Very Bad Wizards

Very Bad Wizards

Very Bad Wizards is a podcast featuring a philosopher (Tamler Sommers) and a psychologist (David Pizarro), who share a love for ethics, pop culture, and cognitive science. 

February 11, 2025
302
01:17:0888.48 MB

Episode 302: Metaphysical Edging

What makes something weird? What makes something eerie? David and Tamler wander into Mark Fisher’s The Weird and the Eerie to learn more about these concepts. How does weird art expand our imagination of what’s possible? Why does the feeling of eeriness ...

January 28, 2025
301
01:29:34102.72 MB

Episode 301: Believing is Seeing?

It’s Back 2 Basics: Psychology edition! Do coins look bigger to poor people? Do hills look steeper to people wearing heavy backpacks? What’s the difference between perception and attention, or perception and judgment? David and Tamler discuss the long st...

January 14, 2025
300
01:48:01123.84 MB

Episode 300: If We Only Had A Brain

David and Tamler celebrate their 300th episode with a deep dive into the movie that inspired the podcast’s title. Why is "The Wizard of Oz" the most influential American movie of all time? How does it dig deep into our collective psyches? What makes the ...

December 24, 2024
299
02:06:33145.03 MB

Episode 299: Oh the Humility!

David and Tamler wrap up the new year talking about intellectual virtues and Rachel Fraser’s excellent essay “Against Humility.” What is intellectual humility exactly and do we need it for knowledge and understanding? Does the value of humility depend on...

December 10, 2024
298
01:20:3892.49 MB

Episode 298: Pass the Peace Pipe

Why do we punish people? How did our punishment practices evolve and what is their primary function? David and Tamler talk about a new paper that examines punitive justice in three small-scale societies - the Kiowa equestrian foragers in late 19th centur...

Listener Reviews

Read what other people are saying about our podcast!

Apple Podcasts
Fun listens

Really enjoy the chemistry between the co-hosts. Borderline developing a parasocial relationship just from how much fun I have listening to them interact. My favorite subjects are philosophy and psychology, but it’s the first time I’ve found a podcast that doesn’t just come from an analytical point of view, but through...

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Apple Podcasts
Very excellent

Very Bad Wizards is fantastic. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry (you won’t cry), you’ll wish they put out episodes daily. Maybe not daily, but Dave and Tamler are fun, funny, entertaining, smart, and I always learn some good stuff. How they get away with some of the edgy (razor sharp edge edgy) content and discussions while m...

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Apple Podcasts
Yep

Palatable