Rebel Wisdom

Mark Zuckerberg recently announced plans to create a new VR 'Metaverse', psychedelic sci-fi classic Dune is the film of the moment, and the super-rich are trying to colonise Mars. The influence of science fiction on culture seems stronger than ever - but why does it matter? In this conversation in the Rebel Wisdom digital campfire, Alexander Beiner talks with sci-fi expert Damien Walter - star of our recent film 'Dune & The Deeper Meaning of Sci-Fi' and host of the host of the Science Fiction Podcast. The conversation explores just how influential science fiction has been on Silicon Valley, what sci-fi myths can tell us about ourselves, and what we can learn from our most out there visions of utopia and dystopia. Join conversations like these in the Digital Campfire by becoming a member on www.rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans Check out our first film with Damien, 'Dune & The Deeper Meaning of Sci-Fi' here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpLAcewRBSE Check out Damien's work on https://damiengwalter.com/

Will Storr is an author and journalist, and an avid student of human psychology, the stories we tell ourselves and the games we play with ourselves and others.   In this fascinating conversation with Rebel Wisdom's David Fuller, he discusses the trajectory of his exploration of the topic through his books Selfie, The Science of Storytelling and recent book The Status Game.   Rebel Wisdom will be hosting a live event with Will in our Digital Campfire on Monday 8th November.   To join check out our membership options here: https://rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans   Will's website: https://willstorr.com/

The tech revolution has completely changed the way we meet and mate, creating a hugely unequal playing field of winners and losers. James Bloodworth is the host of the Modern Dating Economy podcast, trying to understand what this revolution is doing to society. This was a conversation with Raven Connolly as part of the Sex and Culture series. To join future conversations like this, become a Rebel Wisdom member: https://rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans

Liv Boeree was a top ranked poker player and won more than $4 million on the international circuit. A self-professed nerd with a degree in astrophysics, she now has her own YouTube channel making films about game theory, complexity, physics and more. In this conversation with Rebel Wisdom's Alexander Beiner, she explains why game theory is such a useful tool for making sense of culture, how her time playing poker changed her attitude to intuition, and how an ancient Canaanite deity called Moloch can help us understand existential risk and zero-sum games. Check out Liv's YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/user/LivBoeree and on Twitter @Liv_Boeree Watch 'Moloch: The Beauty Wars' on https://youtu.be/fifVuhgvQQ8 Scott Alexander's essay Meditations on Moloch: https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/07/30/meditations-on-moloch/  

Dave Snowden is one of the originators of the field of sensemaking, and the creator of influential frameworks such as the Cynefin model. In this conversation with David Fuller, he talks about the origin of his work, and how it applies to the pandemic landscape. You can find out more about Dave's work here: https://www.cognitive-edge.com/  

The new Sci Fi epic Dune is one of the year's biggest releases, and one of the most anticipated science fiction films in years. At Rebel Wisdom we are taking this opportunity to ask some deeper questions, including what is the meaning of Sci Fi? And what are the stories we are choosing to tell saying about us, who we are, and who we want to be? This is a discussion delving into these questions with the host of the Sci Fi podcast, and big fan of Rebel Wisdom, Damien Walter. He talks about how sci fi reworks the timeless stories of our core mythologies, reworking spiritual and religious truths for new secular audiences. We will be hosting a conversation on Sci Fi and more with Damien in our Digital Campfire on Monday 1st November, so if you'd like to join that, sign up as a Rebel Wisdom member: https://rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans

Dennis McKenna is perhaps the world's best-known psychedelic ethnobotanist and a pioneer in the field of psychedelic research. He's the author of several books, including 'The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss' which chronicles his life with his brother Terence McKenna. More recently, he set up the McKenna Academy, a not for profit modern day mystery school. In this wide ranging conversation, we discuss psychedelic capitalism, Dennis' thoughts on the future of psychedelic mainstreaming, indigenous reciprocity, the origins of ayahuasca and much more. Check out the McKenna Academy here: https://mckenna.academy/ Learn more about The International Center for Ethnobotanical Education, Research, and Service (ICEERS) on iceers.org

Controversies over the topic of trans seem to come around on a weekly basis. The latest is around the recent comedy special by Dave Chappelle on Netflix. In the UK there was a big scandal over a concerted attempt to cancel the academic Kathleen Stock at her university, and a groundbreaking new podcast series from the BBC about the activist organisation Stonewall. Katie Herzog is the co-host of the podcast Blocked and Reported which "scours the internet for its craziest, silliest, most sociopathic content, part of an obsessive and ill-conceived attempt to extract kernels of meaning and humanity from a landscape of endless raging dumpster fires." Check out Katie's podcast Blocked & Reported: https://www.blockedandreported.org/ Check out Rebel Wisdom memberships here: https://rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans 

The pandemic has stress tested all our institutions, especially those we have relied on for truth seeking and sensemaking. It's deepened the chasm between mainstream and alternative, consensus and contrarian. A couple of days ago the most popular alternative media personality in the world, Joe Rogan, hosted mainstream CNN medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta for a three hour special on vaccines and the pandemic. A small number of the clips went viral, but the full episode was much more nuanced and interesting. Zubin Damania is a naturally heterodox thinker and has become one of the breakout stars of the pandemic. Rebel Wisdom's David Fuller caught up with Zubin to chat through what happened and what to make of this rift between heterodox and mainstream. To join future conversations, consider becoming a Rebel Wisdom member: https://rebelwisdom.co.uk/plans

Investigative journalist Tom O'Neill started researching the Manson killings in 1999, twenty years later he finally published what became one of the most complete accounts of the secret war against the counterculture of the 1960s. He discovered links to the CIA's top secret mind control project MK Ultra, the JFK assassination and much more. In this conversation with Rebel Wisdom's David Fuller, they talk about the untold story of this seismic time in American history and ask if America needs to come to terms with its past if it is to move on.