Decoding the Gurus

We exercise good faith and grapple with the ever-versatile context window in this unintentionally thematic episode.Supplementary Material 51 The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (Full Episode: 1hr 18 mins)Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurus00:00 Introduction01:40 Jordan Hall's Suspicious Semiotic Parasites08:52 A New Covenant for the American Republic14:33 Dave Rubin's support group after Jubilee14:52 Dr. K vs 20 Depressed People20:05 The Fifth Column Welcomes Batya Ungar Sargon (Again)21:18 Anti-Semitism isn't really an issue on the Right25:39 Moynihan agrees that Tucker Carlson is a Leftist30:40 I don't really know what he has said...37:38 When Taylor Lorenz met Brad Palumbo41:24 Taylor is a Good Faith Person who is often misrepresented44:32 Was Taylor cheering on the killing of healthcare CEOs?51:16 Suggesting Targets or Providing "Context"57:48 The Victimhood Pose01:01:01 Selective "Understanding"01:06:41 The Moral Grandstanding Escape Hatch01:12:10 Strategic Ambiguity across the Spectrum01:15:22 The Connecting Theme!LinksJordan Hall discussing his neo-Nazi interview with David Fuller: Sensemaking, Gatekeeping & the Propertarians, Jordan HallSensemaking & Gatekeeping: Talking with FascistsJordan Hall’s Markdown TweetDave Rubin Clip of him coping over his Jubilee PerformanceBatya Ungar-Sargon and the Status Revolution (Members Only #328)Brad CONFRONTS left-wing star journalist Taylor Lorenz!!DTG- Jordan Hall: Sensemaking, or the superficial pitter-patter on the neocortex?Taylor Lorenz: 'Somebody needs to do it'

20/06/2026 • 31:58

In this Gurometer edition, Matt and Chris feed Iain McGilchrist into the sacred instrument to see where exactly refined country-parish-minister vibes land when combined with galaxy-brained hemispheres, civilisational decline narratives, decorative scholarship, and the other features of guruosity.Iain McGilchrist Gurometer00:27 Introduction01:00 Iain McGilchrist Reactions04:40 Galaxy Brain-ness06:39 Cultishness08:28 Anti-Establishmentarianism11:39 Grievance Mongering14:30 Self-Aggrandizement and Narcissism17:21 Cassandra Complex19:54 Revolutionary Theories20:48 Pseudo-Profound Bullshit24:10 Conspiracy Mongering25:08 Excessive Profiteering26:10 Moral Grandstanding27:15 Overall Score28:47 Bonus Round33:04 Guru Binary Scores37:18 Outro

12/06/2026 • 39:50

We become highly effective at exploiting the gap between salience and relevance as we universalise semiotic capability and listen to more brave renegades talking about how amazing they are. Join us, won't you?Supplementary Material 50 (Full Episode: 2hrs 23 mins)00:24 Introduction02:07 British People Struggling with Compliments04:53 Matt loves SOME episode titles08:42 Nachos Pronunciation10:13 Brett Weinstein vs Michael Tracey29:08 Brett pivots to his Anti-Vaxx Hits42:32 The Hug Box World of Podcasting45:55 When Eric met Joe (again)47:29 Eric and Rogan re-litigate Sean Carroll's criticisms55:55 Eric's insatiable desire to be linked with Epstein01:14:36 Eric Weinstein is a Construct01:16:36 When Ana met Candace01:18:18 Useful Idiots and Shameless Propagandists01:19:59 Ryan Grim's reaction to being in Iranian Propaganda Videos01:26:22 Zeteo gets to the bottom of the Iranian Casualty Figures01:30:24 Ana and Candace's Hug Session01:36:31 A horse named shoe?01:47:26 The Holocaust Media Industry01:53:48 Jimmy Dore makes the Religious Pivot02:01:39 The Brave Renegade Narrative that Never Gets Old02:12:57 Horseshoe Populism02:16:23 Jordan Hall x AI Instructions02:21:46 Agent Hall infecting your MattrixLinksThe Romesh Ranganathan Show: Tom Davis On Success, Setbacks & Being a DadFULL PANEL: Should we abolish all podcasts? Michael Tracey, Bret Weinstein, Lauren SouthernJoe Rogan Experience #2503 - Eric Weinsteinhttps://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/candace-owens-tate-brothers-visit-russia-kremlin-touts-thaw-rcna348311Candace Owens x Ana KasparianFinancial Times - How China is breaking apart a people and its cultureZeteo: Where Did the 40,000 Iran Protests Death Toll Number Come From?Ana Kasparian repeating anti-semitic conspiracies about 9/11More fun tweets from AnaThe Young Turks: Tucker’s 9/11 Documentary Raises Some HUGE QuestionsJimmy Dore has tapped into God after stopping smoking PotJordan Hall Decodes AI

10/06/2026 • 48:10

The Decoders wrap up cult season by dissecting a titan of the cult scene, the founder of Scientology, Lafayette Ronald Hubbard or L. Ron for short. A prolific science fiction author, L. Ron founded an alternative self-help movement and then developed it into his cosmic self-help 'religion' of Scientology.Scientology has now been the subject of multiple documentaries and even a fairly detailed South Park parody episode, so it feels like many are aware of the general 'deal' of Scientology. But how about L. Rob Hubbard as a guru... how many people have actually taken the time to sit down and just hear the guy out? Here at DTG HQ, we are all about the good-faith deep dives, so we decided to devote some time to analysing a 1966 Rhodesian TV interview with L. Ron Hubbard, in which a friendly Scientologist interviewer (not identified as such) politely tees up Hubbard to explain Scientology.So join us to find out how L. Ron invented a “workable science,” a “religion of religions,” and a self-help machine that raises IQ, fixes life problems, and proves life after death. By modern standards L. Ron can seem a bit quaint, but because of that, he serves as a useful primer in the core techniques of Guru manipulation, including narcissistic invented biographies, disdain for materialism, a persecution complex, flattery of followers, and anti-establishment disparagement. All of the classics are on display!So get ready to wake up to your true potential, process your engrams, and so forth.LinksSource Material Interview: Interview with L. Ron Hubbard in ZimbabweBehind the Bastards: L. Ron Hubbard SeriesGoing Clear: Scientology & the Prison of Belief (Documentary)My Scientology Movie: Louie Theroux

31/05/2026 • 144:31

Matthew Browne, a high-profile advocate for pan-psychism, compels his reluctant co-host to endure a public struggle session on the topic of consciousness, hopefully for the last time.Supplementary Material 4900:00 Introduction02:47 Returning to the Emerald Isle03:44 Irish History Segment: The Titanic & Potato Famines10:45 McGilchrist Reflections12:51 Knowledge Fight has ended26:23 Podcasting Motivations34:37 Calibrated Expectations41:03 The Problem with the Patreon Members42:51 Shermer's Activist Skeptic Research47:24 Research on Support for Political Violence in the US54:35 Rob Henderson and Decorative Scholarship58:11 Ryan Holiday Stoically Flames MAGA01:04:41 Zuby and Motivated Reasoning01:07:15 Monocausal Explanations for Declining Birth Rates01:08:51 More credulity from Shermer01:10:25 Bryan Johnson and Testicular Optimisation01:14:41 Testicle Fixation Gurus01:15:24 Professor Jiang thinks Trump is Immortal01:19:57 When Dawkins Met Claude01:30:00 The Great Consciousness Debate of 202601:42:47 When Cladius met Claudia01:52:39 Chris's Concession01:54:23 Animal Minds and AI Consciousness01:56:31 Russell Brand vs Piers Morgan02:10:13 Thirsty Christian dunks on Dawkins02:13:18 Brand's Family's Response02:22:39 Hasan Piker is the one who knocks!02:27:44 Outro02:28:36 A final message of hope!LinksKnowledge Fight's Last Episode – The End of the RoadJordan's video on the OnionDan's blog on his next plansRob Henderson’s thread promoting the Shermer Skeptic StudyPolarization Research Lab- Low levels of support for partisan violencePolarization Research Lab - Did the 2024 Election Change American Attitudes About Democracy?Ryan Holiday’s response to the Shellenberger videoRyan Holiday responding to article that he is ‘fuming’ at IvankaZuby’s insights on Birth Rate DeclineVice article on the history of testicle transplants"Massive GRIFTER!" Piers Morgan Grills Russell Brand On Allegations, Prison, 'Truth' & ReligionUnHerd: When Claudia met Claudius- So are they really conscious?UnHerd: When Dawkins met Claude Could this AI be conscious?‘Professor’ Jiang on Trump’s ImmortalityMehdi Hasan dunking on Dawkins

