Are We Alone in the Universe?: A Conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson (Episode

In this episode of the podcast, Sam Harris speaks with Neil deGrasse Tyson about our place in the universe. They discuss our current understanding of extra-solar planets, the prospect that there is complex life elsewhere in the galaxy, the Fermi problem, the possibility that all advanced civilizations self destruct, how we can detect life on exoplanets, recent media interest in UFOs, whether a direct encounter with alien life would change our world, the flat-Earth conspiracy, the public understanding of science, the problem of political partisanship, racial inequality, and other topics.
Released: June 10, 2021
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[@user-lj3po9fe5v]

It always baffles me when Neil talks about humans being uninteresting to aliens when he would lose his mind if we found even a single bacteria on Mars for example.

[@bcward2]

Your constraining yourself to what humans find interesting.

[@brisclan7813]

That's kind of cool but the aliens that would find us would have already found plenty of bacteria

[@freedomshapes]

@@bcward2 those aliens sound boring as fuck then. Imagine being an alien and being too cool to find other aliens interesting enough to observe.

[@martijn7627]

@@bcward2 You're constraining in thinking one type of alien.

[@kingsman3087]

Lot of streched out metaphors in this podcast

[@jerrypopperq]

There was a time i used to gobble everything Neil. Now, listening to him is so frustrating. He seems stuck in the bubble of his existing knowledge

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

Thank you for admitting this.

[@ricardosantos6721]

He is an educator, not a researcher. And he always knows the latest mainstream stuff, as an educator should.

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

@@ricardosantos6721 No, he is not an educator. An educator is an academic, and he is NOT an academic. Not published anywhere, and shilling the mainstream view of physics takes no talent. He is a parrot with an afro. Period.

[@Aramis7]

I see what you mean and there are definitely some elements of being full of himself, and this comes across more clearly on his podcast, but still I think he's got a lot of good ideas and info and he's a great communicator. I think the world is a better place WITH Neil than without him.

[@Bhubnipz]

“Existing knowledge” is redundant, nonexistent knowledge is just an assumption or a lie. You either know something based on logic and observation or you don’t

[@TheSteinbitt]

A hundred year later, a billion more cameras with millions of pixel resolution, digital zoom and amazing optics, and still the UFOs are as blurry as ever.

[@Brianhartmanmusic]

If they're here, then they traversed interstellar space using something that we cannot even comprehend, don't expect to comprehend why it is our dumb cameras cannot capture it. The incident in Africa with the 200 school children in the 90's; those kids are now adults and they still tell the same story very consistently. The little beings got out of their ships and communicated telepathically with them, told them that we are ruining our planet and better change, and then left. Imagine at our current rate of innovation, what earth will look like 1000 years from now? Now imagine an alien that is 100,000 years beyond our current technological state. If they can get here, then they can likely mask reality from their direction to make it impossible to get a clear photo of them or their craft.

[@Evitable]

I think we're more likely to find alien life before Neil says something he hasn't said a thousand times before. Someone write the equation for that.

[@nancyrobertson9256]

Carl Sagan is rolling in his grave.

[@taylortoggaf8543]

Blows my mind every time

[@4991544]

Can I get a list of bullet points rather than spending 52 min. of my life?

[@spookyninja4098]

Neil Denial Tyson is still living in Denial of the US Navy UFO evidence. True science is exploring All the Evidence no matter where that leads

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

Aliens = the speed of stupid squared, multiplied by the ever expanding ego of a blowhard know-it-all, minus any new information, plus the square root of the hypotenuse of the base diameter of Neil Degrasse Tysons head. And 70.

[@mokamo23]

Neil never really engages in a conversational interview. he just lectures.

[@mattturner5429]

Agreed. I don't think he gave a straight answer to a single one of Sam's questions. He just went on tangents.

[@MsMisty-zt3lq]

This has always been Neil's way of communicating. Smart guy, but he likes repeating his stories. Even if everyone has already heard them.

[@Christopher-md7tf]

He likes to hear himself talk

[@claytonb6717]

World of academia makes professors feel like they are on a pedestal.

[@fanzeekat8796]

Yep! It sucks. I've think he's really become so full of himself over the years. Did you notice he didn't even identify his Star Talk co-host Chuck Nice (or any others). He just says, "a comedian." Used to really love him, but the narcissism got in the way.

[@jackjurphy5020]

Thank you Sam! Incredibly happy you are around

[@RickBeck82]

Am I the only one finding NDT laborious to listen too? Maybe it's just me but 10 years ago he blew my mind with his wisdom. Now I feel like it's him that's not keeping up.

[@nancyrobertson9256]

He's suffering from the Michio Kaku syndrome. Ask him a question and he plays one of his prerecorded answers. And he's gotten so arrogant and filled with self-importance. There was that famous episode on Joe Rogan where Neil talked constantly and wouldn't let Joe get a word in edgewise.

[@liljes34]

Glad you’ve noticed. He is awful, I can barely stand listening to him and his phoniness.

