Alienating the Audience

Is the robot in "Ex Machina" a self-aware entity or just a stack of cold, complex algorithms which appear such? If we knew super intelligent A.I. could curse cancer (but also wanted to kill us) would we even attempt to build it? Ashland Viscosi and Jay Mutzafi rejoin to discuss. Topics covered: the Turing Test, "The Chinese Room" thought experiment, and "Mary in the Black and White Room."

Lord Martin Rees is a cosmologist, mathematician, and the Astronomer Royal of the United Kingdom. When he's not busy running the Centre for The Study of Existential Risk at Cambridge University, he's authoring books on science and astrophysics. He joins the show to discuss his latest work, "On the Future: Prospects for Humanity." Click here to see this and other books featured on the podcast!

We beat Hitler. Whew! But what if we hadn't? What if the Nazi regime had prevailed? Science fiction repeatedly approaches the topic, either to guess geopolitics or just to gawk at the horror of it. On today's episode Andrew Young and Josh Jennings join Heaton to talk about "The Man in the High Castle" by Philip K. Dick, "Fatherland" by Robert Harris, and "The Plot Against America" by Philip Roth.

Confronted by an alien probe which can only speak the language of an extinct species, Nick and Heaton must journey back in time to save Earth.

If an asteroid were poised to wipe out all life on Earth, would you still go to work? In Ben Winters' novel, a detective investigates a homicide in the pre-apocalypse, while many of his colleagues think it's pointless. Tim Sandefur returns to discuss "The Last Policeman," existentialism, and finding purpose in life against our inevitable mortality.

The Matrix is actually quite a lot deeper than simulation theory and some cool fight scenes with black trench coats. The Wachowski sisters put a modern, techy spin on Plato's Allegory of the Cave, with ample helpings of Descartes, Hilary Putnam's "Vat in a Brain" and Robert Nozick's "Experience Machine." Andrew Young and Nick Sperdute join Heaton to discuss.

Cormac McCarthy's "The Road" is simultaneously the most beautiful and hideous post-apocalyptic prose ever written. It follows a father and his son as they make their way through hellish wasteland, witnessing the horror of civilization's last wheeze en route. Josh Jennings joins to discuss.

Robin Hanson is an economist and the author of "The Age of Em: Work, Love and Life when Robots Rule the Earth." He joins the show to discuss his theory that in the future the most intelligence and productive people in society will be uploaded to computers and indefinitely duplicated, to supercharge the economy.

How does Star Trek handle gay characters, and what's the balance between representation and tokenism? Andrew Young rejoins the show to discuss homosexuality in the Star Trek universe. (And get into a bunch of digressions involving John Stossel's Emmy, and Cambodia.)

What would happen if you were reincarnated. . . to the exact same life you just lived? What would happen when you were reborn to the exact same life fifteen times in a row? Ashland Viscosi and Nick Sperdute rejoin for another book club episode about "The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August" by Claire North.

"The Black Hole" is Disney's 1979 answer to Star Wars--which didn't work out quite as well. It's a fun romp, involving telepaths, snarky robots, and a spacey Captain Nero. Although it has... some issues. Nick Sperdute and Andrew Young join to discuss on ATA's first inaugural Movie Club!

If you could put together a new series, drawing on characters from across the Star Trek franchise, what would you make? Paul Mattingly and Nick Sperdute join Heaton for a round of Starfleet Draft Picks.

Nick and Heaton must journey to the mysterious "Staten Island" as part of their quest, where they encounter a degenerate lizard man. Cast: Paul Mattingly as the Lizard Man, Andrew Heaton, and Nick Sperdute

Comedian Will Hines joins to discuss the themes and work of Philip K. Dick, the genius (and unstable) mind behind films like "Minority Report" and "Bladerunner," plus a slew of books and short stories.

