Very Bad Wizards

Panpsychism didn't give us river spirits or mischievous sootballs, so this time we go straight to the source - a defense of animism, and in a top 10 analytic philosophy journal. Could a failed argument for the existence of God establish the existence of trees and mountains with "interiority" and "social characteristics"? Tamler wants to believe, but is the argument that'll push him over the edge? Plus – speaking of top journals, a doozy of social psych article: Is forgiveness better than revenge at rehumanizing the self? Let's check the voodoo dolls to find out. Tamler is delighted by David's reaction to this one. Sponsored By: Super Speciosa: Try kratom now and get 20% off. Go to GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and get 20% off with promo code VBW. That's GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and use promo code VBW for 20% off. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW I Am BIO podcast: Powerful stories of biotechnology breakthroughs, the people they help, and the global problems they solve. Hosted by BIO President & CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath. Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Common Consent Argument for the Existence of Nature Spirits by Tiddy Smith Peoples, H. C., Duda, P., & Marlowe, F. W. (2016). Hunter-gatherers and the origins of religion. Human Nature, 27(3), 261-282. Ingold, T. (2006). Rethinking the animate, re-animating thought. Ethnos, 71(1), 9-20.

David and Tamler conclude their discussion of "The Trial," Franz Kafka's darkly comic vision of an opaque and impenetrable bureaucracy that comes for us all in the end. Plus we interrupt our previously scheduled opening segment because apparently something happened at the Oscars last week. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW Super Speciosa: Try kratom now and get 20% off. Go to GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and get 20% off with promo code VBW. That's GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and use promo code VBW for 20% off. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Trial - Wikipedia Kafka's "The Trial" (translated by Breon Mitchell) [amazon.com affiliate link] Break Music | You Will Not by peez

David and Tamler wander through the bewildering dream-like world of Franz Kafka's "The Trial." In part one of a two-part discussion we discuss the circumstances of its publication, the various interpretative approaches that can be taken to the novel, and all the ways that Kafka's prose gets under your skin, making you feel what's happening even if you don't fully understand it. Recorded in the decidedly un-Kafka-esque location of Nosara, Costa Rica – thanks to the Harmony Hotel for having us back! Plus – Social Psychologists for Peace send an open letter to Vladimir Putin urging him to reverse course on the tragic invasion of Ukraine. Putin seems intent on toppling the Ukranian government but has he considered Sherif et al (1961), Tajfel (1977), Festinger (1954), and Brewer (1991)? Sponsored By: Super Speciosa: Try kratom now and get 20% off. Go to GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and get 20% off with promo code VBW. That's GetSuperLeaf.com/VBW and use promo code VBW for 20% off. Promo Code: VBW I Am BIO podcast: Powerful stories of biotechnology breakthroughs, the people they help, and the global problems they solve. Hosted by BIO President & CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath. BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Psychologists want to talk Putin out of war with open letter - Raw Story - Celebrating 18 Years of Independent Journalism The Trial - Wikipedia The Trial by Franz Kafka (translation by Breon Mitchell) [amazon affiliate link]

It's the topic voted on by our beloved Patreon patrons, panpsychism! David and Tamler delve into the resurgent debate over whether consciousness is the fundamental stuff that makes up the universe. We hoped we might be entering Miyazaki land - river spirits, benevolent radishes, a universal mind. But is this just the same old philosophy of mind debate with different words? Are there any stakes to this debate or is it purely terminological? Plus – we answer some last-minute questions from listeners on dissertations, Ukraine, pseudoscience, and the music from "The Shield." Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: "The Shield" Opening Music [YouTube] Strawson, G. "Realistic monism: Why physicalism entails panpsychism" Chalmers, D. "Panpsychism and Panprotopsychism" Exchange between Galen Strawson and Daniel Dennett on the 'denial' of consciousness.

Many of us think that art is subjective, but at the same time it seems like some artistic judgments are better than others. Do you think Crash deserved to receive an award for Best Picture? Did you like Season 2 of Ted Lasso? Well you're wrong. So how do we reconcile these two conflicting attitudes about art? David and Tamler turn to David Hume's classic essay Of the Standard of Taste (link in notes) for help. Will Pizarro finally see the error of his ways on Straw Dogs? Plus a doozy of a medical ethics paper – should we allow people to change their legal age if it doesn't match their "biological" and "emotional" age? Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting BetterHelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Räsänen, J. (2019). Moral case for legal age change. Journal of medical ethics, 45(7), 461-464. Of the Standard of Taste by David Hume (pdf) Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy section on Hume's Essay

David and Tamler sink deeper and deeper into Melancholia, Lars von Trier's harrowing and stunningly beautiful depiction of depression, anxiety, and a wedding reception that just won't end. They bring Freud's "Mourning and Melancholia" into the conversation and confront the question: what if the depressed and anxious people are right? Plus Whoopi, M&Ms, baby brain waves, Rogan – we empty out the opening segment Slack. Note: We recorded the opening segment before the latest development in the Joe Rogan story, but we briefly address that in the promo segment right after the break. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The impact of a poverty reduction intervention on infant brain activity | PNAS Landmark Poverty Experiment Shows Extra Money Changes Babies' Brains M&Ms characters redesigned for a "more dynamic, progressive world," Mars announces - CBS News Mourning and Melancholia - Wikipedia Melancholia (2011 film) - Wikipedia

We think racism is wrong but what about "lookism" – a bias that favors attractive people over unattractive ones? If it's wrong to judge people by the color of their skin, what about judging people for something that is only skin deep? We talk about two pieces today, a forthcoming philosophy article by William D'Allesandro "Is it Bad to Prefer Attractive Partners" and the Ted Chiang story "Liking What You See: A Documentary." Plus we select the topic finalists for our beloved Patreon listener-selected episode. Interesting list this time around! Sponsored By: GiveWell: GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $250 (until funds last). Promo Code: verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: William D'Alessandro, Is It Bad to Prefer Attractive Partners? - PhilPapers Liking What You See: A Documentary - Wikipedia

