Episode · Lex Fridman Podcast · 2022-05-08
Books mentioned on #283 – Chris Mason: Space Travel, Colonization, and Long-Term Survival in Space
Chris Mason is a professor of genomics, physiology, and biophysics at Cornell, doing research on the long-term effects of space on the human body. He is the author of The Next 500 Years: Engineering Life to Reach New Worlds.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Precipice
The Precipice by Toby Ord is an influential examination of existential risks and the long-term future of humanity, assessing the various perils that could threaten civilization.
Recommended“Tony Orb has a great book about this called the precipice where he the precipice for humanity is at one point we made technologies that we weren't sure whether or not they would destroy the earth or the entire universe”
Where to get it
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Reasons and Persons
Reasons and Persons by Derek Parfit is a landmark 1984 work of analytic philosophy that challenges conventional notions of personal identity, rationality, and ethics across generations.
Recommended“Derek Parie wrote this great book called reasons and persons about how you really define an individual is not just your own thoughts and your own selfreflection but we're almost he argues more defined by how other people have se”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
Passing Solaris
“And now, let me leave you with some words from Stannislav Lem and Solaris. Man has gone out to explore other worlds and other civilizations without having explored his own labyrinth”