The Local Maximum with Max Sklar

Max talks to João Graça, CTO of multilingual translation platform Unbabel to talk about the past, present, and future of translation technology and the role of machine learning. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today's discussion centers on recent speculation about long term population transfers between the city, the suburbs, and the countryside, and the issues facing cities in America right now. We also talk about the rise of Amazon Go stores, and why and how this technology might spread to other types of stores around the world. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max checks in with Kristen Sosulski, NYU Professor and Author of Data Visualization Made Simple. They discuss some of the basic principles of data visualization, and some common approaches and pitfalls. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

This companion to episode 125 on the Electoral College starts with an interview of Ernie Dronenberg in California who was a member of the Electoral College in 1980!Afterwards, Max talks about different models of voting systems in social choice theory: Rankings, Condorcet Methods, Condorcet Paradoxes, Monotone Boolean Functions, and Shapley values.This ends with a discussion of the ways in which mathematical models of voting do not match the social dynamics of a real election, the positive properties of the electoral college, and what reforms to look for.localmaxradio.com/126 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today begins a 2 part series on the Electoral College, and the way in which the President of the United States is elected. Tara Ross is a nationally recognized author and expert on the electoral college, and her recent book, “Why We Need the Electoral College” provides a justification and defense of the electoral college system. Today’s interview covers:- Some of the mechanics of a presidential election- Responses to some common criticisms of the electoral college- Comparisons between the electoral college and other electoral systems, both internationally and within the United States Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s discussion centers around the trend of the big social networks (Twitter and Facebook) to fact-check certain accounts. Can fact checking be fair, and is it consistent with open discussion? This episode also covers the activist culture and pressures faces by companies and workplaces today. Also, a new image processing ML algorithm which generates an image from a pixelated version has promise and pitfalls.localmaxradio.com/124 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s episode features Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, author of the book Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who we Really Are. Discussion topics include research on NBA demographics, horse racing, Google search data and Coronavirus, and validating Google analytics.localmaxradio.com/123 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

This episode focuses on life in 2020 with pandemics, lockdowns, protests, curfews, looting, and more. Max gives an update on New York city. At the end of the show, hospital administrator Ben Geboe calls in with his pandemic experiences.localmaxradio.com/122 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max and Aaron return for a June news update. In addition to providing a first hand account of the protests and disturbances in Fort Greene, they update us on:- The private space race, SpaceX’s Launch, and Future Moon Landings- The heist of 20 million in Bitcoin by a Westchester teen, and what you can do to protect yourself- The breakdown of social media and the war between Twitter and Donald Trumplocalmaxradio.com/121 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max makes his case on the ineffectiveness of lockdowns. Concepts of the week include confounders and colliders, which are subjects in causality theory, and Simpon’s Paradox where correlations flip based on how the data is bucketed.localmaxradio.com/120 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s guest is Brian Blais, a professor of Science at Bryant University. His approach to teaching statistical inference includes taking the Bayesian approach instead of delegating it to an advanced or elective topic. We talk about the Bayesian vs Frequentist debate, how to navigate the disconnect between them, and the role of imagination when discovering truth. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

The Local Maximum cover a wide range of topics in this Local Maximum May news update with Max Sklar and cohost Aaron. Max said “this is one of the most fun episodes to do, but all the best stuff is at the end so you better listen through”.Concept of the week is the separation of test and training set in machine learning. We discuss why it is important, how it separates learning and memorization, and where the grey areas are.Other Topics include:- The Bitcoin halving - a once-in-4-years watershed moment for the fledgling currency- Revealing information from coronavirus antibody tests- A 5 year old driver in Utah- The predictive power of Demolition Man and other movies (at the end) Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s Local Maximum features Chistian Hubbs, host of the Artificially Intelligent podcast. We talk about the most recent examples of AI Hype, more on the Coronavirus models, and the nuanced problems of listening to the experts. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Cytometrist and author of the new Machine Learning text (ML with R the tidyverse, and mlr) joins the Local Maximum to tell us about some of the biological applications of machine learning and making it more accessible to all.We cover model evaluation, unsupervised learning, and the curse of dimensionality.Podlocalmax19 is the promo code to get 40% off all books at manning.comlocalmaxradio.com/116 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today Max dives into the Coronavirus pandemic models. He talk generally about statistical models of this sort, and how epidemiological models are usually performed. Then, he finds that the models followed by the state and federal governments do nothing of the sort!Also:- What actions should individuals and governments take?- Do lockdowns affect viral spread?- What's the story with asymptomatic people?localmaxradio.com/115 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

