Zengineering: A Philosophy of Science, Technology, Art & Engineering
By Brian and Adam
Zengineering: A Philosophy of Science, Technology, Art & EngineeringDec 20, 2022
100 - On ChatGPT and The A.I. Future - with Ramsay Brown
Wassup Zengineers!?
It's been a minute. How's stuff?
We'll keep it simple. ChatGPT dropped... and it's cool enough that we had to bring in a guest and do an episode about it.
That's it. We hope you enjoy it.
✌️ Kerp
More Ramsay here:
https://twitter.com/_ramsaybrown
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ramsaybr/
099 - On Star Trek TNG (Mostly Commander Data).
Wassup Zengineers!
I've had this sitting on my desktop for a couple years at this point. Had some time, so I finally processed it. Enjoy. Hope all is well 🚀
✌️Kerp
098 - On Open Source Collaboration
Howdy, Zengineers!
Did you know everything you do all day runs on software? Yup. It’s true. Everything. Well … I mean, not EVERYTHING, but pretty much everything. Your car. Your electricity. Your phone. Your computer. Your TV. Even our dishwashers and blenders, doorbells and lights, all run on software. There’s no way around it.
Software is powerful and enables the technologies we’ve all become accustomed to. But what’s so unique about it? Well, one of the primary drivers behind software’s viral spread is that once you digitize something, you can share it with everyone at almost no additional cost. The same cannot be said about the tires on my car, or the wood used to make my front door. Since sharing software is virtually free, free-software has come to rule the world. And, that’s Open Source. Software anyone can access, anyone can build upon, and anyone can get the benefit of… often, at no cost.
The engineers and designers behind the software that runs the world realized decades ago that innovation is enabled when these software solutions are shared openly and freely. Business can grow faster. Money can be made more efficiently. Lives can be made better… all because we share with one another, and collaborate on the world’s big problems through Open Source Software.
What a joy, you might say. So smart. So wonderful. I can’t believe it. Well … believe it. Your phone may have software on it that you paid for, but your phone simply would not work and, quite frankly, would not even exist, if it weren’t for people AND BUSINESSES freely sharing critical softwares systems with each other. This revolution is starting to come to other industries, as well, as the marginal cost of other technologies continues to be driven down. What an innovative and functional time to be alive. Who uses those words to express the thrill of life? Nerds, baby. Er… I mean, Zengineers!!
We hope you enjoy this episode as much as you enjoy all the Open Source Software enabled technologies that you’re using right now.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: http://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Wikipedia: Open Source Software: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open-source_software
Wired’s Guide to Open Source: https://www.wired.com/story/wired-guide-open-source-software/
Unix v. Linux: https://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/unix-vs-linux/#:~:text=Linux%20refers%20to%20the%20kernel,family%20of%20derived%20operating%20systems
Top 10 Open Source Hall of Famers: https://www.cio.com/article/3404462/top-10-open-source-hall-of-famers.html
097 - On Breaking up Big Tech & The Data Economy
Hi, Zengineers!
I’m sure you’ve heard of Amazon, right? What about Facebook? Do you use it? Google? Apple? Ma Bell? Carnegie? Vanderbilt? Woot woot!! Ok… enough listing. What’s the topic, you ask? Yeah … we’re going for it, and taking on the roll of the United States Congress and breaking up the tech companies.
Why, you might ask, are we doing this? Well, because we can, without any vote or any intervention … break up the tech companies with our words and ideas. Can you dig it? Yes, that’s correct. We’re just talking about it. We don’t actually have any power to do anything about this.
We can and we do, however, share a great conversation around what’s happened in the past, what’s happening now, how it’s the same, how it’s different, and how things could be in the future. This is a fun one that touches on history, economics, politics, myriad philosophies, and definitely a lot of crazy future tech.
Ultimately, we discover that what’s happening now is drastically different than what’s happened in the past because of the new ways technology is allowing information to be shared (which, surprise, has always been the problem, so it’s always something new).
As always, we hope you enjoy this episode, and don’t forget that our government, its leaders, and at its core, your vote, help to determine a lot of what happens in the future. It’s a wild time with a lot of wild options at our finger tips.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
- Monopolies vs. Monopsonies: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/032415/whats-difference-between-monopoly-and-monopsony.asp#:~:text=Both%20a%20monopoly%20and%20a%20monopsony%20refer%20to%20a%20single,demand%20for%20goods%20and%20services
- The Antitrust Laws: https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/competition-guidance/guide-antitrust-laws/antitrust-laws
- Elizabeth Warren on breaking up the tech companies: https://medium.com/@teamwarren/heres-how-we-can-break-up-big-tech-9ad9e0da324c
- Breaking up the Bell System on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakup_of_the_Bell_System
096 - On Superheroes & Comic Books
Hey, Zengineers!!
We’ve got one of those easy to do and easy to listen to nerd bomb episodes this week. SUPERHEROES!! Also comic books. Yay. What fun? Yes, we agree. Stoked, so let’s get after it.
This one is all about why we care, and why we’re interested. We touch on the persistence of mythology throughout history, and how it’s morphed and evolved into modern mythologies. Part of the intrigue and power comes from the media through which comics are presented … a spectrum of words v. pictures. We wrestle with the guilt that is often associated with reading picture books, and address the true value of the graphic novel.
As always, Adam takes us all the way back to cave paintings, which are the first graphic novels. See … it started here! We hit some of the history of comics, modern stories, movies, and media, and drive it all home with the notion of heroes inspiring all media and everything we do in life. What fun!
We hope you enjoy this episode and are inspired to read some old stories, or go pick up some comics and explore them if they are new to you. Go ask for some adult graphic novels … but no, not like ADULT graphic novels, but … for adults. I mean, they make XXX graphic novels, too … which is interesting and for another episode. The point is … the medium is amazing and dynamic and we think you’ll love it if new, or continue to love it if you already do.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
095 - On Wolfram's Theory of Everything
Hey, Zengineers!!
This week we’re going deep into the void of the unknown, to unravel the deepest mysteries of our universe. How will we get there? What will we discover? No one knows, and that’s what’s so exciting about it. So, let’s get right to our conversation about A Grand Unified Theory of Physics.
We’re always thinking about this a little bit. After all we’re recliner physicists, but this week we were inspired by a new release from Stephen Wolfram, that wild and wacky entrepreneur, engineer, inventor, philosopher, and all around crazy guy, behind well ... all kinds of weird and interesting shit. Yeah, scope him out and read his new article about his own unified theory of physics (see the show notes).
This is a fun one to bounce around in, because if you’re loose with the topic, it can kind go anywhere. After all, it’s about what makes our universe our universe. We chase some of the physics, some of the philosophy, and lots of the fun as we spiral around the rules of all rules.
We hope you enjoy this episode and all the amazing things you can read and watch and listen to online as you explore this topic more on your own.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Stephen Wolfram’s New Post on his own unified theory of physics: https://writings.stephenwolfram.com/2020/04/finally-we-may-have-a-path-to-the-fundamental-theory-of-physics-and-its-beautiful/
Wikipedia on the theory of everything: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_everything
Wolfram Alpha, the science search engine: https://www.wolframalpha.com/
094 - On Dice
Howdy, Zengineers!!
