Very Bad Wizards

From Very Bad Wizards to Megyn Kelly Today back to Very Bad Wizards, Laurie Santos has traveled the typical trajectory of the celebrity academic. Laurie joins us to talk about her cult status after creating the most popular course in Yale University history: Psychology and the Good Life. Why are we so bad at predicting what will make us happy? What makes it so hard to do the things we know are good for us? Why are young people more stressed, anxious, and overworked than they used to be? And how can we nudge ourselves into living better lives? Plus we take a test for determining the virtues that come easiest to us and the ones that come.. harder. This episode is sponsored by Audible and Casper. Special Guest: Laurie Santos. Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Laurie Santos | Comparative Cognition Laboratory Yale’s Most Popular Class Ever: Happiness - The New York Times Psychology and The Good Life 2018 Course Syllabus Matt Killingsworth: Want to be happier? Stay in the moment | TED Talk Character Strength Survey Audible Casper

David and Tamler take a break from complaining about psychological studies that measure utilitarianism to complain about the moral theory itself. We talk about one of the most famous critiques of utilitarian theories from Bernard Williams. Does utilitarianism annihilate our integrity--our unity--as people? Would trying to maximize well-being fracture our identities, and swallow up our projects, motivations, and moral convictions--the same convictions that make utilitarianism seem appealing in the first place? Is it ultimately self-defeating as a moral theory? Plus, we talk about the adventures of Tamler's based step-mom Christina Hoff Sommers' at Lewis and Clark law school. Will David stay woke? Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Protesters try to shut down Christina Hoff Sommers at Lewis & Clark Law School - YouTube Statement on the Christina Hoff Sommers Event at the Law School - Newsroom - Lewis & Clark We’re All Fascists Now - The New York Times "The Usual Suspects" final scene *spoilers* Bernard Williams - Wikipedia Williams, B. "Consequentialism and Integrity" [published originally in "Utilitarianism: For and Against", ed. Smart and Williams (Cambridge University Press, 1973), pp. 82-118.] Smart, J. J. C., & Williams, B. (1973). Utilitarianism: For and against. Cambridge University Press. [Amazon.com affiliate link] — Worth reading the whole book!

It's been 5 years since Molly Crockett has been guest on VBW. During that time she's completed a post-doc at University College, London and become a professor at Yale University. And we're...well, we're still doing the podcast. Today Molly joins us to talk about moral outrage in the age of social media. Has the outrage changed now that we express so much of it online? Does it contribute to polarization and social division, or give a voice to the less powerful? How can we harness the benefits of online outrage while minimizing the costs? Plus, Dave and Tamler perform an exorcism on the unholy offspring of evolutionary psychology and trolleyology. Special Guest: Molly Crockett. Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Brown, M., & Sacco, D. F. (2017). Is pulling the lever sexy? Deontology as a downstream cue to long-term mate quality. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 0265407517749331. Crockett, M. J. (2017). Moral outrage in the digital age. Nature Human Behaviour, 1(11), 769.

David and Tamler talk about the nature of death. Is being dead a bad thing? If so, what makes it bad? How can anything be bad for a subject that no longer exists? We didn't have a problem with oblivion for the thirteen billion years before we were born, why fear it now? Plus, a discussion about the "it was all a dream" trope in TV and film. Why is it so infuriating in some works but not others? Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Tommy Westphall - Wikipedia 20 Years Ago: 'Newhart' ends with a shock | EW.com Dallas (1978 TV series) (season 9) - Wikipedia It's Just a Cartoon, How can SpongeBob and friends go to the beach if... Nagel, T. (1970). Death. Noûs, 73-80.

What's the best way to build self-control, patience, productivity, and delayed marshmallow eating? For decades psychologists and economists have told us to develop traits like willpower and grit. But psychologist David DeSteno describes a better, easier, and more effective path--the emotions. We talk to David about his new (not-self-help) book "Emotional Success," which argues that the emotions of gratitude, pride, and compassion can help us fulfill long-term goals and (as a special bonus) make us happier and better people. Plus, David and Tamler take a quiz that measures how utilitarian they are, and you won't believe the results!!! (Actually, you will.) This episode is sponsored by Casper. Visit www.casper.com and enter offer code BADWIZARDS to get $50 toward select purchases. Special Guest: Dave DeSteno. Sponsored By: Casper Promo Code: BADWIZARDS Support Very Bad Wizards Links: How Utilitarian Are You? The Oxford Utilitarianism Scale | Practical Ethics Everett, J. A., Pizarro, D. A., Crockett, M. J. (2016). Inference of trustworthiness from intuitive moral judgments. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 145, 772–787 David DeSteno's website Emotional Success: The Power of Gratitude, Compassion, and Pride

