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.
Episode 310: Bayes, Brains, and Buddhists
David and Tamler try to wrap their heads around the predictive processing theory of the mind and brain function and talk about a paper that applies the framework to meditation practices. But first a new Psychological Science article expresses skepticism ...
Episode 309: Dissolving Into the One
David and Tamler heed the call to journey into the realm of Joseph Campbell. What are the unifying elements shared by myths and religions across time and culture? Does myth give us a portal into the hidden cosmic forces of the universe? Can it take us in...
Bonus Episode: Va Va Boom (Robert Aldrich's "Kiss Me Deadly")
We kick off our Bonus "Noir Summer" series with Robert Aldrich's "Kiss Me Deadly" (1956). While the rest of the bonus series will be for Patreon subscribers only, the first is free to all.
Episode 308: The Gray Man who Dreamed (Borges' "Shakespeare's Memory")
David and Tamler return to their happy place and talk about two pieces by JL Borges – the story “Shakespeare’s Memory” and the [essay/story/poem/literary sketch??] “Everything and Nothing.” What would it mean to have the memory of a supreme artist like S...
Episode 307: What's in the BOX?
David and Tamler talk about two famous puzzles that for different reasons have bedeviled the rationalist community – The Monty Hall Problem and Newcomb’s “paradox.” Why is it so hard for people to see that a 66% chance of winning a car is better than a 3...
Listener Reviews
Read what other people are saying about our podcast!
5 years & counting
The only podcast that I’ve been diligently listening to for the past 5 years. The topics, especially David’s and Tamler’s takes are engaging and insightful. I’ve got some of the best book, movies and papers recommendations from them. Constantly recommending it to friends that are on the lookout for some (fresh) food ...
Read MoreLucy and the football of podcasts
I’m always drawn in by the subject matter they discuss only to find that, while the hosts are obviously very smart, they’re just not particularly well-informed about the subject that intrigued me in the first place. That might be more forgivable were it not for their off putting self-assurance.
Truly, my favorite podcast
It’s hard out here with all the smart stuff being serious and the funny stuff being dumb, but these guys bridge the gap. This podcast has been around for a long time, and it’s only gotten better over the years. It has introduced me to interesting and sometimes important topics in philosophy and psychology, and it’s a...
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