Take Back MIT | Eric Weinstein and Lex Fridman

Full episode with Eric Weinstein (Apr 2020): • Eric Weinstein: Geomet...
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Eric Weinstein is a mathematician with a bold and piercing intelligence, unafraid to explore the biggest questions in the universe and shine a light on the darkest corners of our society. He is the host of The Portal podcast, a part of which, he recently released his 2013 Oxford lecture on his theory of Geometric Unity that is at the center of his lifelong efforts in arriving at a theory of everything that unifies the fundamental laws of physics.
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[@F1mus]

MIT should go back to being the hacker haven, instead of trying to be like Harvard.

[@originalAtreyu]

"We're handed heros and we're fumbling them into the trash". How does Eric consistently come up with these slogans. Incredible

[@gojoe36]

Did the COTTON GIN come from MIT? Did the Lathe or MIll come from MIT? Folks these things came from people like you and me....the normal people. This is what changed the world. The Lathe REVOLUSIONIZED the world second to only electricity. The Internet ain't nothing compared to the LATHE or ELECTRICITY...neither came from MIT. Money is what LURES people to be servants out of MIT and Eric knows it. When you can LEARN to ORGANIZE yourselves together and keep out middle men you will be better off.

[@spritemultipack]

@@RandomForestGump what are you?

[@BenWeeks]

12:55 "People are cowards at the moment because if they're not cowards they're unemployed."

[@kickmonlee3390]

I am not a coward... but then again I am unemployed lol

[@nelsonianb1289]

@@Hermetics you have a psychotic break too?

[@BURDYMAN777]

@@calmdown.8213 I agree

[@MrTweaksTV]

@@Hermetics lol ,you hit rock bottom hard huh ?

[@arnoldloudly5423]

@@calmdown.8213 agree too, sadly

[@ca842]

"You get a lot of reading done and you can work out". The most Lex thing ever said.

[@jboyce007]

"I think we need some geeks... get me 2 PhDs" Everyone in STEM should take back what's ours!

[@davidquinn9676]

It's been the story in industry too, the rise of a truly dominant administrative class. I think that's the difference. Boomer admins are far tougher (this word is not strong enough) than the ones before.

[@hinteregions]

You better get onto it quick smart before STEM itself gets taken away.

[@jboyce007]

@@hinteregions sad but true.

[@hinteregions]

@@jboyce007 Not yet. But this silliness probably will get Donald Trump re-elected because anyone who was sitting on the fence, 'middle America,' unable to decide between two mentally unfit, corrupt geriatrics is going to vote Trump just to keep these arguably dangerous lunatics in their place. And then, Julian, we are all going to die.

[@normapressimone5909]

edwardschlosser1 There are those who TAKE the graft and those who GIVE it. BOTH have their hands in the manure.

[@cesarperez10]

This talk was gold. Let's find all the heroes in academia and make a change

[@sigmachad5331]

Cesar Perez YOUNG MIDORIYA?!

[@glockspecific7757]

A lot to think about!

[@robwhite5605]

“Those who can do, those who can't teach.”― George Bernard Shaw

[@stcredzero]

They've lost all of their power to the administrators, who are in the pocket of the activists.

[@13e11even11]

Too late

[@KarimJovian]

I miss Aaron Swartz. What a genius and what a complete f--k up on their part

[@leonardobrawijayamrq8914]

"Brilliant thinking is rare, but courage is in even shorter supply than genius" ~Peter Thiel

[@damionm121]

putsome basilonit I believe you sir are in a quantum state

[@Undone545]

The crux of the issue

[@julianblake8385]

Say that to Mr Coward leading the interview!

[@ianbryant3258]

@@jfreeman3978 What's IDW?

[@leonardobrawijayamrq8914]

@Ray Baker for example?

[@jimmydean9602]

"Go break the law, in a way that inspires us and makes us not want to prosecute you"

[@aoeu256]

Only to MIT kids, that doesn't work if your not very smart or at a no name university...

[@jimmydean9602]

@@aoeu256 that was implied by the context of their conversation

[@crownhic6827]

Awesome as awesome gets

[@gpknee]

“Get out of my lab!” Indeed!

[@daleboyles3805]

graham pearce Necessary friction

[@Croatoan879]

I agreed with this 100% get out of my lab

[@Leandro-bj6jh]

This

[@KatJ3st]

It's no different in financial institutions and government. No different at all

[@phoenixrising4073]

@@edwardschlosser1 should the state's lab policies be dictated by social movements? This is the argument of equality of opportunity vs equality of outcome. The fact is that children from the same family raised under the same roof do not turn out the same. Why should we expect people from different neighborhoods, cities, states, or countries to all turn out the same? Even a single man is not the same every day. Equality of outcome is destructive to our society and universities.

[@theredflagisgreen]

That was one of the most serious "Are you kidding me?"s I've ever heard digitally.

[@PerceivetoSuffer]

Eric Weinstein is a real one, I can't believe he brought up Aaron.

[@hackedagain3421]

@Per Johansen Mr. Schwartz was working with the best of intentions.

