Timothy Ferriss's Blog, page 28
June 1, 2022
Primatologist Isabel Behncke — What We Can Learn from Bonobos and Chimpanzees, Lessons from Sex and Play, Walking 3,000 Kilometers Through The Heart of Darkness, The Ape and The Sushi Master, and More (#598)
Illustration via 99designs“Play prepares you for the future.”
— Isabel Behncke
Isabel Behncke (@IsabelBehncke) is a field primatologist and applied evolutionary ethologist who studies social behavior in animals (including humans) to understand our urgent challenges with each other and the planet.
Isabel grew up at the foothills of the Andes mountains in Chile, where she developed a life-long love for nature and wildness as well as culture and the arts. An explorer-scientist, she is the first South American to follow great apes in the wild in Africa. She walked more than 3,000 km (~1864 miles) in the jungles of Congo for her field research observing the social lives of wild bonobo apes, who, together with chimpanzees, are our closest living relatives. Isabel documented how bonobos play freely in nature and has extended this research to study how human apes play — at Burning Man, other festivals, and in everyday life. Isabel has observed how play is at the root of creativity, social bonding, and healthy development, findings that have relevance in education, innovation, complex risk assessments, and freedom.
Isabel holds a BSc in Zoology and an MSc in Nature Conservation, both from University College London, an MPhil in Human Evolution from Cambridge University, and a PhD in Evolutionary Anthropology from Oxford University. She has won several distinctions for her public communication and knowledge integration, which ranges in formats from TED, WIRED, the UN, BBC, and Nat Geo, to rural schools in Patagonia and traveling buses of schoolchildren in Congo. She is a senior fellow of the Gruter Institute, a TED fellow, and currently advises the Chilean government, working on long-term strategies in science, technology, innovation, and knowledge for Chile’s President. She can be found in Chile and New York City.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
Brought to you by LMNT electrolyte supplement, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Headspace easy-to-use app with guided meditations. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#598: Primatologist Isabel Behncke — What We Can Learn from Bonobos and Chimpanzees, Lessons from Sex and Play, Walking 3,000 Kilometers Through The Heart of Darkness, The Ape and the Sushi Master, and MoreThis episode is brought to you by LMNT! What is LMNT? It’s a delicious, sugar-free electrolyte drink mix. I’ve stocked up on boxes and boxes of this and usually use it 1–2 times per day. LMNT is formulated to help anyone with their electrolyte needs and perfectly suited to folks following a keto, low-carb, or Paleo diet. If you are on a low-carb diet or fasting, electrolytes play a key role in relieving hunger, cramps, headaches, tiredness, and dizziness.
LMNT came up with a very special offer for you, my dear listeners. For a limited time, you can get a free LMNT Sample Pack with any purchase. This special offer is available here: DrinkLMNT.com/Tim.
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This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
Want to hear an episode with another brilliant Chilean in search of what the natural world can teach us? Have a listen to my conversation with mycologist Giuliana Furci in which we discuss escaping political persecution, what makes Chilean mycology so unique, discovering new species in the wild, befriending Jane Goodall, the importance of letting things rot, and much more.
#525: Giuliana Furci on the Wonders of Mycology, Wisdom from Jane Goodall, Favorite Books, and the World’s Largest FungariumSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Isabel Behncke:Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Isabel Behncke: Evolution’s Gift of Play, from Bonobo Apes to Humans | TED 2011Isabel Behncke: What Can Bonobos Teach Us About Play? | TED Radio HourPlay in the Peter Pan Ape | Current BiologyChimps and Bonobos | Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyEthology | WikipediaKonrad Lorenz’s Imprinting Theory | Simply PsychologyB.F. Skinner’s Operant Conditioning | Simply PsychologyConsilience | Merriam-WebsterConsilience: The Unity of Knowledge by Edward Osborne Wilson | AmazonProject Nim | Prime VideoEvolution | Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyKing Lear by William Shakespeare | AmazonLunar Society of Birmingham | WikipediaEx Omnia Conchis: Darwin and His Beloved Barnacles | Scientific American Blog NetworkThe Origin of Species by Charles Darwin | AmazonWho Are the Brahmins? | ThoughtCo.The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World by Andrea Wulf | AmazonThe Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin | AmazonCorrespondence Deserving of a Wider Audience | Letters of NoteLetters of Note: Correspondence Deserving of a Wider Audience by Shaun Usher | AmazonSanta Fe InstituteNatural Selection & Sexual Selection: An Illustrated Introduction | Cornell Lab of OrnithologyNiche Construction: The Neglected Process in Evolution by F. John Odling-Smee, Kevin N. Laland, and Marcus W. Feldman | AmazonWhat is Niche Construction? | Kevin Laland and Lynn ChiuThe Complex Alternative: Complexity Scientists on the COVID-19 Pandemic | SFI PressWe Shape Our Tools, and Thereafter Our Tools Shape Us | Quote InvestigatorHistory of the Congo River | LiveScienceWhere Do Chimpanzees Live? | African Wildlife FoundationWhere Do Bonobos Live? | African Wildlife FoundationSome Apes Jane Goodall Studied Fought a Years-Long War | AV ClubJane | National Geographic Documentary FilmsLake Tanganyika | Google MapsWhere’s Waldo? by Martin Handford | AmazonHeart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad | AmazonThe Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution by Richard Wrangham | AmazonThe Human Swarm: How Our Societies Arise, Thrive, and Fall by Mark W. Moffett | AmazonFemale Bonobos Shut Down Violent Males. Here’s What Humans Can Learn from Them. | UpworthyHow to Live Like a Rock Star (or Tango Star) in Buenos Aires… | Tim FerrissWhy Some Mammals Kill Babies of Their Own Kind | Smithsonian MagazineDon’t Sleep with Mean People | Baba BrinkmanSexual Dimorphism | Wikipedia“The Truth Is Rarely Pure and Never Simple.” -Oscar Wilde | GoodReadsNaturalistic Fallacy | Logically FallaciousCongo-Brazzaville: Republic of the Congo | Nations Online ProjectKinshasa: Democratic Republic of the Congo | Nations Online ProjectOxford Handbook of Tropical Medicine | AmazonPrimate Research Institute (PRI) | Kyoto UniversityWamba, Luo Reserve | WikipediaThe Ape and the Sushi Master: Cultural Reflections of a Primatologist by Frans De Waal | AmazonShinto | Japan GuideSweet Potato Washing Revisited: 50th Anniversary of the Primates Article | SpringerLinkMorphogenetic Fields of Body and Mind | Quantum UniversityAttentional Bias | Verywell MindScientific Heretic Rupert Sheldrake on Morphic Fields, Psychic Dogs and Other Mysteries | Scientific American Blog NetworkJiro Dreams of Sushi | Prime VideoWatch a Coyote and Badger Hunt Their Prey Together | SmithsonianThe 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | AmazonIt’s the Economy, Stupid | WikipediaNext of Kin: My Conversations with Chimpanzees by Roger Fouts and Stephen Tukel Mills | AmazonKanzi: The Ape at the Brink of the Human Mind by Sue Savage-Rumbaugh | Amazon25 Amazing Ways Animals Communicate That You Never Knew About | Best LifeAustin Bats Watching Guide | Merlin TuttleAcroYoga InternationalOf Wolves and Men by Barry Lopez | AmazonWhat Is Meant by Native Americans and Some Wolf Biologists Referring to a ‘Conversation of Death’ between Wolves and Wild Prey Animals? | QuoraHow the Drunken Monkey Hypothesis Explains Our Taste for Liquor | The AtlanticSHOW NOTESNote from the editor: Timestamps will be added shortly.
Baco and JiroWhat is an applied evolutionary ethologist?Lorenz vs. SkinnerThe brilliance of consilienceHumboldt vs. Darwin and the origins of evolutionary thinkingRecent revolutionary thoughts about evolutionComplexity and niche constructionWhat’s more fun: a barrel of chimpanzees or a barrel of bonobos?Chimpanzee geographyMagnificent bonobosFemale mammal problems and solutionsSexual dimorphismAvoiding naturalistic fallaciesHow accurate is it to call the Congo the Heart of Darkness?Why are the Japanese so interested in animal behavior?Potato-washing monkeysWhy do breakthroughs seem to come in clusters?Animals at play: the adaptive joker hypothesisThe overlap between flow states and playWhat the natural world can teach humans about optimizing playThe everlasting tango between energy and timePost-pandemic playHow much do we understand about the way animals communicate?The drunken monkey hypothesisParting thoughtsMORE ISABEL BEHNCKE QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“Play prepares you for the future.”
— Isabel Behncke
“Time is an incredibly democratizing force, because you and an earthworm have 24 hours in the day. That’s a fixed budget, which means that there’s this constant interplay, tango or martial art, between your energy budget and your time budget. How you buy time or you use time is in interaction with your energy budget.”
— Isabel Behncke
“There’s something about really putting yourself in the feet, and the wings, and the mind of another animal as much as you can.”
— Isabel Behncke
“Evolution really is about how all life is related and how all life evolves. Everything has an origin and, like King Lear said, ‘Nothing comes from nothing.'”
— Isabel Behncke
“Being a female mammal is expensive.”
— Isabel Behncke
May 26, 2022
Morgan Fallon — 10 Years on the Road with Anthony Bourdain, 9 Emmy Nominations, Lessons from Michael Mann, Adventures with Steven Rinella, High Standards, Wisdom from West Virginia, and More (#597)
Illustration via 99designs“We were punching way out of our class, and that was because of the very high standards. And that can only come from the top … and that was Tony.”
— Morgan Fallon
Morgan Fallon (@diamondmofallon) is a nine-time-Emmy-nominated executive producer, director, and cinematographer. He was born and raised in New England and studied film at Emerson College in Boston. After graduating, he spent three years working for his mentor, director Michael Mann, and in 2007, he began a long-term working relationship with producers Chris Collins and Lydia Tenaglia and their New York-based production company, Zero Point Zero Productions.
Through his tenure at ZPZ, Morgan focused primarily on work with ZPZ creative partner Anthony Bourdain on several episodic series and documentaries produced by Bourdain, including the Emmy-winning Mind of a Chef, the theatrically distributed documentary The Last Magnificent, and the Emmy-, Peabody-, PGA-, TCA-, and ACE-award-winning series Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, which Morgan shot, directed, and produced throughout the series’ one-hundred-and-three-episode run.