[@nancyrobertson9256]

@@liljes34 A legend in his own mind.

[@ThatOneScienceGuy]

Really? I felt the opposite. I felt more intellectually stimulated by him in this conversation than I ever have or the most I have in a long time.

[@1shpendi]

@@nancyrobertson9256 Even more recently he was on bill maher show real-time and he was so rude to bill maher while bill was just complimenting him. This guy has gotten too arrogant and boring. I do still listen to his youtube podcast with his co-host chuck but im getting annoyed by him on these interviews being unapologetically arrogant and boring.

[@adamwho9801]

I wonder how often NDT goes into lecture mode at home... and if it drives his family nuts.

[@um8778]

NDT's wife: Please get on top NDT: Let me stop you right there

[@krissykatportal]

He loves to hear himself talk

[@tbishop4961]

Perhaps one of his kids will become an actual scientist

[@wickedlee664]

Good thing he lectures for a living.

[@ruigoncalves2]

He sounds like my dad. Not really listening just waiting to speak and lecture you his view.

[@zentofustudrascal]

Hmmm... In regard to Neil's metaphor as to why we would not be interesting to other life forms that are far more advanced, he uses the idea that we would never think to ask a chimp "What time is it?", or "Do you want to go get some coffee at Starbucks?"... insinuating that because we are not that fascinated by lower life forms who are intellectually inferior on our own planet, we simply would not be fascinating to a more advanced civilization elsewhere in the universe. But on the contrary, I think maybe if a chimp, or a dolphin, or an octopus, or an ant... flipped the script, and reached out to US and wanted to try and communicate... we would be INCREDIBLY fascinated by that, and would want to help them "come up" as best we could.

[@strangevision99]

There's just no way to guess what an alien civilisation would find interesting or worth their time. Not a very good argument. It more or less assumes that greater intelligence and development leads to a lack of interest in anything lesser. That could easily be the opposite, perhaps a vastly more advanced alien society would be even more interested and understanding of our situation. It's going too far to seriously argue whether or not aliens would pay attention to us. I haven't heard his take on this yet, so I don't know the context, but I've heard others make this argument seriously. I hope he doesn't.

[@TwiztedDezign]

I used to look up to Neil, not anymore. His premises are wrong, and I don't have to have his education to notice.

[@stewartmoore5158]

Yes. Thank you. I suspect when or if life becomes suitably advanced to travel to the stars, their ethics would no doubt include the experience of "lower" life forms. We study ants for heaven's sake, why wouldn't an advanced species be interested in us? I think it's utterly ridiculous to think we, a species that have created endless civilisations, wouldn't be interesting to an alien species, regardless of how advanced they are. Especially when you take into account how rare life is. We would get excited if we found microbes on Mars; why would aliens be any less excited to encounter us? Tyson is so myopic on this point.

[@meroneadawson6847]

You mean come down

[@sethjensen2291]

@@TwiztedDezign exactly

[@allantoole9017]

Neil is not the guy for this subject at all, not even a little bit. Why he keeps getting air time on this topic is beyond me.

[@dylon2372]

Curious your reasoning for this

[@iverstim]

@@dylon2372 I think it’s because Neil has been very clear that he thinks aliens visiting earth is a silly notion

[@Kaddywompous]

Is it really beyond you? He’s the guy the public looks at to explain space shit. It’s pretty simple.

[@allantoole9017]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/h5yZpnRpaNBnac0

[@EarthIsSmall]

I swear lately Neil's lack of open-mindedness and neutrality kills me... Carl Sagan we need you

[@pocket83squared]

There was this one guy in COSMOS who was speculating about something strange found in one of their astronomical pictures (images that were new at the time), and I remember Sagan smiling and responding to him, without an ounce of patronizing intent-yet at the same time sort of conceding with his smile to be humoring the guy for indulging in some unlikelihood-by simply saying "maybe." To me, Sagan became the scientific ideal: a person of cautious speculation, who was honest, but non-judgmental.

[@mnichols1979]

I think fame has inflated the ego just a tad bit.

[@freedomshapes]

“You don’t walk down the street and observe worms” Neil... you know damn well there are countless scientific laboratories and biologists that dedicate their entire life’s work to observing worms..

[@alecchapin9071]

And a chicken farmer here and there growing them squiggles for hen food.

[@kconger_]

And those young children who treat worms as playthings.

[@Warsie]

when it rains you can literally see worms crawling on the surface

[@alecchapin9071]

@@Warsie true one of the easiest means of harvest, but not as tasty as chanterelles.

[@kevinburgess3411]

He literally says right after "unless you're a wormologist" lol open your ears.

[@TheAjrclark]

What strikes me as very strange about Tyson, is that he's thoroughly uncurious about things he doesn't know about - like UFOs. He's actually happy for 'mysteries to remain mysteries'. That doesn't sound like a scientific approach/mind to me..

[@sentientflower7891]

UFOs are intrinsically uninteresting. Fuzzy photos are content less.

