Ethics

Defense and Future 1 Defense and Future – Part 1: Building Cognitive Immunity 2 Defense and Future – Part 2: The Ethics of the Nudge 3 Defense and Future – Part 3: The Coming Age of Synthetic Persuasion ← Series Home Inevitability Influence inherent to design Choice architecture The Architect’s Dilemma: Inevitable Influence Influence is inherent to design; whether we intend it or not, the environment in which choices are presented fundamentally shapes human decisions. A choice architect—anyone responsible for organizing the context in which people decide—cannot create a neutral environment,. Even seemingly arbitrary choices, such as the order in which food is presented in a school cafeteria, will significantly influence outcomes, like whether students choose apples or brownies,. This inevitability of influence is the core dilemma: since design is inescapable, the question becomes whether that design should be intentional and directed toward improving welfare. ...

Key Takeaways The Mystery Miscalculation: Heisenberg overestimated the critical mass of uranium by a factor of 10—genius-level physics or deliberate sabotage? The Farm Hall Shock: Secretly recorded conversations after Hiroshima reveal German scientists' genuine surprise—or carefully performed innocence. The Passive Resistance: Several scientists found ways to "fail upward"—pursuing reactor research while avoiding bomb development. The Copenhagen Mystery: Heisenberg's 1941 meeting with Bohr remains history's most debated scientific conversation. The Uncomfortable Truth: German scientists may have saved millions by incompetence, conscience, or both—we'll never know which. The Most Consequential Failure in History In the summer of 1942, Werner Heisenberg—one of the greatest physicists who ever lived, Nobel laureate, father of quantum mechanics—made a calculation that would determine the fate of millions. ...

When Disaster Strikes 1 Part 1: Disasters Don't Create Inequality-They Reveal It 2 Part 2: Why Some Cities Burn (And Others Don't) 3 Part 3: The Sacrifice Calculus 4 Part 4: Elite Disaster Strategies 5 Part 5: Famine and Political Power 6 Part 6: Earthquakes and Governance 7 Part 7: Pandemic Politics 8 Part 8: Why We Forget ← Series Home Key Takeaways Triage is always happening: Disasters make explicit the resource allocation decisions that are implicit in normal times. Infrastructure is frozen triage: Decisions about levees, evacuation routes, and hospital locations pre-determine who can be saved. The "natural" framing hides choices: Calling disasters "natural" obscures the political decisions that shaped who became vulnerable. Sacrifice patterns are predictable: The poor, the elderly, the disabled, and the politically marginalized consistently bear the highest death rates. The Impossible Choice In the five days after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans, Dr. Anna Pou faced decisions no physician should have to make. At Memorial Medical Center, cut off from evacuation, without power for air conditioning or most medical equipment, she and her colleagues worked to keep patients alive. ...

Key Takeaways The Numbers: Over 1,600 Nazi scientists were secretly brought to America. Many had their records scrubbed of war crimes evidence. The Rationalizations: "If we don't take them, the Soviets will" became the justification for moral amnesia. The Cost: At least 20,000 concentration camp prisoners died building the V-2 rockets these scientists designed. The Legacy: The Saturn V that put Americans on the Moon was designed by a man who had used slave labor to build weapons of terror. The Question: Can great achievements wash away complicity in atrocity? America decided they could. The Moon and the Camps On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon. It was humanity’s greatest achievement. Watching from Mission Control was Wernher von Braun, the genius rocket engineer who had made it possible. ...

The Spark of Ages: The Biological Engines of Civilization 1 The Spark of Ages - Part 1: The Four Engines of Human Progress 2 The Spark of Ages - Part 2: Shattering the Myths of Geography and Genetics 3 The Spark of Ages - Part 3: The Creative Response to Catastrophe 4 The Spark of Ages - Part 4: The Moral Awakening That Defined History ← Series Home The Maya (Tropical Architects): In the Americas, the Maya civilization defied environmental determinism by building sophisticated cities in the tropical environments of Guatemala and Honduras. Where theory suggested only primitive tribes could exist, the Maya developed complex calendars and unique writing systems, proving that the human capacity for order can flourish even in the dense jungle. ...

The Untidy Business of Thinking: An Introduction to Philosophy 1 The Untidy Business of Thinking - Part 1: The Three Questions that Define Existence 2 The Untidy Business of Thinking - Part 2: The Price of Peace: Why We Submit to Authority 3 The Untidy Business of Thinking - Part 3: Beyond Perception: The Battle Between Mind and Matter 4 The Untidy Business of Thinking - Part 4: The Philosopher: A Terrible Explosive ← Series Home Key Takeaways Three questions define existence: "What should I do?", "What is there?", and "How do we know?" form the foundation of all philosophical inquiry. Good philosophy expands imagination: Philosophical ideas embody distinct worldviews that seem peculiar only because they challenge our existing beliefs. Philosophy is inescapable: Even rejecting philosophy requires philosophical reasoning—the skeptical tradition spans from ancient times to today. Lasting philosophy emerges from crisis: The great human shock—acquiring self-awareness—launched humanity into philosophical recovery. Everyone is already a philosopher: We all operate using inherent values and beliefs about the world; philosophy simply reflects more deeply on these foundations. The Untidy Business of Thinking - Part 1: The Three Questions that Define Existence ...