Nick and Heaton must journey to the Replicant Homeworld in hopes of tracking down their Netflix password. Cast: Nick Sperdute, Andrew Heaton, and Kourtni Beebe as Fuschia Robotski

First, Jennings and Heaton compare their plans to beat the undead in their respective cities of Los Angeles and Wichita. Then, author Daniel Kraus comes on to discuss his new book "The Living Dead," which he co-authored with the late George Romero. Kraus interview at 1:03

It turns out, rumors of Nick's demise have been greatly exaggerated. Cast: Andrew Heaton, Nick Sperdute, and Jared Berman as Joeblobe

Mary Jo Pehl wrote and acted in MST3K, a comedy show which dug up old (terrible) sci fi flicks and then pelted jokes at it. Over the course of its run, MST3K pioneered a new comedic medium, and rose from a local access program, to a Comedy Central hit, to cult classic. Mary Jo joins Heaton to discuss how they put the show together, and the deeper side of the comedy that went into it.

Nick selflessly enters a deadly chamber in order to save the other inhabitants of the apartment from radiation. Cast: Andrew Heaton, Nick Sperdute, Jared Berman as Joeblobe, Kevin Delano as AJ-19

Nick and Heaton travel through an inter-dimensional portal they found, and emerge on a planet strikingly similar to the one from Star Trek: The Final Frontier Cast: Andrew Heaton, Nick Sperdute, and Andrew Young as the Spacehead god

When Nick and Heaton discovered an inter-dimensional doorway in the back of their refrigerator, they're able to step through and visit the winter world of Narnia. And meet one of its talking animal inhabitants. Cast: Andrew Heaton, Nick Sperdute, and Nick Polowy as Mr. Beaver

Heaton realizes he's actually been living inside of a virtual reality program, and must confront his actual reality. Cast: Andrew Heaton and Nick Sperdute

Stuck in lockdown and bored, Heaton and Nick download into a virtual Sim City universe to manage an entire city. Cast: Andrew Heaton, Nick Sperdute, and Andrew Young as Mayor Sinclair St. Lewis

Who had the best character arcs in Star Trek: Voyager, and what were the hardest ethical conundrums the Delta Quadrant lobbed at Captain Janeway? How does her command style compare to Kirk or Picard? Dr. Erin Macdonald and Andrew Young join Heaton to discuss the deeper side of everyone's favorite intrepid-class vessel.

If supervillains are so evil, why are they so captivating? Which crime lord would you serve under if you had to pick one? Former Marvel editor Tom Brennan and comic book aficionados Jeremiah Johnson and Nick Sperdute join Heaton to discuss the underlying mystique and purpose of supervillains. This file corrects for an audio issue in a previous upload.

The comedy sketches with Nick and Heaton at the end of the show will be their own segment from now on: "Interstellar Vagabonding: With Nick & Heaton." In this episode, a detective shows up at the apartment to investigate Nick's untimely death. And he thinks it was murder!

If "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" is about the end of the Cold War, what's it's position on the Soviet Union? Tim Sandefur challenges Heaton on the underlying morality of the movie and whether or not it's a commie apologism, leading to a long-form discussion about its merits and underlying purpose.

Science fiction has a more complex analysis of religion than either "good" or "bad." Yonatan Huber and Josh Jennings join Heaton to discuss how scifi authors tackle it, and how the nature of religious critique has changed between centuries.

Today we mount a defense of Star Trek's most underrated films! Tim Sandefur rejoins the program, along with Aeon Skoble, to discuss the franchise's least-appreciated flicks: "The Motion Picture", "The Voyage Home", and "The Final Frontier." Afterwards Nick Sperdute, Andrew Young, and Heaton go on another intergalactic comedy adventure.

The foundational elements of Star Wars are deeply mythological, influenced by Joseph Campbell's book "The Hero with a Thousand Faces." Professor Ryan Slesinger joins the show to explain the Hero's Journey, archetypes, and the deepest elements of the whole saga.

Fermi's Paradox brings up a troubling issue: if even a small fraction of stars have planets with intelligent life, much of it should be more advanced than us--so why have aliens never come by to say hello? Do civilizations all blow themselves up? Are we next? Josh Jennings joins Heaton to suss out the paradox, and go over possible explanations of alien absence.

Picard never left the Nexus. We caught the wrong Khan. Star Trek fandom is full of theories casting doubt on characters and plots as we know them. Brilliant or ridiculous, fan theories at least make us look at the franchise in a different light. John Krikorian of the Trek Profiles podcast and comedian Nick Sperdute join Heaton to discuss.

From "Futurama" to "Demolition Man," cryonically suspending bodies for future reanimation by tomorrow's scientists is a mainstay of science fiction. Dennis Kowalksi, President of the Cryonics Institute, joins the show to go past the tropes and explain the mechanics, science, and hopes of cryonic freezing.

