Podcasts by The After On Podcast

60: Deep Fakes | Sam Harris and Zohaib Ahmed from 2023-06-05T00:55

Will the glittering dawn of the genai era be accompanied by a dark tsunami of pixel-perfect deep fakes? I discuss this prospect with Sam Harris, as well as the CEO of synthetic audio pioneer Res...

59: Generative AI | What’s New&What’s Next from 2023-03-08T19:35

My thoughts on what's happening in the mad world of generative AI, announcing my new home online at robreid.substack.com, and more.

58: Recipes for Future Plagues | Kevin Esvelt from 2022-02-28T19:20:01

USAID’s new “DEEP VZN” program aims to discover new pandemic-grade viruses, then broadcast their genomes to the world, according to MIT evolutionary engineer Kevin Esvelt. He estimates that 30,0...

57: Octopus Intelligence (and more!) | Roger Hanlon from 2021-10-08T17:58:10

A wide-ranging discussion of cognition in octopuses & cuttlefish, plus many, many other topics with globally renowned sensory ecologist Roger Hanlon.

56: A Massive Future for an Old Vaccine? | Megan Murray from 2021-06-19T09:39:30

Harvard epidemiologist Megan Murray tells us all about the anti-tuberculosis vaccine “BCG,” and the astonishing protection it may provide against Covid -- as well as looming future pandemics.

55: Detecting Disease Outbreaks from Internet Traffic | Seth Stephens-Davidowitz from 2021-04-23T22:34:09

This is closely tied to a 4-hour collaboration between Sam Harris and me, which Sam is posting to his podcast's feed. I strongly recommend that episode too! But it's not "required" for you to ge...

54: Announcing a New Season from 2021-02-02T22:34:58

This "episode" is just a quick new announcement of a new season of the podcast (finally)! And also of something very cool that I'm working on with fellow podcaster Sam Harris.

53: The Case Against Reality | Don Hoffman (classic + updated) from 2019-07-30T04:01:10

Quantitative Psychologist Don Hoffman has a head-spinning take on the true nature of reality vs. what our senses report to us. This is a revisitation of our original interview, expanded with lot...

52: Many Quantum Worlds | Sean Carroll from 2019-07-15T04:02:10

Quantum mechanics – and its eerie "Many Worlds" interpretation – are explored in terms that both poets & physicists can appreciate.

51: On Consciousness | Annaka Harris from 2019-06-25T04:01:21

The baffling and fascinating mysteries connected to the phenomenon of consciousness are explored in this conversation with the deeply thoughtful science writer, Annaka Harris.

50: About that TED Talk | Kevin Rose from 2019-06-18T16:13:47

This morning, TED posted a talk I just gave at their annual conference (on 11 days notice!). Kevin Rose interviewed me about my talk for his podcast. I’m posting his interview here as well.

49: Canceling PTSD with MDMA (part 2) | Rick Doblin from 2019-05-28T17:11:05

The drug known as Molly, Ecstasy and MDMA may soon get regulatory approved for therapeutic use, thanks to a 34-year campaign waged by Rick Doblin. Rick and I discuss all of this, plus his own un...

48: Canceling PTSD with MDMA (part 1) | Rick Doblin from 2019-05-21T04:15:13

The drug known as Molly, Ecstasy and MDMA may soon get regulatory approved for therapeutic use, thanks to a 34-year campaign waged by Rick Doblin. Rick and I discuss all of this, plus his own un...

47. AI Boom, or Doom? | Stuart Russell from 2019-04-30T04:00:41

Stuart Russell’s textbook is used to teach AI in over 1,400 universities and 120 countries. If AI scares him, it should scare you too.

46: Defeating Food Allergies | Kari Nadeau from 2019-04-09T04:01:31

The food allergy epidemic is mysterious, volatile, and growing fast. Kari Nadeau and her Stanford team are trying to halt it.

45: End Games (part 2) | Naval Ravikant from 2019-03-21T15:40:51

A rampage killer with a knife can kill a few. With a gun, dozens. With a jetliner, way more. What might future tech enable? In Part Two of our conversation, Naval and I discuss "The Ender."And h...

44: End Games (part 1) | Naval Ravikant from 2019-03-19T04:03:41

Naval & I discuss a horrifying risk. We questioned whether to post this. Might it give someone ideas? Well, the bad guys already HAVE ideas. And cataclysms are only averted if we face them. Ther...

43: Synthetic Neurobiology | Ed Boyden from 2019-03-01T05:03:11

Not yet 40, Ed Boyden has already concocted a panoply of tools, which are revolutionizing neuroscience research. He tells us all about optogenetics, expansion microscopy, and more.

42: Live from Gainesville + the 2019 Plan from 2018-12-30T01:57

We start with a review of this podcast's 2019 roadmap. Then – recorded before a live audience in Gainesville, Florida – I'M the interviewee for once!

41: The Medical Potential of Video Games | Adam Gazzaley from 2018-12-19T05:00:38

Both a recap and extensive update of last summer's conversation about neuroscience, consciousness, and the medical potential of video games.

