Best Ahmed Robinson Podcasts (2025)

1
Sara Imari Walker: An Informational Theory of Life 1:10:54

3d ago1:10:54

1:10:54

“What is life?”In her Long Now Talk, astrobiologist and theoretical physicist Sara Imari Walker explores the many dimensions of that seemingly simple question. Starting from the simplest precursors, Walker assembled a grand cathedral of meaning, tracing an arc across existence that linked the fundamentals of organic chemistry, the possibility space…

1
Ezra Klein, Michael Pollan, Derek Thompson: Abundance 59:28

16d ago59:28

59:28

Presented in partnership with Manny's and City Arts & LecturesAs they look upon the United States of America in 02025, Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson see a country wrought by a half-century of failed governance. They see states and cities theoretically committed to progressive futures instead bogged down in labyrinthine mires of process and delibera…

1
Stephen Heintz, Kim Stanley Robinson: A Logic For The Future: International Relations in the Age of Turbulence 59:55

1M ago59:55

59:55

Stephen Heintz and Kim Stanley Robinson say we live in an “Age of Turbulence.”Looking around our geopolitical situation, it’s easy to see what they mean. Faced with the ever-growing threat of climate change, the looming potential breakdown of the post-01945 international order, and the ambiguous prospects of rapid technological changes in fields li…

1
K Allado-McDowell: On Neural Media 57:10

2M ago57:10

57:10

How will AI shape our understanding of our creativity and ourselves? In February, artist and technologist K Allado-McDowell delivered a fascinating Long Now Talk that explored the dimensions of Neural Media — their term for an emerging set of creative forms that use artificial neural networks inspired by the connective design of the human brain.The…

1
Ahmed Best, Lisa Kay Solomon: Feel The Future: A Valentine’s Evening 59:10

2M ago59:10

59:10

When you feel the future, how do you share that feeling in order to build community?Over the past quarter-century, Best — first as an actor, musician, and performer, and later as an Afrofuturist scholar and lecturer — has worked to answer that question. Drawing on his experiences as a cast member on the award-winning percussion performance Stomp, a…

1
Benjamin Bratton: A Philosophy of Planetary Computation: From Antikythera to Synthetic Intelligence 57:47

2M ago57:47

57:47

We find ourselves in a pre-paradigmatic moment in which our technology has outpaced our theories of what to do with it.The task of philosophy today is to catch up.Benjamin Bratton is a Professor of Philosophy of Technology and Speculative Design at University of California, San Diego and the Director of Antikythera, an cross-disciplinary think tank…

1
Roman Krznaric, Kate Raworth: What Doughnut Economics Can Learn From History 52:10

6M ago52:10

52:10

Social philosopher Roman Krznaric and renegade economist Kate Raworth explore how we can survive and thrive by looking to the past for clues on how to build more regenerative economic frameworks. Doughnut economics describes the social and planetary boundaries needed for all people to prosper within the means of the living planet. Studying historic…

1
Neal Stephenson: Polostan 56:01

7M ago56:01

56:01

Neal Stephenson, visionary speculative fiction authorand long-time friend of Long Now, joined us for aconversation with journalist Charles C. Mann on theresearch behind his new novel Polostan, the dawn ofthe Atomic Age, and the craft of historical storytelling.Polostan is the first installment in a monumental new series called Bomb Light - an expan…

1
Alicia Escott, Heidi Quante: The Bureau of Linguistical Reality Performance Lecture 50:30

1y ago50:30

50:30

The Bureau of Linguistical Reality is a participatory artwork facilitated by artist Alicia Escott and Heidi Quante which collaborates with the public to create new words for feelings and experiences for which no words yet exist. Recognizing the climate crisis is causing new feelings and experiences that have yet to be named, the project was created…

1
Jonathan Cordero: Indigenous Sovereign Futures 55:33

1y ago55:33

55:33

Alternative visions for social change rooted in the frameworks of capitalism and colonialism only reproduce contemporary structures of power. How can indigenous perspectives and knowledge inform the structural transformation necessary to improve the health of the natural world and of human communities? Dr. Cordero will discuss how indigenous episte…