[@hackedagain3421]

I had no idea these people were pissed about what happened to him

[@Killerbee_McTitties]

was great to hear that theres people who remember him

[@waterkingdavid]

He should have received the highest awards for his integrity and morality. Like Julian Assange instead of being hailed a hero he was treated as a criminal.

[@nayrseyah1658]

Yeah and then got all the facts wrong. MIT didn’t cause the issue, neither did JSTOR … it was the department of justice.

[@atomicsmith]

"I will visit you in prison" You gotta love the way Eric Weinstein expresses himself...

[@HylanderSB]

I love how frank Eric is with Lex. Not fatherly, more older brotherly. Lex needs it though. He has a lot of idealism to burn through before he can see the world for what it is. At least he’s trying.

[@paulden3158]

I tend to think there's nothing wrong with being an idealist as long as you're real about it.

[@mragunathan1627]

@@paulden3158 The word youre looking for is Quixotic.

[@rotu41]

RIP Aaron Swartz, "the internet's own boy".

[@BMerker]

11:53 - About the Nietzsche question, how to fight a monster without becoming a monster yourself. As far as I can see, that requires knowing your enemy better than he knows himself.

[@anthonyglickman6245]

Eric's take on generational politics is something I've known in my soul for the past 30 years. Silent and Boomers have eaten their children and played favorites with The Other. It has arrested our development on every level.

[@bighands69]

Is it just boomers. Can it be that easy to blame them?

[@tedschantz6019]

I first noticed this trend in church politics. People hoarding what is there's allowing it to die. Is it a stretch to say, this is how America started. People left Europe for less oppression to create something new. With 7.4 Billion, the lines are drawn on the world map. There is no place to start something new for a younger American generation and efforts by boomers subvert the efforts. I noticed GenX was poorly represented in 2020 and we had two old guys to choose from.

[@YummyFoodOnlyPlz]

The old and stagnant need to get the hell out of the way. They may have collectively broken Aaron Swartz 1.0. But we as Aaron Swartz 2.0, 3.0, ... will obsolete them and we must.

[@mboiko]

I do agree with Eric, but previous generations have been screwing up for a long time. The Great Generational "Blame Game"...a game that's been going on for a LONG time. "It's the (fill in the blank) Generations FAULT". If you were an 18-year-old kid in the WWI trenches, or on the beaches during WW2/D-Day, or watching as a president and leaders are being assassinated, or as your high school buddies are coming back home in body bags/Vietnam, or you go to bed each night not knowing if the freaking world would still be there in the morning (Cuban Missle Crisis). THEY ALL blamed the PREVIOUS generations. Just as future generations will blame YOU. That's why they call it LIFE...like it or not for millennia it's been both beautiful and ugly. As for today...if there was such a thing as a time machine and people could go back in time to a better time and place. The vast majority of people would come back to our current time with all its flaws, pretty damn fast. BY 1900 we finally got to the point where the average person would live to 45. Also, remember bad news sells, and good news doesn't sell. If it bleeds it leads. MSM and Social Media feed us all a steady stream of mostly bad news and we all walk around thinking we're now living in the worst time ever, which of course is not true. We live in a time when the "demand for racism far exceeds the supply", yet that's not the message the MSM wants you to know. My point is that while this world is far from perfect each generation does both some good and bad, and that's the continuing story of humanity.

[@EduardoMedinaP]

"Huevos are very important" I agree.

[@tylerkrueger3218]

Mine are super important

[@moradghezaiel4779]

​@@tylerkrueger3218 Mine will

[@maxiaquiyahora]

Huevos fritos en particular

[@ryanleemartin7758]

I was unsure of Lex's personality as a podcast host. After giving him a fair shake I have reached the conclusion that he is a fantastic podcast host. I'm a fan.

[@thefarmerswifeknits6190]

Yes….at first I thought he was so low energy, snail like. But he asks questions that the everyman would ask.

[@BigTyronie]

Hes amazing. He appeals to logic to get him through awkward segments. Hes a good person.

[@subzerov69]

Funny to read this in 2024. He turned out beyond fantastic lol

[@greggwith2gees]

Wicked combo! You should try to get chamath palihapitiya on the show. Much love and respect

[@arcilamatt]

I definitely welcome encouraging healthy questioning/challenging of authority. Especially during these times...

[@thirdparsonage]

I love watching Eric, but I just wish that he would let Lex help explain in understandable terms what it is that he's proposing. It seems like Eric bounces around and even contradicts himself a lot. I think Lex is trying help people know how to follow Eric's ideas. It may just be that Eric merely wants to instigate rather than lead.

[@agenthex]

Keep in mind Eric Weinstein is basically a quack with a Timecube level "physics" theory that actual scientists mock.

[@fuckfacestein]

It's tempting to think that Eric is the firebrand pointing out all the injustices that need to be pointed out, but then he describes his childhood trauma and I can't help but think his anger at all institutions has more to do with that trauma than the actual state of those institutions. A better unifying theory is that his own perception is warped, not that every institution is rotten.