The Local Maximum takes a break from continuing Coronavirus coverage to talk about larger social trends. Stanford University researchers proposal for a smart toilet goes too far as it scans your from the bottom up for login credentials. Established media throws shade at podcasting as a dangerous medium, even as they are guilty of the same crimes. Max explains the necessity of the long form podcast in our fractured information news economy. Joe Biden starts a podcast - meaning that this could be the start of a new era of communications tools in presidential elections. The New York Magazine review says it’s too much Biden. Welcome to 2020!localmaxradio.com/114 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

The annualish Local Maximum predictions panel continues virtually even though under quarantine. They make future predictions, but also review past predictions for today’s time. Max gives a Coronavirus update from New York. Here are some questions that we tackle:- Will Urban or Rural spaces grow in the future?- Why did some virtual reality predictions fail, and what can turn that platform around?- Will doctors finally treat patients remotely on a regular basis?- How long will we be stuck in our homes?localmaxradio.com/113 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Naomi Brockwell returns to the Local Maximum to share her knowledge of recent events. Naomi was reporting and sounding the alarm of Coronavirus before almost all of the media, but many dismissed her warnings. The discussion also includes:- Government reaction and mismanagement of the pandemic as well as misinformation- Ways to stay calm and protect yourself- The role of Censorship in preventing an informed public- Proposed laws against internet privacy and encryption (the EARN IT act) that can make us less secure online- The future of bitcoin and cryptocurrency Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max does a solo show during hist third week of staying at home during the Coronavirus outbreak. He covers:- The large amounts of stories about the virus coming in from all corners, and how it's difficult to evaluate them- The current situation in New York City, both everyday life, and policy- How we're getting set up to do more video chats and calls, some ideas for rigging up a home studio, and the popularity of zoom- The mathematics behind wagers and risks- Listener email on Logical Probabilitylocalmaxradio.com/111 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

As Max is holed up at home, he talks to Aaron about the current coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic.localmaxradio.com/110 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s guest is Adam Kapelner, Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Queens College, to talk about the nature of probability, some of the theoretical and philosophical foundations of statistical inference, and his research into some basic questions of experimental design. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max will tell you his definition of probability - which is his secret to clearly thinking about truth and inference - on the heels of last week’s discussion. Also some updates:- What’s the difference between the Google Photos leak and the iCloud leak? What is end-to-end encryption?- Now stories are coming out about Venezuela that contradict the positive stories being posted a few weeks ago- Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth want corporate board members to answer to other interests besides shareholders, such as employees. Bloomberg says this is throwing away capitalism. Who is right?localmaxradio.com/108 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Economist Bob Murphy shares his insight into Ludwig von Mises’s ideas on Probability from the mid 20th century treatise Human Action. They work to square this with Max’s conception of probability in his own experience as a machine learning engineer. Topics include:- The differences between subjective and objective probability (and case vs class probability in Human Action)- Use of probability in decision making- The controversial meaning of subjective probability- Whether insurance companies are gambling- Contrasting visions of Bayesian Inference from the 20th to the 21st centuries.This is a fascinating discussion that involves the clashing of different schools of thought, which is by no means definitive and will be expanded upon in later episodes!localmaxradio.com/107 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s news update focuses on the 15 years of Google Maps and Location technology in general. Max relates to his experience on Stickymap and Foursquare. We talk about Satellite Imagery, Mapquest, and recent efforts to create digital models of cities on the ground level using Machine Learning on Photos. Finally, we talk about what the augmented reality City might look like.Other topics include a recent spate of articles about Venezuela selling off part of it’s nationalized company, and whether the socialist revolution has run its course in that country. Max also coins the 4 seasons of cryptocurrency.localmaxradio.com/106 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s guest is Sophie Carr, a mathematician who specializes in Bayesian Inference and Aerodynamics. Max asks about her analogies for wrapping one’s head around Bayesian Inference, and applying it in the real world.Max also follows up on Encryption laws. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today’s news update covers issues related to big data and privacy. We start with how big data from public information is being used to track and fight coronavirus, followed by the possibility that the car of the future will be spying on you. Finally, we get into a proposal in Congress to criminalize encryption technology, which will make our data less secure. Finally, the New York Times puts out another Bitcoin hitjob, complete with inaccurate links about criminal activity. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Dave Rubin stops in to The Local Maximum to discuss his new venture called Locals, a subscription-based community solution that gives power to creators, not platforms. He discusses the current problems with our online platforms and communication systems on “big tech” and his approach to fixing it.Dave Rubin is a talk show host, comedian, and TV personality. He is the host of The Rubin Report, a talk show about big ideas and free speech, heralded for it's politically incorrect and open approach to discussing complex issues and current events. The show has garnered a huge fan base from across the world, by having honest conversations about important topics in a thoughtful and candid manner rarely seen in mainstream media. The show is a top political YouTube channel and leading political podcast on iTunes.localmaxradio.com/103 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max give his take on Logical Induction and the construction of mathematical objects, a topic that he's been interested in for years. Topics include:- Intro to Mathematical Induction- Tradition Induction vs Ordinal Induction vs Epslion Induction- The Dominos analogy- Logical arguments vs Physical Arguments- Problems with compound implications in the real world- Spotting arguments that hide compound errorslocalmaxradio.com/102 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