Currently, he is a director and executive producer for the Emmy-winning series United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell.
He lives in California with his wife and production partner, , and his two children.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube.
Brought to you by Gravity weighted blankets, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Helix Sleep premium mattresses. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#597: Morgan Fallon — 10 Years on the Road with Anthony Bourdain, 9 Emmy Nominations, Lessons from Michael Mann, Adventures with Steven Rinella, High Standards, Wisdom from West Virginia, and MoreThis episode is brought to you by Gravity! I place sleep at the top of my list for optimizing health, energy, and performance. If good sleep is in place, it helps everything else; if not, it hurts everything else. I’ve had sleep issues almost my entire life, which is why I’m always experimenting and adding great sleep aids. One of my new favorites is the Gravity Weighted Blanket. 72% of Gravity users have reported better, more restful sleep, and 76% have reported falling asleep faster and feeling more rested in the morning.
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This episode is brought to you by Helix Sleep! Helix was selected as the #1 overall mattress of 2020 by GQ magazine, Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix, there’s a specific mattress to meet each and every body’s unique comfort needs. Just take their quiz—only two minutes to complete—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk-free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/Tim.
This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
Want to hear the last time Morgan’s fellow documentary maker and MeatEater host Steven Rinella was on the show? Listen here to hear about survival fantasy versus survival reality, paradoxical undressing, using GPS to make emergency contact with the outside world when you’re stuck outside of civilization, Steven’s multitool of choice, how to secure drinking water in different types of terrain, things you should always have in your car, and much more.
#482: Steven Rinella — A Short Introduction to True Wilderness Skills and SurvivalSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Morgan Fallon:ZPZ Production | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
The Mind of a Chef | Prime VideoJeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent | Prime VideoAnthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown | Prime VideoUnited Shades of America | Prime VideoEmerson CollegeThe Tim Ferriss Experiment | IMDb (currently not available for streaming) Outside of Ordinary | Alfred UniversityPink Floyd: The Wall | Prime VideoDeliverance | Prime VideoApocalypse Now | Prime VideoDo the Right Thing | Prime VideoJaws | Prime VideoThe Wild Bunch | Prime VideoThe Insider | Prime VideoAli | Prime VideoThe Thin Red Line | Prime VideoGoodfellas | Prime VideoHeat | Prime VideoThe Last of the Mohicans (Director’s Cut) | Prime VideoThe Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper | AmazonDelicatessen | Prime VideoThe Making of ‘Ali’ | IMDbConfessions of a Matchmaker | Prime Video9 Things No One Tells You about Surviving a Buffalo Winter | Only In Your StateTrapdoor Spider Seizes Insect | The Dark: Nature’s Nighttime World | BBC EarthDiary of a Foodie | GourmetAnthony Bourdain: No Reservations | Prime VideoThe Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli | AmazonRoadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain | Prime VideoThe Biggest Loser | Prime VideoSteven Rinella on Hunting (and Why You Should Care), Reconnecting with Nature, Favorite Trips, and More | The Tim Ferriss Show #470The Wild Within | IMDbMeatEater | NetflixAmerican Buffalo: In Search of a Lost Icon by Steven Rinella | AmazonEthiopia | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownEthiopia | The World Factbook | CIAAzmari: An Ethiopian Musician | Africa Direct | Al JazeeraJohn Wick | Prime VideoJohn Wick: Chapter 2 | Prime VideoFilm 101: What Is the Director of Photography and Is Director of Photography the Same as Cinematographer? | MasterClassBehind the Scenes of ‘Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown’ with Director Morgan Fallon | CNN TravelFree Solo | Prime VideoLagos, Nigeria | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownSicily: Strangest Snorkel Trip Ever? | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownLost In Translation | Prime VideoJosh Homme with Anthony Bourdain | No ReservationsUS Desert (with Queens of the Stone Age) | No ReservationsBipolar Disorder Symptoms and Causes | Mayo ClinicCan Music Therapy Help People with Bipolar Disorder? | Medical News TodayExploring the Nike Missile Site at San Vicente Mountain Park | California Through My LensHow Anthony Bourdain’s Love of Jiu-Jitsu Helped Him Transform His Life | Men’s JournalWhat is Enduro Racing? | Liv Cycling Official siteGrandmaster Maurice Ashley Plays NYC Trash-Talker | The Tim Ferriss ExperimentSearching For Bobby Fischer | Prime VideoSearching for Bobby Fischer: The Father of a Prodigy Observes the World of Chess by Fred Waitzkin | AmazonThe Matrix | Prime VideoMuzzle Devices | JMac Customs LLCWhat is a Muzzle Brake? | Sporting SystemsWest Virginia | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownThe Spirit of McDowell County | The Welch NewsKenya | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownWe Need to Talk About Cosby | ShowtimeAntarctica | Anthony Bourdain: Parts UnknownMorgan In Dray Valleys, Antarctica | InstagramGin And Juice | Snoop DoggHoth | WookieepediaSHOW NOTESNote from the editor: Timestamps will be added shortly.
How has Morgan’s decision to take up endurance mountain biking in his mid-40s been going so far? As someone who’s still recovering from injuries sustained years ago, am I one to make a judgment call?After being on track to further develop his talent in ceramics, what compelled Morgan to study film at Emerson College, and how did he get in after his application was initially rejected? What did he take away from his time there?Who is Michael Mann, and how did Morgan come to work with him? What made him such a rare cinematic force in the early 2000s when they met?How did Morgan go from dining with the rich and famous at Nelson Mandela’s house in Mozambique to living in his parents’ New Hampshire basement, and what did he do to regroup after this detour and find his niche?How did Morgan connect with Chris and Lydia at ZPZ, and what did he do to make himself indispensable to the projects he was lucky enough to land during this time?As someone who worked with and knew the late Anthony Bourdain fairly well, what did Morgan think of Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain? Is there anything about it he wishes had been handled differently?On going into the wild with conservationist, hunter, writer, living encyclopedia, and former guest on this show Steve Rinella, what it means to get “cliff hung,” and the transferable skills Morgan picked up from documenting their wilderness treks for television.How did Morgan get the call to first work with Anthony Bordain in Egypt, and what moderately reckless stunt endeared him to Tony and secured a place for him on future runs?Morgan talks about that time he traveled to Ethiopia with Anthony Bordain and Marcus Samuelson to direct an episode of Parts Unknown during a tuberculosis outbreak. How did he prepare for it, what did he do to manage the anxiety disorders he experienced while there, and why will he probably never watch a John Wick movie?What are the responsibilities of a director of photography (DP), and why does Morgan tend to drive them crazy?On Tony’s high standards, why Morgan appreciated them, and the different types of standards one might expect to encounter over the course of a career in Hollywood — or fine dining — depending on the caliber of the people in charge.What Morgan knows about that time Tony went snorkeling with dead cephalopods in Sicily and how it was made into a hilarious scene for the viewing audience while simultaneously bringing the man himself to the brink of nervous breakdown.Why Morgan’s house is filled with memorable detritus.What tools has Morgan found to be most effective for dealing with the symptoms of his own bipolar disorder? Are people in his line of work prone to coping with similar struggles, and might the condition carry certain benefits for the creatively inclined?Why did Morgan stop drinking when Tony died, and what’s been his most effective therapy for staying on the wagon?Morgan explains how he and another cinematographer used two cameras to “dance with geometry” and make scenes more dynamic for The Tim Ferriss Experiment.What advice would Morgan give his younger self regarding the journey from DP to director to showrunner and transitioning from a narrowly creative role to a broader creative role with more managing responsibilities? What has he learned about delegating constructively — rather than destructively — during his time in this field?Why was the West Virginia episode of Parts Unknown so special to Morgan?How does Morgan choose the projects he works on now? What prompted his involvement with United Shades of America?What’s next for Morgan?How has Morgan succcessfully navigated wotking with his wife?The best day of Morgan’s career, appreciation for being able to do the work that keeps him constantly in awe of the world, and other parting thoughts.MORE MORGAN FALLON QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“When you’re working on the kind of stuff that I do, it’s a knife fight. You’re intentionally small. You don’t operate with big crews. You operate with small crews. You don’t want to freak people out. I don’t work with actors; I work with people, and you’ve got to have a light touch. You’ve got to go in, you’ve got to figure out how to pull the most value out of things with the fewest amount of resources.”
— Morgan Fallon
“Oh, we got told to unfuck ourselves all the time. I got told that on a daily basis. ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah. Start working. Unfuck yourself.’ I’m like, ‘Okay.'”
— Morgan Fallon
“You want to run a high-caliber kitchen, there is only one way to do it. And you are not friends with your crew. You are in charge and it’s your responsibility. And I think that Tony approached it from that perspective, at least initially. He had extremely high expectations that I think they were based on his history of knowing how to run an effective kitchen.”
— Morgan Fallon
“We were way out of our group, you know. We were going out on shows where we were shooting for seven days in the field. We had a $3,000 external equipment rental budget and we were getting cinematography nominations. My last cinematography nomination was up against Free Solo. We were punching way out of our class, and that was because of the very high standards. And that can only come from the top … and that was Tony.”
— Morgan Fallon
“I decorate my house with the detritus of traveling the world with Tony, and I’m fucking proud of it. There’s junk all over my house.”
— Morgan Fallon
“As you start to climb the ladder up to directing and then to showrunning, you need to depend on other people. So part of that is bringing good people in. The other part is understanding when you need to let people do their job.”
— Morgan Fallon
May 24, 2022
Edward O. Thorp, A Man for All Markets — Beating Blackjack and Roulette, Beating the Stock Market, Spotting Bernie Madoff Early, and Knowing When Enough Is Enough (#596)
Illustration via 99designs“When you begin to think for yourself, the whole world changes and becomes much clearer.”
— Edward O. Thorp
Edward O. Thorp (@edwardothorp) is the author of the bestseller Beat the Dealer, which transformed the game of blackjack. His subsequent book, Beat the Market, coauthored with Sheen T. Kassouf, influenced securities markets around the globe. He is also the author of A Man for All Markets: From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and the Market.
Edward was one of the world’s best blackjack players and investors, and his hedge funds were profitable every year for 29 years. He lives in Newport Beach, California.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Watch the video on YouTube here.
