Constellation: Making the Graphic Novel
161 episodes - English - Latest episode: 7 months ago - ★★★★★ - 67 ratingsJoin us as we build an original science fiction world.
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Episodes
061: What is the Future of Movies?
August 10, 2015 08:00 - 1 hour - 69.9 MBIn today’s podcast, we discuss the future of movies. We begin by addressing virtual reality and asking what impacts it will have on traditional moviemaking. In recent times, the cost of making an independent film has gone way down, and we consider whether those costs can drop even further, possibly as a result of better […]
060: Scott Santens on “Is Basic Income Part of Our Future and Should It Be?”
July 30, 2015 06:32 - 56 minutes - 64.2 MBIn today’s episode we are joined by basic income advocate Scott Santens. Scott explains his version of a basic income and how it might be paid for. Although future technological unemployment might increase the need for a basic income, there are actually many reasons besides concerns about automation to adopt such a policy. We discuss the various advantages of basic […]
059: What is the Future of Advertising?
July 15, 2015 05:34 - 1 hour - 77.1 MBIn today’s episode, we discuss the future of advertising, which we define as the ‘sale of attention.’ People mostly hate ads, but why do they? Is it possible to make ads so well targeted that people actually enjoy the experience? We discuss the remarkably constant amount of advertising as a percent of GDP over a […]
058: What are the Top Ten Ways Science Fiction Fails to Predict the Future?
July 01, 2015 18:09 - 58 minutes - 67.4 MBIn today’s episode we give a comprehensive list of the sci-fi tropes that bother us the most. While not all science fiction has an obligation to be speculative, we would like to see more science fiction that avoids certain cliches when it comes to predicting the future. We discuss the following tropes: The Prometheus Problem The Boot-in-the-face Dystopia Societal Regression […]
057: Nikola Danaylov on “What Do Experts Think About the Singularity?”
June 15, 2015 23:38 - 1 hour - 72.8 MBIn today’s podcast we are joined by Nikola Danaylov, host of the popular Singularity 1 on 1 podcast, and a man who has interviewed 170 experts about singularity related topics. After establishing the meaning of the term singularity, we discuss the wide range of opinions held by thinkers in the field. We learn that although there is […]
056: Steve Anderson on “What are the Limits of Hollywood’s Portrayal of Technology?”
June 02, 2015 18:24 - 50 minutes - 58.3 MBIn today’s podcast we are joined by Steve Anderson PhD, an associate professor of cinematic arts at USC. We discuss the depiction of computers and surveillance in Hollywood films and the many factors, such as the need to tell a visual story and the convenience of certain props, that contribute to Hollywood’s often skewed portrayals. We also identify ways […]
055: What’ll be the Impacts of Perfect Speech Recognition?
May 21, 2015 00:06 - 1 hour - 72 MBIn this week’s episode, we consider the rapid progress and recent impressive demos in the realm of speech recognition technology. We consider the difference between transcribing and understanding language, and work out a thought experiment of what might change when full transcription is widely and cheaply available. We talk about the challenges facing current generation […]
054: Martin Ford on “Are We Heading for a Jobless Future?”
May 04, 2015 21:43 - 55 minutes - 63.4 MBIn today’s podcast, we talk with Martin Ford about his new book Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future. We discuss which job sectors are most vulnerable to automation in the near future and to what degree technology might be the driving force behind troubling economic trends. Martin describes his version of a […]
053: Review of EX MACHINA
April 21, 2015 04:02 - 39 minutes - 45.6 MBIn today’s podcast, we review the new science fiction thriller Ex Machina. We talk about how this is one of the better movies we’ve seen about AI, and how in general movies seem to be getting better at handling these topics. However, we question whether the movie’s use of the phrase “Turing Test” really makes […]
052: What is the Future of Synthetic Meat?