12/05/2026 • 44:33

In this episode, we return to Iain McGilchrist as he spirals upwards from his binary hemispheric model into full cosmic spirituality. The rule is simple: everything McGilchrist likes is due to the subtle, nuanced, and deeply sophisticated right brain, while the left brain (pffft) is responsible for reductionism, modernity, and most of the problems in your life.From this neuroscientific foundation, the theory expands with admirable ambition. Civilisations rise and fall depending on which hemisphere they inhabit. Ancient societies were properly attuned to the right brain, while the modern world has gone mechanical and spiritually bankrupt. The details are, of course, very complex, but the moral is clear.Scientific evidence features occasionally, mostly in a decorative capacity or as parables of scientists being baffled by mystical forces. Hence, we learn that decapitated worms retain perfect memories, Nobel Prizes have been awarded for demonstrating a mystical direction powering evolution, and near-death experiences establish that memories form when the brain isn't functioning.Alongside this hard science, McGilchrist also ventures into more spiritual realms, where we learn that artificial intelligence is likely to be channelling demons, schizophrenia might be caused by malign spiritual forces treating our brains as a luxury resort, and recently exorcised demons prefer to communicate via text message. No really...Ultimately, what matters is that McGilchrist's bespoke theology, bespoke metaphysics, bespoke biological teleology, and bespoke panentheist philosophy are really very impressive. And if you don't find any of it compelling, well, we are sad to inform you that this itself proves you are stuck in the wrong mode of thinking and failing to recognise true profundity.And if that doesn't work, then let's just say it was all a metaphor anyway!LinksAlex O' Connor: Why Evolution Gave You Two Brains - Iain McGilchristJonathan Pageau: Artificial Intelligence, Possession, and Mental Illness - Dr. Iain McGilchristThink Faith: Philosopher Iain McGilchrist DEBATES neuroscientist Anil Seth on God & minds | Uncommon GroundSpezio, M. (2019). McGilchrist and hemisphere lateralization: a neuroscientific and metaanalytic assessment. Religion, Brain & Behavior, 9(4), 387–399. https://doi.org/10.1080/2153599X.2019.1604416Corballis, M. C. (2014). Left brain, right brain: facts and fantasies. PLoS biology, 12(1), e1001767.Carson, A. (2010). The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World. By Iain McGilchrist. Yale University Press. 2009. US $38.00 (hb). 608 pp. ISBN: 9780300148787. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 196(6), 498-498.De Haan, D. (2019). McGilchrist’s hemispheric homunculi. Religion, Brain & Behavior, 9(4), 368-379.Shomrat, T., & Levin, M. (2013). An automated training paradigm reveals long-term memory in planarians and its persistence through head regeneration. Journal of Experimental Biology, 216(20), 3799-3810.

04/05/2026 • 190:01

The hour grows late, and Matt the Grey-Haired rides once more from his quiet study, summoned by whispers from the ever-churning gurusphere. And so he goes, to seek counsel with Chris the Grey-Bearded, keeper of receipts, watcher of long-form content, and wielder of the sacred Gurometer. For the gurus stir again… and their nonsense must be decoded.Supplementary Material 48: Grey Beard's Council, Late-Stage Anti-Capitalism, and Demonic Mould Health Updates00:00 Greetings Old Friend02:22 Decoding the Gamers04:16 A Reckoning with Old Grey Hair06:19 Joe Rogan determining US Medical Approvals12:15 The Fall of Orban and the Silence of the Heterodox World17:09 The Hypocrisy of Peter Boghossian19:52 Dave Rubin and other Tenet Media Stooges21:43 The Dugin, Jiang and Sneako Brain Trust discuss the ultra-hyper-globalists.28:58 Trump attacks Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, & Megyn Kelly32:39 A Return to Weinstein World33:00 Bret's Moon Landing Conspiracies39:03 Eric and his Silicon Friend are still having problems42:47 Hasan Piker Discourse54:33 The Radicalisation Funnel?01:00:14 Hasan on Ukraine01:03:21 Hasan doing China apologetics01:14:03 More Apologetics01:16:37 Hasan on the Vietnamese MAGA supporter01:23:41 What about Destiny?01:26:58 Yale is full of Snakes and Badgers01:33:17 Micro Looting from the Corporations01:41:36 Cenk Uyghur's Rent Gouging Credentials01:44:47 Social Murder and Selective "Understanding"01:54:26 Late-Stage Capitalist Anti-Capitalism 01:56:22 Tucker Carlson is Selling Russell Brand's Guide to Becoming a Christian02:00:33 Sean Hannity chooses Trump over his Catholicism02:04:18 Russell Brand and the spiritual marketplace02:05:48 Postmodern Conservatism02:07:28 Taking a Long View02:10:14 AI Bouldering Gym Cages02:11:30 Taylor Lorenz is making good points on Twitter!02:19:52 Taylor's controversial take: AI is useful02:21:36 Adam Conover engages in revisionist history on tech02:24:14 Rotary Telephones and Typewriter Experiences02:26:41 The Onion takeover of Infowars?02:31:28 Knowledge Fight's Concerns02:35:56 Jordan Peterson Health Update02:40:07 Endlessly Misdiagnosed by "Experts"02:44:32 The Dietary Cures02:47:20 Experimental Stem Cell Treatments02:50:04 Pageau blames Peterson's lack of faith03:00:14 Letting the Pressure Out03:01:07 Outro03:02:01 We Must Join with the MouldThe full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (3 hours, 3 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusLinksJoe Rogan crowing about his role in the White House executive order on IbogaineFact Check of Rogan's claims on PolitiFactPancreatic cancer mRNA trial update: NBC report on six-year follow-upArticle on NIH grant cancellations/funding cuts at Washington PostAPHA release on lawsuit over politically driven grant terminationsBan on DEI words, including "polarization" by DOGEBBC Article on Orbán's lossBoghossian dodges criticism of Hungary in HardTalk interviewBoghossian avoids dealing with protests in HungaryDugin / Sneako / Professor Jiang interviewTrump attacks Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, and Megyn KellyBret Weinstein's moon landing / Artemis clip highlighted by Bad StatsEric Weinstein's tweets on commercial AI and theoretical physicsTucker Carlson's promotion for Russell Brand's new Christian-themed bookEzra Klein on Hasan Piker: RealClearPolitics mirror of the New York Times columnConduit: I Spent ONE WEEK Watching Hasan Piker ‪, And This Is What I LearnedA generational divide over Trump among Vietnamese-Americans – BBC NewsHasan reacts to the Vietnamese-American documentaryTwitter Thread with most of the viral Hasan clipsNoahpinion: Hasan Piker is bad for the DemocratsHasan's Yale Debate on YouTubeYair Rosenberg's article on the Atlantic: The Problem With Hasan Piker’s Einstein StoryNYT: ‘The Rich Don’t Play by the Rules. So Why Should I?' Why petty theft might be the new political protest’LA Times article on the Onion's Infowars Takeover BidAlex Jones clip of him roaming shirtless and complaining about the OnionMikhaila Peterson: Jordan Peterson Health Update and Psych Med Injury DiscussionJonathan Pageau explains Jordan's illness is due to his refusal to submit to GodTaylor Lorenz being correct about the past promotion of technology productsTech Dirt article on the recent court decisions against Meta and YouTubeSean Hannity endorses Trump over his CatholicismTaylor Lorenz: The Truth About the Social Media Addiction Trial

25/04/2026 • 44:17

In this episode, we take a journey into the mind, traversing both the left and right hemispheres, but mostly the left, as we engage with the truly mind-bending insights of British psychiatrist-philosopher-neuroscientist-theologian-author Iain McGilchrist. Best known for his 2009 book "The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World" but also a much lauded academic and sensemaker.We outline McGilchrist’s extremely complicated thesis that the two hemispheres of the brain reflect fundamentally different “ways of being” and that this is reflected in individuals and civilisations that rely more on one side than the other. This is, of course, not merely a crude binary. As McGilchrist repeatedly emphasises, it would be quite wrong to suggest he is simply valorising everything he likes (religion, poetry, classic literature, wood-panelled interiors, sense-making chats) and attributing them to the products of a profound and integrative right hemisphere. Similarly, he does not simply want to denigrate materialists as reductive left-brain thinkers who cannot appreciate art, beauty, or love because they are too busy thinking about atoms. There is definitely none of that in his chat with Alex O'Connor (AKA CosmicSkeptic).Expect neuroanatomy, metaphysics, and extended reflections on the nature of love. In other words, a completely standard Decoding the Gurus episode.LinksAlex O' Connor: Why Evolution Gave You Two Brains - Iain McGilchristIain McGilchrist's website.Spezio, M. (2019). McGilchrist and hemisphere lateralization: a neuroscientific and metaanalytic assessment. Religion, Brain & Behavior, 9(4), 387–399. https://doi.org/10.1080/2153599X.2019.1604416Lamm, C., Decety, J., & Singer, T. (2011). Meta-analytic evidence for common and distinct neural networks associated with directly experienced pain and empathy for pain. Neuroimage, 54(3), 2492-2502.Stavrova, O., & Ehlebracht, D. (2019). The cynical genius illusion: Exploring and debunking lay beliefs about cynicism and competence. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 45(2), 254-269.Lindquist, K. A., Wager, T. D., Kober, H., Bliss-Moreau, E., & Barrett, L. F. (2012). The brain basis of emotion: a meta-analytic review. Behavioral and brain sciences, 35(3), 121-143.