Brought to you by Wealthfront automated investing, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Eight Sleep’s Pod Pro Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#596: Edward O. Thorp, A Man For All Markets — Beating Blackjack and Roulette, Beating the Stock Market, Spotting Bernie Madoff Early, and Knowing When Enough is EnoughThis episode is brought to you by Wealthfront! Wealthfront pioneered the automated investing movement, sometimes referred to as ‘robo-advising,’ and they currently oversee $28 billion of assets for their clients. It takes about three minutes to sign up, and then Wealthfront will build you a globally diversified portfolio of ETFs based on your risk appetite and manage it for you at an incredibly low cost.
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This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
Want to hear another episode that touches on the world of investing? Listen to my conversation with Ray Dalio, in which we discussed how Ray thinks about investment decisions, the three books he would give to every graduating high school or college senior, how he might assess cryptocurrency, and much more.
#264: Ray Dalio, The Steve Jobs of InvestingSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Edward O. Thorp:Beat the Dealer: A Winning Strategy for the Game of Twenty-One by Edward O. Thorp | AmazonBeat the Market: A Scientific Stock Market System Edward O. Thorp and Sheen T. Kassouf (PDF) | ResearchGateA Man for All Markets: From Las Vegas to Wall Street, How I Beat the Dealer and the Market by Edward O. Thorp | AmazonUniversity of CaliforniaHow to Play Blackjack | Vegas How ToBlackjack Basic Strategy Chart by Edward O. Thorp | Chasing the FrogKelly Criterion | InvestopediaA Brief Journey Inside the IBM 704 | Archival History of Computing at MITNational Academy of SciencesA Favorable Strategy for Twenty-One by Edward O. Thorp | ResearchGateAmerican Mathematical SocietyThe Stockpicker’s Burden, and Other Lessons | Barron’sHow a Math Professor Led a Revolution in Las Vegas | RTDHow to Play Roulette | Vegas How To10 of the Best Compound Exercises for Muscle and Strength | OpenfitAerobics Program for Total Well-Being: Exercise, Diet, and Emotional Balance by Kenneth H. Cooper | AmazonYes, Race Walking Is an Olympic Sport. Here’s How It Works. | VoxNew Mexico State UniversityStock Warrants vs. Stock Options | InvestopediaBlack-Scholes Model | InvestopediaCboe Global MarketsHow Warren Buffett Made Berkshire Hathaway a Winner | InvestopediaEquity | InvestopediaMarket Efficiency | InvestopediaRisk | InvestopediaPreventing the Spread of the Coronavirus | Harvard HealthThe 4% Rule | InvestopediaCryogenics | WikipediaMeet the People Who Want to Live — And Keep Their Wealth — Forever | Policy GeniusGlobal Management Consulting | McKinsey & CompanyCollar | InvestopediaThe Card Sharp Who Cottoned onto Madoff’s Fraud in 1991 | ForbesMadoff Investment Scandal | WikipediaBear Stearns | WikipediaNational Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) | InvestopediaWhy Can’t You Go Faster Than Light? | FermilabExternality | InvestopediaSvante Arrhenius, the Man Who Foresaw Climate Change | OpenMindTragedy Of The Commons | InvestopediaElon Musk Thinks Every Child Should Learn About These 50 Cognitive Biases | Inc.Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger | AmazonPsychology of Human Misjudgement According to Charlie Munger | LinkedInFundamental Attribution Error | Ethics UnwrappedThinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman | AmazonCarbon Tax | WikipediaMoral Foundations of Politics by Ian Shapiro | CourseraThe Wolf at the Door: The Menace of Economic Insecurity and How to Fight It by Michael J. Graetz and Ian Shapiro | AmazonWho Lost Biden’s Agenda? Democrats Offer Competing Theories for Failure of ‘Build Back Better’ | NBC NewsPoll Finds 96 Percent Support Social Security | AARPThe Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed and Fail by Ray Dalio | AmazonPolitical Order and Political Decay: From the Industrial Revolution to the Globalization of Democracy by Francis Fukuyama | AmazonThe End of History and the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama | AmazonA Quantitative Investment Management Company | Renaissance InstitutionalThe Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution by Gregory Zuckerman | AmazonLeading Global Market Maker | Citadel SecuritiesPrinceton Newport Partners | WikipediaDo What You Love, The Money Will Follow: Discovering Your Right Livelihood by Marsha Sinetar | AmazonIncerto: Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, The Bed of Procrustes, Antifragile, Skin in the Game by Nassim Nicholas Taleb | AmazonCatch-22 by Joseph Heller | AmazonKurt Vonnegut on the Secret of Happiness: An Homage to Joseph Heller’s Wisdom | The MarginalianSHOW NOTESEdward fills us in on where he grew up, how he was educated, what made the application of mathematics to gambling such a compelling challenge, and why he rushed to publish his successful system after testing it in the real world. [04:51]What reference material did Edward use in his first trip to the blackjack table in Vegas, and why was Claude Shannon at MIT — a person known to be difficult to reach — willing to spare five minutes to meet with him around this time? [12:01]What method did Edward and Claude devise to beat roulette with the assistance of what MIT considers to be the first wearable computer? [15:11]Edward looks great for a man in his 60s — which is especially incredible when you consider he’s 89! Is it just a case of lucky genetics, or does he follow some kind of mortality-cheating health regimen? Has his approach to remaining in shape changed over the years? [17:13]How did finance and investing enter the picture for Edward? Where did this lead, and who did he meet along the way? [25:19]What was it about Warren Buffett that made Edward come away from their first meeting convinced he’d someday be the richest man in the world? [34:22]If Edward were teaching a seminar in investing to a modern student body (some of whom might not possess an aptitude for math), what frameworks would he impart to get them started? [38:55]What lessons learned from investing are transferable to other areas of life? [43:50]Even at 89, Edward considers himself a long-term thinker. How might those of us who struggle to think beyond the short-term be more like Edward? [45:59]How did Edward suss out that something was fishy about the way the Madoff brothers were doing business 17 years before everybody else finally caught on? [50:58]Exploring the mental models of externalities, the tragedy of the commons, and fundamental attribution errors. [59:15]What you should be reading and listening to if you want to enact positive change in the world right now — politically or evolutionarily. [1:08:29]What investors, aside from Warren Buffett, impress Edward — and why? [1:13:48]How has Edward known where to draw the line between growing a business and withdrawing before it consumed all else in his life? What catalyzed his decision to wind things down? [1:17:48]What does independence mean to Edward and how did he spend his time after winding down the investment side of things? [1:22:52]Is there anything Edward’s particularly curious about learning right now? [1:24:27]Pondering a conversation between Joseph Heller and Kurt Vonnegut and other parting thoughts. [1:26:37]MORE EDWARD O. THORP QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“If you’re a long-term investor, you should just buy and hold equities. And the best place to have bought and hold equities has been the US for the last couple of hundred years.”
— Edward O. Thorp
“Do what you love and the money may follow. If it does, that’s fine. If it doesn’t, you’re still doing what you love.”
— Edward O. Thorp
“When the Chicago Board Options Exchange opened for business in April 1973, the only people on the floor were my traders. It was like having machine guns against bows and arrows.”
— Edward O. Thorp
“If you really are interested in investing, it’s worth educating yourself and trying to do it because you will learn a lot about investing. You might actually find a way to win, and you’ll learn about how the world works and a lot about life too. The things you learn from what seems like a narrow, specialized field, generalizes very widely to all kinds of things if you’re the kind of person who can take a lesson in one part of life and transport it to another part of life.”
— Edward O. Thorp
“There’s an old saying, ‘Give a person a fish and they eat for a day; teach a person to fish and they eat for a lifetime.’ And it’s a similar thing for thinking. If you give somebody advice about a problem, they might solve that one problem. If you teach them how to think about problems, they can solve problems for the rest of their life.”
— Edward O. Thorp
DISCLAIMER FROM TIM FERRISS: I am not an investment adviser. There are risks involved in placing any investment in securities or in Bitcoin or in cryptocurrencies or in anything. None of the information presented herein is intended to form the basis of any offer or recommendation or have any regard to the investment objectives, financial situation, or needs of any specific person, and that includes you, my dear listener or reader. Everything you’re going to hear in this interview is for informational entertainment purposes only.
May 20, 2022
In Case You Missed It: April 2022 Recap of “The Tim Ferriss Show” (#595)
Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
This is a special inbetweenisode, which serves as a recap of the episodes from last month. It features a short clip from each conversation in one place so you can easily jump around to get a feel for the episode and guest.
See it as a teaser. Something to whet your appetite. If you like what you hear, you can of course find the full episodes at tim.blog/podcast.
Please enjoy!
***
Timestamps:
Terry Crews: 00:01:27
Tony Fadell: 00:11:16
Donald Hoffman: 00:17:57
Kevin Rose: 00:24:20
A.J. Jacobs: 00:35:05
Bo Shao: 00:41:37
Tom Morello: 00:56:07
***
Included episodes:
Terry Crews on Masculinity, True Power, Therapy, and Resisting Cynicism
A.J. Jacobs — How to Be Less Furious and More Curious
Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine Fame — Fear{less} with Tim Ferriss
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercastIn Case You Missed It: April 2022 Recap of “The Tim Ferriss Show” (#595)
In Case You Missed It: April 2022 Recap of The Tim Ferriss Show (#595)
Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
This is a special inbetweenisode, which serves as a recap of the episodes from last month. It features a short clip from each conversation in one place so you can easily jump around to get a feel for the episode and guest.
See it as a teaser. Something to whet your appetite. If you like what you hear, you can of course find the full episodes at tim.blog/podcast.
Please enjoy!
***
Timestamps:
Terry Crews: 00:01:27
Tony Fadell: 00:11:16
Donald Hoffman: 00:17:57
Kevin Rose: 00:24:20
A.J. Jacobs: 00:35:05
Bo Shao: 00:41:37
Tom Morello: 00:56:07
***
Full episode titles:
Terry Crews on Masculinity, True Power, Therapy, and Resisting Cynicism
A.J. Jacobs — How to Be Less Furious and More Curious
Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine Fame — Fear{less} with Tim Ferriss
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#595: In Case You Missed It: April 2022 Recap of The Tim Ferriss Show
May 17, 2022
Cal Newport and Tim Ferriss Revisit “The 4-Hour Workweek” (Plus: The Allure and The Void of Remote Work, Unsustainable Behaviors, Burning Out, The Cult of Productivity, and More) (#594)
Illustration via 99designsWelcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
In this episode, past podcast guest Cal Newport interviews me for an article he ended up writing for The New Yorker titled “Revisiting ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’: How Tim Ferriss’s 2007 manifesto anticipated our current moment of professional upheaval.”
