stewart brand

Access to Tools, and mushrooms. Early on K.M asks if J drugged him. It turns out, he did!!! Mushrooms!!! Although K.M. admits to being heavily influenced by the magic mushroom, it quickly becomes clear so is J. Together, they attempt to honor and chronicle Stewart Brand's counter culture icon and book series. Basically, we attempt to talk hippie shit from the 60's and 70's while drunk and on psychedelics. It's about what you would expect with J repeating himself endlessly, K.M. wondering what's happening and getting distracted by the possibly that William S. Burroughs fucked little boys. Thank Bacchus, Colorado steps in and wonderfully details the amazing achievement and work of Stewart Brand's "The Last Whole Earth Catalog, Access to Tools. After all, it was J's childhood.  

This episode with Wired Founding Editor Kevin Kelly is one of my favourite episodes!

His joie de vivre is infectious and I learned so much from his inspiring story and his fantastic new book Excellent Advice For Living which we talk about in this episode from which I know you will get a lot from too.

But stepping back in time, Kelly was publisher and editor of the Whole Earth Review from 1984-1990 before he joined Wired in 1993 as its Founding Executive Editor alongside Louis Rossetto who we mention in this episode and Jane Metcalfe who I interviewed in Series 5, episode 40 (listen here). Kevin has also written some incredibly popular books including the New York times bestseller The Inevitable, Out of Control, which he wrote in 1992 and immediately became required reading on set of The Matrix film The Silver Cord, a graphic novel about robots and angels, What Technology Wants, a robust theory of technology, and Vanishing Asia, his 50-year project to photograph the disappearing cultures of Asia. Kevin is also co-chair of The Long Now Foundation with Stewart Brand.

Kevin is a living legend and the 400+ pieces of advice from his latest book have already become part of my son’s bedtime routine – that’s how good they are.

So without further ado, you’re listening Danielle Newnham Podcast where I interview tech founders and innovators to learn the inspiring, human story behind their work and this is my interview with Kevin Kelly.

Kevin on Twitter / Website / The Long Now Foundation 

Pre-order Kevin's latest book, Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier, here.

Danielle Twitter / Instagram / Newsletter

From this episode, Kevin's interview on This American Life here.

Episode image credit: Christopher Michel

You and I, we have living laboratories for embracing new ways to do the Earthling thing. They are Black Rock City, Fly Ranch, and 90-something regional events around the world. The Burning Man community is vast, diverse, and creative - and can ripple out a cultural shift around new technologies and practices. 

The 2030 Environmental Sustainability Roadmap declared that in the next 8 years we will become carbon negative and regenerative. How can we make it better for the ecology for Burning Man to exist, than for it not to exist?

Stuart talks with the champions of these goals about how. 

Christopher Breedlove, Director of Civic Activation

Laura Day, Associate Director of Event Operations

Matt Sundquist, Director of the Fly Ranch Project

Medium: Burning Man Project: 2030 Environmental Sustainability Roadmap

Burning Man Journal: Year Two Update: Progress On BMP’s Sustainability Roadmap

Burners Without Borders: The Green Theme Camp Community

Greening Your Burn

For more, listen to Part 1 with David Festa, Senior Advisor of Sustainability and Philanthropy.

LIVE.BURNINGMAN.ORG

The end of the world? we have been practicing for decades. As more people look down the barrel of climate change, we have something to say (and do) about it. 

What must change for it to be better for the ecology for Burning Man to exist, than for it not to exist?

Our 2030 Environmental Sustainability Roadmap declared that in a half dozen years we will become carbon negative and regenerative. How? 

Stuart talks with David Festa, who brings 30 years of experience to figure out how. 

Black Rock City and regional events around the world are unique test beds, living laboratories for embracing new technologies and practices. The Burning Man community is vast, diverse, and creative - and can ripple out into the culture to help induce a new era. 

Medium: Burning Man Project: 2030 Environmental Sustainability Roadmap

Burning Man Journal: Year Two Update: Progress On BMP’s Sustainability Roadmap

Stay tuned for part 2, the Road to Regeneration, with 

• Laura Day, Associate Director of Event Operations
• Christopher Breedlove, Director of Civic Activation
• Matt Sundquist, Director of the Fly Ranch Project

LIVE.BURNINGMAN.ORG

Alexander Rose is an industrial designer and has been working with The Long Now Foundation and computer scientist Danny Hillis since 01997 to build a monument scale, all mechanical 10,000 Year Clock. Alexander speaks about the work of The Long Now Foundation all over the world at venues ranging from the TED conference to corporations and government agencies.

For more information on Alexander Rose and The Long Now Foundation, visit https://longnow.org

— Highlights —

(0:01:40) What will people say about who you were, and your legacy in 10,000 years?

(0:03:10) What are some of the stories that most intrigue you about ourselves, and our planet?

(0:05:20) Thinking about time in five digits (i.e. 02021).

(0:07:56) What is the concept behind the Layers of Time?

(0:12:05) How to find balance between long term and short term decisions.

(014:20) Adversity breeds longevity.