[@TheAjrclark]

@@sentientflower7891 Why are UFOs instrinsically uninteresting? I'm interested to know.

[@sentientflower7891]

@@TheAjrclark because 1) UFOs are just blurry photographs and 2) UFO proponents have excessively low standards of evidence.

[@TheAjrclark]

@@sentientflower7891 They're on radars too! The military say they exist, but that they don't what they are. Only one guy really thinks otherwise - or has made somehting of it - West. His analysis has quite a few flaws. Plus, he's not an expert so

[@TheAjrclark]

Also, UFO are not blurry photos, they're UFOS! Blurry photos are what u might call weak evidence for UFOs (albeit i don't agree because of radar evidence). That doesn't make the phenomena of UFOs - intrinsically - uninteresting. Ur response thus doesn't explain why u think that.

[@barryboland3031]

we need a Joe Rogan episode with Neil, Bob Lazar, David Fravor and Alex Jones

[@Alkhalidi44]

That’d be nuts!!

[@alexalexis7899]

I want that when the Alien Parade officially begins!

[@Alkhalidi44]

@@alexalexis7899 “Alien parade” … lol that’d be interesting, but I think we should see those 5 people in one room before that happens 🤔

[@VendPrekmurec]

We need Joe Rogan episode interviewing Joe Rogan

[@driss409]

No, we don't.

[@OKULTRACOMEDY]

I actually think this is the most tolerable Neil has been in ages. Good episode.

[@keithstillman2143]

Completely agree. I thought he was just obnoxious but maybe it’s just a front

[@TheWintastical]

Dude, im thinking the exact same while listening. Half the reason I clicked was because of the interesting title, the other half reason was to see if he'd get douchey with someone as smart as Sam

[@amrithatalks1103]

Me too bro

[@millenialmusings8451]

Sams decorum doesn’t allow much room for NDT to do his antics

[@Lukas-oh8qm]

Neil has a communication style suited to lecturing a primary school class; not to adult conversation

[@peristiloperis7789]

That's how good teachers communicate.

[@remasteredretropcgames3312]

Mister Rogers The Alien Welcomes You To His Neighborhood [DeepFake] -Alien Symbology

[@rockpadstudios]

Neil has the gift (maybe skill developed with years of practice) of speaking in a way a broad range of people can understand. Amazing.

[@Jay-ft3xh]

It's a mistake to think it is not both. (talent and effort)

[@calcio13]

That’s a great question,Sam .. now allow me to pose a tangentially (un)related question.. chuckle.. deflect.. .. make shit joke.. avoid .. name drop.. 3rd grade refresher factoid that is gonna “blow. Your. Mind”... and mic pseudodrop without. Ever. Having. Addressed. The. Question.

[@sethjensen2291]

This is not possible for him, hes programed to do only this. Like a robot.

[@brisclan7813]

You must be really fun at parties

[@danielrachbuch2301]

That is Neil , spot on hahah but he’s great for it !

[@drakebell6784]

@@brisclan7813 This is the most low IQ insult ever. I don't even waste my time at "parties"

[@sigbausage3116]

Lmao, perfect description

[@randomlady6899]

‘Your wonderful book, which I haven’t finished reading yet, feels like it was written for kids. And pretty pictures were great!’ .....Sounds like backhanded compliment

[@jerome1lm]

lol

[@slickmullet3891]

I was thinking “yikes” when he said that lol.

[@rick15666]

@@slickmullet3891 until Neil said it’s written that way for a purpose.

[@Amadeu.Macedo]

Marvelous! Intriguing... Subscribed (with a "bell"). BRAVO! Moreover, found the Cosmic Queries audio book - finished chapter-1... Double WOW!

[@captainzappbrannagan]

I have to remind myself that Sam is not an astrophysicist, given his expert analysis of all the physics information available from the proper trusted sources that remove bias as well as possible. Love Neil's excitement for science and discovery.

[@johnbush5325]

"We are not interested in your leaders, bring us to your DMT" - Aliens

[@pumpuppthevolume]

xD "we need to travel back to our dimension give us the dmt" aliens .....it will be awesome if aliens r as dumb as some people

[@popovicititus]

@@pumpuppthevolume if they're as dumb as elon ... :D

[@dimbulb23]

Aliens, having knowledge of English grammar, would say: "...'take' us to your DMT. Sorry, but I feel so much better now.

[@johnbush5325]

@@dimbulb23 I doubt an extraterrestrial civilization which spans the galaxy is so invested in pedantics, especially when the original sentence actually is grammatically sound. English is a versatile language. Look up the KZbin video titled "Stephen Fry Kinetic Typography - Language"

[@MK-dt4xi]

I hope Neil would smoke DMT.

[@ivanbenisscott]

Do a video podcast !!!!!!!!

[@andrewj497]

I disagree with some of the perspectives from Neil here, but I appreciate him and Sam doing an episode together

[@andrewpickering5180]

Thank you Sam, I can't afford the payment for the long version's, that said, you make thinking rational thought is always stunningly put. Thanks for the work you do.