Who is Cal? Cal Newport (calnewport.com) is an associate professor of computer science at Georgetown University who previously earned his PhD from MIT. His scholarship focuses on the theory of distributed systems, while his general-audience writing explores intersections of culture and technology.
Cal is the author of seven books, including, most recently, Deep Work, Digital Minimalism, and A World Without Email. He is also a contributing writer for The New Yorker and the host of the Deep Questions podcast.
You can find my interview with Cal at tim.blog/calnewport, and you can find the 2007 talk at SXSW that launched everything at tim.blog/sxsw.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs recruitment platform with 770M+ users, Vuori comfortable and durable performance apparel, and Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement. More on all three below.
The transcript of this episode can be found here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercastCal Newport and Tim Ferriss Revisit “The 4-Hour Workweek” (Plus: The Allure and The Void of Remote Work, Unsustainable Behaviors, Burning Out, The Cult of Productivity, and More) (#594)This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
This episode is brought to you by Vuori clothing! Vuori is a new and fresh perspective on performance apparel, perfect if you are sick and tired of traditional, old workout gear. Everything is designed for maximum comfort and versatility so that you look and feel as good in everyday life as you do working out.
Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet at VuoriClothing.com/Tim. Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but you’ll also enjoy free shipping on any US orders over $75 and free returns.
This episode is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. Whether you are looking to hire now for a critical role or thinking about needs that you may have in the future, LinkedIn Jobs can help. LinkedIn screens candidates for the hard and soft skills you’re looking for and puts your job in front of candidates looking for job opportunities that match what you have to offer.
Using LinkedIn’s active community of more than 770 million professionals worldwide, LinkedIn Jobs can help you find and hire the right person faster. When your business is ready to make that next hire, find the right person with LinkedIn Jobs. And now, you can post a job for free. Just visit LinkedIn.com/Tim.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
If you’d like to hear the last conversation I had with Cal Newport, lend an ear to our conversation here in which we discussed lightning bolt lessons from Steve Martin, living the deep life, sharpening skills, honing funny bones, fresh thoughts on slow productivity, eschewing the temptations of social media, contemplations on moral frameworks, Cal’s 30-day digital minimalism declutter, and much more.
#568: Cal Newport — The Eternal Pursuit of Craftsmanship, the Deep Life, Slow Productivity, and a 30-Day Digital Minimalism ChallengeSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Cal Newport:Revisiting “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Cal Newport | The New YorkerThe Lost Presentation That Launched The 4-Hour Workweek — “Secrets of Doing More with Less in a Digital World” from SXSW 2007 | The Tim Ferriss Show #548The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | AmazonCal Newport — The Eternal Pursuit of Craftsmanship, the Deep Life, Slow Productivity, and a 30-Day Digital Minimalism Challenge | The Tim Ferriss Show #568The Deep Questions PodcastDeep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport | AmazonDigital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport | AmazonA World Without Email: Find Focus and Transform the Way You Work Forever by Cal Newport | AmazonPrinceton UniversityTrueSAN Officially Kicks Bucket | Network ComputingDotcom Bubble | InvestopediaNew Economy | InvestopediaRemote Desktop Software | GoToMyPCList of Animal Tools | The Flintstones Archeology WikiElance | WikipediaEasyGroup | Wikipedia80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle) | InvestopediaLegendary Tech Billionaire’s Iconic Luxury Yacht Is Still an Awe-Inspiring Masterpiece | autoevolutionBuilt to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You by John Warrillow | AmazonBuilt to Sell — Making Your Company Sellable by John Warrillow | The Tim Ferriss BlogSo You’re Being Acqui-hired… | Cooley GOWhatever Happened to Netscape? | EngadgetLiar’s Poker: RIsing Through the Wreckage on Wall Street by Michael Lewis | AmazonCoupa Cafe Customers Can Buy Items with Bitcoins | Palo Alto OnlineThe Future Has Arrived — It’s Just Not Evenly Distributed Yet | Quote InvestigatorThe Holy Grail: How to Outsource the Inbox and Never Check Email Again | The Tim Ferriss BlogWhy Email Is So Stressful, Even Though It’s Not Actually That Time-Consuming | HBRInteractive Archives | SXSWHow the Internet Was Born: From the ARPANET to the Internet | The Conversation43 Folders Series: Inbox Zero | 43 FoldersThe Guy Who Invented Inbox Zero Says We’re All Doing It Wrong | Inc.comThe Best (And Worst?) Autoresponders of 2007 | The Tim Ferriss BlogTim Ferriss Interviewed by Robert Scoble | PodTech 2007PBwiki | WikipediaThe Rise and Fall of Getting Things Done by Cal Newport | The New YorkerThe Scientists: A History of Science Told Through the Lives of Its Greatest Inventors by John Gribbin | AmazonOn Pace and Productivity | Study HacksDon’t Just Do Something; Stand There | Quote InvestigatorThe Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness by Morgan Housel | AmazonMorgan Housel — The Psychology of Money, Picking the Right Game, and the $6 Million Janitor | The Tim Ferriss Show #576How I Built The Tim Ferriss Show to 700+ Million Downloads — An Immersive Explanation of All Aspects and Key Decisions (Featuring Chris Hutchins) | The Tim Ferriss Show #538Geographic Arbitrage: How I Save $20000+ A Year Living Abroad | Nomadic FireThe Future of Work After COVID-19 | McKinsey4-Hour Workweek Referenced | The Office S08E03 LottoIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: The 7 Secrets of Awakening the Highly Effective Four-Hour Giant, Today by The Gang | AmazonI Am So Over Productivity Porn | Bitches Get RichesEssentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown | AmazonGetting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen | AmazonHyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction by Chris Bailey | AmazonSHOW NOTESSome of the first cracks in my post-Princeton life that hinted at the unsustainable nature of Silicon Valley workaholic culture and led me toward a realization that The 4-Hour Workweek might be a book worth writing. [07:36]The fatal flaw in my first startup that ensured I wouldn’t be able to easily sell it. [17:22]A snapshot of Silicon Valley in the early 2000s: a prototyping and testing ground for new technologies and a hotbed of hustling. [22:16]Cal says I mentioned email four times in the opening six minutes of my first South by Southwest talk. In retrospect, what bigger problems did this portend, and how was my approach somewhat transgressive, considering the audience? [26:44]Defying the cult of productivity to be more effective than efficient with the 80/20 principle (aka Pareto’s law). [39:43]On slow productivity and playing your own game while understanding the rules by which other people play theirs.[44:33]How the launch of this podcast was, in a sense, a reexamination of what my own game was after working on The 4-Hour Chef turned out to be more a labor of labor than love. [47:57]My mindset going into that first South by Southwest speech in 2007 and how I tried to make the pain points of efficiency relatable rather than presenting them as judgment against my go-getting, startup-hustling audience. [50:41]If prioritizing your own self-care inconveniences other people from time to time, so be it. (To the people pleasers in the audience, please reread that last sentence to yourself a little louder until it sticks.) [53:50]After the South by Southwest speech, what was the general reception like? What points seemed to resonate most with people? [56:44]How a mutual friend put concepts presented in The 4-Hour Workweek to work and changed his own life, how some of those concepts that were radical when the book was published 15 years ago are now considered commonplace, and which concepts I hope continue to gain momentum. [1:00:56]How the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly made the work-disrupting scenarios posited in The 4-Hour Workweek viable alternatives to the status quo rather than intangible, impossible thought experiments, though some challenges remain. [1:06:40]Pop culture references to The 4-Hour Workweek and common misinterpretations of its primary tenets that come from casual skimming and second-hand sources. [1:10:38]Digging deeper, why do so many readers who pick up the bestselling productivity and time management books seem to miss the points they’re really trying to make? [1:15:57]Cal’s optimistic parting thoughts that society is finally catching up with what The 4-Hour Workweek was trying to convey. [1:20:58]PEOPLE MENTIONEDRuth Bader GinsburgHenry A. KissingerEd ZschauJames H. ClarkRamit SethiRay PorterMichael LewisWilliam GibsonRobert ScobleMerlin MannWinston ChurchillPeter DruckerUlysses S. GrantWarren BuffettCharlie MungerMorgan HouselHugh ForrestGreg McKeownDavid AllenFrederick Winslow TaylorCal Newport and Tim Ferriss Revisit The 4-Hour Workweek (Plus: The Allure and The Void of Remote Work, Unsustainable Behaviors, Burning Out, The Cult of Productivity, and More) (#594)
Illustration via 99designsWelcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
In this episode, past podcast guest Cal Newport interviews me for an article he ended up writing for The New Yorker titled “Revisiting ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’: How Tim Ferriss’s 2007 manifesto anticipated our current moment of professional upheaval.”
Who is Cal? Cal Newport (calnewport.com) is an associate professor of computer science at Georgetown University who previously earned his PhD from MIT. His scholarship focuses on the theory of distributed systems, while his general-audience writing explores intersections of culture and technology.
Cal is the author of seven books, including, most recently, Deep Work, Digital Minimalism, and A World Without Email. He is also a contributing writer for The New Yorker and the host of the Deep Questions podcast.
You can find my interview with Cal at tim.blog/calnewport, and you can find the 2007 talk at SXSW that launched everything at tim.blog/sxsw.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs recruitment platform with 770M+ users, Vuori comfortable and durable performance apparel, and Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#594: Cal Newport and Tim Ferriss Revisit The 4-Hour Workweek (Plus: The Allure and The Void of Remote Work, Unsustainable Behaviors, Burning Out, The Cult of Productivity, and More)This episode is brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
This episode is brought to you by Vuori clothing! Vuori is a new and fresh perspective on performance apparel, perfect if you are sick and tired of traditional, old workout gear. Everything is designed for maximum comfort and versatility so that you look and feel as good in everyday life as you do working out.
Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet at VuoriClothing.com/Tim. Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but you’ll also enjoy free shipping on any US orders over $75 and free returns.