[@thirdparsonage]

Jacob Warr I'm fine with his anger at the establishment. It personally resonates with me. And even if his particular views are not correct, I enjoy listening to those with "heterodox" views. I think there's too much group think in Academia. I just think that he could make case better by exhibiting a bit more patience and humility. When he first was appearing on all the podcasts, it was the opposite. He was getting interrupted by others and he appeared to me to exhibit quite a bit of humility. Then it seemed like something flipped in the last couple months, as seen in his podcast with his brother, here with Lex, and even in his most recent podcast that came out this morning. Much more of Eric interrupting and force feeding his guests. I'm hoping that he finds a middle ground.

[@thirdparsonage]

Chrysippus I partially agree. I just think that he could still be angry, while showing more respect for his conversation partners.

[@thirdparsonage]

Agent00F It may be that his physics theory turns out to be incorrect. To some degree, I like the fact that he's trying to stick it to "the man." I like that he's an independent thinker. I think he has a good point in explaining how Einstein in was viewed as a total freakshow until several years after he submitted his theory of relativity to the scientific community. I think science gets its quantum leaps forward by bold independent thinkers who are willing to thwart the status quo. I like that characteristic in Eric. And even if he is wrong, it seems to me that we're not gonna have any homeruns if nobody swings for the fences. And I'm not sure there is any one view of physics that is universally accepted by "true academics." String theorists think Penrose is a quack. Penrose thinks the string theorists are quacks. In my view, one of the problems with the Academy is the same as the problem with the Democratic Party. It's not necessarily about the pursuit of truth. It's about picking a team fighting for job security on that team. Not enough people that have the balls to take a stand for something, and point out any of the glaring inconsistencies in the prevailing views. All the gaps get swept under the rug because what's important is winning, getting more accolades and research dollars. I digress :) Even though there are several things I disagree with Eric on, I still love listening to him. My main complaint lately with Eric is he seems to be interrupting and dismissing his guests a lot. I guess it's more of a taste thing, because it doesn't seem to bothering a lot of others.

[@physicsguy877]

Can anyone spell out exactly what needs to be taken back at MIT? I have my own ideas, but I'd like to hear Eric actually spell it out, because he often talks in vague terms and seems to assume everyone watching already understands what he's talking about. I just want to know if what he thinks is the same as what I think.

[@bighands69]

@Physics Guy Unless there is a cultural shift in America and the west as a whole nothing will change. The problem is not just MIT it is a social problem. Right now the Chinese government are planning a world take over and nobody seems to care and most politicians and media will attack people for just stating the obvious. I cannot see another direction other than the path we are on.

[@tijtij]

Vague terms are a feature not a bug of the IDW

[@dragons_red]

@@tijtij Vague terms or talking at a higher level where younare expected to know background info that they don't have time to spell out for everyone if they are going to have their converstation. You wouldn't walk into a meeting among the world's top doctors and expect them talk at a level you can understand would you?

[@maxintos1]

@@dragons_red Vague terms definitely. Lex asked multiple times to define or expand on his ideas or just talk about real actions not just rhetoric's and Eric just seemed to avoid all of it or just plainly attack Lex. It's not like we didn't understand his answers, it's that he didn't give any. All he gave us was "we need change" or "we are smarter so we can destroy them", but when asked what exactly he means by that we get pivoting or attacks for questioning him. Lex is somehow suddenly on the other side just because he dared to question.

[@nighttrain1565]

I like Eric but sometimes he can't admit he doesn't have a fucking clue what he's talking about lol. Getting his playbook for his agenda would be as easy as asking the Biden Campaign. Champions of vagueness and hollow plans of fantasy action lol. When the most action we get is talkie talk talk

[@snippletrap]

It's a generational thing. The 2008-09 recession made undergrads a lot more obedient and serious, afraid.

[@diegomagellan]

snippletrap 9/11 and 2008-2009

[@BigC25586]

Loved this.. really echo's and expanded on feelings I have myself. Good to hear like minded individuals. Thanks for all you do Lex. Really enjoyed Eric's antagonistic conversational style. Glad I think I can agree with him.

[@garn5341]

This has to be one of the best podcasts I think I have ever listened to. Nice work Lex!

[@raewynurwin4256]

Thank you both, I feel like I'm privvy to both scary and enlightening information. It gives me hope for future generations, you listen well to each others questions and promote honest answers.

[@agustinhernandez7289]

“I will visit you in prison...” I lost it, that’s hilarious... Seriously, I’m in aw with both of you. This conversation is me, a custodian delivering the next chapter to the next level...

[@jaythomas468]

I just started to discover some of these various clips around the internet with Eric Weinstein in them and he’s quickly becoming one of my new favorite people to listen to as he seems to be brilliantly insightful on so many different things (and has an uncanny ability to articulate things down to a foundational level where even the layman can capture the gist of what he’s trying to say).