Oh boy. We’ve got a real zinger for you this week. We’re discussing one of our favorite toys; one that’s been with us since antiquity; one that enables so many games; one that truly represents some of the best. We’re talking about die. Or, is it dice? Dies? Dices? You have very pretty colored dice? Let me get that eight sided die. Yeah! There we go.
Dice aaaarre … simple and magical … bump bump … geometric and mathematical ... bump bump bop boop boop bop... can you feel the rhythm? Sorry … got lost in song…. Back on track. Dice are simple because, duh. Look at em. Or are they? Magical because they actually hold their historical roots in myth, legend, sprit, and religion. Geometric because their shapes are grounded in some of the fundamental aspects of our universe. Mathematical because they play a roll in the wonder of statistics, probability, and randomness. You can tell we love dice. Yeah. Love em. So much so, that Brian has a one foot D20 Plush Pillow (twenty sided die) on the chair in his office.
In this episode, we chase down the history, we talk about the science, and we explore how dice truly represent the wonder of life and free will. This was a fun one, if for no other reason than, it takes us back to our childhood. We hope you enjoy the travels and we hope you have some fun dice games, or games that rely on them, to play at home.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
- History of Dice: https://www.awesomedice.com/blogs/news/history-of-dice
- Digital Go Dice on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1928372437/godice-your-favorite-dice-games-reimagined?utm_source=TRS_41&utm_medium=FB&utm_content=TRS_41&utm_term=1c04d016-b516-44d2-bb79-4a1032151cf2&utm_campaign=TRS
- Dice Probability: https://wizardofodds.com/gambling/dice/
- High Variance Dice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1oMnZW7Ry8&feature=emb_title
093 - with Dorna Moini - On Access to Justice
Hey there Zengineers,
This week we've got Dorna Moini on the show. She's co-founder of Documate, a legal tech company that helps lawyers (and other businesses) automate document creation to make their ops more efficient and their services more accessible. But, in true Zengineering fashion, we don't spend to much time talking about that. Instead, we're talking about access to justice, what it means, and where technology lands in providing a solution. Give this episode a listen to learn about why courts are scary, why Civil Law & Order would be a pretty lame show, and about how you've only actually had "the right to an attorney" in the US since 1963. Enjoy!
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Links on links! -
https://documate.org
https://twitter.com/dorna_moini
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gideon_v._Wainwright
http://www.lalawlibrary.org/index.php/hidden-classes/178-lawyers-in-the-library.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miranda_warning
https://www.justice.gov/archives/atj
092 - On Cognitive Bias
Heyo Zengineers,
As you might be able to appreciate, things are a bit nuts out there (and over here) right now. So, we're gonna be shorter on our descriptions for a bit in favor of keeping the episodes coming. But, we know that's what you're here for anyway. So, probably all good, right?
This one is about Cognitive Bias. Which, like any good Zengineering topic, could be a whole podcast on its own. We run down what it is, what a "hot bias" vs. a "cold bias" is, where they come from and how they impact our ability to think clearly especially when we're fired up. We also run through a couple of specific ones.
Enjoy, and stay safe out there (by staying inside!)
Here's some links if you want to chase the rabbit-holes deeper!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-a-cognitive-bias-2794963
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amos_Tversky
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Kahneman
https://www.sportsbettingdime.com/guides/betting-psychology/avoiding-gamblers-fallacy/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperbolic_discounting
091 - with Alexsandra Guerra of Nori - On The Stories of Climate Change
What’s the happs, Zengineers?
We’re back with our old friends at Nori, this week talking to Alexsandra Guerra Co-Founder & Director of Corporate Development, and 30 Under 30 GreenBiz 2019 Award Winner. For those in the know, this continues our collection of the Nori founding team, as we’ve had both Christophe and Paul on as well (see their episodes in the show notes below).
We didn’t want to just rehash Nori in this convo, but some updates are always nice. We talk to Alexsandara about her background and how she found herself building Nori, and then we embark on an adventure to discuss how we all think about and deal with climate change in our own lives with the goal of staying AWAY from the technical. If you listen often, you know this was a challenge for Adam and Brian, and, interestingly, for Alexsandra as well.
What we all know is that climate change is a complex technical issue, but what we realized during this conversation is that we need to spend an equal amount of time (if not much more) thinking about and talking about how it manifests in our every day lives, through our thoughts, our worries, and our actions. We then need to tell more stories!
Lucky for us all, Alexsandra is starting a podcast to do just this, and she promises to kick that off right here on Zengineering (BREAKING NEWS!!). We’re kinda kidding. She’s only thinking about it, but we support the move. Let her know that you do too, by reaching out!
As always, we really enjoyed this convo and hope you do too.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Nori: https://nori.com/
Alexsandra on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexsandraguerra/
Nori’s Podcast (Alexsandra is a host): https://nori.com/reversing-climate-change
Big Magic (Book): https://www.amazon.com/Big-Magic-Creative-Living-Beyond/dp/1594634726
Granular (Farm Management Software): https://granular.ag/
Zengineering Episode 064 — with Christophe Jospe of Nori — On Climate Change — Part 4 — Reversing It: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/064-with-christophe-jospe-of-nori-on-climate-change-part-4-reversing-it-a5fd4ba27ea3
Zengineering Episode 075 — with Paul Gambill — On The True Cost of Carbon and Reversing Climate Change: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-075-with-paul-gambill-on-the-true-cost-of-carbon-and-reversing-climate-change-717a563b10d6
090 - On Apple and Encryption Backdoors
Hey Zengineers!
We’re back with a quick one to hit a timely topic (again!) Encryption backdoors are back in the news, so were hitting it again. If you want to know what’s going on with the latest fight between Apple and the government, and all the grumbling the Attorney General and the President have been doing about encryption, we’ve got you covered.
As always, there are some links to follow in the notes if you want to dig in any deeper.
Thanks for listening!
Adam & Brian
Notes:
Zengineering Episode 009 - https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-009-on-hacking-cryptography-and-the-fbi-vs-apple-dbe904c43ea7
Apple and San Bernardino - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FBI%E2%80%93Apple_encryption_dispute
Apple and Pensacola - https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/14/technology/apple-iphone-pensacola-shooting.html
Social Key Recovery - https://twitter.com/vitalikbuterin/status/1086464158319558657?lang=en
089 - with Mike Rosolio - On Video Game History
Howdy, Zengineers,
This week we’ve got our most popular guest, back for another romp down memory lane. Yes, Mike Rosolio returns to discuss the history of Video Games with us. There are some secret reveals, but I can’t remember if they are so secret that they weren’t mentioned in the show. If they are, they’ll be cut. If they’re not, then you’ll hear them. What a cliffhanger? Is that the right phrase? I don’t think so.
Anyway, this week we chase down some fun memories discussing our own experiences with video games over our lives. All three of us are part of an age group that really grew up with video games as they were emerging as a global force. When we were very young, they were still only for the most cutting edge tech nerds. Now, everyone gets to be addicted to them.