[@TrentonErker]

Just bumping this in case you missed it. Email him and he’ll give you his content for free.

[@David-kg5nn]

The title "Making Sense", the question of "are we alone in the universe?", and the guest for this, all together, is hilarious. Listening to Neal on Rogan was rough.

[@masongoss4615]

Brutal cut on this, just when it was getting really interesting. I think this may finally push me to subscribe (to the Making Sense podcast). I trust you won’t let me down. 👍

[@eVieww]

Well, you'll certainly enjoy the other episodes then! This is probably the most boring one of them all. At least the quest is easily the most boring :D

[@ryanrobin12]

I just had the same thought. I was like “noooo! Not yet” We’ll played, Sam.

[@hanksaccount]

You don’t have to pay. Just request a free subscription

[@mrkytius]

Marketing?? I guess Sam Harris is not so pristine as I previously thought.

[@custossecretus5737]

Left it on a cliff hanger as click bait and the subscription fees are extortionate. So glad that scientists put knowledge above capital gain, well some do anyway.

[@saiello2061]

Not entirely satisfied with Tysons answers. I expected more detail.

[@winstonsol8713]

Tyson is a generic science salesman. He hasn’t contributed a single original idea in his entire career. Not even sure why Sam bothered, unless it’s for views. Not criticizing you…just offering solidarity.

[@saiello2061]

@@winstonsol8713 Yeah.... He's appears to more of a science populariser than a mover in his field. I too was surprised that Harris had him on. To be honest I wasn't much interested in what he had to say about these UFOs....

[@schoppepetzer9267]

@@winstonsol8713 I think nothing wrong with that. To get people enthusiastic about science may then lead to scientists contributing new ideas. That seems more likely than coming from other influencers who eat tide pods or scream about diversity everywhere.

[@danielrachbuch2301]

Tyson’s a novice and scientific shrill but he has a nice cadence to his speech and he articulates himself quit smoothly so he’s easy to listen to. Even if you disagree... Sam could have pushed him further but saw it was a feeble endeavor to try because of tysons defensive nature. Akin to the recent joe Rogan podcast with Tyson on ufos 🛸 . Joe won that shit

[@brisclan7813]

Tyson plays a very solid verbal game.

[@123lowp]

The podcast is great. I'm enjoying my subscription.

[@RichoRosai]

That cliffhanger at the end was, as bubbles would say, a prick job.

[@mattstone9364]

Great marketing tho. 💯

[@erdetenabe]

Did anyone else come away from this thinking we should maybe keep an eye on the beavers?

[@NoActuallyGo-KCUF-Yourself]

I'm always looking at beaver ...

[@jnpowell9077]

Oh, its OK, my brother, we are not alone, we are amazing humans, on the edge of our understanding of who we might be.

[@ericbmusic]

It would be really cool if NDT could give a simple yes/no answer from time to time instead of some unnecessarily long-winded analogy.

[@entelin]

You can't honestly answer most of these questions with a yes or no. All you can do is gain some understanding of the possibilities and our current knowledge of them. Analogy's are useful for that.

[@ericbmusic]

@@entelin - totally agree; just saying sometimes it would be nice....

[@ericbmusic]

@@thulyblu5486 - Absolutely! He's great.

[@MrALTennyson]

After months of listening to these podcasts in my cheapskate fashion this is the one that is it going to make me break out the pocket book and subscribe so I can hear the rest. There better be some stellar insights from Neil.

[@frank1fm634]

Classical save your money.What do you want to know?Do you know the odds on probability that we homo sapiens are here today were trillions to one.Not billions but trillions.To understand how we came into being we have to go back to the beginning of our solar system.If one thing was different when our earth was forming we wouldn't be here.What if the dinosaurs didn't become extinct.We wouldn't be here.So do you know the minimum mass of s planet to produce intelligent life?What kind of atmosphere must be present to produce intelligent life?Let's not forget the oceans and let's not forget life started in the oceans.A life form must leave the ocean in order for there to be life on land.Then billions of years of evolution to produce an intelligent life.

[@edwin5945]

Ubiquitous is Sam Harris' favourite word.

[@jimmorrison4291]

It is certainly found everywhere in this podcast.

[@gee_]

It is his wheelhouse.

[@romanstarr01]

I would guess Sam might like 'Ubiquitous', but he might favor 'ambiguity' as a favorite, the spelling is easier.

[@ZachGood]

You're obfuscating the truth

[@dcannek]

I love these two. Very much looking forward to this.

[@ntme9]

Sam is cool, ndt can be overwhelming..

[@EpicWarrior131]

NDT is a puffed up ignorant on the subject of UFOs

[@EpicWarrior131]

It's unfortunate because I admired his intellectualism before I discovered he would speak dismissively with such confidence on something he is blatantly ignorant about and admits to being unwilling to research, even dismissing navy radar data.

[@ntme9]

@@EpicWarrior131 Well said I couldn't agree more, a shame.