This episode is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. Whether you are looking to hire now for a critical role or thinking about needs that you may have in the future, LinkedIn Jobs can help. LinkedIn screens candidates for the hard and soft skills you’re looking for and puts your job in front of candidates looking for job opportunities that match what you have to offer.
Using LinkedIn’s active community of more than 770 million professionals worldwide, LinkedIn Jobs can help you find and hire the right person faster. When your business is ready to make that next hire, find the right person with LinkedIn Jobs. And now, you can post a job for free. Just visit LinkedIn.com/Tim.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
If you’d like to hear the last conversation I had with Cal Newport, lend an ear to our conversation here in which we discussed lightning bolt lessons from Steve Martin, living the deep life, sharpening skills, honing funny bones, fresh thoughts on slow productivity, eschewing the temptations of social media, contemplations on moral frameworks, Cal’s 30-day digital minimalism declutter, and much more.
#568: Cal Newport — The Eternal Pursuit of Craftsmanship, the Deep Life, Slow Productivity, and a 30-Day Digital Minimalism ChallengeSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Cal Newport:Revisiting “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Cal Newport | The New YorkerThe Lost Presentation That Launched The 4-Hour Workweek — “Secrets of Doing More with Less in a Digital World” from SXSW 2007 | The Tim Ferriss Show #548The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | AmazonCal Newport — The Eternal Pursuit of Craftsmanship, the Deep Life, Slow Productivity, and a 30-Day Digital Minimalism Challenge | The Tim Ferriss Show #568The Deep Questions PodcastDeep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport | AmazonDigital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport | AmazonA World Without Email: Find Focus and Transform the Way You Work Forever by Cal Newport | AmazonPrinceton UniversityTrueSAN Officially Kicks Bucket | Network ComputingDotcom Bubble | InvestopediaNew Economy | InvestopediaRemote Desktop Software | GoToMyPCList of Animal Tools | The Flintstones Archeology WikiElance | WikipediaEasyGroup | Wikipedia80/20 Rule (Pareto Principle) | InvestopediaLegendary Tech Billionaire’s Iconic Luxury Yacht Is Still an Awe-Inspiring Masterpiece | autoevolutionBuilt to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You by John Warrillow | AmazonBuilt to Sell — Making Your Company Sellable by John Warrillow | The Tim Ferriss BlogSo You’re Being Acqui-hired… | Cooley GOWhatever Happened to Netscape? | EngadgetLiar’s Poker: RIsing Through the Wreckage on Wall Street by Michael Lewis | AmazonCoupa Cafe Customers Can Buy Items with Bitcoins | Palo Alto OnlineThe Future Has Arrived — It’s Just Not Evenly Distributed Yet | Quote InvestigatorThe Holy Grail: How to Outsource the Inbox and Never Check Email Again | The Tim Ferriss BlogWhy Email Is So Stressful, Even Though It’s Not Actually That Time-Consuming | HBRInteractive Archives | SXSWHow the Internet Was Born: From the ARPANET to the Internet | The Conversation43 Folders Series: Inbox Zero | 43 FoldersThe Guy Who Invented Inbox Zero Says We’re All Doing It Wrong | Inc.comThe Best (And Worst?) Autoresponders of 2007 | The Tim Ferriss BlogTim Ferriss Interviewed by Robert Scoble | PodTech 2007PBwiki | WikipediaThe Rise and Fall of Getting Things Done by Cal Newport | The New YorkerThe Scientists: A History of Science Told Through the Lives of Its Greatest Inventors by John Gribbin | AmazonOn Pace and Productivity | Study HacksDon’t Just Do Something; Stand There | Quote InvestigatorThe Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness by Morgan Housel | AmazonMorgan Housel — The Psychology of Money, Picking the Right Game, and the $6 Million Janitor | The Tim Ferriss Show #576How I Built The Tim Ferriss Show to 700+ Million Downloads — An Immersive Explanation of All Aspects and Key Decisions (Featuring Chris Hutchins) | The Tim Ferriss Show #538Geographic Arbitrage: How I Save $20000+ A Year Living Abroad | Nomadic FireThe Future of Work After COVID-19 | McKinsey4-Hour Workweek Referenced | The Office S08E03 LottoIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia: The 7 Secrets of Awakening the Highly Effective Four-Hour Giant, Today by The Gang | AmazonI Am So Over Productivity Porn | Bitches Get RichesEssentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown | AmazonGetting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen | AmazonHyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction by Chris Bailey | AmazonSHOW NOTESSome of the first cracks in my post-Princeton life that hinted at the unsustainable nature of Silicon Valley workaholic culture and led me toward a realization that The 4-Hour Workweek might be a book worth writing. [07:36]The fatal flaw in my first startup that ensured I wouldn’t be able to easily sell it. [17:22]A snapshot of Silicon Valley in the early 2000s: a prototyping and testing ground for new technologies and a hotbed of hustling. [22:16]Cal says I mentioned email four times in the opening six minutes of my first South by Southwest talk. In retrospect, what bigger problems did this portend, and how was my approach somewhat transgressive, considering the audience? [26:44]Defying the cult of productivity to be more effective than efficient with the 80/20 principle (aka Pareto’s law). [39:43]On slow productivity and playing your own game while understanding the rules by which other people play theirs.[44:33]How the launch of this podcast was, in a sense, a reexamination of what my own game was after working on The 4-Hour Chef turned out to be more a labor of labor than love. [47:57]My mindset going into that first South by Southwest speech in 2007 and how I tried to make the pain points of efficiency relatable rather than presenting them as judgment against my go-getting, startup-hustling audience. [50:41]If prioritizing your own self-care inconveniences other people from time to time, so be it. (To the people pleasers in the audience, please reread that last sentence to yourself a little louder until it sticks.) [53:50]After the South by Southwest speech, what was the general reception like? What points seemed to resonate most with people? [56:44]How a mutual friend put concepts presented in The 4-Hour Workweek to work and changed his own life, how some of those concepts that were radical when the book was published 15 years ago are now considered commonplace, and which concepts I hope continue to gain momentum. [1:00:56]How the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly made the work-disrupting scenarios posited in The 4-Hour Workweek viable alternatives to the status quo rather than intangible, impossible thought experiments, though some challenges remain. [1:06:40]Pop culture references to The 4-Hour Workweek and common misinterpretations of its primary tenets that come from casual skimming and second-hand sources. [1:10:38]Digging deeper, why do so many readers who pick up the bestselling productivity and time management books seem to miss the points they’re really trying to make? [1:15:57]Cal’s optimistic parting thoughts that society is finally catching up with what The 4-Hour Workweek was trying to convey. [1:20:58]PEOPLE MENTIONEDRuth Bader GinsburgHenry A. KissingerEd ZschauJames H. ClarkRamit SethiRay PorterMichael LewisWilliam GibsonRobert ScobleMerlin MannWinston ChurchillPeter DruckerUlysses S. GrantWarren BuffettCharlie MungerMorgan HouselHugh ForrestGreg McKeownDavid AllenFrederick Winslow TaylorMay 10, 2022
Richard Wiseman on Lessons from Dale Carnegie, How to Keep a Luck Diary, Mentalism, The Psychology of the Paranormal, Mass Participation Experiments, NLP, Remote Viewing, and Attempting the Impossible (#593)
Illustration via 99designs“My mantra is always: ‘What is the scientific underpinning of these ideas?'”
— Richard Wiseman
Richard Wiseman (@richardwiseman) holds Britain’s only professorship in the public understanding of psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles examining the psychology of magic and illusion, the paranormal, luck, and self-help. His books on psychology, which include The Luck Factor: The Scientific Study of the Lucky Mind and 59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot, have sold more than three million copies worldwide, and his psychology-based YouTube videos have garnered more than 500 million views.
Elizabeth Loftus, former president of The Association for Psychological Science, described Richard as “one of the world’s most creative psychologists,” and The Independent On Sunday chose him as one of the top 100 people who make Britain a better place to live. In addition to his work in the field of psychology, Richard served as director of The Edinburgh Fringe Festival for eight years.
He recently co-authored David Copperfield’s History of Magic, and his next book, Psychology: Why It Matters, will be published later this year.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
Brought to you by UCAN endurance products powered by SuperStarch®, Headspace easy-to-use app with guided meditations, and Helix Sleep premium mattresses. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#593: Richard Wiseman on Lessons from Dale Carnegie, How to Keep a Luck Diary, Mentalism, The Psychology of the Paranormal, Mass Participation Experiments, NLP, Remote Viewing, and Attempting the ImpossibleThis episode is brought to you by UCAN. I was introduced to UCAN and its unique carbohydrate SuperStarch® by my good friend—and listener favorite—Dr. Peter Attia, who said there is no carb in the world like it. I have since included it in my routine, using UCAN’s powders to power my workouts, and the bars make great snacks. Extensive scientific research and clinical trials have shown that SuperStarch provides a sustained release of energy to the body without spiking blood sugar. UCAN is the ideal way to source energy from a carbohydrate without the negatives associated with fast carbs, especially sugar. You avoid fatigue, hunger cravings, and loss of focus.
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What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…
Want to hear an episode with someone else you might meet at the Magic Castle bar? Listen to my conversation with sleight-of-hand wizard Richard Turner in which we discuss finagling free suits, why practice does not necessarily make perfect, how Richard has managed not to miss a single workout in 49 years, fighting 10 rounds in a sweltering Tijuana sweatbox with peripheral vision, channeling Charles Bonnet Syndrome like a superpower, and much more.