[@CamoduckProductions]

"If we don't actually start celebrating the beautiful stuff we're capable of when we're handed heroes, and we fumble them into the trash... I mean what the hell??" Brilliant

[@arcaliasgiants9813]

The root of this problem is intellectual property law that favors the sponsoring employer who happened to be near the inventor at the right time.

[@TheSchev]

Intelligence doesn't come from the great institutions. The great intellects dpn't need the institutions. Infotmation is now free and readily available.

[@chron2609]

Sorry, Georgy, but this just isn't true. It's more of a fantasy.

[@jayasri6764]

If you really want to create something of value ,you will need atleast one person,who is atleast as smart as you(preferably smarter) .You just can t do it alone(Unless you are a supergenius,like Newton).And smart people are common in great institutions .

[@chron2609]

@Language and Programming Channel well, to answer your question bluntly, a lot. Knowing and understanding are two different facets of learning and often the latter is only possible through conversation, repetition and mentorship. There's a good reason why few breakthroughs appear from out of no where. This romantic idea that you can just sit home and hope to read enough to put you on par with a professional who studied at an institution among a group of peers striving for the same thing is nothing but fantasy. Sorry.

[@AubreyCole-kj8fd]

I don't understand, you say that we should always be in this corrupt loop of institutionalized academics. Why does independent research strike you with fear? This is the problem. We have been damn near genetically programmed for group thought. Be it corrupt or not. Its time to wake up, re write the system.

[@Cancellator5000]

And a lot of the software/tech that I need to do work is behind a massive paywall that I wouldn't be able to afford unless I was independently wealthy. Institutions are gatekeepers. Building everything up from scratch is an impossible task. That's why we need open source communism and the free access to software, technology and ideas. No trade secrets and capitalist bs. All these things are a hindrance to great intellects getting the resources they need to make progress efficiently.

[@genenelson3633]

It all begins with the middle finger.

[@bighands69]

People are too scared to use the middle finger encase they get called a racist, sexiest, homophobe, far right, nazis or a controversialist. In the past people had moral values that included protecting the weak, free speech, right to self determination and the expectation that culture was for the betterment of society. Today the main moral value is not to offend people. And everything now is considered offensive. Even eating food or reading a book. You could read a book that you do not agree with and yet you are labelled as committing an act of offence.

[@jaredbeckwith]

It’s much more fun to be a pirate than join the navy 🏴‍☠️

[@atomicsmith]

The part I think we've forgotten is that you had to join the pirates too. Individualism has been used to separate us so that we have no power. A la Aaron Schwartz. To overcome the entrenched corruption we will have to band together.

[@shooshoojoon4]

Great to know you guys are in this world! bring out the light, honesty, and goodness people are starving for!

[@danielflorencio6216]

Weinstein is brilliant and Lex Fridman is a gifted interviewer, well done.

[@hexicantony8901]

I love when two great minds bounce ideas off each other! I just sit in awe And grab the popcorn

[@Sprite_525]

During this podcast, Lex hinted that the problem is deeper than Weinstein thinks. When Eric tried to explain physics to Lex, Lex said ‘I don’t understand,’ then Eric said ‘you’d need training. change will come from people who have the training.’ That’s the real problem. How can you take-over the institution that grants people the time and training required to overturn that institution’s academic output with your output? It’s very deep and scary: if a person wants to become “a member of the revolutionary elite” they first need a lot of money (or scholarships), teachers, and testing, which has always only come from academic institutions for centuries (think-tanks are the exception but those have no credibility due to the “conflict of interest”, it’s usually academics doing research for vested interests)

[@ionxonaonton3624]

Nice

[@detailingshed8130]

So rival it: "power resides where men believe it resides". Eric wasn't wrong; nor is he disareeing you: 'You need to take it back with brilliance', wouldn't you agree?

[@acadianalien]

@@detailingshed8130 ''Chaos is a ladder'' also comes to mind ;)

[@Sprite_525]

Detailing Shed - I think maybe we are agreeing, but focusing on different aspects. When focuses are different, false conflicts can happen about what’s happening. My focus was the economics of training: if talents need to be trained to a level where they’re not doing any other normal labor, normal jobs, not fighting conventional fights, then that takes money - or at least scholarships that say ‘this guy doesn’t need to make money, just let him do his thing’. I’d love for everybody to just decide where power resides. But the reality of economics, time-spending, and testing, remains. These things require resources. And the fact that one institution has a monopoly on THAT is the deepest problem. Lex hinted at that, but it’s so big that it’s hard to focus on one aspect without sounding like we are disagreeing. Let’s all gather and address it from all angles!

[@detailingshed8130]

As was I, we need to rival it with brilliance! - there is power in that! We shall construct new chairs and polish fresh stone! We will make it to be more efficient, more effective, more economic and more exciting. We will bring back the noble arts; intertwined with free expression, lest we forget that 'a mind needs books like a swords needs a whetstone', if it's to keep its edge' but 'men would rather deny a hard truth than face it'.