[@HArryvajonas]

@@EpicWarrior131 Yes, he is a perfect example of scientific dogma. It makes no sense because he will consider ideas like string theory but has zero tolerance for UFOs and he has clearly put no time looking into the subject.

[@beingnonbeingincludesexistence]

Really nice podcast Sam. Can you do please next time sir Roger Penrose on you're podcast, talk about conscioussnes and panpsychism, and the problems in science today.

[@russellalesi5715]

And Neil’s take on CCC

[@Nocturne83]

I amazed that the KZbin algorithm knows my mood so well.. 🤔

[@fridabbasov5642]

Completely same feeling

[@brian8507]

All I get is zit popping vids

[@pumpuppthevolume]

why r u searching for stuff completely opposing your mood ....now that would be impressive

[@XerxesGammon200]

yep

[@goobytron2888]

The real talent of Sam Harris is that he managed to get through a few sentences without being interrupted by Neil.

[@Jay-ft3xh]

Where is that conversation? I only listened to the other one on this video.

[@publicshared1780]

Bought Neils book of the back of this podcast. Thanks Sam and Niel

[@jasondoolin6476]

This cut off right when it was getting juicy.

[@fabiosteez2445]

To say we are alone in the universe is like dipping a cup into the ocean and saying no fish

[@garethde-witt6433]

If there was life it’s gone now so yep we are probably alone.

[@wrongfullyaccused7139]

@@garethde-witt6433 ;Not possible

[@ovoj]

30 mins in and I can feel Sam tightening the squeeze. This was truly masterful

[@JRudy17]

Thanks. I was going to bail at 19 minutes because I was tired of listening to NDT continue to throw out reasons why everyone else is so stupid and only he gets it. I have high hopes that Sam can challenge him. (I prefer listening to Isaac Arthur) I'll stay with this one for a while longer.

[@greggstrasser5791]

I hate Atheists, but all Harris had to do was ask Tyson, Is there any evidence for us being alone? (Trick question Tyson's ego wouldn't dodge.) It's would lead to a compare & contrast on religion, Atheism & belief in aliens. Belief in God requires faith; same with aliens.

[@JRudy17]

@@greggstrasser5791 Do you really hate all non-believers or do you just want them to shut up? It seems really unfair to hate someone because they lack belief in the supernatural. Some of us are just not wired that way. I went to Sunday School as a kid and it never clicked. Religious childhood indoctrination isn't 100% effective. Nothing happened in my life shifted me one direction or another. Science was always more interesting to me than magic.

[@greggstrasser5791]

@@JRudy17 My fault for not being clear. If you've been to Europe, especially the Balkans, you'd have a better idea. I hate using internet terminology you don't hear in common audible speech, but "New Atheist" is probably a way to narrow it down. It's very odd that someone would wrap so much energy into something they claim doesn't exist. It's like saying "I stand against the Easter Bunny." If one says "their is no evidence of God, therefore X," they should apply the same standard to aliens. Saying there HAS TO BE aliens [based on faith] is the same as claiming there has to be aliens... based on faith. Bayesian statistics are no more "science" than Einstein's thought experiments.

[@greggstrasser5791]

@Ian W Sure.

[@sabinoluevano7447]

if instead of having only the audio, you could record the sessions live and film them, it would be an incredible stimulus for the mind. It's harder to follow ideas just by listening to them. But what a great job you do, Dr. Harris, trying to propagate knowledge.

[@ichbinscheisse3592]

@Ian W so you're not really consuming the knowledge, it is just your entertainment "in the background" ?

[@marcokalle2452]

Yeah, i like Sam's movies more than his books too...

[@GoHamOnEm21]

Excellent idea.. I imagine cartoon sketches when I listen to Sam, and would love to see animation incorporated into one of his talks.

[@GoHamOnEm21]

@Ian WWrong... Plenty of people watch content online🤣🤣 Plenty of podcasts have live and recorded footage... Plenty of Sam's debates are recorded and can be watched online. Like on KZbin! The place where people watch podcasts!? 🤔🤤🤣

[@GoHamOnEm21]

@@marcokalle2452 You're listening to his podcast on KZbin 🤣🤣🤡

[@lazylion420]

preoccupation with the trappings of fame and celebrity have stifled Tyson's ability to grow as a public speaker and source of inspiration.. oh well

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

He is supposed to be a scientist, and talks nothing but double-talk nonsense.

[@bizonc]

Yep

[@bizonc]

@@UFOUAPMagnet thank you. Lots of double talk nonsense. Can’t even answer a question. Tries to be clever but brings up boring tired ideas

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

@@bizonc Unlistenable, man. Just hearing his voice makes my shoulders hunch, lol Houston, the Ego has landed

[@spencer177]

Not sure what the hell you’re talking about. I found the interview interesting and didn’t detect any outsized ego. If you think you can do a better job then go ahead pup. Enlighten and inspire us.

[@lnAmberClad]

damn i was so excited right up until I read NDT's name.