11/04/2026 • 123:39

On this episode, we’re joined by Stevie Baskin, a skeptic and YouTuber who released a five-hour detailed critique of the “meta-deception” of Oz Pearlman. He argues that mentalism differs from traditional magic by introducing an additional meta-deception because, unlike magicians, mentalists often leave their audiences with inaccurate beliefs about body language reading, subliminal influence, NLP, and general psychology. In Stevie’s framework, this places mentalists closer to psychics and mediums than to magicians, because the deceptive element is not clearly acknowledged.We examine this position, unpack common mentalist techniques, consider the role of strategic disclaimers and TED-style “epistemic theatre,” and explore possible parallels with contemporary secular gurus.SourcesMetadeception: the truth about Oz PearlmanThe Disagreement: Debating a mentalist professor of psychology (Scott Barry Kaufman) about Oz PearlmanChris' old blog covering the ethics of Derren Brown's claims in 2009The Power Of Subliminal Messages | Trick Of The Mind | Derren Brown

08/04/2026 • 88:17

Our cover is blown. Our secret funders unmasked. Code Red: Abort! Abort! This is not a drill.Supplementary Material 47: The DTG Conspiracy UNMASKED, Quantum Idiots, and Triggernometry Prophecies00:00 Glowing Introduction03:14 The Secret Conspiracy at the Heart of the Podcast08:17 The Israel Connection19:09 Cenk Uygur's Pickleball Conspiracy23:25 Comment Section Conspiracies30:20 Pizzagate Conspiracies Revisited37:55 The Value of debating with ChadBigCum42:26 AI discourse reflections43:43 Ben Burgis's hyperbolic reaction to AI use44:53 The AI revolution and its potential impacts47:53 Social and Economic Disruption and Job Replacement51:33 The Dangers of Slopified Work and AI economies55:47 Statistical Analysis Software and the value of Friction57:36 The Perils of AI Usage outside of your Skillset58:59 The Solution is within yourself!01:04:22 The Hundred Schools of AI discourse01:05:58 Double Slit and Quantum Physics Insights from Warren Smith01:12:39 Schrodinger's poor, misinterpreted cat01:13:48 The Wonderful Benjamin Boyce01:14:41 Quantum Woo and Arrogant Sensemakers01:18:29 Young Matt and Aged Chris01:20:13 The Triggernometry Prophecy01:23:54 Quid Pro Quo in the Discourse Circuit01:28:25 The Anti-Institutional Horseshoe Theory of MEHDI HASAN01:37:18 So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 40 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusLinksReddit post unmasking our Israeli backersMother Jones article on whether 'pizza' is a codeword in the Epstein files (Spoiler: No it is not)Mickey's Opinion Piece in The Canadian Jewish News about "quiet anti-semitism"Ben Burgis is suggesting a journalist should be fired for using AICenk Uygur’s Pickleball ConspiracyVigeland & Citarella on Epstein: The One Conspiracy to Rule Them All (YouTube)Benjamin Boyce and Warren Smith discuss Quantum PhysicsTriggernometry: Mehdi Hasan Debate on the Iran War, Immigration and the Israel LobbyCreator of Horseshoe Theory Dies aged 100

03/04/2026 • 44:10

Mickey is BACK with two new papers he has co-authored, a bunch of opinions, and a very unwelcome idea: maybe the problem with AI isn't that it doesn't work but that it works too well!The first paper, Against Frictionless AI, argues that AI assistance and its ability to take away the effort from thinking, writing, and smooth out social(like) interactions could be robbing those activities of the very thing that makes them worthwhile.The second paper is a more empirical investigation that presents a bunch of studies examining the topic of the (alleged) moralisation of AI. Some findings suggest that opposition to AI among some people isn't really about risks or trade-offs but rather about non-negotiable sacred moral values. Who knew?We also discuss effort justification, reproducible research, robosexual allyship, and just how much humanity remains within the cyborg Matthew Browne.And remember... It's just like our opinion, man!LinksDecoding Academia 34: Empathetic AIs? (Patreon Series)Ovsyannikova, D., Oldemburgo de Mello, V., & Inzlicht, M. (2025). Third-party evaluators perceive AI as more compassionate than expert humans. Communications Psychology, 3, Article 4.Zohar, E., Bloom, P., & Inzlicht, M. (2026). Against frictionless AI. Communications Psychology, 4, Article 39.Oldemburgo de Mello, V., Côté, É., Ayad, R., Inbar, Y., Plaks, J., & Inzlicht, M. (2026). The moralization of artificial intelligence (Manuscript under review).Paul Bloom's Small Potatoes Substack- My friend thinks it's a good idea for us to spend most of our time with AI companions- Is it irresponsible for academics to refuse to use AI?Mickey's Speak Now Regret Later Substack - AI Alarmism Trades on Fear, Not FactsMickey's provocative tweet on his recent paperDTG Previous Interview with Mickey on the Replication Crisis, Mindfulness, and Responsible HeterodoxyAndy Masley Substack debunking the AI water usage claimsAndy Masley Substack: Using ChatGPT is not bad for the environment - a cheat sheetPataranutaporn, P., Karny, S., Archiwaranguprok, C., Albrecht, C., Liu, A. R., & Maes, P. (2025). “My Boyfriend is AI”: A computational analysis of human–AI companionship in Reddit’s AI community. arXiv.Critical response to Mickey's paper from Roy Schulam on Substack

28/03/2026 • 98:08

Ken Wilber, the grand architect of Integral Theory, enters the Decoding chamber (wearing a striking but slightly unconvincing wig) as we explore a worldview that confidently absorbs every religion, philosophy, and half-remembered psychology paper into one majestic, Borg-like synthesis. Resistance, as it turns out, is not just futile... it is probably “first-tier thinking".This is a world of elaborate, baroque cosmologies. Layers within layers, quadrants within stages, spirals within states, with each offering a map of reality that grows more intricate the closer it gets to its own centre. Traditions are not debated so much as absorbed, their distinctiveness dissolved into a higher synthesis that always leads to the ultimate insight: integral theory.Get ready to experience high-level political analysis where Kamala Harris becomes a “fractured green" and Donald Trump the embodiment of a "rational orange". You will also learn how Ken is working with AI companies to help them incorporate integral thinking into their algorithms. The implications this has for human evolution are hard to fathom.Finally, in true Columbo fashion, we circle back to Matt's core philosophical system … panpsychism. Just a small detail, and also take some time to conduct a brief spiritual inquisition into Matt’s alleged Christian upbringing. Fortunately, nothing is rejected. Everything is integrated, including all possible critiques.SourcesSuma Gowda: Ken Wilber on Future of Consciousness, AI, Trump's Election: A Deep Dive into Spiral DynamicsThe Rise and Fall of Ken Wilber – Mark MansonRebel Wisdom: Interview with Ken Wilber- What Happened to Jordan PetersonDS Wilson finds wisdom in Ken's approachKen Wilber's website

22/03/2026 • 158:38

In this Gurometer double bill, Matt and Chris break out the much-sought-after Gurometer™ to score Teal Swan and Scott Galloway across the 11 recurring guru traits. In one efficient episode, we compare cosmic-certified spirituality with secular man-talk (and a surprising amount of puffer-jacket merchandising). As a bonus, get ready to thrill at Matt's eternal puzzlement at his own simple binary question of 'guru-osity'.LinksGurometer scores to dateThe full episode is available for Patreon subscribers (51 mins).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusGurometer: Teal Swan and Scott Galloway00:00 Back to the Gurometer: Teal and Scott02:33 Galaxy Brain-ness04:18 Cultishness05:25 Anti-Establishmentarianism08:31 Grievance Mongering10:55 Self Aggrandisement and Narcissism 14:30 Cassandra Complex18:03 Revolutionary Theories21:49 Pseudo-Profound Bullshit26:07 Conspiracy Mongering28:50 Excessive Profiteering36:25 Moral Grandstanding40:33 Overall Gurometer Score41:27 Rapid Fire Bonus Guru Points

