Person
Every book Bret Weinstein recommended on podcasts
Bret Weinstein appears on discussion and interview podcasts to explore evolutionary biology, cultural evolution, scientific history, and systemic risks within modern institutions. As evident from his appearances, he frequently turns to foundational biological texts and economic warnings to frame his analyses. Weinstein has recommended David Rogers Webb's book The Great Taking, describing it as a very good and very scary short text that warns readers about vulnerabilities and risks hidden within the financial system. In discussions concerning evolutionary theory and the mechanisms of adaptive evolution, Weinstein frequently returns to Richard Dawkins's book The Selfish Gene. He has highlighted Dawkins's work as a major piece of theoretical progress in biology, specifically pointing to chapter eleven as the crucial point where the concept and terminology of the meme were introduced to set cultural evolution research in motion. Additionally, podcast hosts have referenced works tied to his topics of discussion, such as Rick Strassman's book DMT: The Spirit Molecule, when exploring the history of clinical studies and psychedelic research.
Books recommended by Bret Weinstein
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The Selfish Gene
The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins is a landmark popular science book that presents a gene-centric view of evolution and introduced the concept of the meme.
Discussed“Um the selfish gene provides us a mechanism. It's basically a synthesis of what we understand about adaptive evolution.”
Where to get it
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The Great Taking
The Great Taking is a short book by David Rogers Webb that examines systemic financial vulnerabilities and warns readers about potential risks embedded within the modern banking and legal structures governing property and securities.
Recommended“Have you ever read uh The Great Taking? No. Great Taking is a very good, very scary short book. David Webb is the author.”
Where to get it
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DMT: The Spirit Molecule
DMT: The Spirit Molecule by Rick Strassman is a groundbreaking non-fiction book that details the author's pioneering, FDA-approved clinical studies on dimethyltryptamine at the University of New Mexico during the 1990s.
Discussed“but they have been able to through the Cottonwood Research Foundation which all started from the work of dr. Rick Strassman out of the University of New Mexico who wrote a book called DMT the spirit molecule which was one of the very first times where the DEA allowed them to do clinical studies on people with intravenous dimethyltryptamine”
Where to get it
Books Bret Weinstein wrote
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| #2427 - Bret Weinstein | The Joe Rogan Experience | 2025-12-17 | 2 |
| Bret Weinstein: Life After Evergreen, Evolutionary Biology, and Gender | The Rubin Report | 2018-11-19 | 3 |
| #1055 - Bret Weinstein | The Joe Rogan Experience | 2017-12-19 | 1 |
Other mentions (2: passing, ad reads, own books)
“What has happened to us that has created the growing, spreading, morphing dystopia is a process that Heather and I in our book, A Hunter Gather's Guide to the 21st Century, call hyper novelty.”
“what Heather and I argued in our book is that there is a flip-flop between two modes of uh cognitive functioning for humans”