[@NoName-hz1jr]

Exactly, this is the perfect topic but neil is too much for me

[@seanwhitehall4652]

Why? He's a passionate talker with well thought out opinions.

[@lnAmberClad]

@@seanwhitehall4652 He doesn't know how to engage in conversations, he tends to just lecture. he's also incredibly dismissive and egotistical. There's a lot more but those are the first two things that come to mind

[@seanwhitehall4652]

@@lnAmberClad I guess I've only found him dismissive of things where it makes sense, and tend to find it's just an exaggeration of him being a passionate talker. Though he has admitted he doesn't like debates, he likes to stick to topics that are largely settled and where education the best approach. I'm generally not turned off by people being slightly rude; substance matters more.

[@andreborges2106]

Awesome podcast

[@SFDestiny]

terrific edit! ;)

[@vladimirsolovyov666]

Sam Harris: "We live in a universe."

[@ricardosantos6721]

Sam, perhaps if you watched the whole Floyd video instead of the minutes with the knee on the neck, then you'd have more insight to the situation than complete bafflement.

[@daheikkinen]

In a yellow submarine

[@ivredxx7908]

@@daheikkinen which is encapsulated in an entirely boring and normal metaverse; why do any of you even think there is something special about us? We are nothing. NOTHING. Naaaaaarrrrrrrfin. Stupid humans and their stupid ideas. Not like me…. I got it all figured out…. We’re narrrrrfin.

[@TheSteinbitt]

@@ricardosantos6721 Fentanyl and meth is dangerous, he was complaining about choking before the police used force.

[@StarRoomStudio]

What has even happened in this comment thread

[@alexg.7056]

Excellent content! Really enjoyed this.

[@OrangeHand]

"And from this simple man came the proof that we are not alone in the universe. I'm Leonard Nimoy... good night."

[@ianyboo]

Has anybody listened to the full podcast? I'm curious if they touch on techno signatures instead of bio signatures like looking for Dyson swarms or other stellar engineering.

[@rick15666]

Yes. Not at all. Woke culture and politics believe it or not. Really disappointing, if you ask me. Mostly because Neil dances around things quite a bit, provides broad/indirect answers. It’s all good though, the first half was good.

[@Yowdy121]

@@rick15666 what did Neil say about the far-advanced tech stuff Sam mentioned right at the end?

[@rick15666]

@@Yowdy121 it’s been a month man I’d have to listen to it again, any specific question? I recall recommending against anyone paying for the remainder of this podcast as I was thoroughly disappointed with Neil’s non-answer answers. It’s coming back to me now, including his response to the Pentagon released video of UAP’s. The trouble is, Neil is just too prominent of a figure in terms of being an individual that many folks can relate to, and trust, to get them interested in science. I think he just has to be too careful with sharing his personal opinions publicly, if they’re anywhere remotely outside the watered-down non-answer answers. Which is a shame cause he’s a friggin astrophysicist, I’d be nice to hear his true thoughts, it is my opinion that he has been specifically told to avoid some things, to remain in his spot as a public figure, narrating space series and stuff, you know?

[@TwiztedDezign]

Neil degrasse Tyson, the man who tells others, unironically, "The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you" but lacks the wisdom to listen to his own words. I can't stand him now.

[@thulyblu5486]

? ... what do you mean? Where should he apply this in your opinion? (No, I'm not familiar with every stance the man has ever taken)

[@RickBeck82]

@@thulyblu5486 he is incapable of entertaining the fact aliens might be real. It would mean he was wrong. Listen how hard he's defending his opinion here and on Rogan. He is taking this personally.

[@RickBeck82]

@@carbonstar9091 I heard what he said and I heard what he didnt say. How would you interpret his position on the matter? I'm not trying to be insulting, I'm curious on your take because that's what I feel when listening to him be overly verbose. He's not baffling us with bullshit but his words feel equally empty.

[@mykhailohohol8708]

Carbon and water are significant for life indeed, yet the amount of Phosphorus may be the most important factor and the great filter for alien organisms. Most of our biochemical reactions require P, and nothing would ever be possible without it. Yet in the universe it appears to be scarce.

[@reinforcedpenisstem]

Maybe. Maybe not.

[@myselftik]

Maybe both

[@DeuceGenius]

A good question. Do we truly want to know the answer? Both yes and no are equally terrifying, not knowing may be better

[@reyl9228]

I saw the headline and was like "oh, nice!" then I saw the guest and.........aahhhhh man, no.

[@hahalmfao69]

Neil is one of my least favorite guests on any podcast

[@mars6829]

I for one is glad to hear from someone outside the echo chamber.