[@spiritualpolitics8205]

Weinstein misses an early point Fridman is trying to make: Having character is not an attribute of only a past vanguard, but presently people are also struggling (within extant bureaucracies) on how to live with character as well. The need for honor, courage, integrity is not generational or faddish, as I'm sure Weinstein would accede on reflection. But there has been a creeping PC that makes it require more courage to stand up now than it used to -- so the issue is the system baseline courage required to make changes now, as opposed to 10 years ago. The issue as Sam Harris talked about is the Rawlsian concept that we don't want a system where the average citizen has to have the courage of Gandhi in order to have a functional system, which we are somewhat now approaching...

[@acangial1]

Profound stated. Thanks.

[@henryjordan433]

very well put. This seems like the direction we are headed

[@ottofrank3445]

Aaron Swartz was a hero.

[@Nestoras_Zogopoulos]

the fbi wants to know your location

[@mika274]

@@Nestoras_Zogopoulos KZbin have already sold it

[@notbrad4873]

Anyone know where to find Eric's story of his run-in with a therapist?

[@rg6093]

Keep up the great work Eric and Lex and more Elons will come forward. Many great minds have bowed out for self preservation. Aaron Swartz; R.I.P.

[@naturefix290]

Great talk, I find a huge problem with how universities are governed too. My biggest problem is the beaurcpatic process along with hiring business degrees to run scientific departments. Like what was stated there is no tenure anymore, they still have to produce a certain amount of articles/grants per year. It’s not about quality of product but amount of product.

[@kwroger616]

Bravo Lex, terrific podcast. Bravo Eric please continue to be the ball buster you gave us in this interview, I'm sure it inspired a lot of young thinkers...

[@gynat5968]

I always appreciated Mr. Winestein's perspectives. I am now officially a fan afterlistening to him share his view on MIT's treatment of Aaron Swartz.

[@quaterni0]

This was an inspiring conversation. This makes me feel like I'm not the only one who sees the absurdity in the academic system! "Get out of my lab!" Too good 😂

[@trenttagestad5282]

This talk was was massively cathartic and meaningful to me. It was difficult not to cry. I'm almost done with my first year of college. A 24-year old male on track for a degree in applied math,neuro, and philosophy. I quit college twice because I couldn't handle the bullshit the adminstration slogged at me and turned to drugs. After I quit school, it felt like I was the problem for years (until Trump hit). I explained this to my peers and relatives, and overwhelmingly heard "You're smart, you just need some time off school" or "The school is just doing what schools do. That's college." I always suspected I wasn't wrong about the purposeful and planned rape of our nation's people, but speaking out has been extremely difficult for me because of my past struggles. Now, I feel a catharsis beyond any I've experienced. Thanks for this interview, @Lex Fridman and thanks to Eric for sharing my furious passion for assigning blame to those who deserve it. You've continued to inspire me to apply all of my efforts to ending this mass suffering and quashing of intelligence. I used to play a lot of rock music, so I know a thing or two about the middle finger. P.S. I'm sure others have as stories like mine. I encourage you all to share! It was fun and it's good to see what others are going through in times like this.

[@ericmanget4280]

What degree encompasses applied math, neuro, and philosopy?

[@noahkb80]

I can relate to Eric whole heartedly. My experiences are totally different. Im not as intelligent or informed as his pinky finger. But he's absolutely right on everything. Everything is infected by growth. I first noticed it when I was talking to a business owner I worked for a long time ago. He was always stressed out... I was 24 , newborn child, and had just lost my job becuase i had to walk out on that same owner because my wife at the time grandfather had passed away, he was like her father, she was pregnant with our second child and she needed me. Our whole family needed me. The reason he didn't want me to go was due to some business related stuff I wont get into, but the underlying issue was that his small business had made 6 million year before and was initially projected to make 8 the next but we were falling short and only on track to make 6 again. I thought to myself ' what a problem to have ' . Here I am, starting a family, second child on the way, had just built a house , and was scared to death. I knew in my heart I had to leave that day and I dont regret it. But it changed alot for the worse , and all was because of this notion that if you aren't growing youre failing . Which seems dumb to me because nothing grows for ever. Everything has a lifespan. And everywhere you look you see corrupt, failing structures and systems and you cannot trust any of them because you can be absolutely sure they have and will cut every corner they can to make more money. I have zero hope. I want to confront those systems. But ultimately I think it would just require a complete destruction of it all

[@jaythomas468]

That’s one thing I came to realize about these corporate, publicly-traded businesses (and most other “cogs of the system” that are purely profit-driven) as well and that if they made $6 billion LAST YEAR, they need to make $8 billion THIS YEAR, and then 10, then 12, etc… That’s completely INSANE and unsustainable. Nearly EVERYTHING goes through CYCLES of expansion and then contraction. Idk why the fuck these corporations think they’re gonna somehow “buck a near-universal trend.”

[@dardow4638]

Ppl are intellectually lazy, myself included. It takes a lot of calories to make my brain compute correct procedures on how to handle anything life has to throw at me. INSTEAD of creating a path that has a In door, an Out door, a Trap door and or even the elusive hidden door. And I am not a fan of treadmills to stay in shape. So my philosophy is like How do u eat an entire elephant, one bite at a time. Does this make sense?