#411: Richard Turner — The Magical Phenom Who Will Blow Your MindSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Richard Wiseman:Website | Twitter | Facebook | YouTube
David Copperfield’s History of Magic by David Copperfield, Richard Wiseman, and David Britland | AmazonPsychology: Why It Matters by Richard Wiseman | AmazonThe Luck Factor by Richard Wiseman | Amazon59 Seconds: Change Your Life in Under a Minute by Richard Wiseman | AmazonParanormality: Why We See What Isn’t There by Richard Wiseman | AmazonNight School: Wake Up to the Power of Sleep by Richard Wiseman | AmazonQuirkology: How We Discover the Big Truths in Small Things by Richard Wiseman | AmazonMoonshot: What Landing a Man on the Moon Teaches Us About Collaboration, Creativity, and the Mind-set for Success by Richard Wiseman | AmazonEdinburgh Festival FringeThe 15 Best Places for Fudge in Edinburgh | FoursquareAll Blacks RugbyWhere J.K. Rowling Wrote Harry Potter in Edinburgh | Independent Travel CatsHarry Potter Complete Boxed Set by J.K. Rowling | AmazonThe Control Group Is Out Of Control | Slate Star CodexExperimenter Effects and the Remote Detection of Staring | The Journal of ParapsychologyAn Honest Liar | Prime VideoUniversity of EdinburghUniversity of HertfordshireFeeling the Future: Experimental Evidence for Anomalous Retroactive Influences on Cognition and Affect | Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Magic CircleUniversity College LondonThe Magic Castle | The Academy of Magical ArtsThe Psychology of Magic and the Magic of Psychology | Frontiers ResearchThe Entertainment Gathering – How to Hang with Bezos, Yo-Yo Ma, and More | Tim FerrissThe Magic, Misdirection, and Mindset of David Blaine | The Tim Ferriss Show #245AMORALMAN: A True Story and Other Lies by Derek DelGaudio | AmazonDerek DelGaudio’s In & Of Itself | HuluTypes of Magicians | Christopher HowellHow Does Cold Reading Work? | Vanishing Inc. Magic ShopRichard Turner — The Magical Phenom Who Will Blow Your Mind | The Tim Ferriss Show #411Dealt | Prime VideoTomorrow’s World | BBCThe MegaLab Truth Test | NatureA Psychologist’s Tips on How to Spot a Liar | BBC Radio 4 in FourScience Declares This Is the Funniest Joke in the World | CNETLaughLab | Richard WisemanNeuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) | WikipediaThe Eyes Don’t Have It: Lie Detection and Neuro-Linguistic Programming | PLOS ONEWhy Most Brainstorming Sessions Are Useless | ForbesStargate Project | WikipediaPhenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government’s Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis by Annie Jacobsen | AmazonWhere’s Wiseman? An Experiment into the Paranormal Using Twitter | The GuardianGhostbusters | Prime VideoSecrets of the Seance | Richard WisemanHampton Court PalaceGhosts and Hauntings | Richard WisemanWhy We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker | AmazonExploring the World of Lucid Dreaming by Stephen LaBerge and Howard Rheingold | AmazonNight Terrors | Sleep FoundationLucid Dreaming: A Beginner’s Guide | Tim FerrissHow to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie | AmazonHow to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie | AmazonHow To Make Your Own Luck | Fast CompanyHedonic Treadmill: How Does it Affect Your Happiness? | HealthlineWise Man | The New YorkerWhere Can I Find Information on Yale’s 1953 Goal Study? | Ask Yale LibraryCargo Cult Science: Richard Feynman’s 1974 Caltech Graduation Address on Integrity | The MarginalianSelective Attention Test | Simons & ChabrisColour Changing Card Trick | Richard Wiseman‘It’s Still Bending’: Verbal Suggestion and Alleged Psychokinetic Ability | The British Psychological SocietyHelp Us Put an End to Wrongful Convictions! | Innocence ProjectFalse-Uniqueness Effect | WikipediaPreregistration | American Psychological AssociationShoot For The Moon! | Richard WisemanMasterpiece Theater | PBSMan on Wire | Prime VideoBad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives. | NetflixCirque du Soleil: Fire Within | IMDbDerren Brown: Miracle | NetflixSHOW NOTESWhat is The Edinburgh Fringe Festival? [06:01]Richard explains how he, as a skeptic, got recruited into the world of parapsychology research, and why he dedicated years of his life to it. [07:23]What is the Magic Circle Society? [14:00]What disciplines and frameworks do magicians like Richard pick up that prove useful in other areas of life? [15:44]Who among Richard’s fellow magicians do we find particularly impressive, and what’s the real reason they’re not likely to tell you how they perform their illusions? [17:40]What is mentalism? [24:47]Two recommendations: a card mechanic and a mentalist worth your while. [26:03]Richard has carried out a number of mass participation studies. What are they, and which ones has he found most memorable? [27:06]What is NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), and what has Richard’s research had to say about its efficacy? [36:15]A more effective alternative to brainstorming. [39:32]In Richard’s estimation, what areas of scientific study are woefully underfunded and underresearched? [40:22]What did Richard discover while researching remote viewing that the CIA might have missed? Can remote viewing be faked? [43:26]How does Richard choose the subjects his books cover, and how did an annoying heckler once inspire him to improve a working title? [47:10]Twitter remote viewing, Victorian-style seances, and a ghost hunt in one of Henry VIII’s old…haunts. [50:28]Why is Richard fascinated by dreaming, and how has his experience with lucid dreaming been disappointing thus far? Might one of his future books be titled The Upside of Night Terrors? [54:11]How has my experience with lucid dreaming differed from Richard’s? [59:40]What has Richard learned about improving sleep since writing a book about it? Has he stopped having night terrors? [1:02:25]Self-development books Richard has actually found helpful, and why he takes issue with so much of the rest. [1:05:57]What is a luck diary, and why should you consider keeping one? [1:09:51]How Richard avoids overthinking idea generation. [1:12:40]Why the mass participation study that attempted to crowdsource the world’s funniest joke may have just resulted in pinpointing the world’s blandest. [1:13:45]How does Richard feel certain facets of his work could be applied in schools? Has this been tested? [1:14:51]What was (or wasn’t) the Yale Goal Study, and what is its most important lesson? [1:16:41]On the malleability of observation and memory — which can result in anything from seance manipulation to false convictions. [1:20:43]Are there any researchers currently delving into the mysteries of parapsychology who Richard respects deeply? Why might a well-respected scientist risk their career and reputation to pursue something so difficult to prove? [1:25:26]What makes studying what went on psychologically behind the scenes at NASA during the Apollo moon landings so compelling for Richard? [1:30:35]Whose picture is on Richard’s mantel? Knock if you know the answer. [1:33:47]What would Richard’s billboard say? [1:35:49]Recommended documentaries. [1:37:00]How does a performer like Derren Brown keep their show fresh after 578 performances without burning out? [1:44:11]Parting thoughts. [1:46:18]MORE RICHARD WISEMAN QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“Magic tricks have to work every single time. Not only when people see them, but when they talk about it in the bar afterwards.”
— Richard Wiseman
“Magicians withhold their secrets for the good of the audience.”
— Richard Wiseman
“People have difficult lives. We know that. And we know that psychology can help them.”
— Richard Wiseman
“My mantra is always: ‘What is the scientific underpinning of these ideas?'”
— Richard Wiseman
“This is going to go at some point. So make tonight count.”
— Richard Wiseman
“Smile.”
— Richard Wiseman
May 4, 2022
Dennis McKenna — An Ethnopharmacologist on Hallucinogens, Sex-Crazed Cicadas, The Mushrooms of Language, BioGnosis, and Illuminating Obscure Corners (#592)
Illustration via 99designs“To make the world comprehensible, you have to selectively filter what gets in. You inhabit this filtered — you could almost use the word curated — version of reality. Otherwise, it would just be a blooming, buzzing confusion you wouldn’t be able to navigate. And then you can take a psychedelic. You can disable those mechanisms. You can disable this default mode mechanism, open the gates of the reducing valve, and that can be very beneficial in terms of helping you get outside of your reference frame.”
— Dennis McKenna
Dennis McKenna (@DennisMcKenna4) has spent more than 40 years researching the interdisciplinary study of Amazonian ethnopharmacology and plant hallucinogens. He has conducted extensive ethnobotanical fieldwork in the Peruvian, Colombian, and Brazilian Amazon.
His doctoral research at the University of British Columbia focused on the ethnopharmacology of ayahuasca and oo-koo-he, two tryptamine-based hallucinogens used by indigenous peoples in the Northwest Amazon.
He is a founding board member of the Heffter Research Institute and was a key organizer and participant in the Hoasca Project, the first biomedical investigation of ayahuasca used by the UDV, a Brazilian religious group. He is the younger brother of Terence McKenna.
From 2000 to 2017, he taught courses on ethnopharmacology as well as Plants in Human Affairs at the Center for Spirituality and Healing at the University of Minnesota. In 2019, in collaboration with colleagues, he incorporated a nonprofit, the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy. Currently, the Academy has several projects underway, with the most immediate being preparations for an upcoming conference in the UK May 23rd–26th, ESPD55 , which will cover a wide range of topics related to psycho-ethnopharmacology and feature an exclusive, pre-release screening of the McKenna Academy’s first short documentary, BioGnosis, Bridges to Ancestral Wisdom.
Dennis emigrated to Canada in the spring of 2019 with his wife Sheila and now resides in Abbotsford, British Columbia.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
Brought to you by Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, Eight Sleep’s Pod Pro Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating, and Shopify global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business. More on all three below.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#592: Dennis McKenna — An Ethnopharmacologist on Hallucinogens, Sex-Crazed Cicadas, The Mushrooms of Language, BioGnosis, and Illuminating Obscure CornersThis episode is brought to you by Shopify! Shopify is one of my favorite platforms and one of my favorite companies. Shopify is a platform designed for anyone to sell anywhere, giving entrepreneurs the resources once reserved for big business. In no time flat, you can have a great looking online store that brings your ideas to life, and you can have the tools to manage your day-to-day and drive sales. No coding or design experience required.
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What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
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Want to hear the last time Dennis McKenna was on this show? Give a listen to our conversation here in which we discussed the psychedelic ecosystem, cultural back stories of now-common medicinal compounds, exploring the mysteries of ayahuasca with scientific curiosity, how the experiment at La Chorrera (as chronicled in brother Terence McKenna’s True Hallucinations) went off the rails, new thoughts on the stoned ape theory, and much more.