[@hahalmfao69]

@@mars6829 He is a 1man echo chamber

[@pumitriii6160]

48:13/49:56 is what you're here for

[@anon.4840]

Thanks

[@craigbillington4540]

My guy

[@EarthIsSmall]

You're the hero i was looking for

[@LettersAndNumbers300]

Best post

[@U2On3]

too bad so much of this topic is missing here... fuck paywalls

[@robomop9711]

“When you’re interesting enough, WE’LL contact YOU.” - Aliens probably

[@nickking6371]

"My loves the type of thing you have to earn and when you earn it you don't need it"-bo burnam

[@ebendaggett704]

I've never understood this form of species-level self deprecation. Do you honestly believe that humans are not "interesting enough"? Talk about not being easily amused.

[@robomop9711]

@@ebendaggett704 Well, if I’m being serious and not just making a silly joke, let me put it this way: When was the last time you stopped along the road to have a conversation with a worm? A worm can’t even understand the most basic human sentences like, “Do you want to go to the store with me?” And that’s a creature from Earth that we have DNA in common with. And it may be that there are other beings in the universe that are even more advanced than us than we are to a worm, so we might not even be able to understand their most simple ideas, let alone have a conservation with them.

[@robomop9711]

@@ebendaggett704 Then again, the keyword here is “might.” There might be more advanced aliens, there might be aliens that are comparable to our intelligence, there might be animal-like creatures on other planets, or there might be nothing. We just don’t know yet.

[@drakebell6784]

@@robomop9711 People spend their whole lives studying worms, ants. This argument is moot. There are billions of barren lifeless planets, ours is teeming with intelligent life. We're interesting.

[@redo88]

Awesome talk!!! Thanks!!

[@donald2167]

“I’m a doctor, not a bricklayer!” - “The Devil in the Dark” [TOS]

[@snackentity5709]

NDT does the science communicator equivalent of a stand-up comic's rotation of jokes. if you listen to him more than once, you get repeats of the same exact quips said in the same exact way. i understand it to some degree, but i wish he would inject new thoughts into these conversations.

[@UFOUAPMagnet]

He has to have some, first.

[@mnichols1979]

To busy plugging his books. Gotta run the sales pitches

[@21972012145525]

He says he intentionally trained himself to have sound-bite answers to questions. It’s actually operationally smart and efficient,but yes-is repetitive if you’ve listened for a few years

[@mariaavery1212]

I look forward to watching the Making Sense Podcast.

[@azuresky4984]

👍👍👍 I couldn’t like this video more than once.

[@TheChadavis33]

Sam really needs to have Avi Loeb and Kevin Knuth on his podcast. Would be much better guests for this important question

[@remasteredretropcgames3312]

Id like to see him annex Alien Hybrid Lord Isaac Arthur for a Chat about the State of Earth.

[@Bow-to-the-absurd]

Isn't it convenient, that even though we now have billions of phone cameras and air force jets costing a hundred million dollars, we still can't get more than a blurry smudge of a ufo picture?

[@inbox0000]

Supposedly there is much better footage that is still classified, and satellite data.

[@Bow-to-the-absurd]

@@inbox0000 as they say 'it's never aliens until It's aliens' I won't hold my breath for their landing.

[@pumpuppthevolume]

@@inbox0000 2 of the latest videos r completely worthless ...triangle aperture and one possibly a duck .....and some of the interviewed "experts" say these look interesting if something is a blobsquatch for your entire life expect it to remain a blobsquatch for the rest of your life if there was anything good or actual physical evidence it would leak

[@jedlee2194]

I used to think, “If there are UFOs, they sure know how to avoid being filmed”. But now that we know they don’t mind being filmed, I’m wondering why the US government is the only one getting footage when they possess a fraction of the worlds cameras. Unless other countries governments have footage they aren’t speaking about yet.

[@pumpuppthevolume]

@@jedlee2194 read my comment

[@tontsar91]

A topic can't get much more interesting than this.

[@TheHeuristicHeretic]

I'm just happy being a collection of star stuff travelling through the cosmos. When you start letting go of all the worldly, biased things we are not, life becomes so much more wonderous and enjoyable.

[@MrDavital1]

Why doesn't Neil interrupt Sam Harris?

[@um8778]

Joe Rogan warned him beforehand

[@Thisisahandle701]

He respects what Sam has to say

[@dickmcwienersonIII]

@@um8778 What happened with Rogan? I'm out of loop

[@um8778]

@@dickmcwienersonIII Search for "if you value mountain climbing" or any interview between them. Neil keeps interrupting Joe every 5 seconds 😅🙈

[@dickmcwienersonIII]

@@um8778 hahaha, thank you.

[@Romeroifly]

Its nice to listen to neil talk especially if you're under 13yo

[@amrithatalks1103]

No bro... 26 yr old

[@upsyndrome223]

“And the seventh is a ham sandwich” that was funny af 😂

[@dizzyh]

Is there a video version of this? ☺️☺️

[@EdwardmWhitney]

I remember when Neil used to be the fun science guy that I wanted to hear speak.

[@greggstrasser5791]

He's always been condescending.

[@starchaser28]

Would love to hear Sam Harris interview Bob Lazar

[@seanwhitehall4652]

Why?

[@philiphudgens4726]

Uh oh...we've got a live one, folks!