April 08, 2015 01:09 - 56 minutes - 65.3 MBThere are many reasons to reduce or eliminate meat production, and in this week’s episode we cover them and ask the question: are we soon going to be eating synthetic meat? From resources to ethics, there is tremendous pressure to bring down the costs associated with meat. We discuss the challenges tissue engineers face in […]
051: Review of VRLA Expo 2015
March 25, 2015 21:19 - 53 minutes - 61.9 MBIn today’s podcast, we review our experiences at the VRLA Expo, a Los Angeles based event that showcases the latest in virtual reality entertainment. We describe our experiences with a wide variety of Oculus and Gear VR applications and ask the question: what are the most exciting uses for this new medium? Is this just […]
050: Jesse Lawler on “What is the Future of Brain Enhancement?”
March 10, 2015 03:28 - 51 minutes - 59.8 MBIntelligence is the most powerful force in the world, and humans are increasingly losing out to computers in various intellectual pursuits. Can you take a pill that will make you smarter? If you could, would you? We would, and so would our guest Jesse Lawler, the host of the excellent podcast Smart Drug Smarts. We […]
049: Mark Lewis on “Have We Reached Peak Education?”
February 23, 2015 21:47 - 51 minutes - 58.9 MBOn today’s podcast, Trinity University computer science professor Mark Lewis joins us to talk about his concept that we’ve reached ‘Peak Education.’ He argues that we cannot educate our way out of technological unemployment. If, in order to have a job, you have to be able to program, what does that mean for those of us […]
048: Sarah Perry on “Should We Have Control Over Our Consciousness?”
February 10, 2015 04:07 - 1 hour - 72.1 MBIs life a sacred gift or a burden? In this episode, we welcome Sarah Perry, author of Every Cradle is a Grave, to discuss the right to control one’s consciousness. Paramount among consciousness rights is the right to die; we discuss the state of suicidal legality and the cultural and technological impediments to suicide. We also […]
047: David Pearce on “What is the Future of Suffering?”
January 27, 2015 07:14 - 59 minutes - 68.4 MBIn this episode, philosopher, author and cofounder of H+ David Pearce joins us to discuss his concept of the hedonistic imperative, which is the argument that we have a moral obligation to end the suffering of not just all humanity but all sentient life. We discuss his terms “Hedonic Set Point” and “Hedonic Treadmill” and […]
046: James Hughes on “What is Technoprogressivism?”
January 12, 2015 22:00 - 1 hour - 81.1 MBIn this episode, we talk with Trinity College professor and Institute for Ethics in Emerging Technology (IEET) founder Dr. James Hughes about the political term Technoprogressive and the recent Technoprogressive Declaration he helped develop (and we here at RTF have signed). Hughes contextualizes the movement as a new, techno-optimistic wing of the traditional Enlightenment liberal project, and […]
045: Dave Ross on “What is the Future of Comedy?”
December 29, 2014 20:55 - 42 minutes - 48.9 MBIn this episode we talk with comedian Dave Ross about the ways the technology is impacting the world of stand-up comedy. We discuss how cellphone cameras are disrupting the age-old process of working out jokes in small rooms and about how, soon, virtual reality might be displacing or devaluing live performances. We discuss the problem […]
044: Jason Ganz on “What is the Future of Virtual Reality?”
December 15, 2014 21:25 - 1 hour - 100 MBIn this episode we talk to guest Jason Ganz of Agora VR. You may know Jason from his role as a moderator on the Futurology subreddit and as a co-host on the Futurology podcast. He’s an enthusiastic VR supporter and we had a wide-ranging, informative conversation we think you are going to find fascinating. We cover some of […]
043: Review of THE IMMORTALISTS
December 01, 2014 20:42 - 45 minutes - 52.1 MBIn this episode, we review the new documentary THE IMMORTALISTS, which is out in New York and opens December 11 in Los Angeles. The film covers the efforts toward radical life extension of two prominent figures, Aubrey de Grey and Bill Andrews. We discuss the quality of the representation in the film, of both the […]
042: John Danaher on “Will the Future be Ruled by Algorithm?”