[@jaythomas468]

@@dardow4638 I think I get what you’re saying. It’s like mundane tasks that you don’t REALLY WANNA DO yet shouldn’t be that mentally taxing end up feeling INSURMOUNTABLE unless broken up into smaller chunks.

[@dbestkillaman9082]

He saying we've got to do this ourselves!

[@DGonzRobotics]

Having gotten all my degrees at MIT, it's so sad to see how much it has changed in 10 years. It's not the same school I started at. I'm lucky I got some of that old MIT spirit back when the getting was good.

[@alexz3268]

Daniel Gonzalez what’s changed?

[@DGonzRobotics]

@@alexz3268 www.wired.com/story/a-weird-mit-dorm-dies-and-a-crisis-blooms-at-colleges/ and medium.com/@brandontle/dear-president-reif-don-t-fuck-up-the-culture-part-i-7dbfbaaf1ade are great summaries.

[@bluemiltank]

"It all begins with the middle finger." Thank you sensei

[@drkarenswrld]

10:13 Academic freedom comes from money: I can attest. When I was an academic (visiting professor in a niche subject) and married to a wealthy-ish guy, I had a lot of freedom. When I divorced wealthy-ish guy, needed my salary, needed research/travel grants, I got fired.

[@ScheffCity]

I'm just so happy to see a genuine interest in topics like this. 10 maybe even 5 years ago, this would have 5.6k views and Lex would have about 20k subs

[@danceswithstone]

Mr. Weinstein's commentary @ 20:30 until 23:20 describes the way I have felt my entire life . . . I'm finding it hard to believe he just said it, so perfectly! Holy smokes, there are others out there!!!!!

[@lacuentaalpedo]

U hear this kind of interview and feel inspired, thank you.

[@daddancingmywaythroughit]

does anyone know if there is a way to create presentations with ease?

[@hank1938]

6:22 - 6:40 ...Strumming my pain with his fingers... ...Singing my life with his words... ...Killing me softly with his song... ...Killing me softly with his song... ...Telling my whole life with his words... ...Killing me softly with his song...

[@pornswordtobacco]

"its crazy what We put people thru" quote from this show, very interresting words, thank you Lex Fridman,

[@os1513]

Hearing Eric speak today is perhaps the best thing which happened to me this year😌

[@rc8770]

He is all fired up. Trying to make moves and rattle cages. I’d love to know the master plan in his head.

[@os1513]

@Floyd Waters Yeah,these hour long discussions with honest intellectuals give a better perspective and are more inspirational than an entire college semester course

[@Yotraj]

Lex... it's all about creativity. The genius's at MIT, combined with creativity... SHOULD BE unbeatable.... after all, creativity is something we all have but the MIT guys have a great education they can pull from to be creative with... and that's something almost no one else has!

[@acharn4817]

#AaronSchwartz - may still have been with us if there were more people like #EricWeinstein. I am not always capable of understanding or following Erics talks but i sure can with this one. Lex, great shows, pls keep sharing this type of content

[@toufisaliba2806]

One of the best yet Eric is one of the hardest to interview. Was hoping you ask him about Ross Ulbricht?

[@toufisaliba2806]

nothing with MIT specifically but he's still alive and can still be Turing

[@KEVIN-84]

It's really sad what happened with Aaron. That being said, I don't think that if that case should go to court these days, he wouldn't get punished so ridiculously hard. At least, I want to believe that.

[@suedavis1781]

Wowwwwww. Eric Weinstein has thrown down the gauntlet: either be courageous and use own intelligence, experience and heart to find solutions to pressing problems, to love learning because you love the world, and to respect the immense value of autonomous thinking -- or use your freedom to steep in ignorance, remain slavish, and dwell precariously within a false sense of security. The conversation between Eric and Lex has made my day, my week, my.......

[@StephenBrennanGuitar]

Brilliant, I think I completely misunderstood Eric Weinstein previously. Turns out he's truthful and brilliant.

[@joebarco5674]

Dude this is encouraging especially for people like me. Not in the field that are now interested but dont know where to start

[@dazydaisy3657]

Professor Hathaway: When you first started at Pacific Tech you were well on your way to becoming another Einstein and then you know what happened? Chris Knight: I got a haircut?

[@adrianwhitten4343]

Might be the most inspiring video I have found in many years.. The leadership of Aaron Swartz and the community of hackers and open minded associates are the sole reason we have these freedoms to share content and express these ideas.. Why does not every social media know of him? Its crazy!!

[@SergeantSoldier.peacocks68]

Yes! An informed Star Wars reference in less than two minutes. I'm walking on cloud city in the sky. Well done. I'm hooked.

[@nothinhappened]

maybe put the 'clips' on a 2nd channel. Will keep this one tidy and also may open up another revenue stream.

[@goddamn4012]

Political correctness is stifling and interferes with creativity, I agree. Eric should explain how to overthrow the hegemony of academic journals where a small number of individuals decide the course of a subject.

