Making Sense with Sam Harris - Subscriber Content

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris analyzes a few disturbing trends and shares his hopes for 2021.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with William MacAskill about how to do the most good in the world. They discuss the “effective altruism” movement, choosing causes to support, the apparent tension between wealth and altruism, how best to think about generosity over the course of one’s lifetime, and other topics. William MacAskill is an Associate Professor in Philosophy and Research Fellow at the Global Priorities Institute, University of Oxford. He is one of the primary voices in a philanthropic movement known as “effective altruism” and the co-founder of three non-profits based on effective altruist principles: Giving What We Can, 80,000 Hours, and the Centre for Effective Altruism. He is also the Director of the Forethought Foundation for Global Priorities Research and the author of Doing Good Better: Effective Altruism and a Radical New Way to Make a Difference. Website: williammacaskill.com Twitter: @willmacaskill

Neurologist Stephen Laureys interviews Sam Harris about meditation, mindfulness, the search for happiness, wisdom vs knowledge, our relationship with death, the hard problem of consciousness, meditation and free will, dangerous knowledge, the power of hypnosis, and more.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Adam Gazzaley about the way our technology is changing us. They discuss our limited ability to process information, our failures of multitasking, “top-down” vs “bottom-up” attention, self-interruptions and switching costs, anxiety, boredom, “digital medicine,” neuroplasticity, video games for training the mind, the future of brain-machine interface, and other topics. Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D. is a Professor in Neurology, Physiology, and Psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco, and the Founding Director of the Neuroscience Imaging Center, Neuroscape Lab, and the Gazzaley Lab, which explores mechanisms of neuroplasticity and designs, develops and validates new technologies to optimize cognitive abilities. He is also co-founder and Chief Science Advisor of Akili Interactive, a company developing therapeutic video games and Chief Scientist of JAZZ Venture Partners, a venture capital firm investing in experiential technology to improve human performance. Adam co-authored the award-winning MIT Press book The Distracted Mind: Ancient Brains in a High-Tech World with Dr. Larry Rosen. Website: gazzaley.com Twitter: @adamgazz   Episodes that have been re-released as part of the Best of Making Sense series may have been edited for relevance since their original airing.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris discusses President Trump’s failure to concede the 2020 presidential election.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris describes his new understanding of why people support President Trump.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris and Andrew Sullivan sing the praises of President Trump. Andrew Sullivan edited The New Republic from 1991 – 1996 and was an intellectual architect of the campaign for marriage equality. He is the author of The Conservative Soul and Virtually Normal. Sullivan’s blog, The Daily Dish, pioneered online journalism from 2000 to 2015, and he recently revived it as a Substack newsletter, The Weekly Dish. He is writing a book on the future of Christianity, and his collection of essays will be published in 2021. Website: andrewsullivan.substack.com Twitter: @sullydish

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Nicholas Christakis about the Covid-19 pandemic. They discuss the breakdown of trust in institutions and experts, the corruption of science by politics, the ineptitude of the Trump administration in handling the pandemic, whether the gravity of Covid-19 has been exaggerated, preparing for future pandemics, whether Covid deaths are being over-reported, bad incentives in the medical system, tracking “excess death” statistics, the prospect that the novel coronavirus will evolve to become more benign, the efficacy of current treatments, safety concerns about a rushed vaccine, the importance of public health communication, when life might return to normal, the economic impact of the pandemic, long term social changes, the future of universities, Nicholas’s personal habits during the pandemic, the importance of rapid testing, and other topics. Nicholas A. Christakis, MD, PhD, MPH, is the Sterling Professor of Social and Natural Science at Yale University, where he directs the Human Nature Lab and is the Co-Director of the Yale Institute for Network Science. He was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2006, the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2010, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2017.  He is the author of several books—Connected: The Amazing Power of Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives, Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society, and most recently Apollo’s Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live. Website: www.humannaturelab.net Twitter: @NAChristakis

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Michael Sandel about the problem with meritocracy. They discuss the dark side of the concept of merit, the pernicious myth of the self-made man, the moral significance of luck, the backlash against “elites” and expertise, how we value human excellence, the connection between wealth and value creation, the ethics of the tax code, higher education as a sorting mechanism for a caste system, alternatives to 4-year colleges, and other topics. Michael Sandel teaches political philosophy at Harvard University. His writings—on justice, democracy, ethics, and markets—have been translated into 27 languages. His course “Justice” was the first Harvard course to be made freely available online and on television and has been viewed by tens of millions of people around the world, including in China, where Sandel was recently named the “most influential foreign figure of the year.” Sandel has been a visiting professor at the Sorbonne, delivered the Tanner Lectures on Human Values at Oxford, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His BBC series “The Global Philosopher” explores the ethical issues lying behind the headlines with participants from over 30 countries. His latest book is titled The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good? Website: http://justiceharvard.org/    Episodes that have been re-released as part of the Best of Making Sense series may have been edited for relevance since their original airing.

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Nina Schick about the growing epidemic of misinformation and disinformation. They discuss the coming problem of “deep fakes,” the history of Russian “active measures” against the West, the weaponization of the EU migration crisis, Russian targeting of the African-American community, the future of Europe, Trump and rise of political cynicism, QAnon, the prospect of violence surrounding the 2020 Presidential election, and other topics. Nina Schick is an author and broadcaster who specializes in how technology and artificial intelligence are reshaping society. She has worked on the frontline of major global events including Brexit, the EU’s migrant crisis, election interference, and the evolution of disinformation and information warfare. Nina has advised a group of global leaders on deepfakes, including Joe Biden and Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Secretary General of NATO. Nina is a contributor to Bloomberg, Sky, CNN and the BBC and has been published by The Times, CNN, the Daily Beast, and TIME. She speaks seven languages and holds degrees from Cambridge University and University College London. Nina’s new book Deepfakes: The Coming Infocalypse explores the corrosion of our information ecosystem. Website: ninaschick.org Twitter: @NinaDSchick