Mike brings some real depth to this conversation as he’s not only the greatest player of video games we know, but he’s also a major history buff. We chase down some of the major developers and artists in the video game business world world, discuss Mario, Nintendo Power, weirdly over-sexualized characters from Soul Caliber, and the increasing and current moral complexities that modern games encounter.
As always, it’s a great convo with Mike, and we hope you enjoy listening as much as we enjoyed talking. We know we do... like listening to ourselves.
Ya know what I mean. Yeah. We do. Endless loop. Loop.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
- Nintendo Power: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_Power
- Ninja Gaiden Intro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCnZtUS4tCw
- Shigeru Miyamoto: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shigeru_Miyamoto
- Final Fantasy V1 Famous Opera Scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pe3pGU9jcag
- Legend of Zelda, Breath of Wild: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rPxiXXxftE
- Play Tetris, free, online: https://tetris.com/play-tetris
088 - On Government - Part 1 - An Operating System for the United States
Happy Holidays, Zengineers,
Adam is our conductor this week, guiding the train down the historical tracks of political exploration. Did you know that Adam went to law school? Of course you did. It comes up all the time. Yes. We do too, but he takes all the jokes really well, considering, ahem ... that he’s a lawyer. Zing!
When studying the law, Adam wrote his thesis on how the law mimics software and how software mimics the law. It’s an interesting, powerful, and relevant comparison to make. Through this episode we hope you’ll come to appreciate why attorneys, programmers, judges, engineers, accountants, and more, all produce things they call “Code.” Remember Hammurabi’s Code? That shit was harsh, but concepts of that early foundation still persist today. Never forget this.
We discuss historically different types of government, how they have been evolutions of each other, and how constitutional government starts from these founding operating systems. This foundation formed over millennia by generations testing out new ideas and new structures, often through trial and error. This stuff is NOT perfect, and don’t let anyone tell you any different. That would be a disservice to our world.
We hope you enjoy our ramblings and have found a new way to look at the governmental structure and evolution of our world. There will be more to come. Yes, that sentence does have a lot of different meanings. Yes, we meant to do that. No, we’re not sorry.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
PS. Say hi to your families for us!!
- Living Constitution: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_Constitution
- Virginia Ratifies the Equal Rights Amendment: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2019/11/06/us/politics/virginia-ratify-equal-rights-amendment.amp.html
- John Oliver, Equal Rights Amendment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCBYJZ6QbUI
087 - with Sam Rad - On Blockchains, Supply Chains, and Paradigm Shifts
Our friends, the Zengineers,
We are joined this week by anthropologist, technologist, speaker, and author, Samantha Radocchia, AKA, Sam Rad. Yeah, that's a great full name and great nickname. Way to be named, Sam!!
We've been excited about this conversation for a while because, from the very beginning, we knew we were going to talk about a lot of our shared passions. Sam is not only the author of Bitcoin Pizza (how Adam and her started talking), but she also co-founded and operated a technology startup merging blockchain and manufacturing supply chain. What a rad combo! See what we did there? Of course you do. Our listeners are sharp as tacks. Needless to say we took a lot of fun turns exploring technology, manufacturing, blockchain, and even competitive skydiving, with Sam.
What has she learned from all this experience? Well similar to some other sages we've spoken to, technology is wildly complex, its pace is changing the world in ways we must work hard to understand, and, if done right, we can form these technologies to make the world not only more successful, but just plain better for every one and every thing.
We hope you enjoy Sam's joyful energy and wise insights as much as we did.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Sam on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantharadocchia/
Sam's new book, "Bitcoin Pizza": https://www.amazon.com/Bitcoin-Pizza-No-Bullshit-Guide-Blockchain-ebook/dp/B07TYHKVLF
Sam's Supply Chain Startup: https://www.chronicled.com/
Saving Time, Working Remotely: https://twitter.com/madisonkanna/status/1154169387470823425?s=21
Dropzone Trailer (yes, it is an awesome movie about competetive skydiving featuring true classics like Wesley Snipes and Gary Busey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX17-NVFgGY
And ... one more for the history books, the Aspen Extreme Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn5Q_fjvKVQ
Fav Quote: "You know how you know a good expert? They try to tell you they aren’t an expert."
086 - with Peter Dering - On Peak Design, Kickstarter, and Living Carbon Neutral
Heyo, Zengineers!
This week, we get to be fan boys of our guest. As you all know, Adam and I are life long photographers, so you can imagine our joy when Peter Dering of Peak Design agreed to join us for a few hours to share his experience designing and selling fantastic photography gear, and creating hugely successful Kickstarter campaigns. To our surprise, the connections went even deeper.
Peter was happy to share his thoughts on building great products and a company culture that have a positive impact on customers, employees, and our planet. We talk about the inspiration to start Peak Design, how it happened, and early successful Kickstarter campaigns (of which Adam and Brian both participated with great gusto).
From here we were surprised to spiral a bit off course from where we thought we were headed. In fact, we barely discussed photography. Instead we strayed into a common area of conversation recently on the cast, Climate Change, and what the hell to do about it. As the CEO of a company that makes physical products, an outdoor adventurer, and a generally well read and good dude, Peter understands the challenges facing the world around the release of carbon into our atmosphere. To do his part, he's started an initiative called Climate Neutral to encourage other businesses to reduce and eliminate their carbon footprint. Once again, we're big fans.
We hope you enjoy this winding adventure through the mind and explorations of Peter Dering!
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Peter on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-dering-54760718/
Peak Design: https://www.peakdesign.com/
Peak Design's latest succesful kickstarter campaign for the Travel Tripod: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peak-design/travel-tripod-by-peak-design/posts/2564456
Peak Design's Mission (it's great): https://www.peakdesign.com/pages/mission
Peak Design's Sustainability Strategy (also great): https://www.peakdesign.com/pages/sustainability
Climate Neutral (Peter's Climate Innitiative): https://www.climateneutral.org/
Mutual Benfit Corporation: https://info.legalzoom.com/difference-between-nonprofit-mutualbenefit-corporation-27224.html
Project Wren (carbon offsets): https://projectwren.com/
085 - with Jeffery A. Martin - On Happiness, Fundamental Wellbeing, and Flow States
What’s up, Zengineers?
We’ve got a real fun one this week. We’re joined by Dr. Jeffery Martin. He is a founder of the Transformative Technology space, serial entrepreneur and social scientist who researches personal transformation and the states of greatest human well-being.
Jeffery spent the last 10 years conducting the largest international study on persistent non-symbolic experience (PNSE), which includes the types of consciousness commonly known as: enlightenment, nonduality, the peace that passeth understanding, unitive experience, and hundreds of others. More recently, he has used this research to make systems available to help people obtain profound psychological benefits in a rapid, secular, reliable, and safe way. Whoa … lots to dive into there that are a good fit for Zengineering. One could say, Jeffery studies Zengineering. What a fun guest.