18/03/2026 • 19:00

In our never-ending quest to alienate all potential online audiences, we finger-wag about rampant Epstein conspiracism and explain why we are, on balance, anti-murder.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (2 hours, 42 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusIn our never-ending quest to alienate all potential online audiences, we finger-wag about rampant Epstein conspiracism and explain why we are, on balance, anti-murder.00:00 Intro03:39 Flooding Adventures06:54 Eric's Troubles with his Silicon Friend13:09 Peter Boghossian's Hardcore for Grok17:16 A Promising Paper on reducing AI Hallucinations22:17 Statistical Consults23:12 Epstein Discourse Lollapalooza27:24 Eric Weinstein thinks Epstein is connected to UFOs29:09 Rogan Plays Apologist for Trump on Epstein32:21 Emma Vigeland and Joshua Citarella engage in Conspiracy Hypothesising35:07 Reasonable Conspiracy Theorising42:24 The Real Conspiracy44:26 Epstein and Ghislaine puppeting the culture wars48:18 The Joy of Conspiracy Theories53:29 Epstein and Bannon created QAnon as a Psyop01:01:37 What about ritual child abuse, dissolving bodies and cannibalism?01:09:05 Lurid Cannibal Fantasies01:15:56 Emma's UFO theory01:20:08 The Joe Roganification of Podcasts and some strategic disclaimers01:24:14 A dichotomy in contemporary American attitudes to Wealth?01:28:32 The Mainstream Media won't focus on Epstein's connections with Israel and Mossad01:32:08 The REAL Epstein scandal that no one wants to talk about01:34:36 Behind the Bastards coverage of Epstein01:36:01 Epstein's alleged role in creating microtransactions in games01:40:46 Epstein's cringey Edutainment ideas01:50:53 What Robert Evans Got Wrong01:54:08 There are No Coincidences02:00:57 The Danger of Appealing Narratives and also... Michael Tracey02:06:00 The Anti-Murder Podcast02:07:47 Warren Smith highlights Violent Rhetoric aimed at Konstantin02:14:12 Justifying Murder is Bad... M'Kay?02:17:55 Experiences of Violence and Naivety02:21:16 Levels of Political Violence02:23:49 Destiny's Community and Edgy Political Violence Takes02:27:56 Alienating online audiences 10102:30:14 Eric talks wormholes with a UFO maniac02:35:28 Lord of the Idiots02:36:18 Does Matt know Snorlax?02:39:43 A failed disclaimer outroLinksErik arguing with GrokBoghossian’s hardcore rules for GrokH-Neurons: On the Existence, Impact, and Origin of Hallucination-Associated Neurons in LLMs (Gao et al., 2025)YouTube comment under our NXIVM video about EpsteinPeople article claiming Epstein was Putin’s Wealth ManagerTaylor Lorenz – Panic World: How Epstein Warped the Entire InternetGarbage Day: “Here’s How Epstein Broke the Internet”Eric Weinstein on Piers Morgan connecting Epstein to UFOs and his “research”Triggernometry’s 7th appearance on RoganAmerican Alchemy: Eric Weinstein & Eric Davis on WormholesBBC: Ex-police chief said Trump told him in 2006 “everyone” knew about Epstein’s behaviourJoshua Citarella & Emma Vigeland – Epstein, Conspiracy & Right-wing Media | DoomscrollPew Research: Demographics of the Progressive Left in the United StatesDebunking claims about Ghislaine Maxwell being a Reddit power modObama did not say aliens are real – PBS NewsHourNBC News: Epstein’s relationship with Ehud BarakAl Jazeera: What were Jeffrey Epstein’s links to Israel?Warren Smith’s post about threats from Digital GnosisDigital Gnosis Substack statementDestiny’s Head Mod Confronts Him On His RhetoricEric Weinstein Demands UFO Secrets From Pentagon ScientistEpstein email documentsEmail from Pablos Holman to Epstein (document 1)Email from Pablos Holman to Epstein (document 2)Email from Pablos Holman to Epstein (document 3)Epstein forwarding Holman’s email to Bobby KotickPablos Holman responding and dunking on Kotick

14/03/2026 • 36:46

In Part 2, Matt and Chris return to Blindboy, now broadcasting from a solar-powered podcast and therefore morally unimpeachable. The darkness, however, remains. Having established in Part 1 that the global elite are a vampiric class of depraved blackmailers who traffic children and delight in cruelty, in Part 2, Blindboy offers us some welcome relief in the form of answering the question of what it looks like to be one of the good ones. You may be surprised to learn that it involves a missing dressing room, muddy socks, and a loyalty to small-time promoters that some might call heroic.The episode also traces an ambitious historical arc: from street gangs in 1800s Limerick to the New York underworld, Meyer Lansky, Roy Cohn, CIA brothels and LSD interrogation programmes, and eventually to Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein. The connecting thread is a continuous tradition of sexual blackmail passed from master to apprentice that has, apparently, been quietly guiding Western (criminal) civilisation for the better part of two centuries. Matt and Chris sift through the historical material, examine the leaps required to keep the chain intact, and consider whether a conspiracy hypothesis that explains quite so much, quite so neatly, might deserve a small dose of skepticism. As you might anticipate, the episode features discussions of many of our old friends, including strategic disclaimers, moral grandstanding, and layered preemptive defences. Finally, get ready to learn who the real villain is, when the mask is finally removed.... spoiler: it's neoliberal capitalism. A revelation that some listeners may have suspected from the very beginning.LinksBlindboy: A Deep Dive into Jeffrey EpsteinThe Rest is Classified: Was Epstein a Russian Spy?Epstein Files Declassified: Mossad, Israel, and Ghislaine MaxwellEpstein Files Declassified: Was he a Spy?The Saville Inquiry Report on Bloody Sunday (2010)BBC Panorama reporting on the British Army’s Military Reaction Force (MRF)Popular Mechanics article on Operation Midnight ClimaxUS Senate Church Committee report on MK-Ultra and CIA covert experimentation and the archived reportNY Times: What Donald Trump Learned From Joseph McCarthy’s Right-Hand ManA less conspiratorial but more sympathetic perspective on Epstein's influence by Taylor Lorenz and Ryan BroderickAn in-depth critical review of Whitney Webb's book (by an academic who might be a little conspiracy-prone themselves)Webb, W. A. (2022). One Nation Under Blackmail-Vol. 1: The Sordid Union Between Intelligence and Crime That Gave Rise to Jeffrey Epstein, VOL. 1. Trine Day

14/03/2026 • 109:05

In this episode, Matt and Chris turn their attention to Blindboy Boatclub, the Irish podcaster, satirist, and former member of the Rubberbandits. Blindboy is recognisable for his plastic-bag headwear, which has transitioned from a comedy prop into something a bit deeper and more philosophical. His podcast blends ASMR-style delivery, stream-of-consciousness storytelling, and cultural and political commentary, drifting between reflections on mental health, colonialism, Irish history, and the origins of the month of February. It is a distinctive format: whispered monologues over gentle piano where poetic association, personal reflection, and narrative intuition take precedence. For many listeners, that unique mixture of introspection, politics, and storytelling is exactly the appeal. As you might imagine, it is not entirely our bag, but to each their own.However, when Blindboy turns his attention to the recent Epstein document releases, the narrative becomes considerably darker and drifts into some familiar gurusphere territory. Blindboy describes this as a “phone call episode”, an unscripted stream-of-consciousness riff with minimal fact-checking, and then proceeds to expound for over an hour on a sprawling narrative connecting elite conspiracies to the hidden psychological forces shaping modern politics. Along the way we encounter a parade of lurid spectacles, including necrophilic Hell’s Angels, secret society members masturbating in coffins, murdered women buried on Trump’s golf course, potentially cannibalistic elites, and healthcare CEOs who delight in causing pain and misery. We also discover the crucial, if previously underappreciated, role that Jeffrey Epstein apparently played in the creation of the modern culture wars.As usual, the goal is not to adjudicate the politics involved but to examine the rhetorical and epistemic patterns at play. What happens when a charismatic storyteller combines emotionally compelling narratives with speculative leaps? How do strategic disclaimers like “I’m not saying it’s true” interact with extended conjecture? And why do some conspiracy frameworks feel persuasive when wrapped in an appealing ideological package? Matt and Chris listen through Blindboy’s riff to see how well the arguments hold up once the plinky-plonk piano fades and the claims are examined in the cold light of day.LinksBlindboy: A Deep Dive into Jeffrey EpsteinBlindboy: Butter Melting Down The Neck Of A Warm HorseThe Guardian: ‘I have a bag on my head. Deal with it!’ Is Blindboy the perfect podcaster?The Rubberbandits: Horse OutsideBobby Fingers' performance art on YouTubeJake Tapper shared the removed DOJ documents that contain allegations against TrumpA detailed debunking of the claim that Ghislaine Maxwell was a Reddit Mod2013 article covering approval for Trump’s family cemetery2016 New Yorker Article about Trump wanting to be buried at his golf courseThe Verge: Christopher Pool ‘moot’ rejects the claims about Epstein creating the 4chanRon Rosenbaum’s 1977 article on the Skull and Bones society initiationsAmerica's Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of Skull & Bones (Sutton, 1986)Atlantic Article from 2000 that mentions the coffin masturbation rumourArticle from the NYT: How The Times Is Digging Into Millions of Pages of Epstein FilesThe Rest is Classified: Was Epstein a Russian Spy?Epstein Files Declassified: Mossad, Israel, and Ghislaine MaxwellEpstein Files Declassified: Was he a Spy?Le Monde: Some consequences for the Sultan who Epstein messaged about the torture videoBBC: Luigi Mangione will not face the death penalty if convicted, judge rulesAn in-depth critical review of Whitney Webb's book (by an academic who might be a little conspiracy prone themselves)2022 Podcast featuring Brian Thompson (United Healthcare CEO) discussing his views on healthcareCritical examination of the headline denial rate of UnitedHealthcare2024 US Senate Report on Insurance Denials under Medicare Advantage Insurers

