Robert Wright's Nonzero

Nonzero

Conversations with a series of people who have nothing in common except that program host Robert Wright is curious about what they’re thinking.

www.nonzero.org

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586 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes586

Newest first

Apr 8, 2020 · 1 hr 21 min
The New Science of Self-Actualization (Robert Wright & Scott Barry Kaufman)
Scott's new book, Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization ... Debunking myths about Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs ... The origins of humanistic psychology ... Optimism for the thinking person ... Psychological security in an era of new threats and superficial social connections ... Psychological growth: exploration, love, and purpose ... Defining "peak experiences" ... Scott says Bob is a "transcender." Bob is skeptical. ... Is this a kind of secular spirituality? ... Evaluating peak experiences achieved through psychedelics ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Mar 28, 2020 · 59 min
Anxiety and Happiness (Robert Wright & Ruth Whippman)
Ruth's book, America the Anxious ... Ruth is skeptical that meditation leads to happiness ... Is being in the moment overrated? ... Is there a mindful view of the coronavirus pandemic? ... Radical self-help at the Landmark Forum ... The CEO of Zappos created a happiness city in Las Vegas. It did not go well. ... A plea for tolerance in the battle over attachment parenting ... Why are Mormons so gosh darn happy? ... Happiness in the UK vs. the US ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Mar 21, 2020 · 1 hr 7 min
The Magnanimous Heart (Robert Wright & Narayan Helen Liebenson)
Is Bob a bad yogi? ... Narayan's book, The Magnanimous Heart ... Narayan's journey from Janet to Narayan ... How Narayan entered contemplative practice ... Learning from snakes and lizards in Thailand ... Defining the Buddhist term dukka as "a constant squeeze" ... Dealing with feelings of grief and loss after a divorce ... Narayan: Not taking sides is not the same as passivity ... Mindfulness and the death of a loved one ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Mar 11, 2020 · 1 hr 2 min
Exploring Daoism (Robert Wright & Robin Wang)
Unpacking the Dao De Jing's famous opening line, "The Dao that can be told is not the eternal Dao" ... "The way" as a descriptive and prescriptive moniker ... Rising above the perspective of the moment ... The relationship among Daoism, Confucianism, and Zen Buddhism ... Spirituality and transcendence in Daoism ... Robin's work as a consultant on The Karate Kid remake ... Why Robin's book uses "yinyang" instead of "yin and yang" ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Feb 26, 2020 · 1 hr 20 min
Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation (Robert Wright & David Bentley Hart)
David's new book, That All Shall Be Saved: Heaven, Hell, and Universal Salvation ... What does the New Testament actually say about Hell? ... Original sin and the crucifixion of Jesus ... David's case against eternal damnation ... Free will, sin, and freedom ... What did "the Kingdom of Heaven" mean to Jesus? ... David: Envisioning the afterlife "always results in a kind of cartoon" ... David's quick thoughts on the mind-body problem ... Mysticism in the Eastern Orthodox Church ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Feb 12, 2020 · 1 hr 1 min
We Need a Science of UFOs (Robert Wright & Alexander Wendt)
In a new TEDx talk, Alex calls for a science of UFOs ... Why Bob finds two naval sightings credible ... Alex: "There's some decent chance that these things are alien" ... Alex's proposal for a UFO monitoring system ... Might it be suicidal to let ETs know that we know about them? ... Alex: Maybe the aliens are waiting for us to figure it out ... What explains the taboo against academic study of UFOs? ... Alex's willingness to be misperceived as a crank ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Feb 6, 2020 · 1 hr 22 min
How to Live a Good Life (Robert Wright, Massimo Pigliucci, and Skye Cleary)
Skye and Massimo's new co-edited book, with Daniel Kaufman, How to Live a Good Life ... Existentialism's intersections with Stoicism ... How Skye encountered Existentialism while in business school ... Sartre and de Beauvoir's famous attempt to live a life of freedom ... Are philosophers a bunch of hypocrites? ... Personal authenticity vs. social convention ... Why Stoicism doesn’t mean passive acceptance ... Skye and Massimo on the philosophies they found most interesting ... How Wittgenstein would view this book ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Jan 6, 2020 · 1 hr 13 min
Does Moral Truth Exist? (Robert Wright & Gideon Rosen)
Defining "moral realism" ... Cognitivists vs. noncognitivists ... Are moral beliefs just expressions of human desires? ... Human happiness is better than human suffering...right? ... Considering whether you can be both a Darwinian and a moral realist ... Moral progress, teleology, and mysticism ... Why you "have to take something for granted" in any philosophical system ... The bedrock sources of meaning in life ... If life has meaning, does moral realism logically follow? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Dec 24, 2019 · 48 min
Mindfulness and Racial Justice (Robert Wright & Rhonda Magee)
Rhonda's path to meditation and Buddhism ... Rhonda's new book, The Inner Work of Racial Justice ... Is equanimity the enemy of activism? ... Using mindfulness to overcome biases and stereotypes ... How Rhonda deploys contemplative practices in her law school classroom ... Can one feel compassion for a cop who shot an unarmed black man? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Dec 8, 2019 · 1 hr
How to Be an Epicurean (Robert Wright & Catherine Wilson)