We talk with Jeffery a little about his background and how he got into this stuff. Would you be surprised to hear that money wasn’t bringing him happiness, so he started chasing what would? We discuss his books, organizations, research, his personal explorations, and what he’s uncovering about humanity and our pursuits of happiness, or contentedness, or good lives, or whatever it is you think you’re after. Let’s scientificize it and let’s try to compare our experiences. This was a great convo and Jeffery was a delight to chat with. We hope you enjoy this episode. Definitely check out the show notes to learn more.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes:
Jeffery’s website: https://drjefferymartin.com/
Jeffery on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drjefferymartin/
Jeffery on Twitter: https://twitter.com/jefferymartin
Transformative Tech Academy: https://ttacademy.co/
Jeffery’s latest book: https://www.amazon.com/Finders-Jeffery-Martin/dp/1572425563
Explorers Courses: https://explorerscourse.com/
VIDEOS of Jeffery: http://www.nonsymbolic.org/
VIDEO: Reaching for Maslow’s Missing Level: The Further Reaches of TransTech? with Dr. Jefferey Martin - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWKDWLcCr0Y
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs
The relationship between money and happiness: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/relationship-money-happiness/
California Institute for Human Science: https://www.cihs.edu/
The default mode network: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Default_mode_network
TPN vs. DMN - Neural Mechanisms and Mindfulness | Exploring The Business Brain: https://exploringthebusinessbrain.com/tpn-vs-dmn-neural-mechanisms-mindfulness/
VIDEO: How we can use light to see deep inside our bodies and brains | Mary Lou Jepsen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awADEuv5vWY
084 - On Stuff - Headphones
Hi, Zengineers!
That's right! It's time to learn about stuff. You know, those everyday things that we all interact with but we don't always take time to think too much about. This week, that stuff, is headphones!
These crazy things are everywhere these days (mostly because we all carry a portable music player at all times). Just 25 years ago, you were probably still a bit of an audiophile if you were rocking headphones on the reg. These days, you'd be the weirdo if you weren't.
But what has enabled this rise in listening technology and how does it work? These are great questions we get into in this super fun episode with a little bit of pop, a little bit of tech, and a little bit of random walking down the path of exploration.
Also, check out our episode, "On Digital Audio, Apple, and Headphone Jacks" to compliment this one: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-018-on-digital-audio-apple-and-headphone-jacks-2cec90261056
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Our Headphones
- Bose QC35 IIs: https://www.amazon.com/Bose-QuietComfort-Wireless-Headphones-Cancelling/dp/B0756CYWWD/ref=sr_1_3?crid=25P2T2G5FYU24&keywords=bose+qc35+ii&qid=1564246289&s=gateway&sprefix=bode+qc35%2Caps%2C312&sr=8-3
- Logitech gaming: https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-G935-Wireless-DTS-LIGHTSYNC/dp/B07MP4HT95/ref=sr_1_10?keywords=logitech+gaming+headphone&qid=1564246257&s=gateway&sr=8-10
- Inexpensive bluetooth earbuds: https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-G935-Wireless-DTS-LIGHTSYNC/dp/B07MP4HT95/ref=sr_1_10?keywords=logitech+gaming+headphone&qid=1564246257&s=gateway&sr=8-10
- Really inexpensive bluetooth earbuds: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KVKZS87/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
- Brian's old headphones: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SLVAVAY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Show Notes
- Loudspeakers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudspeaker
- Headphone history: https://www.stuff.tv/features/headphones-complete-history
- Another history of headphones: https://visual.ly/community/infographic/technology/history-headphones
- Getting a better headphone fit with Sugru: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2B5mmL-61A
Juris Links From Intro:
083 - with Greg Kieser - On AI Superintelligence
What's happening, Zengineers?
This week we're joined by Author, Technologist, Entrepreneur and Angel Investor, Greg Kieser. He shared his most recent book, "Dear Machine, A Letter to a Super Aware/Intelligent Machine (SAIM)" with us a few months ago, and then was kind enough to hop on an episode with us to talk about it.
Greg's background in technology businesses has exposed him to what a lot of modern technology workers are sensing, but Greg has taken the time to put pen to paper (stylus to screen?), and share these thoughts with the world.
As we discuss in this episode, a lot of things around the world (almost everything) is changing at unprecedented paces, and it seems as thought this accelerated rate of change is going to continue with no end in sight. What is really going to happen as computers begin to have a sentient understanding of the world? Where will these technologies take us? Where will we end up? Will it even be "us" anymore?
Greg's book is a comprehensive exploration of what's going on with and how to think about Artificial Intelligence, and with computational technology as a whole. It was a great read and made for a wonderful conversation that we hope you enjoy as well.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
- Greg's latest book: https://www.amazon.com/Dear-Machine-Letter-Super-Aware-Intelligent-ebook/dp/B07MY9132H
- Greg's Think Tank and Angel Investment Group: http://supersystemic.ly/
- Greg on Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregkieser
- Greg on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-kieser-76a76913/
- Interplanetary Fest: https://interplanetaryfest.org/
- John Henry Holland: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Henry_Holland
- Tierra Computer Simulation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tierra_(computer_simulation)
- Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom: https://www.amazon.com/Superintelligence-Dangers-Strategies-Nick-Bostrom/dp/1501227742
- Fecal Transplants, yup, those kinda fecals: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/gastroenterology_hepatology/clinical_services/advanced_endoscopy/fecal_transplantation.html
- The Singularity: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity
082 - On Curating A Media Diet
Heyo, Zengineers!
Podcasts are all the rage these days. "What a hip new form of media," they say. "Adam and Brian are so cool for hosting their own podcast." It's true. We're super cool. That's cuz media drives culture. It always has.
This week we're diving into a discussion around media and how to manage a healthy relationship with it in the modern world. For instance, you probably shouldn't only listen to Zengineering Podcast, even though we know you really want to.
In this episode we chase the evolution of media and how it's lead to Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram and all the other apps we use daily. We talk more about social media than makes Brian comfortable and more than he thinks it deserves to be discussed, but there's a reason. It's the most prolific form of media we've created yet as a species. Stories circle the globe in a matter of minutes.
It was just a few hundred years ago that most people never left their home town. Crazy. We made that up, but maybe it's true. There we go, making media confusing. We talk a bit about media's transition based on our data consumption, and also based on rapidly evolving device technology and constantly refreshing UIs. Then we confront the rise of the algorithms, and the new complexities the world is coming to terms with.
How should we think about incoming ideas in the modern age. How much skepticism is healthy and how much emotion should our media induce? Is mindfulness really as important a concept as some suggest? Who knows? We sure don't, but we're happy to talk at you about it anyway. Is that ok? We think so. We also hope you enjoy the conversation.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Links
- Limbic System: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limbic_system
- Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/
- "Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discus people." ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
081 - with Bethany Simpson - On VR, Egypt, and the Future of Education
Hi, Zengineers!
We're heading back in time this week to explore the wondrous and captivating world of ancient Egypt. "Wow, that's terrific," I bet you're saying to yourself. So many people have been consumed by a fascination into the fantasy and reality of Egypt at some point in their lives. I know we've been obsessed many times.
This week we're joined by an expert on the subject, Bethany Simpson, a real live Archaeologist and Egyptologist. "Holy moly," you're probably thinking now. "That's incredible. Everything I know about Egypt I learned from Stargate." Well, Bethany is here to set the record straight. Stargates are real ... wait, what? No, they are not? Ok, well, MAYBE they are, but we actually didn't get to them, so we'll have to re-examine that in a later episode.
