logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2021
1h 26m

Ep 100: David Deutsch

Brett Hall
About this episode

This is the complete and unabridged discussion I had with David Deutsch largely about "The Beginning of Infinity". It contains all my "Questions for David" - which were published separately - AND much more content too.

00:00 Introduction

12:51 Why aren’t testable theories enough?

14:37 Predictions vs Explanations

18:33 Verisimilitude

23:54 Are people a “chemical scum”?

25:43 The Earth is uniquely suited to life?

30:22 What does “provable” mean?

33:44 Undecidability

37:45 Classifying abstractions

41:29 The nature of physical laws.

47:06 Direct Observation

50:29 The nature of mind

55:40 The Supernatural

59:52 Epistemology and Morality

01:02:00 The physical limitations of knowledge?

01:09:24 Some history of quantum computation

01:16:44 Tic Tacs, UFOs and aliens

01:19:01 Dark Energy

Support the podcast by following the links to Patreon or Paypal here: www.bretthall.org

Up next
Nov 12
The Farthest Reaches - Audiobook
The Farthest Reaches is a book about "Explanatory Universality". Explanatory Universality is a concept introduced by physicist and philosopher David Deutsch in his book "The Beginning of Infinity". Links, as mentioned in the audiobook can be found in the ebook available for free ... Show More
4h 19m
Oct 17
Ep 249: The Farthest Reaches Part 4 and Conclusion
Chapters and Timestamps 00:06 Chapter 13: Explanatory Universality, Hangups and Sexuality 08:07 Chapter 14: The Woke Left and the Woke Right 15:38 Chapter 15: Universality and Optimism 25:04 Chapter 16: Universality and Artificial Intelligences 35:54 Chapter 17: Universality, Fre ... Show More
1h 12m
Oct 13
Ep 248: AI and Philosophy of Science
This is the extended "director's cut" of a talk delivered for "RatFest 2025" (next year to be "Conjecture Con"). This also serves as a supplement to my "Doom Debates" interview which can be found here: https://youtu.be/koubXR0YL4A?si=483M6SPOKwbQYmzb It is simply assumed some ver ... Show More
1h 25m
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2020
David Chalmers: The Hard Problem of Consciousness
David Chalmers is a philosopher and cognitive scientist specializing in philosophy of mind, philosophy of language, and consciousness. He is perhaps best known for formulating the hard problem of consciousness which could be stated as "why does the feeling which accompanies aware ... Show More
1h 39m
Feb 2022
229. God, Consciousness, and the Theories of Everything | Curt Jaimungal
As an alternative for those who would rather listen ad-free, sign up for a premium subscription to receive the following: • All JBP Podcast episodes ad-free • Monthly Ask-Me-Anything episodes (and the ability to ask questions) • Presale access to events • Premium, detailed show n ... Show More
1h 58m
Jan 2023
David Epstein || Where Does Greatness Come From?
Today we welcome David Epstein, the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, and of the bestseller The Sports Gene, both of which have been translated in more than 20 languages. His TED Talks on performance science have bee ... Show More
1h 13m
Sep 2019
Leonard Susskind: Quantum Mechanics, String Theory, and Black Holes
Leonard Susskind is a professor of theoretical physics at Stanford University, and founding director of the Stanford Institute for Theoretical Physics. He is widely regarded as one of the fathers of string theory and in general as one of the greatest physicists of our time both a ... Show More
57m 40s
Sep 2020
#124 – Stephen Wolfram: Fundamental Theory of Physics, Life, and the Universe
Stephen Wolfram is a computer scientist, mathematician, and theoretical physicist. This is our second conversation on the podcast. Please check out our sponsors to get a discount and to support this podcast: - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex - Sun Basket, use code LEX ... Show More
4h 24m
Jan 2024
The Deutsch Files II
The universality of computation and explanation 0:00 The growth of knowledge begins with problems 4:56 Problems are clashes between ideas 9:57 Evolution is not the survival of the fittest 14:50 Bad philosophy in quantum theory 26:46 Free will is intimately connected with knowledg ... Show More
1h 14m
Oct 2020
FAQ #3 / Le libre arbitre, la zététique, LinksTheSun, et plein d'autres choses...
<p>POUR COMMANDER MON LIVRE : <br>Sur Amazon : <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://amzn.to/3ZMm4CY">https://amzn.to/3ZMm4CY</a> <br>Sur <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://Fnac.com">Fnac.com</a> : <a target="_blank" r ... Show More
50m 13s
Jun 2020
#101 – Joscha Bach: Artificial Consciousness and the Nature of Reality
Joscha Bach is the VP of Research at the AI Foundation, previously doing research at MIT and Harvard. Joscha work explores the workings of the human mind, intelligence, consciousness, life on Earth, and the possibly-simulated fabric of our universe. Support this podcast by sup ... Show More
3 h
Feb 2023
David Deutsch: Knowledge Creation and The Human Race, Part 1
Introduction 0:00 The Human Race 2:11 Knowledge Creation 12:34 AGI 15:50 Taking Children Seriously 23:30 Good Explanations 27:49 Quantum Computers 36:35 — Transcript http://nav.al/david-deutsch 
43m 50s