The Skeptics Society & Skeptic magazine


banner

The Michael Shermer Show

A series of conversations between Dr. Michael Shermer and leading scientists, philosophers, historians, scholars, writers and thinkers about the most important issues of our time.

Watch or listen here or on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, and TuneIn.

EPISODE # 333

Kevin Kelly — ChatGPT, OpenAI, and Excellent Advice for Living

Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier (book cover)

On his 68th birthday, Kevin Kelly began to write down for his young adult children some things he had learned about life that he wished he had known earlier. To his surprise, Kelly had more to say than he thought, and kept adding to the advice over the years, compiling a life’s wisdom into the pages of his book: Excellent Advice for Living.

Shermer and Kelly discuss:

  • protopian progress (one step at a time)
  • ChatGPT
  • artificial intelligence and natural intelligence
  • Is evolution progressive?
  • Is cultural progress real?
  • AI as an existential threat
  • self-driving cars
  • creativity and innovation
  • social media and what to do about it
  • how humanity can put an end to war
  • compound interest and the long term effect of small changes
  • why you don’t want to be a billionaire
  • money and happiness
  • why money is overrated
  • reasoning people out of beliefs they didn’t reason their way into
  • setting unreasonable goals
  • persistence as the key to success
  • what might not be true 100 years from now
  • study probabilities and statistics, not algebra and calculus
  • investing: buy and hold
  • getting cheated occasionally is ok
  • how to fully become yourself.

Kevin Kelly helped launch and edit Wired magazine. He has written for the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, among many other publications. His previous books include What Technology Wants, and The Inevitable, a New York Times bestseller. He is known for his technological optimism. Currently he is a Senior Maverick at Wired and lives in Pacifica, California.

About the Book

Kelly’s timeless advice covers an astonishing range, from right living to setting ambitious goals, optimizing generosity, and cultivating compassion. He has wisdom for career, relationships, parenting, and finances, and gives guidance for practical matters ranging from travel to troubleshooting. Excellent Advice for Living is aimed primarily at young people, but speaks to all ages. This is the ideal companion for anyone seeking to navigate life with grace and creativity.

If you enjoy the podcast, please show your support by making a $5 or $10 monthly donation.

This episode was released on March 18, 2023.

Donate
For those seeking a sound scientific viewpoint

Newsletter

Be in the know!

Subscribe to eSkeptic: our free email newsletter and get great podcasts, videos, reviews and articles from Skeptic magazine, announcements, and more in your inbox once or twice a week.

Sign me up!

Copyright © 1992–2023. All rights reserved. | 3938 State St., Suite # 101, Santa Barbara, CA, 93105-3114 | 1-805-576-9396. The Skeptics Society is a non-profit, member-supported 501(c)(3) organization (ID # 95-4550781) whose mission is to promote science & reason. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Privacy Policy.