In this episode we discuss a fantastic journey that Bethany led Adam and Brian on through a virtual recreation of Nefertari's tomb the way it looked the day she was buried in it. We discuss this amazing experience, Bethany's lifelong pursuit of uncovering the magic of ancient Egypt and the future of technology in both archaeology and education.
It's a great conversation and we're so luck to have met Bethany in VR and in, like, slightly less VR, over the internet and video chat to make this episode happen.
We hope you enjoy the conversation.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Bethany’s suggested translation of the book of the dead: https://www.africa.upenn.edu/Books/Papyrus_Ani.html
Nefertari: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nefertari
Nefertari's Tomb Experience in Virtual Reality: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nefertaris-tomb-experience-in-virtual-reality-tickets-54323374676?aff=erelexpmlt
High Fidelity :: Remembering D-Day: Explore a Virtual WWII Era Hangar with a Battlefield Expert: https://steamcommunity.com/games/390540/announcements/detail/1765882577131473116
https://www.amazon.com/Mummies-Egypt-Reading-Rainbow-Books/dp/0064460118
http://rickriordan.com/series/the-heroes-of-olympus/
Bethany's Egypt travel tips: fly into Cairo … use Uber to get good taxi prices … largest city in Africa … def hit Luxor and Karnac temple … safe but not comfy … take a nile cruise … do it with a tour, but make sure you get time to wander … no raw salads … don’t compliment actual items, make it about the person, otherwise they will try to give you the item… learn 1-10 in Arabic and prices will drop dramatically … scarf and sleeves to wrists are important for women when visiting temples … no skimpy clothes for anyone
080 - On a Life of Video Games
Zengineers!! What's the happs?
Let's have a fun chat this week, we said. Something we both love, that reminds us of being young, and that we could talk about in depth and at length. Well, we came up with video games. In fact, we were so excited by the topic that we're going to turn it into a series.
This week, as we often do, is the first in the series where we get our feet wet just musing on the world of video games and our experience with them. We've both played a lot as kids on both consoles and computers. Clearly that experience influenced us in our educations and professions.
Video games are such a beautiful amalgamation of modern technology, science, engineering, and art. Over the years they have expanded from the simplest of early experiences only had by the deepest of nerds to games that the majority of the world have enjoyed in shared online experiences; such beauty in something that under the hood is so very complex. What a great topic to series (a verb?) on Zengineering.
In future episodes we will be bringing guests to talk about the history, the hardware, the software, and the rapidly evolving view of video games in society. We hope you enjoy this first conversation.
Don't miss these other great series in a similar vein:
Virtual Reality: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-034-on-virtual-reality-389ecc73dfe0
Artificial Inteliigence: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-027-on-artificial-intelligence-part-1-5a98c9c246d5
Dungeons & Dragons: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-005-on-dungeons-dragons-fantasy-sports-and-lego-math-49804abb0ea1
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
How many installs of office exist in the world: https://www.quora.com/How-many-Microsoft-Office-users-are-there-worldwide
Brian's favorite 8-bit-covers playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/1214582130/playlist/30ReTImxMKlIDmBgAwnD0i?si=k3ks2fvqQsWyRb-e1uVLzw
Famous cheat codes over the years: https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/comments/brwmq/porntipsguzzardo/
The Myth Of Prometheus – The Thief Of Fire: https://www.greekmyths-greekmythology.com/prometheus-fire-myth/
077 - with Tim Foad - On Economics, Technology, and Productivity
What's up, Zengineers?
Welcome back to the laboratory. This week we're discussing economics with a real live economics professor. Wow! Tim Foad is a good friend, the Chair of the Department of Economics at San Diego State University, and a great guy to shoot the shit with. Tim told us that people aren't always excited to talk to economists. We can't possibly understand why, because we're stoked, and so glad that Tim could join us.
This conversation started from a question Brian had about how wealth is created in the world. You know, not just money like Dollars and Yen, but on the books value of goods, commodities, assets ... bigger too ... we're talking GDP and other academic words, phrases, and acronyms that may seem simple, but are all a bit confusing when you starting asking real questions about them.
Wealth is a weird concept, but it's an important one when you're going to discuss ... well, just about anything ... but especially how businesses, governments, and technology play into policy around the world. Many of you will recognize that wealth, and the accumulation of it, is not a zero sum game. This is tricky, and confusing, and hard to talk about, but Tim helped make sense of it.
We can't promise we stayed on topic the whole time, but Tim helped us place economics into our mental models of the world, and helped us answer some of our puzzling questions. We hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Tim's Favorite Economist: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/1992/becker/biographical/
Predictably Irrational: https://www.amazon.com/Predictably-Irrational-Revised-Expanded-Decisions/dp/006
Diminishing marginal utility of income and wealth: https://www.economicshelp.org/blog/12309/concepts/diminishing-marginal-utility-of-income-and-wealth/
Mechanical Turkers may have out-predicted the most popular crime-predicting algorithm: https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/17/16902016/compas-algorithm-sentencing-court-accuracy-problem
Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COMPAS_(software)
Development Economics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_economics
Natural Monopoly: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_monopoly
079 - with Patrick Mellor - On Earth’s History of Climate Change
Hey there, Zengineers?
We hope you're down for a wild ride this week. Our guest is Patrick Mellor: biological scientist, philosopher, geological climatologist (we may have invented this title), researcher, journalist and poet. Needless to say, we had a blast chatting with him.
This conversation feels like it lasted for days with all the ground we covered, but we had to cut it down to just the best nuggets. We discuss Earth before life, the wild changes the planet has endured, and how the planet has evolved over time because of life. The impact has been profound, and continues to be today as humanity faces one of its greatest challenges with anthropogenic climate change.
Patrick brings a perspective to our study of Earth and its climate that's truly hard to come by. We share a concern for the current situation, but Patrick also shares a perspective of true beauty with us, and one that has stuck with us since the episode. Life on Earth has caused mass extinctions before, but NEVER before has that life been so aware of what is going on and so able to affect positive change. We're in this together, and Patrick's positivity shines through in this episode. We hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we enjoyed having it.
Special shout out this week to our longtime listener, Dean for introducing us to Patrick and allowing this episode to come together. Thanks for supporting the show, Dean!
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Patrick's New Book: https://www.spdbooks.org/Products/9781943209248/alkali-shores.aspx
Ancient Upheavals Show How To Geoengineer A Stable Climate (by Patrick): https://palladiummag.com/2019/01/28/ancient-upheavals-show-how-to-geoengineer-a-stable-climate/
Flood Basalt Eruptions: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_basalt
Panspermia (a theory of how life spread in the unverse): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panspermia
The Younger Dryas: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/abrupt-climate-change/The%20Younger%20Dryas
Testing Iron Fertilization of the Oceans: https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2012/10/18/iron-fertilization-savior-to-climate-change-or-ocean-dumping
Hydroelectric Power on the Mediteranean: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantropa
The deepest part of the Mediterranean Sea: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calypso_Deep
Refilling The Mediterranean Sea: https://mappingignorance.org/2014/02/07/how-the-mediterranean-was-refilled/
Yellowstone's Supervolcano: https://www.seeker.com/earth/a-deep-mantle-plume-fuels-the-yellowstone-supervolcano
Permian-Triassic Exstinction Event: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permian%E2%80%93Triassic_extinction_event
078 - On Surviving In The Woods
What's up, Zengineers?
