Episode · Dwarkesh Podcast · 2022-08-03
Dwarkesh Patel & Joseph Carlsmith: books mentioned on Dwarkesh Podcast
Joseph Carlsmith - Utopia, AI, & Infinite Ethics
Joseph Carlsmith is a senior research analyst at Open Philanthropy and a doctoral student in philosophy at the University of Oxford. We discuss utopia, artificial intelligence, computational power of the brain, infinite ethics, learning from the fact that you exist, perils of futurism, and blogging.
Joseph Carlsmith recommended The Precipice by Toby Ord, Angels in America by Tony Kushner and others, and Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson, and discussed A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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A Swim in a Pond in the Rain
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain by George Saunders is a critically acclaimed book in which the celebrated author and teacher analyzes classic Russian short stories by writers like Chekhov and Tolstoy to explore both the craft of writing and the nature of human thought.
Discussed“I was recently reading this book um George Saunders who I think the writer I really admire has this uh book about fiction writing called uh swim in the pond in the rain um and the vibe uh he tries to convey”
Where to get it
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The Precipice
The Precipice by Toby Ord is a comprehensive examination of existential risks and the future of humanity, assessing the various perils that could threaten the survival of civilization.
Recommended“probably my primary recommendation that this is somewhat self-serving because I helped with this this project is the book The precipice by Toby ORD um I you know maybe familiar to many many of your listeners”
Where to get it
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Angels in America
Angels in America by Tony Kushner is a monumental two-part theatrical play that examines the AIDS epidemic, politics, and identity in 1980s America.
Recommended“I I love the Play Angels in America um I think it's just I think it's a epic and amazing um and you know that's not quite a book but um you know you can read it”
Where to get it
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Housekeeping
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson is a celebrated debut novel that explores themes of grief, transience, and the profound, haunting isolation experienced by two orphaned sisters raised by eccentric relatives in a remote Idaho town.
Recommended“and then uh I don't know uh last last year I read I read this book housekeeping by um by Marilyn Robinson and and uh it had this sort of numinous uh quality that um I think a lot of her writing does”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“and that's the perspective from which you would endorse uh in endorse this situation I see um and then yeah so another respect in which uh it's interesting to think about what they might think of us is you know like what will they think of the crazy risk we're taking”