(0:19:17) How to build businesses for the long now.

(0:21:45) The traits of a long term, successful team.

(0:23:10) People who have made an impact on Alexander.

(0:26:06) Stewart Brand's impact in the world.

(0:29:00) The evolution of technology.

(0:32:31) How do crisis, such as the current pandemic, affect the long now

(0:35:45) Alexander's advice to younger generations.

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Website: throughconversations.com

--- Credits ---

Our New, Awesome Music by Joe Lyle.  More info can be found at https://joelyledrums.com

Hosted, Produced by Alex Levy.

The Lindisfarne Tapes are selected recordings of presentations and conversations at the Lindisfarne Fellows’ meetings. In March of 2013 William Thompson granted permission to the Schumacher Center for a New Economics to transfer the talks from the old reel-to-reel tapes to digital format so that they could be posted online and shared freely. In 2021, the Schumacher Center used the digital audio to create the Lindisfarne Tapes Podcast. Reposting should include acknowledgment of williamirwinthompson.org. Learn more about the Lindisfarne Tapes here.

Bateson delivered this lecture in 1976 at the Lindisfarne Summer Conference, "A Light Governance for America: The Cultures and Strategies of Decentralization."

The Lindisfarne Tapes are selected recordings of presentations and conversations at the Lindisfarne Fellows’ meetings. In March of 2013 William Thompson granted permission to the Schumacher Center for a New Economics to transfer the talks from the old reel-to-reel tapes to digital format so that they could be posted online and shared freely. In 2021, the Schumacher Center used the digital audio to create the Lindisfarne Tapes Podcast. Reposting should include acknowledgment of williamirwinthompson.org. Learn more about the Lindisfarne Tapes here.

Bateson delivered this lecture in 1975 at the Lindisfarne Summer Conference, "Conscious Evolution and the Evolution of Consciousness."

Since the term was coined in 1956, artificial intelligence has been a kind of mirror that tells us more about our theories of intelligence, and our hopes and fears about technology, than about whether we can make computers think. AI requires us to formulate and specify: what do we mean by computation and cognition, intelligence and thought? It is a topic rife with hype and strong opinions, driven more by funding and commercial goals than almost any other field of science...with the curious effect of making massive, world-changing technological advancements even as we lack a unifying theoretical framework to explain and guide the change. So-called machine intelligences are more and more a part of everyday human life, but we still don’t know if it is possible to make computers think, because we have no universal, satisfying definition of what thinking is. Meanwhile, we deploy technologies that we don’t fully understand to make decisions for us, sometimes with tragic consequences. To build machines with common sense, we have to answer fundamental questions such as, “How do humans learn?” “What is innate and what is taught?” “How much do sociality and evolution play a part in our intelligence, and are they necessary for AI?”

This week’s guest is computer scientist Melanie Mitchell, Davis Professor of Complexity at SFI, Professor of Computer Science at Portland State University, founder of ComplexityExplorer.org, and author or editor of six books, including the acclaimed Complexity: A Guided Tour and her latest, Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans. In this episode, we discuss how much left there is to learn about artificial intelligence, and how research in evolution, neuroscience, childhood development, and other disciplines might help shed light on what AI still lacks: the ability to truly think.

Visit Melanie Mitchell’s Website for research papers and to buy her book, Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans. 

Follow Melanie on Twitter.

Watch Melanie's SFI Community Lecture on AI.

Join our Facebook discussion group to meet like minds and talk about each episode.

Podcast Theme Music by Mitch Mignano.

Follow us on social media:
Twitter • YouTube • Facebook • Instagram • LinkedIn

More discussions with Melanie:

Lex Fridman

EconTalk

Jim Rutt

WBUR On Point

Melanie's AMA on The Next Web

What if we could turn back time and reverse extinction? Famed writer, biologist, and environmentalist Stewart Brand is attempting this with an organization he co-founded. Revive and Restore is building a tool kit for genetic restoration that would allow the rebirth of species, like the woolly mammoth. Brand says the absence of these animals has left a gap and reviving them will re-enrich the entire conservation world. There are other reasons to bring back certain species, like enhancing genetic diversity. But what about the ethical questions surrounding such a pursuit? Brand speaks with Flora Lichtman, science writer and host of Gimlet Media’s “Every Little Thing” podcast.

Show Notes Listen to Saving the High Seas, a podcast episode from Aspen Insight featuring marine biologist Sylvia Earle. Passes to the Festival are still available. Register today! Email your comments to aspenideastogo@gmail.com. The views and opinions of the speakers in the podcast do not necessarily reflect those of the Aspen Institute.

aspenideas.org

Stewart Brand coined the term "personal computer" and the phrase "information wants to be free." He organized the first Hackers Conference and founded The Well, one of the earliest social networks. He talks about these and other events in his life as one of the most innovative minds in Silicon Valley.

Hosts: Leo Laporte and Adam Fisher

Guest: Stewart Brand

Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/valley-of-genius.

Get a copy of Adam Fisher's Valley of Genius book at a bookstore near you.