Exquisite Failures: The 233rd Evolutionary Lens with Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying
Jul 9, 2024
01:53:59
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Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying discuss The Hope Accord, impact of COVID-19 vaccines, Charlie Munger's wisdom, biased sunscreen views, chytrid fungus effect on frogs, and human hubris in intervening in complex systems.
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Quick takeaways
Creating systems resistant to fraud is crucial for upholding fairness.
Financial immunity for vaccine manufacturers can lead to perverse incentives.
Learning from failures is vital to avoid exacerbating existing problems.
Artificial refugia can help endangered frogs combat chytrid fungus infections.
Deep dives
Charlie Munger's View on Workers' Compensation Laws
Charlie Munger critiques California's workers' compensation laws, highlighting how the noble intentions behind them led to a system prone to fraud and abuse. He illustrates the damaging consequences of a system that became easy to cheat, attracting parties like crooked lawyers and doctors, ultimately worsening behaviors and outcomes in the workforce.
Creating Systems That are Easy to Cheat
The discussion around workers' compensation laws presents the argument against creating systems that are gameable or easy to cheat. The preference for some individuals to be under-compensated rather than enabling a system prone to fraud highlights the importance of designing structures that discourage exploitation and uphold fairness.
Examining Financial Immunity in the Vaccine Industry
The unintended consequences of providing vaccine manufacturers with financial immunity showcase how well-intentioned policies can backfire. The creation of a system that shields manufacturers from liability led to perverse incentives, promoting profit-centric decisions over prioritizing product safety and effectiveness, reinforcing the necessity for evaluating the broader impacts of regulatory interventions.
Lessons from Narcan and Affirmative Action
The narratives of Narcan usage and affirmative action underscore the significance of learning from failures and avoiding solutions that create bigger problems. The need for thoughtful evaluations, acknowledgement of failures, and repercussions for ineffective policies is emphasized to prevent rationalizing failure and encourage adaptive problem-solving approaches.
Sunscreen and Vitamin D Debate
The podcast episode delves into the debate surrounding the use of sunscreen every day and its potential impact on the body's production of vitamin D. Dermatologists highlight concerns where some people fear missing out on the benefits of sunlight due to sunscreen use, leading to misconceptions about the necessity of sunscreen. Research findings and surveys indicate a percentage of individuals believing sunscreen is more harmful than direct sun exposure, showing a need for clarifying the significance of sunscreen for skin health to dispel misconceptions.
Experts and Perspectives on Sunscreen Use
The episode discusses the viewpoints of experts, including oncology and dermatology specialists, on the importance of consistent sunscreen use to prevent skin cancer. These specialists emphasize the critical role of sunscreen in protecting against harmful UV rays and reducing the risk of skin cancer. The episode critiques the New York Times article for possibly contributing to misconceptions about sunscreen's benefits and highlights the significance of expert opinions in promoting skin health practices.
Frogs, Chytrid Fungus, and Behavioral Fever
Exploring the issue of declining frog populations due to the chytrid fungus, the episode sheds light on research showcasing the use of artificial refugia to attract endangered frogs. By creating heated shelters resembling saunas, the frogs exhibit behaviors raising their body temperatures to clear chytrid infections and develop resistance. This innovative approach offers insights into enhancing frog resistance mechanisms and underscores the interplay between environmental factors, infectious diseases, and species conservation.
In this 233rd in a series of live discussions with Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying (both PhDs in Biology), we talk about the state of the world through an evolutionary lens.
In this week’s episode, we discuss The Hope Accord, which calls for the “immediate suspension of Covid-19 mRNA vaccine products.” We encourage you to sign it. Then: wisdom from Charlie Munger on why we should prefer a world in which some people are not compensated for their losses (even if they didn’t deserve to lose), over having gameable systems in which cheaters flourish. Then: how the NYT stacks the deck in favor of sunscreen, by asking oncologists and dermatologists. When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Finally, how chytrid fungus has wiped out frog populations and species across the world; how fever is used by endotherms like us to clear infections; and new research that finds that frogs like frog saunas, which not only feels great, but helps them clear fungal infections. The through-line: human hubris intervening in complex systems often ends badly.
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The New York Times consults experts on the value of sunshine vs sunscreen: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/02/well/sunscreen-vitamin-d-skin-cancer.html
Lindqvist et al 2016. Avoidance of sun exposure as a risk factor for major causes of death: A competing risk analysis of the melanoma in southern Sweden cohort. Journal of Internal Medicine, 280(4): 375– 387: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/joim.12496
Weldon et al 2004. Origin of the amphibian chytrid fungus. Emerging infectious diseases, 10(12): 2100: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3323396/pdf/03-0804.pdf
Waddle et al 2024. Hotspot shelters stimulate frog resistance to chytridiomycosis. Nature: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-07582-y
