniuses 02:05:49 Nietzsche's comedic life 02:12:08 What evidence could disprove Shackleton's paradigm? 02:18:09 Combating bad ideas online 02:25:28 Bad role models 02:30:15 The temptation of digital relationships for young men 02:32:09 The losing case for Reality 02:44:11 Where to find more of Nick's stuff For more of Nick: https://www.tiktok.com/@shackletonjones https://www.linkedin.com/in/shackletonjones/  His book is called "How People Learn: A New Model of Learning and Cognition to Improve Performance and Education" and can be found on Amazon and other booksellers For more of me: https://linktr.ee/Jacklawrence https://substack.com/@jacklawro https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/  https://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawro

In today's episode I interview Femi Oluwole! Femi is a British political activist and one of the most prominent voices in the anti-Brexit movement. He co-founded the group Our Future Our Choice (OFOC), which aimed to mobilize young people against Brexit, advocating for a second referendum on the UK's membership in the European Union. He's also a unique individual in that he straddles both traditional and social media in spreading awareness about Brexit, as well as conducting debates. I really enjoyed this interview and hope you will too!  00:00:00 Intro 00:01:29 Podcast begins with me mumbling 00:01:39 How would Femi describe what he does? 00:01:59 Femi's journey to political activism 00:04:40 Femi's experience of the Brexit vote result 00:07:24 Our Future Our Choice 00:09:17 How has Brexit damaged the UK? 00:12:27 How to avoid echo chambers 00:16:29 Do the Tories believe their own rhetoric? 00:21:09 What informs Femi's values? 00:23:09 What defines 'Good' to Femi? 00:27:47 What forms of online activism are most effective? 00:30:49 How can the left combat outrage content? 00:36:29 What politicians do Femi like? 00:38:49 Alternative Voting Referendum 00:39:53 How do comment sections differ on different platforms? 00:47:16 How does Femi deal with online racism and vitriol? 00:49:04 Removing anger as TV prep 00:50:34 Is sunlight the best disinfectant? 00:52:33 How does one develop cool-headedness in debates? 00:55:31 What other changes would Femi like to see in UK politics? 00:58:37 What ways would Femi like people to engage with politics? 01:02:24 Is Just Stop Oil ineffective activism? 01:05:18 What is a message that Femi would like everyone to know? 01:07:29 What do those disenchanted with politics need to reengage? 01:12:09 How can one educate themselves in Politics? 01:15:37 A really good Reality TV idea 01:16:34 For some reason I start talking about edibles 01:20:29 How can people support Femi? 01:21:59 Closing thoughts on Buffy the Vampire Slayer For all of Femi's stuff:  https://www.instagram.com/femi_sorry/?hl=en https://www.youtube.com/@Femi_Sorry https://www.patreon.com/femi_Sorry https://www.tiktok.com/@femi_sorry?lang=en https://twitter.com/Femi_Sorry For my stuff: https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ for IG https://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawrofor TikTok https://www.Jacklawrence.net for my website

Godesulloh is a philosopher, teacher, podcaster, musician and lover of bubble tea. In this interview we discuss African Philosophy, Kierkegaard, Stoicism vs Broicism, Effective Altruism and much more Timestamps: 01:15 Who is Godesulloh and why is he in my flat 02:38 Challenges making educational philosophy content on Tiktok 05:00 How would Godesulloh explain African Philosophy 09:40 Where African Philosophy sits in Academia 16:14 The African Logic Conversation 20:44 Why does Godesulloh like Kierkegaard so much 24:25 Reviewing some Kierkegaard quotes 27:35 Living to avoid regret 35:01 Does everything work out for the best? 39:15 Living in harmony with Nature is bad 43:10 Longtermism and its faults 47:09 Effective Altruism 50:25 Godesulloh on Longtermism 59:09 Effective Altruism issue 1:03:45 Mr Beast Philanthropy 1:06:33 Capitalism pros and cons 1:09:45 Do we want a FAIR or GOOD society? 1:13:38 Philosophy as self help 1:15:35 Stoicism vs Broicism 1:24:15 Where to find out more about Godesulloh Godesulloh has all of his links through here: https://msha.ke/godesulloh His youtube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/@vibesestvida And my socials are: https://www.instagram.com/jack.lawro/ for IG https://www.tiktok.com/@jack.lawrofor TikTok https://www.Jacklawrence.net for my website