0006 - Abegg's rule of eight (Chemistry) - Professor Justin "JD" Combs (Religious Studies)

In this sixth episode, Robert and guest Justin "JD" Combs, a professor of religious studies and musician, discuss Abegg’s Rule of Eight. Though rooted in the chemistry of valency, they translate this mathematical need for stability into a philosophical meditation on tension, arguing that a perfectly stable person, like a perfectly stable atom, stops reacting and essentially disappears from a dynamic world. They examine the "deep and dark" realities of generational trauma and addiction recovery, sharing raw stories of growing up with fathers who struggled with heroin, alcohol, and methamphetamines, JD’s research into Paganism, Druidism, and nature-based spirituality as a response to a scientific Western mindset. They navigate the shifting resonance of music, from the technical mastery of Eddie Van Halen and Stevie Ray Vaughan to the visceral energy of a Rage Against the Machine pit, and explores concepts like Zen Buddhism, quantum entanglement, and the liberation theology of the Black and Latino church through the lens of personal grit and the struggle to remain "spiritually mature" in a world of uncertainty.

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