David and Tamler confront their shadows and dive into Carl Jung's theory of the collective unconscious. What are the central differences between Jung and Freud? What did Jung mean by archetypes and what's his evidence for their centrality in the human psyche? How can we integrate elements of our unconscious and avoid projecting them onto the world? Can Jung's ideas tell us anything about culture wars and relationships? Plus, an fMRI study on offensive humor – I thought you were stronger Batman! Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW GiveWell: GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $250 (until funds last). Promo Code: verybadwizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Bartolo, A., Ballotta, D., Nocetti, L., Baraldi, P., Nichelli, P. F., & Benuzzi, F. (2021). Uncover the Offensive Side of Disparagement Humor: An fMRI Study. Frontiers in Psychology, 5268. — Uncover the Offensive Side of Disparagement Humor: An fMRI Study The Concept of the Collective Unconscious by Carl Jung Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 9 (Part 1): Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious — Tamler and David read Chapters 1-4 of this volume. (PDFs can be found if you dig around online, but we didn't want to link to any sketchy sites). Weird Studies Episode 73: Carl Jung and the Power of Art, Part One

David and Tamler dive into David Foster Wallace's celebrated and surprisingly earnest Kenyon College commencement speech "This is Water". How can we escape the prison and prism of our (literally) self-centered perspective? Can we choose to adjust our natural default settings, take a break from our running inner monologue, and pay attention to what's in front of us right now? Is DFW appealing to Buddhist ideas or something more general that you can be found across all spiritual traditions? Plus we ask the AI ethics program "Ask Delphi" some tough moral questions (spoiler alert: "just the tip" is "rude"), and almost get into a big fight about the potential of AI ethical robots (but we're saving that argument for a future episode). Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW GiveWell: GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $250 (until funds last). Promo Code: verybadwizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Artificial intelligence turns racist after learning from humans | Metro News Ask Delphi Very Bad Wizards Episode 91: Rage Against the Machines This is Water by David Foster Wallace (Full Transcript and Audio) - Farnam Street

First, it's the return of the annual drunken Thanksgiving segment! Tamler and based wicked stepmom Christina Hoff Sommers fight about JFK, systematic racism, corporations, and how to pronounce valium. (We find more common ground than usual though on Covid and Havana Syndrome.) Then podcast auteur Barry Lam joins David and Tamler to talk about David Lewis on time travel, the new season of Barry's excellent podcast Hi-Phi Nation, and then a deep dive on maybe the best time travel movie of all time - Shane Carruth's mind-melting cult classic "Primer." Special Guests: Barry Lam and Christina Hoff Sommers. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW GiveWell: GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $250 (until funds last). Promo Code: verybadwizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Christina Hoff Sommers | American Enterprise Institute - AEI Barry Lam | Vassar College Hi-Phi Nation – A show about philosophy that turns stories into ideas. David Lewis (philosopher) - Wikipedia Primer (film) - Wikipedia Primer (2004) - Illustrated explanation [YouTube.com]

David and Tamler talk about the often rancorous debate among cognitive scientists and evolutionary psychologists over whether the mind is modular -- composed of discrete systems responsible for vision, reasoning, cheater detection, sexual jealousy, and so on. David and Tamler (mostly David) describe the history of the debate, then dive into a recent paper (Pietraszewski & Wertz, 2021) arguing that virtually all the disagreement is the product of a conceptual and methodological confusion â€" that the two sides are operating with different levels of analysis and talking past each other as a result. Plus, we REALLY tried not to talk about the University of Austin thing for the whole opening segment. We had another topic lined up and everything. It just didn’t work out. Cicero would understand. Bari Weiss stans might wanna skip to the main segment. Sponsored By: GiveWell: GiveWell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. We recommend a small number of charities that can do an incredible amount of good. Your donation can make a meaningful difference for some of the poorest people in the world. First-time donors will have their donation matched up to $250 (until funds last). Promo Code: verybadwizards Chess.com: Join chess.com today--you can learn to play, take some lessons to improve, brush up on your game by having the computer analyze your mistakes and recommend lessons to strengthen your skills, and play against your friends or in tournaments. It's free to join, but if you use our link they'll know we sent you! Promo Code: verybad BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The University of Austin (UATX) Modularity of Mind (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Pietraszewski, David, and Annie E. Wertz. "Why evolutionary psychology should abandon modularity." Perspectives on Psychological Science (2021). Break Music: I Am Blue by peez [soundcloud.com]

VBW favorite Paul Bloom joins us to talk about the pleasures of suffering, flow states, Sisyphus, meaning, and dating questions. Check out his new book The Sweet Spot which comes out today! Plus what are NFTs and why does everyone hate them? Sponsored By: Chess.com: Join chess.com today--you can learn to play, take some lessons to improve, brush up on your game by having the computer analyze your mistakes and recommend lessons to strengthen your skills, and play against your friends or in tournaments. It's free to join, but if you use our link they'll know we sent you! Promo Code: verybad BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Sweet Spot by Paul Bloom Break Music: Who Needs Me by peez