November 17, 2014 22:55 - 1 hour - 78.1 MBIn this episode we talk with guest John Danaher, a lecturer at National University of Ireland, Galway and blogger. He has coined the term ‘Algocracy’ to describe a future state of rule by algorithm. We define the term and talk about how modern day algorithms like dating websites, military drones, and tax fraud detection are growing […]
041: What are the Reasons to Protect Privacy?
November 04, 2014 01:01 - 46 minutes - 53.8 MBIn this episode we build on our previous podcast on privacy by examining, from a philosophical point of view, what the instrumental and intrinsic benefits to privacy are. Is there some fundamental, moral reason to protect privacy, or is it simply a way to prevent various misuses of data? If misuse is the real issue, would a […]
040: What is the Future of Education?
October 21, 2014 23:05 - 51 minutes - 58.7 MBIn this week’s podcast, we discuss the future of education. We examine the advantages and disadvantages of MOOCs and other online courses, and in the process we identify four distinct educational challenges: communicating information, fostering motivation, certifying knowledge, and building community. We also stress the importance of returning to first principles and asking fundamental questions about what the purpose […]
039: What is Transhumanism?
October 14, 2014 17:11 - 54 minutes - 62.1 MBIn this episode, we discuss the meaning and origins of the term ‘transhumanism.’ We summarize the primary transhumanist goals of increased longevity, greater intelligence, and enhanced wellbeing. We also explore some of the other implications of transhumanist philosophy, such as a commitment to rationalism, morphological freedom, respect for sentience, and avoidance of existential risk. Relevant Links The Transhumanist Declaration David Pearce on […]
038: Can We Predict the Future?
October 08, 2014 00:38 - 36 minutes - 41.9 MBThis week’s podcast asks about the benefits and problems associated with both hard “mathematical” prediction and soft “storytelling” prediction. We discuss the limits of mathematical prediction in terms of theory, randomness, chaos, and non-computability. We discuss the limits and benefits of storytelling and scenario planning as predictive tools as well, and we also discuss the self-reference […]
037: What is the Future of the Sharing Economy?
September 30, 2014 01:15 - 42 minutes - 48.7 MBThis week’s episode is about the sharing economy. We discuss the term and try to decide if the companies that use it are really doing anything new or just using a buzzword to screw workers and evade regulations. We discuss Airbnb, Uber, Lyft, Fold.it, Couchsurfing, Seti@Home, Streetbank, Zipcar, eBay, and craigslist. Are these sites really just […]
036: What is the Future of Hell?
September 23, 2014 03:04 - 48 minutes - 55.6 MBIn this week’s episode, we wonder if it’s technologically possible to create eternal suffering and torture someone forever in a digital hell. We cover the question of why someone might torture a digital being or nano-enabled Prometheus. Punishment? Spying? Research? Is the persuasive power of hell justification enough? Is it unethical to cause pain to simulated people? Is a […]
035: How Do You Filter Content in an Age of Abundance?
September 15, 2014 21:18 - 50 minutes - 57.4 MBWe’re back with a new podcast about the growing challenge of digital curation. Every day we digitize more content. As the pile of data grows ever larger, how are we going to find the stuff we actually want? What is it going to take for recommendation algorithms to actually get good? In the future will there be ratings […]
034: We’ll Be Back in September
August 18, 2014 06:54 - 3 minutes - 3.89 MBNow that we’ve completed 33 episodes, it’s time for us to take a short break. But don’t worry – we’ll be back in early September with new episodes, new discussion topics, and possibly a few surprises. If you only started tuning in recently, now might be a good time to go back and catch up on […]
033: What’ll be the Impacts of Self Driving Cars?
August 11, 2014 22:28 - 48 minutes - 55.3 MBEveryone knows by now that self driving cars are coming soon. Somewhere in the next 3-20 years, the human driver will become a thing of the past. What will happen when these capabilities come online? We talk through the obvious and not so obvious consequences of self driving car technology, from unemployment of taxi drivers […]
032: Are we Wielding Technology or Yielding to It?