David and Tamler break down two episodes (with full spoilers) from the new season of Charlie Brooker's bleaker-than-bleak Netflix series Black Mirror. First up, "The USS Callister," a Star Trek parody that becomes a meditation on fandom, humiliation, and cowardly revenge. Next we talk about "Black Museum" - could it be the final episode of Black Mirror? Should it be? After four seasons of indicting humanity, has Charlie Brooker turned his critical lens on himself? Plus, you thought it was bad for children to tell lies, but it turns out that it's good! This episode is brought to you by RXBAR. Visit www.rxbar.com/wizards, and enter promo code "BADWIZARDS" at checkout for 25% off your first purchase. Sponsored By: RXBAR Promo Code: badwizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Is Your Child Lying to You? That’s Good - The New York Times "Black Mirror" USS Callister (TV Episode 2017) - IMDb "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison "Black Mirror" Black Museum (TV Episode 2017) - IMDb ▶ Bruised by peez

Honorary Third Wizard, Paul Bloom, joins Tamler and David to discuss dehumanization and cruelty. They also explore the stages of Star Trek transporter cognition, the process of choosing a Dalai Lama, and give their thoughts on Season 3 of Mr. Robot.

David and Tamler assert their autonomy as individuals by discussing their favorite dystopian works of art. Rebelling against a repressive regime, they refuse to sacrifice their privacy, uniqueness, and reproductive freedom. Through sheer force of will - the human spirit - they triumph over the pressures to ... wait what? You want me to take that pill? Okay, can't hurt. Aaahhhhh. So happy... So content... Must keep order. When the individual feels, the community reels. I am you, and you are I. I am you, and you are I. Plus, a real-life trolley problem! (Or is it?) Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Very Bad Wizards subreddit — Contribute to our Reddit discussions! Letters of Note: 1984 v. Brave New World Harrison Bergeron by Kurt Vonnegut [wordfight.org] The Lobster (2015) - IMDb Gattaca (1997) - IMDb Never Let Me Go (novel) - Wikipedia Children of Men (2006) - IMDb The Trial (1962) - IMDb The Trial - Wikipedia It's a Good Life (The Twilight Zone) - Wikipedia Snowpiercer (2013) - IMDb Idiocracy (2006) - IMDb A Clockwork Orange (1971) - IMDb

David and Tamler keep their Nagel streak alive, discussing the essay "The Fragmention of Value" from his collection "Mortal Questions." How should we address our fragmented moral landscape, with multiple sources of value that can't be reduced or systematically ordered? Does this make all of our moral decisions arbitrary? Plus, we talk about Louis CK and in a Thanksgiving tradition special guest Christina Hoff Sommers rejoins the podcast in a moderately drunken debate with Tamler about a possible sex panic. Special Guest: Christina Hoff Sommers. Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Christina Hoff Sommers - Wikipedia We’re at risk of turning #metoo into rush to blame all men - NY Daily News Nagel, T. (2012). Mortal questions. Cambridge University Press. [amazon.com affiliate link] Documentary Film Finding Vivian Maier | Vivian Maier Photographer

David and Tamler dip back into the Thomas Nagel well, and discuss the problem of "moral luck." Why do we blame drunk drivers who hit someone more than drunk drivers who make it home OK? Why do we judge people for things that are beyond their control (when we have strong intuitions that uncontrollable acts don't deserve blame)? Does moral luck ultimately swallow all of our behavior? Can we truly embrace the view that "actions are events and people are things" or are we stuck with another unsolvable clash of competing perspectives (just like the problem of absurdity)? Plus, Dave exposes himself on the Partially Examined Life, Tamler self-censors, and somehow we discuss Hollywood harassment and stand-up comedy without mentioning Louis CK. (But only because we recorded this episode about five hours before the NY Times story broke.) Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Nagel, T. (2012). Mortal questions. Cambridge University Press. [amazon.com affiliate link] Nagel, T. Moral Luck. Moral Luck (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Intentional stance [wikipedia.org] The Partially Examined Life Episode 176 Situationism in Psych: Milgram & Stanford Prison Experiments (Part One) — Part one of the PEL episode with David The Partially Examined Life Episode 176 Situationism in Psych: Milgram & Stanford Prison Experiments (Part Two) The Partially Examined Life Episode 93: Freedom and Responsibility (Strawson vs Strawson) — Tamler's appearance on PEL