05/03/2026 • 141:23

Another episode where the guest is not a sense-making prophet or a galaxy-brained guru, as we engage in academic dialogos with Oxford psychologist Andrew Przybylski. This is a preview of our Decoding Academia series on Patreon (now 30+ episodes deep), where we swap internet gurus and rhetoric for actual researchers and empirical debates.Andrew’s work spans motivation, gaming, and digital technology. His most recent crime is that he studies the impact of technology and has not found evidence that it is destroying wellbeing and ushering in civilisational collapse. We discuss the ongoing moral panic around smartphones, social media, and teenagers’ allegedly pulverised minds and why much of the debate rests on statistical techniques roughly equivalent to staring deeply at Excel spreadsheets and hammering SPSS until the desired narrative appears.We get into measurement problems around “screen time,” why trivially small correlations become front-page catastrophes, and how the discourse rewards confident storytelling far more than (boring) careful causal inference. Also covered: cross-cultural evidence, the policy implications of airport pop science bestsellers, and the potential civilisational threat posed by Warhammer 40k.If you enjoy episodes where we analyse methods rather than metaphysics, the full Decoding Academia series lives on Patreon.Relevant Research (Przybylski & collaborators)Andrew's Academic Profile and Personal WebsiteFassi, L., Ferguson, A. M., Przybylski, A. K., Ford, T. J., & Orben, A. (2025). Social media use in adolescents with and without mental health conditions. Nature human behaviour, 9(6), 1283-1299.Vuorre, M., & Przybylski, A. K. (2023). Estimating the association between Facebook adoption and well-being in 72 countries. Royal Society open science, 10(8).Vuorre, M., Orben, A., & Przybylski, A. K. (2021). There is no evidence that associations between adolescents’ digital technology engagement and mental health problems have increased. Clinical Psychological Science, 9(5), 823-835.Orben, A., & Przybylski, A. K. (2019). The association between adolescent well-being and digital technology use. Nature human behaviour, 3(2), 173-182.Orben, A., Dienlin, T., & Przybylski, A. K. (2019). Social media’s enduring effect on adolescent life satisfaction. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(21), 10226-10228.Przybylski, A. K., & Weinstein, N. (2017). A large-scale test of the goldilocks hypothesis: quantifying the relations between digital-screen use and the mental well-being of adolescents. Psychological science, 28(2), 204-215.Johannes, N., Vuorre, M., & Przybylski, A. K. (2021). Video game play is positively correlated with well-being. Royal Society open science, 8(2), 202049.Przybylski, A. K., Rigby, C. S., & Ryan, R. M. (2010). A motivational model of video game engagement. Review of general psychology, 14(2), 154-166.

27/02/2026 • 73:09

We return to some old friends, and almost immediately, we regret the decision. Also, get ready for some heady insights from history, a new conspiracy hypothesis, and Game Theory based insights.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 37 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusSupplementary Material 4500:00 Introduction01:15 Mick Drop04:44 Scott Galloway's Favourite Conservative06:37 Konstantin Kisin: Neither Right Nor Left11:51 Insane Ad Reads in Podcastistan17:08 Aella's insights on history20:30 Bret's New Conspiracy Episode22:10 Bret on Epstein, Pizzagate, and Ritual Murder30:58 Heather, the personification of strategic disclaimers31:49 Bret's New Conspiracy: Epstein is Alive36:31 The Real Culprit is Game Theory44:25 Bret is a Force of Nature who is always vindicated46:36 The Grand Unification of Conspiracy Theories48:25 Cenk Uygur promotes 9/11 Conspiracies51:42 Peter Thiel in Ghoulish Pro-Nazi Form55:15 The Descent of the Discourse57:47 Eric visits Triggernometry (Again): Russian Woes01:05:20 The Eric Squid Ink Manoeuvre01:14:49 Eric is pro-Nuclear weapons tests01:19:27 Weinstein drives can take us multiplanetary01:28:28 The Weinstein Function: Justifying Enlightened Centrists Everywhere01:30:37 Drew Pavlou's latest stunt backfiresSourcesIs Epstein Alive? The 313th Evolutionary Lens (Bret Weinstein & Heather Heying podcast episode)DarkHorse clip discussing the Epstein theory (YouTube)Aella’s history insights threadAella’s large thread about homeschoolingInterview where Aella discusses the perceived benefits of homeschoolingBret Weinstein responding to critics saying he has lost his mindBret Weinstein linking Epstein and COVID conspiraciesCenk Uygur promoting 9/11 conspiracy claimsCenk Uygur criticising media responses to his conspiracy theoriesPeter Thiel comments invoking Weimar-era parallelsDrew Pavlou’s stunt backfires

19/02/2026 • 33:43

Ever heard of cognitive dissonance? That thing a psychology lecturer might have explained to you once upon a time, likely using the same UFO cult example everyone else uses. Well, a new paper by Thomas Kelly suggests that the UFO cult example might have been ever so slightly oversold.Kelly's archival work suggests that the researchers didn't just observe the cult as reported. Instead, they infiltrated it, faked supernatural experiences, assumed quasi-leadership roles, and then wrote up the results as if the group had spontaneously doubled down on their failed prophecy, which they had not. Because the leader recanted, and the group fell apart shortly after the failed prophecy. Minor details.Matt and Chris discuss this paper, a 2024 multilab replication, and some other papers by Kelly, considering the ever-reliable tendency of researchers to find exactly what they are looking for.It's cognitive dissonance all the way down, folks.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 10 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusDecoding Academia 34: When Prophecy Fails Debunked?00:00 Introduction02:04 Cognitive Dissonance Theory06:41 Classic lab evidence: effort justification & the ‘severe initiation’ study08:33 When Prophecy Fails: The Original Account10:54 The debunking: archival evidence, misconduct claims, and ethical red flags20:22 Replication reality check: multi-lab results and ‘strong vs weak’ dissonance31:40 Beyond one case: survivorship bias, failed prophecies, and early Christianity parallels35:51 Christianity as Historical Anomaly or Cognitive Dissonance Exemplar?41:48 Thomas Kelly: Interesting biosafety takes and a possible Christian lens45:43 The importance of seeking for disconfirming evidence50:23 Conspiracy-theory dynamics & narrative elaboration56:30 Classical Psychological Theories and Personal Motivations01:03:07 Steps that can be taken to reduce biases01:05:01 Stay tentative, check evidence, and don’t pick sides too fast01:06:30 A lesson from Scott Alexander!SourcesAcademic Papers and BooksFestinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford University Press.Festinger, L., Riecken, H. W., & Schachter, S. (1956). When prophecy fails. University of Minnesota Press.Festinger, L., & Carlsmith, J. M. (1959). Cognitive consequences of forced compliance. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 58(2), 203–210. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0041593 (The original induced-compliance/$1/$20 study)Kelly, T. (2026). Debunking "When Prophecy Fails." Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 62(1), e70043. https://doi.org/10.1002/jhbs.70043Kelly, T. (2025). Failed prophecies are fatal. International Journal for the Study of New Religions, 14(1), 48–71. https://doi.org/10.1558/ijsnr.33085Aronson, E., & Mills, J. (1959). The effect of severity of initiation on liking for a group. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59(2), 177–181. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0047195Vaidis, D. C., Sleegers, W. W. A., van Leeuwen, F., DeMarree, K. G., Sætrevik, B., Ross, R. M., ... & Priolo, D. (2024). A multilab replication of the induced-compliance paradigm of cognitive dissonance. Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science, 7(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/25152459231213375Croyle, R. T., & Cooper, J. (1983). Dissonance arousal: Physiological evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45(4), 782–791. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.45.4.782 (The study that the Vaidis et al. 2024 multilab replication was based on)Podcasts ReferencedThe Studies Show [formerly Science Fictions] podcast. Episode 90: Cognitive dissonance.QAA Podcast. Episode 350: “When ‘When Prophecy Fails’ Fails.” Interview with Thomas Kelly.Conspirituality podcast. Episode 284: “When Prophecy-Science Fails” (w/ Thomas Kelly), 20 Nov 2025.Blog Posts & Other SourcesAlexander, S. (2023, February 14). Contra Kavanagh on fideism. Astral Codex Ten. (Contains the PMDD / Slate vs. Vox example discussed near the end of the episode)Kavanagh, C. (2023). Am I a fideist? Medium. (Chris’s response to Scott Alexander)Alexander, S. (2023, February 15). Trying again on fideism. Astral Codex Ten.Kelly, T. Open Science Framework repository containing scanned archival materials from the Festinger papers (Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan).Kelly, T. (2025, March 18). Yet another White House says it won't fund engineered deadly viruses. Tablet Magazine.Kelly, T. Christians for Impact. Politics and policy.

