David Deutsch: The Era of Man, Popper, and Western Civilization

I had the pleasure of sitting down with David Deutsch in his lovely garden in Oxford a few months ago. Here’s our conversation.Topics we discuss are well captured by the timestamps below.Watch on YouTube or X. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast platform. Follow me on X for updates on future episodes.Click here to support my work.Timestamps1:01 - A tragic view of human history7:04 - Why did it take so long for civilization to arise?13:31 - Fallibilism21:32 - Cultural relativism denies improvement24:03 - Richard Dawkins and indigenous ways of knowing26:49 - Chemical scum that dream of distant quasars31:38 - The era of man37:55 - People are unlike any other force of nature42:51 - The dangers of regulating AI48:09 - Are we running out of resources?54:21 - Everything in existing educational theory is wrong1:11:30 - When David met Richard Feynman1:17:33 - Everyone is a Popperian1:20:16 - Only progress is sustainable1:26:00 - The biggest threat to Western civilizationFollow me on X.Follow David on X. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.arjunkhemani.com