1
Denise Hearn: Embodied Economies: How our Economic Stories Shape the World 56:04

1y ago56:04

56:04

Economic policy can seem abstract and distant, but it manifests the physical world – affecting us all. Our economic stories shape our systems, and they in turn shape us. What myths continue to constrain us, and how might new stories emerge to scaffold the future? This talk will explore concepts we often take as gospel: profits, competition, economi…

1
Jared Farmer: Chronodiversity: Thinking about Time with Trees

1+ y ago

—

Big trees, old trees, and especially big old trees have always been objects of reverence. From Athena’s sacred olive on the Acropolis to the unmistakable ginkgo leaf prevalent in Japanese art and fashion during the Edo period, our profound admiration for slow plants spans time and place as well as cultures and religions. At the same time, the utili…

1
Abby Smith Rumsey: Hijacked Histories, Polarized Futures 55:37

1+ y ago55:37

55:37

As authoritarianism continues to rise around the world, the stories we tell ourselves about our collective history become a battleground for competing visions of the future. Drawing extensively from Russian history in the 20th century, Rumsey offers a framework to discuss our current social and political tensions and how our increasing polarization…

1
Henry Farrell: The Complex Aftermath of Globalization 59:03

1+ y ago59:03

59:03

Over the last two years, the US government has started thinking about the future of the world in a very different way. Across speeches and policy papers, a vision of world politics has emerged which breaks sharply both with the old logic of the Cold War and the newer politics of globalization. The globalization bet has turned sour, but it has creat…

1
Coco Krumme: The False Promise of Optimization 31:42

1+ y ago31:42

31:42

Coco Krumme traces the fascinating history of optimization from its roots in America's founding principles, to its dominance as the driving principle of our modern world. Optimized models underlie everything and are deeply embedded in the technologies and assumptions that have come to comprise not only our material reality, but what we make of it. …

1
Bette Adriaanse, Chelsea T. Hicks: Radical Sharing 56:32

1+ y ago56:32

56:32

Our bodies, our houses, our land, our space - we humans don’t always like to share. Author Bette Adriaanse talks with Chelsea T. Hicks, and virtual guests Brian Eno and Aqui Thami, about property and sharing, and how to make a lasting positive change in the way we share the world with each other. Alternating between thinkers and doers, whose action…

1
: The Climate Parables: Reporting from the Future 1:04:57

2y ago1:04:57

1:04:57

2 nights of live science storytelling, art & music the evenings of May 12th & May 13th at St. Joseph's Arts Society; there is one show each night, doors are at 7:00pm and the show starts at 8:00pm. The Long Now Foundation has teamed up with Anthropocene Magazine (a publication of Future Earth) and Back Pocket Media to take the magazine’s new fictio…

1
Ryan Phelan: Bringing Biotech to Wildlife Conservation 1:04:20

2y ago1:04:20

1:04:20

How can we turn the tide on species loss and help biodiversity and bioabundance flourish for millennia to come?Ryan Phelan is Executive Director of Revive & Restore; the leading wildlife conservation organization promoting the incorporation of biotechnologies into standard conservation practice. Phelan will share the new Genetic Rescue Toolkit for …

1
Becky Chambers, Annalee Newitz: Resisting Dystopia 55:58

2y ago55:58

55:58

Join us for a thought-provoking conversation between two Hugo award-winning science fiction authors, Becky Chambers and Annalee Newitz. Known for challenging classic science fiction tropes such as war, violence, and colonialism, both authors create vivid and immersive worlds that are filled with non-human persons, peace, and a subtle sense of hope.…

1
Jenny Odell: Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock 1:01:37

2y ago1:01:37

1:01:37

"What first appears to be a wish for more time may turn out to be just one part of a simple, yet vast, desire for autonomy, meaning, and purpose." -Jenny Odell Join us for an evening on long-term thinking with a talk & reading from Jenny Odell and conversation with Long Now's Executive Director Alexander Rose.Artist and writer Jenny Odell brings he…