#523: Dennis McKenna — The Depths of Ayahuasca: 500+ Sessions, Fundamentals, Advanced Topics, Science, Churches, Learnings, Warnings, and BeyondSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Dennis McKenna:Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Connect with McKenna Academy:Website | Donate | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
ESPD 55 | McKenna Academy BioGnosis: Bridges to Ancestral Wisdom | McKenna AcademyDennis McKenna — The Depths of Ayahuasca: 500+ Sessions, Fundamentals, Advanced Topics, Science, Churches, Learnings, Warnings, and Beyond | The Tim Ferriss Show #523The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss: My Life with Terence McKenna by Dennis McKenna | AmazonHeffter Research InstituteThe Hoasca Project | MAPSBanisteriopsis Caapi | WikipediaUnderstanding MAO Inhibitors: Types, Side Effects, and More | HealthlineBreaking Down the Brew: Examining the Plants Commonly Used In Ayahuasca | Psychedelic TimesWhat is a Dieta? | Ayahuasca.comCultural Awareness: Understanding Curanderismo | ACAThe Curare Plant: A Cure All, or Kill All? | The Evergreen State CollegeSet and Setting: Why Preparation Matters | DoubleBlindMike Tyson on Smoking DMT: ‘Do You Understand the Toad?’ | The Art of Conversation with Dan Le BatardTetrahydroharmine – Mysterious Alkaloid of the Banisteriopsis Caapi | Gaia StorePsilocybe Cubensis | WikipediaKetamine Infusions vs. Intramuscular Ketamine Injections | SKICannabinoid Receptors in the Central Nervous System: Their Signaling and Roles in Disease | Frontiers in Cellular NeuroscienceBrain Activity of Anandamide: A Rewarding Bliss? | Acta Pharmacologica SinicaHow Opioid Drugs Activate Receptors | National Institutes of HealthReceptors & Ligands | 2-Minute NeuroscienceDMT Is in Your Head, but It May Be Too Weird for the Psychedelic Renaissance | Scientific American Blog NetworkJohn Chavez: How To Create DMT Naturally Inside Your Body | Wellness Force MediaMeet LUCA, the Ancestor of All Living Things | The New York TimesSignal Transduction Pathways | Bozeman ScienceThese Fungi Drug Cicadas with Psilocybin or Amphetamine to Make Them Mate Nonstop — The Insects Keep At It Even If Chunks of Their Abdomens Fall Off | Science NewsMassospora Cicadina | WikipediaKhat: Effects, Risks, and How to Get Help | Verywell MindAfter This Fungus Turns Ants Into Zombies, Their Bodies Explode | The New York TimesCordyceps | WikipediaParasite Makes Mice Lose Fear of Cats Permanently | NatureLSD May Offer Viable Treatment for Certain Mental Disorders | Neuroscience NewsHallucinogens and Culture by Peter T. Furst | AmazonThe Mushrooms of Language by Henry Munn | The Psychedelic LibraryThe Concept of Logos | Classical Wisdom WeeklyWhat Is It Like To Have Synesthesia? | The Royal InstitutionTrippy Research: Chemically-Induced Synesthesia | Technology NetworksSynesthesia on Psychedelics | ViceUnderstanding the Default Mode Network | Verywell HealthProfessor Donald Hoffman — The Case Against Reality, Beyond Spacetime, Rethinking Death, Panpsychism, QBism, and More | The Tim Ferriss Show #585Aldous Huxley: The Reducing Valve Theory | Nexus Void50 Years Ago, an Apollo 14 Astronaut Played Golf on the Moon. Here’s the inside Story. | SpaceConsciousness: Edgar Mitchell’s Samadhi in Deep Space | Hinduism TodayOverview Effect and the Experience of Savikalpa Samadhi of the Astronauts | Technology of the HeartInstitute of Noetic Sciences (IONS)What is the Mystical Experience Questionnaire? | Psychedelic Science ReviewBicycle Day by Brian Blomerth | AmazonThe Mind of a Mnemonist: A Little Book about a Vast Memory by Aleksandr R. Luria | AmazonRain Man | Prime VideoBrainman: Inside the Mind of an Autistic Savant | The Marginalian5 Mind-Blowing Things Kim Peek Could Do That You Can’t | ABAThe Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs: Reflections on a Book that Changed My Life by Dennis MeKenna | American Botanical CouncilEthnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs (Vol. 1 & 2): 50 Years of Research Edited by Dr. Dennis McKenna, PhD; Professor Sir Ghillean T. Prance; Professor Wade Davis, PhD; Benjamin De Leonen | AmazonESPD 50 | VimeoIndigenous Communities in Post-FARC Colombia Struggle to Destigmatize Sacred Coca Leaf | MongabayKratom (Mitragyna Speciosa): Recent Advances in Understanding the Chemistry, Pharmacology, and Human Uses | ESPD 55Integral Projection Models: A Road Map for Sustainable Ayahuasca Production | ESPD 55Psychedelic Fauna for Psychonaut Hunters | ESPD 55A History of Psychoactive Plants and Fungi in Chinese Medicine | ESPD 55Farming Psychedelics and Other Tryptamine Medicines from Marine Sponges: Yield Enhancing Lessons from Psilocin | ESPD 55The Harpy’s Gift and the Jaguar’s Curse: Hunting Medicines Among the Matsigenka | ESPD 55Ethnopharmacology and Phytochemical Profiling of Huachuma | ESPD 55Expanding Evidence of Anadenanthera in the Pre-Columbian Andes: Identifying Depictions of Anadenanthera in the Iconographic Records of Cupisnique, Paracas and Nazca Cultures | ESPD 55Creation of an Ethnopharmacological Plant Repository in Southern Brazil. Presentation of a Collaborative Project to Establish a Collection of Sacred Psychoactive Medicinal Plants at Wasiwaska Research Center in Florianópolis, Brazil | ESPD 55Chemically-Induced Otherworldly Experiences of Zoroastrians in Iran | ESPD 55Huachuma Collective | InstagramInternational Society of Environmental Relationship And Sustainability (ISERS)What Near-Death Experiences Reveal about the Brain | Scientific AmericanNear-Death Experiences Evidence for Their Reality | Missouri MedicineHamlet’s Soliloquy | Monologue ArchiveCan Psychedelics Help Make Dying Easier? | Rolling StoneInterview: Celebrity Psychonaut Dennis McKenna | NAILED MagazinePharmahuasca: Can a Chemical Ayahuasca Alternative Compare? | KhapiAn Urgent Plea to Users of Psychedelics: Let’s Consider a More Ethical Menu of Plants and Compounds | Tim FerrissThe Native American Church and Peyote Ceremonies | Learn ReligionsIndigenous Peyote Conservation InitiativeMesoamerican Cosmovision | WikipediaLophophora Williamsii (Mescal, Mescal Buttons, Peyote) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant ToolboxThe English Diggers (1649-50) | The Digger ArchivesFailed ‘Utopias’ Throughout History | ViceScarface | Prime VideoWhat Is a Bodhisattva? | TricycleIn ‘Stoned Ape’ Theory, Consciousness Has Roots in Psilocybin | InverseCannabis 101: Educational Information & Resources | LeaflyMarijuana Is 67,200 Times Stronger than It Used to Be (According to the Media) | CrackedDifference Between Hashish And Marijuana? | Sunrise House Treatment CenterWeed Rituals: A Cross-Cultural Connection to Calm | LeaflyAmazonian Digital Herbarium Project | Botanical DimensionsA Plant Whose Virtues Remain Undiscovered | Mother Earth NewsSHOW NOTESHow Dennis and his brother Terence tuned in to “vegetable television” with the addition of an ayahuasca ingredient to their regular consumption of mushrooms and cannabis, and why even the components of tried-and-true ayahuasca are in constant flux depending on who’s making it. [07:39]Why is it that psychoactive drugs don’t always work — even in people who usually feel their effects — and what keeps us from finding out through controlled studies? [13:51]As much as Dennis has experimented with adding and subtracting ingredients to various psychoactive admixtures, he’s come to believe it’s best to avoid combinations if possible. There are often alternative ways to dial the effects of these substances up or down as desired. [21:43]Why would we have cannabinoid, opiate, and other molecular receptors in our brains unless we’re designed to consume these substances from external sources? [29:45]Tales of terror from the world of psilocybin cicadas, cordyceps zombies, and toxoplasmic rodents. [36:34]Dennis shares his thoughts on psychedelics as a potential treatment for dyslexia and other language-based disorders. [42:20]What happened to Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell after having his savikalpa samadhi experience — a mystic glimpse beyond the self into the true nature of things? Does Dennis believe current psychedelic pioneers are misguided in downplaying the mystical experiences certain compounds bring out in people? [50:18]For anyone curious about Albert Hofmann’s discovery of LSD, Dennis recommends the graphic novel Bicycle Day by Brian Blomerth. [53:48]My recommended resources for learning more about the perceptual phenomenon of synesthesia. [54:58]What ESPD 55 entails: its history, its itinerary, and how you can participate even if you can’t physically make it to the conference in the UK from May 23rd to the 26th. [56:51]How does Dennis relate to mortality and the inevitability of death? [1:08:54]What is BioGnosis? [1:11:56]How does Dennis feel about synthetic substitutes for psychedelic compounds that have been traditionally harvested from natural — and often endangered — sources? What adaptations might groups who see these plants as sacred have to make to ensure that some of them don’t go extinct? [1:14:16]Most communities of any size eventually have to deal with in-fighting and power grabs from a certain element, and the psychedelic community is no exception. Can Dennis imagine any solutions to this unfortunate reality? [1:25:31]What would Dennis choose if he could only partake of three psychoactive substances for the rest of his life? [1:35:02]The pros and cons of cannabis consumption and its methods of delivery, and how modern strains can induce experiences akin to psychedelics. [1:36:38]What we can expect from an upcoming second edition of The Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss, The BioGnosis Project (and its first associated documentary (to be screened at ESPD 55), virtualizing the Herbarium in Iquitos, and other parting thoughts. [1:42:46]MORE DENNIS MCKENNA QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“There is no such thing as a standardized mixture of ayahuasca because each preparation is as different as the practitioners that prepare it. It has their idiosyncratic stamp on it.”
— Dennis McKenna
“I think psychedelics are our co-evolutionary partners. I think they help us become better people, but you have to work at it. Like any kind of spiritual, moral, ethical development, you’re not going to make it unless you actually try and believe in it.”
— Dennis McKenna
“A lot of these plants are not very well investigated from a scientific point of view, but it’s an empirical science. And the point is in some ways these practitioners, shamans, curanderos, they’re really scientists in a certain sense. They’re experimental about it and they don’t hesitate to say, ‘Well, what if I take this and mix it with that? What’s going to happen? How is that going to change the effect?’ Those who survive this process make discoveries, but there is the potential to take the wrong things.”