40: Our Interstellar Visitor | Avi Loeb from 2018-11-28T05:04:57

Did the product of an alien intelligence make a near-Earth approach last fall? Harvard Astronomy Department Chair Avi Loeb believes this is possible.

39: Restoring Sight to the Blind | EJ Chichinilsky from 2018-11-14T09:22

Amazing work at Stanford could restore vision to the blind. Then later become a gateway some mind-blowing neural augmentation! We discuss the astounding neuroscience and engineering behind all t...

38: The Science&Practice of Happiness | Laurie Santos from 2018-10-24T04:00:09

This spring, Yale evolutionary psychologist Laurie Santos debuted a course about happiness, almost as an experiment. It became the most popular course in the university's 300+ year history. List...

37. On the Future | Astronomer Royal Martin Rees from 2018-10-01T04:01:02

Can humankind survive this century? Great Britain’s Astronomer Royal Martin Rees shares some of his profoundly original thinking on this fraught question.

36. Mapping the Heavens | Priya Natarajan from 2018-09-13T23:42:50

Dark matter, dark energy, and black holes are the universe's three most massive mysteries. Literally! Yale astrophysicist Priya Natarajan takes us on a fascinating tour of them all. 

35: Empowering the Acre | Andrew Youn from 2018-08-22T04:31:47

Andrew Youn's One Acre Found is bringing food security to hundreds of thousands of families throughout Central Africa. Now THAT'S an inspiring startup!

34: Ancient DNA | David Reich from 2018-07-31T04:00:30

The genetic code of Neanderthals, archaic humans, and other elders is reconfiguring much of our understanding of human history. And it could just save hundreds of thousands of modern human lives...

33: The Evolution of Beauty | Richard Prum from 2018-07-16T04:09:17

A bold and brilliant refutation of the common wisdom about sexual attraction, aesthetics, and more. Rick Prum is an evolutionary heretic. And the wellspring of his unorthodox ideas is ... Charle...

Announcement | On the Future of this Podcast from 2018-07-01T02:16:43

The full lowdown on where this podcast is going from here.

31: Expanding DNA's Alphabet (by half!) | Floyd Romesberg from 2018-06-26T18:03:32

Floyd Romesberg added two letters to DNA's ancient four-letter alphabet. He got this running in cells. And coding proteins. His cell lines have passed it down hundreds of generations. Now what?

30. De-extinction, The Whole Earth, and Way More|Stewart Brand from 2018-06-12T04:01:48

Over six consecutive decades, Stewart Brand has impacted society, tech and science in outlandishly diverse ways. This truly unhurried conversation explores the scope of his intensely original Am...

Jordan Harbinger | Bonus Episode from 2018-06-08T03:49:49

An examination of the science of psychopathy from my buddy Jordan Harbinger’s terrific podcast. This bonus episode is in addition to the two new original episodes I’m creating this month.

28: Exponential Medicine | Daniel Kraft from 2018-05-29T04:00:37

Key aspects of medical technology are improving even faster than computers. What are the ramifications for our health? For our lifespans? Dr. Daniel Kraft has tremendous insights into all of thi...

27. Depression: The Psychedelic Cure | Katya Malievskaia&George Goldsmith from 2018-05-15T04:00:22

The largest-ever clinical trial of a psychedelic drug will soon begin in Europe and North America. The drug is psilocybin - the active ingredient in magic mushrooms. The target is treatment-resi...

26: Reality Isn't | Don Hoffman from 2018-04-30T16:45:21

Quantitative Psychologist Don Hoffman has a head-spinning take on the true nature of reality vs. what our senses report to us. Is it the most counterintuitive insight since Pythagoras figured th...

25. A Night at the Battery from 2018-04-17T04:02:42

In this very atypical episode, the tables turn and I'm the interviewee! We discuss all of my creative projects, including this podcast series. Recorded live at The Battery in San Francisco.

24: BioEngineering |George Church from 2018-04-03T00:25:51

George Church helped found 22 companies, and co-invented the paradigm-shattering gene editing technique CRISPR. In our interview, he delivers a sweeping survey of the world of synthetic biology,...

23: AI&Robotics - Their Present and Future| Rodney Brooks from 2018-03-20T04:06:46

Rodney Brooks is a founding luminary of TWO vital domains in tech: robotics and AI. He's the father of the Roomba, the long-time head of MIT's AI lab, and a serial entrepreneur. Few can rival hi...

22: Creating the 6th, 7th&8th Sense | David Eagleman from 2018-03-06T06:09:13

Neuroscientist David Eagleman has done groundbreaking work on how we perceive time. Now he hopes to radically expand the pantheon of human senses.

21: Neural Imaging and ... Telepathy? | Mary Lou Jepsen from 2018-02-20T05:45:28

After stints at Google and Facebook, serial entrepreneur Mary Lou Jepsen is ready to upend the worlds of medical imaging and ... telepathy. Yup, TELEPATHY. Give it a listen!

20: Radical Life Extension | Aubrey de Grey from 2018-01-17T20:14:59

Aubrey de Grey is a highly credentialed scientist who believes it's within our grasp to REVERSE human aging in the next few decades. Dozens of scientists are now executing on his plan, funded by...

19: A Lightning Tour of the After On Universe from 2018-01-02T02:40:12

A wide-ranging set of excerpts from the After On audiobook, read brilliant folks including John Hodgman, Felicia Day, Jesse Cox, Tom Merritt. Back to "normal" episodes next week, promise! :-)

18: It's Really After On from 2017-12-22T00:39:36

This week, Broadway's own January LaVoy and legendary fantasy writer Patrick Rothfuss read/perform the the opening of the After On audiobook (plus quite a bit more). With some notes & observatio...

17: The Past Present&Future of Cryptocurrency | Coinbase Co-Founder Fred Ehrsam from 2017-12-13T04:00

Whether you’re a cryptocurrency novice or expert, this episode will teach you a ton. My guest, Fred Ehrsam, founded the world’s largest platform for storing & trading Bitcoin and more. Just us f...

16: The Promise&Peril in YOUR Genes | Robert Green from 2017-11-29T04:53:11

You will soon have access to a dizzying battery of facts about your health. Some could be horrid or positive on a life-changing scale! But most will be wildly ambiguous. Should you peek? NOTE: T...

15. Music Piracy | The Extraterrestrial Threat from 2017-11-21T03:48:56

A vast alien civilization is so into American pop music, it recently committed the biggest copyright violation since the dawn of time. Against us! How should humanity respond? A special (and rat...

14: The Future (if any) of Jobs | Andrew McAfee from 2017-11-14T16:45:37

Andy McAfee of MIT is a leading thinker about how robotics and other automation will influence the future of work and jobs. We touch on some scary stuff - plus some delightful notes of optimism!...

13: Medium, Twitter, and Networked Words | Ev Williams from 2017-10-31T04:04:33

Ev Williams co-founded and ran both Twitter and Blogger.com, and is now the founder/CEO of Medium. He’s a deep thinker about ideas morph & travel, and is carving out a place for thoughtful, seri...

12. TED Talks + Organization | Chris Anderson from 2017-10-24T08:45:22

You've probably seen a TED Talk or two (or 500!) online. Chris runs the TED organization, and has some fascinating thoughts both on how we're wired to process oratory, and how we might build a b...

11. Space Archaeology | Sarah Parcak from 2017-10-17T04:32:02

Sarah Parcak is a pioneer in the emerging field of space archaeology. In 2016 she won the TED Prize to launch a “citizen science” platform, which is finding lost sites and fighting archaeologica...

10. Tech's Past&Future | Tim O'Reilly from 2017-10-10T07:20:58

Technology’s pre-eminent publisher, Tim O’Reilly helped trigger the rise of the commercial Web, the open source community, the Web 2.0 era, and the maker movement. I discuss tech’s past and futu...

9. Drones |Chris Anderson of Wired&3DR from 2017-10-03T07:00

Chris Anderson was Wired’s editor-in-chief for 12 years, then started one of the world’s great drone companies.

We discuss all this – and his origins as a high school dropout living in a ...

8: Fermi's Paradox (or, where are all the aliens?) | Stephen Webb from 2017-09-26T13:43:37

Our universe’s vastness and age has given alien intelligence ample space and time in which to arise. Why can we detect no sign of it? 

This is actually a momentous and scientifically seri...

7. The Dangers of Superintelligence| James Barrat from 2017-09-19T05:00

James Barrat’s book “Our Final Invention” helped touch off a public debate about the possible dangers of superintelligence, which continues to this day. We discuss these dangers in depth in our ...

6. On Terrorism | Sam Harris from 2017-09-12T07:00

Sam Harris is one of the most visible and controversial commentators on terrorism and its roots. Our interview dives deep into this subject, as well the personal journey that made Sam into the p...

5. Quantum Computing |Steve Jurvetson from 2017-09-05T07:00

Quantum computers could be almost farcically powerful compared to classical computers. Venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson and I discuss how & why this is – and whether this potential will ever b...

4: Synthetic Biology | Andrew Hessel from 2017-08-24T07:00

It took 13 years and $3 billion to read the first human genome in 2003. Now takes #$1K and just hours. What happens when we can WRITE DNA as easily as we now read it?

For those who are re...

3: Privacy + Govt Intrusion | Cindy Cohn (EFF) from 2017-08-17T07:00

In this episode, we discuss patent trolls, government hacking, privacy in the digital age, and other vital issues with Cindy Cohn, who runs the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

For those w...

2: Consciousness&Neuroscience | Adam Gazzaley from 2017-08-10T07:00

In this episode,we discuss the roots of consciousness and other vital topics with UCSF neuroscientist Adam Gazzaley.

For those who are reading the novel After On, Tom Merritt and I discus...

1: Augmented Reality | Meron Gribetz from 2017-08-03T07:00

In this episode, we discuss augmented reality (AR) with the CEO of AR pioneer Meta, Inc. Meron Gribetz. 

For those who are reading the novel After On, Tom Merritt and I discuss pages 1-51...