August 04, 2014 20:44 - 33 minutes - 38.5 MBIn this more conversational episode, we discuss the abstract dichotomy of wielding technology rather than yielding to it. We discuss this wielding/yielding metaphor with regard to form factors, for example how is using a smart phone different from augmented reality glasses, or what’s the fundamental difference between a high functioning AI assistant that can act […]
031: Who are the Top Ten Living Futurists?
July 31, 2014 02:59 - 39 minutes - 44.7 MBIn this week’s podcast we list the top ten living futurists. These are people who are highly influential in the area of futurology, either for being skillful popularizers or originators of major new ideas. Listen and find out if you agree with our choices. And if you think we made any major mistakes (either misguided inclusions or omissions) please […]
030: What is the Future of Emotional Computing?
July 21, 2014 20:26 - 44 minutes - 51 MBIn this week’s podcast we tackle Emotional (sometimes called Affective) Computing — when computers read and respond to human emotions. We discuss the types of sensory data computers can read, like faces and inflection but also heat-mapping and pupil dilation. We also discuss how this capability might lead to a future that’s worse for liars […]
029: What is Mind Uploading?
July 14, 2014 19:46 - 52 minutes - 59.6 MBIn today’s podcast, we discuss the possibility of “mind uploading,” or emulating a human brain inside a computer. We begin with a survey history of the concept, and then transition into a discussion of the sea of philosophical and ethical questions that uploading inevitably raises. Is whole brain emulation a realistic path to personal immortality […]
028: Review of Thomas Piketty’s CAPITAL IN THE 21ST CENTURY, Part 2: Futurist Perspective and Criticism
July 07, 2014 23:12 - 33 minutes - 38 MBIn this second part of our review of Capital in the 21st Century, we look at Thomas Piketty’s ideas from the point of view of speculation and futurism, and consider some of the criticisms of the book. Last week in Part 1, we covered the book’s basic ideas about how to measure and talk about […]
027: Review of Thomas Piketty’s CAPITAL IN THE 21ST CENTURY, Part 1: Summary
June 30, 2014 21:16 - 50 minutes - 58.1 MBIn this part one of our review of Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the 21st Century, we cover the book in detail and summarize its arguments and conclusions. In the next part, to be released next week, we will look at Piketty’s ideas from the point of view of speculation and futurism, and consider some of […]
026: What is Ephemeralization?
June 16, 2014 21:20 - 19 minutes - 22.8 MBIn today’s podcast, we discuss Buckminster Fuller’s term ephemeralization. Many people today are searching for words to describe the tremendous power of technologies to do more with less. Modern expressions like “dematerialization,” “software is eating the world,” and “digitization of everything” can in many ways be subsumed by Fuller’s original term. Relevant Links: Video on […]
025: What Does Utopia Look Like?
June 09, 2014 23:14 - 1 hour - 71.6 MBWe’d all like to live in a better future, and for ages men have imagined what a theoretical best future might be like. What would a utopian society truly look like? Does the answer lie in external approaches like abundance, decentralization and transparency, or internal approaches like drugs, wireheading and genetic engineering? Is it even […]
024: Will the Future be More or Less Unequal?
June 02, 2014 20:05 - 29 minutes - 34.2 MBIn this podcast we examine the issue of inequality from the point of view of game design and ask whether a variety of resources are likely to become more or less unequal in the future. In addition to the obvious monetary dimension, we also discuss inequality as it relates to fame, user base, creativity tools, […]
023: What is the Future of Net Neutrality?
May 26, 2014 22:08 - 1 hour - 72.8 MBIn this week’s podcast we talk about the big topic of Network Neutrality. We define the term and talk about the differences between neutral and biased (or ‘diverse’) networks. We cover the history of the phone network, the Carterfone, and neutrality regulations in the U.S. We also cover the two major reasons to prefer a […]
022: Will the Future be Dominated by Games?
May 06, 2014 00:11 - 37 minutes - 42.6 MBOn this podcast, we talk about games and the future. Eric Zimmerman has pronounced this the “Ludic Century” and has said the 21st century will be defined by games. We approach this idea from three points of view: first we talk about games as an entertainment medium and whether they might grow relative to passive entertainment […]
021: What Are the Different Types of Intelligence Augmentation?