[@starchaser28]

@@seanwhitehall4652 To hear Sam's thoughts on it and perhaps gain new insight on Bob's story.

[@tomasderville6863]

Talking about the Fermi Paradox, it could have been interesting to cover what Cixin Liu talks in his science fiction book, the Universe is a Dark Forest: civilisations do not show their presence, because A)they don't know whether a distant civilisation is good or malicious B) since civilisations can evolve exponentionally, they can quickly become a threat even if they are discovered first as less advanced.

[@ewqdsacxz765]

Civilisations *have* developed exponentially -- not that they will continue to. If human civilization survives into the next century, it's not inconceivable that development will have begun to stall or end.

[@Bow-to-the-absurd]

How could we possibly find out? So it's not the answer that matters, It's what we do that counts.

[@freedomshapes]

Every time I hear the intro music I feel like it’s 2014 and I’m binge watching house of cards.

[@JacobHayden911]

FINALLY, a guest that I give a shit about. Damn, it's been a MINUTE since Neil's been on this podcast! I think it was early in the podcast when it was still called "Waking Up: With Sam Harris!" This is gonna be good!

[@Mynyel]

A pleasurable listen.

[@IvanusPrime]

Is the rest of the podcast episode worth listening to? Someone with a sub can confirm?

[@benjaminburns4412]

I can never listen to more than 10 minutes of Neil I like his books but man cmon now

[@westt9030]

I agree he just likes to listen to himself talk

[@Demortixx]

Why?

[@richarddunne5688]

Neil loves his own voice !

[@PlayNiceFolks]

He didn't interrupt Sam once.

[@sethjensen2291]

@@Demortixx he claims to be an advocate for curiosity and discovery but he's represents the apitamy of head in the sand style reasoning

[@johnaldchaffinch3417]

Hoping Sam has some inside info about aliens, and is watching in amusement at Neil's mental gymnastics to explain their absence.

[@skunkworksu7638]

Well done Sam , the short form of this conversation cut out at the exact part I was interested in. I guess I better sign up. I find Niel can over talk people at times but he was ok in this interview . I want the UFOs to be alien , not some secret government area 51 super tech.😆

[@pumpuppthevolume]

yep u can sign up for free and get the rest of the episodes

[@seanmatthewking]

Lmao me too dude. Sam is a sneaky ba****d.

[@myselftik]

45:00 gotta love Sam's humour "I also wonder about the suits they were wearing" 😂😂

[@WillyDIreland]

We're living within ten feet of other people and still some of us are alone. Looking forward to hearing this.

[@WillyDIreland]

@Alpha Centauri Correct. I think that's a better word.

[@synchronium24]

♪ We're sharing a drink called loneliness, but it's better than drinking alone. ♪

[@thelastsoad]

You're obviously depressed...

[@WillyDIreland]

@@thelastsoad no but I understand why you would think that. I do know of a good few people who are tho which is why I made the point.

[@6661313]

knowing i wont be able to hear the full thing even if there was add in it, just gives me reason to not listen to it at all, at least there was a warning though saving me an hour, so up voted for that at least

[@luisramrod9121]

Never have I clicked on a video so fast!

[@ThatOneScienceGuy]

I know! Finally something to pull my attention away from Tik Tok.

[@Frazful]

Hey Sam, please put topic timestamps on your videos. Thank you!

[@InteractiveIdea]

20:25 He is talking about sci-fi author Dennis Taylor and his book "We are legion". The premise of AI spreading from earth and duplicating to cover more space. I read the first book, but got confused and bored by the second. It's too complex.

[@HeathenThrone]

Running out of conversations are we??

[@dannyberinger4634]

They cut it of right when it gor really interesting!!

[@Hertfordshire247]

Sam mate, word to the wise, I don't need to pay to listen to podcasts when there are brilliant free ones with Neil. Pay for a podcast, what you think this is? 2015?

[@BUGHUNTER6]

I'm claiming "Starhop" as the name of my future space cafetaria

[@julianmarx2002]

uhhhh, starbucks?

[@troydaum4728]

Here to see if Neil interrupted Sam as much as he did Joe 🤣

[@rubenvargas3547]

Thank you Sam

[@peterolbrisch1653]

In my hour of need, I finally found my weed, I'm stoned again, naturally.

[@realpolitiksanta5980]

To those who claim that a markedly advanced civilization would not find simpler beings interesting enough to study or observe, I have one word for you…. Entomology. You’re welcome.

[@remasteredretropcgames3312]

Use my mods or Satan will get you.

[@nativealien1859]

I’m preemptively going to say I love this conversation.

[@ernestofurchtgott5421]

I wish they would’ve covered the topic on what astrophysics discoveries or advancements can be expected from AI

[@mmoreira2000]

Sam talks so softly on his podcast as opposed to when he is debating that I'm really think he records the podcast just after smoke a nice joint.

[@objectuser]

Love NDT! Love his analogies, his enthusiasm, awesome!