These days there’s a lot of angst about job loss due to automation, AI, and Robotics. This led to a formal debate at the SoHo forum in New York about the implications of robotics and automation technology on the job market and what our response should be. Today’s guest, Anthony Sameroff, successfully argued against the resolution which predicts widespread joblessness due to automation. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max talks about all the exciting developments from 100 episodes of producing The Local Maximum Podcast. He also answers listener questions relating to the first 100 episodes, the podcast as a whole, and where it can go in the future.localmaxradio.com/100 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Aaron and I start by responding to listener emails, and talking about how our predictions are faring on Metaculus and PredictIt. Then we go over our short list of technological trends of the decade which includes:- The ubiquity of mobile and cloud computing- Consolidation of Social Networks- Status of Wearables and Audio- Populist Movements of all kinds fuels by mass communication- Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency- AI, Machine Learning, and Personal Assistants- Success and Failures of the “Uber for X” trend Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Alex Andorra, host of the new podcast Learning Bayesian Statistics joins The Local Maximum today to talk about these fascinating issues:- The growing role of Bayesian Analysis in Science and Technology- How the pollsters and journalists cover election data, and how it can be improved- Ways to look at election polls from a Bayesian standpoint- Strategic voting, comparative political systems, and social choice theory- Approaches to explaining these topics in audio (podcast) form!localmaxradio.com/98 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today we dive into the world of Computer Science with David Kopec, author of Classic Computer Science Problems in Python. Topics include misconceptions about computer science, what the general public should know, stumbling blocks for students, graph algorithms, and genetic algorithms.localmaxradio.com/97 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Ep. 96 - Climate Protests, Pascal’s Wager, and the Duplicitous Science PressMax gives a first hand account of the climate protests during the Yale Harvard football game which delayed the game by almost an hour. He breaks down the arguments made by climate activists, and relates it to Pascal’s Wager, a concept in probabilities that relates to infinite values, and how it can be abused. Max and Aaron discuss a couple of news articles on scientific discoveries and break down how they analyze them.localmaxradio.com/96 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Panelists Craig Lorentzen and Foursquare Founder Dennis Crowley discuss inspiration, lessons learned, and career shifts they’ve obtained from playing video games as kids and as adults.localmaxradio.com/95 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today Max talks about his long-term fascination with the concept of infinity, including several different forms and definitions that infinity can take on. Then, we do a deep dive into what it means to extend the real number line and divide by zero. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

In our second November news update, we cover articles and stories on:- The consolidation of the internet- The dispute over whether Facebook centralized or decentralized speech- Calls to “re-decentralize” the internet with personal servers, and the practicality of that- How podcasting has been caught up in some internet trends, and left out of others.- A/B testing and shrinking emphasis on itAlso, we go off on a bunch of tangents!localmaxradio.com/93 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

This news update covers Ranked Choice Voting in New York City, Twitter’s decision to ban political advertising as we enter the 2020 political campaign season, and Waymo and Uber fighting it out for dominance in the self driving car market. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max talks to Adweek reporter Shoshana Wodinsky about the fraud, the scandal, the propaganda, that goes out through online ad industry.localmaxradio.com/91 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