Battlestar Galactica kicked off just three years after the 9/11 attacks, and tackles everything from theocratic warfare to stem cell research and waterboarding. Comedian Andrew Young joins Heaton to discuss the series, it's relentless tension and fear of being compromised by undetected enemies, and how absolutely badass Saul Tigh is.

John Varley's novel "Steel Beach" portrays a future brimming with attractive immortals living in amusement parks on the Moon--yet the main character contemplates suicide. Absent strife, can humans find purpose? Tim Sandefur joins Heaton to discuss John Varley, utopianism, and man's search for meaning.

Robert Zubrin is the head of the Mars Society and author of "The Case for Mars." He joins Heaton along with special guest co-host Andrew Mayne to discuss how to get to the Red Planet using existing technology, and the implications of finding life once we're there.

Today we speak with physicist Stephen Granade about robots! How to build giant arm-swingin' robots, how we can automate them, and where we stand on Mind Machine Interface technology in case we want to pilot said robots ourselves.

"The Girl With All the Gifts" is a brilliant spin on otherwise stale zombie tropes. Nick Sperdute and Ashland Viscosi join the program for a spoiler-free discussion about the novel. Plus a refresher on Greek mythology, how John Locke and Thomas Hobbes pertain to Armageddon, and the time Heaton met Meatloaf.

Deep Space Nine masterfully tackled complex plot lines, moral ambiguity, and deep themes over its arc. Tom Merritt, host of the Sword & Laser podcast and scifi novelist, joins Heaton to suss out the deeper meaning of Star Trek's finest series.

"Black Mirror," a dark television series about the grim potential of technology, explores issues from social media to immortality. Comedian Myq Kaplan joins the show to look at the otherwise bleak satire through the dual lenses of optimism and Buddhism.

Nick Sperdute and Josh Jennings join Heaton for a rousing game of "First Officer, Holodeck Buddy, Red Shirt" using Star Trek characters from across the franchise.

We'll probably get to Mars a lot sooner if people think they can make a buck off of it. Andrew Mayne, author of the book "How to Make Money on Mars" joins the show to discuss what feasible, if not lucrative, private Mars missions might look like.

AJ West and science consultant Mika McKinnon ("Stargate Atlantis" and "Stargate Universe") join the program to pitch Stargate as bingable show, and suss out its themes and triumphs.

In a special just-for-kicks live episode, Star Trek consultants Dr. Erin Macdonald and Dr. Mohamed Noor return to the show to play Starfleet Draft Picks: If you could staff a new vessel with characters from any Star Trek series, who would you select?

Andrew Maynard is a scientist, professor, and expert in nanotechnology. He joins the show to answer: how likely is it that microscopic robots will go awry and turn the world into gray goo? What cool inventions are on the horizon? And finally, what are the good and bad portrayals of nanotechnology in science fiction?

"The Day of the Triffids," by John Wyndham, arguably kicked off the modern zombie genre, in which protagonists flee shambling cannibals in an urban wasteland. Josh Jennings joins Heaton to review the book, and ask: what is so fascinating about zombies on a primal level?

Hugh Howey is the author of "Wool," the New York Times bestselling thriller set in a massive post-apocalyptic bunker. He joins the show to talk about his book, the nature of existential threats, and why optimists are the ultimate heretics.

Why is Darth Vader "Lawful Evil" or Ramsay Bolton "Chaotic Evil"? Captains Kirk and Picard are both good, but only one of them is "Neutral." The D&D Alignment System comprehensively explains the moral temperaments of any scifi character you can lob at it! New York comedians (and long-time D&D veterans) Chris Scott and Nick Sperdute join to explain.

What would first contact with an alien civilization look like? Could we handle it? If we could, would it even be possible to communicate with a vastly different (or superior) intelligence? Peter Boghossian, Professor of Philosophy at Portland State University, joins to geek out about aliens and science fiction.

Brian Dunning, host of the Skeptoid Podcast, joins Heaton to talk about all things time travel--the best films, TV shows and books, plus how to get around pesky time travel paradoxes, if we should try to go back and kill Hitler, and the most interesting period of history to return to as a tourist.