
podcast – The Methods of Rationality Podcast
The internet's first source for Rationalist Fiction in audio format!
Latest episodes

Jul 15, 2025 • 1h 20min
Blindsided 08: We Got A Live One!
Join Brian and Steven as we wrangle up some aliens of dubious sentience so we can confine them and do some mad science at them!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them” —Einstein
This episode’s discussion ends at the quote: “Why should man expect his prayer for mercy to be heard by What is above him when he shows no mercy to what is under him?” —Pierre Troubetzkoy
For next week, stop reading when you get to the quote: “If I can but make the words awake the feeling” —Ian Anderson, Stand Up

Jul 7, 2025 • 1h 12min
Blindsided 07: Competitive Ecology
Hold on tight – Brian and Steven throw themselves back into the mysterious alien spacecraft after punching a hole in it with antimatter!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “You have eyes, but you do not see” —Jesus the Nazorean
This episode’s discussion ends at the quote: “Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them” —Einstein
For next week, stop reading when you get to the quote: “Why should man expect his prayer for mercy to be heard by What is above him when he shows no mercy to what is under him?” —Pierre Troubetzkoy

Jun 30, 2025 • 1h 5min
Blindsided 06: Madness-Inducing Meat-Grinder
Brian and Steven continue diving into the madness-inducing meat-grinder over and over. Come on and join the party!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “Predators run for their dinner. Prey run for their lives.” —Old Ecologist’s Proverb
This episode’s discussion ends at the quote: “You have eyes, but you do not see” —Jesus the Nazorean
For next week, stop reading when you get to the quote: “Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them” —Einstein
Here are a couple of videos that demonstrate inattentional blindness. I hope you have as much fun getting your world rocked as I did when I first saw these. :)

Jun 16, 2025 • 1h 17min
Blindsided 05: Alien Space Ghosts!
Join Brian and Steven as they throw caution to the winds, don their Big Daddy costumes, and get ready to rumble with some space ghosts!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own.” —Aristotle
This episode’s discussion ends at the quote: “Predators run for their dinner. Prey run for their lives.” —Old Ecologist’s Proverb
For next week, stop reading when you get to the quote: “You have eyes, but you do not see” —Jesus the Nazorean

Jun 9, 2025 • 1h 12min
Blindsided 04: You Wanna Throw Down, Bro?!
Join Brian and Steven, who are maybe trapped inside of a Chinese Room. Or maybe banging on it from the outside. Who knows? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “They know the music but not the words.” — Hare, Without Conscience
This episode’s discussion ends at the quote: “Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own.” —Aristotle
For next week, stop reading when you get to the quote: “Predators run for their dinner. Prey run for their lives.” —Old Ecologist’s Proverb

Jun 2, 2025 • 1h 10min
Blindsided 03: Theseus, are you there? It’s me, Rorschach
Join Brian and Steven as we talk with some maybe-super-smart aliens in our discussion of part 3 of Blindsight!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “They know the music but not the words.” — Hare, Without Conscience
And the stop quote for this episode is: “Mothers are fonder than fathers of their children because they are more certain they are their own.” —Aristotle

May 26, 2025 • 1h 21min
Blindsided 02: Smile! You’re on Camera!
Join Brian and Steven on their expedition to the edge of the solar system with part 2 of Blindsight!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes. (I read the wrong quote at the top of the episode. Whoopsie!)
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “Leaders are visionaries with a poorly developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them.” —Robert Jarvik
And the stop quote for this episode is: “They know the music but not the words.” — Hare, Without Conscience

May 18, 2025 • 1h 3min
Blindsided 01: Aliens, Vampires, and Children – oh my!
Steven and Brian take their first real dive into the strange world of Blindsight. I hope you are having as much as we are. :)
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes.
Check out the awesome companion website sxp made!
The starting quote for this episode is: “Try to touch the past. Try to deal with the past. It’s not real. It’s just a dream.” —Ted Bundy
And the stop quote for this episode is: “Leaders are visionaries with a poorly developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them.” —Robert Jarvik

May 12, 2025 • 8min
Blindsided 00: Announcement
Steven and Brian announce their latest reading project – Blindsight by Peter Watts!
The book doesn’t have chapters in the traditional sense, but it does have natural stopping points separated by quotes. The first week we’ll be reading up until: “When it is dark enough, you can see the stars. — Emerson”
Everyone should buy a copy and check it out!

Apr 21, 2025 • 53min
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) perfection
A movie that somehow did it all.
You can find Matt at his regular media-analysis podcast at Doof Media.