16/02/2026 • 37:16

Cult Season rumbles on as Chris and Matt expand their minds in an attempt to absorb the cosmic insights of spiritual influencer and alleged cult leader Teal Swan (born Mary Teal Bosworth, 1984). Our intrepid hosts explore her recent appearance on the Just Tap In podcast with Emilio “starchild” Ortiz — a beanie-wearing vessel of pure credulity, lobbing softball metaphysical questions gently into the astral winds.The topic covered is ostensibly “Major 2026 Predictions” but this is really just an entry point for discussion of the ancient origins of AI, multiversal astral contract negotiations, and, of course, the urgent need to discuss masculinity before we spiritually implode.You will learn insights, such as: how AI will eliminate ageing, guide us to SOURCE, amplify our shadow, and corrupt and deceive us ... all at once. Aliens and other cosmic beings are deeply concerned with and also not really all that bothered with humanity. Also, pop stars are apparently set to receive divine instructions to stabilise the collective psyche in 2026. And how we are all trapped in a planetary pressure cooker that will run at least until 2030. Teal is trying not to scare us, but it doesn’t look great (though it might also be great and lead to utopia).Expect astral board meetings, sensemaking redefinitions of “power” and “love”, warnings about the painful sacrifices required to join Teal’s “conscious community”, and some distinctly uncomfortable talk about opening gates and reframing mother–son dynamics. As ever, Matt and Chris attempt to decode the elevated vagueness, semantic gliding, and cosmic scaling of very earthly anxieties.All hail SOURCE!Decoding ContentJust Tap In Podcast #260: "Teal Swan – Why 2026 Is a Psychological & Relational Tipping Point for Humanity"LinksThe Gateway (Gizmodo Podcast, 2018) - Six-part investigative series by Jennings BrownThe Deep End (Freeform/Hulu, 2022) - Four-part docuseries by Jon KasbeMormon Stories #1607: Growing Up with Teal Swan - Diana Hansen Ribera - Interview with Teal's childhood best friendMormon Stories #1328-1331: Leaving Mormonism to Join Teal Swan's Cult - Jared DobsonBBC- Teal Swan: The woman encouraging her followers to visualise deathScam Goddess: The Culty Con of Teal Swan w/ Sarah MarshallConspirituality 111: Who's Afraid of Teal Swan (pt 2) (w/Jennings Brown)Prosody's Gurudex Website

12/02/2026 • 179:07

In this Decoding Academia episode, we take a look at a 2025 paper by Daria Ovsyannikova, Victoria Olden, and Mickey Inzlicht, asking a question that might make some people uncomfortable/angry, specifically, are AI-generated responses perceived as more empathetic than those written by actual humans?We walk through the design in detail (including why this is a genuinely severe test), hand out deserved open-science brownie points, and discuss why AI seems to excel particularly when responding to negative or distress-laden prompts. Along the way, Chris reflects on his unsettlingly intense relationship with Google’s semi-sentient customer-service agent “Bubbles,” and we ask whether infinite patience, maximal effort, and zero social awkwardness might be doing most of the work here.This is not a paper about replacing therapists, outsourcing friendship, or mass-producing compassion at scale. It is a careful demonstration that fluent, effortful, emotionally calibrated text is often enough to convince people they are being understood, which might explain some of the appeal of the Gurus.SourceOvsyannikova, D., de Mello, V. O., & Inzlicht, M. (2025). Third-party evaluators perceive AI as more compassionate than expert humans. Communications Psychology, 3(1), 4.Decoding Academia 34: Empathetic AIs?01:40 Introducing the Paper10:29 Study Methodology14:21 Chris's meaningful relationship with YouTube AI agent Bubbles16:23 Open Science Brownie Points17:50 Empathetic Prompt Engineering: Humans and AIs21:17 Study 1 and 231:35 Study 3 and 437:00 Study Conclusions42:27 Severe Hypothesis Testing45:11 Seeking out Disconfirming Evidence47:06 Why do AIs do better on negative prompts?54:48 Final Thoughts

12/02/2026 • 22:58

In this interview episode, we are joined by physicists Sam Gregson (Bad Boy of Science YouTube channel) and Tim Henke to examine the rise of science populism: a style of science communication that borrows the tactics of political populism, including grievance narratives, institutional distrust, and conspiratorial framing, while presenting its advocates as lone truth-tellers battling a corrupt academic elite.We discuss how DTG favourites like Sabine Hossenfelder and Eric Weinstein, as well as fresh new faces Brian Keating and Avi Loeb, deploy selective truths about physics to fuel self-aggrandising, anti-expert narratives.Along the way, we also cover stuff like why “physics hasn’t progressed in 50 years”, cranks are useful props for populist arguments, and the strange obsession with Nobel Prizes.If you are interested in guru dynamics, science communication, and physics crankery, this might be an episode for you.LinksBad Boy of Science (Sam Gregson)Tim's Profile WebsiteBad Boy of Science – The Rise of Physics PopulisersTheories of Everything (Kurt Jaimungal)Losing the Nobel Prize – Brian KeatingInto the Impossible (Brian Keating)Sabine Hossenfelder’s YouTube ChannelThe Portal (Eric Weinstein)The Galileo Project (Avi Loeb)Sean Carroll – Mindscape / Preposterous UniverseNot Even Wrong (Peter Woit)

09/02/2026 • 95:22

We descend once more into the Gurusphere, encountering secret peasant archmages, decline narratives, Epstein emails, and endless moral panics.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 37 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurus00:00 SM 44 PF00:23 Introduction01:30 Konstantin Kisin: Not Left Or Right, Just Right05:20 Boghossian is shocked by pessimistic French people08:50 Konstantin and Warren Smith as relics of the anti-SJW era12:45 A PSA! Hyper Capitalism Tier Update!18:36 Matt's AV Setup20:01 Recommendation: Successville (British version)21:40 My peasant farmer dad is secretly an Archmage!28:14 Scott Galloway talks with Gwyneth Paltrow40:18 American Capitalist Culture and the Gurus48:54 Bryan Johnson vs AG151:45 Bryan Johnson & Epstein Schmoozing58:09 Bari Weiss's Peter Attia Woes59:14 Epstein and QAnon Conspiracies01:03:23 Overinterpreting Epstein emails01:09:04 Shermer promotes Dave Rubin to hawk his book on Truth01:10:37 Conspiracy Theory prevalence on left and riht01:17:44 Jonathan Haidt and his anti-social media crusade01:23:15 Plato on the Corruption of the Youth01:24:30 The Eternal Appeal of Decline Narratives01:26:22 They won't let you enjoy things anymore...01:30:24 Matt's laissez-faire parenting tips01:31:45 Life lessons from Lord of the Rings01:34:17 The Witch King of Angmar defeated by a Woke White WomenSourcesKonstantin Kisin on not being left or rightBoghossian and Kisin bemoan civilisational decline narrativesThe Guardian on Bari Weiss’s new CBS “Podcastistan” hiresNiall Ferguson on how Trump “won Davos”The Guardian: Elon Musk had more extensive ties to Epstein than previously knownMy Farmer Dad Is Secretly an Archmage – viral short-form fantasy dramaBehind the Scenes of My Farmer Dad Is Secretly an ArchmageOriginal Chinese version of My Farmer Dad Is Secretly an Archmage (Destiny’s Keeper)Michael Shermer promoting Dave RubinMichael Shermer previously promoted Stefan MolyneuxBryan Johnson criticising AG1 (sort of)Miami Herald’s early investigative coverage of Jeffrey EpsteinEarly New York Magazine profile of Jeffrey Epstein (2002)Vanity Fair on Jeffrey Epstein and elite power networks (2003)New York Magazine on Epstein before the non-prosecution deal (2007)Michael Shermer on conspiracies and truth-seeking on The Rubin ReportHong (2026) on the cognitive foundations of decline narrativesNew York Times on Jonathan Haidt and new evidence on social mediaOliver Curry pushes back on Haidt’s claimsChris Ferguson responds critically to Haidt’s arguments

07/02/2026 • 32:31

In a rare departure from our usual diet of online weirdos, this episode features an academic who is very much not a guru. We’re joined by Julia Rohrer, a psychologist at Leipzig University whose work straddles the disciplinary boundaries of open science, research transparency, and causal inference. Julia is also an editor at Psychological Science and has spent much of the last decade politely pointing out that psychologists often don’t quite know what they’re estimating, why, or under which assumptions.We talk about the state of psychology after the replication crisis, whether open science reforms have genuinely improved research practice (or just added new boxes to tick), and why causal thinking is unavoidable even when researchers insist they are “only describing associations.” Julia explains why the standard dance of imply causality → deny causality → add boilerplate disclaimer is unhelpful, and argues instead for being explicit about the causal questions researchers actually care about and the assumptions required to answer them.Along the way we discuss images of scientists in the public and amongst the gurus, how post-treatment bias sneaks into even well-intentioned experimental designs, why specifying the estimand matters more than running ever-fancier models, and how psychology’s current norms can potentially punish honesty about uncertainty. We also touch on her work on birth-order effects and offer some possible reasons for optimism.With all the guru talk, people sometimes ask us to recommend things that we like, and Julia's work is one such example!LinksJulia Rohrer’s websiteThe 100% CI blogRohrer, J. M. (2024). Causal inference for psychologists who think that causal inference is not for them. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 18(3), e12948.Rohrer, J. M., Tierney, W., Uhlmann, E. L., DeBruine, L. M., Heyman, T., Jones, B., ... & Yarkoni, T. (2021). Putting the self in self-correction: Findings from the loss-of-confidence project. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 16(6), 1255-1269.Rohrer, J. M., Egloff, B., & Schmukle, S. C. (2015). Examining the effects of birth order on personality. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(46), 14224-14229.BEMC MAY 2024 - Julia Rohrer - "Causal confusions correlate with casual conclusions"Dr. Tobias Dienlin - Less casual causal inference for experiments and longitudinal data: Research talk by Julia Rohrer

