intellectuals

Day 765. 

Today, in a special episode over Easter Monday, Francis visits the Bulgakov Museum in Kyiv to discuss the life and times of one of the most controversial writers in Ukraine today.

Milkail Bulgakov (1891-1940), author of The Master and Margarita, was a witness to the Ukrainian War of Independence between 1917 and 1921 – resurrecting it in his novel The White Guard – and is therefore a pivotal figure in the literary history of Ukraine, especially given his vivid depiction of Kyiv at war, as it is now.

Francis talks to researcher Maryna Sychenko about the current battle over Bulgakov's legacy, and whether he should be seen as a Russian or Ukrainian writer. Plus, she shares her own memories of the full-scale invasion.

Website for the Bulgakov Museum:

https://www.facebook.com/bulgakovmuseuminkyiv/ 

English tours are available.

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Email: ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk

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It was a great pleasure speaking with Tyler Cowen for the 3rd time.

We discussed GOAT: Who is the Greatest Economist of all Time and Why Does it Matter?, especially in the context of how the insights of Hayek, Keynes, Smith, and other great economists help us make sense of AI, growth, animal spirits, prediction markets, alignment, central planning, and much more.

The topics covered in this episode are too many to summarize. Hope you enjoy!

Watch on YouTube. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or any other podcast platform. Read the full transcript here. Follow me on Twitter for updates on future episodes.

Timestamps

(0:00:00) - John Maynard Keynes

(00:17:16) - Controversy

(00:25:02) - Fredrick von Hayek

(00:47:41) - John Stuart Mill

(00:52:41) - Adam Smith

(00:58:31) - Coase, Schelling, & George

(01:08:07) - Anarchy

(01:13:16) - Cheap WMDs

(01:23:18) - Technocracy & political philosophy

(01:34:16) - AI & Scaling