April 29, 2014 00:16 - 13 minutes - 14.9 MBIn this very short episode we do a simple thought experiment set at a mathematics competition. Three characters, each with a very different apparatus of enhanced intelligence, compete. One is highly educated, one is enhanced to be able to learn more quickly, and one offloads the complex tasks to an AI or crowd-sourced network. We […]
020: What is the Future of Television?
April 22, 2014 03:49 - 29 minutes - 33.4 MBWhat is the future of television? Will today’s golden age continue? We discuss the current television model and why TV hasn’t been disrupted to the degree film and other media have, the real scarcity and artificial limits that are keeping it there, and make a prediction about the next ten years of television content. We […]
019: Who Controls a Future of Decentralized Technologies?
April 15, 2014 01:59 - 41 minutes - 47.8 MBThere is no doubt decentralized powerful technologies are coming, and the conventional wisdom is that you cannot control these things easily. In this episode, we discuss drugs, security, and general purpose computing as decentralized technologies that resist control. Will it be possible to control nearly invisible life-logging technologies of the future? What about gun control […]
018: What is the Future of Money?
April 07, 2014 21:48 - 37 minutes - 42.6 MBIn this week’s podcast we discuss money as a technology that has progressed through several versions. What’s wrong with our current version of money, and what might we do better in a future version? What are the pros and cons of modern day cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Freicoin? Is the uncertain nature of future […]
017: What New Job Opportunities Will Exist in an Automated Future?
March 31, 2014 20:47 - 29 minutes - 34.4 MBToday’s episode focuses on a thought experiment — assuming technological unemployment happens and capitalism continues in its current form, what new platforms might allow average folks to monetize the remaining scarce resources? What kind of jobs and economic platforms might arise in a future of automated labor? We discuss current platforms like Kickstarter and Etsy […]
016: What is Super-Now Prediction?
March 18, 2014 01:36 - 24 minutes - 28.6 MBToday on the podcast we talk about a simple way to predict the future — simply exaggerate current trends. But this doesn’t lead to accurate prediction, it leads to “Super-Now” predictions where everything is shinier, faster, or on steroids, but nothing is actually new. We cover a lot of classic and modern Sci Fi that […]
015: What Would be the Cultural Impacts of Increased Longevity?
March 10, 2014 20:55 - 49 minutes - 57.2 MBIn this episode, we ask how culture would be impacted by radically increased lifespans. We go over the main arguments made by longevity research experts like Aubrey De Grey and Ray Kurzweil, and we discuss Sonia Arrison’s book 100+. We discuss expanded health spans and acknowledge that a right to die would be even more […]
014: How Might We Respond to Technological Unemployment?
March 03, 2014 20:53 - 41 minutes - 47.6 MBIn this podcast we return to the idea of technological unemployment: if it’s happening, what should we do? We consider three ways technological unemployment might be defeated: rising standards of living might outrun inequality, education and cognitive enhancement might solve our retraining problems, or new platforms and needs might emerge and create new demands. But […]
013: What is the Future of Communications Interfaces?
February 25, 2014 02:27 - 33 minutes - 38.3 MBIn this week’s podcast, we discuss common communications and computer interfaces in science fiction and ask whether those AI assistants and videophones really make sense. We retell David Foster Wallace’s story about the failure of the videophone from Infinite Jest, and we argue that Samantha from Her would be just as annoying as Microsoft Clippy. […]
012: How Plausible is Dystopia?
February 17, 2014 00:01 - 23 minutes - 26.9 MBIn this week’s podcast we evaluate the relative plausibility of four dystopias commonly seen in science fiction: Post-Apocalypse, Alien/AI Oppression, Boot-in-the-Face, and Brave New World. These are all fun settings for exciting stories, but which makes the most sense from the perspective of speculation? Relevant Links Aldous Huxley’s Letter to George Orwell Decline of Scarcity […]