Catherine's new book, How to Be an Epicurean ... How Epicureanism is like and unlike utilitarianism ... How the ancient Epicureans viewed nature and reality ... Comparing Epicureanism with its big rival, Stoicism ... On suffering and death ... Epicurean influence on post-Enlightenment science and philosophy ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Dec 3, 2019 · 1 hr 24 min
Enlightenment by Trial and Error (Robert Wright & Jay Michaelson)
Jay's new book, Enlightenment by Trial and Error ... Why Jay embarked on a path of mysticism ... Ayahuasca, unitive experiences, and bad trips ... Jews who are "religious but not spiritual" ... Finding “real happiness” through meditation ... Varieties of enlightening experience ... What’s distinctive about Jewish mysticism? ... The things Jay still takes from Judaism ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Nov 26, 2019 · 1 hr 11 min
Psychopolitics: Empathy's Downsides (Robert Wright & Paul Bloom)
A new study says empathy can increase political polarization ... How empathy operates in today’s political environment ... Is cognitive empathy a form of intelligence? ... The Machiavellian uses of cognitive empathy ... A counterproductive #Resistance view of Trump supporters ... Paul doesn't understand how anyone can still support Trump ... Why "dehumanization" isn't the real problem ... Paul's core message: "Don't listen to your heart" ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Nov 8, 2019 · 1 hr 21 min
Grace-Filled Naturalism (Robert Wright & Roger Haight)
Why Pope John Paul II did not like Roger's book Jesus Symbol of God ... Roger's new book, Faith and Evolution: Grace-Filled Naturalism ... The intractability of the problem of evil ... Ways to understand God not as a big person in the sky ... Is natural selection an instrument of divine creation? ... Roger's heterodox view of Jesus of Nazareth ... Roger's problem with original sin ... What is a "grace-filled naturalism"? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Nov 1, 2019 · 1 hr 9 min
Do We Live in a Simulation? (Robert Wright & Preston Greene)
Why many intelligent people think we're living in a simulation ... The philosophical argument that you're probably not real ... How cosmic rays might (and might not) reveal that reality is fake ... Preston's dire warning against trying to determine if we're in a simulation ... Is the simulation hypothesis non-falsifiable? ... Is "the simulation" just religion for atheists? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Oct 21, 2019 · 59 min
Automating the News (Robert Wright & Nicholas Diakopoulos)
Nick's new book, Automating the News ... Why Nick is not an alarmist about the automation of journalism ... The types of journalism jobs that algorithms can't replace ... Successful collaborations between human journalists and machines ... The perils of algorithmic fact-checking ... Nick's current research ... Bob hopes for a bot that can assign blame for international law violations ... Can the power of Twitter bots be used for good? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Oct 18, 2019 · 1 hr 11 min
Science and Scientism (Robert Wright & John Horgan)
What is scientism, and who is doing it? ... Postmodernism and whether science just tells "stories" ... John criticizes the "ideological fervor" of evolutionary psychology ... The hubris of scientists in the '80s and '90s ... Has science reached its fundamental limits in trying to explain consciousness? ... John wins his Nobel Prize "long bet" on string theory ... The various corrupting influences on scientists ... A brief debate on higher purpose ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Oct 4, 2019 · 1 hr 20 min
Buddhist Ethics (Robert Wright & Bhikkhu Bodhi)
What is the foundation of Buddhist ethics? ... Experiencing not-self ... Buddhism is a synthesis of consequentialism and virtue ethics ... The origins of Buddhism's concern for animal welfare ... Does the Buddha want you to be vegetarian? ... Why isn’t there more anti-militarist activism among Buddhists? ... Trying to comply with the Buddhist ideal of "right speech" ... Mental defilements and their eradication ... Does Buddhism’s emphasis on equanimity discourage activism? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Sep 20, 2019 · 1 hr 10 min
The Philosophy of Aspiration (Robert Wright & Agnes Callard)
Why Agnes once lay down on the yellow line in the middle of the road ... What explains "akrasia," or weakness of will? ... Agnes's book, Aspiration: The Agency of Becoming ... How Agnes views free will and self-creation ... How do you become the "you" that you want to be? ... Aspiration and the divine ... Agnes's forthcoming book on how Socrates changed the rules ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Sep 11, 2019 · 1 hr 2 min
Death and the Self (Robert Wright & Nina Strohminger)
Nina's research on how we understand the self ... The traits that make your self yourself ... Buddhism and the continuity of self through time ... The link between egocentrism and an equanimous attitude toward death ... Bob: Not-self is hard to experience and very hard to understand ... Asian Buddhists vs. "white boy Buddhists" ... Does a happy life require virtuous behavior? ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe
Sep 1, 2019 · 1 hr 12 min
Quantum Physics and Social Science (Robert Wright & Alexander Wendt)
Why Alex shifted from international relations to quantum physics ... Alex: "We are walking wave functions" ... Do the origins of consciousness and free will lie in the wave collapse? ... Quantum decision theory and human irrationality ... The advantage of viewing humanity as quantum rather than classical ... How a nation-state is like a quantum state ... Alex: Language is best understood quantumly ... The possibility of collective consciousness ... This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe