Month: June 2021

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Lex Fridman Podcast - #193 – Rob Reid: The Existential Threat of Engineered Viruses and Lab Leaks

Rob Reid is an author and podcaster. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
– Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/lex and use code LEX to get 1 month of fish oil
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– Fundrise: https://fundrise.com/lex
– NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/lex to get free product tour

EPISODE LINKS:
Rob’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/rob_reid
After On Podcast: https://after-on.com/

PODCAST INFO:
Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8
RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/
YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman
YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips

SUPPORT & CONNECT:
– Check out the sponsors above, it’s the best way to support this podcast
– Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman
– Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman
– Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman
– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman
– Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman

OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(08:33) – The most entertaining outcome is the most likely
(14:52) – Meme theory
(18:12) – Writing process
(24:59) – Engineered viruses as a threat to human civilization
(32:45) – Gain-of-function research on viruses
(44:54) – Did COVID leak from a lab?
(52:15) – Virus detection
(1:00:04) – Failure of institutions
(1:07:48) – Using AI to engineer viruses
(1:12:07) – Evil and competence
(1:21:26) – Where are the aliens?
(1:25:19) – Backing up human consciousness by colonizing space
(1:34:48) – Superintelligence and consciousness
(1:46:12) – Meditation
(1:54:20) – Fasting
(2:00:20) – Greatest song of all time
(2:05:46) – Early days of music streaming
(2:17:39) – Startup advice
(2:30:50) – Podcasting
(2:46:12) – Advice for young people
(2:55:15) – Mortality
(3:00:41) – Meaning of life

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Consider This from NPR - BONUS: Tom Hanks, Fox News, And A Debate About Whiteness In Hollywood

This all started with a guest essay by Tom Hanks for The New York Times called "You Should Learn the Truth About the Tulsa Race Massacre," in which Hanks made the case for a more widespread teaching of American history involving Black Americans, especially of events like the Tulsa Race Massacre. He wrote: "History was mostly written by white people about white people like me, while the history of Black people — including the horrors of Tulsa — was too often left out. Until relatively recently, the entertainment industry, which helps shape what is history and what is forgotten, did the same. That includes projects of mine."

NPR TV and film critic Eric Deggans appreciated those words, but wrote in a column of his own that Hanks could do more from his powerful perch in Hollywood.

Eric speaks to host Audie Cornish about the reaction to his column, and how Hollywood reckons with its own power. (And no, he is not trying to cancel Tom Hanks.)

In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

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CoinDesk Podcast Network - BREAKDOWN: Does a Law From the Civil War Make Stablecoins Illegal?

A reading from a financial history expert.

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io and Bitstamp.

On this week’s Long Reads Sunday, NLW reads “How the Civil War Shapes the Future of Stablecoins” by Franklin Noll, and discusses the recent debates around stablecoins and CBDCs.

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Image credit: lawcain/iStock/Getty Images Plus

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Everything Everywhere Daily - The Tunguska Event (Encore)

In 1908, in the middle of the Siberian wilderness, near the Tunguska River, an explosion took place which was equivalent in size to the detonation of a 5 megaton nuclear bomb. But it wasn’t a nuclear bomb. Such things didn’t even exist then. It was a mystery that scientists are still trying to figure out today. Learn more about the Tunguska Event on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.

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Short Wave - ‘Where We Come From’: Emily Kwong’s Story

Nearly 1 billion people speak Mandarin Chinese. But Short Wave host Emily Kwong is not among them. As a third generation Chinese American, Emily's heritage language was lost through the years when her father, Christopher Kwong, stopped speaking the language at a young age in order to adjust to life in the U.S. Now, at age 30, Emily's trying to reclaim Chinese by attending virtual Mandarin classes for the first time. In conversation with her father, Emily explores how being 'Chinese enough' gets tied up in language fluency, and how language is a bridge that can be broken and rebuilt between generations — as an act of love and reclamation.

Check out more of the Where We Come From series here.

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This Machine Kills - Patreon Preview – 79. The Great Power Competition

In an action packed episode continuing our updates on ongoing topics of TMK interest, we deconstruct the political economy of massive health data sharing in the US and UK as hospitals seek to capitalize on data and develop AI health applications by signing lucrative deals with tech companies. We then jump over to discuss the Cold War 2.0 that’s heating up between the US/EU and China, with tech policy as a major front in the battle over who will “prevail technologically in the geopolitical great power competition.” Some stuff we reference • Google Strikes Deal With Hospital Chain to Develop Healthcare Algorithms: wsj.com/articles/google-strikes-deal-with-hospital-chain-to-develop-healthcare-algorithms-11622030401 • NHS delays GP data scheme following backlash: ft.com/content/99f440d7-1622-452d-a7ad-b40d84ac50ec • AI prompts a scramble for healthcare data: ft.com/content/376a5494-7237-4ed6-a528-5e45712c148d • Draining the Risk Pool: reallifemag.com/draining-the-risk-pool/ • Dissecting racial bias in an algorithm used to manage the health of populations science.sciencemag.org/content/366/6464/447 • US Senate passes bill aimed at countering China’s tech sector: ft.com/content/2429f43f-f1bf-4131-aefa-0d20a64b9d17 • Will Europe sign up to Joe Biden’s plan to counter China?: ft.com/content/e4c7df1a-5048-4cf1-8a2d-c9a2d721ba92 • Exporting Chinese surveillance: the security risks of ‘smart cities’: ft.com/content/76fdac7c-7076-47a4-bcb0-7e75af0aadab Subscribe to hear more analysis and commentary in our premium episodes every week! patreon.com/thismachinekills Grab your TMK gear: bonfire.com/store/this-machine-kills-podcast/ Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (twitter.com/jathansadowski) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (twitter.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (twitter.com/braunestahl)