30/01/2026 • 92:22

We crawl around the dark crevices of the internet so you don't have to. And what wonders we have to show you...The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 34 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusSupplementary Material 4300:00 Introduction and Banter Allotment01:23 The Hypocrisy of the Defenders of Western Civilisation10:07 An Optimistic Take?17:02 Scott Adams' Controversial Legacy18:43 Scott Alexander's Rationalist Eulogy for Scott Adams32:31 A Final Tribute to Scott Adams33:43 Andrew Gold's Interview with a Racist39:02 Fair Play for being a Racist41:17 Comparing Follower Counts and Audience Makeup44:40 Racism and Xenophobia Discussion49:07 Securing the Future of Our People...01:00:01 LawTubers and Grifting01:00:48 Legal Mindset01:06:02 Antifa Woke Women are Hunting Legal Mindset01:07:41 A man of Christ01:09:16 A Red-Blooded American01:12:35 Woke White Women and Antifa Paranoia01:13:55 Electro Gym Work and Pygmy Hippo Love01:18:47 Antifa Paranoia01:26:36 The True Masculine Renegade YouTuber01:32:32 Concluding Thoughts and FarewellLinksPeter Boghossian complaining about public attention to the Greenland situationMike Cernovich’s tribute: “Scott is loved because he’s devoted his life to service to humanity”In full: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speech at the World Economic Forum (Davos)Scott Alexander’s eulogy to Scott AdamsColeman Hughes on Scott Adams at The Free PressAndrew Gold – Heretics: “I Confront Britain’s Biggest Racist”Liam Tufts: “Would You Let Your Kid Date a Black Person?” | Steve Laws sparks a heated debateLegal Mindset: “Free Kaya, Punish Hasan” (Fast Facts)Rob’s Media: Idiot Influencers – Legal Mindset (Go East channel background)

24/01/2026 • 21:43

We return for Part 2 of our Scott Galloway deep dive, where the vibes remain strong, the confidence unwavering, and the relationship with empirical evidence increasingly… decorative.Returning to our Modern Wisdom safari, we continue navigating the forbidden terrain of men, masculinity, and male suffering: a topic so dangerous that it requires constant ritual disclaimers, whispered caveats, and the occasional nervous glance around the bar to make sure we can take out the other men if necessary.We cover Scott's outline of his masculine Third Way: rejecting both the Right’s “Bring Back the Fifties” masculinity and the Left’s “Men Are the Problem” framework, in favour of a solution that might be described as Stern Dad Who’s Also Nice About It. Prepare to thrill at proposals of mandatory national service, kindness as a masculine superpower, and the radical idea that young people might benefit from not being economically crushed.Things get spicier when we’re told what women really want and learn about the adaptive skill check of the female orgasm. Chris Williamson unveils a prepared essay on What Men Want which proves to be a moving piece of therapeutic slam poetry that somehow manages to combine manosphere grievance mongering with woke therapy talk. We learn how what men really just want to be told is “you are enough" and should be kind for kindness sake, but also should optimise their friend group such that they can properly signal their high mate quality and train hard enough to take out all other males in the bar.Finally, we hit peak Decoding Mode as Scott’s statistics begin to escalate: boys are ten times more likely to kill themselves, father absence turns sons into inmates, daughters into promiscuous approval-seekers, and nearly every claim is delivered with total confidence and minimal concern for effect sizes, confounds, or whether the study actually exists. Decorative scholarship is in full bloom.We do our best as two hyper-masculine men to separate reasonable concerns about boys, mentorship, and social policy from hyperbolic factoids, pop-psych inflation, and the familiar habit of smuggling moral arguments in under the banner of “what the science says.”Bring your hunting knife and stoic daily diary. Take your testosterone injection. And get ready for some man talk!LinksModern Wisdom: The War On Men Isn’t Helping Anyone - Scott GallowayThe Diary of a CEO: Scott Galloway: We’re Raising The Most Unhappy Generation In History! Hard Work Doesn't Build WealthAcademic papers/Sources ReferencedCulpin, I., Heuvelman, H., Rai, D., Pearson, R. M., Joinson, C., Heron, J., … Kwong, A. S. F. (2022). Father absence and trajectories of offspring mental health across adolescence and young adulthood: Findings from a UK-birth cohort. Journal of Affective Disorders, 314, 150–159.Dekker, M. C., Ferdinand, R. F., van Lang, N. D. J., Bongers, I. L., van der Ende, J., & Verhulst, F. C. (2007). Developmental trajectories of depressive symptoms from early childhood to late adolescence: Gender differences and adult outcome. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48(7), 657–666.Angelakis, I., Austin, J. L., & Gooding, P. (2020). Association of childhood maltreatment with suicide behaviors among young people: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA network open, 3(8), e2012563-e2012563.Zhang, L., Wang, P., Liu, L., Wu, X., & Wang, W. (2026). Different roles of child abuse and neglect on emerging adult's nonsuicidal self-injury and suicidal ideation: sex difference through emotion regulation. Current Psychology, 45(1), 56.Callanan, V. J., & Davis, M. S. (2012). Gender differences in suicide methods. Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 47(6), 857-869.Raposa, E. B., Rhodes, J., Stams, G. J. J. M., Card, N., Burton, S., Schwartz, S., … Hussain, S. (2019). The effects of youth mentoring programs: A meta-analysis of outcome studies. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48(3), 423–443. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-019-00982-8Lloyd, E. A. (2005). The case of the female orgasm: Bias in the science of evolution. Harvard University Press.King, R. (2024). Naturally Selective: Evolution, Orgasm, and Female Choice. CRC Press. (The researcher Chris Williamson is relying on)The Scottish Sun. (2025, February 17). Nearly six pubs closed each week last year with 4,500 jobs lost amid rising costs [News article]. The Scottish Sun. Retrieved from https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/money/14352624/uk-pubs-closed-last-year/Greater London Authority. (2025, February). London’s Night-Time Economy: Economy, Culture and Skills Committee report. Greater London Authority. 

23/01/2026 • 188:41

We dig deep into the online world to DO OUR OWN RESEARCH and return with horrors never dreamt of by man.The full episode is available to Patreon subscribers (1 hour, 23 minutes).Join us at: https://www.patreon.com/DecodingTheGurusSupplementary Material 4200:00 Introduction11:13 Rogan and Shane Gillis on Nick Fuentes vs Piers Morgan17:49 Jimmy Carr's Physics Insights24:00 The comedian shuffle25:12 Andrew Huberman teams up with Goop!30:41 Huberman injects his dog with testosterone.32:09 Bryan Johnson and the secret longevity of the penis35:41 The Science Behind Huberman's Careful Product Endorsements39:48 The Statistics of Home Alone41:22 Bryan Johnson's Love Tweet46:24 Bryan Johnson's horrible treatment of his ex-fiancée51:30 Andrea Botez and Influencer Health Research57:41 Bespoke Treatments with Medical AIs01:04:28 Self-Research, Stock Picking, and Gambling01:07:47 Health Systems and their imperfections01:12:37 Doing Your Own Research...01:17:38 Matt's Content Recommendations01:20:45 OutroLinksNYT – How Trump Fixed On a Maduro Loyalist as Venezuela’s New LeaderTriggernometry – “A Revolution is Coming!” – Jimmy CarrGQ – How Andrew Huberman, Goop Kitchen Collaborator, Is Staying Healthy in 2026Vanity Fair – Why Bryan Johnson, Dave Asprey, and the Other Longevity Bros Are Obsessed With PenisesLuis Batalha – Tweet on the “Home Alone” paperBryan Johnson – “Love” tweetAndrea Botez – Hearing Loss Update (YouTube)Substack – The Truth About Bryan Johnson (treatment of ex-fiancée)