David and Tamler dive into Ingmar Bergman's 1966 masterpiece Persona, a film about two (?) women, Elisabet, a famous stage actress who has stopped speaking, and Alma the chatty young nurse assigned to care for her at an island cottage. What happens when the roles we play as parents, spouses, friends, and colleagues start to feel like dishonest performances, an endless series of desperate lies? Can we escape to an inner sanctum of truth and authenticity? Or is that putting on another mask, playing yet another part, telling a different set of lies? We offer some tentative interpretations of this rich and baffling film. Get that boy a normal sized sheet! Plus we share some thoughts about the Chappelle special… Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Chess.com: Join chess.com today--you can learn to play, take some lessons to improve, brush up on your game by having the computer analyze your mistakes and recommend lessons to strengthen your skills, and play against your friends or in tournaments. It's free to join, but if you use our link they'll know we sent you! Promo Code: verybad Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Closer (2021 film) - Wikipedia Dave Chappelle's 'The Closer' Is Not a Simple Victim-Bully Story - The Atlantic Persona (1966 film) - Wikipedia Persona movie review & film summary (1967) | Roger Ebert Break Music: You Have Love by peez

David and Tamler don black turtlenecks and light up a couple of Gauloises to talk about Jean Paul Sartre's classic essay "Existentialism is a Humanism." Why are choices so fundamental to our experience? What does Sartre mean when he says that "existence precedes essence"? Why does he try to shoehorn universalizability into a view that's clearly hostile to it? Plus, how much free time is good for you? Is that even the right question? Sponsored By: Chess.com: Join chess.com today--you can learn to play, take some lessons to improve, brush up on your game by having the computer analyze your mistakes and recommend lessons to strengthen your skills, and play against your friends or in tournaments. It's free to join, but if you use our link they'll know we sent you! Promo Code: verybad BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Too Much Free Time Isn't Actually Bad For You Sharif, M. A., Mogilner, C., & Hershfield, H. E. (2021). Having too little or too much time is linked to lower subjective well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Jean-Paul Sartre - Wikipedia Existentialism is a Humanism by Jean-Paul Sartre Thrownness - Wikipedia

David and Tamler wind their way through the long-requested "Meditations on Moloch" by Scott Alexander, a comprehensive account of the coordination problems (personified by Allan Ginsberg's demon-entity Moloch) that lead to human misery and values tossed out the window. Does Alexander's rationalist conception of human nature ignore the work of VBW favorites like Joe Henrich and Robert Frank? Is he a little too friendly to the neo-social Darwinism view of some guy named Nick Land? And oh no, why does he have to go transhumanist at the end?! Plus, we talk about the unique comic vision of Norm Macdonald and why we loved him. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Norm Macdonald's Roast of Bob Saget Norm Macdonald's Moth Joke - YouTube Meditations On Moloch | Slate Star Codex Slate Star Codex - Wikipedia — astralcodexten.substack.com

In honor of Labor Day, David and Tamler dive into two works by Karl Marx - "The Communist Manifesto" and "Estranged Labor." What is Marx's theory of historical change? Why does capitalism produce an alienated workforce? What role does philosophy play in maintaining the status quo? Plus, fraudulent data in a famous study about dishonesty and former guest Dan Ariely is under investigation. Sponsored By: NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Evidence of Fraud in an Influential Field Experiment About Dishonesty - Data Colada The Communist Manifesto - Wikipedia Estranged Labour, Marx, 1844 Asher Horowitz | Department of Political Science | Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies | York University Marx's theory of alienation - Wikipedia

It's a Borges bonanza! David and Tamler dive into two stories: "Emma Zunz" and "Borges and I." The first seems like a straightforward daughter revenge story (Tamler's favorite genre), but Borges being Borges there are layers of doubt and fuzziness about what exactly is going on. "Borges and I" may be less than a page, but it has us questioning our identity, the relationship between private and public selves, and what happens to when you release a work out into the world. Plus, back to social psychology. Are you a picky eater? Then people think you suck at sex. We are not sure who is recording this podcast. Sponsored By: GiveWell: We love this sponsor, and are proud of the support our listeners have shown! If you are a listener and want to make your charitable contributions as effective as possible, please check out Givewell.org. New donors will have their donation matched up to $1,000 before the end of June (or as long as matching funds last). Just go to givewell.org/verybadwizards and pick PODCAST and Very Bad Wizards at checkout. Make sure they know that you heard about GiveWell from Very Bad Wizards to get your donation matched! Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: People who are willing to try new foods are perceived as more desirable and less sexually restricted Bradshaw, H. K., Mengelkoch, S., Espinosa, M., Darrell, A., & Hill, S. E. (2021). You are what you (are willing to) eat: Willingness to try new foods impacts perceptions of sexual unrestrictedness and desirability. Personality and Individual Differences, 182, 111082. — You are what you (are willing to) eat: Willingness to try new foods impacts perceptions of sexual unrestrictedness and desirability Emma Zunz by Jorge Luis Borges Borges and I by Jorge Luis Borges

David and Tamler go deep on Michael Haneke's unnerving psychological thriller Caché. An upper middle class French intellectual couple receives mysterious videotapes of the exterior of their house, forcing them to confront their past and present. Can we run from our history? Or will it always find a way to break through? And who's sending the tapes? Plus, VBW does conceptual analysis - what does it mean to be "corny"? Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Caché (film) - Wikipedia Watch Cache (Hidden) | Prime Video

David and Tamler hit the books and cram for their beloved Patreon listener-selected episode – this time on Thomas Kuhn's "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions." David thinks Kuhn is a great sociologist of science but recoils at the relativistic tenor of the final chapters. Tamler loves anything that makes David recoil. Plus, should we give more weight to the advice of people on their deathbed? Or should we nod politely and get back to working for that promotion… Sponsored By: A Slight Change of Plans Podcast: There are few things in life that are as complex and messy—and potentially magical—as change. On A Slight Change of Plans, you'll hear intimate conversations that give an unvarnished look into how people navigate changes of all kinds and use that change to ultimately grow GiveWell: We love this sponsor, and are proud of the support our listeners have shown! If you are a listener and want to make your charitable contributions as effective as possible, please check out Givewell.org. New donors will have their donation matched up to $1,000 before the end of June (or as long as matching funds last). Just go to givewell.org/verybadwizards and pick PODCAST and Very Bad Wizards at checkout. Make sure they know that you heard about GiveWell from Very Bad Wizards to get your donation matched! Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Why is the deathbed perspective considered so valuable? | Aeon Essays — reasons The Splintered Mind: On the Epistemic Status of Deathbed Regrets The Structure of Scientific Revolutions - Wikipedia The Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Thomas Kuhn [amazon.com affiliate link] What Thomas Kuhn Really Thought about Scientific "Truth" - Scientific American Blog Network The Ashtray Has Landed: The Case of Morris v. Kuhn

