The Monkey Dance

A10 | Investigating systemic corruption

There is a lot of money behind keeping corruption difficult to track, but there are also plenty of folks working hard to build better tools for tracking it. The only problem is that exposing it can be extremely dangerous. In this episode from 2 years ago, we sit with Irene Tello Arista [https://dsps.ceu.edu/people/irene-tello-arista] and chat about how to define corruption, the systemic pressures that allow it to take hold, and discuss how grand corruption and petty corruption are different not only in scale but in methods. We cover a bit of Irene's background in Mexico starting an NGO to uncover corruption networks, human behavior more generally, and how corruption looks different in different places.   Full show notes on the website [https://www.monkeydancepod.com/episodes/episode-10]

A5 | The evolution of cooperation

Cooperation is deeply embedded in the genetics of our species. Looking at the evolution of cooperation can teach us a lot about how to build better societies. Given the state of the world, this episode with Nikhil Chaudhary [https://www.nikhilchaudhary.co.uk/] from February 2024 is more relevant than ever. - What can evolutionary anthropology teach us about ourselves? We sit down with Nikhil Chaudhary [https://www.nikhilchaudhary.co.uk/] and chat about everything from the formation of the self to societal pressures. We cover cooperation and collaboration, hunter-gatherer societies, how to think about thinking, managing uncertainty, cultural narratives, and everything in between.   Show notes on the website! [https://www.monkeydancepod.com/episodes/episode-5]

A6 | Can we hold AI accountable for its actions?

With AI increasingly being used in wars, the glaring question regulators face as a society is one of allocating responsibility when an autonomous tool of war commits a war crime.   Little progress has been made on this front over the past few years despite the increased military applications of AI. That's why I wanted to repost the Episode 6, from our archive, with Pelin Kasar: [http://philosophy.ceu.edu/people/pelin-kasar]   Who is responsible for the actions of machines? We chat with Pelin Kasar about the current state of philosophical debates around how to approach the ethical considerations of machines that seem to think.   More show notes on the Monkey Dance Website [https://www.monkeydancepod.com/episodes/episode-6]

44 | Voting under autocracies

When living under an autocratic regime, should we continue voting or abstain in protest?   Zoltan Miklosi [https://people.ceu.edu/zoltan_miklosi] joins the podcast to talk about the political obligations of democrats who live under autocratic regimes. We discuss the consequences both of voting in elections despite the overwhelming odds in favor of the autocrat and of refusing to participate in elections in protest of the regime.   We discuss specific cases of autocracies which hold elections around the world, about why they would hold elections in the first place, and what each side has to gain and to lose. We also chat about democracy as an ideal more broadly, and whether one has any obligations to the society or governance structure they live under.   Guest: Zoltan Miklosi [https://people.ceu.edu/zoltan_miklosi]   More from Zoltan: 1. Political Obligation in Electoral Authoritarianism: The Case of Hungary [https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/61393/chapter-abstract/533343812?redirectedFrom=fulltext&login=false]   2. Social Equality and Democratic Authority [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11158-025-09721-2]

43 | What makes a war?

What determines whether a particular event is classified as part of an existing conflict or a random act of violence? Niraj Kushwaha [https://nirajkushwaha.github.io/] joins the podcast to talk about modeling instances of armed conflict using fine grained datasets to better understand the emergence of conflicts and how they might be related. We discuss how conflicts can be categorized into three main types, and the primary variables that allow for their categorization. This takes us to the broader applications of this work, from modeling epidemics to climate change, and how statistical physics can be used to form hypotheses about the likelihood of future events of particular types.   Guest: Niraj Kushwaha [https://nirajkushwaha.github.io/]   Niraj's latest paper on Data-driven conflict classification [https://royalsocietypublishing.org/rsos/article/12/12/250897/366130/Data-driven-conflict-classification-exposes-weak] The database Niraj mentioned: Armed Conflict & Event Data Project [https://acleddata.com/]