— Dennis McKenna
“Nature is drenched in DMT.”
— Dennis McKenna
“Long before I heard of default mode network, I was calling it the reality hallucination. Effectively, we live in a hallucination. We live in an artificial world reality that our brains construct. And it must reflect whatever’s out there, because we’re not wandering around stepping in front of buses and things like that. So it does map to reality in some ways, but it’s actually an impoverished version of reality. A lot of what the brain does is filter things out.”
— Dennis McKenna
“To make the world comprehensible, you have to selectively filter what gets in. You inhabit this filtered — you could almost use the word curated — version of reality. Otherwise, it would just be a blooming, buzzing confusion you wouldn’t be able to navigate. And then you can take a psychedelic. You can disable those mechanisms. You can disable this default mode mechanism, open the gates of the reducing valve, and that can be very beneficial in terms of helping you get outside of your reference frame.”
— Dennis McKenna
“I have nothing against synthetics. I think synthetics have their place. Like I like to tell people, synthetics are made by all-natural organic chemists. They come from nature, ultimately.”
— Dennis McKenna
“It’s hard to find consensus. Everybody’s got a different idea and we have a hard time listening to each other.”
— Dennis McKenna
“I know lots of people who take lots of psychedelics. They’re still assholes. It’s not a cure for that.”
— Dennis McKenna
“It’s just tough to be a kind and gentle and insightful and wise person. That’s kind of what we’re here for, though, I think.”
— Dennis McKenna
“We’re midway between the apes and the angels right now.”
— Dennis McKenna
PEOPLE MENTIONEDTerence McKennaMark PlotkinDon Fidel MosambiteAndrew WeilJohn ChavezHenry MunnPeter T. FurstAldous HuxleyAlan ShepardEdgar MitchellRoland R. GriffithsAlbert HofmannBrian BlomerthAleksandr R. LuriaJerome S. BrunerDaniel TammetKim PeekWade DavisDonna TorresPaul StametsLaurel Anne SugdenJosip OrlovacMichael CoeWilliam ShakespeareQuanah ParkerRalph Waldo EmersonApril 29, 2022
Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine Fame — Fear{less} with Tim Ferriss (#591)
“Dangerous times demand dangerous songs.”
— Tom Morello
Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life.
You’ll get plenty of that in this special episode, which features my interview with Tom Morello from my 2017 TV Show Fear{less}. The “less” is in parentheses because the objective is to teach you to fear less, not to be fearless.
Fear{less} features in-depth, long-form conversations with top performers, focusing on how they’ve overcome fears and made hard decisions, embracing discomfort and thinking big.
It was produced by Wild West Productions, and I worked with them to make both the video and audio available to you for free, my dear listeners. You can find the video of this episode on YouTube.com/TimFerriss, and eventually you’ll be able to see all episodes for free at YouTube.com/TimFerriss.
Spearheaded by actor/producer and past podcast guest Vince Vaughn, Wild West Productions has produced a string of hit movies including The Internship, Couples Retreat, Four Christmases, and The Break-Up.
In 2020, Wild West produced the comedy The Opening Act, starring Jimmy O. Yang and Cedric The Entertainer. In addition to Fear{less}, their television credits include Undeniable with Joe Buck, ESPN’s 30 for 30 episode about the ’85 Bears, and the Netflix animated show F is for Family.
Please enjoy!
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube here.
Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercastTom Morello of Rage Against the Machine Fame — Fear{less} with Tim Ferriss (#591)This episode is brought to you by 5-Bullet Friday, my very own email newsletter that every Friday features five bullet points highlighting cool things I’ve found that week, including apps, books, documentaries, gadgets, albums, articles, TV shows, new hacks or tricks, and—of course—all sorts of weird stuff I’ve dug up from around the world.
It’s free, it’s always going to be free, and you can subscribe now at tim.blog/friday.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
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Want to hear an episode with another phenomenal musician featured on Fear{less}? Have a listen to my conversation with Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stewart Copeland, in which we discussed having fun with music without worrying about the consequences of making mistakes, the energy-generating properties of righteous anger, advice for rock musicians who want to score films, making Machiavellian power moves in the music management business, gig preparation, and much more.
#581: Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stewart Copeland — Fear{less} with Tim FerrissSELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Tom Morello:Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Spotify
Rage Against The MachineAudioslave | WikipediaThe Nightwatchman | WikipediaProphets of Rage | WikipediaMarseilles, IllinoisOffice of the Presidency | KenyaLibertyville, IllinoisBrown’s ChickenTom Morello Shares Racist Experiences with Police, the KKK + Fans | LoudwireKISSAC/DCBlack SabbathMaster of Puppets by Metallica | Amazon MusicLed ZeppelinDetroit Rock City by Kiss | Amazon MusicJimmy Page and His Black Magic Highland Home | The ScotsmanNever Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols by Sex Pistols | Amazon MusicLibertyville Theatre | Libertyville High SchoolStyxKansasJourneyToolThe ClashAragon BallroomErnie Ball Music Man Amplifiers & Effects | Guitar CenterHarvard UniversityStudents Protest Investment in Apartheid South Africa | The Harvard CrimsonSoweto, Johannesburg | South African History OnlineHistory of the Chevy Astro Van | LoveToKnowThe Beginner’s Guide to Hollywood | Discover Los AngelesRUN-DMCAerosmithPublic EnemyIron MaidenRage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello Worked as a Stripper | Far OutBrick House by The Commodores | Amazon MusicLock Up (American Band) | WikipediaAl’s Bar (CLOSED) | YelpRed Hot Chili PeppersThe Problem with Music by Steve Albini | The BafflerPearl JamThe Bomb Squad | WikipediaTake the Power Back by Rage Against the Machine | Amazon Music5 Guys Who′ve Been Called the ′Fifth Beatle′ | DWBulls on Parade (Live) by Rage Against the Machine | Amazon MusicWoodstock ’99: Worst Things About Infamous Music Fest | Rolling StoneThe Garden of Gethsemane by The Nightwatchman at Guitar Center Sessions | YouTubeJameson WhiskeyNebraska by Bruce Springsteen | Amazon MusicMetallica by Metallica | Amazon MusicThis Is Spinal Tap | Prime VideoHotel Intercontinental | NairobiWatership Down: A Novel by Richard Adams | AmazonWhite Riot by The Clash | Amazon MusicTire Me by Rage Against the Machine | Amazon MusicCypress HillProphets Of Rage by Prophets Of Rage | Amazon MusicProphets of Rage Perform Free Show on Skid Row in L.A. | LoudwireProphets of Rage Play Surprise Set Outside California Prison | Rolling StoneProphets of Rage Bring Their Anger to the Republican Convention | The New York TimesWhoomp! There It Is (Radio Edit) by Tag Team | Amazon MusicChicago Cubs | MLB.comSHOW NOTESTom shares what it’s like to try something musically for the first time and then present it to others — whether it’s to bandmates or an audience. [05:24]My first impressions upon hearing Tom’s work in Rage Against the Machine. [09:16]Where did Tom’s parents meet, and what was it like to grow up as an interracial child with a single mother in Libertyville, Illinois during the mid-1960s when they parted? [09:49]How did Tom’s mother encourage him to respond to the racism he would sometimes encounter in this otherwise idyllic Midwestern suburb? [12:46]What politicized Tom even more than reading Noam Chomsky in high school? [14:54]When did music enter the picture for Tom, and what precipitated his first band coming together? What experience really drove home the fact that making music was an accessible goal? [16:32]How did Tom learn guitar? [20:59]How did Tom become the first person from Libertyville, Illinois to ever go to Harvard, and what did he take away from his experience there? [22:24]After graduation, Tom drove his Chevy Astro van west to Hollywood with a thousand dollars and a dream. How long did the money last, how supportive was his mom of this endeavor, and what was his plan B if things didn’t go as intended? For that matter, how thought-out was plan A? [23:36]Exotic dancing as a makeshift plan B. [25:32]How did Tom become involved in the band Lock Up, and why was getting signed to a major record label more of a curse than a blessing? [26:32]How did Rage Against the Machine come together, and what kind of experimentalism did Tom bring to the band? [28:27]When did Tom know Rage Against the Machine was working, and how did his experience with Locked Up inform his approach to dealing with the music industry when it came knocking this time around? [30:51]Who finally succeeded in signing Rage Against the Machine, and to what does Tom credit the enthusiastic response of the fandom to the band’s live performances? [33:17]How performing as a solo acoustic act in front of eight people in a coffee shop can be a more vulnerable experience than playing as part of a band live on television for millions. [36:26]How Tom prepares for a gig. [39:01]What factors contributed to the end of Rage Against the Machine? [40:40]How did Tom’s father come back into his life? [41:42]If Tom weren’t a guitar player, what would he do for a living? [47:23]If Tom had to teach someone guitar in three months, what would the curriculum be? [47:44]What are the biggest wastes of time Tom sees novice musicians making? What are the wrong things to focus on? [48:58]As a teacher, what advice might Tom have for an aspiring young artist who can’t seem to make a connection with their audience? [50:14]What book has Tom gifted most? [51:12]An inspiring quote Tom ponders often. [51:56]An inexpensive purchase that has had a positive impact on Tom’s life. [52:44]How did Prophets of Rage come together? [53:30]What would Tom’s billboard say? [55:54]Advice for artists who might feel too intimidated to try changing the world. [56:22]MORE TOM MORELLO QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW“Dangerous times demand dangerous songs.”
— Tom Morello
“Any time you broadcast your soul artistically, be careful because somebody may be listening and you can make a connection that you wouldn’t otherwise.”
— Tom Morello
“I got to, with smug satisfaction, watch as the young racist child’s mouth was washed out with soap in front of the whole crew. And I went, ‘There might be something to this Malcolm X.'”
— Tom Morello
“People ask, ‘How were you politicized?’ And it wasn’t from reading Noam Chomsky in high school. It was recognizing that there was grave injustice on the playground.”
— Tom Morello
“I naively put out ads in all the local press saying, ‘Shredding guitar player seeks awesome Marxist front man. Influences: Run DMC and Iron Maiden.’ I did not get a lot of replies to that.”
— Tom Morello
“You think, when you’re in suburban Illinois, when you get a record deal that you’re a millionaire. Exactly the opposite.”
— Tom Morello