We've promised you for years that we would do an episode on apologies and never got to it until today. So we both want to say from the bottom of our hearts: we're sorry. We recognize we've let so many of our listeners down, and we feel just awful if you were offended by the delay. We hope this episode will be just one small step towards regaining your trust. Plus, of all the evo-psych articles in the world, this one might be the evo-psychiest: "Oral Sex as Infidelity Detection." Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Pham, M. N., & Shackelford, T. K. (2013). Oral sex as infidelity-detection. Personality and Individual Differences, 54(6), 792-795. — From the abstract: "The infidelity-detection hypothesis for oral sex proposes that men perform oral sex to gather information about their partner's recent sexual history." Clearer Thinking | How to apologise Schumann, K., & Dragotta, A. (2020). Is moral redemption possible? The effectiveness of public apologies for sexual misconduct. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 90, 104002. Ohtsubo, Y., & Watanabe, E. (2009). Do sincere apologies need to be costly? Test of a costly signaling model of apology. Evolution and Human Behavior, 30(2), 114-123. I Was Wrong: The Meanings of Apologies by Nick Smith :: SSRN Dan Harmon Apologizes for Sexually Harassing Megan Ganz | Time

David and Tamler argue about the philosopher L.A. Paul's ideas on "transformative experiences" – big life decisions that will change you and your values so much that our normal decision-making models break down. Tamler is fully on board and hopeful for philosophy, but David sees Paul's view as a threat to his precious rationality. Plus, we tackle the greatest existential threat to human civilization in history: critical race theory. Why are people on all sides so intent on misunderstanding it? Sponsored By: Wine.com: Wine.com is an American wine online retailer that offers the largest selection of wines in the world. Wine.com sells over 2 million bottles per year, with a stock of more than 17,000 different bottles of wine, shipping throughout the United States. Sign up now, and as a listener of very bad wizards, get $50 off your first order! Promo Code: badwizards NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: [Essay] History As End, By Matthew Karp | Harper's Magazine On Having Whiteness by Donald Moss Sean Wilentz: A Matter of Facts - The Atlantic The Vampire Problem: A Brilliant Thought Experiment Illustrating the Paradox of Transformative Experience – Brain Pickings Paul, L. A. (2015). Précis of" Transformative Experience". Transformative Experience by L.A. Paul [amazon.com affiliate link]

Tamler welcomes social psychologist David Pizarro of Cornell University to the podcast to talk about his recent article (along with Raj Anderson, Shaun Nichols, and Rachana Kamtekar) on "false-positive emotions." When agents commit accidental harms, we typically tell them they shouldn't feel too guilty, it's not their fault, it was out of their control, and so forth. At the same time, we don't want them to let themselves off the hook right away either. They shouldn't feel guilty, but also they…should. What's behind these mixed messages and attitudes? Are we looking for information about their character? What kind? Plus, a new algorithm can predict someone's political orientation with 72% accuracy based on one profile photo (either from Facebook or a dating app). Is Big Brother around the corner? Sponsored By: Wine.com: Wine.com is an American wine online retailer that offers the largest selection of wines in the world. Wine.com sells over 2 million bottles per year, with a stock of more than 17,000 different bottles of wine, shipping throughout the United States. Sign up now, and as a listener of very bad wizards, get $50 off your first order! Promo Code: badwizards GiveWell: We love this sponsor, and are proud of the support our listeners have shown! If you are a listener and want to make your charitable contributions as effective as possible, please check out Givewell.org. New donors will have their donation matched up to $1,000 before the end of June (or as long as matching funds last). Just go to givewell.org/verybadwizards and pick PODCAST and Very Bad Wizards at checkout. Make sure they know that you heard about GiveWell from Very Bad Wizards to get your donation matched! Promo Code: Very Bad Wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Facial recognition technology can expose political orientation from naturalistic facial images | Scientific Reports 'I was shocked it was so easy': ​meet the professor who says facial recognition ​​can tell if you're gay | Artificial intelligence (AI) | The Guardian One of the most famous campus outrage incidents was badly misreported - Vox "False positive" emotions, responsibility, and moral character - ScienceDirect

We've done deep dives on three of his stories, and now THE MAN HIMSELF, multi-award winning science fiction author Ted Chiang, joins us to explore the post-apocalyptic world of the video-game SOMA. You play Simon Jarrett, a man who goes for a brain scan in Toronto and wakes up a 100 years later in an underwater research facility, the last remaining hope to preserve human consciousness from extinction. Pizarro confronts his worst nightmare, a first-person experience of stepping into a transporter-style scenario. We talk about how video games can make philosophical problems come alive, what "fission-cases" tell us about personal identity (Tamler's note: this really should count as our Parfit episode), what it's like to be conscious without a body, the problem with thought experiments, and lots more. Plus, a new evo-psych study on why bullshitting is adaptive – convince people you're smart and save energy while you do it! Special Guest: Ted Chiang. Sponsored By: Wine.com: Wine.com is an American wine online retailer that offers the largest selection of wines in the world. Wine.com sells over 2 million bottles per year, with a stock of more than 17,000 different bottles of wine, shipping throughout the United States. Sign up now, and as a listener of very bad wizards, get $50 off your first order! Promo Code: badwizards NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Neuroskeptic on Twitter: ""Bullshit ability is associated with an individual's intelligence" https://t.co/hoKMLaMrY1 The authors are highly intelligent judging by the last two sentences. https://t.co/J1HQJyAvbL" / Twitter Bullshit Ability as an Honest Signal of Intelligence - Martin Harry Turpin, Mane Kara-Yakoubian, Alexander C. Walker, Heather E. K. Walker, Jonathan A. Fugelsang, Jennifer A. Stolz, 2021 Soma (video game) - Wikipedia Ted Chiang's author page on Amazon.com [amazon.com affiliate link] Ted Chiang - Wikipedia SOMA Walkthrough- IGN SOMA Review - IGN SOMA and I | Blog of the APA