[@goddamn4012]

@@jackriver1999 You are either very young or very naive

[@tellesu]

If someone modified MIT admissions so that it approved every applicant and then wrote an agent that could overwhelm the admissions system, that would be a thing that happened.

[@vrnorwaynorway6048]

Aron is my Hero, i never met him, he's from another country, another continent. But i will remember his name until i lie in my grave.

[@davidd837]

I thought Eric was going to backhand Lex at one point. Good thing Lex is a black belt

[@wearemany73]

Eric was Sooooo fucking brilliant in this part of the interview. Thank you Lex for extracting it so that it gains a little more air time 👍❤️ You’re a good man.

[@carlosgaspar8447]

we have llamas in the high Andes with no trees in sight, eating grass.

[@christopherurban-klein2708]

16:30 ... this sounds like Howard Roark from Ayn Rand's Fountainhead

[@manfrombritain6816]

Eric a few years ago: "take back MIT!" Eric now: "here's me playing the blues, look how cool i am cos i hang out with young musicians"

[@MsHunt-hv8di]

I am no Aaron Swartz or Elon Musk, but I do have a fire inside of me and I met Aaron at a cafe in Cambridge one night and we had to strong energy between us and he challenged me with some hard questions. I will never forget the light in his eyes. I had no idea who he was that night. I think he knew that and he found that a bit intriguing. I was just some hick from the south that ended up having to live in Boston.

[@AstroGremlinAmerican]

Necessary context. "In 2011, Swartz was arrested by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) police on state breaking-and-entering charges, after connecting a computer to the MIT network in an unmarked and unlocked closet, and setting it to download academic journal articles systematically from JSTOR using a guest user account issued to him by MIT. Federal prosecutors later charged him with two counts of wire fraud and eleven violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, carrying a cumulative maximum penalty of $1 million in fines, 35 years in prison, asset forfeiture, restitution, and supervised release.

[@Pyrophoro]

He says, "When we're handed Heros, and we fumble them into the trash." Eric just lays it out, bare nekkid man. He reminds me of the painting, "Truth coming out of the well" (1896, Jean-Léon Gérôme). I listen to a lot of brains in the world around me, his is the most impressive not only for his intellect, but his ability to speak right down to us on a level we can all understand.

[@USskank]

Eric Weinstein's call to "break the law," is Werner Herxog's call to "steal the camera." Push yourself forward and the boundary out, with intention and intelligence

[@CannibalWarthog]

Bears have a strength of only 10 Elons

[@teletesselator]

In 2011, Swartz was arrested by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) police on state breaking-and-entering charges, after connecting a computer to the MIT network in an unmarked and unlocked closet, and setting it to download academic journal articles systematically from JSTOR using a guest user account issued to him by MIT. Federal prosecutors later charged him with two counts of wire fraud and eleven violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, carrying a cumulative maximum penalty of $1 million in fines, 35 years in prison, asset forfeiture, restitution, and supervised release. Swartz declined a plea bargain under which he would have served six months in federal prison. Two days after the prosecution rejected a counter-offer by Swartz, he was found dead in his Brooklyn apartment, where he had hanged himself.

[@modelworkzseo]

Wow, Lex was really outgunned on this one. Poor soul, he's just a nice guy trying to fix things the 'right way'. What is Weinstein's overall message? "Oh yes, there will be blood".

[@avsvisual6786]