In this solo show, Max talks about Narrative building, and the confirmation bias that can be associated with it. To illustrate his points:The recent hearings in Congress of Mark Zuckerberg over the Libra ProjectA professor who claims to have the winning system to predict the presidential electionStefan Molyneux’s use of a combination of statistical and linguistic tricks to build his society narrative.localmaxradio.com/90 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max interviews Vit Jedlicka, president and founder of Liberland, which is a project to create a new country on unclaimed territory between Serbia and Croatia.Liberland was founded as a free republic with the goal of building new institutions to safeguard personal and economic freedom in a way that isn’t being done in any country including the western democracies today.We discuss the legal and organizational challenges in pursuing this project, as well as the technologies - blockchain, mobile communication, and geo-location - that make this possible.Also present is Thomas Walls, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Liberland.Localmaxradio.com/89 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Concept of the Week is Occam's Razor, along with other related ideas like Hanlon's Razor.- The Dragon in My Garage- Fermi Estimation- Why your iPhone is probably not recording all your conversations; but if it was what how it might do it.- How early is too early for Halloween? Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

This week’s guest is Mark Ryan, author of the upcoming book Deep Learning with Structured Data.We cover:- How machine learning has come to dominate Artificial Intelligence over the last few decades- How the deep learning, which can solve problems like natural language understanding and image recognition - is becoming more and more practical, and gets results even in more traditional datasets- How to learn to become a machine learning engineer through online tutorials and frameworks- Where this is going in the future, and discussions on superintelligence and the technological singularityGet 40% off the book with the discount code podlocalmax19, at Manning Publishing: https://www.manning.com/books/deep-learning-with-structured-datalocalmaxradio.com/87 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

On the news that Amazon wants to put Alexa into wearable devices, we discuss the idea that the focus in consumer tech has moved to sound, including voice controls, augmented reality, and podcasting.Max gives an update on the Betaworks Hearing Voices conference that highlighted the latest tech, demos, and ideas in this area.Plus - we follow up on previous episodes, including Aaron’s predictions on the Metaculus engine, and how Max missed a subway stop because he was reading Reddit.localmaxradio.com/86 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Part 2 of Max's discussion with Anthony Aguirre, cofounder of the Metaculus prediction engine. Topics include:- The difference between making short term, long term, and theoretical predictions- The human mind and human emotions - as imperfect as they are - being world's best tool for prediction making- Calibrating your probabilities, on an individual and group level- Predictions of humor-detecting AI, waking up after being cryogenically frozen, and political developmentslocalmaxradio.com/85metaculus.com Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max talks to cosmologist Anthony Aguirre about the fundamental nature of the universe, with the following questions:Is the Space Discrete or Continuous?How does our physics differ from Virtual Reality, or the model we have in our brain?What is Fourier space?What does it mean that the universe is made of information?Is there a fundamental bit?In most cases, things aren’t what they seem! Check out Anthony’s Book on the subject: Cosmological Koans.localmaxradio.com/84 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Max follows through on his promise to take down the big lie about Bitcoin - that it’ll consume all our energy and destroy the earth. He goes through the simple math that shows this won’t be a problem, and talk about how Bitcoin can encourage better energy technology.Jack Ma and Elon Musk were recently in a debate/discussion about AI in Shanghai, and they are in such opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to their philosophical outlook! We talk about what they said, and where they agreed.Finally, Max starts by responding to Gab CEO Andrew Torba, who threw shade at Foursquare in a recent blogpost.localmaxradio.com/83 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Henry Abramson, Dean of Touro College in Brooklyn, tells us about how he took his Jewish History Lectures online. We talk a bit about the historical shift in communication, information, and education that the internet and YouTube represent and his dealings with feedback, trolling, and algorithms.Finally, we learn about his biggest influences, and some specific lectures and why the internet has gravitated towards them.localmaxradio.com/82henryabramson.com Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

Ever feel like there’s something wrong with all the news and information you consume, even when you get it from professional scientists and doctors?We tackle the reproducibility crisis in science today starting with taking a look at some mudslinging between high profile online academics Andrew Gelman and Cass Sunstein.We also talk about the probable over-publishing of studies in stock market prediction and elsewhere, and scientists reading too much when interpreting results to fit their narrative and ideology.localmaxradio.com/81 Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe

The recent sale of the creative and niche site Tumblr to Wordpress from Verizon shows an over 99% loss of value from it’s original sale to Yahoo in 2013. We look back at the phases Tumblr’s been through, and how this fits with the larger social, technological, and business trends. Get full access to The Local Maximum at localmaximum.substack.com/subscribe