Canada's leading Russian literature scholar Yoel Inbar joins us to try to make sense of Gogol's 1836 short story "The Nose." A nose goes missing from a Russian official's face and winds up in the barber's loaf of bread. A few hours later, the nose has rocketed up the social hierarchy and denies his connection to the official. What's going on? Is Madame Alexandra Grigorievna up to something? Plus we can't say how but we got access to submitted abstracts for the new Journal of Controversial Ideas. We read a few of them in the opening segment, and let's just say this journal is living up to its name. Special Guest: Yoel Inbar. Sponsored By: Wine.com: Wine.com is an American wine online retailer that offers the largest selection of wines in the world. Wine.com sells over 2 million bottles per year, with a stock of more than 17,000 different bottles of wine, shipping throughout the United States. Sign up now, and as a listener of very bad wizards, get $50 off your first order! Promo Code: badwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Journal of Controversial Ideas Break music: Aleph (by peez) | SoundCloud Register for Panel on Individual Character and Structural Injustice (hosted by Hi-Phi's Barry Lam) The Nose (Gogol short story) - Wikipedia

"Sometimes I think of my death," Akira Kurosawa said, "I think of ceasing to be...and it is from these thoughts that Ikiru came." David and Tamler explore what it means to truly live in Kurosawa's 1952 masterpiece about a bureaucrat in postwar Japan who learns that he will die from stomach cancer within six months. Plus a new study provides evidence for what every pet owner knows: dogs get jealous. And a shocking revelation about Harvard legends Kohlberg, Rawls, and Nozick. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Ikiru - Wikipedia Dogs Mentally Represent Jealousy-Inducing Social Interactions - Amalia P. M. Bastos, Patrick D. Neilands, Rebecca S. Hassall, Byung C. Lim, Alex H. Taylor, 2021

Journalist, podcaster, and rapper Jesse Singal joins us to talk about his new book The Quick Fix, positive psychology (scam?), cancel culture in the media and academia (overblown?), Substack incentives, and lots more. Plus David and Tamler argue about the epistemology of ghosts. Special Guest: Jesse Singal. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Break Music The Quick Fix by Jesse Singal Blocked and Reported (with Katie Herzog and Jesse Singal)

VBW favorite Paul Bloom joins us to talk about William James' account of instinct and its parallels to the nativism/empiricism debates in developmental psychology today. Also discussed: Richard Dawkins trolling philosophy, the ghost in Tamler's kitchen, and why William James' 130 year-old writings make psychologists sad about the present state of their field. PLUS - do you wish you were closer to your non-romantic partners? Well, strap on your gloves, grab a washcloth, it's time for exactly 15 minutes of orgasmic meditation. Note: we had to use backup audio for Tamler and Paul in the second segment. The sound quality isn't as good as normal, sorry about that. Special Guest: Paul Bloom. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Partner intimate touch is associated with increased interpersonal closeness, especially in non-romantic partners — Partner intimate touch is associated with increased interpersonal closeness, especially in non-romantic partners Nicole Prause , Greg J. Siegle, James Coan Circle of Willis (hosted by Jim Coan) Paul Bloom | Department of Psychology Richard Dawkins on Twitter: "Science is not a social construct. Science's truths were true before there were societies; will still be true after all philosophers are dead; were true before any philosophers were born; were true before there were any minds, even trilobite or dinosaur minds, to notice them." / Twitter James, W. (1890) The Principles of Psychology, Chapter 24 (Instinct) [yorku.ca]

We’ve always had nothing but praise for neuroscientists and their work, and today is no exception. We talk about a fantastically rich and ambitious essay by Erik Hoel that offers a theory of dreams and connects it to storytelling, the self, and the importance of maintaining a distinction between art and entertainment. So eat shit MCU - Martin Scorsese was right! [ed. note: this statement not endorsed by David]. Plus another first segment wasted on Twitter culture war nonsense. Does adapting an MLK quote trivialize the civil rights movement? And it’s Adam and Eve, not gender fluid Potato Head and another gender fluid Potato Head. Or something. We don’t fucking know. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Potato Head Tweet from Hasbro 6 Dr. Seuss books won't be published for racist images David Pizarro on Twitter: "Does anyone have a recommendation for a good paper on the psychology or philosophy of dreams (that isn't a Freudian/psychoanalytic) take? Would love a recent review of psych/neuro theories of dreams, or just an intriguing take on any aspect of dreaming." / Twitter Enter the Supersensorium | Erik Hoel The Overfitted Brain Erik Hoel's website The Revelations: A Novel by Erik Hoel [pre-order, amazon affiliate link]

David and Tamler wander through the maze of Room 237, the great documentary by Rodney Ascher about five people and their views about what Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining" is really about. When do interpretations become conspiracy theories? Why does Ascher never show us the faces of the interpreters? What is about Kubrick that invites obsessive and confident theorizing on the meaning of his movies? Sometimes a paper tray is just a paper tray. Or is it? Plus Tamler vents about the winter storm and mass power outages in Texas last week… Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Ex Colorado City mayor catching heat for comments about citizens affected by cold | KTAB - BigCountryHomepage.com Room 237 - Wikipedia The Shining (film) - Wikipedia