This will be long (and also probably buried) but I just wanted to say that Eric is 100% right about the Gated Institutions and the "2nd layer" that he talks about. Hearing him go into more detail about his experience in the full podcast really spoke to me, I've seen EXACTLY what he's talking about first hand. For me it was at Texas A&M in the Engineering department. I held several contracting jobs at high level government facilities and it was there too. It's at my current job. I think it's a characteristic directly tied to "institutions", however wide or broad you want to make that defined. It's inevitable or a "symptom" of hierarchies run by flawed individuals with their own happiness in mind, and we've built up support systems for those type of "tenured" people. Hearing his story about the secret meeting he showed up to reminded me of a concept from CS Lewis' book "Weight of Glory" from the chapter called "The Inner Ring": " ...what is the 'Inner Ring'? It's not printed anywhere. Nor is it even a formalized secret society with rules which you would be told after you had been admitted. You are never formally admitted by anyone. You discover gradually, in almost indefinable ways, that it exists and that you are outside of it, and then later, perhaps, you are inside of it. There are what correspond to passwords but they too are spontaneous and informal. A particular slang, the use of a particular nickname...some people are obviously in and some are obviously out...some people think they are in it after they have in fact been pushed out of it, or before they have even been let in; this provokes great amusement for those who are really inside....It has no official name. To those inside it might be referred to as 'us' or 'we'...to those on the outside it's 'them', 'those guys'...if you're a candidate for admission you probably don't call it anything....I believe that in all men's lives at certain periods...one of the most dominate elements is the desire to be inside the local Ring and the terror of being left out...the chaste are the outsiders they are ignorant of something that other people know...In your life as you now remember it, has the desire to be on the right side of that invisible line ever prompted you to any act or word on, which, in the cold small hours of a wakeful night, you can look back with satisfaction? If so, your case is more fortunate than most.. ..this desire is one of the greatest permanent mainsprings of human action...unless you take measures to prevent it, this desire is going to be one of the chief motivations of your life, from the first day of your new job, until the day when you are too old to care...you will do almost anything to be in or stay in the 'club', but you will be a scoundrel, you will lose yourself completely. That is my first reason. Of all passions, the passions of and for the Inner Ring is the most skillful in making a man who is not yet a bad man, do very bad things." He goes on to talk about the attempts to get into the Ring forcefully are futile, like "peeling an onion; once you succeed there will be nothing left. Until you conquer the fear of being an outsider, an outsider you will remain" - "Filling sieves with water" is another analogy. He concludes with this and I love it - "The quest for the Inner Ring will break your heart unless you break it. But if you break it, a surprising result will follow. If you stick to your work, your profession...pursuing excellence instead of chasing a group...you'll inadvertently become a member of another group...inside the only circle in your profession that really matters. You will be one of the 'sound craftsman', and other sound craftsmen will know it. The sound craftsmen don't make policy or cause a stir...they just work on their craft. But in the long run they will be responsible for all of the respect which that profession in fact enjoys and which speeches and advertisements cannot maintain". In addition he describes spending time with those who share your passion and bring joy and added value to your life "you will be in what looks like from the outside an Inner Ring, but it's much different. It's friendship. It causes perhaps half of all the happiness in the world, and no Inner Ring can ever have it." Keep up the great podcast Lex

[@StrategicWealthLLC]

AVS VISUAL - Very nice. Not having read much of Mr. Lewis, you make me think that Ayn Rand took his ideas and turned them into Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead.

[@ymkc9438]

Please do this daily.

[@SatanDynastyKiller]

I like Eric in this mode. Doing a great job sir 👏

[@SuperBrandocommando]

Universities are kind of like the government in that there is very little cost of being wrong because they collect full tuition whether or not a student is pursuing a degree that is likely to have a commensurate return on the investment or not. What if instead of paying tuition every semester, incoming freshmen entered into a contract where they agree to pay a percentage of their future income for a set amount of time after graduation. I think the financial structure in place in higher learning doesn't provide an adequate incentive to change the status quo. It is perplexing that for some courses of study the financial risk of default on student loans is so high, yet the lending institution (the government) has no qualms dispersing the money and saddling the student with debilitating debt, but they wouldn't let a young adult of the same age take out a $20,000 business loan even if it has a much higher chance of of being repaid. I like what Peter Thiel's idea to give grants to promising young people for their startups. We need more alternatives to university

[@loveleamoon3005]

I’ve seen a string. I wish I understood the math required to express it. I’d put an end to the whole thing.

[@troy204]

I know what Institutional betrayal feels like. They tore chasms between the very achilles of my free spirit. Awesome passionate video.

[@EricaScalzo]

May your passion keep burning 🔥

[@planetbizzaro1839]

Has the administrators truly stolen ALL the money from the outrageously inflated tuition rates???

[@zoelove1169]

thank you for sharing. i enjoyed listening

[@charlesfarley3866]

We need a thousand more Eric Weinsteins in the world. As soon as he brought up Aaron Schwartz I got tears in my eyes, and then hearing how eloquently he summed up our current situation... Wow.. Someone of his intellect sees the world the way I do, and voices how so many Institutions can fail us simultaneously and catastrophically without any of them having malicious intent. It's the weakness of our current systems which leaves us vulnerable to being destroyed from within..

[@drakedoragon3026]

Good for Eric to start speaking up more. Need much more of this.

[@theodorewattz]

To me the question about whether or not he can see the beauty speaks to the denial inherent in our system that when seeing somebody without a sense of denial who can honestly look at the flaws in the system we have to think that oh they must be so jaded and negative and possess no happiness to allow all the things that I’ve been denying into their conscious

[@patricksullivan4018]

Very much an Atlas Shrugged conversation

[@rokyericksonroks]

Tech company startups : “Move fast and break a lot of things” Institutional higher education: “Move slowly enough to keep most everything as intact as possible”

[@MuzixMaker]

They have to protect their phony baloney jobs.

[@andrewkelley7062]

Let the people working on things keep a portion of the works. Then let them pick new things by using a portion of there owning of there works to hold as collateral on the condition where it brings collateral to a field to attract students or direct profit.

[@ericpmoss]

I think that Lex's difficulty lies in the desire to come up with a solution to institutional sclerosis that is optimized for minimal disruption, ie a magic bullet. Sadly, bad apples attract more bad apples, and drive away the exact people who are best equipped to fight it. They aren't pushed out without very uncomfortable disruption.

[@MuzixMaker]

Sounds like government at all levels. Look at what happened to Trump. He went in with good intentions to clean things up and the entrenched kleptocracy has been on a hunt to crucify him and anyone who supports him.