We're back in the party pad! Hooray. This week we're getting grungy, or is it crunchy, or maybe grundly? I don't know. Whatever you call it, we're talking about surviving in the great outdoors. You know, AKA, hiking, camping and general adventuring.
Adam and Brian are both self proclaimed outdoorsmen, having spent much of their childhood wandering around outside with varying levels of guidance and supervision. They've definitely both pushed the limits ... well, like ... built forts, blown things up, started fires by hand, and gotten badges and stuff ... let's just say they both feel comfy in a tent, and can use a map and compass. That's a good start.
This episode is a bit of an exploration of why we adventure, why camping is a thing and not just life, and how adventure can be good for us. We talk about fun things to do outside, fun places we've been recently, and some of the many pitfalls of wandering around in nature when most of your life is spent in the confines of a suburban home where bears are definitely not commonly found.
This is a jolly old convo about having fun in nature. It's definitely not a guide on how to survive or how to get started camping or even just hiking. Nope. We're not those kind of story tellers. The general internet is better for that.
So, sit back, relax, and put on your Earth day cap while we take you through the green forests of the northeast, the blistering deserts of the southeast, and the delightfully cooling waters that tie life and the entire world together.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
076 - On Dragon Capsules, Space Trash, and VR Experiences
What's up, Zengineers?
Welcome back to the laboratory. It's just us this week (no guests), so we've taken the liberty of chasing a bunch of random topics as a throwback to our early episodes.
We started the convo with the intention of sharing a super fun experience we recently shared together in Virtual Reality. We took a tour of the ancient Egyptian tomb of Nefertari as it looked the day she was laid to rest. The tour was guided by a professor of Egyptian Archaeology and was one of the most interesting VR experiences either of us have had to date.
The sidetrack topic on this episode turned out to be the privatization of the space industry. The exciting news that SpaceX successfully docked its crew capsule to the international space station for the first time, sets the stage for the first private transportation of US Astronauts in the history of humankind. What an an exciting time.
Enjoy the excitement of JFK's announcement of the original Space Race to the Moon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouRbkBAOGEw
Hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
VR Cameras on the Space Station: https://www.roadtovr.com/vr-cameras-now-international-space-station-capture-space-walks-missions/
Windows running apps natively in VR: https://www.roadtovr.com/windows-mixed-reality-will-soon-run-win32-desktop-apps-vr/
Millions attend the same concert in VR: https://www.roadtovr.com/fornite-virtual-concert-potent-glimpse-of-virtual-reality-future/
Microsoft HoloLens 2 Release Video: https://www.roadtovr.com/mwc-2019-hololens-2-reveal-demo/
The amazing physics of VR: https://www.roadtovr.com/boneworks-reveal-stress-level-zero-physics-based-interactions-embodiment/
A new T-Rex experience at the American Museum of Natural History: https://www.roadtovr.com/american-museum-natural-history-brings-visitors-closer-t-rex-new-vr-experience/
A hilariously old website sharing JFK's original space race announcement: https://er.jsc.nasa.gov/seh/ricetalk.htm
JFK's Moonshot Announcement on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouRbkBAOGEw
075 - with Paul Gambill of Nori - On The True Cost of Carbon and Reversing Climate Change
Howdy, Zengineers!
We're back at it trying to help understand Climate Change with our buddies at Nori (https://nori.com/). This week we're joined by CEO, Paul Gambill to hear an update on what's happening at Nori and wheree they are headed.
There's a lot of technology driving Nori. Not only are they a software company building on top of a blockchain backbone, but they also have to worry about the organic-to-digital translation of real world measurements of carbon in physical materials like the atmosphere and soil into bits of computer data.
In this episode we dive into where Nori is headed from a technological perspective. We discuss how Nori is currently working with farmers to build out economic incentive backed by real data to encourage carbon capture and help make farming generally healthier and more sustainable. It's a lot to digest, but it's all delicious. See what we did there? Hilarious!
Hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Nori FAQ: https://nori.com/faq
Nori Carbon Removal Newsroom (new podcast briefs from Nori on climate and carbon capture) https://nori.com/carbon-removal-newsroom
An interview on Nori's Podcast with Astrobiologist David Grinspoon: https://nori.com/podcast/47-astrobiologist-david-grinspoon
More about ol' David! - https://www.psi.edu/about/staffpage/grinspoon
Earth In Human Hands (a great read): https://www.amazon.com/Earth-Human-Hands-Shaping-Planets/dp/1455589128
BBC's Power of the Planet (geological history and perspective on our planet... kinda like Planet Earth but actually about the planet, and not the living creatures): https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008fdjy/episodes/guide
Climeworks, a leading Carbon Capture Company: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/12/magazine/climeworks-business-climate-change.html
One of the technological integrations Nori is using to measure and understand climate data: http://cometfarm.nrel.colostate.edu/
074 - with Jen Harris - On Identity
Howdy, Zengineers!
This week we're joined by writer and philosopher Jennifer Harris. She's a staple in the San Diego fundraising community, owns and operates JH Collective (http://www.jhcollectiveinc.com - a professional fundraising organization), and used to lead an amazing creative writing group with Brian, years ago.
Our conversation is one of falling in and out of love with what you do professionally and who you become throughout the cycles. It's a personal journey trying to understand the psychology of the modern worker and the journey through ever changing careers. In it we attempt to uncover why we connect with the things we choose to do, and how do these connections guide us in developing our self image and our internal monologues. It's a fascinating journey, and we're glad you're here to join us.
Hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
Jennifer Harris Collective: http://www.jhcollectiveinc.com/
The Vitruvian Man: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitruvian_Man
Seth Godin: https://www.sethgodin.com/
Recode/Decode with Kara Swisher: https://www.recode.net/recode-decode-podcast-kara-swisher
On Being Podcast: https://onbeing.org/series/podcast/2/
073 - On Working Remotely
Howdy, Zengineers!
Today we're discussing remote work. Like ... not working at a regular office, and not working in the same room, or even same building as your coworkers. There's a lot of variation here and a lot of conversation around this topic these days, especially in the digital technology sector where both Adam & Brian currently work.
Brian started his career at a Fortune 100 company as an engineer working at a manufacturing facility that employed hundreds of people. Adam started a production company and worked in an office with his team on a giant production lot in LA. Both, pretty normal. From there, things got weird.
Over the years, our working environments have changed a lot, but one thing's been consistent. Our desks have not been in normal places, and work has often involved a lot of remote contact with coworkers, and definitely lots of working from home. You know, stereotypical tech startup stuff. Houses with friends, lots of video-chatting, and working all hours of the day and night.
In this episode, we muse on the benefits and the challenges of working in alternate realities. There's a lot to discuss and it's an important conversation as the nature of so many peoples' work is changing so quickly with the adoption of computer based desk jobs. What does the future hold, and what changes will we see over time? Who knows? This is not your dad's day-job anymore, and things are only getting weirder with time.
We hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
072 - with Colin Murphy - On Universal Basic Income
Howdy, Zengineers!
Today we're discussing Universal Basic Income (UBI) in The United States. What is it? How does it work? What's good? What's bad? Who cares and who does it affect? Our guest, Colin Murphy is an old friend and an outspoken supporter of both UBI and political representatives who are forcing this conversation back into the public debate.
UBI has been around in many forms for a long time. Some call it socialism. Some say that's absurd. It actually exists in some places around the world already, including the United States. It's a crazy topic that invokes a lot of questions, a lot of debate, and a lot of emotion. A conversation about UBI forces an examination of the entire structure of one's government and underlying economic systems. And, it's a complicated subject that potentially affects wealth, work, and daily life for everyone.
UBI is a topic that's particularly popular in some circles these days because of the current global political landscape, a continued growth in wealth gaps around the world, and a global consciousness that simultaneously is becoming more divisive but also more inclusive.
It's easy to get overly excited about UBI or to dismiss it as ridiculous. Honestly, both reactions are pretty appropriate, but the conversation may be more relevant today than at any time in history, especially with the ridiculous pace of technological advancement.
We hope you enjoy the convo.
Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com
Visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
The Left Thinks a 'Green New Deal' Could Save Earth and Destroy the GOP (Vice): https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/4397ap/the-left-thinks-a-green-new-deal-could-save-earth-and-destroy-the-gop
Send money to the extreme poor: https://www.givedirectly.org/
Bullshit Jobs (a book, by David Graeber): https://www.amazon.com/Bullshit-Jobs-Theory-David-Graeber/dp/150114331X
Basic Attention Token (monetize your attention): https://basicattentiontoken.org/
Brave Browser (a private webroser that integrates with BAT): https://brave.com/
Universal Basic Income as the Social Vaccine of the 21st Century (Medium): https://medium.com/basic-income/universal-basic-income-as-the-social-vaccine-of-the-21st-century-d66dff39073
071 - On The Complexities and Beauty of The Scientific Method
Howdy, Zengineers!
It's time. What time you might ask? Time to talk about the Scientific Method. Yeah. That method! The scientific one. Yikes! This conversations has been a long time coming and we're so happy to finally be talking about it.
The core here is establishing a clear understanding of deductive versus inductive reasoning. We cannot, according to the philosophy of science, deductively prove things in our universe. We can only deductively DISPROVE them. As Albert Einstein famously said (or said something along these lines) "No amount of experimentation can ever prove me right, yet a single experiment can prove me wrong."
Over time experimenting against inductively based reason creates solid foundational knowledge that we expect to consistently describe the behavior of the world around us. If ever an inductive conclusion is deductively proven wrong, then we must adjust that theory and all branching knowledge. This is the scientific method and what makes this incredible technological and philosophical innovation so damn powerful. Dig it? You should, and you will.
This episode is kind of part of a series. They don't really require that you listen in any particular order, but you may want to check these out too:
Episode 044 — On Experts, Algorithms, and Scientific Thinking: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-044-on-experts-algorithms-and-scientific-thinking-7f9e0e8ba128
Episode 046 — On Experiments, and their Limits in Meat Space: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-046-on-experiments-and-their-limits-in-meat-space-25c8902085c0
Episode 048 - On STEAM Education & The Importance of Curiosity: https://zengineeringpodcast.com/episode-048-on-steam-education-and-the-importance-of-curiosity-906bf0790946
We hope you enjoy the convo. Support the show: http://support.zengineeringpodcast.com and visit our website for more episodes: https://zengineeringpodcast.com
Cheers,
Adam & Brian
Show Notes
What is science and why is it so special? (Towards Data Science): https://towardsdatascience.com/what-is-science-and-why-is-it-so-special-79e166e667c0
What exactly is the scientific method and why do so many people get it wrong?: http://theconversation.com/what-exactly-is-the-scientific-method-and-why-do-so-many-people-get-it-wrong-65117
070 - with Dave McCarty - On Engineering Buildings and Exploring Fantastic Caves
069 - On The Solar System - Part 3 - Asteroids, Giants -- and Pluto
068 - with Nat Wyeth - On Fundraising and The Practice of Giving
067 - with Scott MacMullan - On That Peninsula Life and Running for Office in Annapolis MD
This week we’re chatting with Scott MacMullan. He’s host of The Annapolis Podcast, a lawyer, and recently ran for local office. We chat about the process of running for office, why Scott ran, and talk about a bunch of the unique challenges facing Annapolis as a waterfront town in a race against climate change. Enjoy!
Reach us at zengineeringpodcast.com for the show notes as always!
066 - On Stuff - Bikes
This week we continue our series “On Stuff” with an episode about bicycles. We break down all the elements that make the bicycles work: speed, torque, gear ratios, wheel size and more. We also talk balance and explain why we love bikes more than cars!
As always, show notes and links: zengineeringpodcast.com
065 - On Stuff - Corrugated Cardboard
064 - with Christophe Jospe of Nori - On Climate Change - Part 4 - Reversing It
We're joined this week by fellow tech entrepreneur and climate change advocate, Christophe Jospe from Nori - www.nori.com. What's Nori you might ask? Well, sometimes it's edible seaweed that comes in handy flat packs for snacking, but in this case, it's a Blockchain company working to reverse climate change through innovative means of measurement, verification, and tracking. Christophe is also a host on Nori's podcast called "Reversing Climate Change," which is one of Brian's favorite podcasts - nori.com/podcast.
Check out even more show notes at zengineeringpodcast.com
Want to invest in Nori? It's open to the public here: republic.co/nori
063 - On Learning Guitar and Pretending to Be a Rock Star
What's the low down, Zengineers?
We've got a music-eee episode for you this week, which is great, because everyone loves music. Right? Yeah, we thought so. Na Na Naaa Naaa Naaaaaaaa
What we're specifically talking about is learning to play musical instruments. The desire, the drive, the practice, the challenge, the perspective and everything else that comes along with it. Adam and Brian are both hobby musicians with years of experience kinda sorta playing lots of different stuff ... mostly alone in their rooms, occasionally with friends, and every so often out in public with strangers around. Whoa ... I got nervous just writing that.
There's a lot involved in learning to play a musical instrument and it's not just the instrument. Music itself is a science that can take lifetime to truly understand. Your goal can be quick and dirty to play pop songs along with friends or it can be a lifelong pursuit to play for the world and create your own musical magic. However
062 - On Terminators and Terminating Things
Heyo, Fellow Zegineers!!
I'll be boch!! I mean ... we'll be back ... er, we're back!! Yeah, there we go. We're back with another fun filled ride through canyon of curiosity, the laboratory of lucidity, the couch of confusion? Wait, that last one's not very good. Let me try again.
We're BACK this week with an episode on one of our favorite sci fi characters, The Terminator (we love you Arnold)!! Yay. We've talked a lot about terminators in previous episodes, but always as an aside or a reference. We're a little obsessed. Brian even has recurring dreams about terminators. It's good and bad. We discuss it.
This week's convo dives deep into the history of the terminator on screen, the science fiction lore that we all love, and the modern tech that might make them possible. Or, are they here already? Nobody knows. Or do they. Yeah, we're feeling weird today. Stick with us.