David and Tamler return to the TCU (Ted Chiang Universe) to talk about his short story "Hell is the Absence of God." How would we behave if we had unequivocal proof of God, heaven, hell, and angels? Would that answer our questions about meaning and purpose and justice? Or would those same questions reappear in a different guise? Plus, the hard problem of breakfast, Jewish Space Lasers, and more… Sponsored By: GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Hard Problem of Breakfast - Issue 88: Love & Sex - Nautilus Hard problem of consciousness - Wikipedia Hell Is the Absence of God - Wikipedia Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang [amazon.com affiliate link] Hell is the Absence of God (pdf)

Ever wonder why you're still listening to VBW all of these years? Or why you check your phone 50 times a day? Or why you put on your pants the same way every morning? (If you still wear pants these days.) David and Tamler talk about William James' essay on habits, why they're so powerful, and how you can make your nervous system your ally instead of your enemy. Plus, a shocking new neuroscience study reveals that we remember and share funny stories more than boring ones. Sponsored By: Physical Attraction: Physical Attraction is a podcast about physics, but it is also more broadly about science, technology, climate change, and other scientific issues we face in modern society. Check out the over 200 episodes, which include stand-alone discussions as well as interviews with a series of great scientists, scholars, and authors reflecting on the history and future of science and technology. GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Scariest Movies of All Time - Based on Science! | The Science Of Scare | Broadbandchoices New Study Finds that Delivering the News with Humor Makes Young Adults More Likely to Remember and Share | Annenberg School for Communication Political Humor, Sharing, and Remembering: Insights from Neuroimaging William James - Wikipedia The Principles of Psychology - Wikipedia Chapter 4 Habit by William James

The legendary Houston Ballet dancer Lauren Anderson joins us to talk about the Atlanta Episode "Juneteenth" (Season 1, Episode 9), a hilarious exploration of race, class, identity, and carrying around your sister's underwear. But first David and Tamler share some thoughts on the topic on everyone's mind right now…Bean Dad. Oh yeah and the Capitol riot. Pour yourself a Hennessy or some Emancipation Eggnog and enjoy. Special Guest: Lauren Anderson. Sponsored By: GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Who is 'Bean Dad'? Twitter users slam John Roderick for can opener stunt with his hungry daughter | Daily Mail Online An Apology — John Roderick Lauren Anderson (dancer) - Wikipedia "Atlanta" Juneteenth (TV Episode 2016) - IMDb

Philosopher Agnes Callard joins us to talk about Plato and his dialogue the Gorgias. Why did Plato write dialogues – are they the best way of presenting arguments? Is Plato cheating when characters contradict themselves by making dumb concessions, or is this part of his method - inviting readers to participate in the debates? Why does the Gorgias end on such a sour note, with Socrates giving long speeches after saying that long speeches shouldn't be allowed? Plus we talk about Agnes' recent op-ed in the New York Times, and David and Tamler tackle a new construct: The Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood. Sponsored By: GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Opinion | I Don't Want You to 'Believe' Me. I Want You to Listen. - The New York Times What Is It Like to Be a Philosopher? Gorgias (dialogue) - Wikipedia

A phosphorescence casts a pale sickly glow on David and Tamler as talk only in verbs and pronouns about H.P. Lovecraft's 1927 story "The Colour Out of Space." What is this creature or substance that has color only by analogy, that spreads through earth and water driving man, animal, and vegetation into a madness, not as they ought to be…? What gives the story its terrifying power and its avenues for endless interpretation? Plus, does meditation make you a spiritual narcissist? We talk about a new social psychology article that even David can't defend. Sponsored By: NordVPN: Keep your internet connection safe, and enjoy streaming services when you travel abroad with NordVPN! NordVPN is the best VPN if you're looking for peace of mind when you use public Wi-Fi, access personal and work accounts on the road, or want to keep your browsing history to yourself. Go to Nordvpn.com/vbw or use coupon VBW to get your discount. Promo Code: VBW GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Study links some forms of spiritual training to narcissism and "spiritual superiority" H. P. Lovecraft - Wikipedia The Colour Out of Space - Wikipedia

David and Tamler dive deep into the psychology and epistemology of conspiracy theories. What makes people so prone to believe in complex malevolent plots that require meticulous organization and utter secrecy at the highest levels of power? Are some conspiracies like [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] more plausible than [REDACTED] give [REDACTED] for? And what about [REDACTED]? Do [REDACTED] mislead [REDACTED] by making us think [REDACTED]? How are we supposed to [REDACTED]? Plus, we do some navel gazing, reflecting on what we love and have struggled with over 200+ hundred episodes of [REDACTED]. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Conspiracy theory - Wikipedia Conspiracy Theories: Evolved Functions and Psychological Mechanisms - Jan-Willem van Prooijen, Mark van Vugt, 2018 The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories - Karen M. Douglas, Robbie M. Sutton, Aleksandra Cichocka, 2017 Conspiracy Theories and the Conventional Wisdom Rex 84 - Wikipedia The Great 5G Conspiracy - The Atlantic

David and Tamler celebrate their 200th episode with bourbon and a return to their potty humor roots. First we talk about holes, zoom dicks, and the election. Then we relitigate our bitter debate (from episode 45) over gender, toys, and balanced play diets. Have we matured over all these years? Well it's not for us to say… Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Hole -- from Wolfram MathWorld Giovanni Kuan (@giovannikuan) • Instagram photos and videos Very Bad Wizards Episode 45: Rounded Brains and Balanced "Play Diets" Davis, J.T.M., Hines, M. How Large Are Gender Differences in Toy Preferences? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Toy Preference Research. Arch Sex Behav 49, 373–394 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-019-01624-7 Fine, C., & Rush, E. (2018). "Why does all the girls have to buy pink stuff?" The ethics and science of the gendered toy marketing debate. Journal of Business Ethics, 149(4), 769-784. Stove, D. (1990). The intellectual capacity of women. Help train your child's brain according to gender | Express.co.uk [OC] I asked 1.6k people how many holes certain objects have. : dataisbeautiful