08/01/2026 • 34:41

We return to the podcast circuit in 2026 to examine Scott Galloway: NYU professor, prolific podcaster, and, more recently, part-time life coach for struggling young men.Joining him on an episode of Modern Wisdom with Chris Williamson, we are invited into one of the few remaining forbidden conversational spaces: men, masculinity, and men’s problems. You may have been misled by the relentless popularity of Joe Rogan, Modern Wisdom, The Tucker Carlson Show, Triggernometry, The Diary of a CEO, Huberman Lab, and several dozen adjacent properties into thinking these topics are already discussed at length on a near-weekly basis. Alas, this turns out to be a dangerous illusion.In reality, even mentioning men’s issues requires an extended ritual acknowledgement of women, failure to perform which risks immediate cancellation. Braving these cultural headwinds, we wade into manly dialogue about masculinity, sex differences, and male malaise. Along the way, we ponder the intricacies of culture war evolutionary psychology, anthropological wars over Man the Hunter, optimised dosages for manly whingeing, and whether making boys learn French verb conjugations qualifies as a human rights abuse.So get your notebooks ready for some important notes from two of the most masculine men in the modern male podcasting space. Men...LinksModern Wisdom: The War On Men Isn’t Helping Anyone - Scott GallowayThe Diary of a CEO: Scott Galloway: We’re Raising The Most Unhappy Generation In History! Hard Work Doesn't Build WealthAcademic papers ReferencedChanges in gender-based hiring bias (large meta-analysis): Schaerer, M., Du Plessis, C., Nguyen, M. H. B., Van Aert, R. C., Tiokhin, L., Lakens, D., … Gender Audits Forecasting Collaboration. (2023). On the trajectory of discrimination: A meta-analysis and forecasting survey capturing 44 years of field experiments on gender and hiring decisions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 179, 104280.Epidemiology of alcohol use disorder by marital status (US, NESARC-III): Grant, B. F., Goldstein, R. B., Saha, T. D., et al. (2015). Epidemiology of DSM-5 Alcohol Use Disorder: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions III. JAMA Psychiatry, 72(8), 757–766.Protective effects of marriage on life expectancy (US Medicare sample): Jia, H., & Lubetkin, E. I. (2020). Life expectancy and active life expectancy by marital status among older US adults: Results from the US Medicare Health Outcome Survey (HOS). SSM – Population Health, 12, 100642.Widowhood and well-being (contrary to claims of increased happiness): Adena, M., Hamermesh, D., Myck, M., & Oczkowska, M. (2023). Home alone: Widows’ well-being and time. Journal of Happiness Studies, 24(2), 813–838.Meta-analysis of the widowhood effect on mortality (men and women): Shor, E., Roelfs, D. J., Curreli, M., Clemow, L., Burg, M. M., & Schwartz, J. E. (2012). Widowhood and mortality: A meta-analysis and meta-regression. Demography, 49(2), 575–606.Marriage and life satisfaction across the life course (multi-country): Mikucka, M. (2016). The life satisfaction advantage of being married and gender specialization. Journal of Marriage and Family, 78(3), 759–779.Marriage, children, and happiness (Note “very happy” vs “pretty happy”): Institute for Family Studies. Who is happiest? Married mothers and fathers, per the latest General Social Survey.Anthropology: “Man the Hunter” debateOriginal paper cited by Chris Williamson challenging the “Man the Hunter” narrative: Anderson, A., Chilczuk, S., Nelson, K., Ruther, R., & Wall-Scheffler, C. (2023). The Myth of Man the Hunter: Women’s contribution to the hunt across ethnographic contexts. PLoS ONE, 18(6), e0287101.Critical commentary on Anderson et al. (2023): Venkataraman, V. V., Hoffman, J., Farquharson, K., Davis, H. E., Hagen, E. H., Hames, R. B., … Stibbard-Hawkes, D. N. (2024). Female foragers sometimes hunt, yet gendered divisions of labor are real. Evolution and Human Behavior, 45(4), 106586.Another influential burial-based paper about female hunters in the early Americas: Haas, R., Jr., Watson, J., Buonasera, T., Southon, J., Chen, J. C., Noe, S., … Parker, G. (2020). Female hunters of the early Americas. Science Advances, 6(45), eabd0310.Critical commentary on over-interpretation of evidence cited for the depiction of gender parity in hunting: Martin, M., de la Mora, A. N., Valeggia, C., & Veile, A. (2024). Can women hunt? Yes. Did women contribute much to human evolution through endurance hunting? Probably not. American Anthropologist, 126(2), 365–369.Fertility & demographyShaw, S. J. (Director). (2022). Birthgap – Childless World.Critical fact-checking project responding to Birthgap claims: Birthgap Facts: Unplanned childlessness.Politics & fact-checkingPolitiFact on claims about abortion and vasectomies at party conventions: Ask PolitiFact: Are Democrats offering “free abortions and vasectomies” at their Chicago convention?Australian Labor Party policy platform: Our Plan.UK Labour Party policy platform: Plan for Change.

04/01/2026 • 171:19

In this festive descent into methodological despair, Chris and Matt convene a secret cabal of elite psychology podcasters within the Decoding Cloister, operating under the distant yet reassuring gaze of Arch-Wizard Paul Bloom, whose role is largely ceremonial but nonetheless morally binding.Joining them are Dave Pizarro (Very Bad Wizards) and Michael Inzlicht (Two Psychologists Four Beers, emeritus), for what can only be described as an end-of-year audit of social psychology’s moral character.What follows is a mixture of intense hubris, disciplinary self-loathing, and revolutionary insights, delivered via one of the most sadistic Christmas quizzes ever devised. The quiz format allows the episode to do what psychology does best: create the feeling of measurement while hovering dangerously close to intuition.Alongside the quiz, we engage in some meta-commentary and sensemaking reflections on audience capture and the state of psychology-themed podcasts in 2025. In other words, it’s Christmas, so naturally everyone is discussing perverse incentives, damaged reputations, and the slow moral corrosion of institutions.So join us, won’t you? For the first International Congress on Psychology-Themed Podcasting and Gurus…LinksMickey's SubstackMickey's Work and Play LabTwo Psychologists Four BeersVery Bad WizardsUhlmann, E. L., Pizarro, D. A., & Diermeier, D. (2015). A person-centered approach to moral judgment. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 10(1), 72-81.Ovsyannikova, D., de Mello, V. O., & Inzlicht, M. (2025). Third-party evaluators perceive AI as more compassionate than expert humans. Communications Psychology, 3(1), 4.ReferencesAlter, A. L., Oppenheimer, D. M., Epley, N., & Eyre, R. N. (2007). Overcoming intuition: Metacognitive difficulty activates analytic reasoning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 136(4), 569–576.Aarts, H., & Dijksterhuis, A. (2003). The silence of the library: Environment, situational norm, and social behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(1), 18–28.Zimbardo, P. G. (1973). On the ethics of intervention in human psychological research: With special reference to the Stanford Prison Experiment. Cognition, 2(2), 243–256.Resnick, B. (2018, June 13). The Stanford Prison Experiment was massively influential. We just learned it was a fraud. Vox.Festinger, L., Riecken, H. W., & Schachter, S. (1956). When prophecy fails. University of Minnesota Press.Bem, D. J. (2011). Feeling the future: Experimental evidence for anomalous retroactive influences on cognition and affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100(3), 407–425.Schimmack, U. (2018, January 20). My email correspondence with Daryl J. Bem about the data for his “Feeling the Future”. Replicability Index.Merton, R. K. (1973). The normative structure of science. In The sociology of science: Theoretical and empirical investigations (pp. 267–278). University of Chicago Press. (Original work published 1942).Hauser, M. (2012). Evilicious: Why we evolved a taste for being bad. Basic Books.Kay, A. C., Wheeler, S. C., Bargh, J. A., & Ross, L. (2004). Material priming: The influence of mundane physical objects on situational construal and competitive behavioral choice. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 95(1), 83–96.Macfarlane, B. (2024). The decay of Merton’s scientific norms and the new academic ethos. Oxford Review of Education, 50(4), 468–483.Vaidis, D. C., Sleegers, W. W. A., van Leeuwen, F., et al. (2024). A multilab replication of the induced-compliance paradigm of cognitive dissonance. Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science, 7(1).Kelly, T. (2026). Debunking “When Prophecy Fails”. Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences, 62(1), e70043.

25/12/2025 • 89:31

In this special Christmas episode, Helen’s annual Guru Quiz returns, lightly dusted with Trump, podcast tours, and the unsettling realisation that the Guru-sphere and the MAGA-sphere have quietly fused into a single, monetised, vibes-based organism. That's right, the regular decoding team are joined by renowned journalist, author, podcaster... and occasional DTG quiz master, Helen Lewis, who once again brings her festive cheer, an uncanny ability to identify exactly who will be unbearable next year, and a quiz designed to torture Matt.Points are awarded, dignity is lost, and Matt briefly considers revising for the quiz before remembering that preparation has never helped him before.The episode also covers MAGA and UK political manoeuvres, the movers and shakers of the Gurusphere in 2025, and a lament for the collapse of the ancient boundary between editorial content and hawking pants.So join us for a festive episode about gurus, geniuses, authoritarian comedy festivals, and the slow erosion of shame. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night... and that includes you, Bubbles!LinksHelen Lewis on SubstackHelen's Article on the Riyadh Comedy FestivalHelen's Article on Olivia Nuzzi's BookThe Genius MythThat Dave Chappelle picture

22/12/2025 • 86:32