1
Ismail Ali: Psychedelics: History at the Crossroads 58:02

2y ago58:02

58:02

Psychedelics and other mind-altering substances have been used for thousands of years across the world in religious, spiritual, celebratory, and healing contexts. Despite a half century of a "War on Drugs" in the United States, there has been a recent resurgence in public interest in ending drug prohibition and re-evaluating the roles these substan…

1
Ryan North: How to Invent Everything

2+ y ago

—

How would someone fare if they were dropped into a randomly chosen period in history? Would they have any relevant knowledge to share, or ability to invent crucial technologies given the period's constraints? Ryan North uses these hypothetical questions to explore the technological and implicit knowledge underpinning modern civilization, offering a…

1
Adam Rogers: Full Spectrum: The Science of Color and Modern Human Perception 57:34

2+ y ago57:34

57:34

Tracing an arc from the earliest humans to our digitized, synthesized present and future - Adam Rogers shows the expansive human quest for the understanding, creation and use of color. We meet our ancestors mashing charcoal in caves, Silk Road merchants competing for the best ceramics, and textile artists cracking the centuries-old mystery of how c…

1
Parag Khanna: Why Mobility is Destiny 1:05:54

2+ y ago1:05:54

1:05:54

The map of humanity isn’t settled -- not now, not ever.In the 60,000 years since people began spreading across the continents, a recurring feature of human civilization has been mobility—the ever-constant search for resources, stability and opportunity. Driven by global events from conflicts, famine, repression and changing climates - to opportunit…

1
Eric Debrah Otchere: Sonic Spaces: A Psychology of Music and Work 50:58

2+ y ago50:58

50:58

Eric Debrah Otchere's research revolves around the power of music in the context of work; covering an ambitious range from ethnographic research on Ghanaian indigenous fishing culture to personalized musical preferences via modern technology. Throughout history, the power of music to enhance productivity and focus at work has been explored, leverag…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Ahmed Robinson Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

1
Ahmed Robinson

Ahmed Robinson

1
Long Now

The Long Now Foundation

1
OtherWise Podcast

Moréniké Ọláòṣebìkan, Ahmed Ali, Keren Tang, Maegan Robinson-Anagor, Jenna Mulji

1
Sara Imari Walker: An Informational Theory of Life 1:10:54

1
Ezra Klein, Michael Pollan, Derek Thompson: Abundance 59:28

1
Stephen Heintz, Kim Stanley Robinson: A Logic For The Future: International Relations in the Age of Turbulence 59:55

1
K Allado-McDowell: On Neural Media 57:10

1
Ahmed Best, Lisa Kay Solomon: Feel The Future: A Valentine’s Evening 59:10

1
Benjamin Bratton: A Philosophy of Planetary Computation: From Antikythera to Synthetic Intelligence 57:47

1
Roman Krznaric, Kate Raworth: What Doughnut Economics Can Learn From History 52:10

1
Neal Stephenson: Polostan 56:01

1
Alicia Escott, Heidi Quante: The Bureau of Linguistical Reality Performance Lecture 50:30

1
Jonathan Cordero: Indigenous Sovereign Futures 55:33

1
Denise Hearn: Embodied Economies: How our Economic Stories Shape the World 56:04

1
Jared Farmer: Chronodiversity: Thinking about Time with Trees

1
Abby Smith Rumsey: Hijacked Histories, Polarized Futures 55:37

1
Henry Farrell: The Complex Aftermath of Globalization 59:03

1
Coco Krumme: The False Promise of Optimization 31:42

1
Bette Adriaanse, Chelsea T. Hicks: Radical Sharing 56:32

1
: The Climate Parables: Reporting from the Future 1:04:57

1
Ryan Phelan: Bringing Biotech to Wildlife Conservation 1:04:20

1
Becky Chambers, Annalee Newitz: Resisting Dystopia 55:58

1
Jenny Odell: Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock 1:01:37

1
Ismail Ali: Psychedelics: History at the Crossroads 58:02

1
Ryan North: How to Invent Everything

1
Adam Rogers: Full Spectrum: The Science of Color and Modern Human Perception 57:34

1
Parag Khanna: Why Mobility is Destiny 1:05:54

1
Eric Debrah Otchere: Sonic Spaces: A Psychology of Music and Work 50:58