David and Tamler check out some recent work in metaphysics and applied ethics. Does playing a Nina Simone song sideways show that Einstein was wrong about spacetime? Does a Dali painting nailed to the wall backwards have intrinsic value (see figure 1)? Is childhood bad for children? Do you have to be a child before you're an adult? Are we kidding? Is this a joke? We don't know but don't play this podcast sideways or it may lose its aesthetic value. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Ferguson, Z. (2020). A song turned sideways would sound as sweet. Analysis. Markosian, N. (2020). Sideways music. Analysis, 80(1), 51-59. Hannan, S. (2018). Why childhood is bad for children. Journal of Applied Philosophy, 35, 11-28.

David and Tamler explore Thomas Szasz's provocative and still relevant 1961 book "The Myth of Mental Illness," the topic selected by our beloved Patreon supporters. When we think of mental disorders as "diseases," are we making a category mistake? Are we turning ordinary "problems in living" into pathologies that must be treated (with pills or psychoanalysis)? Does this model rob us of our autonomy in direct or indirect ways? Plus, with VBW 200 only 2 episodes away we give our top 3 dream guests, and David dons his punditry cap to break down the first presidential debate, which already seems like six months ago. Sponsored By: Hello Fresh: Get healthy, fresh meals delivered to your doorstep with Hello Fresh. As a special deal for our listeners, use the code 80verybadwizards and get a total of $80 off across 5 boxes, including free shipping on your first box! Promo Code: 80verybadwizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Agnes Callard | Department of Philosophy David Chase - Wikipedia Donald Glover - Wikipedia David Lynch - Wikipedia Pedro Martínez - Wikipedia Elon Musk's Neuralink is neuroscience theater | MIT Technology Review Thomas Szasz - Wikipedia The Myth of Mental Illness - Wikipedia

The psychologist Yoel Inbar has always tried to imbue his work with a sort of interiority, and now he joins us for a deep dive into Charlie Kaufman's baffling and distressing new film "I'm Thinking of Ending Things." Why does Jessie Buckley's name and career keep changing? What's going on with the dog? Why are the parents unstuck in time? Don't worry you'll get home, we have tire chains in the trunk. Plus, aliens, open science, and the illuminati. It's all connected. Special Guest: Yoel Inbar. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Venus Might Host Life, New Discovery Suggests - Scientific American Pentagon forming a task force to investigate UFO sightings - CNNPolitics I'm Thinking of Ending Things (film) - Wikipedia

She's beautiful, smart, funny, and head over heels in love with you. There's only one problem – she's from a possible world, not the actual one. What we thought would be a funny opening segment idea turns into a semi-serious discussion of Neil Sinhababu's 2008 article "Possible Girls." Plus David and Tamler share some thoughts on teaching in normal times and today. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Sinhababu, N. (2008), Possible girls. Pacific Philosophical Quarterly 89, 254-260. Paul Bloom's "Informal Teaching Advice"

David and Tamler dive into the most celebrated and philosophically rich scenes in Dostoevsky's masterpiece "The Brothers Karamazov." Alyosha gets in the middle of a rock-fight, Ivan Karamazov makes a devastating moral case against God, and the Grand Inquisitor convicts Jesus Christ of heresy against the church. (Note: this segment is the second of an upcoming five episode VBW miniseries on The Brothers Karamazov – more info on that to come very soon!) Plus one of us has a milestone birthday... [Special note from Peez: Stick around after the closing music to hear VBWs most frequent guests Paul Bloom and Yoel Inbar talk to David about Tamler behind his back.] Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: The Brothers Karamazov - Wikipedia The Grand Inquisitor - Wikipedia The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky) [amazon.com affiliate link] — This is the edition we used for this episode (and our upcoming 5-part series).

David and Tamler welcome special guest Chris Matheson - co-writer of the "Bill and Ted" movies and author of "The Story of God" and "The Buddha's Story" - to talk about religion, immortality, comedy, Freud, and why the secret ingredient to good satire is love. Plus David and Tamler do a conceptual analysis of stoner movies and discuss their favorites. Special Guest: Chris Matheson. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Chris Matheson (screenwriter) - Wikipedia The Story of God by Chris Matheson [amazon.com affiliate link] The Trouble with God by Chris Matheson [amazon.com affiliate link] Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure - Wikipedia Bill & Ted Face the Music - Wikipedia The Roast of Richard Pryor (very NSFW) [youtube.com] Dark Side of the Rainbow - Wikipedia Friday (1995 film) - Wikipedia Tom and Jerry (Gene Deitch Era) - Terrible TV Shows Wiki Fantastic Planet - Wikipedia Aqua Teen Hunger Force - Wikipedia The Return of the Pink Panther (1975) - IMDb Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004) - IMDb Step Brothers (2008) - IMDb This Is the End (2013) - IMDb 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - IMDb Inherent Vice (2014) - IMDb Playtime (1967) - IMDb Spirited Away (2001) - IMDb Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) - IMDb Dazed and Confused (1993) - IMDb Jackie Brown (1997) - IMDb Tin Men (1987) - IMDb

David and Tamler want to go old school and discuss a classic Frankfurt paper on free will. But do they want to want that? Are they free to want what they want to want? Are they free to will what they want to will or to have the will they want? And if that's not Dr. Seuss enough for you, shouting "FUCK" increases pain tolerance but what about shouting "TWIZPIPE"? Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Repeating the "F" word can improve threshold for pain during an ice water challenge Frontiers | Swearing as a Response to Pain: Assessing Hypoalgesic Effects of Novel "Swear" Words | Psychology Very Bad Wizards has a new shirt! [CottonBureau.com] Freedom of the Will and the Concept of a Person by Harry Frankfurt