James Cameron's absurdly successful career was rocket propelled by the first Terminator
061 - On Drones - Part 2 - The Complexity of Not Bumping Into Things
What's up, Zengineers?
Drones! Get it? Awkward...
Anyway, This is our second episode in a multi part series on Drones. In this one, we get technical into how things work inside these crazy machines. Mostly we're talking quadcopters, but many similar technologies are in the military aircraft of nation states and even your pocket, too (inside your phone).
We get into the form, fit, and function the major componets of RC Flight Control Systems like magenetometers for measuring direction within the Earth's magnetosphere, altimeters that calculate height above the earth using barametric pressure from the atmosphere, and acceleromters that mesure the force of gravity through via variable electrical currents through material deformation (allowing orientation in 3d space). GPS finally ties everything together to allow autonomous AIs to move freely around our planet, know exactly where they are in all three dimensions of physical space, while simultaneously knowing what
060 - with Gustaf Alstromer of Y Combinator - On Climate Change - Part 3 - Carbon Capture
059 - On Drones - Part 1 - Quadcopters and NASA Warp Drives
Well, hellow there, fellow Zengineers!
This week is our first in a series on Drones!! Yeah, those unbelievable fantasy vehicles that are everywhere now. Some are taking pictures, some are dropping bombs, some are taking pictures and dropping bombs ... but most are just buzzing around and scaring the hell out of grandma.
This episode is all about where drones came from and why they are here now? Mostly we're talking about the kinda drones we're all allowed to have ourselves ... Quadcopters. These are nifty little creatures that seem somewhat organic as they buzz around the skies and even our homes. Quadcopters are basically ubiquitous today, even though they were just magical internet memes sweeping the planet a few years ago.
In this conversation, we touch a little on the history of radio controlled (RC) vehicles and the development of the tech that got us to now. We dive into the mechaincs of flight and how planes differ from helicopters, t
058 - on Climate Change - Part 2 - Carbon, Cooking, and Chemistry
Hey Zengineers!
This is our second episode in a series on Climate Change. No one knows how many episodes this series may ultimately contain, but probably a lot! We've got loads to share, and we've got some killer guests coming up. We also find this topic important, timely, all encompassing, and endlessly interesting. Lots of what we talk about regularly is affected by and affects Climate Change. Wow! So much fun to be had, and so much important information to share!
In this episode, we get into a little of the nitty gritty science. What is happening chemically that is causing global climate change, global warming, droughts, floods, super storms, wildfires, pollution, extinctions and more? How are all these things possibly even connected? We've all heard about the Carbon Cycle of life and that there's too much CO2 in our atmosphere, but what does that mean? What is it doing, and how's it doing it? Also, wtf is Carbon and why is it so important?
057 with Kelly Gardner - On Storytelling and Everyday Inspiration
What's happenin' Zengineers?
Our guest this week is Kelly Gardner, a filmmaker, teacher, community leader, and friend. He has a great radio voice and does an awful lot of speaking for a living, so get ready for some serious ear candy, and a deep dive into the philosophy of story telling through the ages. This episode is a delightful conversation informed by the mind of a professional storyteller.
We kick off with Adam and Kelly reminiscing about film school and dabble a little into the evolution of film and camera technology, a series of monumental global shifts that have put the professional tools of storytelling into the hands and pockets of everyone on Earth. We discuss stories all around us, how we capture those stories, how we tell those stories, and how we use those stories to inspire the world.
Modern media moves so quickly, however, that the "hows" and "whys" are constantly morphing, forcing a change in our relationship with it as well. We close with som
Storj Storage and Solar Powered Mining Rigs w-Netwise Data CTO and Mechanical Engineer T Brian Jones
Hello Zengineers! (And SideChainers who backtracked to the pre-release episode!)
Surprise! And welcome to our first Zengineering Media spinoff podcast, The SideChain. It’s a Zengineering podcast, but all about blockchain tech, cryptocurrencies, and all that fun stuff.
As an intro this is the only time we’ll run one of these in the Zengineering feed. If you want to subscribe you can search for The Sidechain it in whatever podcast app you prefer, or start here: http://sidechainpodcast.com
This week we’ve got a quick intro for the Zengineering listeners with our guest, T. Brian Jones. He’s co-host of Zengineering Podcast, a mechanical engineer, a software engineer, and the CTO of Netwise Data.
We get into a conversation about a decentralized cloud storage project called Storj -- check it out at https://storj.io/
056 - with Mike Rosolio - On Privacy, Facebook and Cambridge Analytica
055 - On Climate Change - Part 1 - What the Fuck is It
Heyo Zengineers!!
Here we are again, at the precipice of adventure and intrigue. This week, we're kicking off a series of episodes on Climate Change and all that comes along with it. And, when we say ALL, we truly mean it. We're gonna give you a lot of different angles over the coming months so that we can all really appreciate what's going on, what already happened, what's NOT going on, what didn't happen, and what might or might not be going on in the future.
These are complicated questions, and to even begin a conversation about Climate Change we really do have to answer the big question, WTF is it? You probably have your own images that pop to mind ... storms, trash, smoke stacks, recycling, clouds of noxious gasses, overpopulation, traffic, farms, deforestation, failing reefs, etc. etc. etc... but what is REALLY affecting our climate? How do know what to focus on and what matters, right now?
Well a clear definitio
054 - with Jen Friel - On Blogs, Bartering, and Footslaves
053 - On AOL Instant Messenger - May it Rest in Peace
Hello Zengineer Friends!!
This week we're diving into text based digital communication!! Hooray. Yeah, we're excited too. What's that you ask? Texting? Yeah, kinda. Tweets? Yup, sorta. Email? Of course...
We've been inspired by the deprecation of one of the earliest forms of mass digital communication, AOL Instant Messanger (AIM). Yup, that one with the yellow running man icon. We both used it extensively as kids and into college, but whatever happened to it? Well, it was totally dicontinued just a little while ago, despite having previously enabled hundreds of millions of people to communicate every day.
In this episode, we dive into a little bit of the tech, a little bit of the nostalgia, and whole lot of the thrill of communicating with others. We trace the history of text based messages like AIM all the way into the weird world of today where you can send an "instant" digital communication to a space station in orbit, and get a response
052 - with Jonathan Sampson, on Brave, Basic Attention Token and Browser Security
What's up Zengineers!!??
It's that time again? What time you may ask? Time to get jiggy inside a high tech rabbit hole.
Our guest this week is Jonathan Sampson, programmer, world traveller, technologist, and Head of Developer Relations at Brave Browser (https://brave.com/). A new revolution of web based technology is upon us, and Jonathan is here to help us make sense of it, and discuss how the team behind Brave Browser is leading the way.
Brave is a new web browser (like Google Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Apple Safaris, or Mozilla Firefox) ... The difference is, this browser is aiming to totally alter the internet landscape. Through security by design, privacy as a business model, and tight integrations with blockchain and crypto-currencies, Brave browser is working to re-imagine the internet in its original incantation. This new creation rides the incredible tidal wave of internet that we all know and love, but also, at times, fear and loathe.