David and Tamler dive into "Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote," a very funny Borges story that also raises deep questions about authorship, reading, and interpretation. What would it mean for the same text to be written by two different authors more than three hundred years apart? Is this story the post-modernist manifesto that literary critics like Roland Barthes believed it to be? Or is the narrator in the story just a delusional sycophant, a victim of Menard's practical joke – and the story by extension, a practical joke by Borges on the post-modernist movement to come? Plus, My Little Pony fans finally confront their Nazi problem. Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: 'My Little Pony' Fans Confront Their Nazi Problem - The Atlantic Very Bad Wizards has a new shirt! [CottonBureau.com] Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote - Wikipedia The Brothers Karmazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky (Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky) — This is the edition we will be reading from in our upcoming miniseries.

A lotta anger out there right now, but does it do more harm than good? Is anger counterproductive, an obstacle to progress? And even when it is, can anger be appropriate anway? We talk about two excellent articles by the philosopher Amia Srinivasan criticizing anger's critics. Plus we express some counterproductive anger of our own at the IDWs response to the protests. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Would Politics Be Better Off Without Anger? | The Nation Welcome Srinivasan, A. (2018) The Aptness of Anger, Journal of Political Philosophy. Reprinted in the Philosopher's Annual.

David and Tamler talk about police violence, the protests, and Harry Frankfurt's journal article turned bestseller "On Bullshit." Plus we dive into a comic masterpiece of late capitalism: the University of Oregon's brand guidelines. Sponsored By: The Great Courses Plus: Never stop learning. Pursue your passion. Quench your curiosity. Embark on an educational endeavor. Watch thousands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects. Promo Code: wizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Brand and Style | University Communications The Black Goat – A podcast about doing science Two Psychologists Four Beers Episode 46: Very Good Men (with Very Bad Wizards) Break Music: Seven Minutes by peez On Bullshit - Wikipedia Frankfurt, H. (2005) On Bullshit. Princeton University Press.

David and Tamler dive into Sigmund Freud's world of unconscious drives, death instincts, and thwarted incestuous urges in his classic text "Civilization and its Discontents." If society has made so much progress, why are human beings perpetually dissatisfied? Can religion help us or is it a big part of the problem? What's really going on when you piss on a fire to put it out? Also: how seriously should we take Freud today given some of his wackier ideas? And is he a psychologist, a philosopher, or something else entirely? Plus we select the finalists from a huge list of suggested topics for the Patreon listener-selected episode! Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Anal retentiveness - Wikipedia Anal expulsiveness - Wikipedia Psychosexual development - Wikipedia Civilization and Its Discontents - Wikipedia

Socrates was ugly and tired of life, so he made a tyrant of reason. Philosophers are mummies who hate the body and the senses. Reason is a tricky old woman. Morality is a misunderstanding. Kant is a sneaky Christian. And don't even get Nietzsche started on "free will" or the "self" - just excuse for priests to punish people, a hangman's metaphysics. David and Tamler dive into Friedrich Nietzsche's Twilight of the Idols, a fascinating set of aphorisms brimming with passion, provocation, questions without answers. Plus, a professor is sanctioned for sex talk with his students - fair or coddling foul? Sponsored By: BetterHelp: You deserve to be happy. BetterHelp online counseling is there for you. Connect with your professional counselor in a safe and private online environment. Our listeners get 10% off the first month by visiting Betterhelp.com/vbw. Promo Code: VBW Support Very Bad Wizards Links: George Mason University investigation faults professor for sexual talk with students in class and a hot tub, court records show - The Washington Post Nietzsche, F. "Twilight of the Idols" [amazon.com affiliate link] — This is the version we read, but there's a cheaper kindle version on Amazon if you search (at least on the US website). Twilight of the Idols - Wikipedia

With a global pandemic and a collapsing economy upon us, it's time to ask ourselves some tough questions. Sex robots or platonic love robots - what are you more excited for? If you walked in on your partner with one of them, which would make you more jealous? Are you male or female? Can evolutionary psychology explain sex-linked preferences for sensitive, empathetic Alexas? We then dive into the shadowy echo-filled streets of post-war Vienna - and talk about one of our favorite movies, a true noir classic: The Third Man. Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Frontiers | Friends, Lovers or Nothing: Men and Women Differ in Their Perceptions of Sex Robots and Platonic Love Robots | Psychology Break Music: Framed Your Eyes by peez The Third Man - Wikipedia Allied-occupied Austria - Wikipedia Dutch angle - Wikipedia

The legendary Peter Singer joins us to talk about effective altruism, AI, animal welfare, esoteric morality, future Tuesday indifference, and more. I mean, it's Peter freakin' Singer - what more do we need to say? Plus, the explosive 'one or two spaces after a period' debate: has science resolved it? Special Guest: Peter Singer. Sponsored By: GiveWell: Givewell searches for the charities that save or improve lives the most per dollar. Consider a donation this holiday season--your dollar goes a lot further than you might think! Promo Code: verybadwizards Support Very Bad Wizards Links: Are two spaces better than one? | Butterick's Practical Typography Rappers, sorted by the size of their vocabulary [thanks to listener Kevin Litman-Navarro] Peter Singer - Wikipedia de Lazari-Radek, K., & Singer, P. (2017). Utilitarianism: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. Singer, P. (2010). The life you can save: How to do your part to end world poverty. Random House Incorporated. "A Gadfly for the Greater Good" (Tamler's interview of Singer in his "A Very Bad Wizard" book) "A Very Bad Wizard" by Tamler Sommers [amazon affiliate link]